More information on the upcoming Motorama Custom Car & Motorsports Expo — including details on a guest appearance by superstar NHRA Funny Car racer Ron Capps!….

Traditionally, the dates for the Motorama Custom Car & Motorsports Expo presented by Mothers have conflicted with the schedule for the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. But not this year.

Taking full advantage of the opportunity, the show’s organizers are excited to announce that Ron Capps, one of the winningest racers in the history of the NHRA, will be appearing at the Toronto Motorama show.

Backed by NAPA since 2008, the Carlsbad, California resident was the NHRA Funny Car World Champion in 2016. During his incredible career, he’s finished second in the Funny Car points on five occasions, most recently in 2017. He entered the 2018 season with a whopping 55 career NHRA FC wins – second only to John Force in that category – and has made 110 Final Round appearances during his 500-plus career starts.

Currently in his 14th season driving for the powerful Don Schumacher Racing team, Capps’ best-ever quarter-mile Elapsed Time (ET) was a 3.839 second run, and his career best speed was 333.58 miles per hour.

When he’s not driving the NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T, the married father of two enjoys golf, rock music, racquetball and acting. Capps also enjoys other forms of racing, including piloting Sprint Cars, go-karts and even computer racing games.

Capps jokes that he was going to drag races before he was born. His parents met at a drag race and his mom was still attending events while pregnant with Ron.

“I’m really looking forward to coming to the Toronto Motorama show and meeting with Canadian drag racing fans; I know there are a lot of them up there. I’ll be there March 10 & 11 signing autographs, taking pictures and talking racing with the fans,” said Capps, who currently sits second in the NHRA Funny Car points and will be heading to the Gatornationals, in Gainesville, Florida, within days of his appearance at Motorama.

Speaking on be half of the show, Greg MacPherson said, “When we found out that Ron Capps was available to come to Motorama, we jumped at the opportunity. He’s one of the most successful and popular racers in the history of drag racing and I know our showgoers are going to enjoy meeting him on March 10 & 11 at The International Centre.”

ABOUT RON CAPPS: The native Californian who lives near San Diego, enters 2018 in his 11th season with NAPA, and 14th with Don Schumacher Racing. Capps ranks second in all-time Funny Car wins with 55. He is one of 16 drivers in NHRA history to have won in both of drag racing’s premier categories (he has one Top Fuel victory in addition to his FC wins). You can follow Ron Capps on Facebook at RonCappsFC, on Twitter at RonCapps28 and on Instagram at roncapps28.

Ron Capps

SEMA & DRAG WEEK FEATURE CARS TO MAKE INAUGURAL CANADIAN APPEARANCES

One of the most popular characteristics of the Motorama Custom Car & Motorsports Expo Presented by Mothers is the way it showcases so many incredible Canadian built and owned vehicles. Representing the entire spectrum of automotive and racing creations, many of these homegrown cars are crafted with an eye to unveiling them at Motorama.

And while that tradition continues at the 4th annual Toronto Motorama show, Show Car Coordinator Gary Challice has also incorporated eight truly outstanding machines – several of which were featured at the recent SEMA show in Las Vegas – into the 2018 Motorama collection.

Mike Heim – B52 Studebaker!

The Motorama show takes place March 9, 10 & 11, filling more than 300,000 square feet of Toronto’s International Centre, across from Pearson Airport.

Three of these special vehicles were purpose-built for the unique and world famous Drag Week competition. Included in this list of straight-line racing cars is a 1957 Chevy that comes courtesy of legendary builder Jeff Lutz, from Callery, Pennsylvania.
The multi-time Drag Week champ is also a fixture on ‘the list’ on the popular TV drag racing show Street Outlaws.

Toronto’s David Schroeder will bring be bringing a pair of his Drag Week vehicles to Motorama. His original 1955 Chevy will sit alongside of his stunning 1966 Corvette, which won the Unlimited Class at the 2017 edition of Drag Week.

To give context to the display, Schroeder will also display the small trailer that the Corvette towed from track-to-track, around the US Midwest, en route to earning the prestigious title.

David Schroeder 66 Drag Week winning Corvette

Drag Week regulations specify that all of the vehicles in competition must be street legal and are to be driven on public roads to their racing destinations – with their tools and equipment in tow.

The five other feature vehicles were hand-picked by Challice from a line-up of examples that have appeared at SEMA or at the National Street Rod Association (NSRA) Nationals in Louisville, Kentucky.

“These cars represent the work of the next general of builders,” said Challice. “Each car is unique and we know they’ll be sought out and appreciated by custom car fans.”

In no particular order, here are Challice’s choices for inclusion in the 2018 Motorama show. Ty Hauer, who is the Operations Manager for the renowned Reisinger Custom Car & Hot Rod shop in Evansville, Indiana, will bring two examples of his work to Motorama.

Both cars have appeared on the cover of Street Rodder magazine. ‘Senorita’ is a 1929 Ford roadster, and she will be appearing alongside her compatriot, ‘V-Doce’, a 1931 Ford Coupe with a blown Lincoln V12. The latter is Hauer’s most recent SEMA entry.

Pennsylvania’s Mike Heim will also be represented at the show, sharing the Motorama spotlight with his outrageous 1967 Camaro, branded ‘Stress’. Boasting suicide doors and an eye-grabbing grey and neon green paint job, show visitors will notice that the car has been lowered dramatically. It’s also been stretched in order to accommodate the LS-derived V12 powerplant.

Mike Heim’s “Stress” V12-powered Camaro

And if you’re looking for something even more outlandish, there’s Anton Lanesky’s B52 Studebaker. Based on a 1950 Studebaker Starlite Coupe, the green colour scheme does little to camouflage the bullet nose, wide hips and hefty rear wing of this street legal, Pro Mod race car.

This car caught Challice’s eye at the 2016 edition of SEMA and it was featured in the Builder’s Showcase at the 2017 NSRA Nationals in Kentucky. This military-themed car will definitely be a showstopper at Motorama.

Last, but not least, is Eddie Pettus’s 1963 Corvette. A part of the Builder’s Build-Off at SEMA, ‘Split Second’ was a top ten finisher in the 2017 show competition. This car will demand a second look to see the refined details of the construction.

“We have so many amazing vehicles on display, it’s very hard to highlight just a few,” concluded Challice. “These cars, I guess, can be described as our guests, but there will be so many unique vehicles, including those in our ‘Barn Finds’ display, that Motorama show visitors will have a tough time deciding on their personal favourite.”

ABOUT THE MOTORAMA CUSTOM CAR & MOTORSPORTS EXPO: The fourth annual Motorama Custom Car & Motorsports Expo Presented by Mothers takes place March 9, 10 & 11, 2018 at The International Centre, across from Toronto’s Pearson International Airport. The show features more than 300,000 square feet of custom cars, hot rods, racing vehicles of all kinds, tuners, displays and exhibitors. Motorama is Canada’s biggest late-winter celebration of automobiles and motorsports.

For information about the show, including tickets, sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities, and more, call (416) 962-7223, email info@MotoramaShow.com or visit www.MotoramaShow.com.

Posted by Greg McPherson