Gary Densham On the Hunt
November 24 - After an excellent showing this season as part of the John Force racing team, veteran NHRA drag racer Gary Densham is looking for a new ride. It is an evolution that Densham knew was coming.
In this age of crew member specialties, Densham is an old-school driver, from when racing was less about money and more about ingenuity. Guys like Densham and Don Garlits built their own cars, tuned their own cars and then drove their own cars.
That background was more than a little help to John Force Racing. In winter of 1974, Densham came to the aid of a young drag racer, stranded in Australia with an erratic car and a makeshift crew. That Funny Car wannabee was Force, who today acknowledges that, were it not for Densham, he "might still be down there. He got us through it and got us back home."
Force never forgot and when Densham faced a sponsorship shortfall in 2001, Force stepped in. Gary has responded with eight wins and four Top 10 finishes since then.
Though in his late 50's, he is far from being over any kind of hill. This year, he won the world's oldest, largest, richest and most prestigious single drag race, the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals, run each Labor Day at Indianapolis Raceway Park. If that's not enough, he also topped the companion Skoal Showdown bonus race, becoming one of only five Funny Car drivers ever to have "doubled-up" at Indy.
Densham and Force will remain fast friends. "I want to be clear that John and I are the best of friends and will be until we croak. Nothing will ever come between us, certainly not racing. He gave me the chance of a lifetime to come over here and run with a team that has the three best hot rods in the world.", said Densham.
With three hundred and twenty races to his credit - more than sixty percent of all Funny Car races ever run - Densham should have little trouble finding a new sponsor. We're all just waiting to see who it will be.
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