Former NHRA national-event-winning Top Fuel racer Pat Dakin, who hadn’t piloted a fuel dragster since retiring after a blowover in October 1998 at the national event in Topeka, returned to the cockpit following the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals during a test session at Gainesville Raceway to make runs to renew his Top Fuel license.
Dakin, who suffered injuries to both hands in the accident, jumped behind the wheel of Mitch King’s Bexar Waste/Tire Kingdom fueler and, with good pal and former partner Gary Rupp, a Gainesville resident, watching, made runs of 4.76 and 4.78.
Dakin, whose best run before he retired was 4.63, made four runs – a short squirt, a half-tracker, and the two 4.7-second passes—and felt comfortable behind the wheel.
“Everything went fine, and we never had to put a part in it,” he said. “There was really no learning curve involved. I’ve got a few runs under my belt over the years.”
Dakin burst on the Top Fuel scene in the early 1970s and won national events in Montreal in 1971 and 1973. He also reached the final round on four other occasions, in 1977 in Gainesville, 1977 in Canada, 1992 in Reading, and 1998 in Atlanta.
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