TRIBUTE

October 8 , 1942 – November 17 , 2020

CoViD-19 virus at age seventy-eight .

Matt Johnson was a driver , team owner , sponsor and business owner who was directly responsible for the racing careers of hundreds of people . He offered his support and assistance to thousands of folks who needed it .

Originally from Pochahontas , Arkansas , he first started drag racing at the legendary Wildcat Hot Rod Drag Strip in Paragould owned by George Ray . Matt moved to St . Louis , Missouri , as a teenager with five dollars in his pocket and took a variety of automotive jobs before discovering a knack for buying , renovating and reselling cars . He met and married the love of his life , Berneda , and began raising two daughters , Kim and Denita .

Matt ’ s success in auto sales led to a burgeoning business . In 1968 , he was one of the first to compete in the American Hot Rod Association ’ s new Super Stock Eliminator program , the forerunner of what would become Pro Stock Eliminator .

Johnson ’ s long lineage of professional category machines , all of which carried the name of “ Hustler ”, started with a ‘ 68 Firebird and then moved to a series of two ‘ 68 Camaros and a 1972 Camaro with close friend Preston Honea driving . In an era when Pro Stockers ran weekly at an unending list of dragstrips , Johnson competed at every track in the Midwest as well as AHRA National Events . Another veteran , Dave Paxton , soon took over the wheel of the Hustlers including the duo ’ s famous ‘ 68 Nova Pro Stocker which proudly carried the Matt Johnson Auto Sales name . Mike Brown also piloted the Nova before Matt joined forces with driver “ Bad Bob ” Cunningham to campaign a Vega Pro Stocker in 1980 .

Matt ’ s business acumen left him with enough money to offer security to his family while also pursuing of his dream to compete in Pro Stock Eliminator . Still , he used his entrepreneurial skills to create the Matt Johnson Performance Center , a huge and all-inclusive operation with multiple bays , a complete machine shop and a massive inventory of parts and accessories long before the world ever heard the words “ InterNet ” or “ Parts Warehouse ”.

St . Louis was a battleground of legendary speed shops led by the renowned operation of Funny Car racer Dave Wise . With organizational genius

Jim Steinkotter as the operation ’ s glue , Johnson serviced the market in every way possible and hired only the area ’ s premiere tuning , fabrication and performance minds . Within months , the MJPC became the choice of a majority of customers .

Simultaneously , Johnson continued to race in Pro Stock Eliminator with Paxton driving , Don Kirn building the engines and Johnson ’ s lifelong friend , Jerry Bickel , always constructing the chassis . A gorgeous 1978 Camaro gave way to a stunning Trans Am in 1984 . When Paxton retired , the Pontiac became an 8.90 racecar which Matt campaigned with a budding youngster who worked in Bickel ’ s chassis emporium named Tim McAmis . Johnson tutored McAmis in the finer points of driving and then added more and more power to the equation . In three short seasons , that same Trans Am took Matt and McAmis to the first IHRA Pro Modified World Championship in 1990 .

Bickel and McAmis are among the key players , ( along with Jerry Haas , Gene Lynch , Gary Hajek ,

Bill Kuhlmann , et al ), who have made St . Louis the center of the Pro Stock universe . Likewise , Matt and his “ Hustler ” racers stood head and shoulders above the dozens of Pro Stock competitors based in the same area .

However , Matt Johnson was more than just a successful businessman and racer . Early in his career , he displayed traits not normally seen in an individual fighting his way up the ladder of life . From his earliest days in car sales , Matt drew criticism from his peers for often falling for the stories of hardship from his customers . More often than not , Johnson would “ cut a deal ” or extend long lines of credit to those who swore they would “ make it up to him ”. To the surprise of everybody but Matt , he found they usually did .

When he created the Matt Johnson Performance Center , his generosity became nearly a fault . Almost never failing to help a down-andout racer with discounts , parts , repairs or just advice , it was not unusual for Johnson to waive any payment until a customer “ got back on his feet ”. Often , Johnson would only ask a racer to

PHOTOGRAPH BY BRET KEPNER