Cruz Pedregon, a two-time NHRA Funny Car champion, learned many of life’s lessons from his father, the late “Flaming” Frank Pedregon. Of those lessons, Pedregon admits he’s leaning toward one more than the others these days.

“Dad used to say, ‘Do something, even if it is wrong."

And to hear the storied drag racer talk of the slump he’s mired in presently, he’s determined to pull himself out of a hole he’s dug this season.   

The numbers on the stat sheet don’t lie.

Pedregon is ranked 12th in the Funny Car points, with only two round wins in the first 11 events this season. Those two rounds came at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals where he reached the final round, only to lose to Tim Wilkerson.

"We have a top-five capable car, which can qualify there," explained Pedregon, who regretfully has qualified ninth as his best start this season. "This year we just haven't found our rhythm. We are eleven races into the season and the engine just isn't running the way we want it to. We are optimistic with each run, and have been since Pomona, but I never figured we'd struggle for this long.”

Pedregon isn’t taking the slow start lightly and admits the whole situation is affecting his personal health.  

"It's about the kill me when I am searching for answers and cannot find them,” Pedregon admitted. “It's affecting my sleep. I've always been the kind of person who was results oriented. Honestly, I struggle with struggling. I'm doing everything I can.

This time last season Pedregon was seventh in points, with nine round wins to his credit. In 2014, he was eighth but had already been to the finals.

"We haven't forgotten how to race,” Pedregon said. “I feel like once we find our groove, we will be able to keep it there and race competitively against these guys. We have made changes to keep up with the times, and we have run a new fuel system this season.”

The new fuel system seems to be a challenge, but Pedregon is quick to point out there’s only one to blame at this point.

"It starts and ends with me," Pedregon said.

Pedregon believes a lot of credit is owed to his fellow Funny Car competitors who have effectively taken the class performance to the next level.

"We have a good 3.90 car, but the competition has stepped it up a notch; some a notch and a half," Pedregon said. "I have put my budget into fielding a winning car, and that's not going to change as long as I do this. We could go out there and run consistently, but that is not going to win races. I don't want just to run with them; I want to outrun them. You have to try things continually, take chances and do it on things which may not always yield positive or quick results.

Pedregon, who runs a single-team operation in the midst of multicar operations, subscribes to the Hank Aaron theory to keep swinging in the midst of a slump.

"In today's Funny Car racing, you can run a 3.95, and the crowd doesn't even make noise,” Pedregon explained. “It's a whole new ball game now."

And Pedregon is ready to get on base again.