Lever Drag

The penn international 2 is a nice reel but expensive. You really don't need to spend that kind of money to fish for shark from the surf or pier. You can go with a spinning reel Daiwa BG-60,90
Penn spin 850, 950SSM or a Special senator conventional reel, these reels won't break the bank.

I used a Daiwa BG 60 on a custom rod (Lamiglas blank mb965m) to catch a 128 lbs lemon shark of the hump in Islamorada with no trouble at all. You might look into buying a good used reel to save you even more money.
Recall witnessing someone catch a record shark 1080 lbs off a Florida pier using a Penn senator 113h with a 12' gator custom rod. I would concern myself as much with the Rod you will match your reel with.