Tedesco Bounces Back from Super Gas Crash to Score Second TA/D Win of 2015

Courtesy of Tedesco Racing



Indianapolis, IN: Mia Tedesco’s weekend at the NHRA Lucas Oil Series Division 3 opener at Lucas Oil Raceway Park in Indianapolis did not start well. Saturday morning, during the final Super Gas time trial session, the 21-year-old driver suffered a violent crash behind the wheel of her C.A.R.S. Protection Plus / WeFindParts.com Chevrolet Cavalier, careening off of both retaining walls shortly after reaching a speed in excess of 170 miles per hour.

“After you’ve done this for awhile, I think it’s easy to take things for granted,” Tedesco explained. “We went up for a time trial. It wasn’t an elimination round, and the track conditions were perfect. The last thing on anyone’s mind is an accident.”

Nearing the finish line in what appeared to be a routine Super Gas run, like hundreds Tedesco has made in recent years, something went horribly wrong.

“The oil filter came loose, spraying 100+ psi of warm oil under the car moving at 170 miles per hour,” Tedesco explained. “I saw some smoke, but there was literally nothing I could do. I was completely out of control before I had time to react.”

Tedesco’s Cavalier spun completely around, first contacting the right hand wall with the left rear of the car, then spinning again to catch the left wall with the left front.

“I’ve been through one prior incident; I crashed a dragster several years ago, just after I’d started racing full size cars,” Tedesco said. “That one was completely driver error. I made a mistake, and I knew I was going to crash before it happened – it was like everything was in slow motion. This accident wasn’t like that; it was so sudden. Thank God I was able to walk away uninjured.”

Thanks to the safety equipment in place and the quality of her RJ Race Cars built Cavalier, Tedesco was unharmed in the accident. In fact, within hours she was strapped into the familiar confines of the Hirata Family Motorsports A/Fuel Dragster, ready to make a blast in excess of 270 miles per hour.

Undeterred from the incident, Tedesco and her C.A.R.S. Protection Plus / WeFindParts.com / Aamco Transmissions team put forth a dominating performance that included top qualifying honors in the Top Alcohol Dragster category, and culminated in an event victory – their second win of the young season.

Tedesco paced a strong field of TAD entrants with a 5.294 ET at 276 miles per hour, and backed up that performance with the second quickest run in qualifying: a 5.302 at 270. She then defeated Brandon Greco in the opening round with a 5.379 ET, and knocked off John Finke with a 5.537 after pedaling to recover from early tire shake.

That set up a final round matchup with the unique automatic transmission entry of Brandon Booher.

“Greco and Finke had great cars, in fact the entire field at Indy was really strong. We were concerned with every opponent; but the Booher matchup really had our attention,” said Tedesco. “They’re very consistent. They’re fast. And the automatic gives them an edge in terms of reaction time. Plus Brandon is an excellent driver. Coming into the round, we knew we’d have to be on our game to compete.”

Tedesco and her team were up to the task. As expected, Booher took a slight lead on the starting line: .039 to .061, but Tedesco was able to power past with a 5.356 run to best Booher’s slightly off pace 5.414.

“It’s such a treat to drive this car and work with the Hirata family and this team,” exclaimed Tedesco. “We won the national event in Charlotte earlier this season, but we didn’t have a great combination. We shook on several runs, and when we didn’t shake we ate up parts. But these guys have just kept working. In testing we really began to turn the corner. I don’t feel like we were dominant this weekend; it’s not like we were low E.T. of every round, but we had a fast, consistent car throughout the event. I’m really proud of our guys.”

For her part, Tedesco was extremely solid behind the wheel, varying just .003 in reaction time over her three competition rounds.

“I’m proud of that too,” said the young racer who has staged for as many competition rounds as anyone in the country in recent years. “With my sportsman background, I obviously take a lot of pride in my reaction times. But these cars are slow to react; being a good driver is really as much about being quick as it is being consistent. I’ve put in a lot of work in our practice simulator to improve my reflexes and release. Where I used to be consistently .080, I’m down to .05’s and .06’s. I keep getting more and more comfortable in the car. I’m just happy to be able to do my job – the rest of the team works so hard to do theirs!”

The event victory marked Tedesco’s second win in just four TAD appearances in 2015, and back-to-back North Central Region victories, as she won the 2014 finale in Bowling Green, KY. The win also vaulted her into 4th position in the national points chase.

In addition to C.A.R.S. Protection Plus, WeFindParts.com, and Aamco Transmissions, Mia Tedesco’s Top Alcohol Dragster efforts are backed by Hirata Motorsports, NGK Spark Plugs, Schepel Motors, and Lucas Oil. The Tedesco Racing team also depends on Renegade Race Fuels, Hoosier Racing Tires, Abruzzi Transmissions & Converters, Quick Fuel Technologies and Wilkerson Racing Engines. Mia Tedesco thanked God, her family, and her team: Jason, Krusty, Josh, Kenny, Dave Hirata, Grayson, Chiyo, Molly, and LouLou.

Mia and the C.A.R.S. Protection Plus team will be back on the track May 15-17 at Summit Motorsports Park for the next NHRA North Central Region event. There, Tedesco plans to wheel the Hirata Motorsports TAD entry, and resume competition in the 9.90 category behind the wheel of her team’s ’66 Chevy II. To keep up to date with the latest news on Mia Tedesco and the Tedesco Racing Team, follow Miss Mia on Facebook and Twitter.

Tedesco Scores Charlotte Top Alcohol Dragster Victory

Courtesy of Tedesco Racing

On the surface, it appears as though Mia Tedesco and her Hirata Family Racing team dominated the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals with their C.A.R.S. Protection Plus / WeFindParts.com backed A/Fuel entry. The team qualified on the pole with a staggering 5.22 ET, and went on to win the event; marking the first national event victory in Tedesco’s short but decorated driving career. Domination, however, was not the word the 21-year-old driver used to describe her outing. Instead, the descriptions that she provided repeatedly included words like “lucky,” and “blessed.”

“We were really good in qualifying,” she admitted. “We came into the race with a lot of confidence, and that certainly was reinforced on our first two runs.”

Tedesco came out of the trailer with a strong 5.28 ET in the first qualifying session, then backed it up with a 5.22, the quickest pass of her career. That number paced the field, as she earned top qualifier honors for the first time in national event competition.

Come eliminations, things got a little bit dicey. The team was forced to change engines prior to round one, where the C.A.R.S. Protection Plus / WeFindParts.com machine shook the tires. But Tedesco did a masterful job of pedaling the car to regain traction, and easily defeated Mike Lewis despite an off pace 5.54 ET. That cost Tedesco lane choice in a second round matchup with Marty Thacker.

“We were very concerned coming into round two,” Tedesco explained. “We kept hurting engine parts and we were fighting the shake issues, so we were focused on making a good run on our side of the track. But at the same time, we know how good Marty Thacker is. We expected him to be good on the tree, like he always is, and to run a mid-5.30. We knew that round would be a huge challenge.”

Just off the starting line, Tedesco’s machine again briefly shook the tires, and she once again worked the throttle to recover and post a solid 5.47 ET. She caught a break when Thacker’s normally consistent machine slowed with mechanical trouble.

In the semi-final round Tedesco got an even bigger break, and she didn’t even know it.

“We were paired with Randy Meyer, whose driving and team is just amazing,” said Tedesco. “We knew we’d have to be nearly perfect to get past him. When I left, the car shook hard. I pedaled it, but I watched him drive away from me. In the shut down area I was telling myself, ‘A semi-final finish is a good outing,’ and I was already turning my mental focus back to the Super Gas car, because I was still in that category. When I turned off the track, the TV cameras were coming to my car, not his. I still didn’t put it together until they told me he had fouled, I never saw the red light.”

With new life, Tedesco entered the final round opposite Jake Allen, conceding lane choice for the third consecutive round after posting a 5.72 ET in the semi-final round. In the final, the C.A.R.S. Protection Plus / WeFindParts.com machine hooked up and got off the starting line with no tire shake, but began losing cylinders down track. Once again, Tedesco could see her opponent and figured she was in for defeat.

“He was ahead of me the whole way, then as we neared the finish line, his car just shut off and he disappeared. What a feeling.”

Tedesco got the victory with a 5.50 ET at 263 mph, upending the 5.66 / 227 mph effort of Allen.

Despite earning the biggest win of her driving career, Tedesco’s day was not done. In addition to handling the driving chores of the Hirata Family A/Fuel dragster, Mia was also behind the wheel of her familiar C.A.R.S. Protection Plus backed Cavalier Super Gas entry, which she also drove into the late rounds of competition. After earning the victory in Top Alcohol Dragster, Tedesco advanced to the semi-final round of Super Gas, falling to eventual champion Jim Perry.

“I feel as good about our Super Gas performance as I do the TAD win,” Tedesco expressed. “I had been struggling lately in that car, and it was great to get some confidence back. I just screwed up in the semi-finals, it was completely driver error – our car was really good. But we had a lot of fun, and I feel like our entire program is on the upswing. Running two cars deep into eliminations was hectic, but I really enjoyed the pace. We’ve bracket raced for several years, so I’m used to hopping from one car to another and making back-to-back runs in a matter of minutes. I live for it.”

The win was both gratifying and emotional for Tedesco. She and her A/Fuel team struggled in preseason testing and at their opening event, the Amalie Oil Gatornationals. Even in the course of victory, they faced adversity throughout the weekend; the car broke one motor and the team went through six cylinder heads. Tedesco also had family on hand to witness her victory. While family has always been important to her, it’s taken even more precedence in recent months.

“Our team is amazing, what can I say?” She smiled and continued, “I knew we could do this. After all we’ve been through our guys are always upbeat and always ready for the next challenge. To win in front of my family was just surreal. I don’t think my mother has ever seen me win, and she was there. My aunt and cousins drove down from Pittsburg, so being able to share that moment with them was just incredible. A month ago, my uncle Carmen passed away unexpectedly. We’ve all been grieving and trying to cope, so this win is for him. And my little sister Natalie is serving our country in the armed forces. I told her when she left for basic training that I’d dedicate my first win to her. So we won one for Natalie, and after the way things played out – with all the good fortune we had – I have to think uncle Carmen was looking over us.”

Mia Tedesco thanked God, her family, and her team: Jason, Krusty, Josh, Kenny, Dave Hirata, Grayson, Chiyo, Molly, and LouLou. In addition to C.A.R.S. Protection Plus, WeFindParts.com, and AAMCO, the Tedesco Racing team relies on quality products from Renegade Race Fuels, Hoosier Racing Tires, Abruzzi Transmissions & Converters, Quick Fuel Technologies and Wilkerson Racing Engines. To keep up to date with the latest news on Mia Tedesco and the Tedesco Racing Team, follow Miss Mia on Facebook and Twitter.

2014 Year in Review

TAN Original Content


The stars of NHRA Top Alcohol Dragster and Funny Car didn't disappoint in 2014, with record-breaking numbers, dominating performances, a cast of diverse characters new and old, and exciting storylines throughout the Lucas Oil Series season. In no particular order, here are a few of the notable headlines and stories from 2014.


5x TAD National Champion Reichert Retires as Driver/Owner
During the 60th running of the U.S. Nationals, a race he won three times, Bill Reichert announced he would retire as a driver following the NHRA Nationals at Reading. The Michigan driver was winless on the national level this year, but won two North Central Region races and posted a 5th place finish in national points. Reichert's legendary driving career spans two decades, in which he won 28 national events, 54 regional/divisional events, five national championships, and nine divisional championships. His retirement announcement hinted that he might serve as a crew chief in 2015 should the right opportunity arise.

Bill Reichert - Nate Van Wagnen photo

Rookie drivers debut with winning performances
The alcohol categories had a standout rookie class in 2014. Corey Michalek, brother of 2013 TAD rookie Kyle Michalek, made his A/Fuel debut at the 4-Wide Nationals in Charlotte. Cutting .02 lights in three of four eliminations rounds, Michalek beat Matt Cummings, Randy Meyer, Bill Reichert, and Brandon Booher to win his first-ever TAD national event. High profile bracket racer Mia Tedesco stepped up to TAD in 2014 with Hirata Motorsports, eventually winning the Bowling Green regional and reaching the semifinals at the U.S. Nationals. Young Nostalgia Funny Car driver Cameron Ferre made another step up, driving Larry Miersch's A/Fueler to runner-up finishes at the Mission regional and the Finals at Pomona. Mike Doushgounian won his debut regional race and reached the semis at two national events, driving a Bob Miner-powered, ex-Frank Manzo TAFC. Matt Gill, son of noted east coast TAFC racer Paul Gill, runnered-up at two regionals and won the Gainesville regional.

Mia Tedesco - Nate Van Wagnen photo

Demke, Harker Dominate Maple Grove Weekend
The eventual national champions in both TAD and TAFC, Chris Demke and Steve Harker, displayed their might at the NHRA Nationals held at rural Pennsylvania's Maple Grove Raceway in October. They entered the race knowing three trophies were on the line: the rain-delayed Carolina Nationals Wally, the NHRA Nationals Wally, and the Lucas Oil Series national championship Wally. The national titles were decided on Friday, with Demke beating Bill Reichert and Harker defeating contender Dale Brand in the Carolina Nationals semifinals. The two champs went on to beat Randy Meyer and D.J. Cox, respectively, to win the Charlotte race on Saturday. They completed the sweep on Sunday when Demke beat Duane Shields in the NHRA Nationals TAD final and Harker unleashed a mean 5.429 on John Lombardo Jr. Demke (5.217/277.94 MPH) and Harker (5.429/267.91 MPH) also left with low ET and top speed of the event.

A/Fuel Rule Changes Spark Parity Debate
2014 looked to be an interesting year for Top Alcohol Dragster teams after rule changes for the A/Fuel cars were announced before the 2013 PRI show last December. The nitro-burners would be allowed an extra percent, ten degrees cooler fuel, and an insulated main fuel line. The insulated fuel line was added to the blower car rules later into the season. Drivers and crew chiefs shared their thoughts on the InsideTopAlcohol forums, in the pits, and in this Drag Illustrated round table discussion. Presented without comment, here are a few basic stats from the 2014 season:

A/Fuel: 7 national event wins (Randy Meyer/Shayne Lawson 4, Duane Shields 2, Corey Michalek 1), 16 regional event wins (Rich McPhillips, Jackie Fricke, Bill Reichert, Meyer/Lawson, Shields and Garrett Bateman 2, Jeff Veale, Jared Dreher, Mia Tedesco, and Mike Manners 1), highest national points finish - 3rd (Meyer), Top 10 points finishers - 5, 2 regional championships (Fricke - East and Meyer - Central), quickest run - 5.202 (Johnny Ahten at Seattle and Karl Brounkowski at Houston).

Blown: 9 national event wins (Chris Demke 5, Joey Severance 3, Mike Strasburg 1), 9 regional event wins (Demke 4, Severance 3, Strasburg and Brandon Booher 1), highest national points finish - 1st (Demke), Top 10 points finishers - 5, 2 regional championships (Marty Thacker - North Central and Demke - West), quickest run - 5.217 (Demke at Reading).

Randy Meyer - Megan Meyer photo

Brand New Camaro TAFC Bodies Make Their Debut
The eagerly awaited 2014 Chevrolet Camaro body was released midseason when Jay Blake's Permatex/Follow A Dream team debuted the very first edition with driver Todd Veney at the Maple Grove regional. Jay Payne won the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals in his Peak Camaro's debut. Dale Brand was the third Camaro driver, adding a new look to his championship chase at the Carolina Nationals. Impressing in both the looks and performance categories, look for more Camaro bodies to pop up in 2015.

Jay Payne - Nate Van Wagnen photo

First-Time Winners Add to History Books
While not as many 2013 first-time winners (9), 2014 was a good year for new national event champs. Corey Michalek kicked off his TAD career with a win at the Four-Wides. Mike Strasburg made the most of his opportunity to drive the 2013 championship-winning YNot Racing blown alcohol dragster, scoring his first national event Wally at Norwalk. Randy Meyer Racing driver Shayne Lawson won both of his 2014 national events, first winning Topeka then Dallas. In TAFC, former sand racer Nick Januik won his home race, the SummitRacing.com Nationals in Vegas, in just his fifth national event appearance. Former IHRA AFC standout Dale Brand notched his first and only national event win of 2014 at Topeka. Lucas Oil Nationals winner Scott McVey had to wait until the Earlville regional to finish off the job, but his first national event win was followed up with the regional event win the next day.

Corey Michalek - David Smith photo

Taliaferro Walks Away from Gnarly Collision
Top Alcohol Dragster pilot Mark Taliaferro suffered a horrific collision with the retaining wall while racing at the Northwest Nationals near Seattle. Taliaferro went into tire smoke during the second round of eliminations and was unable to recover, ending up in the opposite wall. Opponent Garrett Bateman watched the accident occur in front of him, as he red-lit, smoked the tires and aborted the run. Fortunately Mark walked away without serious injury and returned to competition at the Las Vegas fall race, eventually finishing 9th in national points.

NHRA Footage

 

On-board video from Taliaferro's crash

Driver Profile - Mia Tedesco

Driver: Mia Tedesco

Car: NGK/Schepel Auto Group/C.A.R.S. Protection Plus A/Fuel Dragster

Age: 20

Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Occupation: Race car driver, President of We Find Parts

Family: Father – Michael, Mother – Cindy, Sister - Natalie

First race car: Jr. Dragster

Favorite music: Country

Favorite sports teams: Pittsburgh Penguins

Favorite racetrack: Palm Beach International Raceway and Beech Bend Raceway

When I'm away from the racetrack I: Train in the gym, work at CARS Protection Plus and We Find Parts, and help work in the shop on all of our other 7 race cars.

Favorite racing memory: Winning my first race when I was 17 in Florida.

Favorite drivers outside TAD: Jason Lynch

I race because: I love how you can’t perfect the sport. You are constantly learning and trying something new. The competition is always top of the line and relentless. You always have to do your best and be on your game.

I race TAD because: it was a class I always thought would be awesome to run, but never thought the opportunity would come, and when it did I couldn’t pass it up.

If I didn't race I would: I never could imagine a life without drag racing. I would have to be involved in some way. But I would keep busy helping run my father’s business and my own.

Facebook page: Mia Tedesco
Fan Page: Miss Mia Tedesco and Tedesco Racing
Twitter username: @miatedesco
Instagram username: miss_mia194
Website: miatedesco.com

Mia Tedesco to Compete in TAD with Hirata Motorsports

Courtesy of Luke Bogacki

Pittsburg, PA: As Mia Tedesco continues her ascent through the NHRA Lucas Oil Series ranks, she’ll add a new category to her resume in 2014. Tedesco, a 20-year-old driver of the recognizable C.A.R.S. Protection Plus backed machines, has earned valuable experience and achieved immense success in Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Dragster, and a multitude of bracket classes and machines. This season, she’ll take her talents to the quickest and fastest NHRA sportsman category: Top Alcohol Dragster.

Tedesco will team with the Hirata family, wheeling their A/Fuel dragster at a limited schedule of 7 NHRA Mello Yello Series events in 2014.

“We’re really excited for Mia to take the next step in her racing career,” expressed Mia’s father and team owner Michael Tedesco. “We’re excited not only about the opportunity to compete in Top Alcohol Dragster, but to do so with quality people like the Hirata family. We’re proud to be a part of their team and we look forward to a great future together.”

While Tedesco, who earned her A/Fuel license last season, is excited about the opportunity, she is also adamant about remaining true to her roots. She will continue to compete in the Super Comp and Super Gas categories throughout the season, and the team will also attend as many big dollar bracket events as possible.

“The Hirata’s have provided me and my family with an incredible opportunity,” expressed Tedesco. “I feel extremely blessed to take the next step in my racing career and to be surrounded with such professional and talented people. At the same time, I’ve had a lot of fun and I’ve learned so much in the ‘super’ and bracket classes over the past few seasons. I feel like I’ve come a long way as a driver, but there is still so much to learn. I don’t want to give that up.”

As a result, Tedesco will drive either her C.A.R.S. Protection Plus backed Super Comp dragster or Super Gas Cavalier in addition to the A/Fuel machine at the NHRA Mello Yello series stops in Gainesville, FL; Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Norwalk, OH; the prestigious US Nationals in Indianapolis; NHRA’s second stop in Charlotte, NC; and Reading, PA. At this point, the team has no plans to compete in the TAD category on the regional level, which will allow her to pursue her dream of a Lucas Oil Division Series championship in both Super Comp and Super Gas alongside teammate Jason Lynch.

“Last season I finished 2nd in the NHRA Division 2 points standings with the Super Gas car,” she explained. “My teammate and mentor, Jason Lynch won the championship; so it was pretty cool to finish 1-2 and there is certainly no one that I’d rather come in second to. But getting close down the stretch was a great experience, and it just made me more hungry and determined to accomplish that goal. With our schedule this season, I’ll have another opportunity to chase that dream in both of the ‘super’ classes, so I’m very happy and excited about that.”

While Tedesco has quickly earned a reputation as a force to be reckoned with in the sportsman ranks, she’s also caught the watchful eye of several professional teams, drivers, and owners. Among them, Schumacher Racing owner and NHRA legend Don Schumacher, whose team is also backed by C.A.R.S. Protection Plus:

“We’re not only thrilled to be affiliated with C.A.R.S. and Michael Tedesco again in 2014 but we also are excited to see how Mia progresses this year in her A Fuel Dragster. That’s a giant step toward getting her into a Top Fuel Dragster and I know that’s hers and her father’s goal.

“She’s proven to be a very good racer. It will be a big adjustment going from Super Comp to A Fuel but I’ve been very impressed with how well she has patiently moved up the ladder. I am definitely looking at her for the future.”

In addition to C.A.R.S. Protection Plus, the Tedesco Racing team will feature backing from We Find Parts, a company that Mia Tedesco started with the help of her father Michael. We Find Parts sells used and aftermarket parts to dealers, service shops, or individual consumers. We Find Parts offers their customers no hassle purchases, as they do all of the research to find the best available part, and offers all parts (including engines, transmission, etc.) with free shipping and a warranty.

Mia Tedesco and Jason Lynch will kick off their 2014 campaign this weekend with the NHRA Division 2 opener in Orlando, FL. Tedesco will make her Top Alcohol Dragster competition debut at the Gatornationals in Gainesville, FL March 13-16.