NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

We’ve looked at the top drivers in Top Fuel, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle in this column, so to wrap up the series, this week, we delve into the win stats for the Funny Car class. Everyone can probably quickly guess the top two drivers, but who else ranks in the top five for wins in Funny Car? Here’s a look at the winningest drivers in the floppers.

No. 1: John Force, 146 wins

The winningest driver in Funny Car is no surprise to anyone who follows the sport closely: Force, who is also the winningest driver in NHRA history. After struggling for many years at the beginning of his career, Force broke through for his first win at the 1987 Montreal event, and that opened the proverbial floodgates. Force has since tallied an additional 145 victories, most recently winning the Countdown to the Championship opener in Charlotte.

No. 2: Ron Capps, 49 wins

Points leader Capps has 50 overall wins in NHRA competition, 49 in the Funny Car class. After scoring a Top Fuel victory in Seattle in 1995, Capps collected his first Funny Car Wally two years later when he bested Cruz Pedregon in the final at the 1997 St. Louis event. This season, Capps has already added five wins to his total, most recently at the Seattle event.

No. 3: Tony Pedregon, 43 wins

Before hanging up his driving gloves to join the NHRA on FOX broadcast this season, Pedregon piloted a Funny Car to the winner’s circle 43 times. Pedregon picked up his first victory in Atlanta in 1996, beating then-boss Force for the Wally. Pedregon’s 43rd win came in Brainerd in 2009, when he outlasted Capps for the title.

No. 4: Robert Hight, 37 wins

The former crewmember proved he was a quick study in driving the Funny Cars he once worked on, winning in just his fourth career start, at the 2005 Houston event. Hight beat Cruz Pedregon in the final of that event, and it kicked off a career that has included at least one win every season behind the wheel for a total of 37. Hight posted his 37th win earlier this year when he defeated Capps to earn his first Gainesville Wally.

No. 5 (tie): Don Prudhomme, 35 wins

It has been several years since Prudhomme was behind the wheel of a flopper, but he still ranks among the best to ever drive a Funny Car, earning 35 Wallys in the class (he also scored 14 in Top Fuel). Prudhomme scored his first Funny Car win at the season’s biggest race, Indy, in 1973, where he defeated Ed McCulloch in the final. “The Snake” hoisted his final Wally in the class in Dallas in 1989.

No. 5 (tie): Cruz Pedregon, 35 wins

Including his Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car victories, Pedregon has been a national event winner 39 times, but the bulk of his success has come in the nitro Funny Car ranks, where he is a 35-time victor. Pedregon earned his first race win in his first championship season, 1992, when he stopped Gordon Mineo at that year’s Houston event. Pedregon then steadily tallied wins during the 1990s and into the 2000s. He posted his most recent win in 2014 at the Englishtown event, when he outlasted Del Worsham for the trophy.