NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Tim Wilkerson has experienced the tremendous highs and also the lows the sport of drag racing has to offer, all in about a span of two months during the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.

 

From winning Funny Car races in Phoenix and Charlotte to a wild crash near the starting line in Topeka to leading the points race to another mishap in Bristol, the Funny Car veteran has been a part of a wide range of events recently in his Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang.

 

The engine explosion in Bristol left the team in a precarious position during the middle of a rigorous four-race stretch, also starting a string of back-to-back first-round losses. Now after a week off, Wilkerson is ready to get things turned around and build some positive momentum starting at the K&N Filters Route 66 NHRA Nationals at Route 66 Raceway, July 7-10.

 

“Hopefully we’re done with all those issues,” said Wilkerson, who is currently seventh in the Funny Car points standings. “Once we crashed that car (in Topeka), we were thrashing to survive more than anything. It was such a devastating blow to the team and we had to throw things together quickly. And then to have another mishap at Bristol, it’s been tough.”

 

Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel), Tommy Johnson Jr. (Funny Car), Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana Jr. (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were last year’s winners of the event that for the first time will be televised nationally on FOX Sports 1. The fan-favorite event at the state-of-the-art motorsports facility just south of Chicago will mark the official start of the second half of the 2016 season as the 13th of 24 events.

 

The week off gives Wilkerson and his team a chance to regroup after a series of frustrating events and he hopes it means a chance to get back to replicating his impressive performances from earlier this season. Wilkerson won the second event of the year, added another victory in Charlotte and advanced to the final round at the next race in Houston before falling to Courtney Force.

 

It put Wilkerson atop the points standings with Force, but the crash in Topeka started a quick descent that he hopes ended with a round one loss at the most recent event in Norwalk. Wilkerson has watched Don Schumacher Racing standout Ron Capps get red-hot in the process, rocketing to the top of the class on the strength of three wins in four races, and the Springfield, Ill. native knows he must step up with the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship playoffs approaching.

 

“The team is really working hard, buckling down and giving extra effort, and they don’t deserve to go out in the first round like we’ve done the last two races,” said Wilkerson, who has 20 career victories in Funny Car including one at Route 66 coming in 1999.

 

“But I think this just shows them that it’s much more difficult than we made it look the first few races of the year,” he continued. “Hard work does pay off, but sometimes with these cars when it goes bad, it can go really, really bad. The (DSR) guys have really stepped up after we won in Charlotte and Courtney has been running well. We have to step up and put our nose to the grindstone. Schumacher’s teams have a really talented group of people so we have our work cut out for us.”

 

In addition to Capps, Wilkerson will also have to deal with DSR standouts Matt Hagan and Jack Beckman, who has climbed to third in points, as well as Force, who is second behind Capps, reigning world champion Del Worsham, a three-time event winner at Route 66 Raceway, Bristol winner Tommy Johnson Jr., Alexis DeJoria, Robert Hight and 16-time world champion John Force.

 

But Wilkerson also knows his team must continue to stay locked in during an important stretch that includes the K&N Filters Route 66 NHRA Nationals and then the Western Swing.

 

“We just have to be more diligent in everything we do,” Wilkerson said. “We got a little sloppy in that swing and didn’t pay attention to some things. It was just fatigue, but we just have to continue to be diligent about our program. I think we were really doing a good job until that accident. It’s been really hard since then but we’re not going to give up.”

 

Racing at Route 66 Raceway also means a strong turnout of family and friends for Wilkerson during the weekend, but the longtime standout has become a master of balancing it all during a race weekend.

 

“The thing about Chicago that is really good is it’s a huge market for Levi, Ray & Shoup,” Wilkerson said. “It’s a huge turnout for them and that’s a big thing. For me, when it’s time to work on the car, I work on the car. When it’s time to race, I do that, and when it’s time to entertain, I do that. For whatever reason, I’ve been really good at separating all that.”

 

Mello Yello Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 5:15 and 7:45 p.m. on Friday, July 8, and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, July 9, at 3:15 and 6 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 a.m. on Sunday, July 10.

 

To purchase general-admission or reserved seats, call 888-629-RACE (7223) or 815-722-5500. Tickets also are available online at www.route66raceway.com. Kids 12 and under are free in general admission areas with a paid adult.