The stock suspension, drag radial-tired craze has seen enormous success over the last handful of years and has and continues to spread like wildfire across the United States. It has even garnered the attention of some racers across the pond who have begun bolting the radials onto their various styles of race cars as well.

While drag radial racing is certainly enjoying it’s heyday at this very moment in time and likely for the foreseeable future, this style of heads-up, street car racing has been exceptionally popular for years since Fun Ford Weekend, NMRA, NMCA, NSCA and World Ford Challenge put the class on the map back in the late 1990’s.

The dwindling car counts over the years in some of the previously mentioned organized series led to an overflow of interest in outlaw-style racing, and with it brought an influx of racers – new and old- into the radial movement. So too, have the number of high-profile and lucrative races, and an outburst of advancements in performance.

However, it isn’t the race cars themselves, the marquee events that have made promoters as famous as the racers, or the numbers on the scoreboard that really make this radial world go round.  It’s the people…the personalities and the ingenuity that they possess.

Although both the north and the south can lay claim to being the birthplace of varying forms of radial tire racing, all corners of the nation now have a piece of the pie. From Donald Long’s extremely popular Outlaw Radial Tire Championship series and grudge racing in the south, to the MIR and Cecil County races and the Shakedown up north, the growing contingent in Texas, the True Street Drag Racing series and other events in the midwest, to the Pacific Street Car Association and West Coast Hot Rod Association out on the left coast.

Each of these geographical regions and racing organizations boasts a great following of racers and race teams that are all very tough competitors in their own right.  Unfortunately, these geographic separations affords little – if any – opportunity to bring them all together on one stage to truly gauge how they stack up against one another.  Long’s simply genius “The Night The Lights Went Out in Georgia” back in March was the closest thing to such a happening that has occurred to date, but even then the turnout was only a drop in the bucket of the overall radial contingent.

For this reason, narrowing down this huge collection of racers to the five toughest and most feared is a very tough job.  There are so many great competitors out there that are deserving of being on such a list, that it’s literally a travesty to have to leave them out.

There are however,  a few racers that have been involved in the radial tire classes practically from the beginning, who have set records, won races, championships, gotten in the minds of their competitors, and practically put butts in the stands simply by showing up at a racetrack.  They have undeniably left a mark on the sport.  These gentlemen are mentioned in no particular order, because honestly, its tough enough just to break it down to five, much less have to rank them.

“Big Daddy” Dwayne Gutridge

Our list of the five most feared radial racers would be completely irrelevant if Big Daddy wasn’t included.  In fact, if we were to produce an article naming the single greatest drag radial racer of all time and it didn’t involve him, we’d risk losing all legitimacy and endure public bombardment and protest.

Widely considered the father of drag radial racing, Gutridge has been around from the very beginning and has truly done it all and seen it all. And he continues to be a force in the sport and one of the most recognized names and personalities in the business.

“It’s like a personal rivalry [with Big Daddy]. He very rarely screws up – he’s definitely a tough competitor,” said fellow northeastern racer Alex Vrettos.

Gutridge got his start in the late 1980’s around the time that the Ford Mustang became a hit with the enthusiast market with the introduction of the 5.0 engine, running his 1988 GT in some of the earliest Ford events alongside some of the greats including Joe Lombardo, Gene Deputy, Brian Wolfe, and “Stormin Norman” Gray.

Gutridge recalls a time in the early 90’s, while regularly racing at Raceway Park in Englishtown, picking up Falken and Yokohama radial tires at Pep Boys simply to save the time and effort of removing the street tires to install the slicks at the track.  He was fast from the onset, consistently outperforming nearly everyone at the time and later, following his success on BFGoodrich’s new drag radial tire, forged a relationship with the company that was instrumental in much of the early success of competitive drag radial racing.  He also played an integral role in the adoption of the drag radial class in the NMRA and the World Street Nationals in Orlando.

The outspoken automotive performance shop owner from New Jersey has long been at the forefront of innovation and an integral part of the Mustang movement, possessing a knack for doing more with less that his competition hastily admits as he continually shows them the door.

Paul Major, another of the northeastern racers, has had the opportunity to line up alongside Gutridge on many occasions.

“He just finds a way to compete with less than everybody else. Somehow, someway, he always finds himself making things happen, and I give him all the credit in the world.”

David Wolfe, who is a close personal friend of Dwayne’s and has acted as crew chief on his car for several years, has also had the opportunity to line up alongside of him.

“His car is always fast and you better be there. You better not mess up – that’s all I can say. And you better make sure your cars fast.”

His accolades truly speak for themselves. During his short tenure with the NMRA, Gutridge won seven events and was undeniably the face of the class.  He won the World Ford Challenge three times and after his switch to the Fun Ford Weekend series, won the championship in both seasons that he competed.  He was the first in the 9’s and the 7’s, and the first to surpass 160, 170 and 180 miles per hour.  Following his exit from FFW in 2004, he chose to go down the outlaw path.  He won the popular Shakedown at E’Town in 2006 and 2009 and upon calling his shot, ala Babe Ruth, wheeled his relatively underpowered small block into the magical 6-second zone.

David Wolfe

David Wolfe could well be considered the silent giant of drag radial racing. The blue collar, Fort Worth, TX-based chassis fabrication shop owner and his Ken Nelson-owned 1989 Mustang LX have been out less times than could be counted on one hand, but when that car does roll out of the trailer, the aura is reminiscent of Muhammad Ali stepping into the ring.

Said Long “everytime he comes out, he’s just on fire.”

Wolfe has long been well-renowned in the sport not only for producing world record-setting and championship-winning suspension components, but his expertise and ability to make any car – not just the stock suspension cars that are his specialty – go fast.  And while definitely quiet, he is unapologetically confident in his abilities. He works hard, he’s good, he knows it, he’ll tell you what he can do and then he’ll do it.

“He’s a trailblazer and a trendsetter. If you look up drag radial in the dictionary, his picture is there,” says David Hance.

Wolfe got his start in the drag radial craze back in 2000 and was an integral part of the early, formative years of the class in the NMRA. At the time, he acted as crew chief on a handful of cars, including those of world champion Job Spetter and close friend and teammate “Big Daddy” Dwayne Gutridge. He points out that Dwayne was very much the reason that he got involved.

“You can’t race David Wolfe – it’s just hard to race the guy. He’s just brilliant and if it doesn’t work, he can make it work, that’s the way he is,” said Gutridge.

Paul Major echoed that statement in saying “the guy is extremely smart and real good at getting a car to work and getting the power down – I don’t know that there’s anyone better.”

In 2005, Nelson dropped off a half-finished car at the Wolfe Racecraft shop and asked Wolfe to build a winner. At World Ford Challenge 9 in 2006, he came out with the car and not only won the race in almost effortless fashion, but shocked everyone with a 7.40 at 197 mile per hour lap, a record that stood for nearly three years.

Earlier this year, he put on what is widely considered one the greatest performances in the history of drag radial racing, coming out of nowhere with a new engine combination at the ORTC event and became the first stock suspension, drag radial-tired car to run in the 4.4-second range – numbers that no one expected. Except Wolfe himself, of course. And he made it look incredibly easy, much as he has before.

The rules makers have had to practically pencil-whip his type of combination out of the game as other racers don’t even want to line up alongside his rocketship. That’s intimidation, and David Wolfe has earned it.

Steve Jackson

Image credit: Steve Jackson Racing

Image credit: Power Block TV

Steve Jackson is a relative newcomer to drag radial racing when compared alongside many of the other current greats, first entering the fray in 2008. But during his short tenure thus far, has without question left an indelible mark on the category and forged a name for himself as one of the most feared competitor on drag radials today. To say that Jackson is outspoken would be an understatement, but it’s that fire for competition and confidence he exudes that has made him incredibly popular. The performance of his race car certainly hasn’t hurt either. Prior to David Wolfe’s big outing earlier this year, Jackson was the world-beater in the category, bar none. His crushing numbers practically made “Stevie Fast” a household term. And while not at the top at present, he has vowed to reclaim his title as the quickest racer in the world on drag radials and that’s one bet most would be willing to take.

David Hance summed it up well, stating “He’s exciting…you expect a baseball-like play, like he’s going to hit a home run every time he comes to a track.”

Jackson got his start in the grudge racing scene in the south, but has since divided much of his time between the grudge races and organized events. But regardless of where the “Killin Time” Mustang shows up, it is undoubtedly the car to beat. And there is virtually no one that’s safe from being called out for a little match racing.

Jackson won the 2008 ORSCA EZ Street title in his first year of competition, before stepping up to Limited Street in 2009. There, he reset the drag radial world record on two different occasions, all while running on a set of radial tires with stock suspension against his slick-tired counterparts.

“Pretty much we just love to crush people,” he stated.

Jackson already has numerous Limited Street and Drag Radial wins to his credit in the last two seasons, and estimates to have won more than twenty stock suspension and match races throughout the country to date. He strikes fear into the heart of the competition and because of his outspokenness is very much a love him or hate him individual, but Steve Jackson is more than deserving of being mentioned among the best.

Said Paul Major “he’s one of the top guys out there, and definitely commands respect.”

John Kolivas

Johnny K, as he’s commonly referred to, is one the most well-respected competitors in the sport. He’s managed to do a lot with a little, and carries himself with humbleness. He is also one of the fiercest competitors out there, one that every racer in the class gets up for when he’s in the other lane. And John earned that reputation. When he isn’t busy winning one championship after another, he’s still one of the toughest racers in all of drag radial to beat.

Said Steve Jackson “Kolivas is hard to beat because he’s got his stuff together and he’s very consistent. He knows his racecar and he knows how to read the track. He doesn’t beat himself a lot, so you’ve just got to flat outrun him.”

Vrettos agreed, saying “Johnny is definitely a tough competitor. He very rarely screws up. He cuts consistent lights and his car tends to work every pass.”

Kolivas officially entered the NMRA drag radial class in 2005 with his familiar white 1995 Mustang Cobra after acquiring the car in 2003, and continually building up his arsenal while competing in smaller local drag radial events. In his rookie year win the NMRA, John had two final round appearances, winning one of them. On a mission to win it all in 2006, Kolivas did exactly that, winning half the races that season and claiming his first championship – a title he would not relinquish until his exit from the series following the 2008 season. In June of 2008, he became the first NMRA Drag Radial racer to eclipse the elusive seven-second barrier.

While Kolivas has yet to personally drive up to the time shed to pick up a 6-second time slip, his car, with close friend Joel Greathouse at the controls, has. And that certainly has to weight in the minds of his competitors when that white Cobra stages up in the opposite lane.

“He’s just tough. He definitely isn’t someone I’d want to be racing against,” said radial promoter extraordinaire Donald Long.

Wolfe agreed, commenting “when he’s there, you know he’s there – I have a lot of respect for him.”

Kolivas has focused on outlaw radial racing over the course of the last couple seasons, racing nearly anywhere this combination is legal to compete. This has even included a visit to NMRA’s Super Street Outlaw category, where he reset the national record on a set of 275 radials and the tires were subsequently ruled out almost immediately following the event.

These days, he continues to be one of the most decorated and feared competitors in drag radial, consistently going rounds and racking up the wins at ORTC and other outlaw events, all the while quietly continuing to build on his legacy in the class.

Troy Pirez

Troy Pirez Sr. is another of the racers that has been around from the early, formative years of radial tire racing and has virtually done it all and seen it all in the sport as one of the original drag radial pioneers.

Pirez and “Big Daddy” Dwayne Gutridge both go back to the beginnings of drag radial and know a thing or two about competing against one another.

“Put Troy Pirez at the top of my list. He’s an old school dude…he ran on BFG’s. He’s still winning – he still knows how to win. He’s running nitrous, but he still knows how to win. Most respect…if me and him line up, it’s old school. I know Troy is going to cut a good light and he’s not going to give you the race – you’re going to earn that win.”

The veteran from Florida dates his radial racing days back to the mid 1990’s when BFGoodrich first put a drag radial tire on the market and the organized events began to pop up. Pirez grabbed three wins at Bradenton Motorsports Parks’ heads-up events that were formed in 1997 before making the switch to Factory Street in the NMCA in 1998.  He then competed in the Traction Advantage category in the defunct NSCA in 1999 and 2000 where he won a championship and was the first racer to break into the 8-second zone. Pirez also held the Extreme Street national record for a time on BFG’s before the tire was outlawed in the class.

These days he, along with son Troy Pirez Jr., bide much of their time close to home at Bradenton, Sunshine Dragstrip, and other tracks around the state of Florida where Pirez has long been a dominant force and has gathered more wins and trophies than even he can remember. But occasionally, he ventures out to some of the larger events, where his white and orange 1988 Camaro is a familiar site and a force to be reckoned with anywhere he shows up.

“I’m Troy’s number one fan. He’s one of the main reasons for the explosion of drag radial in the past couple of years. He’s the king of making funny videos, he’s an accomplished racer, and he wins. He’s a colorful personality that the class has really benefited from,” said David Hance.

Pirez and his tried-and-true big block nitrous combination have recently found new life in the increasingly popular 275 radial craze, where he disposed of an incredible field of challengers from around the nation in February to pick up a big win at The Night The Lights Went Out in Georgia.

So there you have it; our purely unbiased take on the top five most feared racers in the drag radial world today. Through hard work, determination, and many years of experience behind the wheel and under the hood, they have each left their own unique mark on what has become a hugely popular venue in the sport. And when you think Drag Radial, you think of this group of racers. but with an ever-growing crop of racers coming into the fold all with the same amount of drive to win, it’s safe to say this list could very well have a different look to it just a couple of years from now. And luckily, we get to sit back and revel in what these men (and women) do.