At times during his NHRA Pro Stock career, Warren Johnson has taken some bad raps on his driving; he really doesn't deserve them. Before he went on his NHRA tear, "W.J." drove Jerome Bradford's '79 Camaro to back-to-back IHRA Winston Pro Stock World Championships in 1979 and 1980. In 1980, he recorded the quickest match-race elapsed time in history with a 7.82 at Budds Creek, Maryland. The IHRA circuit included some rough tracks and some tough competition, i.e., Rickie Smith, Roy Hill, Ronnie Sox, Harold Denton, Alfred Williams, John Brumley, and two-time IHRA Pro Stock boss Lee Edwards. All in all, Johnson won 13 IHRA national event titles and took 11 runner-ups.

Johnson also has the distinction of running AHRA's first seven-second Pro Stock time while winning the 1981 AHRA Gateway Nationals in St. Louis. He recorded a 7.93 for this accolade.

8. BILL "GRUMPY" JENKINS

See our pictorial in the Special Section, "25 Years of Being Grumpy."

9. JOE AMATO

NHRA's winningest Top Fuel driver won four IHRA national events in six final rounds. He was that organization's first Top Fuel driver over 270-mph and finished No. 2 in their Top Fuel top 10 standings. There were only two years in his 17-year fuel career that Amato did not win at least one national event. The first was his rookie season in 1983, where the only race he won was an eight-car Top Fuel title at the Budweiser/Super Stock Nationals at Maple Grove. In 1995, Amato remarkably did not make a final round. Prior to his Top Fuel years, Amato was a winner in Alcohol Funny Car and dragster. In 1984, Amato did run a Funny Car at one IHRA event and ran in the fives at 252.80 mph.

Photo by Dave Kommel

10. DALE ARMSTRONG

To file Armstrong's considerable racing talents under the heading of driver is to shortchange this guy. If he did nothing else, his introduction of the lock-up clutch to drag racing would guarantee him a place in the haul of fame. Mechanically he is one of the top half-dozen drag racers in history. Leaving aside his NHRA accomplishments, Armstrong really tore it up in IHRA competition. In 1976, IHRA put together a Pro Comp class for Alcohol Dragsters and Funny Cars, and Armstrong won seven of the nine national events and the IHRA World Championship. In 1977, he won four of seven IHRA Pro Comp titles and again netted the association's World Championship. All in all, the Californian (by way of Canada) put together 14 IHRA national event wins.

11. MICKEY THOMPSON

Mickey Thompson? Mickey Thompson?! How much ether was inhaled when these votes were made? Hate to say it, gang, but as great drag racing DRIVERS goes, M/T wasn't. Great innovator? Yes. Great mechanic? Yes. Great Salt Flats racer? Yes. Great businessman and organizer (first guy to run Lions Drag Strip)? Sure. But not a great driver. True, Mickey was the first driver to go over 150-mph in a single-engine dragster when on Sept. 4, 1955, he went 151.26-mph in Ray Brown's 300-cid Chrysler-powered dragster at San Fernando Raceway. He also was a Top Gas runner-up at the 1964 NHRA Winternationals to Danny Ongais in the Dragmaster car. That was it. He did well as a Funny Car owner with his drivers (Danny Ongais, Dale Pulde, and Bob Pickett) scoring wins in NHRA and AHRA competition from 1969 through 1978.

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