FORD STAR JOHNNY LIGHTNING ENTERS NEW 2013 MUSTANG IN THE ADRL SUPERCAR SHOWDOWN!
Written by Bret Kepner
Norwalk, OH – “Johnny Lightning”, one of the most prolific competitors in the history of Ford Motorsports, will make his debut in the American Drag Racing League’s wild new SuperCar Showdown category at the upcoming Summit Racing Equipment Ohio Drags VI
presented by Mickey Thompson Tires at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio, on September 28-29.
Johnny “Lightning“ Wiker gained national prominence by earning no less than a dozen national event titles in competition at National Mustang Racers Association events. However, the Pennsylvania performance shop owner has always competed at the wheel of a Ford pickup truck! His dominance of the NMRA’s Truck division came while racing everything from stock F-series trucks and competition diesel-powered pickups all the way to a turbocharged Ford Lightning which clocked quarter-mile runs of over 170 miles per hour in a mere seven seconds.
With the recent acquisition of a new 2013 Ford Mustang Super Cobra Jet, however, Johnny Lightning has thrown his hat into the SuperCar Showdown ring to wage war against the world’s quickest and fastest production passenger cars. With his wife and crew chief, Susan, at his side, Johnny has already completed testing at several eastern tracks and, based on the numbers, should be more than competitive with the teams already well-versed in SCS racing during the 2012 ADRL season.
“Since I’ve had so many customers who want to get into this type of racing, I decided to become involved in it myself to better help them”, said Wiker, who operates Johnny Lightning Performance in New Providence, Pennsylvania, as well as a large InterNet-based performance sales business at JLPRacing.com. “I guess our biggest notoriety has come from racing in trucks but the truth is we build, prepare and tune both cars and trucks in our business. It’s obvious these new supercars are the hottest thing in drag racing right now and I knew it would benefit us to run our own car while we develop new performance combinations for our customers“.
Wiker’s NMRA titles gave him fame but, in terms of recognition within the industry, his seven victories at the legendary World Ford Challenge annual events certified Johnny Lightning as one of drag racing’s most knowledgeable Ford tuners. Yet, the technical achievement of Ford’s own engineers is not lost on Wiker. “It’s hard to believe what Ford has accomplished with the new Cobra Jets. The cars are masterpieces of engineering. The amount of power available, even when the car arrives at the dealership, is simply amazing. They’re selling every one of them they can build, too”.
In his first ADRL competition appearance, Johnny Lightning’s pit area will include a pair of new black Super Cobra Jets. One of his customers, Mike Harris of Harris Paving, will debut his own similar entry as a member of the Johnny Lightning Mustang team. “Mike’s car is just as strong as mine. I’ve got Super Cobra Jet number 20 and Mike took delivery of number 46. I figure we can gain twice as much information by running both cars at Norwalk so both Mike and I are excited to be a part of the ADRL program”.
“It’s great to have a series in which we’re showcased with the quickest and fastest cars in drag racing”, said Johnny Lightning, “and we plan to put on a show if only to prove to fans just how incredible these new cars really are. These new Mustangs are just amazing. I’m serious! They’re absolutely awesome!”.
