Wilkerson to charge for U.S. Nationals trophy on 20th anniversary of his first nitro final
Posted by: Kelly Topolinski
SPRINGFIELD, IL. (August 29, 2017) – The 2017 NHRA Countdown to the Championship is slated to kick off in just a couple of weeks, but first, drivers in the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series will have one final race to vie for their spot in the chase for the big trophy. This weekend's NHRA U.S. Nationals will mark the end of the regular season, and Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang Funny Car driver Tim Wilkerson intends to make the most of the opportunity on the 20th anniversary of his very first nitro Funny Car final round.
Just a year after making his nitro debut, Wilkerson wheeled his way to the final round for the first time, and he did it at what many consider the most revered event on the NHRA tour: the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis. The year was 1997, and Whit Bazemore got the trophy that day at Lucas Oil Raceway, but it marked the beginning of a career that so far includes 20 wins in 39 final rounds.
Wilk finally got an Indy win of his own in 2003 with a final-round defeat of Johnny Gray. His most recent Indy final was in 2012, where Mike Neff got the nod.
"I've been racing at Indy for a whole bunch of years. Heck, I used to bracket race here in the 80s," said Wilkerson, who made his nitro debut in Gainesville in 1996 but was a successful Top Alcohol Funny Car pilot in the years prior. "It's a neat race, and the reward is bigger in more ways than one. The paycheck is bigger, but it isn't just about the money – a win this weekend would go a long way for our team. It would be a nice boost of morale going into the Countdown to the Championship."
Wilkerson knows the value of success at the most historic event on the NHRA tour. The prestige of an Indy title is complemented by increased point-value. Each mark is increased to one-and-a-half times its typical worth, with maximum points of 195 available to one driver in each Pro category.
- 150 points to event winner
- 20 total bonus qualifying points if driver has low elapsed time for each of five sessions (low e.t. gets four points, 2nd quickest gets three, 3rd gets two, 4th gets one)
- 10 points to No. 1 qualifier
- 15 points to all drivers who make one or more qualifying pass
"We're in a good position going into this race, because we're No. 8 in the points," said Wilkerson, who has reached two final rounds to date for 2017 and has one low qualifier award for the season on his scorecard. "We would really have to mess up to not make the Countdown, so right now we're fighting to get the highest position possible. Those 10 points may mean something at the end of the year, and we really need to do well and make sure we're positioning ourselves the best we can for those last six races."
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Tim Wilkerson
Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang
Car No.: FC9
Wilkerson in Indy
1 win in 3 final rounds
Runner-up 1997* (Whit Bazemore)
Won 2003 (defeated Johnny Gray)
Runner-up 2012 (Mike Neff)
No. 1 qualifier 1998
*Wilkerson's first nitro Funny Car final
Last year: Qualified No. 9, lost in first round to Robert Hight
Updated Career Stats heading into U.S. Nationals, race 18 of 24
No. 8 in Funny Car standings
463 races
772 rounds
20 wins
19 runner-up finishes
39 overall final rounds
19 No. 1 qualifier awards
Career best e.t.: 3.844 (2017 Phoenix)
Career best speed: 333.74 (2016 Topeka) |
Race Info
63rd annual Chevrolet Performance NHRA U.S. Nationals
Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis
Indianapolis, Indiana
August 30-September 4, 2017
Run Schedule (all times ET)
Wednesday, August 30
8:30am – Sportsman qualifying
Thursday, August 31
8am – Sportsman qualifying/eliminations
Friday, September 1
8am – Sportsman eliminations
7:15pm – Pro Stock qualifying session 1
8pm – Nitro qualifying session 1
Saturday, September 2
8am – Sportsman eliminations
2:30pm – Pro Stock qualifying session 2
3:45pm – Top Fuel Traxxas Shootout round 1
4pm – Nitro qualifying session 2/TF Traxxas Shootout R2
6:15pm – Pro Stock qualifying session 3
7pm – Nitro qualifying session 3/TF Traxxas Shootout Final
Sunday, September 3
8am – Sportsman eliminations
11:30am – Pro Stock qualifying session 4
12:45pm – Funny Car Traxxas Shootout round 1
1pm – Nitro qualifying session 4
2:45pm – FC Traxxas Shootout R2
3:15pm – Pro Stock qualifying session 5
4pm – Nitro qualifying session 5/FC Traxxas Shootout Final
Monday, September 4
11am – Eliminations
Television Schedule (all times ET)
(As displayed on NHRA's Media Fact Sheet, August 28, 2017)
Sunday, Sept. 3, FS1 will televise two hours of qualifying coverage at noon
Sunday, Sept. 3, FS1 will televise two hours of qualifying coverage at 5pm
Monday, Sept. 4, FS1 will televise two hours of LIVE finals coverage at 11am
Monday, Sept. 4, FOX will televise three hours of LIVE finals coverage at 1pm
Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis Track Records
Funny Car
3.858, 333.08
Photo credit: Auto Imagery