Elkhart, IN – It’s no secret that NHRA Top Fuel veteran Terry McMillen has always had interest in owning a dragstrip. A few years ago when he was in the very public  process of purchasing Osceola Dragway in Osceola, IN, a lawsuit against the county for rezoning the property put the sale on hold.  The owners were eager to sell, and with the uncertainty of the pandemic and how long the lawsuit would last, McMillen gave them the option to sell to a different buyer who didn’t need the land rezoned to purchase. That buyer ultimately turned the land into farmland.

Over the next few years McMillen would check out tracks that were listed for sale, hoping to find one that made sense for the future of his family, but there was always something that made him rule each track out.

They say everything happens for a reason. Recently, McMillen was having a conversation with Mark Cregier, the track owner of Bunker Hill Dragstrip, in Bunker HIll, IN, the track where Cameron McMillen, Terry’s son races his Jr. Dragster. This conversation unexpectedly turned to health issues Cregier had been dealing with and his thoughts about possibly selling the track. It was during that conversation that McMillen realized why the deal with Oseola didn’t go through, and why the other tracks he looked at weren’t the perfect fit for his family. It was because the track meant for his family to own was Bunker Hill Dragstrip.

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2018 US Nationals winner will race part-time schedule with Dan Mercier Racing

Elkhart, IN – The 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing season will see another familiar face in the Top Fuel ranks as fan favorite and 2018 US Nationals Top Fuel winner Terry McMillen today announced he will compete on a limited schedule, competing in six to eight national events in 2022, so he can continue to support his son Cameron’s junior dragster career. McMillen will race under the Dan Mercier Racing banner.

“We met Dan in 2017 when he purchased a Top Fuel dragster from us and we have stayed friends,” said McMillen, who has two career Top Fuel wins and finished in the Top Ten in 2020. “He runs a family operation just like us, so it is a perfect partnership. After spending last year with Cameron at the track I knew the only way I would come back right now was if I could race around Cameron’s schedule.”

Dan Mercier Racing purchased the Terry McMillen Racing operation so the veteran driver will be returning to the same livery that he earned his first No. 1 qualifier at the Dodge Nationals in 2020 at Indianapolis Raceway Park.

“2022 will certainly be the long-awaited dream year for Mercier Racing,” said Mercier. “There’s no better time to make a serious commitment to the big leagues. Having the opportunity to have Terry as a driver will give the Mercier Racing team a tremendous chance to improve and compete against the best. Our focus now is on winning rounds and national events.”

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ELKHART, IN – After 19 years together, Terry McMillen Racing and the AMALIE? Motor Oil company have mutually agreed to suspend their sponsorship relationship. Amalie Oil has suspended all motorsports sponsorships effective immediately. The move comes as the 2020 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, now Camping World Drag Racing Series, wraps up with three final races in Dallas, Houston and Las Vegas. McMillen informed his racing team of the decision this week and he will be evaluating the future direction of the organization in the coming weeks.

“I can’t thank Amalie Motor Oil enough for the support they have shown me over the past 19 years,” said McMillen, the 2018 U.S. Nationals Top Fuel national event winner. “It is not a cliché, this company was part of my family. They stuck by us as long as they could and we are agreeing to suspend this sponsorship with no hard feelings. They have gone above and beyond to be fair with my team financially. We just reached a point where it didn’t make good business sense for either of us to move forward. They are a great company and I can’t say enough nice things about how they have treated me and this team over the years. Starting today we are exploring new opportunities. Right now it is key to keep Amalie employees working and making product so when the economy turns around they will be ready.”

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ST LOUIS – Terry McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil Top Fuel team continued to show off their 2020 season improvement with a dominant performance during the lone qualifying session at the NHRA Midwest Nationals. McMillen blasted to the No. 2 qualifying spot with a 3.715 second run at 319.45 mph on Friday night and took some serious momentum into race day. A long day of rain delays put the pressure on all the pro teams but McMillen’s crew was up to the task.

In the opening round McMillen further showed his Rob Wendland tuned AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster was going to be one of the race cars to beat at World Wide Technology Raceway. The team had a favorable match up against journeyman racer Todd Paton as eliminations began under cool conditions. McMillen got the jump off the starting and never trailed in the race as his 3.777 second at 325.53 mph pass advanced him to the quarterfinals against fellow championship contender Billy Torrence.

The quarterfinal race was one of the best side by side races of the day. McMillen was giving up lane choice but that was not a competitive disadvantage thanks to the excellent effort by the NHRA Safety Safari. Both Top Fuel dragsters launched nearly simultaneously with Torrence getting a slight advantage. That edge would prove to be the difference as the Amalie Motor Oil dragster barreled down the track and crossed the finish line in 3.714 second, a thousandth of a second quicker than his qualifying run. Unfortunately Torrence got the win light by less than two feet and .0046 seconds at over 325 mph.

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Entering the 66th annual NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis Terry McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil Top Fuel team had a number of goals most importantly picking up their second win at the historic event. In addition to victory the team was looking to continue gathering data and runs on a brand new chassis as well as making a switch in their clutch package. The three rounds of qualifying for the event including a Friday night session gave the team the opportunity to run in optimal conditions.

“We had a number of things we want to accomplish this weekend at the U.S. Nationals,” said McMillen. “We wanted to get another U.S. Nationals win in the AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster of course but we also wanted to continue to show the rest of the class that we are one of the top teams. Even though we didn’t get our top goal we accomplished all our other goals.”

On Friday night after a lengthy delay McMillen and his Rob Wendland tuned AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster made a 3.799 second run at 323.27 mph which was quick enough to place the team 10th on the qualifying sheet. It was the first run in the cooler night conditions since the team brought out the new chassis.

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Today Terry McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil Top Fuel team started a race with a brand new perspective. For the first time in the veteran driver’s career McMillen was the No. 1 qualifier. The AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster was up to the task and his Rob Wendland tuned Top Fuel dragster continued to show it is one of the top race cars on the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. McMillen knew he had a great race car but he also knew that winning four rounds of racing would be a tough order no matter where he started in the qualifying ladder.

“Honestly, I tried to block the fact I was the No. 1 qualifier out of my head. I didn’t want that on my mind and because you start thinking about that and you get yourself in trouble,” said McMillen. “I just ran it like a normal race day. I didn’t care who was in the other lane. We just looked at every situation and ran our race. Whether we won or lost we were going to run on our terms. The No. 1 spot other than the prestige and finally checking that off our bucket list there was no distraction on race day.”

McMillen’s first round opponent was Lex Joon who continues to build a competitive Top Fuel team. The AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster stepped up and made another strong pass 3.799 seconds to get the win. The win moved McMillen into the second round against fellow championship contender Billy Torrence. In the quarterfinal match-up McMillen took a single for the win after Torrence experienced an issue after his burnout and was shut off by the NHRA starter.

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – What a difference one day made for Terry McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil Top Fuel team. After two tough runs in qualifying at the NHRA SummerNationals in Indianapolis, McMillen’s team rolled into race day as the No. 12 qualifier and facing a first round match-up with the winningest Top Fuel racer ever, Tony Schumacher. The AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster was up to the task and not only advanced from the first round raced to a semifinal finish and a jump in the Mello Yello point standings. McMillen moved up to No. 9 in the points and is just six points out of seventh place.

“I think everything on that car was gone through with a fine tooth comb last night,” said McMillen, from his lounge at the end of the day. (Crew chief) Rob (Wendland) had the chance to look as some other things. We found a couple different spots that we needed to tickle differently. We did that and from then on it has been fast.”

The opening run today for McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster was one for the ages. McMillen never trailed in the race, grabbing a string line advantage and posting low ET for the event. His winning elapsed time of 3.765 seconds at 320.66 mph propelled him into a second round match-up with three-time Top Fuel champion Antron Brown.

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Terry McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil Top Fuel team had momentum on their side after a day of testing on Friday and a solid day of qualifying yesterday at the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals in Indianapolis.  Coming back to the track that a few years ago was the site of his biggest win, the U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend, in 2018 the Elkhart, Indiana racer was full of positive energy. He had a brand new race car and the AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster was ready to battle with a tough Top Fuel field.

In the opening session of qualifying McMillen and his Ron Wendland tuned Top Fueler made the quickest pass of the day and grabbed three valuable bonus points and went in to the final qualifying session as the provisional No. 1 qualifier. In the second round a couple dragster ran quicker but McMillen stepped up and jumped to the No. 3 qualifier position and a strong feeling going into race day. The track conditions during testing and qualifying were hot and as the second session came to an end a huge thunderstorm rolling over the race track ending the day for the racers and setting up a race day with completely different race conditions.

The NHRA made a number of adjustments to their racing schedule to maximize a safe racing environment for the teams and fans which included an early race start at 9 a.m. local time. McMillen’s first round opponent was not your traditional No. 14 qualifier. He would be facing three-time Top Fuel champion Antron Brown who struggled in his only two qualifying runs.

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After over three months away from the racetrack AMALIE® Motor Oil Top Fuel team owner and driver Terry McMillen is ready to get back to racing at the upcoming E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at Indianapolis Raceway Park this week. His team, led by crew chief Rob Wendland, used the downtime effectively to streamline his organization and also maximize the newfound family time. McMillen and Wendland have a strong relationship and have put together a plan for the rest of the season they both feel could lead to their first NHRA Mello Yello championship together.

How ready are you to get back to racing?

Terry McMillen  –  “It is almost like starting the year over. You have all that anticipation. We built a new car over the winter and took it to Gainesville. We never got to run it so it has never been down the track. We are excited to see what the new car will do. (Crew Chief) Rob Wendland and the entire team have done a fantastic job just keeping everything going. All our wish lists or want to do lists are all completed. It is time to leave the shop, hear some noise and smell a little nitro. This is the longest we have ever been home sitting at one time. It is just go time. It is going to be different by far.”

TM- “We only have two qualifiers so it is not like you can go out there and try and hit a home run. You have to get the car down the track to make sure you are in the show. There could be close to 20 cars going into Indy so you can’t make a mistake. Hopefully you get that first run in that sets up the weekend.”

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PHOENIX, AZ – Terry McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil Top Fuel team  had a career best weekend at the NHRA Arizona Nationals posting their quickest elapsed time in the first round today at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park. Racing as the No. 4 qualifier against three-time world champion Antron Brown, McMillen and the AMALIE? Motor Oil XTERMIGATOR? Top Fuel dragster had lane choice and confidence.

The team knew they would have their hands full even on the strength of crew chief Rob Wendland’s strong tuning performance on Friday night. The Amalie Motor Oil Top Fuel dragster blistered the track with a 3.696 second run at 326.79 mph which was just a thousandth of a second off his career best elapsed time. Heading into the first round McMillen was eager to get to the starting line.

Unfortunately McMillen’s aggressiveness got the best of him and the veteran driver jumped the tree with a red-light start. The Amalie Motor Oil Top Fuel dragster proceeded to make a career best run of 3.691 seconds at 232.89 mph in a losing effort.

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