At the most recent NMCA West event, Doug Sikora crashed hard, basically totaling the car in the process. following that unfortunate event, Sikora has chosen to retire from driving duties, but car owner Bob Remillard is rebuilding the car, and the team is looking to get back into competition.

To recap, Sikora’s, “first impact was with the left side wall at about 197 mph,” Remillard says. Many reports from the race said the surface was very hot and greasy. Many of the Outlaw competitors had issues getting down the track. “We had significant tire spin past the eighth-mile mark, which sent the car hard left, rendering it uncontrollable,” Remillard adds.

Of course, the initial wall contact took out the car’s steering. “The first strike severely damaged the front suspension and frame rails,” Remillard says. Sikora wasn’t out of the woods, though. The car came back across the track, making hard contact with the opposite wall. As you can see from the included images, there weren’t many straight body panels left.

After the accident, everything was cut off forward of the firewall, and a new front half will be required. The main cage and all critical structures rear of the firewall seem to be intact, but of course, the chassis will be put on a jig to make sure nothing has been compromised.

A few things the team knows have to be replaced are the car’s front struts, steering rack, K-member, engine plate, front wheels, tires, and headers. Fortunately, the engine and the rest of the drivetrain didn’t sustain any real damage, so it will be reused. However, the car’s power adder is going to change from a ProCharger to a pair of Precision 88mm turbochargers. New driver Giuseppe Gentile, a veteran in the heads-up drag doorslammer ranks, prefers the twins as a power adder, and the team feels they’ll be able to realize even more power from that combination.

As for the body, a donor car will be sourced to replace the damaged body, along with a new Hairy Glass Cobra front clip and doors. “Bill Hickok will be handling the chassis repairs and mounting the new body,” Remillard tells us. Once that takes place, the car will go to Deed’s Performance for plumbing, wiring, and final assembly.

“Since Doug has retired from the team, we have renamed it Evolution Racing, as this new car is evolving from what we had with the original,” Remillard says. “We’re doing everything we can to improve what was already a major force in Outlaw 10.5 racing. Giuseppe Gentile is more than capable to take over the driving challenges and Jason Pettis will remain my crew chief and right hand man. Our goal is to have the car complete by mid-to-late September so we can attend the last two PSCA races — one in Vegas and the other in Fontana. We will use these races to prepare for the big SCSN race in November.”

We will continue to bring you updates as the build progresses, and we look forward to seeing the car back on track, right where it should be.