Chicago native Don Schumacher rekindled his drag-racing involvement in 1998, because son Tony wanted to step up to a Top Fuel dragster and Dad wanted to ensure he competed in safe equipment.

But that passion snowballed into an empire that fielded the most race cars for a single team, claimed 19 championships, and featured some of the biggest names in the sport. Don Schumacher Racing elevated Tony Schumacher to his status as the Top Fuel’s all-time leader in victories (86) and series championships (eight).

Don Schumacher called them his “cast of characters,” but he, too, was a leading character on NHRA’s premier stage. And five months after his final act played out, before qualifying began for the Gerber Collision and Glass Route 66 Nationals on Friday at Joliet, Ill., came an emotional curtain call. Drivers, team owners, and associates gathered at the Schumacher Family Tent next to the Nitro Mall for a Celebration of Life ceremony to remember the 2019 Motorsports Hall of Fame of America inductee.

In his opening remarks at the Celebration of Life, NHRA on FOX lead announcer Brian Lohnes remembered Don Schumacher as a man who expected excellence, had a large vision for the potential of the sport on both micro and macro levels, and provided the platforms to raise unprecedented amounts of money for M.D. Anderson Hospital, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and the Infinite Hero Foundation for struggling military veterans. Schumacher built and filled with trophies a 120,000-square-foot headquarters that housed as many as seven teams and expanded to include a thriving machine shop that served the automotive, aviation and fishing industries.  

But Lohnes said, “The measure of Don Schumacher goes far beyond the physical things he created.” He described Schumacher as having a “locomotive-like” approach and a nearly incessant work ethic to find the right mix of people to carry it all out. His legacy includes safety innovations such as the Top Fuel cockpit canopy and the Funny Car roof escape hatch.

All that was in addition to his accomplishments outside of racing.

Don Schumacher built Schumacher Electric, the family’s battery company that his Chicago bookmaker father inherited as gambling-debt payoff, into a global enterprise with hundreds of employees from Mexico to China. Few might know that he also once owned a jewelry store in Los Angeles and was a partner in an emu-raising venture.

What drag-racing fans now most about him was that his teams won 367 events ... that he advanced safety measures for drivers that included the cockpit canopy for Top Fuel dragsters and the roof escape hatch for Funny Cars ... and that his stable of drivers included Whit Bazemore, Jack Beckman, Antron Brown, Ron Capps, Matt Hagan, Leah Pruett, Angelle Sampey, Gary Scelzi, and Melanie Troxel, and briefly Jeg Coughlin, Richie Stevens, and the late Shawn Carlson.

Racers for Christ chaplain Eddie Baugher led attendees in a moment of silence, after which Tony Schumacher unveiled the throwback livery he’ll be sporting on his JCM Racing dragster this weekend. It pays tribute to the 1970 Plymouth Funny Car which carried his father to the U.S. Nationals winners circle that year.

Top Fuel driver T.J. Zizzo, a Lincolnshire, Ill., “neighbor” of Schumacher, took the loss harder than some.

He said, “Don Schumacher is one of the major reasons Zizzo Racing is still getting to do what we love at the highest level. He was a great friend and mentor. His impact on racing and the Chicago business community was massive. I think about him every day. And every time I go into the shop, I am thankful for every opportunity, every conversation, and the words of encouragement he gave me and our team. He was one of the iconic figures in our sport, and this weekend will be a celebration of his generosity and impact.”

Another Chicago-area racer, Funny Car’s Justin Schriefer, of Grant Park, Ill., is a self-described underdog. He said Don Schumacher and his organization always treated him with respect.

“I bought a lot of stuff from Don Schumacher and Don Schumacher Racing. I bought a lot of used cars and bodies. Over the years, he was just a great help, a great inspiration to me for everything that he's done for this sport. He's definitely a legend in my book. He's going to be missed. And everybody from Schumacher Racing, I could go there and get parts and they all welcome you, the underdog guys. They talk to you and respect you, and so it's always been a great feeling.”

Following his first qualifying pass of the weekend, Tony Schumacher said, “I got my dad's [likeness] painted on my helmet. He's just done so much for the sport. Apparently he touched a lot of hearts, and there's probably 15 drivers, maybe more, that got their start [from him]. Some of 'em own teams,” he said, referring to Top Fuel’s Antron Brown and Funny Car’s Ron Capps. “It's just a blessing to be part of something so cool, to be able to pay tribute to a man that did so much for my family, for [sisters] Megan, Tara, Sam [Samantha], just all of us and all people that love me. A lot of people are here from our neighborhood. We have a lot of people here from Schumacher Electric. It’s just awesome to be able to represent him.”

The Schumacher legacy lives on with Tony Schumacher, who for many years was a resident of the westside Chicago suburb of Long Grove, Ill. But it will be a long time before drag racing – or maybe all of motorsports – sees the rise of another Don Schumacher.  To borrow from the late, great motorsports writer George Moore of The Indianapolis Star and his tribute to USAC tech boss Frankie Del Roy ... In motorsports parlance, they made only one. And December 20, 2023, they closed up the shop.