As Bondurant drifts into the sunset, Radford Racing School rises

Radford Racing School is now up and running after revamping the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving in Chandler, Arizona. As we reported back in 2019, Bondurant was going through bankruptcy and new investors were hoping to take over, with the continued support of Dodge and SRT. With the backing of some Bondurant graduates and driving enthusiasts, the new school will offer the same types of classes as Bondurant, from teen driving safety and tactical driving to high-performance road course and drag racing.

The Radford name comes from Harold Radford & Co Limited, a London coachbuilding company known for extravagant luxury cars as well as beautiful Aston Martin shooting brake conversions. The name is particularly relevant knowing that English television host Ant Anstead and F1 champion Jenson Button are a part of the new Radford team along with car designer Mark Stubbs, and business partner Roger Behle.

With the Radford Racing School continuing Bondurant’s legacy as the “Official High Performance Driving School of Dodge//SRT”, students have the opportunity to push SRT Hellcat Redeye Challengers through their paces on the road course or opt to learn the drag racing intricacies of the Dodge Demon. If the muscular Challenger isn’t enough, there is also a fleet of Vipers at the ready for drivers that want the option. The school’s fleet also includes SRT Durangos, Hellcat Chargers, and a variety of vehicles for tactical driving instruction. The teen driving course also includes a Skid Control car that helps drivers learn how to recover from a skid in a safe environment.

As part of Radford’s investment in the facility, which has been in Chandler since 1990, the 1.6-mile main course was resurfaced and the facility’s buildings were remodeled, including its classrooms, lounge, and event center. The school is also broadening its racing offerings, with an expansion into open-wheel racing courses using Ligier JS Formula 4 cars.

The school will just be the jumping-off point for the Radford brand. It plans to expand to include merchandise and perhaps a television show. For now, we’re glad that the facility is back offering up its wide-ranging courses to prepare the next generation of drivers, whether it’s for the street, the strip, or the track.