The year prior to that, Bird, 27, was one of the biggest names in underground drag racing. Called out by the racers-turned-celebrities of the hit show Street Outlaws, Jones took them all down, one by one. Still in his 20s, he was at the top of his game. And then he lost it all. Until he got a call from another bird. James“ Birdman” Finney gave his fellow 1320 avian a call and told Jones there was a car waiting for him at Birdman’ s shop. It just needed a driver.“ They offered it to me as soon as mine got stolen,” Jones says.“ They had theirs for sale and they told me if I wanted it, come get it, no charge.

“ Me and Birdman hit it off because of our names, everyone’ s always confusing us and stuff. We call each other about weekly, and whenever my car got stolen, they hit me up within two or three days and just told me to come get it and don’ t worry about no money or nothing. It’ s like family. You’ re only competitors when you put the helmet on.”

Jones, the son of 2005 NHRA ET Super Pro champion Jackie Jones, got his start racing with his dad, a driver he would eventually beat at the age of 16 for a $ 10,000 payday at the Texas Motorplex.

“ My dad has been racing for 38 years and we’ ve always been very competitive,” Bird states.“ You gotta win, runner-up ain’ t good enough. My dad’ s always pushed me and raced with me. We didn’ t go to the races just for me; we took four cars, two for him and two for me. Right now, he’ s kinda backed out and let me take over the reins. He still bracket races, but he don’ t really like door cars at all. He’ s always had a roadster or a dragster.”

And now that the DI 30 Under 30 honoree is driving another Bird’ s car, what can fans expect?

“ We started working on it and we just realized

we didn’ t have the horsepower that it was going to need to push that weight,” he says.“ That car weighed 2,800 lbs. and that little motor I got now... the car I got weighs 2,400 lbs. and I can’ t even compete now at 2,400.

“ It’ s a year and a half later and I’ m just now about to make a first pass with this five-inch( bore space) motor. I bought a wrecked car from somebody local around town, and me and a buddy re-front-halved it. We’ re trying to make a nice car on a real nice budget. We just got a Pat Musi 737, all-new EFI deal, so it’ ll be a learning curve.”

Competitors, take notice. This Bird is searching for new prey. – BRANDON W. MUDD DI

PHOTOS: RANDY HALL, DI ARCHIVESIAN TOCHER

84 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated. com Issue 127