Drag Illustrated Issue 139, December 2018 | Page 86

30 UNDER 30 · 2018
CORY
GULITTI
■ CORY GULITTI is young enough that he was
still able to race his Jr. Dragster this year on
a handful of occasions. But the 17-year-old
Texas native has also already proven to be
a major force in the high-dollar world of
bracket racing.
Gulitti was a rising star to be reckoned
with in 2018, winning $30,000 one week-
end at Dragway 42, winning a brand-new
dragster at the Fall Fling the next weekend
and also finishing as the runner-up at the
Million Dollar Drag Race. His performance
at the Million was made more impressive
by the fact that he raced to the final in his
father’s car after barrel-rolling his own
dragster in the sixth round.
■ SINCE MAKING his NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle
debut at the venerable Gatornationals in 2011,
Hector Arana Jr. has made a habit of turning
heads. The second-generation rider, who now
pilots the Lucas Oil Racing TV EBR, finished
second in the championship chase his first year.
For his efforts, Arana earned rookie of the year
honors, officially titled the Auto Club Road to
the Future Award, and established himself as a
competitor to never, ever take lightly.
Seven years later, Arana drove that point home
again as he became the first rider to break the
200-mph barrier at an NHRA national event.
Arana rocketed to 200.23 mph in 6.937 seconds
during the second round of qualifying at the 2018
Gatornationals in Gainesville, Florida.
“That 200-mph mark is something my father
and our team have been working for since I
went [199.88 mph] in Charlotte in 2015,” says
the 29-year-old graduate of Purdue University.
The big speed at the Charlotte Four-Wide race
held the national record for three years; although
riders Eddie Krawiec and Matt Smith were able to
match it, no one could eclipse the massive target.
Krawiec was the first to 199 with a 199.26-mph
pass in Gainesville in 2011 – the same event where
Arana made his debut in the class – but under
different rules that allowed a four-valve engine
configuration.
“We’ve always had good speed, and we were
right there, but when we went 199.88, we knew
for sure we could go 200,” says Arana. “We kept
trying, but then we had motor issues, and anytime
there was a race with good air we would cringe.
We didn’t feel like we were ready.”
The race to break the barrier had intensified so
much that DENSO stepped up and created the
86 | D r a g
I l l u s t r a t e d | DragIllustrated.com
DENSO Spark Plugs 200-mph Club to honor the
first four riders to accomplish the feat. The first
racer to break 200 would be awarded $10,000,
and every rider on the roster wanted that cash.
More than that, they wanted bragging rights.
The Arana team had taken delivery of brand-
new EBR motorcycles just before the Gatorna-
tionals this year, and Arana’s bike didn’t even
have the front faring or the pipes until Friday
of the event.
“We weren’t even sure we could make the first
qualifying run,” remembers Arana. “We did, but
it wasn’t a very good pass. The second pass, it
drifted, and I had to correct – but that run we
went 200. It came out of nowhere, and I never
would have guessed that would be the run. I came
around the corner and saw my dad jumping up
and down and people pointing and the sign, and I
thought, ‘no way.’ I can’t even describe the feeling.
I was just in disbelief.
“It’s an achievement that my dad has worked
so hard for, and he wanted this so bad. To be the
first ones to do it at a national event was great.”
Arana has been a fierce competitor and built
quite an impressive list of accomplishments. His
first win was at the prestigious U.S. Nationals in
Indianapolis, he’s won both the season-opener
and the NHRA Finals, scored a trophy in the
trickiest conditions on the tour at the Denver
Mile-High Nationals, and locked into three con-
secutive event wins. What’s next?
“I’ve had a career full of highlights,” Arana re-
alizes. “The only thing left for me is the cham-
pionship. I feel like it’s around the corner, and I
won’t give up until I get it. I’m not done after that,
though. Once I get one, I want two. I want to go
down as one of the greatest.” – K E L LY WA DI
D E DI DI
“I got in a big car on my 16th birthday
and that’s where my heart is,” Gulitti says.
“I’ve been around it my whole life and it’s
all I’ve ever known. You see what goes on
and what goes into it, the competition level
is like no other.”
It also takes a special talent to come
through in crunch time with a big paycheck
on the line. Gulitti has already shown to have
the mettle to succeed when the spotlight is
the biggest, thanks in big part to guidance
from his family, including his grandfather,
George, his father, Chris, and his uncle, Bob.
“I try to go up there and treat it like I’m
making a time trial,” Gulitti reveals of his
thought process. “That’s what helps me.
Starting young, I feel like I have everything
to gain and nothing to lose. I personally do
stay more clam when I’m under pressure.”
As for his run of success in 2018, Gulitti
hopes it’s just the start of a long and pros-
perous career. But he’s also not taking any
of it for granted and has enjoyed every bit
of it thus far.
“It’s been a wild year, that’s for sure,” Gulitti
says. “This is what I love to do.”
– J O S H H AC H DI
AT DI
DI
DI DI DI DI DI DI DI DI
DI DI DI DI DI DI
Issue 139
SIMMONS
HECTOR ARANA JR.