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Sophomore Jinx?
Not Hardly
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Russell's having a tough time now;
but he's destined for stardom - bank on it.
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By Bobby Bennett, Jr., Photos by Roger Richards |
Originally published in the February 26, 2002 issue...-Editor
Some drag racers can run their entire career and never achieve the accolades that Darrell Russell attained in his first year as a Top Fuel driver behind the wheel of Joe Amato's Bilstein Engine Flush dragster. Not only did he accrue the coveted NHRA Rookie of the Year honors, but he also won his first national event that he entered. When that wasn't enough, the overachiever stepped up to the plate and added a second win and reached seven final rounds. All in all, when coupled with a sixth place points finish, it was an effective attention-getter for the 33-year-old, self-professed cowboy from Cypress, Texas.
"I'd say it was incredible," added Russell. "It was something to remember. Every time I look back on it, I can't believe it happened. In just a year's time, all of that happened and here we go again, starting all over again. When you look back to last year and we won that first race, and then the second race and Rookie of the Year…not to mention seven final rounds and it was a very cool season." You just have to admire a drag racer that has enough spunk to say something is "cool." In our vast vocabulary, we'd have to agree that his assessment was truly fitting. When you imagine that just a year earlier to his appointment to the Amato throne that he was piloting a Top Alcohol Dragster, you can also see the potential for heaping amounts of pressure to be thrust upon the shoulders of an individual in the early years of thirty-something status. However, Russell's pressure was self-induced. "I knew there would be some pressure," admitted Russell. "There again, Joe is a legend in the sport and he's been around for so long. He has such a huge fan following and for me, I was just basically a new guy with little or no experience in Top Fuel. Yeah…I put a lot of pressure on myself because of what Joe has accomplished over the years and the way he wanted to continue to run his teams. I felt that I was going to put extra pressure on myself to live up to the reputation." So why would Amato pass up several of the unemployed veterans to give the aspiring Top Fuel driver the chance of a lifetime? Russell speculates that it was Amato's way of giving back to the sport.
"It's hard to say why Joe chose me as his replacement," explained Russell. "I think a lot of it had to do with my experience with the Alcohol Dragster. I think Joe wanted to give back to the sport and what I mean by that is that he wanted to promote someone within the sport. It's a good thing…it serves as proof that good things come to those that pay their dues in the Alcohol ranks or even Super Comp. It can happen." Russell is very adamant that the Top Alcohol ranks provide a virtual goldmine of talent just waiting for the professional teams to notice. In many cases, the participants are a star waiting to happen.
"If you look back in the history of Top Fuel, most of the drivers and a good bit of your crewchiefs came from the Alcohol ranks. Joe Amato, Gary Scelzi and Cory Mac all run in the classes. The list goes on and on. It's the most logical stepping-stone. There's nothing in between." During the off-season following his incredible year, there was much speculation that Cory McClenathan was either going to join Team Amato either as a teammate to Russell or his replacement. In the early going, Russell admitted that he felt a bit uneasy about the whole scenario. It took assurances from Amato that he was to be his driver that made him feel comfortable. The sophomore driver admitted that he was confused with the whole scenario.
"At first, I didn't really understand what he was trying to do," recalled Russell. "When I found out that they were trying to put together a second team, I felt a lot better. There's always that thought in the back of your head that puts you in a defensive position. That's human nature. I had a job and he was looking for one. Who's to say that things wouldn't have changed if financing would have only come through for one car. Those were the things I was thinking about. When Joe pulled me to the side and told me that I was driving the car next year, I felt a lot better. I knew that I had a position with the team." One can only wonder why another would even consider that a team would be replacing a driver that had performed a feat that only three drivers in the history of the NHRA had ever accomplished. When Russell won his initial outing at the 2001 Winternationals in Pomona, he joined the ranks of K.C. Spurlock and Gary Scelzi as the only two to accomplish the feat. "It was an amazing experience. You don't have a clue how to prepare for something like that. Here I was trying to fill the shoes of a legend, and before I knew it…I was in the media room trying to explain how we won every time we raced that day. I don't really remember that day. I'm glad there were a lot of stories written about it…because I don't remember it. It gave me something to go back and read."
Despite the fact the team has fallen in the first round of the first two events of the 2002 campaign, Russell remains focused that better things loom on the horizon. He still contends that he's living out a dream that he's imagined all of his life. He added, "I think the coolest thing for me out of this whole deal and I'm sitting out there having conversations with people that I have watched while I was growing up," explained Russell. "The guys like Kenny Bernstein and all of those guys that I have been watching and now I'm mixing it up with them. This is so cool and each week knowing this is what I get to do gives me a good feeling." Many see Russell as a significant piece of the puzzle in a new generation of Top Fuel drivers destined to take the class to the next level, and the soft-spoken driver appreciates the honor and it is one that he plans to give it his best effort. "I think in any thing in life, that's how it has to be," explained Russell, who was the youngest of the Top Ten points earners in Top Fuel during 2002. "You can't do this stuff forever. That's just the way it goes. That's what makes legends in this sport. When you have the guys out there that have made huge commitments over the years from them being here and their input, that makes it special for the next generation. That's exactly what makes it special…when the torch is passed from one generation to the next."
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