For the 3.7-seconds that it takes a PDRA Pro Boost driver to cover an eighth of a mile they can make racing a vehicle of this caliber look effortless, but those who pilot and work on these cars know better. Ric Fleck and his team have made their 2018 PDRA season look amazing but it didn’t come without a lot of struggle and effort. Fleck and his team are now hitting their stride going into the PDRA Fall Nationals and are set to capitalize on the momentum.

When you’re at a PDRA event it’s hard to miss Fleck’s Tommy Mauney-built 1941 Willys with its trademark paint job. Powering Fleck to his quick three-second passes is a BAE Hemi built by Darrel Makins from Under Pressure Performance with a big Chuck Ford blower providing the boost. Assisting with rotating the tires is a quick drive that implements a torque converter from Camron’s Torque Converter Services and a Liberty five-speed transmission.

Getting all of the ingredients that Fleck had in his racing pantry to work well together and create a wonderful horsepower dish was a goal for this year. After being in a constant state of change with parts Fleck made the call to just work with what they had and it has paid off.

“One of the biggest things that led to our success this season is we really didn’t change anything big in the offseason. Every year we were making big changes like going to a lock-up torque converter or changing transmissions and it was impacting our ability to be consistent. This year we decided to stay with what we had and make it work because we knew the car was good and the engine was good, it was just a matter of making it all work well together,” Fleck says.

This season has been the best yet for Fleck and his team as they currently sit third in the PDRA Pro Boost points standings. They were able to win the Firecracker Nationals and then score a runner-up finish at the Drag Wars event.

To maximize the driveline parts the team has been using, in particular, the torque converter, Fleck enlisted the help of former PDRA racer Jeremy Ray to dial everything in.

“Jeremy has been helping us a lot this year with our converter program. He’s really good with the converter technology and has helped unlock a lot of power. He really understands how this technology works and has put a lot of laps in to get that knowledge. His assistance really put us on the right path with the car,” Fleck explains.

Even with the points championship potentially out of reach due to Chuck Ulsch’s crushingly dominant 2018 performance in the Pro Boost class, Fleck is pumped up about coming to Darlington and the Fall Nationals to put on a show for the hometown fans.

“Darlington Dragway is our home track and we’re coming to this event to win it all. Last year we thought we had a real shot at winning the PDRA Darlington race and it ended up being the only event we didn’t qualify for in 2017. This year we want to do better and make up for not making the show. To win one of these races it takes everything coming together, the crew, the car, everything. The competition is so tight and there’s no real difference between these cars on the track. You have to be on your game every pass — you earn every round win in the Pro Boost class,” Fleck says.

There are going to be some great battles at the PDRA Fall Nationals that you’ll want to check out. You can see the PDRA Fall Nationals from Darlington Dragway LIVE on SpeedVideo.com RIGHT HERE thanks to COMP Cams, Jerry Bickel Race Cars, Moser Engineering, Flying A Motorsports and Stage 8 Fasteners.