Mark Whitla’s Mk1 Ford Capri has broken two records in the final minutes of Drag Challenge 2023,
lighting up the Dragway at The Bend with a stonking 6.91@208mph. It’s both the first six-second pass and first 200mph pass in Drag Challenge history, giving Whitla exclusive first access to the Six Second and 200mph clubs. Entrants must run a six second pass or 200mph (or both) and complete the event to earn the hats.

Speaking to Mark only moments after the pass, he was beyond stoked with the result. “We knew it
had it in it, but you still have to do it,” he says. “We built it to run sixes, we just had to get there.”
The six-second pass followed a string of low-seven-second passes throughout the day, having earlier landed a 7.4 and a 7.2. “After the 7.2 we added more boost, added some timing and took some fuel out,”
says Mark. “I’d been praying to run our first six at Drag Challenge, so I couldn’t be happier.”

While Mark has the glory of the six-second pass at the end of the week, the Capri sure made him
earn it. “It’s been a super-challenging week for us, but that’s all part of it,” he says. One of those
challenges was when the rear of the car caught fire after a pass at Mildura. Believe it or not, the car
then went on to run a four-second pass over the eighth-mile strip.

Mark was often one of the last to leave each track, not prepared to hit the road until he got the
number he was chasing. “We never give up, we’ll only stop when the rods come out!” he says.

The pass reset the quickest and fastest pass DC records for the third time over thhis week, Mark Drew in the Crusty LH Torana having thrown down two record-setters earlier on. The first of Drewy’s was a 7.19@197mph, followed by two four-second passes at Mildura’s eighth-mile, and a 7.07@196mph today.

Drewy pips Whitla for the overall win at Drag Challenge 2023, thanks to his consistently faster pace throughout the week. Whitla takes home the TurboSmart Outlaw Blown choccies for the second time, along with his two hats, and Quickest Without a Trailer.

We’ll have a full winners list for each class shortly!