Flying somewhat under the radar of the Australian motorsport rumour mill, multi-championship winning drag racer Allen Puglia has finally unveiled his new Ford Mustang, direct from the USA.
Set to debut at Queensland’s Willowbank Raceway at the Winternationals in June, the Mustang has been set up for the hotly contested ANDRA Pro Series Pro Stock category after being campaigned for just one season by US drag racing stalwart, John Nobile.
“This is a dream come true for my wife and I. It’s been decades of hard work and to finally have a dream car like this in the workshop feels amazing. I can’t imagine how we’ll feel when we finally get to race it in June!” said Puglia. “But right now it’s in at Bowra Signs for the sign writing and from there we’ll load up and head east.”
Boasting a 6.59 personal best in NHRA trim, the Mustang has only had minor modifications to accommodate the 400 cubic inch engine used in Australian competition were completed stateside by the car’s original builders, RJ Racecars in Galesburg, Illinois.
Puglia also had good news for fans of his dominant Ford Probe that drove him to his third consecutive “Driver of the Year” title and third Super Comp Track Championship last season at Perth Motorplex.
“We won’t be retiring the Probe. It has something like a 91% win rate, so like they say, ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, so we’ll continue to run the Probe at the Perth Motorplex for the Super Comp Championship while the Mustang will do all the national Pro Stock rounds, which are mostly on the east coast,” Puglia said, hinting that the Mustang may make an appearance on her home turf at some stage in the coming season.
“This is a big step for us, not just financially but with the infrastructure that goes with it, and you don’t take big steps like this unless you have great people to go on the journey with you, so purchasing this car was a massive vote of confidence in our racing partners, Nuford, Big Rock Toyota, AHG and Stone Civil, as well as my extremely faithful crew who have worked some very long hours to get the car ready. They’re just the best!”
