Some may argue with their buddies about whether all-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive is truly king on the street. Cleetus McFarland decided to settle it, hosting a massive AWD vs RWD no-prep shootout at Bradenton Motorsports Park with a whopping $52,000 purse on the line. The results? Absolutely insane and probably not what many expected.

The format pitted “16 of the baddest all wheel drive vehicles against 16 of the baddest rear wheel drive no prep vehicles,” as Cleetus described it.

The rules were simple: a maximum 28×10.5-inch slick tire, no track prep, no prep juice, no water burnouts, and launching from the scoreboards down Bradenton’s challenging surface. After RWD racers felt left out of previous events, Cleetus set up this ultimate grudge match.

From the jump, the tricky track surface seemed to favor the AWD machines heavily. Round one ended with a crushing 11-to-5 victory count for the AWD camp.

“This is a slaughterhouse out here and not the way I thought it was going to be,” commented the 1320video narrator, echoing the surprise felt by many. RWD cars frequently struggled for traction, particularly over a bump noted around the 300-foot mark.

RWD team captain Joey Hiykel, driver of “Beater Bomb,” admitted, “it’s tough.” While there were standout moments for RWD, like the “On The Gas” Cyclone winning a razor-thin race, the AWD trucks – particularly numerous twin-turbo Coyote F-150s and Nathan Wheeler’s Cummins-powered “Crazy Horse” F-250 – consistently hooked and booked.

The AWD dominance continued through the rounds. By the semifinals, only one RWD warrior remained: the “White Girl” Mustang. In a stunning upset, White Girl actually eliminated event host Cleetus McFarland in his “Dale Truck,” keeping the RWD dream alive for one more round before ultimately falling to the AWD F-150 known as “Grimace.” This set up an all-AWD final: Grimace vs. Crazy Horse.

In perhaps the biggest shocker of the day, Nathan Wheeler’s diesel F-250, Crazy Horse, powered past Grimace to take the overall win and the entire $52,000 pot. “A diesel bro a diesel… a freaking diesel came here and won!” exclaimed the stunned narrator. Wheeler, celebrating the victory, declared his goal was to “just show the world that we’re the best 4×4 on the Planet!”

It was an unpredictable day that definitively favored AWD on Bradenton’s no-prep surface. Check out all the action thanks to 1320Video.