Tommy Johnson Jr. and the Terry Chandler-sponsored Make-A-Wish Funny Car team have been waiting all year for this day, and it finally came during the Route 66 NHRA Nationals.

Johnson, driving the Make-A-Wish Dodge Charger R/T, powered to the final round in his John Collins-tuned Funny Car and finished the job with a decisive win over Don Schumacher Racing teammate Matt Hagan. It was the 11th nitro win of Johnson’s career and his second with the Make-A-Wish team. Their most recent win was last year in Bristol.

“You know, some days, you just get up and feel it,” said Johnson, who is No. 6 in NHRA’s Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Funny Car points. “You know you’re going to win. I woke up this morning and thought we’ve got the car to beat; we’re going to win this race. You feel like you know it, and that it’s right. Our Make-A-Wish Dodge has been a really good car in terms of performance, we just couldn’t get the breaks to go our way. We kind of beat ourselves a couple of times with mistakes, but I have to hand it to our guys – they kept working. Nobody got discouraged. We had a team meeting and said, ‘listen guys, we have to step it up.’ Every one of them did.

“The car has been flawless in qualifying for the last two races, and today John [Collins, crew chief] made some really nice calls. I’m really proud of him. He is a second year crew chief, and he’s really learning. John is doing a great job, and so are all of the guys on our Make-A-Wish team.”

Johnson was in something of a mini-slump at the two most recent events on the tour and exited in the first round at both Bristol and Norwalk, but on Sunday in Chicago there was a whole new story to tell. Starting from the No. 4 position, his best qualifying position since earning the No. 1 spot in Epping three races ago, Johnson launched into eliminations with a 4.102-second pass at 308.21 mph to advance on a fouling Brian Stewart, who left the starting line .065-second too soon.

Sacrificing lane choice to DSR teammate Jack Beckman in the quarterfinals proved irrelevant, and Johnson sailed smoothly down to the 1,000-foot mark with a 4.068, 305.22 to beat his friendly foe – both driver’s teams are sponsored by Terry Chandler.

His 4.06 was good for lane choice over Cruz Pedregon in the semifinals, and Johnson was on a tear as he launched off the starting line with a blazing .057-second reaction time to Pedregon’s .091. At the finish line stripe it was all Johnson with a 4.101, 305.08 to his opponent’s 4.116, 299.53.

The semifinals win sent Johnson to the 27th nitro final round of his career and 22nd in the Funny Car category. Again, Johnson was out of the gate first with a .066 to Hagan’s .073, and as his teammate and competitor went up in tire smoke just after the launch, Johnson skated ahead to take the win light with a 4.259 at 245.27.

“You know, I make a lot of wishes, and this one came true,” said Johnson, who secured his spot in the NHRA Traxxas Nitro Shootout with the win. “Our car spun the tires in that final round down track and nosed over, and the next thing I knew it had pushed the plugs out and it was on fire. It finally quit running and I went past the finish line and then lifted. It was the final round, I wanted to get there however I could. You have to seize those moments. I had no idea where Matt was, and that moment when you spin the tires down there, your heart drops. But I kept looking and didn’t see him, so I thought, well we had to win – but you don’t celebrate until you get out of the car and know for sure that you’ve won. We did it. Today was a very good day for our team.

“I’m really happy for our sponsor Terry Chandler, and thanks to Terry for all she does. We know this win means a lot to her, and it means a lot to us to be able to do this for her. Every Saturday we have Make-A-Wish kids out here, she tells the kids every week that this is their car. For us to put the kid’s car in the winner’s circle makes the win a little sweeter for all of us.”

Posted by:  Kelly Topolinski

Event Essentials:   NHRA Lucas Oil Route 66 Nationals (July 10-12, 2015) 

(John Force (top) and Cruz Pedregon set low ET and top speed respectively)

Photos by:  Bruce Biegler