Maynard Family Racing
Wilkerson vs. Wilkerson Bristol Battle Ends with Son Defeating Father
Bristol, TN – The last time Chicago winner Tim Wilkerson competed at Bristol Dragway, he advanced to the final round before falling to event 
champ Ron Capps. Wilkerson was looking to repeat his 2022 performance with another trip to the finals on Sunday at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, but son Daniel had other plans, ending his father’s race day after the second round.
Wilkerson began eliminations from the No. 6 seed after a qualifying performance which saw him earn three bonus points for making the quickest run of the third session, in addition to the 4.004 E.T. he clocked during Friday’s ‘field setting’ night run. Aboard the SCAG Power Equipment/Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang, Wilkerson lined up next to fellow Illinois racer, Dale Creasy Jr. during the first round on Sunday morning. Wilkerson drove his 11,000-horsepower machine straight down the groove in 3.984 seconds for the win while Creasy puffed the tires in the opposite lane, setting up a ‘Wilkerson vs. Wilkerson’ showdown in the quarterfinals.
After a lengthy rain delay, Wilkerson staged next to Chad Green and his Daniel Wilkerson-tuned machine. Green was first on the throttle and never trailed as he crossed the finish line first in 3.970 seconds to advance, extending his round-win record to 4 – 3 over Wilkerson, who recorded a 3.968 E.T.
Newly Minted Bristol Legend Tony Schumacher Ends ‘Epic’ Weekend in Second Round
Bristol, TN – After reaching the final round of the rain-delayed NHRA New England Nationals on Saturday, Top Fuel star Tony Schumacher 
was hoping to go one round further in Sunday’s eliminations at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. Unfortunately, a flash of tire smoke marked the end of Schumacher’s day in the second round.
Driving his SCAG Power Equipment Top Fuel dragster, Schumacher qualified No. 10 with a 3.797-second pass that he recorded on his way to the Epping runner-up finish to Justin Ashley in an all-JCM Racing final on Saturday.
When Sunday rolled around, Bristol Dragway honored Schumacher during pre-race ceremonies by inducting him into the Legends of Thunder Valley, the track’s prestigious hall of fame. Schumacher is the winningest Top Fuel driver at the historic Tennessee track with six victories, and he’s now just the second member to be inducted as an active driver, joining John Force, who was welcomed into the elite club in 2016. He’s a second-generation inductee, as his father, Don Schumacher, was honored in 2014.
Wilkerson Ready to Battle for First Bristol Dragway Trophy on Sunday
Bristol, TN – Route 66 NHRA Nationals Funny Car event champion Tim Wilkerson was looking to go back-to-back and pick up his second 
win of the season at last weekend’s New England Nationals in Epping, N.H. He placed sixth on the New England Dragway ladder after an abbreviated qualifying show and was ready to take on John Force in the first round. Unfortunately for Epping fans, Mother Nature had other plans, and eliminations were postponed until this weekend’s Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, Tenn.
After the first qualifying session at Bristol Dragway, Wilkerson lined up next to Force during Q2 and what was also the first round of Epping eliminations. Against the sport’s winningest driver, Wilkerson drove the SCAG Power Equipment/Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang to the finish line in 4.004 seconds, but Force’s near-psychic .006 reaction time allowed him to cross the beams first despite posting a slower 4.063 E.T.
“With everything that the weather threw at us in Epping, I was really looking forward to getting to Bristol to enjoy some better weather and have a chance to go back-to-back after my team’s win in Chicago,” said Wilkerson, a 23-time Funny Car event champion. “These guys work so hard and I’m really proud of them and the momentum we have going. It just didn’t go my way yesterday. John Force is my favorite driver to race against and in the battle of the old guys, he left with a .006 light to take the win. Reaction times like that are just tough to beat. I felt really confident in the tune-up I put in the car and was ready to go three more rounds but instead, we made sure we gained some good information for race day today, and we’re looking forward to putting on a great show for our friends at SCAG, and all of these awesome fans here in Bristol.”
Tony Schumacher Races to First Final Round of 2023 at Rain-Delayed New England Nationals
Bristol, TN – A week after qualifying No. 13 at the NHRA New England Nationals at New England Dragway, Tony Schumacher raced to a 
runner-up finish at the rain-delayed eliminations held during qualifying at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. The driver of the SCAG Power Equipment Top Fuel dragster clocked a solid 3.835 in the final round but came up just short to his new JCM Racing teammate, Justin Ashley, on Saturday.
While Schumacher struggled like many of the other teams in Epping’s extreme qualifying conditions, he started with a clean slate when eliminations began at Bristol. He used a 3.797-second pass to move past Shawn Langdon in the first round, giving him a bye in the quarterfinals on Saturday. With the sun heating up the racing surface, the bye run came at the perfect time, as Schumacher started to lose traction and lifted to a 4.487-second E.T.
In the semifinals, which also counted as the first round of the Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, Schumacher and opponent Mike Salinas left the starting line with nearly identical reaction times. Schumacher held on and the SCAG Power Equipment dragster charged ahead, crossing the finish line first with a 3.945-second pass at 310.20 MPH to advance to his 157th final round.
“THE SARGE” TONY SCHUMACHER TO BE INDUCTED INTO BRISTOL DRAGWAY’S LEGENDS OF THUNDER VALLEY
BRISTOL, TN – Tony Schumacher, NHRA’s winningest Top Fuel driver in history, will be inducted into Bristol Dragway’s Legends of 
Thunder Valley, the historic track’s official hall of fame, during next weekend’s NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, June 9-11.
Six of the “The Sarge’s” record 86 career Top Fuel victories came at Bristol Dragway during his distinguished career. The eight-time NHRA world champion, who will be competing in JCM Racing’s SCAG Power Equipment Top Fuel dragster next weekend, says he’s looking to add more wins to his stats at one of his favorite tracks on the circuit.
Schumacher, 53, is the 20th inductee in the prestigious Legends of Thunder Valley and joins his father, 2014 honoree Don Schumacher, in the exclusive club. Schumacher is also only the second member to be inducted while he is still an active racer, joining 2016 inductee John Force, who continues to compete in the NHRA Funny Car category.
Schumacher, a Chicago native who currently resides in Austin, Texas, dominated NHRA’s Top Fuel category in the 2000s. He won six consecutive world championship titles from 2004-2009. His incredible 2008 season, where he was named Driver of the Year for all of motorsports, was perhaps his best ever, where he won 15 races in 18 final rounds and posted 9 No. 1 qualifying awards and never lost a first-round pairing that season.
WITH THE WINDS OF VICTORY IN HIS SAILS, WILKERSON SETS HIS SIGHTS ON AN EPPING WALLY
Epping, NH – Wilkerson returns to Epping, N.H. after powering to victory at the NHRA’s most recent stop in Joliet, Ill. Wilkerson’s Joliet win 
was his 23rd overall, and the first Funny Car win for the JCM Racing organization (second overall).
By advancing beyond the quarterfinals, Wilkerson qualified for the Epping #2Fast2Tasty Challenge scheduled for Saturday afternoon
Time talks Epping, “We’re feeling really good about the direction our team is headed rolling into this stretch of races during the summer months. Even before Chicago, we saw an uptick in our performance. We had started to qualify better and we were more consistent overall. Obviously, winning Chicago was a major boost for our team and we’re hoping to carry that momentum into this weekend at the New England Nationals. I’m proud of this SCAG/LRS team, and let’s see if we can’t go back-to-back and get another win up in Epping.”
NHRA New England Nationals Event Highlights: 2018 runner-up
Tony Schumacher and the Maynard Family Racing Team have renewed Confidence at Testing for Epping
Epping, NH – Following the Route 66 NHRA Nationals, the SCAG Power Equipment Top Fuel team spent time testing in Indianapolis, and 
feel confident that they have identified and resolved an issue that had been affecting the team’s performance. Schumacher and team are ready for the Epping race and getting their program back on track!
“It’s no secret that we’ve had a rough start to the season, and I don’t mean to sound like a broken record but I truly believe that after last week’s test session, we will turn it around this weekend. We tested for one day after Chicago, and were able to identify a huge issue. Once we pinpointed what we thought the problem was, we wanted to make sure that it translated to the race track. We ran a 3.78, which was our baseline, and then we wanted to see if we made a specific change, what would happen. So, we made the change and then went out and ran a 3.72. We weren’t trying to run quicker than that 72, which we could have, but we wanted to see how making that change would effect a 78 run, and it worked; the car did what we wanted it to do.” explained Tony.
NHRA New England Nationals Event Highlights: Two-time event champion (2014, 2015), 2015 No. 1 qualifier
Tony Schumacher Struggles to Harness Power in Route 66 Nationals Return
JOLIET, IL – Tony Schumacher is leaving a meaningful weekend back at Route 66 Raceway knowing his SCAG Power Equipment Top Fuel 
dragster is making strong power. Unfortunately, though, the JCM Racing driver couldn’t harness the power and turn it into a first-round win Sunday morning at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals.
Schumacher’s troubles started in qualifying, where he struggled to get down the track in the first two sessions. During the third and final round, Schumacher stepped up to a 3.793-second E.T. at 328.94 MPH to move from No. 18 into the field in the No. 15 spot.
Racing on a hot, challenging track surface on Sunday morning, Schumacher again ran into traction issues in his first-round matchup with Austin Prock. The seven-time Chicago low qualifier pedaled when he lost traction, but he couldn’t recover in time to catch Prock, who led from start to finish.
“The conditions were hotter today than we’ve seen all weekend, and we’ve got a lot of power right now,” said Schumacher, a class-best five-time Top Fuel winner at Route 66 Raceway. “We’re going to have to go to Indy and test because this is a new level of power that we’ve got to get worked into this tune-up. I know the (crew) guys, they’re all hurt, man. They work so darn hard on this stuff.”
Tim Wilkerson Wins Hometown Event in Chicago
JOLIET, IL – Tim Wilkerson powered to victory at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals on Sunday afternoon in Joliet, Ill., the sight of his career-
first triumph. It was Wilkerson’s 23rd Funny Car win, and first since partnering with JCM Racing to form Maynard Wilkerson Racing during the 2022 – 2023 off-season. Aboard the SCAG Power Equipment/Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang, ‘Wilk’ as he’s known to fans, clocked a winning 3.966 E.T. at 325.14 MPH during the final round to outpace Ron Capps who posted a 4.110 E.T. in the losing effort.
Wilkerson’s Route 66 Raceway victory snapped a 33-race winless streak, which dated back to the 2021 NHRA Carolina Nationals, and he couldn’t have been happier to hoist the Wally trophy in front of a hometown crowd.
“I’m trying to keep my emotions in check, but I’m so excited, I’m about to cry. To be this close to home, we have so many people with us this weekend, we’re not going to have a big enough lens for our winner’s circle photo, but it’s very exciting,“ joked Wilkerson, a lifelong resident of Springfield, Ill. “All my grandkids are here, and my wife, and my kids. We have about two dozen close friends here and it was just a great day.
Justin Ashley Wins Second Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge
CHICAGO – During the final day of qualifying for the Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals Justin Ashley and the Phillips 
Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster team took another win in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge outrunning Antron Brown and Austin Prock in rematch races with his Winternationals foes. For his efforts Ashley collected another $10,000 payday and equally as important as the cash was an additional three Camping World championship points.
“It’s very exciting. Winning these specialty events means a lot to our team,” said Ashley, who became the first two-time Mission Foods Challenge winner. “I am so grateful to Mission Foods and how they’re committed to NHRA drag racing. Anytime there is an additional opportunity to race and collect bonus points along the way, I think it’s significant. This was a great day.”
Ashley will head into race day as the No. 4 qualifier and a first round race with Jacob McNeal. For Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota team making two quality runs set them up hopefully for another successful race day. The last time Ashley took the Mission Foods Challenge win, the 2020 NHRA Rookie of the Year won his second consecutive Winternationals the next day.
