NMRA Coyote Stock Is Calling Drew Lyons

When the NMRA abolished their Pure Street category after the 2011 season, it left a big hole in the hearts and minds of many Ford heads-up racing competitors and fanatics. The class was the entry-level into the upper echelon of naturally-aspirated heads-up competition (as entry level as heads-up racing can be) and had competitors like Brandon Alsept, Steve Gifford, Ryan Hecox, Mark Anderson, and Drew Lyons banging gears and popping wheelies on a regular basis. But when the class was disbanded due to a lack of participation, it left competitors like Drew Lyons, who didn’t want to move to NMCA Mean Street, and couldn’t afford to move up to another, more expensive class like Renegade, with nowhere to go and no class to compete in.

So what did Drew do? He parked the car and focused on other things in his life. That is, until we caught him posting a photo on Facebook last week of a huge Ford Racing box sitting in his garage with his Pure Street machine in the background. Further inspection revealed that it was in fact a complete, sealed engine from the team at Ford Racing, and was destined to put the seasoned racer right into the thick of things in the NMRA’s hot Coyote Stock category.  

Lyons, who finished in the Pure Street Top Ten from 2009 through 2011 after earning a Top Ten finish in NMRA Open Comp in 2007 – is now in possession of just about everything he needs to get back on the track.

“I had been tossing a bunch of different ideas around, one of which was a 9-second reliable naturally-aspirated 363. I just figured I would get bored with nowhere to really race it, and didn’t want to go back to index racing. I had buyers for most of my old Pure Street stuff, so it paid for about 75% of the change to Coyote Stock, which was very helpful. Had I not holed a piston in NMCA Indy in 2011, it would have been almost an even “trade” cost-wise versus the new parts for Coyote Stock,” he explained.

His car and competitiveness have been proven in the past, so Coyote Stock will be getting another new player in the very, very near future. He continued, “I bought the engine, control pack, alternator kit, and a few other items through Brian Koestner at Anderson Ford Motorsport, and just need to get a few other parts lined up and spend some time working on the car to get it ready. Also, I need to find a little more lead to meet the 3150-pound minimum weight.” 

We look forward to seeing Drew in competition!