news-engine

An inspired Jordan Vandergriff, completing qualifying at the NHRA Brainerd Nationals within 96 hours of his drag-racing industry-leader grandfather Bob Vandergriff Sr.’s passing Wednesday, marched convincingly to the top of the charts Saturday. He captured the No. 1 starting position and said he just might have had some divine intervention. Maybe his grandpa, an automotive aftermarket leader for several decades, did it with a wink, as the Cornwell Tools Chevy Camaro driver for John Force Racing earned a bye run into the quarterfinals in Sunday’s eliminations. “Let me tell you, I did not earn that. My guys earned that. Chris Cunningham, Jason Bunker, and my crew, the Cornwall Quality Tools Boys. We struggled yesterday. We made some changes last night, and we came out today. We had two fantastic runs. So that’s all thank you to them,” Vandergriff said. “And it means a lot to me, because my grandfather passed away earlier this week. Bob Vandergriff Sr. was a titan out here, and he was a role model for me. So I think he had something to do with it,” he said. “He meant a lot to my family. I wouldn’t be here in the NHRA if it wasn’t for him. So thank you to the NHRA for taking such good care of my entire family for so long. And hopefully I can make him proud and honor the name.” After sharing the spotlight with fellow No. 1 qualifiers Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel) and Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, Vandergriff said, “It was a tough week for the Vandergriff family, you know? Bob Vandergriff, Sr., my grandfather, passed away a few days ago, and he was the one responsible for our passion in NHRA drag racing. He was the first one to come out here. It’s cool. I was going through old things this week, and I have the original copy of his contract for when he came over to NHRA to work in advertising for NHRA. It says February 14th, Valentine’s Day 1970. It outlines his entire salary and everything. It’s pretty cool. “He really pioneered our love for this sport, and he gave us all an opportunity, not just me,” he said. “My uncle, Bob Vandergriff, Jr. driving for a long time… my father, Kevin… my aunt Elfie and my uncle Chris, who also has passed. But he provided us with so much. He worked hard. He came from nothing from Missouri and he built a life for himself and a life for us. So I’m very fortunate to have him as my grandfather, and we’ll miss him dearly,” Vandergriff said. “And hopefully I can honor the name.” He said, “His health has been bad for the last few years, and I always wanted to do this with him, and even when I was driving in my rookie year, I wanted him to be a part of this, because he meant so much to what we do out here. And now that I’m with John Force, and John and he had a relationship and a friendship, John would tell me stories about how they used to hang out. I just wish he could be a part of this, and I think if I could say anything to him right now, [it would be] that I love him and just that I wish he was here.” In Top Fuel, Doug Kalitta regained the points lead, won his fourth Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, qualified No. 1, and grabbed the maximum qualifying bonus points. He’ll be seeking his third consecutive victory for his 63rd total, hoping to break a third-place tie with Larry Dixon on the class’ all-time-wins list. That would put him within two of No. 2-ranked Antron Brown. Tony Schumacher—Kalitta’s on-track nemesis in the early 2000s when his current crew chief, Alan Johnson, was tuning Shumacher to an astounding number of championships and records—heads the list with 88 victories. And Kalitta was nonchalant Saturday about any pursuit of Schumacher’s marks. “That might be a stretch,” Kalitta said. “That’s a feat. He’s done a hell of a job over the years. It would be cool to be even close to where he’s at, for sure.” Responding to rumors that before he paired with tuning genius Alan Johnson (who has guided seven drivers to 14 titles) he mulled the idea of retiring because he kept being labeled the best driver never to have won a championship, he said his career has been jump-started with two titles in the past three seasons. He said he “only dreamt about the opportunity” to be in the position he’s in today: “When Alan first started with us the first year, we kind of struggled. I got about halfway through that season thinking, ‘Hadn’t won a race.’ I’m like, ‘I’d hate to be the driver that didn’t even win a race with Alan Johnson.’ And then it seemed like after about halfway through that season, we started getting things figured out, started winning some races, and then we were able to get that championship in ‘23. So that was a huge relief. That definitely weighed on me a lot.” Kalitta said, “It’s one of those deals. Right now, it’s a hell of an opportunity for me. It’s taken a while. I’m one of the older guys out there, and we’re still running good and still trying to get these wins and championships. Another great opportunity this year—we just got to stay cool. It’s a mental game out here. And as long as everything around me that I’ve got going on in my life stays, I’d like to be able to keep going as long as this thing’s going well,” he said. Dallas Glenn will lead the Pro Stock field into eliminations Sunday, although he lost to boss and KB Titan Racing teammate Greg Anderson in the #2Fast2Tasty final. Kalitta’s teammate J.R. Todd—with whom he shared a double victory at the previous race, at Seattle—defeated Austin Prock on a holeshot to win the Funny Car version of the bonus race. Eliminations are set to begin Sunday at 11 a.m. CT. Susan Wade has lived in the Seattle area for 40 years, but motorsports is in the Indianapolis native’s DNA. She has emerged as one of the leading drag-racing writers with nearly 30 seasons at the racetrack, focusing on the human-interest angle. She was the first non-NASCAR recipient of the prestigious Russ Catlin Award and has covered the sport for the Chicago Tribune, Newark Star-Ledger, and Seattle Times. She has contributed to Autoweek as a freelance writer since 2016.