ESPITE ONLY being 26 years old , Joseph Gallegos carries himself with an old-school mentality . Whether it ’ s the front-engine nitro dragster he drives , or his relentless work ethic , Gallegos is a perfect representation of the legends of yesteryear that inspire him .

“ I love getting to hang out with badass , hardcore nitro racers ,” says Gallegos . “ Pro Mods and all that new stuff is cool , but this is the heart of drag racing . The old-school ways , hanging out with the older crowd and just having the opportunity to race with some of those people . I don ’ t think there ’ s anything else that tops it .”

Gallegos grew up watching his father , Dave Gallegos , race , and recalls going with him to the Bakersfield March Meet . There , Joseph saw his first pair of nostalgia Top Fuel dragsters , and decided right then that was what he was going to do as well . He first tested his very own front-engine nitro dragster in late 2022 , and had it ready for competition in the Nitro Chaos series in 2023 .

It ’ s not just the driving aspect that fascinates Gallegos , however . When he ’ s not wheeling his own car , he can be found working on the nitro Funny Car his dad drives or helping NHRA teams like Scott Palmer and Mitch King . He prides himself on having the ability to service every aspect of the cars , not just a specialist in one or two areas .

“ I love knowing how things work ,” Gallegos says . “ I think it ’ s just my personality . We don ’ t have a lot of money to pay for crews or tuners , so we figure out ourselves how to do it . That ’ s the only way we ’ re able to survive doing this . And I won ’ t drive , or let my dad drive , any car unless I know it front to back . You don ’ t want to go into something not knowing ; that ’ s how people get hurt .”

Over the years , Gallegos has become particularly close to Palmer , and in August 2023 , potentially saved his life . Palmer suffered a horrific crash in his Studebaker nitro Pro Mod at Mid America Dragway in Arkansas City , Kansas . In a video that went viral afterwards , Gallegos — who was on the top end at the time — could be seen grabbing a fire extinguisher and rushing to help drag Palmer from the vehicle . Despite constant praise from others — and most notably Palmer himself — Gallegos doesn ’ t feel like he did anything heroic .

“ I don ’ t even think of it like that ,” admits Gallegos . “ He calls me all the time and I ’ m like , ‘ Nah , dude , everyone who gets in one of these cars knows what can happen .’ Time just stopped . It happened so quick , but to me it felt like hours . I don ’ t like it when people blow me up or call me a hero . I know if he was down there and that happened to me , he ’ d do the same .”

When he ’ s not at the track or in the shop , Gallegos funds his racing addiction by helping his father run a masonry company . As a fifth-generation bricklayer , he jokes that his siblings were all smarter than he was and went through college — but his profession allows him the freedom to pursue his dream of racing with his family .

While Gallegos enjoys working with other NHRA teams , it ’ s not something he wants to pursue full-time . His priority right now is continuing to race with his dad , whether it ’ s in the Nitro Chaos and Funny Car Chaos series or old-school match races across the country . But he admits he has one long-term goal that he ’ d like to achieve .

“ Chris Graves puts on one of the greatest shows in America ,” says Gallegos . “ But if we ever end up hitting the lottery , I know what we ’ re doing . My end goal is to campaign the Funny Car we have in NHRA . That would be my dream . I want to step up our program and show the big boys that hey , some dumb bricklayers from Kansas can do it too .” – CRAIG COOK DI

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