Chrysler's response was typical-fight back hard. Despite the fact that the musclecar era was over and new car sales were down, development continued on exotic Pro Stock parts such as new twin-plug head castings, crank-trigger ignitions, and lighter, exotic components. when Sox and Jenkins both faltered at the '72 Gatornationals, Carlton won in Spehar's trick new 'cuda. Nonetheless, as the Grump kept up his dominance in the coming months, the factory Chrysler racers began boycotting NHRA, starting at the event in Sanair, Canada, that August. They also boycotted AHRA part of that season, at least until the PRO National Challenge in Tulsa over Labor Day against NHRA's prestigious U.S. Nationals, when they showed to support AHRA, despite the rules remaining the same. The Grump won there too, where he beat Sox compatriot Herb McCandless in a close 9.46 to 9.51 battle.
In November 1972, Car Craft announced that AHRA would be at 6.75 for Hemi/SOHC and 6.5 for both canted and inline configuration for 1973, and IHRA, who had been at a flat 7.0 break across the board, was going to adopt the same rates. The NHRA was now trying a stout 7.0 for Hemi/SOHC plants and 6.5 for everyone else. It was also revealed in that issue that Ted Spehar's skunk works in Detroit had a 426 Hemi-powered Colt under construction.
From the beginning, there were some issues, not the least of which was the import status of the car itself. Unlike GM and Ford, Chrysler did not have a budget to develop a smaller car from scratch, and until the first major gas crunch happened months later, thought the small car thing was just a fad. NHRA was not overly enthused about allowing such a package to run regardless, especially if the Hemi technology proved to be capable in high-rpm destroked form. The idea the factory was toying with was to send the elephant-ized Colts into AHRA and IHRA competition, as well as set them flying on the match race trail like they had in the early funny car days.
However, Sox set the world on fire in September during a York US30 match race in his Duster with a string of 9.17/9.27/9.16 times that were the quickest ever in Pro Stock history at any legal or match race weight (he was at the 6.75 break). Ro McGonegal reported in the January 1973 issue of Car Craft that Dick Maxwell had alluded that the factory really just wanted the weight breaks fixed. the Colts were being built solely to "go nuclear" if the need arose.
Meanwhile, 1973 brought more confusion. Jenkins reign in 1972 has long been remembered, but the new 6.5 break across the board for inline and canted valve motors suddenly made Ford's 351-inch Cleveland Pinto the hot ticket. Bob Glidden fell to Jenkins on a holeshot in the final round of the first race the 6.5 break was used-the '72 Supernationals. Nonetheless, by the time the new season opened at the AHRA Winternationals in Phoenix, Sox was number one with another legal 9.17 in his Duster, though he fell to Dyno Don Nicholson Ford in the semifinals.
In mid-spring, Chrysler unexpectedly announced a serious realignment of their Pro Stock program, leaving just five teams backed by the factory: Sox, Landy, Leal, the Missile, and Gil Kirk's multi-car Rod Shop operation (Kirk's Rod Shop had a Westlake-powered Colt wagon that was competitive in C/Altered at the time). At the same time, with the radically-redesigned D5 hemi cylinder heads being developed in the background, many Mopar campaigners were de-stroking the engines to get lower weight options-Stepp had a 366-inch Hemi in his Demon, and Carlton was running a 396-inch version in the Missile.
The first full-bore feature on the new Colts again ran in Car Craft, the June 1973 issue, with Jim Roath's Colorado-based car on the cover overstamped with the word "Outlawed." Writer Jon Asher opined that with the class so close to the 8-second zone, a Hemi Colt would blast right through.
One factor facing the Colts was a hyped Super Pro Stock match race circuit based in the Midwest, which would allow Hemi and canted valve Ford entries to run at a featherweight 6.00 (inline valve and Chevy Rats got a 5.5 break, a nearly impossible car weight to safely execute with a small-block). By mid-1973, Gary Dyer and Mr. Norm had Romeo Palimedes building a Colt for them, and Logghe Stamping in Detroit was doing one for former funny car standout Terry Hedrick for this series. The end result was an outlaw program for the long-time Midwest chapter of the United Drag racers Association (UDRA) rather than a new circuit.