Del Worsham received a call from his team’s publicist following a first round loss at the NHRA Southern Nationals in Commerce, Georgia. The driver was pressed with the question, “What’s wrong?”

Worsham clearly had not posted the victories commensurate with the lofty expectations that he and the team carried into 2009. At this point in the season, many expected the team would have had at least one win under their belt.

The Atlanta race gave the publicity spinner every reason to believe the team was in a slump after they used their final qualifying session just to make the field. On top of that they landed in the 16th position.

Del Worsham received a call from his team’s publicist following a first round loss at the NHRA Southern Nationals in Commerce, Georgia. The driver was pressed with the question, “What’s wrong?”

Worsham clearly had not posted the victories commensurate with the lofty expectations that he and the team carried into 2009. At this point in the season, many expected the team would have had at least one win under their belt.

The Atlanta race gave the publicity spinner every reason to believe the team was in a slump after they used their final qualifying session just to make the field. On top of that they landed in the 16th position.

“I said, ‘Man we're good … we just had two real good runs in Atlanta and had a bad draw. Ashley was running great and it didn't work out for us.” Worsham responded.

Worsham proved his point at the next race. 

The 23-time winner vaulted his team into second place in the points with a hole shot victory at the NHRA O'Reilly Midwest Nationals in St. Louis over current leader and No. 1 qualifier Ron Capps.

He couldn’t exit his Toyota Solara Funny Car quick enough.

“There was just a huge deal of excitement,” Worsham said. “I see [my teammate] Larry [Dixon] running down here all full of excitement. The radio had been broken all day long so I didn't know who won and I would've unplugged it in a final anyway.”

Sometimes a driver just knows. He also knows when a triumph ranks in the top five of his career.

“It's in the top five and I'll tell you what else is in the top five our win here in 2003 when we beat John Force in the finals,“ Worsham explained. “He had been kicking our butts all season long and then coming out here with a new team here- I would say Atlanta one; Indy two; Houston of 2001 three; here four; and here in 2003 five.”

Eighteen years ago when Worsham won his first national event in Atlanta, his expectations weren’t as lofty as they were headed into this weekend’s event.

“When we came out here in 1991 and won Atlanta there were no expectations. No one thought we would win,” Worsham said. “We just wanted to qualify and get enough money to get some fuel and a cheeseburger so we could move on to the next race.”

For Worsham, St. Louis makes a pretty good cheeseburger and helps to fulfill some of those lofty expectations. 

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