The saying goes that long-distance relationships usually don't work out.
 
But Del Worsham and his Al-Anabi / Toyota Dragster seem to be bonding with each other quite nicely, thank you.
 
The 7,000-horsepower machine sits parked in a pristine but lonely garage by the railroad tracks in Brownsburg, Ind., almost every night, while Worsham enjoys warm family moments about 1800 miles away with wife Connie and nine-year-old twin daughters Katelyn and Madelyn in Chino Hills, Calif.
 
Following his Top Fuel victory March 13 at the Tire Kingdom Gatornationals, Worsham visited the Alan Johnson-managed Al-Anabi Racing shop in Indianapolis' Westside suburbs to make sure he and the dragster become even more comfortable with one another.

The saying goes that long-distance relationships usually don't work out.
 
But Del Worsham and his Al-Anabi / Toyota Dragster seem to be bonding with each other quite nicely, thank you.
 
The 7,000-horsepower machine sits parked in a pristine but lonely garage by the railroad tracks in Brownsburg, Ind., almost every night, while Worsham enjoys warm family moments about 1800 miles away with wife Connie and nine-year-old twin daughters Katelyn and Madelyn in Chino Hills, Calif.
 
Following his Top Fuel victory March 13 at the Tire Kingdom Gatornationals, Worsham visited the Alan Johnson-managed Al-Anabi Racing shop in Indianapolis' Westside suburbs to make sure he and the dragster become even more comfortable with one another.
 
He never really needed to make the cross-country flight much when he drove the Funny Car for this same team. After all, he could drive a Funny Car with his eyes closed almost, having been around them exclusively since 1996.
 
Worsham drove a Top Fuel dragster on a limited basis from 1993 through 1995, sharing time with a Funny Car during those campaigns. But he left the dragster for the flopper back in 1996 and returned only when current boss, Qatar's Sheik Khalid Al Thani, decided teammate and reigning champion Larry Dixon needed some data-sharing advantage.
 
Worsham dusted off his dragster-driving skills and won the second race back in a rail. And he spoke with reporters Wednesday in an NHRA teleconference from the Brownsburg shop.
 
"When we were racing Funny Car, I would not have been here," he said. "The Funny Car I had down to such a science as far as being fit in the car and being comfortable and not worrying about where things were. In this dragster, I have not been 100-percent comfortable or close to the level I was in a Funny Car. After the first two races, I could kind of tell some of the things I didn't like or we could do to make myself more comfortable.
 
"So I actually came here yesterday," Worsham said, "and we're redoing a couple of things, a couple of controls in the cockpit right now with Brad Hadman, who builds our chassis. He is here right now and we are moving these things around.
 
"I've already made one extra trip that I normally wouldn't have made," he said. "But you know, I'll do whatever it takes."
 
He did what it took to capture the trophy in Gainesville, for the team's first triumph of 2011, assuming the points lead heading to the SummitRacing.com Nationals April 1-3 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He insisted, though, that the car's track record and Johnson's selection of Al-Anabi Racing employee Brian Husen as crew chief was key to "doing what it takes."
 
Worsham said he had no clue he could win his first NHRA Top Fuel race so quickly, although he had won an IHRA race at Norwalk, Ohio (the 1995 Ethanol Performs! World Nationals, beating Doug Herbert in the final round).
 
"The one thing I did know is that I was going to be driving a very good race car," Worsham said of the dragster in which Larry Dixon was unbeaten in 12 final rounds on the way to his third championship. "The entire Al-Anabi team and especially Alan Johnson and hiring Brian to take over the lead of this new Top Fuel team -- nothing but good things could really come out of it. And for it to happen this fast, I didn't expect it to happen this fast, but I knew it was going to be a great team."
 
A major element in his winning equation has been Dixon.
 
"He's kind of like a go-to guy for any questions I have," Worsham said, revealing he didn't pepper Dixon with questions right away.
 
"I didn't know what to expect; so I really didn't ask a whole lot of questions until after I drove the car and I just got to kind of feel for myself and see what it does and what I need," he said. "And any time I have a question, whether it's steering related or parachute related or whatever it is, I go to Larry and he's right there," Worsham said, marveling at "the amount of Top Fuel experience he has, compared to me."
 
Data sharing with the dragster is a developing concept for Worsham right now.
 
"We're just getting started with that. This is our first season as a multi-car team in the same class," Worsham said. "I have often asked myself, 'What can I or what can this team bring to the Al-Anabi Top Fuel team?' With Larry Dixon winning 12 races in the championship last season, you would think not a whole lot."
 
He proved himself wrong at Gainesville.
 
"Hopefully, as competition gets stiffer and there are more of these teams out there, hopefully just the additional information will also help Larry's team, along with ours, so that we can compete for a championship," he said.
 
For now, the courtship of his Al-Anabi Dragster promises to be one to watch.

 

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