Tom Martino wins the 53rd Annual Halloween Classic Top Gun Shootout at Summit Motorsports Park, Norwalk, securing the coveted Gremlin trophy after a composed, efficient run through eliminations.

The Youngstown, Ohio driver, a former PDRA Top Dragster champion, qualifies second with a 3.79-second pass in his Lucas Oil-backed Top Dragster.

The Top Gun format pits eight Top Sportsman door cars against eight Top Dragster entries, demanding rapid adaptation to contrasting chassis and launch characteristics.

Martino advances through four rounds, reaching the semifinals as the last remaining dragster before closing out the win against a deep, mixed-category field.

“America’s Racetrack” delivers a representative 16-car grid loaded with decorated racers, making the outcome a strong benchmark of form and execution for Martino’s operation.

Crew chief Ryan Martino highlights the rarity of racing door cars during their season, underlining the setup discipline required to maintain consistency across varied opponents.

The Bader family and track staff run a relentless schedule throughout the week, testing teams’ ability to manage resources, data, and turnaround times between rounds.

Participation surpasses 1,000 racers, while the event’s community focus continues with more than 500 families visiting the Martino pit during the “Trick or Treat” tradition.

Safety remains fundamental across the Halloween Classic’s festive atmosphere, aligning with insights from our racing suit mobility testing coverage.

Post-race, the team thanks partners including Lucas Oil Products, B&T Express, ProCharger, Strange Engineering, and Mickey Thompson Tires, emphasizing reliability and repeatability under pressure.

For broader context on American motorsport form, see our recent dirt-track win in Charlotte, underscoring how execution under intense schedules separates winners.

The win extends Martino’s accomplished resume and sets a clear target for 2027, with the team aiming to defend at Norwalk and refine its Top Dragster package further.

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Miles Carter

Miles Carter covers grassroots and regional drag-strip action, from bracket racing to street-legal shootouts. His event previews and performance-upgrade guides keep local racers up to speed on timing-slip trends, tire tech, and weekend race highlights.