Offseason busy for Top Fuel Funny Car drivers

Tracy Renck, Special to The Rocky

Published July 12, 2008 at 7:36 p.m.

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MORRISON — During the offseason, Top Fuel Funny Car drivers like John Force are taking steps to win another National Hot Rod Association world championship.

Force has won 14 world titles and he's always the favorite to win again, thanks to the superior multi-car race team he has established at John Force Racing and the research and development his team does.

On the other end of the spectrum is Bob Tasca III who had exactly zero in place on Nov. 1, 2007 to compete in the Top Fuel Funny Car ranks in 2008.

"In November, when we started, we had nothing, not a part, not an employee," said Tasca, whose hometown is Hope, R.I. "When you see what we have done it's remarkable."

Tasca is right. He's presently 10th in the NHRA Top Fuel Funny Car standings. Fellow rookie Mike Neff is ninth in the points chase as the fourth driver for John Force Racing.

"We're going to fight right to the end to win rookie of the year," Tasca said.

What's more, the 32-year-old Tasca's only drag racing experience was racing a limited and full schedule in in the Top Alcohol Funny Car class in 2006 and 2007. He finished fourth in the TAFC national points standings last year.

"We did extremely well in 2007 and ultimately my success there proved to the Ford Motor Company, my sponsor that, that I had the business sense to put a team together and that we could win," Tasca said. "More importantly, it gave me the confidence that I could get in a Top Fuel Funny Car and drive it. The alcohol Funny Car class has amazing hard core drivers and there was no better stepping stone for me."

Tasca turned some heads Saturday evening at the 29th Mile-High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway, clocking a 4.238-second time at 292.27 mph on his final qualifying run. That placed him sixth in the qualifying ladder.

"Chris Cunningham my crew chief, right before that last run, told me that we were in the show and he started turning some things and our car was running," Tasca said.

For the first time in its history, the NHRA had both the Top Fuel Dragster and Top Fuel Funny Cars race to 1000-feet, instead of the traditional quarter-mile (1,320 feet). The NHRA staged its first national event in 1955.

According to NHRA officials, the 1000-foot finish line is an interim change and is subject to change at the remaining 11 races after the Mile-High Nationals.

NHRA's actions were brought about as the investigation continues into the on-track death of Kalitta, a two-time NHRA world champion on June 21.

"I think it was positively the right decision short-term," Tasca said. "You will not prevent cars from blowing up, but you certainly can calm the explosion down by slowing these cars down."

Tasca meets Ron Capps in the first round. Final eliminations begin at noon today.

" The key is to put ourselves in position to win, and not try to push too hard and over think things," Tasca said.

Tasca believes landing Cunningham has really been beneficial to his team. Cunningham was the crew chief for the Top Fuel Funny Car driven by Jeff Arend last season. Arend isn't competing this season.

"I was very, very fortunate to hook up with Chris as my crew chief," Tasca said. "At the end of the day, a great driver can't make a bad car good. The driver is probably five percent of the equation. Ninety-five percent of what we do out here is a team giving a crew chief a perfect car and the crew chief making the right decisions and the driver not screwing it up."

Tasca also was quick to admit that he enjoying his ride.

"This is a dream come true for me," Tasca said. "I said in Vegas when I got out of the car, that this an all-Ford hot rod driven by an all-Ford kid and there are no truer words that were ever spoken. I was born and raised in my family's Ford dealership. Ford believed in our team and in me and we've created a really competitive race team and a business platform that Ford leverages at every race."

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