Jimmy Pelcarsky wasn’t shy about sharing his goals for race day after qualifying No. 1 with a 4.179-second pass at the PDRA Summer Shootout at Virginia Motorsports Park in late August. He wanted to beat the official PDRA Pro Outlaw 632 world record (Johnny Pluchino’s 4.163 in 2019) and win the race.
He did just that, as the Ohio driver ran a 4.153 at 171.45 in the final round, backing up the 4.127 at 172.67 he laid down in the semifinals. Pelcarsky in his 480ci small-block-powered Five-Star Valet ’15 Camaro defeated points leader Wes Distefano, who ran a 4.22 at 171.18 in the runner-up effort. It was Pelcarsky’s first-ever PDRA victory.
“We worked so hard for this,” Pelcarsky said in the winner’s circle. “It’s unbelievable. I’m speechless right now. I can’t believe it. We came, we conquered. This means the world. We’ve been drag racing a long time, since the early ‘90s, late ‘80s – NHRA Pro Stock, IHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock. This is a great feeling after all those years, we finally got some recognition. It’s awesome. I couldn’t be happier. I just want to celebrate.”
Pelcarsky’s performance stands as the official PDRA Pro Outlaw 632 elapsed time record as the PDRA goes into 2021.
This feature is a part of Drag Illustrated’s “Best of 2020” series, where we’ll take a look back at some of the biggest runs, best moments and most memorable happenings from the 2020 season.
This story was originally published on December 11, 2020. 
