Drag Illustrated Issue 151, December 2019 | Page 109

30 UNDER 30 / 2019
MATTHEW
LUNSFORD
TRICIA MUSI
■ IT TOOK SOME TIME for Tricia Musi to find her way, but now
that she’s in an ideal situation driving her father’s old car, the results are
impossible to miss.
Musi has carved out her own identity in the standout racing family,
winning the NMCA Nitrous Pro Street championship in 2019 on the
strength of three victories in four final-round appearances. That it’s all
come in her father Pat’s storied ’99 Trans Am has made it even sweeter.
“I love drag racing and I love everything about it. It’s the only thing I
know,” Musi says. “I try to push myself really, really hard. It feels great. To
win the championship this year in my dad’s old car that he won champi-
onships in, it’s seriously a dream come true. I just want to keep going up.”
She seems on an impressive ascent, also earning a spot on the 30
Under 30 list for 2019. The 27-year-old Musi has always had potential,
it was just a matter of finding her footing.
She raced Top Sportsman in 2015, but a sponsor pulled out midway
through the season, leaving her scrambling. It took some time to bounce
back, but it’s fitting how things work out sometimes.
Her fiancé, racer and team owner Mike Bankston, tracked down her
father’s old car and Tricia found her calling. She was third in 2018 in
NMCA Nitrous Pro Street, following it up with the championship this
season and class-record run of 4.35 seconds, fulfilling a dream she knew
all along was possible.
“I knew had the potential,” Musi says. “I lost my way a little bit and
lost my confidence a little bit. But getting back in my dad’s old car, my
whole world changed. I definitely found my confidence and found my
way. It’s been awesome.”
The best, Musi insists, is yet to come. She envisions joining her sister,
Lizzy, in the Pro Nitrous ranks, but she’s in no hurry to get there. She
plans to take the process step-by-step, returning to run in NMCA in
2020 with a possible foray into the No-Prep world as well.
The driving talent has always been obvious, and Musi remains deter-
mined to put it all together in her own unique fashion.
“I was always in my dad’s or my sister’s shadow and it was real hard
for me to get out of that shadow,” Musi says. “I wanted to go and prove
myself to everybody so they could see what I was made of. I definitely
want more.” – J O S H H AC H DI
AT DI DI
■ MATT LUNSFORD says he doesn’t really know how he got in-
volved in drag racing. Unlike most of his competitors, his family wasn’t
involved in racing and he didn’t grow up racing.
Originally from Colorado, he and his dad attended the NHRA event
at Bandimere Speedway when he was 13, and racing has been in his
blood since. After he got bit by the “racing bug,” he started searching to
see what type of car he could get for his first car. He saved his money
and told his parents he wanted a Mustang. His dad didn’t want his first
car to be a Mustang, but his mom talked him into it with the old saying
“you always remember your first car.”
He got a 1996 Mustang before he was old enough to drive. That car
was supposed to take him through high school and college. When he
turned 16, he started taking it to Bandimere Speedway on Wednesday
nights and he was hooked. He eventually started bracket racing, added
some nitrous, and by the time he graduated high school, it was strictly
a race car and never driven on the street.
Lunsford taught himself to weld and started NeverLift Race Cars
before he was 17. He would build custom race cages for cars running as
fast as 6.50s in a quarter mile. At 18, he qualified for Pinks All Out in
the top 16, the youngest ever at that time.
His desire to go fast led to a mechanical engineering degree, which
landed him a job with Holley Performance Products, and he now works
as a systems engineer in their EFI group. He says things that he’s learned
at Holley has made him a better racer, but more importantly, he’s able
to help fellow racers.
The love for speed and win lights isn’t what keeps Lunsford attracted
to drag racing. He says for him, it’s all about the people. He really loves
the ability to help his fellow racers, and he loves the pursuit of making
a car go faster and seeing the racing industry evolve.
“I get to see a lot of data, and just by seeing what one person is doing, I
can come to a better conclusion on what someone else is doing,” Lunsford
says. “I love being able to help racers.”
He now races the same 1996 Mustang he bought at age 15 throughout
the Midwest, in X275 classes, mostly in states near his home in Bowling
Green, Kentucky. – A L LYS O N J O H N S O
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December 2019
DragIllustrated.com
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