Burnout Box

A burnout box is a designated wet area on a drag racing track where drivers spin their tires at high speed before a race to heat them up and improve traction.

Before every drag race, you'll see drivers pull into a specific zone near the starting line and perform what looks like an impressive smoke show. This area is the burnout box, and despite appearing purely dramatic, it serves a crucial practical purpose. The surface is intentionally wetted with water to make it easier for drivers to get their tires spinning without moving the vehicle forward.

The main reason drivers use the burnout box is to heat up their racing tires. Cold tires are hard and slippery, but when heated through friction, they become softer and stickier. This increased stickiness translates directly into better grip on the track surface, which means faster acceleration and better launch times. For drag racers where every hundredth of a second counts, this preparation is essential.

The burnout box is also commonly called the "water box" because water is sprayed or poured onto its surface. In earlier days, some racers used bleach instead of water, earning it the nickname "bleach box," but water is now the standard for safety and environmental reasons. The wet surface reduces initial friction, allowing the tires to break loose and spin more easily.

During a burnout, the driver accelerates while keeping the front brakes engaged, often using a device called a line-lock. This allows the rear tires to spin freely while the car stays relatively stationary. The spinning creates intense friction, generating heat and producing the characteristic clouds of tire smoke. Drivers typically aim to heat their tires to between 90 and 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

Beyond heating the tires, burnouts serve another important function: they clean the tire surface. As cars move around the staging area, tires can pick up dust, small rocks, and other debris that would reduce traction. The spinning action throws off these contaminants, leaving a clean rubber surface ready for maximum grip.

The practice of performing burnouts before drag races began in the mid-1960s. Legendary drag racer Don Garlits was among the first to popularize doing burnouts across the starting line itself, a technique that became standard practice. What started as an innovative racing technique has become an iconic part of drag racing culture and an essential part of race preparation that every competitor performs before their run.