Cruz Pedregon left his longtime ride with John Force's team racing last year and made it pay off with a title.
By SUSAN WADE
Published March 21, 2004
GAINESVILLE - Tony Pedregon knows what NHRA fans have called him: greedy, ungrateful, downright foolish.
But he is at peace with his decision to leave John Force Racing and the Castrol sponsorship that funded his eight-year rise culminating in last season's Funny Car championship. He switched his loyalty to rival Quaker State and partnered with older brother Cruz, the 1992 titlist and the only other driver besides Force to win the class crown since 1990.
Since the split, Tony Pedregon has taken his private tug-of-war public, suggesting Force, the 12-time champion, held him back. Force, normally gracious, finally showed some irritation this month.
He told the Arizona Republic, "As much as I make statements like Tony was like my kid, the truth is I hardly knew Tony Pedregon. I've read some things that Tony said, like I was holding him back. Well, I did. It was my team and my deal. It was about me. But as it evolved, it became time to be about Tony, too."
In a stroke of artistry and audacity, Pedregon unveiled his self-designed line of apparel called Wicked Quick. It displays his handiwork, including a flaming skull, and it promises - with a nod to his Hispanic heritage - a Fuerza de Rotacion (Revolution in Power), declaring himself "A New Force in Racing."
The "Old" Force isn't giving up easily. Their drama continues at this weekend's Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway, as Force starts fifth and Pedregon 10th in today's final eliminations.
Pedregon is a showman and a survivor, an eclectic blend of both parents.
He, Cruz and out-of-work Funny Car veteran Frankie are sons of drag-racing pioneer "Flaming Frank" Pedregon. He earned his nickname because he ignited the tires on his fuel coupe and made them smoke all the way down the drag strip - a phenomenon never seen before or since, one mysterious to him and the awed audience alike.
"My childhood memories aren't of going fishing and camping," said Tony, 39. "They're of going to races and watching our dad race ... and occasionally catch on fire. That was our playground."
Frank Sr. never wanted his sons to race, thought the sport was too dangerous. They respected his wishes until after he died in an airplane crash.
Tony never could shake the sport's images from his imagination. He loved the rough-edged beauty, the gauzy burnout smoke, the yellow header flames with tinges of crimson, the blur of boldness against a backdrop of captivating colors, shapes, patterns and textures.
He developed as a painter, budding architect and amateur boxer, trying to express his artistic side in the hardscrabble suburbs east of Los Angeles.
On the eve of his first bout, about 15 years ago, his sparring partner head-butted him and opened a cut on his forehead that required two stitches. His fight was canceled.
"I had two passions in my life, boxing and racing," Pedregon said. "So I called my mom and told her, "I have good news and bad news. The good news is I'm not boxing. The bad news is I'm going racing.' "
She understood. She knew none of her adventurous boys wanted to keep working at the truck dealership their father had built. She gave them no guilt trips and kept her worries to herself.
Tony Pedregon still nurtures his creative impulses. "I've always been intrigued by art, and it has evolved for me," he said. "Racing is a great tie-in with art. It's high-powered. It's colorful." Today he jazzes up helmets for fellow drivers and draws in his mini-studio at home in Chino Hills, Calif.
"Canvas is something I've always wanted to do," he said. "I've always liked Thomas Kinkade. He came out to a drag race years ago, and a lot of people didn't know who he was. He just sat there outside our high-tech trailer, working on a painting."
Working in anonymity does not interest Pedregon. So he has shifted from keeping his gloves up to landing the odd jab. And he's ready to deliver the knockout punch in today's eliminations.
