NHRA wants everyone to have a sponsor to pay for your stuff and then they keep the money earned from the events. Which makes it difficult for every racer who runs the circuit.
Not for Profit organization.
Good luck getting some of the contingency money too. Racers spend a lot of time on the phone tracking down those 250-500 or so bucks when you win a race. Its bull shit.
Its one thing to get paid from running a Holley EFI system or Moser rear end etc. But the NHRA really should be paying these guys.
I know years ago, to run a nitro car cost damn near 10 grand per pass!! The total purse for Top Fuel is 44k per race!!!
And then they wonder why car count is down?
Drag racing IMO is just a popular as ever. Check out the following for Street Outlaws or 1320 Video or all these Drag and Drive events. When the professionals become an elitist class, the masses move to something else.