Daniel Wilkerson and his SCAG Power Equipment Ford Mustang Funny Car will be competing in the PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals this weekend at Virginia Motorsports Park, looking to climb back up the Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series points standings.
Wilkerson finished in the semi-finals or better in points in three consecutive races before being eliminated in the first round at Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. Wilkerson qualified 10th after the engine in his SCAG Funny Car blew up during qualifying. The SCAG team put out a spare car and drove his best race of the weekend, posting the sixth-fastest time out of the round of 16, but fell just short of 16-time winner John Force. As a result, Wilkerson has moved from sixth to eighth in points and is eager to advance to the next race quickly.
“We’ve got a car that ran well at Bristol back up to race spec, and we can’t wait to get on the beautiful surface at Richmond,” Wilkerson said of the car that blew up during qualifying. “It’s one of the places I haven’t driven yet. I’ve worked on a few cars here, but I’ve only ever seen this facility, which is literally between the pits and the starting line, and my wife and daughter have seen it more than I have. The weather seems to be right up Tim’s alley, and the whole team is excited. This SCAG Power Equipment, Summit Ford Mustang team is hungry to win, and we feel we have the car to get it done.”
Wilkerson, who has only driven part-time since getting his license in 2007, has achieved numerous career bests in the first eight races of his first full season in the Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series. Wilkerson earned a career-best runner-up finish at the Four Wide Nationals in Charlotte, a race in which he also recorded a career-best speed (333.16 mph) and elapsed time (3.885 seconds), and he also earned a career-best qualifying result of fourth place at the New England Nationals in Epping, New Hampshire. This weekend he will be looking to score his first career win in a Funny Car.
Competition at the PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals begins on Saturday with three rounds of qualifying at noon, 3pm and 6pm, followed by qualifying at noon on Sunday. Televised coverage of the event will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1), which will air qualifying at 1pm ET on Saturday and 1pm ET on Sunday. Qualifying will air at 5pm ET on Sunday.
This story was originally published on June 20, 2024.
