Tim Wilkerson Racing Notes and Quotes - Route 66 NHRA Nationals - May 31-June 2, 2019
Tim Wilkerson
Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang
Car No.: FC5
Current points position: No. 8
Event-specific Notes:
- Tim Wilkerson's first national event win in a nitro Funny Car came at Route 66 Raceway in 1999, when he defeated John Force for the title
- Wilkerson, who hails from Springfield, will be racing for the trophy in his home state of Illinois with longtime sponsor Levi, Ray & Shoup looking on. LRS is also based in Springfield. Wilkerson has been partnered with LRS for 20 years, and it is one of the longest standing sponsorships in current-day NHRA drag racing.
- Wilkerson debuted his brand-new Ford Mustang Funny Car body at the most recent event on the tour, the Virginia Nationals in Richmond. Wilkerson has been a devoted Ford Funny Car campaigner for 10 years and has claimed 10 of his 20 Pro victories piloting a Ford Mustang.
Driver Notes:
- Wilkerson has been to the final at Gainesville, Las Vegas, and Atlanta this year. He was the No. 1 qualifier in Las Vegas.
- Team Summit driver Wilkerson, the driver, tuner, and team owner of the Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang Funny Car, is an independent driver and the only single-car team in the category to finish in the top 10 in 2018
- The early portion of Wilkerson's career included a successful run as a Top Alcohol Funny Car driver. He earned eight division trophies, one national event win, and was the Division 3 Top Alcohol Funny Car champ in both 1994 and 1995 in the Lucas Oil Series before stepping up to the Pro ranks in Gainesville in 1996.
Wilkerson in Chicago
1 win in 1 final round
Won 1999 (defeated John Force)
In 2018: Qualified No. 11; first round
Wilkerson's Career Stats through 2019 Virginia NHRA Nationals in Richmond (most recent Funny Car event)
501 races
20 wins
24 runner-up finishes
44 final rounds
20 No. 1 qualifier awards
Career best e.t.: 3.844 (2017 Phoenix)
Career best speed: 333.74 (2016 Topeka)
Quotes:
"I'm feeling pretty good about our new Ford Mustang Funny Car body. We were almost as fast as anybody out there in Virginia, so I think we're doing pretty good with it, and I'd like to see us put it in the winner's circle before too long for Ford, LRS, Summit Racing, and all those folks who are out there supporting us week in and week out. It would be really cool to do something good this weekend in Chicago – we're racing just a couple of hours away from home, and we'll have a ton of people out there on Saturday from Levi, Ray and Shoup, plus friends and family and all kinds of folks, so it'll be a real neat deal. I'm pretty optimistic about this new car and what we can do with it. It's solid. We'll see; the big thing is that we have to keep our heads on straight. If we can do that and make it go again, I think we'll be in good shape."
2019 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Funny Car Standings
(after NHRA Virginia Nationals, race 8 of 24)
1. Robert Hight (3), 717
2. J.R. Todd (1), 556
3. Ron Capps (2), 548
4. Tommy Johnson Jr., 527
5. John Force, 524
6. Matt Hagan (1), 506
7. Jack Beckman, 477
8. Tim Wilkerson, 463
9. Shawn Langdon (1), 404
10. Bob Tasca III, 369
Race Info
Route 66 NHRA Nationals
Route 66 Raceway
Chicago (Joliet), Illinois
May 30-June 2, 2019
Route 66 Raceway Track Records
Pro Stock
Drew Skillman, 6.528 (2015); Greg Anderson, 211.83 (2015)
Funny Car
Robert Hight, 3.851 (2017); Hight, 334.73 (2017)
Top Fuel
Steve Torrence, 3.677 (2018); Torrence, 333.58 (2018)
Pro Stock Motorcycle
Matt Smith, 6.784 (2017); Hector Arana Jr., 200.89 (2018)
Run Schedule (all times local)
Thursday, May 30
8:00 a.m. – Lucas Oil Series Sportsman qualifying begins
Friday, May 31
8:00 a.m. – Lucas Oil Series Sportsman qualifying, eliminations begin
5:30 p.m. – Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro qualifying session 1
8:00 p.m. – Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro qualifying session 2
Saturday, June 1
9:00 a.m. – Lucas Oil Series Sportsman eliminations continue
11:15 a.m. – Sportsman Allstars driver introductions at the starting line
12:00 p.m. – Sportsman Allstars round 1
1:45 p.m. – Sportsman Allstars round 2
2:45 p.m. – Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro qualifying session 3
4:30 p.m. – Sportsman Allstars finals
5:15 p.m. – Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro qualifying session 4
Sunday, June 2
8:30 a.m. – Lucas Oil Sportsman eliminations continue
10:00 a.m. – Pre-race ceremonies
11:00 a.m. – Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Pro eliminations begin
#NHRAonFOX Television Schedule (all times ET)
Qualifying / Saturday – 7-8 PM ET / FS1
NHRA Sunday LIVE / Sunday – 11:30 AM-12:30 PM ET / FS1
Finals / Sunday – 5:30-8:30 PM ET / FS1
(Sportsman) Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Television Schedule
Finals / Thursday, June 13 – 8:30-9:30 PM ET / FS2
Photo credit: Auto Imagery