Style Guide
NHRA Communications Dept.
STYLE GUIDE
-AAA-
AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals
AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals
AARWBA American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association
ACCUS Automobile Competition Committee of the United States
Members include NHRA, NASCAR, CART, IRL, USAC and
SCCA.
aftermarket One word. The market for parts and accessories used in the
repair or enhancement of an automobile.
Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals
annual An event cannot be described as annual until it has been held
in at least two successive years; Never use first-annual, use
inaugural
automaker
Auto Club NHRA Finals
Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award
-BBB-
backpedaled
backup As in backup car, referring to a spare car.
Big Go Slang name for U.S. Nationals; no quotes
Big Three Automakers General Motors, Ford, Chrysler
bite Jargon referring to adhesion of a tire to the racing surface.
Bondo Brand of body filler. Capitalize.
bracket racing Popular type of handicap racing where each competitor uses
a dial-in or performance prediction.
break out (v.), breakout (n.) Occurs when competitor has run quicker
than his dial-in time.
burndown Occurs when two competitors purposely delay the staging
process.
burn out (v.), burnout (n.) Spinning the tires prior to the start of a drag
race to increase tire temperature and
improve traction.
bye When a racer has no competition due to short field or a
no-show.
-CCC-
Cacklefest NHRA trademark. Line of nostalgia dragsters at starting
line with engines running.
car length Two words.
career-best Use hyphen.
carmaker, carmakers
centerline One word.
chassis The plural of chassis is chassis.
Chevrolet Official truck of the NHRA
Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals
Christmas Tree The electronic device incorporating calibrated lights
used to start a drag race.
clutch disc Not disk.
Countdown to the Championship
cubic centimeters Engine displacement, usually written as cc on every
reference with no periods or spaces.
cid Cubic inches of displacement (lower case, no
periods). Used with a hyphen, e.g., 500-cid.
crew chief
crewmember
-DDD-
datelines Datelines on stories should contain a city name,
entirely in capital letters, followed in most cases by
the name of the state, country or territory where the
city is located.
No state abbreviation with the following:
ATLANTA
BALTIMORE
BOSTON
CHICAGO
CINCINNATI
CLEVELAND
DALLAS
DENVER
DETROIT
HOLLYWOOD
HONOLULU
INDIANAPOLIS
LAS VEGAS
LOS ANGELES
MIAMI
MILWAUKEE
MINNEAPOLIS
NEW ORLEANS
NEW YORK
OKLAHOMA CITY
PHILADELPHIA
PHOENIX
PITTSBURGH
SEATTLE
ST. LOUIS
SALT LAKE CITY
SAN ANTONIO
SAN DIEGO
SAN FRANCISCO
Stories from all other U.S. cities should have both
the city and state name in the dateline, including
KANSAS CITY, Mo. and KANSAS CITY, Kan.
Several states do not use abbreviations. Abbreviate all others.
Alabama -- Ala.
Alaska -- Alaska
Arizona -- Ariz.
Arkansas -- Ark.
California -- Calif.
Colorado -- Colo.
Connecticut -- Conn.
Delaware -- Del.
Florida -- Fla.
Georgia -- Ga.
Hawaii -- Hawaii
Illinois -- Ill.
Idaho -- Idaho
Indiana -- Ind.
Iowa -- Iowa
Kansas -- Kan.
Kentucky -- Ky.
Louisiana -- La.
Maryland -- Md.
Maine -- Maine
Massachusetts -- Mass.
Michigan -- Mich.
Minnesota -- Minn.
Mississippi -- Miss.
Missouri -- Mo.
Montana -- Mont.
Nebraska -- Neb.
Nevada -- Nev.
New Hampshire -- N.H.
New Jersey -- N.J.
New Mexico -- N.M.
New York -- N.Y.
North Carolina -- N.C.
North Dakota -- N.D.
Ohio -- Ohio
Oklahoma -- Okla.
Oregon -- Ore.
Pennsylvania -- Pa.
Rhode Island -- R.I.
South Carolina -- S.C.
South Dakota -- S.D.
Tennessee -- Tenn.
Texas -- Texas
Utah -- Utah
Vermont -- Vt.
Virginia -- Va.
Washington -- Wash.
West Virginia -- W.Va.
Wisconsin -- Wis.
Wyoming -- Wyo.
debut This is a noun, not a verb. Correct use: It was his drag racing
debut. Incorrect use: He debuted a dragster.
deep stage Describes the act of staging the car past the initial
pre-stage light.
Denso Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals
dial-in In bracket racing, a predetermined E.T. or performance
prediction.
disc Reference to type of brake
DNF (n. or v.) Abbreviation for did not finish. Past tense is DNFd
(no apostrophe). Use only when writing for racing audience.
Otherwise spell it out.
DNQ (n. or v.) Abbreviation for did not qualify. Past tense is DNQd
(no apostrophe).
DNS (n. or v.) Abbreviation for did not start.
downforce One word.
drag race Two words. No hyphen.
drag racing
dragster
dragstrip One word.
Driver of the Year Top annual award given to best driver in
American motorsports by elite panel of journalists
dropped cylinder (v) To drop a cylinder (n) a cylinder that has too
much fuel-to-air mixture, preventing spark plug from
firing.
dynamometer Slang term is dyno.
-EEE-
E.T. Accepted abbreviation for elapsed time, not ET or e.t.
elimination
EMPA Eastern Motorsports Press Association
-FFF-
FIA Federation International de l’Automobile.
finish line
final-round Use hyphen.
first-round Use hyphen.
FOX Sports
FOX Sports 1 OK to use FS1 in second reference
FOX Sports 2 OK to use FS2 in second reference
FOX national broadcasting network will air four races
front-runner (n)
Funny Car Always uppercase.
-GGG-
game plan Not game-plan or gameplan.
gearbox One word.
grandstand One word.
groove The preferred path of a race car on a race track.
-HHH-
halfway Noun and adjective.
HANS device Acronym for Head and Neck Support.
Harley-Davidson
holeshot An advantage at the starting line achieved by the driver
having the quicker reaction time to the Christmas Tree
than his opponent.
horsepower One word.
-III-
inaugural Never use first-annual.
Internet Should be capitalized in all references.
-JJJ-
JEGS Allstars
jell/gel Do not confuse the two words. Jell means to take shape
and achieve distinctness; to become cohesive. Gel means
to change into or take on the form of a gel.
-KKK-
K&N Horsepower Challenge NHRA bonus event for qualified Pro Stock
competitors.
-LLL-
loose Jargon for a handling condition of a race car in which the
vehicle's rear tires tend to lose traction.
Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series
Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals
-MMM-
Manufacturers Midway
Manufacturers Cup
Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship
Mello Yello Drag Racing Series
Mello Yello NHRA world championship
Mello Yello world champion
Mello Yello Series Top 10
Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals
mph The abbreviation for mile per hour. It’s acceptable in all
references.
motorsports One word.
motor racing Two words.
-NNN-
national record Avoid the redundant new record.
NHRA National Dragster bi-weekly magazine of NHRA
NHRA National Hot Rod Association; use NHRA on every
reference when writing for motorsports audience.
NHRA.com Also www.nhra.com
NHRA Carolina Nationals
NHRA Championship Drag Racing
NHRA Drags: Street Legal Style presented by AAA
NHRA Four-Wide Nationals
NHRA Hot Rod Heritage Racing Series
NHRA J&A Service Pro Mod Drag Racing Series
NHRA Jr. Street
NHRA Kansas Nationals
NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series
NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship
NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series
NHRA Mello Yello world champion
NHRA New England Nationals
NHRA Northwest Nationals
NHRA Nitro Alley
NHRA Safety Safari presented by AAA
NHRA Springnationals
NHRA Summernationals
NHRA Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League
NHRA Summit Racing Series
NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
NHRA Toyota Nationals
NHRA Youth & Education Services presented by U.S. Army
No. 1 qualifier Top qualifier in 16-car order for drag racing's
professional categories (avoid the use of “pole
position”)
nitromethane Monopropellant fuel used in Top Fuel and Funny Car
categories; ignited by compression
numbers Spell out one through nine. Use numerals for 0, 10
and higher. Use numerals when using No. 1, No. 2,
No. 8, etc.
-OOO-
oildown
Owners Cup
-PPP-
percentages 90 percent rule, 1 percent back up. No hyphens.
pit area Location where race teams park and service their race cars
between races. Also referred to as pits.
pole position Slang reference used in oval racing to describe top
qualifier. Not to be used in drag racing in any reference.
prerace Not pre-race
preseason Not pre-season
Pro Modified Always uppercase. Also OK to use Pro Mod.
Pro Stock Always uppercase.
Pro Stock Motorcycle Not Pro Stock Bike.
-QQQ-
quarterfinal Not quarter-final
quarter-mile
quarter panel Two words.
-RRR-
race track Not racetrack. No hyphen.
race car Not racecar. No hyphen.
race day
reaction time Term describing the time it takes a driver to hit the
throttle once the Christmas Tree is activated; R.T.
red-light (n. and v.) Always hyphenated; Term describing a foul
start when a vehicle leaves the starting line before the
Christmas Tree is activated; past tense is red-lighted.
Route 66 NHRA Nationals
rpm Abbreviation for revolutions per minute
runner-up Two plural uses: runners-up; runner-ups
-SSS-
Safety Safari presented by AAA NHRA safety team
scuff Jargon for a race tire that has been used previously.
Refers to the fact that the manufacturers' label, or sticker,
has been scuffed off.
SEMA Specialty Equipment Market Association.
semifinal Not semi-final.
set up (n.) setup (n. and adj.)
show car Not showcar.
staged Final step for cars to get set prior to the start of a drag
race.
starting line
Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals
Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals
Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League
supercharger Avoid using the slang term “blower.”
-TTT-
tight Jargon for a race car handling condition in which the
vehicle's front tires tend to lose traction.
Top Fuel Capitalize first letter in both words.
Top 10 Capitalized when used as a proper noun. Example: It was
his first appearance in the Top 10. Lowercase in all other
references. Example: He was listed as one of the top 10
drivers of the year.
Toyota NHRA Sonoma Nationals
NHRA Tracks (Mello Yello Series)
Atlanta Dragway, Commerce, Ga.
Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Pomona, Calif.
Bandimere Speedway, Denver
Brainerd International Raceway, Brainerd, Minn.
Bristol Dragway, Bristol, Tenn.
Gainesville Raceway, Gainesville, Fla.
Gateway Motorsports Park, St. Louis
Heartland Park Topeka, Topeka, Kan.
Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis, Brownsburg, Ind.
Maple Grove Raceway, Reading, Pa.
New England Dragway, Epping, N.H.
Old Bridge Township Raceway Park, Englishtown, N.J.
Pacific Raceways, Seattle
Route 66 Raceway, Chicago
Royal Purple Raceway, Houston
Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma, Calif.
The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas
Summit Motorsports Park, Norwalk, Ohio
Texas Motorplex, Dallas
Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park, Phoenix
zMAX Dragway, Charlotte, N.C.
Traxxas Nitro Shootout
turbocharger, turbocharged
-UUU-
U.S. Nationals
-VVV-
victory Preferable to win, which is a verb.
victory lane, victory circle Do not capitalize unless used as a proper
name.
-WWW-
Wally NHRA’s official trophy, named after NHRA founder
Wally Parks (1913-2007), awarded to event winners,
and special award winners.
Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum presented by Auto Club of Southern California
Western Swing Traditional trio of national events in consecutive
weeks, including Seattle, Sonoma and Denver. Do
not use West Coast Swing.
Website
wheelbase One word.
winner's circle
-END-