Bob Tasca III did more than claim a runner-up finish in his nitro Funny Car at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA in Norwalk, Ohio, on June 27.

On June 26, he set an NHRA drag racing world record in an all-electric Ford Mustang Cobra Jet 1400. Tasca clocked an 8.128-second elapsed time at 171.97 mph down the quarter mile at Summit Motorsports Park.

“On Thursday (June 24) we ran an 8.20 we reset the record from last year when we went 8.27,” Tasca said. “Then, we knew there was some more in it. I was expecting the thing to break into the high teens. We went 169 mph on (June 24), and we ran the 171.97 at 8.12, which was really cool. I know the team was excited and they continue to work towards getting the car even quicker and faster. It just showcases the Ford technology as far as being on the forefront of the quickest and fastest electric door car.”

The all-electric Mustang Cobra Jet was a treat to watch as soon as it left the starting line.

“It does a big wheel stand and has instant torque with those engines,” Tasca said. “It’s crazy. Until it sets the front end down, you’re not sure exactly what’s going to happen. It sets the front end down nice and soft and it’s off to the races.”

Tasca said he’s not content with his 8.128-second pass at 171.97 mph – at all.

“Hey, listen, we’re not going to get a suntan,” Tasca said. “We are trying to go quicker and faster and get better with the technology and how we apply the power in an electric vehicle, and we get a lot of assistance from the Ford engineers, the guys at MLE, Jeff Lane and Pat McCue. They are the ones who work with Ford building it. All I do is drive it, so I don’t want to give myself too much credit, but it was quite a ride.”

According to Tasca, he has made around 25 runs in the all-electric Ford Mustang Cobra Jet.

“It is an outer body experience,” said Tasca about driving the all-electric Ford Mustang Cobra Jet. “The biggest thing, everyone says the sound, and the sound is different. It doesn’t have the chassis twist like a piston engine because the crankshaft and all the rotating mass is gone. When hit the throttle, I describe it like a slingshot, it is straight ahead. It is a very flat, straight ahead stable feel and I love it. It is fantastic. The motors are zero maintenance.

“I think the coolest thing is how many times in your life, for that matter how many people ever in their life get to be apart of something from the beginning. It’s just privilege for me to be a part of it. I was one of the guys who helped put it together when it first started and then MLE, Pat and Jeff have done an incredible job working with Ford and Ford’s engineers to bring the project to life. Every time you get in the car you get a chance to do something no one else has ever done and that doesn’t happen every day.”

Tasca and his family have been lifelong partners with Ford through car dealerships, but he never envisioned this type of accomplishment with an all-electric car.

“No, it is really one of those things that sneaks up on you,” he said. “You go ‘Wow!’ this is pretty cool. Some people love it, and some people hate it. The way I look at it is drag racing is awesome because we can have an electric class, we can have a Pro Stock class, we can have a Pro Bike class, we can have a nitro class and if you don’t want to watch the electric car run go get a drink, go get a pizza. Then, come back and watch the nitro cars. 

“It’s not like we are having a conversation that are going to put electric engines in nitro cars. This is exciting, new technology that we want to be a part of and drag racing gives us a fantastic platform to go out there and break world records and learn and it really helps the (Ford) engineers back in Dearborn (Mich.) on how to apply some of this technology into electric vehicles that you will be able to buy at Ford dealership. That’s how my grandfather got into racing back in the 1960s and it is really cool to be a part of it here in 2021.”