Dodge Roadkill Nights 2018: More Fast Cars, More Money & More Rain

Celebrity Hellcat Shootout

While the normal racing program didn’t get to run eliminations, the Roadkill Celebrity Hellcat Shootout was run from start to finish with only one issue. Richard Rawlings tried to smoke the tires for the length of the track and in doing so, he lost control and slammed into the outside wall. He was fine, but the car was not, so after the first round, the shootout went forward with three Widebody Hellcats rather than four.

In the first round, Mike Finnegan beat Roadkill co-host David Freiburger, Matt D’Andria beat Christy Lee, Bill Goldberg beat Matt Hagan, and Leah Pritchett beat Rawlings after he crashed.

In the second round, former pro wrestler and retired NFL player Bill Goldberg squared off with movie producer Matt D’Andria, with Goldberg coming from behind to get the win. In the other half of the semifinals, Leah Pritchett took on Mike Finnegan, with the Roadkill host knocking off the NHRA driver.

In the finals, Goldberg squared off with Finnegan and after the host of the event got a slight starting line advantage, Goldberg drove around him for the big win. Goldberg celebrated by hoisting D’Andria over his shoulders.

Pro Burnout on the Street

Finally, one of the most unique and awesome aspects of the entire event is the burnout exhibition put on by Hagan and Pritchett. For the second year in a row, each of the Mopar-backed drivers did burnouts with their race cars, unleashing more than 10,000 horsepower on Woodward Ave.

Last year, Pritchett went further and faster than Hagan while roasting her tires, so this year, Hagan was looking to even the series. However, after Pritchett did an incredible full-track burnout with her Top Fuel dragster, Hagan got swirly just past mid-track, taking out a bunch of cones, forcing him to lift and giving the win to Pritchett. You can watch each of their burnouts in the videos below.

Rain Spoils the Fun

While the event organizers were able to fix everything that hadn’t gone smoothly over the past two years, they could not stop the rain. The skies were clear and the weather was beautiful throughout much of the day, but shortly after the Celebrity Hellcat Shootout, the clouds rolled in and it started to rain. Then it rained hard for about 20 minutes. The rain stopped and the track crew began to work to dry the track, but as the sun went down, continued light showers put a stop to the racing program. It was just too humid for the track to dry, so it was decided to call the event off before any of the elimination rounds were run.

The organizers decided to pool all of the cash prizes for each class (small tire and big tire), with each of the eight quickest cars in each class winning $1,800. While it was a disappointing end to the program, it was a great event leaving the crowds happy and satisfied as they headed out of the M1 Concourse.

Roadkill Nights 2018 Gallery 

Photos & Video for DodgeForum.com: Patrick Rall

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Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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