Drag Illustrated Issue 151, December 2019 | Page 106

30 UNDER 30 / 2019
JORDAN
VANDERGRIFF
■ HE ONLY RACED a partial season in 2019,
but 24-year-old Jordan Vandergriff has already
made a name for himself in NHRA’s Mello Yello
Drag Racing Series. The Top Fuel rookie dipped
his toes into drag racing three years ago when he
licensed in Super Comp at Frank Hawley’s Drag
Racing School. Before then, his parents had kept
him at a distance from the ultra-fast sport and
encouraged a concentration in stick-and-ball
sports and school.
“But I was always a Top Fuel dragster guy,” says
Vandergriff, who grew up watching his uncle,
Top Fuel driver and team owner Bob Vander-
griff, compete. “I’m still in school, but now I’ve
moved to Indiana to work full-time at BVR [Bob
Vandergriff Racing]. That way, I’m available for
anything that needs to be done.”
The most important thing on the task list this
year has been truly settling into his Top Fuel car,
and he hasn’t seemed to have much trouble doing
that. Under the tutelage of his uncle, Vandergriff
raced to the semifinals in his Phoenix debut and
reached the final round in Dallas. By year’s end, he
will have only raced 11 events
in the category yet already has
a reputation as a guy you don’t
want to meet first round.
“My uncle has taught me
everything I know,” he says.
“I didn’t know anything about
even working on the car, let
alone driving it, and he’s helped
me big time but also let me
learn. I’ll make a run, then he’ll
go over everything with me and
tell me what to fix. I think that’s
the best way to learn how to
drive one of these things, by
finding out for yourself.”
To date, and rightfully so, the younger Vander-
griff holds the final at Texas Motorplex – where
his uncle scored his own first Top Fuel win – as
the high point of his young career.
“As much as it hurt to lose that one, getting
there was amazing,” Vandergriff admits. “To be the
last two cars and have everybody watching you, it
was really cool. But hopefully the win is coming.
“I think it helped me earn a 30 Under 30 spot,
and that means a lot to me,” he continues. “This
list embodies the future of our sport, so it’s really
special. I’m looking forward to helping make this
sport bigger and better.”
His vision is clearly set on the future, but
the ambitious young driver isn’t losing sight of
the moment.
“When I think of drag racing, I think of Top
Fuel,” says Vandergriff, punctuating the statement
with his characteristic smile. “It’s always been a
dream of mine, and now I’m living it.”
– J O S H H AC H DI
AT DI
DI
DI DI DI DI
DI DI DI
106 | D r a g
I l l u s t r a t e d | DragIllustrated.com
Issue 151