Racing at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, veteran driver and tuner Tim Wilkerson took his SCAG Power Equipment/Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang to its first final-round outing as a member of the Maynard Wilkerson Racing team. In his milestone 50th final round appearance, Wilkerson claimed the runner-up honors as he seeks the first Funny Car win for the Maynard family and JCM Racing organization.
Wilkerson qualified eighth with a 3.967-second best set during the first qualifying session on Friday. He went on to record two more 3.96-second passes in eliminations, beginning with a low-for-the-round 3.963 E.T. at 322.27 MPH to advance with Cruz Pedregon out of their opening-round quad. Wilkerson slowed to a 4.053 E.T. in the second round, but it was enough to finish ahead of Chad Green, Blake Alexander, and Pedregon.
Just like in the second round, it was a Wilkerson family affair in the finals, as Tim’s son Daniel tunes Green’s Mustang Funny Car. Wilkerson reached the finish line before John Force and Green with a 3.969 E.T. at 319.45, following Matt Hagan’s winning 3.943-second effort.
“It was good to get three cracks at the track on race day today,” said Wilkerson, who won the Las Vegas spring race in 2008. “We’re going to stay here (Monday) and test some DSR Performance cylinder heads. We haven’t run them yet; we’ve still been running stuff from last year. But, overall, I’m really proud of my guys. Everyone did a great job this weekend, we just got dogged by Hagan and his Dodge today, and we need to get by that guy.”
Beyond the on-track excitement, Wilkerson’s weekend in Las Vegas was highlighted by time spent with SCAG Power Equipment dealers.
“The cool thing about Vegas is, four-wide qualifying was early in the day so we were able to get out of the track at a decent hour and have fun with the SCAG dealers and join them at dinner,” said Wilkerson, one of three NHRA Camping World Series drivers representing SCAG this season. “I always enjoy meeting our SCAG guests, they’re always a good time.”
Wilkerson moved up a spot to seventh in points with his runner-up finish. Following testing, the Maynard Wilkerson Racing team will compete again April 28-30 at the Circle K NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway, where Wilkerson returns as the 2016 event champ.
This story was originally published on April 17, 2023. 
