PROCHARGED PRIZE FIGHTER

DAN SZABOLICS’S NEW PROCHARGED, PRO LINE-POWERED RADIAL ROCKET IS READY TO GO ROUNDS WITH THE BEST

DANIEL Szabolics has taken to drag racing like a ravenous redneck to a rack of ribs. There’s just no stopping this guy. Aside from his twin-turbo big block-powered HQ Monaro (SM, Dec ’19), which holds the Drag Challenge records for both quickest ET and fastest speed (7.35sec and 197mph, respectively), Dan has had some impressive cars in his shed since his first trip down the strip just a few years ago.

The latest is a state-of-the-art, 564ci Pro Linepowered, Jerry Bickel-built 2018 Camaro ZL1 Pro Mod that’s aimed at radial racing Down Under.

Dan is a man of few words and not one to brag or talk himself up, but he’s clearly excited about this new deal. “We’re going to rattle the cage in radial racing for a bit,” he laughs.

By “we”, Dan means himself, his dad Wally and engine guru Frank Marchese from Dandy Engines. The boys threw their collective hat into the radial ring last year with a ProCharged, Hemiheaded Pro Line-powered Firebird. That car ran a best of 3.88 to the eighth mile at just its second meeting, before running 3.90 (despite downforce issues) at its next outing at a Kenda 660 round at Willowbank. The team were confident it could break into the 3.7s; unfortunately, COVID then put the kibosh on good, clean fun.