Buzzing crowds, controlled chaos, and petrolfuelled passion—that’s Fryday in a nutshell. Queensland Raceway transformed into petrolhead paradise, as Fryday #17 roared to life at the famous “Paper Clip” circuit. Brought together by HiOctane Motorsports, the fullday automotive festival delivered everything fans could want: family cruising, thrash sessions, roll racing, skidding, drifting, and trade stalls. Gates swung open at 6 am, and the action didn’t stop until the rain set in late in the afternoon, with every minute packed with highoctane thrills.

Event promoter, Ryan Cobb looked relatively relaxed as his super competent team ushered drivers to the starting line with a cornucopia of cars packed to the brim with big kids and little kids of all ages. With 17 Frydays over the last 5 years and more than a decade in the driver’s seat as boss, Ryan and the team have delivered more than 130 events for rev heads along the East coast. “Our fundamentals always were to make it family friendly and give plenty of track time, so entrants get value for money, and we keep doing that show after show.” The family cruise allows children as young as 5 to share their parent’s joy for a lap of the track and there were plenty of laps to be had.

Fryday #17 wasn’t just an event—it was a rolling showcase of everything modifiedcar culture stands for in 2025. As for atmosphere? Imagine the scent of hot rubber in the Queensland air, punctuated by engine roars, cheers, and the occasional applause when a skid went off in spectacular fashion. More than 170 machines including finely tuned Euros and beastly stanced JDMs mingled with musclecar veterans, parents lounged under canopies with young kids in tow, and car nuts roamed the hill, camera in hand.

OzWheels were on site for their invitational session showcasing a diverse array of cars including the “MAD INDN” Corvette burnout slammer, the stable of BTuned Euros, some tough Toranas and a little JDM with an R35 and a S15. Unfortunately, the invitational session didn’t go ahead due to moistness on the track, but the team still had a blast with their mates handing out free die cast model cars to the kids and showcasing some of the real cars that will soon be immortalised in the model series. We expect to see them back bigger and better than ever with Smoke Bomba for Frydays 18 in November.

With entrants from Cairns to Newcastle making the trek, the show provided a flavour of car for every appetite. The Euros were represented with plenty of BMWs, Mercedes and an Aston Martin. The JDM crowd loved the drift pad and sliding around in the rain on the main track. Aussie muscle was everywhere to be seen with big blown chrome bumpers and the newer super tough Commodores and Falcons. Rounding out the field were the Yank Tanks with Mustangs, aggressively loud Corvettes like the “Mad Indian”, and one super tough Mr Norty, Chevy Yenko Nova.

The big Yenko headed out for the first Thrash session but only did a few laps before being piloted back to the pits for some tweaking. Mr Norty Boyz himself, Cameron took the wheel of the new machine which replaces his well known Norty Capri. Heading out for a demo skid, the big Nascar donk played all of the tunes with all of the revs, putting on a show for the crowd until a loud bang destroyed the fun.

The gear box exploded shooting shards of housing through the belly of the beast narrowly missing Cameron’s foot and disintegrating across the tarmac. Cameron assures us Mr Norty the Yenko will be back for the next big QR event in September.

Fryday #17 reinforced Frydays status as an epicentre of Queensland’s modified car community. It delivered high adrenaline entertainment without compromising safety or family appeal. Whether you came to thrash, drift, cruise, watch, or just breathe the smoke-laden air, it was a day built for car lovers of all ages.