NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Bobby Bode will return to the Funny Car wars at Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, site of his father’s big win in 2010, with a new look and five regional sponsors on the family’s Mustang Funny Car.

Bode, whose father, Bob, won that race 15 years ago, will roll out for Friday qualifying at Brainerd International Raceway with a new, black-themed Mustang bannering Minnesota-based Koch’s Hardware with additional backing from local resort Zorbaz Gull Lake; Little Falls, Minn.-based Mielke Oil; Merrifield, Minn.-based Pros Inc.; and Mark’s Floral and Greenhouse, which is located in Devils Lake, N.D.

It's Bode's first appearance since the Norwalk event in late June and his fourth in the family-run car after starting the season with veteran team owner Del Worsham, a four-race arrangement that helped raise the second-generation driver’s profile.

“We've been piecing all of these sponsorships together in the last three months, and the cool part is most of them found us,” he said. “It all started with friends of friends, and then it’s just been us kind of chasing it down. There were a lot of leads, and they all worked out, which is really, really cool because all of them are region to the race. Zorbaz resort on Gull Lake, which has been sponsoring us the last two years, also jumped back on board, and I’ll be doing an autograph signing with them at 7 p.m. Thursday.”

Bode’s four-race stint with Worsham was also enlightening to Bode from a mechanical perspective.

“I learned a lot about how Del sets his clutches up,” he shared. “We weren't doing anything crazy wrong, but the way that he showed us is going to help us be more consistent. I learned so much working with him, just picking his brain and seeing how he operates. It was a really great experience.”

“This race means a lot to our family with my dad’s win here, and it'd be nice to add my name to that list, and I think we have a shot at it," he added. "Last year, I ran my first 330-mph run there, and every year it just seems like something crazy or cool always happens there, so it'd be cool to have some more Brainerd magic this year. I'm just excited to drive again."

After the Brainerd event, the team also plans to compete in Indy, St. Louis, Las Vegas, and Pomona.