Clay Millican Racing
Rick Ware Racing’s NHRA Program All Under One ‘Canopy’
Two Top Fuel Dragsters, One Team Going Into Season-Opening Gatornationals
MOORESVILLE, NC – In a sport decided in split seconds, where winning can be measured in a thousandth of an inch, consistency is key. In 
the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, that consistency goes beyond what a driver does before rocketing down a 1,000-foot long straight in less than four seconds at 340 mph.
At Rick Ware Racing (RWR), consistency extends to the pair of Top Fuel dragsters driven by Clay Millican and Tony Schumacher, where each chassis is the same. There are no nuances between Millican’s No. 51 Parts Plus dragster and Schumacher’s No. 15 American Communications Construction dragster.
Getting to this point ahead of the season-opening Gatornationals this weekend at Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway meant each driver had to try something new. For Schumacher, it meant getting accustomed to the kind of chassis Millican uses, and for Millican, it meant jettisoning an open cockpit for a closed-top canopy – a design pioneered by Schumacher and debuted by him in 2012. Continue reading
Oberhofer Brothers Together Again at Rick Ware Racing
Jim and Jon Oberhofer To Serve as Crew Chiefs for Top Fuel Drivers Tony Schumacher and Clay Millican in 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, Nicky Boninfante Named Co-Crew Chief of Both Top Fuel Dragsters
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Feb. 17, 2026) – For as long as they have been brothers, Jim and Jon Oberhofer have been involved in drag racing. 
Since attending races with their father, Dave, the Oberhofer Brothers have been nearly inseparable, working with their dad on the Top Fuel dragsters he was a part of and eventually carving their own drag racing paths, most prominently with Kalitta Motorsports.
In 2026, Jim and Jon Oberhofer are together again, this time at Rick Ware Racing (RWR) where the duo will serve as the crew chiefs for Top Fuel drivers Tony Schumacher and Clay Millican, respectively, in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series. Joining them as co-crew chief for both entries will be another NHRA veteran, Nicky Boninfante.
“When you look at what Jim and Jon have accomplished in this sport, it’s remarkable. Championships, U.S. Nationals wins, decades of experience at the highest level, but what really stands out to me is that they’ve grown up in this business together. There’s built-in trust and understanding that isn’t manufactured. Pair that with Nicky’s experience and success, and you’ve got three guys who have seen every scenario drag racing can throw at you,” said team owner Rick Ware. Continue reading
NHRA Top Fuel Driver Clay Millican Delivers Victory for RWR in the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals
POMONA, CA – Rick Ware Racing (RWR) earned its third victory in less than 24 hours when NHRA Top Fuel driver Clay Millican drove the 
RWR-prepared Mighty Fire Breaker/Parts Plus dragster to a final round victory in the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals Sunday at In-N-Out Pomona Dragstrip.
Millican defeated Tony Stewart with an impressive .038 of-a-second reaction time to take his eighth career Top Fuel win in the NHRA Mission Food Drag Racing Series. Five of those victories have come since joining RWR in late 2022, with Millican’s prior win earned in the sport’s biggest event, last year’s Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.
“My crew chief (Jim Oberhofer) told me he had it loaded up and a couple things were going to happen. He said we’re going to win, we’re going to blow up and if we lose, we’re going to be a footnote in history,” said Millican, who went 4.273 seconds at 189.71 mph against Stewart before enduring a wild engine explosion at the finish line. “Thank goodness we’re not a footnote in history. Tony Stewart is going to win one of these soon, but all I know is we won the Winternationals. Continue reading
Keen’s Buildings Joins Rick Ware Racing at Gainesville
Leading Prefab Building Manufacturer To Serve as an Associate Partner of Clay Millican’s Top Fuel Dragster in Season-Opening NHRA Gatornationals
GAINESVILLE, FL – Keen’s Buildings, a leading garage and prefab building manufacturer serving the southeastern United States, has joined 
Rick Ware Racing (RWR) as an associate partner of the Top Fuel dragster Clay Millican will drive in the season-opening NHRA Mission Food Drag Racing Series event this weekend at Gainesville Raceway.
Millican enters the 56th annual AMALIE Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals as a seven-time NHRA Top Fuel event winner. Four of those victories have come since joining RWR in late 2022, with Millican’s most recent triumph coming last September in the sport’s biggest race, the Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Rick Ware Racing and Clay Millican for this year’s Gatornationals. As a Florida-based company, it’s great to see Keen’s Buildings represented in such a powerful way, right in our home state,” said Kevin Keen, owner, Keen’s Buildings. “This partnership is an excellent way for us to connect with fans who share our passion for quality, durability and performance – values that drive everything we do at Keen’s Buildings.” Continue reading
TOP FUEL’S CLAY MILLICAN AFTER MORE CHICAGO MAGIC AT GERBER COLLISION & GLASS NHRA ROUTE 66 NATIONALS
CHICAGO – Route 66 Raceway has always been a special venue for Top Fuel fan-favorite Clay Millican. It was the site of his first-ever NHRA 
Top Fuel event and also an event he won in 2018.
Then came last year for the veteran, who broke a winless streak of nearly five years when he won in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series’ return to the massive Chicago facility. Last season’s victory at the Gerber Collision & Glass NHRA Route 66 Nationals presented by PEAK Performance propelled another successful season, and Millican would love to replicate that at this weekend’s event at Route 66 Raceway.
He enters this race with significantly more momentum than he did last year, coming off a final-round appearance in Charlotte in his 11,000-horsepower Parts Plus/Rick Ware Racing dragster two weeks ago. A season ago, Millican had not yet won a round when Chicago arrived. He turned that around quickly with a memorable performance in NHRA’s Chicago return, yet another instance of Millican magic at Route 66 Raceway. Continue reading
Arrowhead Brass Partners With RWR in NHRA
Top Plumbing, Irrigation Products Brand Makes Drag Racing Debut in 2024
MOORESVILLE, NC – Arrowhead Brass, a leading U.S.-based manufacturer of plumbing valves and irrigation products, enters a new racing 
arena in partnership with Rick Ware Racing for the 21-event Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series season for 2024, which opens with the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals Thursday through Sunday at Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway.
The rich history of Arrowhead Brass dates back to 1936 and, in the 88 years since, the company has created long-lasting plumbing and irrigation valves that have been a staple in homes for generations. The company’s mission is to be the North American premier provider of plumbing and irrigation products and stay true to its seven core values: customer commitment, quality, integrity, teamwork, respect, personal accountability and good citizenship. Arrowhead Brass now has more than 1,000 lead-free products in an effort to keep households and their families safe and healthy. The company’s quality products can be found in national retail stores and plumbing supply wholesalers throughout the country. For more information, visit www.arrowheadbrass.com
Millican and Parts Plus Return to RWR for 2024 NHRA Drag Racing Campaign
Three-Time Winners in 2023 Add Veteran Nicky Boninfante as Co-Crew Chief
MOORESVILLE, NC – The 2024 drag racing season unofficially kicked off last weekend in Bradenton, Florida, during the PRO Superstar Shootout, and Rick Ware Racing (RWR) served notice that the speed it displayed last season in the Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series with three Top Fuel victories courtesy of driver Clay Millican would continue in 2024.
Millican promptly set fast time in the first round of qualifying at the PRO Superstar Shootout with an elapsed time of 3.688 seconds and a speed of 336.49 mph, and then remained atop the leaderboard by securing the No. 1 qualifying position. Millican advanced all the way to the final round, a stout performance that highlighted an expanded role this season by longtime partner Parts Plus on the No. 51 Top Fuel Dragster and the addition of NHRA veteran Nicky Boninfante as co-crew chief.
RWR’s first full NHRA season in 2023 featured three Top Fuel event wins – in May at Route 66 Raceway near Chicago, in July at Bandimere Speedway near Denver, and in October at World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis – doubling Millican’s career total in the series dating back to 1998. Millican debuted the No. 51 RWR Top Fuel Dragster in September 2022 at the NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.
Mainline Sales Inc renews with Stringer Performance and Top Fuel driver Clay Millican for entire 2022 NHRA season
McLeansboro, IL – Mainline Sales Inc will once again renew their partnership with Stringer Performance as a major sponsor for the full 
2022 NHRA Camping World Series drag racing season beginning with the WinterNationals in Pomona CA. This will be the fourth year in a row the full-service manufacturer’s representative company based in Anaheim CA will support champion driver Clay Millican on his Doug Stringer owned top fuel dragster.
“Every year this partnership has grown and we are very excited to have Mainline Sales back with our race team for the entire season. They really understand how to utilize Clay, our race team and hospitality platform in their business to business programs with all of Mainline’s strategic manufacturing relationships” remarks owner, Doug Stringer.
Mainline Sales along with their automotive side, MSI National, have been working closely with other Stringer Performance sponsor partners on continuing to identify and build business relationships that go beyond the racetrack and into the boardroom.
Rick Ware Racing joins Stringer Performance for the DeWalt Carolina Nationals at zMax Dragway
Charlotte, NC – Rick Ware Racing (RWR) will join Stringer Performance for the DeWalt Carolina Nationals this weekend at zMax Dragway 
in Concord, North Carolina. Rick Ware Racing, a team that not only has four charters in the NASCAR Cup Series, but also fields an entry in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NTT INDY CAR Series and NASCAR Pinty Series, is a familiar name in the motorsports industry. RWR’s partners, Nurtec ODT, boom! MOBILE and Jacob Companies will be among the partners whose colors will be represented on Clay Millican’s dragster this weekend.
“I am very excited about this opportunity with Rick Ware Racing. We are in the heart of NASCAR country and welcome the opportunity to extend our race team to Rick and introduce the excitement of NHRA racing to the RWR partners.” explains team owner, Doug Stringer.
Clay Millican drove his Parts Plus top fuel dragster to a round one win last weekend at the Reading event and is currently 9th in the Countdown to the Championship heading into this weekend’s race at Charlotte.
Walmart Partners with Stringer Performance and Top Fuel Driver Clay Millican
ATLANTA, GA – In a nationwide effort to help expand COVID-19 vaccine uptake, Walmart today announced a partnership with their 
Walmart mobile wellness program and Stringer Performance and Top Fuel Driver Clay Millican with the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) for a vaccination and education event during the 2021 NHRA Southern Nationals at the historic Atlanta Dragway.
Walmart’s licensed pharmacists will be onsite to vaccinate eligible attendees of the event Friday, April 30 through Saturday, May 1 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 2 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Attendees 18 and older can walk up to get the first dose of the Moderna vaccine while allocation lasts. Information on where to get a second dose of the vaccine will be available onsite. Insurance is not required and there is no cost to receive the vaccine, however patients should bring their insurance card if they have one.
