LAS VEGAS, NV. (October 21, 2013) -- Tim Wilkerson has no problem coming to grips with the fact he's not going to win the 2013 NHRA Mello Yello World Championship. He can deal with the reality of already looking forward to the 2014 season even as this campaign wraps up with its two final events in Las Vegas and Pomona. What he can't do, no matter how much he tries, is avoid the overwhelming desire to win this weekend's Toyota Nationals at The Strip, because a victory would not only reward his team for a hard-fought season, it would also cause no end of drama and heartache among the leaders in the Funny Car class, who are currently battling it out for the top spot while hoping to avoid such spoiler moves from the rest of the field. Wilk would like to win, he'd like to try out and test a few new ideas, and he'd love to be the spoiler who ruins everyone else's weekend.
"Its been a long year, and we started it with a really young team that needed to find out just how good they could be," Wilk said. "At first, I wasn't sure if these guys could stand up to the pressure you feel in this class, when the clock is ticking, the TV cameras are on you, and you have to get the work done right, every time. They stood up before they walked, and they walked before they ran, but right now they can run with anyone and I'm really proud of them. It would be great to get them a win before we're done here.
"There's also no shortage of reasons for wanting to ruin everyone else's Sunday, I can promise you that. We're professionals and we race because we're out here to win, no matter what the points say. We can use these last two races as a chance to get better, by trying a few things or ideas that maybe we wouldn't have the nerve to use if we counting every bonus point and couldn't afford to lose anything at all. And, the teams that are fighting for the big trophy need to be pushed to their limit. If you looked back at the last couple of races and saw that the contenders were getting a bunch of second-rate efforts from the teams they raced, it wouldn't be right. We'll approach every lap like it's our own championship. That's the way we race."
Heading into Vegas, Wilk's Ford stablemate John Force is in the lead, atop the Funny Car standings. Force, looking for his 16th World Championship, has a 65-point lead over Matt Hagan, which equates to just over three rounds of racing. Jack Beckman is currently 126 points back, putting him more than six rounds behind Force with only eight rounds of racing left this season. Ford teammate Robert Hight enters Vegas 134 points back, while Cruz Pedregon and Ron Capps come into Vegas 150 and 160 behind, respectively. Mathematically, it's still a wide-open race, but realistically it appears to be more of a three or four-horse fight.
"John is out to prove that age is nothing and that he can still do it, and it's pretty impressive to see what he's done," Wilk said. "I'm trying to think of another sport in America where a guy like him, who is 64 years old and been through wrecks that would've killed a lot of other people, is right in the mix and showing no signs of slowing down. He's got Matt Hagan on his tail, and just looking at the two of them standing side-by-side is like looking at both ends of the spectrum, but the old guy has been on top of his game and it's been impressive to watch both of them get after it.
"So, even though we're down here lower in the standings, there's a ton to race for. Whoever is going to win the big trophy needs to earn it the right way, so the only thing I know how to do is run as fast as we can every lap. We'll see who ends up winning it, but in the meantime I'd like to make sure none of those guys wins Las Vegas. If I have to take out every one of them to win the race, I think that would make for one great Sunday, for Levi, Ray & Shoup, Summit Racing Equipment, all of our other sponsors, and for my guys. They deserve it."
While thousands of others in Vegas will be visiting the sports books to place wagers on Win, Place and Show, Tim Wilkerson's goal will be to Win, Test, and Spoil. If all three of those elements come through, he can treat his young crew to a well-deserved victory dinner while he sends the contenders home looking for leftovers.