good points gil
dragsters are inherently harder to change combos. the changes you have to make to door car chassis to make major class changes is small relative to what you have to do to a dragster.
my car owner harry clack has told me there was alot of differences in the b/ed and c/ed chassis he used to build. overall length, motor location, angle all were different based on the hp. i'm sure a stick chassis is going to be different as well.
so if auto dragster classes come out, a guy with a current b/ed can run b/ed, run b/d with no changes, or put two carbs on, or clutch/trans., b/da he can also run b/da with the two carbs and the auto. usually a backhalf for an auto car won't accomodate a clutch/stick trans. you can still jump over to b/d with the auto, if the index is favorable. or you can build a car with the motor out far enough.
let's not forget about the planetary classes...so there's a possibility of b/dp.
now here's where i'm going to have to get some input from current dragster guys....can you play with weight enough to jump from a to b or b to c or c to d, etc, and run competitive numbers?
it looks to me the most a guy could jump classes with the same chassis would be 4 in a dragster.
money doesn't neccesarily guarantee wins. money in the right hands is dangerous. i don't mean to downplay the skill of racers like brogdon, taylor, butner, etc., but money in the right hands is really dangerous. brogdon is a good driver, and he's smart enough to hire the right people. butner's the same way.
when you got a big budget, it's your job to make that budget work to it's fullest extent under the rules. right now the rules allow you to run alot of classes with a supermod, so if you want to win the championship, and you have the budget, that's what it takes. just like a big poker game, if you got a big stack, it's your job to use that stack to keep the short stack from 'limping in'.
it's up to nhra to create an environment where it's easier for the mid budget teams to compete.
the line has been drawn in the sand. an already expensive class is getting more expensive.
so the first thing i'm for is two classes a year. you beat up one, you get one more.
if the door car guys get auto classes and planetary classes, i'm all for the dragsters getting them as well.
i think class limitations will promote diversity in comp. diversity is what keeps it interesting.