Making a pass at an NHRA national event is a goal for many racers since it’s considered the biggest stage in all of drag racing. Some lucky individuals will have the chance to take the tree at the professional level, while most will get to do it as a sportsman racer. Brian Manske got a rare invite to make a pass at an NHRA event during last weekend’s Arizona Nationals, but things didn’t go as planned when his immaculate turbocharged 1998 WS6 Trans Am made contact with the wall.

The NHRA has brought in local racers to make exhibition runs the past few seasons at national events to provide some extra flavor to the on-track action. At selected events, everything from big-tire no-prep racing to X275 class cars have made passes and exposed fans to new types of racing.

Arizona native Manske brought his boosted ‘bird to Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park to be a part of the Big Tire Shootout race. Manske might have been on small tires, but his LS-powered machine has run deep into the 4-second range in the 1/8-mile, so it had plenty for anybody it lined up against.

In the final round of the Big Tire Shootout, Manske had a date with Mary Baltzell in her nitrous-huffing Firebird to see who could bring home the hardware. As Manske’s 106mm turbo started to pour the boost into the LS engine, the Firebird made a big move to left and got out of the groove. Manske did everything he could to save the car, but it darted across the track and made contact with the wall several times. Thankfully, Manske was able to get out of the car on his own and wasn’t seriously injured.

Video courtesy of the NHRA