NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

When you drive Funny Cars for a living, as Ron Capps has for nearly 30 years, the bumps and bruises and fire and blower explosions come with the territory, and after two big boomers in the last nine months that ended up with his NAPA Auto Parts Toyota in the guardwall, Capps knows that all too well.

That’s why his massive explosion and hard hit last weekend in Phoenix is just part of the deal that he signed up for so long ago.

“When I was a kid and all my friends wanted to be [Los Angeles Dodgers icon] Steve Garvey, I wanted to be a Fuel Altered or Funny Car driver,” he recalled. “That was it. Watching Funny Car guys on fire, upside down, and then get out and wave to the crowd. I was like, ‘That's what I want to do for a living.’ “

After a wild explosion last July in Seattle that ended up with a wrecked car, Capps was right back there again last weekend in the first round at the Arizona Nationals, and unlike the Seattle one, this one came out of nowhere.

"This one was so quick I had no idea —we watched the replay from every view and even had the blimp view, and we were trying to figure out—the pipes went wet quick and then kaboom,” he said. ‘I just remember the car that it was teetering on each header, and I was like, ‘OK, just get control of it,’ and then it just left turn, and I pictured Force’s accident, and just kind of braced myself."

“Those big ones like that—they stun you at first, and it takes you in to figure out what's going on. I don't wish anybody that can experience it, but I wish everybody could kind of experience it in the sense that it is literally a bomb going off, and then you're trying to figure out where am I at for a second?' and then, OK, how can I keep this from getting worse?' 

“Most of the time it's like, I don't want to be in the other guy’s lane. This time, I had no chance. I had fire, and it burned my shield, and I couldn't see, so that didn't help things.”

“Seattle was completely 100% my fault,” he admitted. “I was legging it, pedaling it, trying to get around [Gary] Densham. . I was gonna stop pedaling, but I was like, ‘He's right there.’ I knew it as a driver. I knew it worse as an owner, that it was going to happen, and it did.”

Neither of those, however, top the massive destruction of the 2022 NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

“The Bristol one two years ago was the biggest one,” he recalled. “It destroyed everything and the concussion from the backfire almost knocked me out, but we went on to win the race.”

If anything, the Dean “Guido” Antonelli-led NAPA team has shown resilience. Just days after a harrowing crash at the NHRA Arizona Nationals, Capps stormed back to claim the provisional No. 1 qualifying spot at the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals and laid down the quickest runs in both qualifying sessions, with a blistering 3.830-second pass at 328 mph in the second session. If his time holds, this will mark his first No. 1 qualifier of the season and the 38th of his illustrious career.

According to Capps, within hours of the Phoenix accident, support poured in from sponsors and partners, reinforcing the tight-knit nature of the NHRA community.

 "I can’t tell you how many reached out to me and ‘Guido’ within a couple hours of the accident, both him and I, and both of us—whether it was parts to fix that Toyota, TMS, I mean, $10,000, $15,000, $20,000 in help to replace what was on that car. And we already have deals set for the year with these people, and that’s what kind of a family it is.

“I'm gonna get emotional here, but we’re a one-car team, and a lot of these people I've gotten to know really well, and they're on board because they were on board with ‘Guido’ before we got together, and it's important to him. But these people that you see on stickers -- on the rear spoiler, on the bottom of the car, by the headers -- and fans might think was just a sticker, but they’re partners and family.

"I've done a lot of media this week, and not for the best reason, but we talked about all week in these interviews about how you respond as a driver. How do you respond? But more so our team, and I've never, never, ever doubted. I've bragged about 'NAPA Know How,' but these guys, man, they've hardly slept.”

Despite the physical toll, Capps was eager to get back in the car. "I came here with the team on the motorhome and watched them, tried to help where I could. Been pretty beat up and sore and bruised up and just wanted to get in the car. Just couldn’t wait. Friday, I could not get here soon enough."