Tony Pedregon admitted he was taken aback by his lack of emotion.

This was on Saturday morning at Pomona in the season finale event; two sessions of qualifying into what might be Pedregon’s final race as a NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Funny Car driver the two-time champion admitted to feeling indifferent regarding the situation. ¬

”I’ve been doing this for so long I thought it would have more of an impact, and it might, if it’s going to it just hasn’t hit me yet,” Pedregon stated, describing his emotion. “I’ve wanted to focus on the race and we want to do well but I’ve known, even in Dallas, I knew that we had made the commitment so mentally it was in the back of my mind so far, so good.”

When one door closes, another opens and for Pedregon, being named the color commentator for the new Fox NHRA television coverage is certainly a major entrance into a new world of drag racing.

However, for over two decades, the second-generation driver has mined the quarry of professional drag racing as a nitro racer. He’s seen the highest of highs, driving with two series titles and 43 national event victories in 76 final rounds and the lowest of lows behind the wheel of underfunded efforts where it wasn’t a matter of if his car would blow up, but when.

Finally, the emotion hit him, and by his own assessment, like free-falling bricks.

Pedregon ran a 4.43 during the Auto Club NHRA Finals, certainly no match for the much-quicker 4.03 of the soon-to-be crowned champion Del Worsham.

The tears only flowed once he exited through the escape hatch of his Funny Car and saw his daughter overcome with emotion.

“Oh it was a good half ton of bricks,” Pedregon admitted. “I’ve done this for so long and I’ve been down the track but what gets me more emotional, and I shared this with my brother Cruz, we’ve had good careers, both of us have. We’ve had our ups and downs and we’ve enjoyed a lot of success in this sport, more than most, but I told him that we’ve somehow got to get out of this in one piece.

“[The experience] made me think of guys like Eric [Medlen] and some other friends that didn’t walk away -- that’s what gets me emotional, not just [memories of] Eric or Darrell Russell. We’ve grown up around this sport and it kind of took me back to when I was a kid and our dad used to tell us these stories because we were obsessed with racing, even when we were younger, especially when we were younger. From the start a lot of the guys that had the same passion and did the same thing to be able to make a career out of it is really a testament to the evolution of this sport.”

Maybe the emotional breakdown wasn’t entirely a spur of the moment experience upon exiting the car. There was some premeditation.

“I thought about that right before I got in the car,” Pedregon said. “I can walk away saying that I had a good career but all of those things matter to me. I’ve never been just about money and wanting new things. My wife has a charity and we do a lot, we’ve made some friends and we’ve made some enemies. The enemies we’ve made has only been because we beat one of their favorite guys, so be it.

“It just got me and I was hoping that it wouldn’t but nothing wrong with emotions, if we could see more of that on TV and get some of these other drivers to really be themselves then I think we’re really going to be able to move that needle.”

There’s a measure of Pedregon which feels this departure from driving is an exit on his own terms. For him, since losing Quaker State as his first and only true major sponsorship since departing John Force Racing in 2003, the struggle has been real.

“It’s a rat race, there’s no question about it but I think any business is like that,” Pedregon said. “You have to compete on the track and you have to compete away from the track in the marketplace. I’ve learned that side of the business and I think what’s really kept me motivated is in the end the sport has its challenges and every team owner does but we have a great product and I’ve never viewed it as gambling. Once not long ago I thought maybe I’m just pulling on that lever hoping the triple 7’s come up but that’s really not the case. 



“I think that I’m looking forward to a break. I’m open to the change and to be honest I’m excited about the new position and I think that I’m going to miss it on some level.”

Thus begins Pedregon’s challenge of preparation.

“I’ve been doing it for a long time, I know these cars well and I know Top Fuel cars well,” Pedregon explained. “What I do plan on investing a lot of time into is Pro Stock, Pro Stock Bike and Pro Mod even to the point, if someone will let me, I’m considering getting on a bike. I’m not interested in making a full run but if I can do a burnout and launch 100 feet, I believe it will help me understand those. I’ve already had a lot of conversations with riders and I think that I’ll be able to shed a lot of light in terms of the way a new audience would understand and I think it would have some appeal.

“Pro Stock is the same. I have no intention of going beyond 100-200 feet but when I’ve thought about how I would approach that, I could talk to any drivers and any team owners and tuners but I know these cars so well because I’ve worked on them, I’ve driven them, I’ve bought tires discs and cranks but for me to better understand that I think that’d be helpful. I’ve already got some crazy thoughts.”

Notice Pedregon didn’t allude to driving a Pro Modified.

“I’m smart enough and really don’t have any desire to get into a Pro Mod,” admitted Pedregon. “It’s just an intimidating machine for me. I know what I drive, I’m familiar with it; it’s got a lot of down force and I might have to just consult with the experts on that.”

As volatile as the race cars he’s driven and won’t drive are, Pedregon understands there are some race fans who believe he won’t mince words in his television role. Time and time, his well-known dust-up with John Force becomes an example.

Controlling his tongue is something Pedregon believes he’s capable of to a point in his new role.

“I think that I’ve always been able to discipline myself in how I convey some of my thoughts, I always think first but when you’re doing live TV that may be a different story so it might get interesting,” Pedregon said. “My approach is the same approach that I’ve always been about and that’s no BS, be objective, unbiased, and to somehow articulate to our audience that we have and there’s also the new audience that we’re trying to gain and win over, those are my focuses.

“Right after this race I go right over to a different mode and I plan on preparing and training and I don’t know exactly who the team I’m going to be working with is but as soon as I know that I’m sure that we’re going to get together and have some of those discussions. We’ve got preseason testing, I believe we’re going to do a walk through but the goal is to be ready for live TV in February.”

And before the ink was even dry on his new assignment, Pedregon has already received more than a fair share of hate mail.

“I’ve got probably as much hate mail as I’ve ever gotten but by all means I think that fans have a right to speak and I understand where it’s coming from,” Pedregon said. “I think it’s great that they have a passion but I do know this because I do follow sports, not just racing but boxing and football, and they’re either going to love you or they’re going to hate you. My hopes are that I can win the ones that are a little critical, in time. The fact that they have a voice is good. I start to worry when I quit getting love or hate mail because it’s when they don’t know who you are and they don’t have any opinion, then you may not be on the map.”

Pedregon technically isn’t retired, thus opening the door that he could return if he gets the itch.

“I didn’t announce any retirement and one thing that I refused to do — I’m not a sell out,” said Pedregon. “I know that other well-known drivers in the past have announced their retirement and they probably had a good year in t-shirt and hat sales but I refuse to do that.”

Pedregon understands his new vocation will require quick and accurate reaction, and to achieve this objective, will require analyzing racing on the fly. It will also require self-examination, something he’s not thrilled about.

“I don’t enjoy watching or listening to myself but unfortunately I’m going to have to because I’m very critical about everything that I do,” Pedregon said. “From what I understand that’s one of the things that’s going to help me improve. I would love to say that we can come out of the box up and running and be good which I’m sure that we have every intention of doing that but like everything else. Hopefully it’ll be a short evolution where we go from good to great because I think it’s a great opportunity for the sport to grow and I know that the sport has targets and objectives.”

Pedregon said he sees the big picture, from a different angle; an angle he hopes viewers will enjoy.

“I sat in a lot of the meetings that NHRA had yesterday and I would say for the first time in 20 years what they presented is a game changer,” Pedregon said. “The goal for us is to draw some new fans into the sport, let’s get some of these teams sponsorships, let’s get this sport to where it needs to be.”