BROWNSBURG, Ind. – Team owner and NHRA Funny Car driver Cruz Pedregon has announced that experienced tuner John Collins has joined Cruz Pedregon Racing as crew chief on the Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger Nitro Funny Car.
Collins most recently led the Make-A-Wish Nitro Funny Car team and driver Tommy Johnson Jr. to a second-place points finish in the NHRA Funny Car standings. Collins will be joined at Cruz Pedregon Racing by the entire crew that powered Johnson to four final rounds and three wins in 2020.
“I am pretty excited to come over here to Cruz Pedregon Racing and bring a group of guys who have done a phenomenal job throughout the years,” said Collins. “I think we can come in, do a few things, build our program and have a successful team.”
“To say that I’m thrilled about John Collins and his entire crew coming on board with our Snap-on Dodge would be the understatement of the year,” said Pedregon, a two-time NHRA Funny Car champion. “Their record speaks for itself and I’m going do all I can as an owner and driver to provide them with every tool necessary to win.”
Collins’ first full-time job on a Nitro team came in 2000 when he worked on Joe Gibbs Racing’s Top Fuel dragster driven by Cory McClenathan. Collins joined Don Prudhomme Racing the following year with Johnson on the team’s Skoal Funny Car.
In 2003, he moved over to Prudhomme’s Top Fuel dragster driven by Larry Dixon and the team won the NHRA Top Fuel championship that year. Collins later worked with Rahn Tobler for five seasons, including two as the assistant crew chief on the NAPA Funny Car team, before taking over the crew chief duties on the Make-A-Wish Funny Car team in 2014.
“Our plans and goals are the same as they are with every new year and that’s to compete for wins and let the chips fall where they may after that,” Pedregon said. “With the new additions, I feel we have all the pieces in place to attain those goals.”