RON CAPPS & MADDI GORDON
“ This is everything; it is just so hard to drive these cars,” she said breathlessly at the top end following the Northwest Nationals win.“ This is what dreams are made of, 100 %.”
At the time, she didn’ t realize the dream had only just begun.
BRICK BY BRICK
■ It may seem sudden, Maddi’ s arrival at the top tier of drag racing, but the journey began eight days after she was born to Paso Robles, California, residents Doug and Christina. That’ s when she made her first trip to the dragstrip, and racing has been the center of Maddi’ s world ever since.
Her grandfather, Mike, was the one who got the ball rolling. He entered the Top Alcohol Funny Car ranks as a driver in 1986 and in 1994 moved into the position of tuner as he handed the driving reins to his son. Doug had been working on the race car since he was 14 years old and licensed at 18. At the time, Mike thought the race team would soon come to an end, and he wanted to reward his son’ s hard work by giving him a year behind the wheel while it was still possible.
A year turned into a lifetime and a legacy, and Doug’ s path became a template for how things work in the Gordon family.
Maddi and Macie had pitched in on their dad’ s car here and there as little girls, just doing simple tasks like wiping it down or draining tanks, but when COVID-19 hit in 2020, they moved into more serious roles. The schools were shut down and education became portable, so Doug and Christina brought their girls, then 15 and 16, into the fold as official members of the crew. Maddi and Macie learned to take the engine apart down to the pistons, then reassemble it as race-ready. Macie took on the top of the engine, and Maddi, the older of the two, manned the bottom end. While her sister was removing valve covers and attending to spark plugs and valve lash, Maddi was on the ground beneath the hot engine, taking down the rod and main caps and checking and replacing bearings before getting everything back into place.
It was a dirty job, but one she relished. In fact, getting down to brass tacks was part of the dream for the third-generation racer, who would eventually become the clutch specialist on the family’ s Beta Motorcycles / Morro Bay Cabinets alcohol car.
“ I’ ve always really wanted to do this,” Maddi said in the Drag Illustrated 30 Under 30 issue in 2021, three years before she made her driving debut in the family Funny Car.“ I just remember watching Dad taking apart the motor and thinking,‘ I wish I could do that.’”
The technical aspect of her education ran in tandem with learning how to compete from the driver’ s seat. She started in Jr. Dragster, then moved on to Jr. Comp and Super Comp. In 2023, Maddi completed her licensing runs on schedule in order to take over driving responsibilities from her father and become the first third-generation Top Alcohol Funny Car driver in NHRA history. Her license was signed by Robert Hight and, fortuitously, Capps.
It was something she’ d wanted her whole life. At the age of 12, Maddi had written in a time capsule at school:“ I hope when I’ m older, my biggest dream will come true: driving Dad’ s alcohol Funny Car.”
Even so, for a long time she didn’ t fully believe it was in the cards for her. No promises had been made, but discussions were had. When her dad and grandfather sat her down in 2022 and asked if it was something she was serious about, that conversation included sobering points to the
Capps’ longtime primary sponsor, NAPA Auto Parts, and new partner Monster Energy round out the list of Gordon’ s rookie season supporters along with Carlyle Tools.
90 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated. com Issue 202