TONY ZIZZO

for the family car.

“ So I took him, of course, to Union Grove,” Tony said.“ Put him in a car; he drove my’ 85 Alcohol dragster professionally for UDRA. That whole season I watched him going down the track, I was only 40; he was 16. I said,‘ Wait a minute. I’ m not ready to stop driving. I want to keep driving.’ So, I took my old car back, and we bought him a brand-new era car, so we campaigned two cars.”

After watching TJ race Top Alcohol in both UDRA and IHRA, Tony decided it was time to move forward and put TJ in a nitro car. The Sicilianborn Chicago native only had to look a couple hours south in Springfield, Ill., to the shop of NHRA Funny Car veteran Tim Wilkerson.

After a frustrating series of races for the Zizzos in alky, Tony was fed up and called his good friend Fred Mandolini. After convincing the Zizzos they should not scrap their equipment and give up racing, Mandolini suggested they chat with Wilkerson, who owned a Top Fuel dragster.

“ Didn’ t even know how to start it, didn’ t know how to run it, didn’ t know anything, and Tim Wilkerson, being the used-car salesman that he is, sold us the Top Fuel drag racer,” Tony said.“ Tim Wilkerson and Fred Mandolini both babysat us until we got TJ licensed and we got him going. And that’ s where the Top Fuel operation started— at Tim Wilkerson’ s in Springfield.”

Since then, the Zizzos have raced part-time within the NHRA’ s Top Fuel class as one of the most-respected family-owned independent teams in the field. In 2013 at Pacific Raceways near Seattle, the team earned its way to the semi-finals after beating Tony Schumacher and Antron Brown, respectively, in the first two rounds.

Ironically, it was after the race there last summer that TJ had what he calls his best racing memory with his dad.“ The best memory I have

of us racing recently was when he and I had to drive the semi across the country last summer,” TJ said.“ It was wonderful. It was a great experience to be trapped in a cab with my dad for 40 hours straight.

“ I’ m glad I’ m able to do it, I’ m glad we can do it together. The other race teams, where there’ s a father and son, I don’ t know they have the same bond my dad and I have. It’ s something

pretty special.”

Tony’ s days of competition may be behind him, but that doesn’ t mean he doesn’ t love being behind the wheel. Zizzo maintains both his Top Alcohol and Top Fuel licenses and recently

made a purchase that will see him at the track even more in 2017, but once again as a pilot instead of an owner. He recently found the original Avenger Top Alcohol car he ran with Al DaPozzo and converted it into a Top Fuel car he intends to race this season at selected Nostalgia Drags events.

“ I’ m not done racing yet,” he said.“ I got my Alcohol car. I got my Nostalgia Top Fuel dragster and I’ ve got my Willys that I want to campaign too. Tony Zizzo is not done, and that’ s one of the reasons why we’ re not gonna run more NHRA races … it gives me, Tony Zizzo, more time to drive his car.” DI

PHOTOS: ZIZZO RACING ARCHIVES