More Proud Canadian drag racing names set to enter into CMHF….
Coming next week — as part of the annual Canadian International Auto Show at Toronto — will be the 2026 induction ceremony for the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame — taking centre stage.
There are three extremely high profile and impactful Canadian drag racers on the elite listing — set to join 16 other Canadian Motorsports legends being inducted.
Everyone at DragRaceCanada congratulates our very good friends and long time supporters – Rob Atchison, Al Billes and Rob Reeves!
Drag Racing Class of 2025
Rob Atchison (London ON): is no stranger to success in the world of drag racing. Atchison raced an Alcohol Funny Car in the IHRA/Hooters Series, where he won six of 11 IHRA National Events in 2003. He added two runner-up finishes and was the No. 1 qualifier in nine events, while also setting seven IHRA track records. His 32 wins to 5 losses gave him an .865 win percentage that season.
Atchison set a track and career record 5.727 ET, at a career-best 242.78 mph., at the 2003 Mopar Canadian Nationals. He qualified No. 1 at the World Finals at Rockingham Dragway, where he clinched the 2003 IHRA World Championship.
Rob Atchison’s truly remarkable successful drag racing career came mostly from the cockpit of his series of Alcohol Funny Cars.
Atchison’s dominance didn’t end there. He had three wins and five runner-up finishes in 12 IHRA National Events in 2004, where he was the No. 1 qualifier on nine occasions. He became the first IHRA Funny Car driver to go to eight finals in consecutive years and won the 2004 IHRA Funny Car championship.
In 2005, Atchison went to eight finals for the third straight year, while tying the record for most wins in a season, with seven. He was the No. 1 qualifier in eight events and went on to win his third-consecutive IHRA Funny Car title. He set an IHRA ET record of 5.685 seconds that season and was voted Pro Driver of the Year by DragRaceCanada fans.
Atchison finished top-three in IHRA points over the next three seasons. He later switched rides, winning the 2011 PMRA Pro Mod Rookie of the Year and the 2014 IHRA Pro Mod Ironman, at the Mopar Canadian Nationals.
Closer to home, he won the 2014 NDRA Labour Day event at Toronto Motorsports Park (TMP). He also won the inaugural race and went on to win the inaugural championship in the 2015 NAPA/Autopro Ultimate Showdown in his Pro Mod
Al Billes (Barrie ON) — An accomplished drag racer and engine builder/tuner, Al Billes has found success on the sport’s biggest stage, recording 50 major drag racing wins at events across North America, including in NHRA competition at Indianapolis.
Billes caught the racing bug at a young age, growing up around cars at his dad’s engine shop and building his first car at 15-years-old.
As a driver, Billes got behind-the-wheel for the first time in 1985, starting a long career that included numerous IHRA and NHRA wins in Pro Mod and Alcohol Funny Car competition. He recorded several top-10 championship points finishes in IHRA, where he was voted Most Improved Pro Driver in 2002. His dragster was the best engineered car in 1991 and 2003, while he also set numerous national ET and mph. records over his career.
Al Billes – widely regarded as one of drag racing most creative minds.
Billes ultimately took over his family’s business, where he’s found success as a builder. His cars have set approximately 15 national records at NHRA, IHRA and PDRA events, winning two IHRA championships and one PDRA title.
He’s managed major international drag racing teams in the U.S., while working for teams nationally in the U.S., Australia and the U.A.E.
As a driver – one of Al Billes’s most memorable wins came on Canadian soil at the IHRA’s Mopar Canadian Nationals in Pro Mod @ Grand Bend in 2003.
Billes’ racing components and technology have been used with national success in drag racing. His time as a driver led to working with multi-time NHRA Funny Car champion Bob Newberry on various projects over the years. He continues to operate Al Billes Racing Ltd., formerly Performance Engineering Ltd., in Barrie, ON. He’s also currently involved in amateur sports car races, where he holds a SCCA competition licence.
He was inducted into the Canadian Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 2017 and now joins his dad David Billes as a CMHF inductee.
Robert Reeves (Edmonton AB) — played a significant role in growing the Edmonton, AB racing scene, operating a multi-track facility for more than two decades. Reeves started out as a driver at Capital City Raceway, winning Sprint Car Rookie of the Year in 1995, before purchasing the facility in September 1997. The property, which featured a drag strip and clay oval, was re-named Labatt Raceway, becoming the first regional motorsport venue in North America to use a title sponsor as its name.
Going through a few re-brands before its current RAD Torque Raceway name, Reeves was at the helm through the venue’s expansion efforts. The drag strip hosted the first Canadian IHRA National event in 2003, with the series returning through 2013, while the oval hosted the World of Outlaws Sprint Car International Series from 2007 to 2016. A new track was added in 2013, with the creation of a 14-turn, 2.7 km. road course.
Rob Reeves (showed with wife Kimberley) played an instrumental part in bringing major league IHRA drag racing to Western Canada for the first time – at Edmonton 2003.
Reeves helped develop safety education initiatives over the years, including a weekly program fostering responsible street legal racing for young people, in association with Edmonton Police Services and the RCMP. A junior dragster program was created to help foster respect for automobiles and safe driving skills for kids aged 7-17; a drifting program was created for young and enthusiastic drivers; and the Embracing New Roads program was developed with Edmonton Police to promote road traffic safety for high school students.
Rob Reeves will join fellow Canadian drag racing legend Terry Capp into the CMHF — Capp was inducted in 2001.
Additionally, Reeves helped launch the Top Eliminator Club, Open Lapping and Motorcycle Track Attack programs. He also led charitable efforts, with $125,000 in product in kind and cash donations distributed to groups in the community. His work at RAD Torque Raceway earned him several awards over the years from various organizations. Reeves sold the facility in 2023 but remains active in motorsports as a road racer and as a Top Dragster team owner for his son Chevy.
Posted with files by CMHF & Bruce Biegler
DragRaceCanada File Photos by Bruce Biegler
Link to the Canadian Motorsports Hall of Fame official: HERE
