The O’Reilly Mid-South Nationals played out at the Memphis Motorsports Park last weekend bringing National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) competitors Antron Brown, Clay Millican, J.R. Todd and Redell Harris to the Memphis area.

All are at home on the drag strip. Three – Brown, Todd and Harris are African Americans, which may be somewhat of surprise to those unfamiliar with the sport and prone to think them out of place.

Top Fuel dragster Millican is from Drummonds, Tenn. His sponsor is Hope 4 Sudan/Lend American and a lot of the money he and the company earn goes to the African country of Sudan.

Photojournalist Warren Roseborough made his maiden voyage into the NHRA world and came back with this report and these images:

Antron Brown is a Top Fuel racer who started out as a motorcycle racer for the NHRA. He is from Chesterville, N.J. At 4, Brown operated a motorcycle for the first time. The 16-time NHRA winner first competed at age 12 in the amateur youth motocross.   Tri-State Defender: What is your first memory of drag racing? Brown: Going to the track with my Dad, and family.   Defender: How did you get into drag racing? Brown: My dad. I practically grew up around it. I sleep, eat and drink drag racing.   Defender: Where are you from? Brown: Chesterville, N.J.   Defender: Who is you biggest supporter? Brown: My dad.   Defender: How did you wind up in drag racing since this is not traditionally a sport thought of as for African Americans? Brown: I disagree. This is a very diverse sport. People of all nationalities and races are in this sport: Spanish, whites and Mexicans. And you race any vehicle you want. That’s the beauty of drag racing. Maybe not professionally, but there are a lot of us in this sport.   Defender: What was the turning point that really got you started in drag racing? Brown: My turning point was in1998 when I was out at the track drag racing and I turned pro.

Clay Millican   Defender: What inspired you to get into racing? Millican: I’ve been going to races all of my life. I have been to so many races I don’t even remember what I went to.   Defender: What got you into drag racing? Millican: The first time I saw a Top Fuel car I knew that is what I wanted to do. I was fortunate to be around the right people, so here I am. It’s like winning the lottery. I feel very fortunate.   Defender: Who do you look up to and who is your biggest supporter? Millican: My parents.   Defender: What would you have done if you had not gotten into racing? Millican: I probably would be driving a forklift. That’s what I did for eleven years.   Defender: How old were you when you first started racing? Millican: Fifteen years old; My first race was in Jackson, Tn. The first car I drove was a 69 Dodge Charger. I thought that car was really fast until I raced it. I found out it was very slow.   Defender: Why is your company supporting Sudan? Millican: The Pickens family, who owns the company, goes to Sudan a lot. They are helping build wells, schools, hospitals and churches.

J.R. Todd is a Top Fuel driver from Lawrenceburg, Ind. In 2006, he earned his first victory in Denver, becoming first African-American to win in Top Fuel.   Defender: How long have you been racing? Todd: I started racing in 1993. I have been racing top fuel for about three years.   Defender: What first inspired you to get into racing? Todd: My father used to race dirt track motorcycles and then I got involved and eventually I started to race cars.   Defender: What would you have done if you hadn’t gone into racing? Todd: I would have probably went to Notre Dame and played football, but I stopped growing.

Redell Harris is  a Pro Stock Motorcycle rider. His hometown is Baton Rouge, La.   Defender: How did you first get into racing? Harris: Fortunately, me, my wife and kids have been racing for quite a few years. I met Master P and his son, Little Romeo, and LaRon Landry from the Washington Redskins. They contributed and help me get here.   Defender: Have you always thought about racing? Harris: Yes. We used to watch the cars and motorcycles go up and down the street. I wanted to start racing then but my parents could not afford to buy us a motorcycle. So we improvised by putting straw in spokes of a bike and made it happen.   Defender: Who did you look up to when you were growing up? Harris: My parents and former NBA great Larry Nance.   Defender: As an African American, is this a hard sport to get into? Harris: Yes and no. It’s not hard to get into, but it’s hard to get a sponsor to back you if you are African American. (See more images at www.tri-statedefender.com)