Photo Credit: Snake Racing

After retiring from driving in 1994 with his “Farewell Strike” tour, Don “The Snake” Prudomme announced yersterday that he is retiring from NHRA team ownership. It appears that the team’s failure to find a sponsor for the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle season may have contributed to the announcement.

Don Prudhomme is recognized as one of the greatest drag racers of all time and helped grow the sport to what it is today. In 1962, Prudhomme scored his first big win in racing when he won Top Fuel Eliminator at the Smokers Car Club March Meet in Bakersfield, California. The Greer-Black-Prudhomme dragster would go onto make Prudhomme and engine tuner Keith Black very famous in the racing business.

During the next 30 years, Prudhomme won titles in both the Top Fuel and Funny Car classes and won 49 final rounds. Prudhomme drove several famous cars including the Whynn’s Winder, Mattel Hot Wheels Challenger Funny Car, US Army Monza Funny Car and the Skoal Bandit Pontiac Trans-Am. The Snake vs Mongoose face off with rival Tom McEwen was one of the greatest rivalries in drag racing.

Prudhomme scored a number of firsts in drag racing. He became the first driver to win four consecutive NHRA Winston Series titles (1975-1978) and he won the U.S. Nationals seven times. In 1982, he became the first Funny Car driver to break the 250 mph barrier and in 1989, he was the first to post a Funny Car run of less than 5.20 seconds. After retiring from driving, Prudhomme continued his own Top Fuel team and helped groom drivers like Larry Dixon, Ron Capps and Spencer Massey.

Photo Credit: Ford Racing Archives