PICTURED WITH PHOTOGRAPHER JOHN FORE III ( CENTER ), CONNELLEY AND HIS STANDOUT TEAM HAVE WORKED TOGETHER ALMOST IMPECCABLY FOR MORE THAN A DECADE .
After all , the competition is so tough . We are at a level where 10 cars in any race could win , and that ’ s where we want to be , in that shark pool .”
“ We want to race where the best are ,” Connelley continues , “ and Ultra Street is still a class where most people in that class work , and they own their own business or whatever , and they still have jobs . Most people do their own tuning . They ’ re still racers racing out of their shop at home .
“ This is like the top level of that as it gets . We want to go out and race the best . This is where we see it , and with what we ’ re able to do financially and time-wise with jobs , and this is the top level of that .”
IN THE END , it all comes down to winning and losing . Connelley has hated losing and always chased winning for as long as he can remember .
It ’ s the fire that burns in him and pushes him to be great and drives him to keep working when conventional wisdom might be saying to shut it down for the night , or don ’ t make that
April 2021
Connelley wants success against the best and he ’ ll stop at nothing until he reaches it . eight-hour drive to Virginia in the middle of the night after working a 12-hour shift .
Connelley , though , sent that kind of thinking packing long ago , so he ’ ll keep working , keep succeeding and keep trying to push the envelope , thinking solely of that sign in his race shop : “ Every time you sit down , somebody is working to beat you .”
And then he ’ ll stay standing , get back to work and get back to winning .
“ We hate losing so much . That ’ s part of it . You have to hate it . That ’ s what makes you stronger ,” Connelley believes . “ But if you really , really hate it , you try to not do that , and you really , really dig deep , and you try to do whatever it is in your power to accomplish the goal that you ’ re trying to accomplish . It may not even be winning on that day . I may be finding this or that , whatever the problem is at the time or we ’ re looking for another number in the split or something , but you have to dig sometimes . I mean , with anything else , it ’ s hard sometimes , but you ’ ve got to find a way to keep at it DI.”
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