Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals
Tony Schumacher is the undisputed king in NHRA’s Top Fuel category, amassing eight National Championships (the most ever) with 86 wins. Son of the great Don Schumacher, Tony, 52 (he’ll be 53 Christmas Day), has just picked up sponsorship at least through the end of 2025 with the backing of Scag Power Equipment. He will continue to compete as part of the Maynard Family Racing Team, previously Don Schumacher Racing. Tony’s best elapsed time is 3.649 seconds, with a top speed of 336.57 mph, both at Phoenix in 2018. At a test last week of a new 1,150-hp crate motor, the DSR 1150, at Indianapolis Raceway Park, I sat down with Tony (he was driver coach for my quarter-mile passes in a souped-up Dodge Demon) for a chat. Following are edited excerpts from a longer conversation.
Jim Clash: What is your relationship with your father now?
Tony Schumacher: It’s a little more peaceful. It was hectic during the two decades we ran the [U.S.] Army car - go, go, go. We signed with Scag Power Equipment, and extended last week for three to six years, which is huge. Scag’s CEO, Randy Gloede, said it best, “I don’t know why there are not 1,000 sponsors out here because this is the greatest sport in the world.” I like that, hearing it from a CEO. It’s also great to work together again with my dad.
Clash: Drag-racing is an all-inclusive sport. Women, African Americans, Hispanics and whites all compete at the top levels without any handicaps, and win.
Schumacher: That's exactly how life should be. C’mon, we get in a car and, at the end, they hand us trophies because we’ve earned them. We continue to have the youth coming on board with the junior dragster program, too. These stands should be twice as long and full every day. People who’ve never been to a drag race are missing out. It’s a family sport. You can easily get pit passes, unlike some of the other racing series. I’m so proud to represent it.
Tony Schumacher testing a new 1,150-hp crate motor, the DSR 1150, in a Dodge Durango, Indianapolis ... [+]
Clash: What’s it like to run so fast in so little time?
Schumacher: These things are wicked fast - 330 mph in less than four seconds in a 12,000-hp machine built by humans. It’s the most intense four seconds in any human’s life. In a way, time slows down out there. Travis Pastrana of motocross [fame], bad to the bone, said, “When you hit the gas, your brain’s at the start line, and your car’s at the finish line [laughs].” It takes a lot of time as a professional athlete before you go, “I’m thinking in tenths and hundredths of a second, not seconds and minutes.” The more runs you make, the more you can determine where to put the car, drive it straight. You’re so into it that perfection becomes part of you.
Clash: What do you see as the future for NHRA?
Schumacher: This year, we hit 2.8 million [television] viewers at Reading [PA]. It’s going in the right direction. I look back at photos of my dad, and the stands aren’t as big. Why aren't there 50,000 fans at our races, whereas in NASCAR there is? But NASCAR is declining, and our stuff’s growing. You have to remember one thing: We’re entertainers. The winning is great, and the trophies are beautiful, but when the fans smile and say, “I paid $60 to come to a race, and I feel like I owe more money,” that’s a win. I’ve had fans actually tell me that. I pay hard-earned money to go to a baseball or football game. I don’t want to walk away and say, “I wish I had half of my money back.”
Clash: When fans come up for a photo and/or autograph at the end of the day when you’re bone tired, what do you do?
Schumacher: I sign, even if it’s an hour line. I always tell myself: “When you’re tired and ready to take a break, the kid that waited at the end of the line the longest, when he gets up here, he put in the biggest commitment.” So I smile. Even if I get beat and am disappointed that day, it’s not the kid’s fault. Let it go, the race is over. Let the kid see that you can lose with dignity. It’s not fun to get beat, I hate it - but it’s how the game is played. I’ve got 86 trophies, and I’ve wanted to win them all, the hundreds of races. Go back, figure out what you did wrong. Maybe I was late on the start, drove the car out of the groove, it didn’t run right, doesn't matter. It’s a team effort, no excuses.
One of Tony Schumacher's NHRA National Championship rings, Indianapolis Raceway Park, September ... [+]
Clash: What are you afraid of, and how do you handle fear?
Schumacher: I’m not afraid of the car, of being hurt. I’m afraid of not being able to perform at the highest level at any given time. How do I handle it? I prepare. What’s that expression - over-prepare and go with the flow? There are kids out there over-preparing. I’m an older driver, not a spring chicken. You look at John Force, in his mid-70s. So this can be done for a long time, and I want to be as good as I can for as long as I can go.
Clash: Tell me something you’ve never told another journalist. I asked that question of John Force. He said, “Contrary to what I’ve said before, I don’t want to die in a race car. I want to die with my family around me.”
Schumacher: Wow, that’s a really good question. Let me think. I would have been terrible at NASCAR. I don’t have the attention span. I crashed in turn one at Bristol. Apparently the turn is the problem. I’m not a turning person, only straight-line [laughs].
