The NMCA's 2017 Stock/Super Stock Combo and Open Comp champion Ricky Pennington decided he needed a new challenge for 2018, so he's put together a new Chevrolet Performance Stock machine for the heads up class that he is adding to his roster this year. The 1969 Chevelle packs the DR525, LS3-based crate engine and Pennington just finished it up this week.   Former ARP Nitrous Pro Street racer Jeff Rudolf has moved up to the VP Racing Fuels Xtreme Pro Mod ranks for 2018 with a brand new twin-turbocharged Camaro. He's had just a few runs on the Larry Jeffers-built, Steve Summers-wired, and PTP Racing-tuned machine, but things are moving forward as expected. The engine combination is identical to the one that Summer's won the 2017 championship with in his Camaro, so Rudolf should be well equipped once he gets more seat time. VP Racing Fuels Xtreme Pro Mod racer Billy Harper is back in action with his nitrous-enhanced Dodge Viper. After a great NMCA debut in Kentucky last year where he went to the final round of eliminations, Harper said the Viper's performance fell off and they have been trying to get it back ever since. Recent testing has revealed other issues that they have resolved, but are hopeful they are on the right track to achieving maximum. 2017 Holley EFI Factory Super Cars champion Scott Libersher brought 4 of his COPO Camaros to the All-Star race here in Atlanta. He'll be driving one on Factory Super Cars and another in the Coan Engineering Stock/Super Stock Combo, while his son Lenny will be driving the newly repaired Collector's Package COPO in Factory Super Cars and son-in-law Dan Condon is driving the Ed Rinke COPO in Factory Super Cars. David Barton (pictured) continues to tune on all of the Ray Barton Racing Engines COPO powerplants that the team uses.   Gary Wilson and his nephews Allen and David of the Brighton/Inkster areas of Michigan are here making their debut in ARP NA 10.5 competition with their 1991 Mustang. Allen will be driving the Fox body, which packs a 461ci Windsor with CFE Pro King heads and an SV1 carburetor, and the car has been 8.60s in previous outings. The ATeq and ALLIGATOR sens.it-sponsored machine with family friend Brandon Nicks helping turn the wrenches should find the air conditions this weekend good for the naturally aspirated combination. Testing the Edelbrock Xtreme Street waters this weekend is Shaun Arnold, who is piloting his 1969 Ford Falcon, which is equipped with a Bennett Racing 400ci engine with a Precision 76mm turbocharger and an M&M Transmission Turbo 400. The bird has been 4.68 already, which is a very competitive time for the class. The All-Star race here at Atlanta Dragway will be the second race for the Dodge//Mopar Hemi Shootout, and we've already seen a few Demons on the property, including the Indigo Blue 2018 model belonging to Rick Stimson. A previous HellCat Challenger owner, Stimson traded in that ride for the new Demon, and this is the first track outing for the duo. Stimson, a resident of Bradenton, Florida, is still getting a handle on the electronic drag racing features that the Demon offers. The NMRA/NMCA All-Star Nationals presented by Mahle Motorsport also plays host to the opening round of the 2018 Chevrolet Performance Challenge Series. 2017 LME Street King champion Kurt Anderson, who also competes in the NMCA's MagnaFuel Open Comp class, made some modifications to his 69 Camaro in the off season that have made it a bit too quick for his index. Thinking quickly, he hit up the manufacturer's midway for some Champion racing oil, which pays contingency money to the winners, and poured in some thicker weight oil to hopefully slow the engine's reciprocating assembly a bit and reduce the engine performance to where he needs it to be. Street Outlaw racer Jacky McCarty has been constructing this new S550 Mustang since last year, in between racing and running his McCarty Performance shop. The LS-powered machine replaces his previous Fox-Body Mustang and early testing has suggested there is lots of potential in the pony and with Josh Lindsey tuning it, we're sure the team will squeeze out every ounce of performance there is to be had.