[coverattach=1]GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 9, 2009) -- Whatever the sport, be it a "stick and ball" pursuit or any kind of racing, every competitor knows very well the need to "get the first one out of the way" when a new season starts. It could be that first completed pass, the first basket, or the first base hit, but until the initial winning stat is etched in the permanent record, the pressure is on to break the seal and succeed. For Tim Wilkerson, driver of the Levi, Ray & Shoup Shelby Mustang Funny Car, the season's first "game" in Pomona ended too quickly, and without a completion, bucket, or hit. Two weeks later, they may not have been the prettiest plays of his illustrious career, but a pair of round victories got him rolling, and Wilkerson can now look forward to this weekend's AC Delco Gatornationals with the confidence that is bred from success.
The popular LRS driver can even look back, to the same race one year ago, and know that he is officially ahead of his pace from 2008, with 81 points and those two round wins in the bank versus 76 Full Throttle points and an 0-2 record at this time last year. Of course, to be fair and accurate, for Wilkerson to stay on pace with his stellar '08 numbers, he'll likely have to get as hot as he did one year ago, when he started his winning ways with a semi-final finish in Gainesville. The two "winter" races in '08 had not been kind, as Wilkerson came out of Pomona and Phoenix with an 0-2 mark, but the "spring" portion of the schedule marked his resurgence. From the Gatornationals in mid-March until the Topeka race at the end of May, Wilkerson reeled off a sterling 16-5 record that included two race victories (Las Vegas and St. Louis) and one runner-up (Topeka), and then went on to finish the year 42-18 with six Wally trophies on the shelf. Any pace that eventually earns a driver a 2nd place finish in points is going to be stout, and every trip to Gainesville has the potential to be memorable.
"This is a great race, and we love coming to Gainesville," Wilkerson said. "It's Florida in the spring, it's a great crowd, and it's one of the most historic races on the whole tour, believe me. There really aren't that many of our races where you can just say the name of it and non-racing people know what you're talking about. When you say Gatornationals, though, they know it's a drag race and they probably think of Big Daddy (Don Garlits). It's just got a lot of history, and it's a huge honor to win this race. I've never even been to the final round at the Gators, so I can only imagine how cool it is to win this deal.
"We're coming in with a couple of round wins in our pocket, but to be honest the pressure to keep it up and get more of those wins will stay with us every week, from now until Indy when we set the Countdown field. After that, as everyone on the LRS team knows, the pressure just gets heavier, but we just need to perform the way we're capable, and the wins will come. Like a quarterback, we got the first couple of completions out of the way, got the butterflies out of our gut, and now we can start pushing the deep routes down the field. It's time to move the ball."
Those bigger plays, and longer completions, will have to be made against a strong defense. The Funny Car class has been enormously competitive over the last few years, and 2009 again features more than a complete field of teams who can win on any given Sunday. Once the four John Force Racing (JFR) cars are factored in, as well as the three Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) teams, the pair of Pedregon brothers, Del Worsham in his Alan Johnson-owned car, and consistently tough runners like Jeff Arend, Jim Head, Jerry Toliver, and Wilkerson's own teammate, Bob Tasca III, it's a wonder anyone can survive long enough to earn a trip to a final round, much less win a race.
"Sometimes it does look about impossible, when you look at the ladder on Sunday and see all those names," Wilkerson said. "But, this sport is so difficult and the Funny Car class is so tough, I really don't think anyone can consistently dominate, despite what Ron Capps and (crew chief) Ace McCulloch have done so far by winning the first two races. There's no way the Force cars, or Worsham, or the other Schumacher cars are going to let anyone run away with this thing, and we'll be right in there too, knocking them off as we go. You just have to take your lumps from these teams sometimes, and you have to hand them out too. We're real respectful of all the talent out here, but we're not intimidated by anyone."
That respect without intimidation was clearly apparent in 2008, as Wilkerson racked up winning records against a bevy of All-Stars. His record against the JFR and DSR teams combined was a stellar 24-10*, and already this year he's taken out the likes of John Force and Jack Beckman. It won't, of course, get any easier for the pride of Springfield, Ill., and the aura of Gainesville seems to make it even harder.
"You wouldn't really think that it's tougher to win specific races, but it sure seems that way," Wilkerson said. "I'm lucky enough to have my name on the list of people who have won Indy, and I know how much pressure we felt doing that, and I've won in Englishtown, which is another really historic place, but I've never won in Pomona and I've never won in Gainesville.
You're talking about the most prestigious wins a driver could have on his record, when you list those places off, so this weekend is going to be another one of those races where it all seems magnified. All I know is, if we ever get the chance to stand in the Winner's Circle at Gainesville, it will be something I'll never forget. And you can pretty much count on having to beat four really good teams, actually great teams, to do it."
The process will begin on Friday, at venerable Gainesville Raceway, with the first session of qualifying for the 2009 AC Delco Gatornationals. The pressure is included with no extra charge, but at least Tim Wilkerson won't still be looking for his first completion of the season when play gets underway. Instead, he'll be looking for the longer routes, to move the ball down the field and score.
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* Wilkerson's 24-10 record versus JFR and DSR in 2008 was compiled as follows:
3-3 vs. John Force (JFR)5-1 vs. Ashley Force Hood (JFR)5-1 vs. Mike Neff (JFR)2-3 vs. Robert Hight (JFR)3-0 vs. Ron Capps (DSR)2-2 vs. Jack Beckman (DSR)3-0 vs. Gary Scelzi (DSR)1-0 vs. Jerry Toliver (DSR)
The popular LRS driver can even look back, to the same race one year ago, and know that he is officially ahead of his pace from 2008, with 81 points and those two round wins in the bank versus 76 Full Throttle points and an 0-2 record at this time last year. Of course, to be fair and accurate, for Wilkerson to stay on pace with his stellar '08 numbers, he'll likely have to get as hot as he did one year ago, when he started his winning ways with a semi-final finish in Gainesville. The two "winter" races in '08 had not been kind, as Wilkerson came out of Pomona and Phoenix with an 0-2 mark, but the "spring" portion of the schedule marked his resurgence. From the Gatornationals in mid-March until the Topeka race at the end of May, Wilkerson reeled off a sterling 16-5 record that included two race victories (Las Vegas and St. Louis) and one runner-up (Topeka), and then went on to finish the year 42-18 with six Wally trophies on the shelf. Any pace that eventually earns a driver a 2nd place finish in points is going to be stout, and every trip to Gainesville has the potential to be memorable.
"This is a great race, and we love coming to Gainesville," Wilkerson said. "It's Florida in the spring, it's a great crowd, and it's one of the most historic races on the whole tour, believe me. There really aren't that many of our races where you can just say the name of it and non-racing people know what you're talking about. When you say Gatornationals, though, they know it's a drag race and they probably think of Big Daddy (Don Garlits). It's just got a lot of history, and it's a huge honor to win this race. I've never even been to the final round at the Gators, so I can only imagine how cool it is to win this deal.
"We're coming in with a couple of round wins in our pocket, but to be honest the pressure to keep it up and get more of those wins will stay with us every week, from now until Indy when we set the Countdown field. After that, as everyone on the LRS team knows, the pressure just gets heavier, but we just need to perform the way we're capable, and the wins will come. Like a quarterback, we got the first couple of completions out of the way, got the butterflies out of our gut, and now we can start pushing the deep routes down the field. It's time to move the ball."
Those bigger plays, and longer completions, will have to be made against a strong defense. The Funny Car class has been enormously competitive over the last few years, and 2009 again features more than a complete field of teams who can win on any given Sunday. Once the four John Force Racing (JFR) cars are factored in, as well as the three Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) teams, the pair of Pedregon brothers, Del Worsham in his Alan Johnson-owned car, and consistently tough runners like Jeff Arend, Jim Head, Jerry Toliver, and Wilkerson's own teammate, Bob Tasca III, it's a wonder anyone can survive long enough to earn a trip to a final round, much less win a race.
"Sometimes it does look about impossible, when you look at the ladder on Sunday and see all those names," Wilkerson said. "But, this sport is so difficult and the Funny Car class is so tough, I really don't think anyone can consistently dominate, despite what Ron Capps and (crew chief) Ace McCulloch have done so far by winning the first two races. There's no way the Force cars, or Worsham, or the other Schumacher cars are going to let anyone run away with this thing, and we'll be right in there too, knocking them off as we go. You just have to take your lumps from these teams sometimes, and you have to hand them out too. We're real respectful of all the talent out here, but we're not intimidated by anyone."
That respect without intimidation was clearly apparent in 2008, as Wilkerson racked up winning records against a bevy of All-Stars. His record against the JFR and DSR teams combined was a stellar 24-10*, and already this year he's taken out the likes of John Force and Jack Beckman. It won't, of course, get any easier for the pride of Springfield, Ill., and the aura of Gainesville seems to make it even harder.
"You wouldn't really think that it's tougher to win specific races, but it sure seems that way," Wilkerson said. "I'm lucky enough to have my name on the list of people who have won Indy, and I know how much pressure we felt doing that, and I've won in Englishtown, which is another really historic place, but I've never won in Pomona and I've never won in Gainesville.
You're talking about the most prestigious wins a driver could have on his record, when you list those places off, so this weekend is going to be another one of those races where it all seems magnified. All I know is, if we ever get the chance to stand in the Winner's Circle at Gainesville, it will be something I'll never forget. And you can pretty much count on having to beat four really good teams, actually great teams, to do it."
The process will begin on Friday, at venerable Gainesville Raceway, with the first session of qualifying for the 2009 AC Delco Gatornationals. The pressure is included with no extra charge, but at least Tim Wilkerson won't still be looking for his first completion of the season when play gets underway. Instead, he'll be looking for the longer routes, to move the ball down the field and score.
###
* Wilkerson's 24-10 record versus JFR and DSR in 2008 was compiled as follows:
3-3 vs. John Force (JFR)5-1 vs. Ashley Force Hood (JFR)5-1 vs. Mike Neff (JFR)2-3 vs. Robert Hight (JFR)3-0 vs. Ron Capps (DSR)2-2 vs. Jack Beckman (DSR)3-0 vs. Gary Scelzi (DSR)1-0 vs. Jerry Toliver (DSR)
