ASHER INTERVIEW: WORSHAM REVEALS WHY HE RETIRED

 

EXCLUSIVE: Del Worsham Talks About One and Done …

If you’re a fan of college basketball you’re familiar with the term “one and done.” It refers to those highly talented freshman who enter high-profile college programs with the full intention, and fore knowledge of their coaches, that they’re only going to be there one year before heading off to the NBA or pro teams in other parts of the world.

Drag racing has never before had a one and done champion, at least in the modern era. There have certainly been a number of one-time winners, but as far as we can recall, there’s never been a champion who announced his retirement as a driver within a week of taking the title – but then again, there’s never before been a champion quite like Del Worsham.

That Worsham has been the center of a whirlwind of activities since clinching his title while also winning the Auto Club Finals race itself is a considerable understatement. He’s been involved in so many phone calls and face-to-face meetings in Santa Maria, California with team manager Alan Johnson and then in Ypsilanti, Michigan at Kalitta Motorsports with the principals there, that he’s hard-pressed to even remember where he is! “It’s been so hectic I’m not sure if I’m coming or going,” he said on Friday by phone from Kalitta’s shop.

Worsham’s career path has been interesting. After making his professional debut in Funny Car in 1990 at the Finals he made the full tour in ’91, wining twice and earning Rookie of the Year honors. The fresh-faced kid from Southern California had a good thing going with his father, Chuck, who was and continues to be a very good tuner. More importantly, father and son quickly learned how to squeeze every dollar into a buck-and-a-half by doing almost everything themselves, and it paid off with a two decades-long career. Of course, Worsham’s actually been competing longer than that, cutting his teeth in match races and the like before hitting the NHRA trail. He’s also appreciative of the sport’s history, and is a staunch supporter – and driver – of nostalgia Funny Cars.

After his stellar 1991 season Worsham was naïve enough to think that winning would continue to come easily, but that’s not the way things work in drag racing. In the 10 years following ’91 Worsham would only reach five final rounds, losing each time. Even more depressing was the fact that three of those runner-up finishes came in 1992, giving him the false hope that victory would come with the next race. It didn’t, but Worsham soldiered on, learning literally everything there was to know about both Funny Cars and drag racing. In terms of his overall knowledge of the sport Worsham has been favorably compared to three-time IHRA World Champion Dale Pulde as men capable of handling any aspect of drag racing.

Guys like Mike Dunn and Chuck Etchells were well know for regularly declaring “Real men drive Funny Cars. Dragsters are for women and children.” Dig into the nuances of the things Worsham says and it becomes apparent that he shares that view – although you’d never know it from the way he stormed into Top Fuel and demolished the competition in 2011. Although some failed to recall Worsham’s earlier Top Fuel outings when he made the switch, he drove both types of cars through the mid- to late-90s, so he wasn’t exactly inexperienced when the Al-Anabi Toyota was parked in favor of a second Top Fuel car to partner 2010 Full Throttle champion Larry Dixon.

After Dixon’s brilliant championship season, during which he won a remarkable 12 times, and yet was still ignored by the ESPN Espy Awards, the addition of Worsham to the mix for 2011 made some wonder about the change. It was simple, really. The man behind Al-Anabi Racing, His Highness Sheik Khalid Al Thani of Qatar, prefers dragsters over Funny Cars, and when the man paying the bills asked team manager Alan Johnson to make the switch, he readily agreed. But it’s doubtful that either Sheik Khalid or Johnson had any idea that Worsham would be as successful as he was this year.

Not only did Worsham win (eight times, as a matter of fact), it was the manner in which he won that most impressed. When the Countdown reached a fever pitch, Worsham was at his best, winning the penultimate race, the Big O Tires Nationals at Las Vegas, and then sweeping the Auto Club Finals. It was a stunning finale to a dream season – and then Worsham just walked away from it.

Internet message boards were ablaze with rumors of Worsham’s destination, although he was quickly connected to Alexis DeJoria’s Funny Car operation. Worsham had been instrumental in Ms. DeJoria getting her upgraded license from Top Alcohol to a nitro-burner. In fact, she did it in a Worsham-owned car. For those who saw him as her mentor, it wasn’t much of a leap to see him making the tuning calls for her in 2012 and beyond.

You’ve read the press release announcing Worsham’s retirement, which came from Al-Anabi Racing’s proficient public relations manager, Rob Goodman, and have also seen the release produced by Kalitta’s PR expert, Todd Myers, announcing Worsham’s employment as the crew chief for DeJoria’s Tequila Patron Toyota Funny Car. But – and we hate to shock you like this – a press release is just what you think it is – a bland, usually at least somewhat factual explanation of something that’s been slightly spun to reflect the view of whoever’s producing it. It may be factual (and they usually are), but it’s never going to tell you the whole story. If you want to find out what’s really going on, you have to go to the source, and in this instance that’s Worsham. Our conversation with one of drag racing’s most respected competitors was wide-ranging and detailed, and this is the first time he’s publicly spoken about his decision to hang up his helmet – at least temporarily. Read on, and you’ll see why we used that word!

 

 

 

CompetitionPlus.com: When did you begin to seriously think about retiring as a driver?

Del Worsham: I had my first thoughts about stopping in 2008 when the whole Checker, Schuck’s, Kragen thing came to an end with O’Reilly Auto Parts (O’Reilly bought the CSK chain. – Ed.) I kinda thought that maybe this was a sign that it was time to move on and maybe move into a crew chief role or even maybe as an assistant or something like that. When I heard about the Al-Anabi thing I quickly changed my mind. To get to race for Sheik Khalid and Alan Johnson was a no-brainer at that point. Thoughts of retirement were gone at that point.

CP: When the Sheik made the decision to drop the Funny Car and add the second dragster, did that again make you think about quitting?

DW: No, I was actually pretty excited about that because I wanted to continue driving competitively for at least another year. I felt pretty confident that driving the car for (crew chief) Brian Husen and Alan, we’d be pretty competitive.

I’m trying to think of a single moment, or something that made me a little more serious about quitting. If I had to look back I think it was probably early in the summer when this whole thing was getting ramped up with Tequila Patron. I’d already licensed Alexis in my car, and she’d asked me, “If you’ve ever thought about being a crew chief, or going to work for a team not driving, I’d love to have you over here.” Those thoughts were in my mind, but there was no single situation. It just kinda built up, and I think if you’ve ever had those thoughts in your head, and an opportunity like this is coming

along, it kinda seemed like it was meant to be. And then, after we won the championship, there was no doubt (about what I was going to do).

CP: A few weeks ago you made some comments about racing in Top Fuel against the current crop of drivers, and we got the impression from what you said that you’re not thrilled with some of the guys that race in Top Fuel. Is that a fair thing to say?

DW: No. There are great competitors (in that class), and they’re gentlemen. They’re very fair, especially when it comes to staging, and how you roll a car in (to the lights). They’re by far the most professional group of guys I’ve ever raced against.

CP: Are you implying that it’s a little more cutthroat in Funny Car?

DW: I’m implying that in Funny Car they’ll roll the car in to make Reaction Times better, where in Top Fuel they’re gentlemen. You know where you stand in Top Fuel at all times. If you get left on, you probably pretty much did. In Funny Car, as far as numbers go, you can get left on multiple times and you’d never know it.

CP: When you had the first conversation with Alexis, was her father involved, or was that just a casual thing she said to you that you paid attention to?

DW: No, her father wasn’t involved at all, and yes, I paid attention.

CP: At what point did he get involved in the equation?

DW: He really didn’t. He mostly deals with her. Once she signed on with Kalitta, at that point I started dealing with Jim Oberhoffer., and he’s the one who actually made the deal (with me).

CP: To be clear on this, are you an employee of Kalitta Motorsports or of Alexis DeJoria?

DW: I’m working for Kalitta Motorsports.

CP: So what happens if her car “goes away” for some reason?

DW: That would be something I’d have to take up with Kalitta Motorsports, if that happened.

CP: Do you have a contract with Kalitta, and how long is that contract valid for?

DW: I haven’t signed one at this point. I’ve agreed to come to work for them, but the terms haven’t been agreed to yet. Since I’ve been here (in Ypsilanti, Mich. at the race shop), all I’ve done is work. I haven’t even turned in my employee paperwork yet.

CP: This pretty much means a full-time move to Michigan, but our understanding is that you’ve just purchased a new home in Southern California How will that change things?

DW: I’m not going to take up full time residence in Michigan, but it’s just a four hour plane ride, and it’s direct from Detroit to LA. I’m going to commute as much as I can. This job is going to require a lot of my time. I can see that already. I’ve spoken to my family, and they knew, when I took this position, that there would be sacrifices in terms of how much time I’d spend at home. But, the reality is that we (already) spend a lot of time at the races, so hopefully (this job) won’t take 100 percent of my time. But, whatever it takes to make this successful is what I’m going to do.

CP: When you were driving for Alan Johnson in 2011, how often were you able to get home and see the family?

DW: As much as I wanted to. Basically, I just had to be there in time to start the car on Friday, and I could leave when the race was over Sunday.

CP: You had no mechanical responsibilities on the car?

DW: Zero. All I did was pack the parachutes, and I had somebody to help me with that.

CP: At what point did you tell Alan you were thinking about quitting?

DW: I dropped hints to him through the summer, because I flew with him to the races quite a few times. Some time right around the time the Countdown was starting I said, “This may be my final hurrah as a driver.” I just wanted him to know that it was something that was in my mind.

To compete at that level, and to do the job he expects of you, it requires 100 percent of your attention and your drive and your will. When I caught myself paying more attention to the mechanical side of things and not as much to the driving, that’s when I thought that it was maybe the time to make a career change.

CP: Did he take you seriously when you dropped those hints?

DW: Yes, he knew I was serious. I even went up to Santa Maria to his shop to talk to him about it. I wanted to do it when we were away from the race track, so it wasn’t an emotional decision. I wanted us to sit down outside of our jobs so we could really talk about it. I told him, “Look, there’s nothing in stone at this point, and I could even change my mind and be wishy-washy about it, but I really need some time to think about this.” I told him I knew we were in the Countdown, but if he needed me to make a decision right away so he could find another driver, I could have done it right then. He said, “No, take as much time as you need.” He was very reasonable.

CP: Did you speak directly to Sheik Khalid about this?

DW: Yes, I did.

CP: Was that before, or after you’d won the championship?

DW: After I’d won. He was bummed a little bit, but we’re still friends. Our conversation was very cordial. He’s a fun guy. He’s very witty. He wished me good luck. He said, “Whatever you do, don’t sign a contract that’s too long, ‘cause you might want to come back to work for me some time.” I just kinda laughed. You just never know, and I didn’t want to burn any bridges. I wanted to make sure everyone understood the reasons for this. I like those guys. They were so good to me. I didn’t want them to feel that I was burning any bridges with any of them.

 

There’re a lot of great drivers out there that deserve the same kind of break I got, and I hope a great one gets it.

CP: You told us earlier in the year that there were times when it was difficult to reach Sheik Khalid. Was that a problem?

DW: No, he always came through for us. He’s a busy guy, running a country. (Khalid’s family are the rulers of Qatar, a small Middle Eastern nation with a population of 300,000, and the world’s largest per capita production and proven reserves of both oil and natural gas. – Ed.) As far as my relationship with the Sheik goes, that had nothing to do with my deciding to stop driving. This was completely personal. This was completely just me deciding that I’d done the best I could do, and I really wanted to make a career change.

CP: Do you feel in any way that you have an obligation to promote your championship for the benefit of NHRA Drag Racing, or have you put that aside to do what’s best for yourself?

DW: The reality is, I’m still going to be at the drag strip. I’m not leaving the sport. I’m not running off to some island to lay on the beach. I’m going to be out there, still talking to the fans and still supporting NHRA. I just won’t be behind the wheel. I don’t think NHRA is going to lose anything at all. If anything, I’ll be more accessible than ever before.

CP: As a driver, what are the differences for you between driving a Funny Car and the dragster.

DW: The dragster was more difficult for me to drive. It’s probably from all the years of driving Funny Cars. The dragster is such a finesse machine. After driving the Funny Car for so many years, and even at times when it looked like I had pretty good control of the dragster, I would still catch myself doing things like over driving it. It took a lot of my concentration and everything I had to do as good a job as I did. I think with a few more years I could have done better.

As far as chasing the car around when it washes out, or when it moves around, with the dragster you’ve just got to do it. You’ve got to let it go down the track, and not turn that wheel. In the Funny Car you have to be in top of it. You have to be such a quick reactor that it really makes them a lot different.

CP: You told us about a month ago that you felt your driving had deteriorated during the year. Do you still feel that way?

 

DW: I don’t think I drove as well this year as I did in 2009, and that’s skipping a whole year of driving (in 2010). I think at Pomona I drove better than I’ve driven in a long time. That race with Spencer Massey (in the semifinal round of the Finals, a run virtually for the championship. – Ed.), I did get left on (by the “astonishing” margin of 0.004 seconds! – Ed.), but that was all I had right then. There was severe pressure (on me). I’m not going to say that 21 years of my career was on the line right then, but it sure as heck was going to make a difference in what everybody thought about my total years of driving.

 

CP: Is your dad also going to join Kalitta Motorsports to assist you?

DW: No, he’s going to continue to work at our race shop. We do quite a bit of chassis work and quite a bit of repairs there. He races our own car from time to time, so he’ll be out in California working on that.

CP: Will you be in a position to offer him some advice on that?

DW: Any time. He’s my dad. I’m still a 50 percent owner of the company with my dad. We own the building together and all of the race stuff together. I will always give my dad whatever he needs, because he’s done so much for me.

CP: You’d indicated earlier that your wife, Connie, wasn’t thrilled about your retirement as a driver. How’s she feeling about that now?

DW: She’s better. She’s not crying anymore! It’s hard for me to really pinpoint why she was upset about it, because for most people, their closest loved ones would have been at least partially relieved if they stopped driving. I think she had the utmost confidence in my driving ability, and I guess she never really pictured me being anything but a driver. It shocked her when I told her I was quitting. When I first mentioned it it was just talk at that point. Then the reality set in that I’d talked with Alan and I’d talked with Sheik Khalid, and this was a done deal. Even my daughters couldn’t believe it. They’re understanding now, especially after all of the positive responses we’ve seen about my quitting driving.

I don’t go on Facebook and web sites and stuff like that. I’m a worker and don’t have time for that, but Connie said the response from the sponsors and the fans was nothing but positive, so I think that makes her feel a little better about it.

CP: Do you feel a sense of relief that you’re not going to be driving, or are you feeling even more pressure to deliver as a tuner?

DW: I don’t feel any relief about not driving because I like driving, but I’m excited right now. I’m here in Michigan. And we’re already working hard. I’ve got all these guys pretty motivated right now, and we’re working hard. We’re going to start testing in Palm Beach in two weeks. About 14 days from right now we’ll be on the track, testing. This team is very dedicated and focused. There’s no time at this point to look back.

CP: Have you brought anyone to Kalitta’s, or were they already part of that team?

DW: No, the guys that are here were here when I got here, and they’re all good, solid, experienced guys. I wanted to come in here and just work and see how I fit in with the other people. So far it’s been great.

CP: Will you have someone as a co- or assistant crew chief?

DW: Yes. Andy Cetwinski’s been with Kalitta for 16 years and really knows his stuff. To be honest, I don’t even know some of the guy’s names yet, it’s been that kind of thrash. I got here on Sunday night, and my head hasn’t come up since.

I don’t have a whole lot of time to learn how they do things at Kalitta Motorsports. To give you an idea of what we’re up against, we have a brand new Toyota body built by Roush and AJPE. It’s a brand new Camry body, Serial Number 1, sitting here in the shop right now. When I walked in Monday morning, there was the brand new body, sitting in a crate. Everyone was kinda looking at me, so I said, “Okay, here we go.” I just stopped driving for Sheik Khalid, and my next job was mounting a Funny Car body! It reminded me a lot of when my dad and I got our first Monte Carlo body, and just having to dig deep and get the body mounted. And in the middle of all that we’ve got to be on the track (in a couple of weeks)! We’ll make sure this thing performs at the level everyone expects.

CP: Is it a stretch to suggest that some time later in the year, when it comes to testing and Alexis isn’t available, that you’d drive the car?

DW: No, it’s not a stretch. As a matter of fact, I’d like to make a run or two in either her car or Jeff (Arend’s). I wouldn’t even mind getting into Doug (Kalitta’s) car just to keep my license current. I’m 41-years-old, and I can probably drive more, but this is where I want to be. This is what I’ve been working towards, and I’m really excited about this opportunity.

 

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