Pat Musi is coming home.

Long before he was a multiple Pro Street champion or an advocate for electronic fuel injected Pro Modifieds, the Carteret, NJ-based Musi raced in the NHRA’s Pro Stock division and proudly proclaimed Raceway Park in Englishtown his home facility.

In two weeks, when the NHRA rolls into town for the Supernationals, Musi will be one of 24 entries on the Get Screened America Pro Modified entry list. This will mark the first time Musi has competed in the NHRA since the 1989 NHRA Summernationals in Englishtown.

“I’m pretty excited about this,” Musi said. “The NHRA is clearly the place to race. I went the Pro Street route because that’s what my budget could stand. Some of my best days in drag racing were in racing NHRA Pro Stock.”

Pat Musi is coming home.

Long before he was a multiple Pro Street champion or an advocate for electronic fuel injected Pro Modifieds, the Carteret, NJ-based Musi raced in the NHRA’s Pro Stock division and proudly proclaimed Raceway Park in Englishtown his home facility.

In two weeks, when the NHRA rolls into town for the Supernationals, Musi will be one of 24 entries on the Get Screened America Pro Modified entry list. This will mark the first time Musi has competed in the NHRA since the 1989 NHRA Summernationals in Englishtown.

“I’m pretty excited about this,” Musi said. “The NHRA is clearly the place to race. I went the Pro Street route because that’s what my budget could stand. Some of my best days in drag racing were in racing NHRA Pro Stock.”

Musi’s finest year was in 1981 when he and then partner Joe Folgore pursued the NHRA Pro Stock championship and concluded the season ranked fourth. He finished behind heavy-hitters Lee Shepherd, Bob Glidden and Frank Iaconio.

“We threw everything we had at it,” explained Musi. “We pretty well neglected the business and it got out of control as the season went on. Joe asked me at the beginning of the season if we could run with them [Glidden, Shepherd and Iaconio] and I let him know we all put our pants on the same way – one leg at a time.”

Musi finished runner-up in the first two events of the season and scored the Pro Stock pole during the NHRA U.S. Nationals. He was the only driver outside of Shepherd and Glidden to qualify No. 1 in 1981.

The combination of drastic NHRA engine rule changes and the extreme financial demands made Musi and Folgore’s efforts a one and done experience.

That was then and this is now.

Musi recently became the first-ever driver to cover the quarter-mile with an EFI-equipped doorslammer in five seconds. With help from fellow drag racing legend Rickie Smith, whose assistance in the earlier part of the year from the firewall to the rear of the car helped him to get a hand, Musi is ready to drive Frank Brandao’s lightweight Dodge Stratus down the Englishtown quarter-mile to more personal bests.

“We ran this combination for almost ten years and now people are starting to take notice,” Musi said. “I think the blower cars have an advantage right now. Our goal is to run with the fastest nitrous cars.”

And the best of all for Musi, he’s doing it right at home.