PHOTOS : GARY ROWE
TOP DRAGSTER
MATT COOKE
I n
1998 , a young man from the mountains of North Carolina mopped the floor with IHRA Top Dragster competition , claiming his first ever world championship . Now , just under two decades later , Matt Cooke has done it again .
Pulled in by the two-day race format , Cooke gave the PDRA a try in the fall of 2015 . It turned out well for him , his wife , Kelly , and his car owner , Andy Burnet . Cooke won Dragstock and made plans to chase the tour in 2017 . The year started out with a blip , but things quickly took a turn for the better . Out of the seven events contested this season , Cooke was in five finals en route to becoming the 2017 PDRA Top Dragster world champion .
“ I ’ ve never left the house , bought seven tech cards and been in five finals in my life ,” Cooke says . “ I ’ m lucky enough to drive Andy ’ s stuff . Andy supplies Kelly and I with the best of the best , tells me to pull the motor out and freshen it regularly .
Every single component on that car has a spare in the trailer . When somebody sends you to the races like that it makes you race better . I don ’ t even know what I ever did to deserve it . I was almost relieved that I did something for him . He goes over and beyond . He ’ s a great car owner .
“ I got Eddie Careccia back this year and he
committed to me for all eight races . He and I don ’ t have to walk on any eggshells around each other . We ’ ve got two decades of good times and bad times and I race way better when he ’ s with me . Whatever it takes , he ’ s capable .”
Most of all , Cooke thanks his wife , Kelly , who has been his biggest supporter throughout his career .
“ It ’ s been a blast ,” Cooke says of his first season with the PDRA . “ The races are relatively close to the house . The payout is good . I like the four-round race and I like to race fast . I want to race other people getting after it .
“ Everybody wants to be a part of something that ’ s winning in life . Whatever your bag is in life , you want to succeed at it . Eddie , Andy , Kelly and I were tough to beat this year . Stars just aligned . I realize those years are few and far between . I ’ m just happy it happened .”
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