NHRA/National Dragster
To say it was an unusual decade in the NHRA Top Fuel class might just be the understatement of the decade.
Consider the winningest driver in the class, Tony Schumacher, missed the entire 2019 season because he was unable to secure a sponsor. Then there was the curious case of three-time champion Larry Dixon, who was all but run out of the sport because of an unapproved sticker on a car.
Oh yeah, then there were anger issues that struck at least two drivers on the decade's top 10 list: Steve Torrence snapped at the season finale in Pomona this season, and Spencer Massey went on an over-the-top, alcohol-fueled tirade at the 2012 NHRA Awards Banquet of all places
As we close out the decade, let's take opinion out of the equation and rank the decade's best based squarely on results. And yes, drivers are rewarded for 10 years of excellence—and dinged for leaving early (or starting their Funny Car run a little later in the decade or missing seasons altogether).
For this numbers-driven Autoweek Driver of the Decade competition, drivers earned 14 points for each championship, nine points for finishing second in the points, eight points for third, seven points for fourth, all the way down to one point for 10th place.
Here's our breakdown of the decade's top 10 in Top Fuel:
Antron Brown covers the field here at the top spot, thanks to championships in 2012, 2015 and 2016. He also finished runner-up in 2013 and finished third once, fourth twice, sixth once, seventh once and ninth once.
Brown, winner of the 2011 U.S. Nationals, was one of just two drivers (Doug Kalitta was the other) to finish in the top 10 in the final season standings each year of the decade. He enters the 2020s on a streak of 12 consecutive years qualifying for the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.
At 43, Brown has plenty of time to add to his already impressive 66 NHRA wins (50 in Top Fuel, 16 in Pro Stock Motorcycle).
Tony Schumacher entered the decade on a roll for the ages, winning six Top Fuel championships in a row from 2004 through 2009.
The 2010s weren't quite as kind to "The Sarge" as he managed just one championship (2014) and ended the decade on the sidelines without sponsorship after losing his U.S. Army sponsorship following the 2018 season, in which he finished second in the championship.
For the decade, Schumacher was runner-up in the championship four times. He also finished fifth once, seventh once and eighth twice. He also won the U.S. Nationals in both 2012 and 2016.
Schumacher, who turned 50 on Christmas Day, is determined to return in 2020 and add to his record 84 career victories in the class.
Doug Kalitta did not win a championship in the 2010s, but he did reach a career milestone with a win at the 2019 U.S. Nationals in his 22nd try.
The win at Indianapolis was part of a 2019 season that saw him finish second in the championship, just three points back of winner Steve Torrence.
Kalitta also finished runner-up in 2016. He finished third twice in the decade, fifth twice, six twice and eighth twice to join Antron Brown as the only two drivers in the top 10 every season.
Kalitta has 47 career wins and has qualified for the Countdown 12 consecutive seasons.
Steve Torrence ended the decade on some kind of roll, winning back-to-back championships in 2018 and 2019.
Torrence, the 2017 U.S. Nationals winner, finished in the top 10 in nine seasons, only missing the cut in 2011. He was runner-up in 2017, finished third once, sixth once, eighth twice, ninth once and 10th once.
His 2019 season ended with a championship—plus a $25,000 fine and a ticket to anger management classes after a race-day incident during the finals at Pomona.
Torrence has 33 career victories in the Top Fuel class.
Shawn Langdon had a dream season in 2013, winning both the Top Fuel championship and the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis.
The rest of his decade included a pair of fourth place finishes in the standings, two fifths, a sixth, a seventh and a ninth.
Langdon likely would have been further up this list, but he spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons in the Funny Car class. He's proved to be a quick learner there as well, qualifying for the Countdown to the Championship each year.
Langdon has 14 career wins in Top Fuel and one in Funny Car.
Brittany Force, the youngest and last racing daughter of NHRA Funny Car legend John Force, gave the boss (and her dad) a Top Fuel championship in 2017.
She is the second woman (Shirley Muldowney is the other) to win the championship in the Top Fuel class.
Brittany, the 2013 NHRA Rookie of the Year, finished third in the championship in 2019. She also had season finishes of fifth, sixth, seventh and 10th in the decade.
Brittany has 10 career NHRA Top Fuel victories.
Talented Spencer Massey, a beast on the track, had a troubled off-track decade.
In 2013, Massey apologized for an alcohol-induced tirade at the 2012 NHRA Awards Banquet. In 2015, he was released from his contract at Don Schumacher Racing for "violation of a DSR policy."
When active, Massey was tough to beat. He finished runner-up to Del Worsham for the 2011 championship. He finished third in both 2012 (just 50 points shy of champion Antron Brown) and 2014.
Massey also finished fifth in 2013.
Curious best describes three-time Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon's decade—and his relationship with the NHRA.
Dixon, who opened the decade with the 2010 championship, was suspended indefinitely in 2017 for adorning a two-seat exhibition Top Fuel dragster he was developing with an unapproved NHRA sticker. Dixon even filed a lawsuit on the NHRA over its treatment in the matter.
On the track, Dixon finished fourth in both 2011 and 2015.
He has 62 career Top Fuel wins, second only to Tony Schumacher.
Leah Pritchett burst onto the NHRA Top Fuel scene in 2013 and had a decade that included fourth place season finishes in both 2018 and 2019 to close out the decade.
Pritchett, part of the Don Schumacher Racing stable, is the youngest driver on this list at 31. She has eight career wins in the class.
Clay Millican finished a decade-best third in the 2018 Top Fuel standings. He also finished sixth twice and 10th twice to give him five top 10 finishes in the decade.
Millican has three career wins in the class, including two in 2018.
In 2019, he broke an 11-year-old track record in qualifying at Virginia Motorsports Park. He was also top qualifier at Epping this past season.
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Source: https://www.autoweek.com/racing/nhra/g30324719/autoweeks-top-10-nhra-top-fuel-drivers-of-the-decade/
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