Is This a Jump Or No Jump? Drag Racing Debate!

We’re gonna call this one “Too Close To Call” Tuesday, because honestly, without a better view of the footage, and maybe even having it slowed down even more, we simply can’t make a call. But, we’d love for you guys to have at and and see what you think.

Here’s a breakdown of the scenario: These two cars are pulled up to the line, and as the starter steps back and hits the flashlight, the car in the left lane leaves at the moment the light comes on. The question is, did he “crack the tire” before the light was on, which would result in a disqualification, or was the start legal and the outcome of the race would stand with the left lane taking the win.

So here is what you guys need to know to make a call. Look closely at the rear tire of the Mustang. The sidewall of the tires are very flexible and will distort as the wheel begins to spin inside of the tire, causing it to visibly wrinkle before the car itself will actually move. This distortion in the sidewall is what is known as “cracking the tire” and does count as a jump, even if the front tire hasn’t moved yet.

We know there are some wizards out there who can do some high tech wizardry on this video, especially since Big Rob himself has already slowed it down quite a bit and zoomed in a tad to try to give us a better look. However, it’s still just too close to call, so we’re going to send it up to the Court of Public Opinion on whether or not this was a jump or a clean start. We want to see what you guys can do as far as brighting the tire area up a bit to see better and slowing the frame rate down even slower to help make a call.

Post up your thoughts in the comments and let us know, we can’t wait to hear from you guys!