Stevie “Fast” Jackson dropped an impressive bombshell on Friday.
The reigning NHRA Pro Mod champ and drag radial superstar is adding another class to his resume, as he will make his debut in Top Alcohol Funny Car. The debut will come next weekend at the Mid-West Drag Racing Series (MWDRS) event in St. Louis, driving Jim & Annie Whiteley’s J&A Service Alcohol Funny Car. Additionally, Jim Whiteley will be competing in the eighth-mile Pro Mod class in Jackson’s famed Shadow 2.0.
“It is no secret my dream is to crush alcohol and nitro racing,” Jackson said. “This is a great opportunity for me to make some passes and fuel that passion. I cannot thank Jim and Annie enough for this opportunity. Sheikh Abdulla was also very supportive and always has my back. Theses are incredible people and a huge asset to drag racing.”
Stevie has been licensed in Top Alcohol since 2008 after attending Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School, further showing his focus for working his way through the ranks and always staying prepared.
Since taking over as crew chief for Jim Whiteley’s NHRA Pro Mod car last May, the pair competed alongside each other in NHRA in 2019, culminating in Stevie’s First NHRA Pro Mod Championship. Sharing data has allowed for improvements in both programs.
Jim Whiteley’s NHRA-legal Pro Mod will be competing alongside Steve’s Bahrain 1 Blown Camaro at this weekend’s NHRA race in Indy before making his TAFC debut.
“It is going to be quite interesting racing a totally different screw-blown Pro Mod in the eighth-mile. I got to run my Top Sportsman truck at the MWDRS event last month and loved it. We are going to get after it with Shadow and see what we can make happen,” Whiteley said.
Previously, Shadow donned big tires for NHRA competition in May 2018 after Jackson crashed the primary car during the 4-Wide Nationals at Charlotte. A tremendous amount goes into converting the radial-crushing Shadow to big tires, including more than 50 hours of work by the team with entirely different suspension, chassis and engine set-ups.
“Last time we put Shadow on big tires, we were backed against a deadline to make an NHRA race. This time is more for fun, to come to the Mid-West and crush those boys,” Jackson said. “Jim is one hell of a driver and hasn’t raced in Pro Mod much this year and it is time for him to get back to it.”
The 2017 RJ Race Cars Camaro “Shadow” is fresh off a Radial vs. the World win at Donald Long’s Magic 8 race at Orlando Speed World Dragway last month, and Jackson has won three out of the last four races he has entered on radials, including No Mercy 10 last October, Lights Out 11 in February, and The Magic 8 at Orlando Speedworld Dragway.
This story was originally published on August 7, 2020. 
