NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Last year at the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Jeff Strickland went to the fourth round of eliminations in Stock and also earned a semifinal finish in Right Trailers Top Dragster. In most cases, that would be a perfectly satisfactory result for the first event of the season, but not for Strickland.

When it comes to Gainesville, Strickland has come to expect more. Much more.

Strickland has won two world titles and 24 national events since 1997, so he wins a lot, but nowhere has he been more successful than Gainesville Raceway. The Red Bay, Ala., racer has won multiple national event titles in Belle Rose, Atlanta, Bristol, Norwalk, and Reading, but he’s done the most damage in Gainesville, where he’s won six Gatornationals titles.

“Honestly, I didn’t even know I’d won that many until you just told me,” said Strickland. “I knew I’d done well here, but nothing like that.

“Honestly, I think it has nothing to do with [the track]. At first, Gainesville was a a curse for me but now, I love it. As long as I do my job, I like to think I can win anywhere. The biggest thing Is my supporting cast, from my wife and kids to my dad, and Dave Connolly, Stevie Johns, Victor Cagnazzi, Kevin Wiedman, Jeffrey Barker,  and even Stevie Fast [Jackson]. I have a good circle around me and I can call any of them at any time for advice.”

For all of his Gainesville success, Strickland’s first memories of the Gatornationals were a pair of final round losses in 1998 and 2008 at the hands of two of the sport’s all-time greats, Scotty Richardson and Peter Biondo.

“The first time I ever ran the Gators, I think I gave away the finish line by a couple thousandths to either Randy or Joey Wilkes,” Strickland recalled. “A year or two later, I ran Scotty in Stock final, and it was heads-up. I was .032 on the Tree and outran him by .03 and still lost by a thousandth.”

Strickland’s first taste of Gainesville success was memorable since it was a rare double with victories moments apart in Stock and Top Dragster. It wasn’t easy as Strickland had to defeat past world champ Sal Biondo to claim the Stock title and also downed Casey Spradlin to complete the double victory.

“That was the first [double] for me, and I never saw it coming, ever” Strickland said. “That was as much as surprise to me as anyone else, but I just did my homework, and it worked out in every round. I have no explanation for that but after a few tough years, Gainesville seems to have become a gold mine for us. When I think about things like this [double] I think of what my dad told me when I first started racing. He said, ‘Son, if you can’t win, we can’t afford to keep going’. That has always stuck with me.”

Strickland returned to the winner’s circle in Gainesville in 2021 with another win in Top Dragster and what followed was an epic four year run that included back-to-back-to-back Stock titles in 2022, 2023 and 2024. That makes six wins for Strickland in Gainesville and throw in a pair of runner-up finishes in 1998 and 2008, and it would be hard to argue that Strickland isn’t among the most successful racers ever regardless of category.

“I don’t think about stuff like that. At the end of the day, I’m just a family guy who runs a business and races on weekends,” Strickland said. “I might show up this year and lose in first round with both cars this year, but at the end of the day its’ just a race. I can’t say I try any harder than I would in Bristol or Norwalk, or Indy. It’s like when they ask me which car is my favorite. The answer is whichever one gets the trophy.”

Last season, Strickland didn’t win the Gatornationals, ending his four-year run. Gainesville results aside, Strickland did have what most would consider a successful season since he was able to mount a challenge for world titles in both categories. Strickland finished second to Bubba Linke in Stock and also put together a very strong fifth place finish in the Right Trailers Top Dragster category with his low six second dragster, back by his own Sticker Punk company. Across both categories he had four wins in five final rounds and threw in a handful of semifinals for good measure.

“Last year, I went to Rockingham at the end of the season and had to win in order to take over first place,” said Strickland. “It was my last race for both cars. In Stock, I won the race and then I went red in the semi’s of Top Dragster. I didn’t win either [world] championship but did lock up the division in both classes. My only regret is that I didn’t stick around to run the second race of the double-header. I couldn’t claim points, but I did need it for the JEGS Allstars race. I wasn’t really paying attention to those points and I should have been.”

While Strickland wouldn’t be opposed to another Gainesville win or two, he’s got a couple of other goals for this season including a spot on the JEGS Allstars roster and perhaps another world title to go with the two he earned in 1996. After missing the second Rockingham event, he’s got work to do on the JEGS Allstars front.

“I have no idea how it’s all going to play out,” Strickland said. “What I can tell you is that on March 3, my rig is rolling on to Gainesville and whatever happens after that, happens.  I definitely want to get back to Dallas for the JEGS race. The hurtful part of last year is that I finished second for the third or fourth time in the last six years. That sucks. After winning in 2016, I promised my kids that I’d do everything I could to get back to California for the banquet someday, and that’s my goal.”