Don Schumacher
Date of Birth: 11-04-44
Residence: Park Ridge, Ill.
Hometown: Park Ridge, Ill.
Marital Status: Wife, Sarah
Children: Son, Tony; Daughters, Tara, Samantha and Megan
Team: Don Schumacher Racing
Drivers: Gary Scelzi, Ron Capps, Jack Beckman, Jerry Toliver, Tony Schumacher, Cory McClenathan
Series: NHRA POWERade Funny Car and Top Fuel Drag Racing Series
Sponsors: Mopar®, Oakley, Gates Belts and Hoses, Valvoline, Rockstar Energy Drink, Matco Tools
Web Sites: www.shoeracing.com, www.mopar.com, www.moparspeed.com
As an Owner
- Added another NHRA POWERade Top Fuel title in 2007, his fifth overall and fourth straight, as Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) driver Tony Schumacher utilized HEMI® power to claim the Top Fuel title in his U.S. Army Dragster.
- Tony Schumacher earned six event wins for DSR in 2007.
- In 2007 NHRA POWERade Funny Car competition, DSR and Team Mopar drivers Gary Scelzi, Ron Capps and Jack Beckman combined for nine wins in only 23 events. Beckman brought home the win in sponsor Mopar's marquee event, the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals.
- Veteran DSR drivers Scelzi and Capps were among only four Funny Car drivers to qualify for the NHRA Countdown to 1 two-race title playoff. Scelzi finished third in the final 2007 standings, with Capps fourth and Beckman fifth.
- Beckman, Scelzi and Capps were three of only eight drivers to advance to the NHRA Countdown to 4 first-round playoff.
- DSR NHRA Pro Stock driver Richie Stevens Jr. took ninth in the final 2007 Pro Stock standings.
- Mopar® HEMI-powered DSR drivers racked up 15 wins in 2007 NHRA POWERade Funny Car and Top Fuel Drag Racing Series competition.
- Captured the Top Fuel title in come-from-behind fashion in 2006, with Tony Schumacher posting a world-record run at the NHRA Finals in Pomona, giving DSR the event win and the Top Fuel championship.
- DSR driver Capps finished third in the 2006 NHRA Funny Car points race after leading the championship battle for most of the season. Capps captured five wins in 2006, tops on the circuit, with three runner-up finishes.
- Combined, DSR NHRA Funny Car drivers amassed eight wins during the 2006 season, including Scelzi's win at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals.
- DSR Funny Car driver Beckman shined in limited 2006 competition, scoring one win, one runner-up finish, one No. 1 qualifier award, and the fastest and quickest runs in NHRA Funny Car history, in only five events.
- DSR joined forces with J&J Racing's Allen and Roy Johnson to tune Stevens Jr.'s Team Mopar/Valspar Dodge Stratus R/T in the second half of the 2006 NHRA Pro Stock season. The partnership led to two late season wins for Stevens Jr., at Dallas and at Las Vegas.
- Driver Stevens Jr., posted a top ten 2006 finish for DSR and Team Mopar in the final NHRA Pro Stock points standings.
- Schumacher also fielded Shaun Carlson and Erica Enders in 2006 Pro Stock competition.
- Don Schumacher Racing and Team Mopar drivers accumulated 17 wins in 2006 NHRA POWERade Funny Car, Pro Stock and Top Fuel Drag Racing Series competition.
- Took home titles in the NHRA POWERade Funny Car (Scelzi) and Top Fuel (Tony Schumacher) Series in 2005, the first time an owner has earned titles in both Top Fuel and Funny Car in the same season.
- Gained first Funny Car title for DSR and third Top Fuel title in 2005.
- Scored a 1-2 punch in the 2005 NHRA POWERade Funny Car Series, with driver Capps posting a runner-up showing to teammate Scelzi's title effort, finishing only eight points back.
- DSR Funny Car drivers combined for eight 2005 wins, with Scelzi (Bristol, Joliet 1, Sonoma) and Capps (St. Louis, Joliet 2, Las Vegas 2) notching three apiece, and Whit Bazemore (Gainesville, Las Vegas) adding another two.
- Scelzi (6), Capps (1) and Bazemore (1) racked up eight No. 1 qualifiers for DSR in 2005.
- Saw his driver Tony Schumacher, in the HEMI-powered U.S. Army Top Fuel dragster, post one of the most dominant seasons in NHRA history in 2005, setting Top Fuel records for most poles (11), consecutive wins (5), consecutive finals appearances (7), and consecutive round wins (20).
- In 2005, DSR Top Fuel driver Melanie Troxel surpassed the legendary Shirley Muldowney as the fastest female NHRA driver in history with a 330.31 mph pass to become the first woman to reach 330 mph in NHRA. Troxel also surpassed Rhonda Hartman-Smith as the quickest female in NHRA history with a 4.458-second elapsed time.
- Saw Troxel finish 14th in the 2005 Top Fuel standings, with three quarterfinals, one semifinal and one finals appearance (a runner-up at Pomona 2 against teammate Tony Schumacher). Troxel qualified in the top half of the field five times.
- Entered the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock Series in 2005, with driver Jeg Coughlin Jr., earning Don Schumacher Racing's first Pro Stock win in a car tuned by ten-time Pro Stock champ Bob Glidden. DSR driver Stevens Jr. advanced to the final round at the prestigious U.S. Nationals, one of two finals appearances by Stevens, who also scored one pole and an eighth-place finish in the final Pro Stock points standings.
- Don Schumacher Racing drivers piled up a stellar 18 wins with Mopar power during 2005 competition in the NHRA POWERade Funny Car, Pro Stock and Top Fuel Drag Racing Series.
- Has seen Scelzi set 19 top speeds in Funny Car for DSR.
- Watched Scelzi become the first driver to break the 330-mph barrier by establishing a 330.15 mph pass at Route 66 Raceway in 2004 while driving for DSR.
- In 2003, DSR driver Bazemore ended up just 140 points away from the championship, with three victories and three No. 1 qualifying efforts.
- Has owned Dodge Funny Cars since 2002.
- Has been victorious at the U.S. Nationals as a Funny Car driver (1970), Top Fuel owner with driver Tony Schumacher (2000), and a Funny Car owner with Bazemore (2001).
- Returned to NHRA professional competition as a team owner in September of 1998. In his first full season as an owner, Schumacher captured the 1999 NHRA Top Fuel series championship with driver Tony Schumacher.
- Schumacher Electric is the world's foremost manufacturer of battery chargers and numerous additional product lines. The company provides jobs for more than 900 employees in four manufacturing facilities across the United States.
- Retired from drag racing in 1974 to devote energy to his family business, Schumacher Electric Corporation, headquartered in Mount Prospect, Ill.
- His safety innovations, such as roof-mounted escape hatches, reduced the threat of fire-related injuries at a time when many Funny Car drivers suffered serious burns.
- As a car owner in the 1970s, Schumacher's engine, clutch and aerodynamic advancements made his Funny Cars the leading performers in the country.
As a Driver
- Schumacher's Plymouth Funny Cars were typically listed in the record books with runs like 6.18 seconds at 241.95 mph (1974).
- Won the 1972 Coca-Cola Cavalcade of Stars Championship, the 1973 AHRA World Championship, five NHRA national event titles and nine IHRA event titles.
- Remembered for his unequaled record in match races across the country.
- Captured the 1970 U.S. Nationals Funny Car championship in a '70 Plymouth Barracuda called "Stardust," with a winning pass of 7.000 seconds at 214.79 mph.
- Drove Mopar Funny Cars from 1965 through 1973.
