Legendary Mopar Super Stock driver and drag racing trailblazer Judy Lilly (Gunson) passed away on August 9, 2022, at Platte Valley Hospital in Brighton, Colorado. She was 80 years young and could still line up next to any racer and probably put them on the trailer despite her age. She was a racing icon and the inspiration for many female drag racers that would ascend onto the sport during the decades following the 1970s. At one time, Judy was the winningest female drag racer. In 1998, Judy was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame and, in 2005, became the first woman inducted into the Colorado Motorsports Hall of Fame. Judy’s rise to drag racing stardom was partly due to Chrysler Corporation taking a chance with a relatively unknown female drag racer. 

It was a chance meeting during the 1966 NHRA World Finals in Tulsa; Judy was going rounds in the eliminations driving her D/Sports 1961 Corvette when Bob Cahill and Dick Maxwell spotted her in the staging lanes. If these two names sound familiar, they should. Cahill and Maxwell managed the Chrysler Drag Racing program during this era. They were instrumental in sponsoring other female Super Stock competitors such as Mary Ann Foss and Shirley Shahan to run current production cars. Later that day, Cahill and Maxwell spotted Judy in the pits changing the Corvette’s rear differential all by herself. Needless to say, both Cahill and Maxwell were impressed and knew right away they needed to get Judy over into the Mopar camp.

With the introduction of the 426 Street HEMI in both the Dodge Coronet and Plymouth Belvedere and also the Satellite line for 1966, Chrysler felt Judy Lilly would be a natural in promoting Chrysler’s latest entry into the intermediate-sized muscle car class. Competition was ramping up, with the Pontiac GTO and Chevelle SS396 earning more market share over Dodge and Plymouth that year. To highlight the performance potential of the new 426 Street HEMI, Chrysler knew NHRA drag racing was the place to showcase the hardware. After Judy had discussions with the factory guys in late 1966, she was set to get sponsorship and technical support to race a brand-new SS/B 1967 Plymouth Belvedere I powered by a 426 Street HEMI engine in Super Stock. However, there was a catch. Judy had to get a secondary sponsorship from a local dealership before Chrysler would approve the deal. “I went and visited many Chrysler/Plymouth dealers in the Denver area, and they just laughed me out of the showroom floor,” smiled Judy.

Luckily, Judy never gave up and kept walking into dealerships asking to see the general manager or owner until she found one willing to take a chance on a female drag racer. Running in the SS/B class, Judy’s HEMI-powered Plymouth would terrorize the NHRA Division 5 competition at drag strips throughout Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, and other states in the west-central region of the country.

Judy’s most famous ride was her 1968 Super Stock HEMI Barracuda that took her to victory at the 1972 NHRA Winternationals. Judy recalled an interesting comment NHRA founder Wally Parks said to her in the winner’s circle at Pomona, “You’re my favorite racer and the only one I want to kiss!” After her win, Mopar upped their sponsorship with Judy, and soon the “Miss Mighty Mopar” moniker was splashed all over her SS/AA HEMI Barracuda and instantly became her nickname. Judy’s HEMI Barracuda would go on to win numerous events and even got the attention of model maker MPC, which created a 1/24 scale plastic kit of her iconic Barracuda that was sold at toy stores across the country.

To keep her factory deal alive, Judy had to park her 1968 HEMI Barracuda during the mid-1970s and run what Chrysler was producing at the time. This meant racing a 1974 Plymouth Duster 360 that bounced between the slower SS/KA and SS/LA classes. This forced Judy to change her driving strategy. She went leaving last and chasing down her opponent in her SS/AA HEMI Barracuda, to now being chased herself during eliminations because she was running a slower car. A driving style she never liked but regardless, she still won many races with her trusty and consistent Duster. “We spent more money to run slower,” exclaimed the always feisty Judy when she and I spoke last year, but one thing she always stressed, she remembered her days of running under the Mopar banner with fondness.

After retiring from racing, Judy reestablished her love for horses, did barrel racing, and trained stallions for competition. However, Judy was never far from quarter-mile competition as she and Don Garlits did exhibition runs when the all-new Dodge Challenger Drag Pak made its debut during the 2008 Mopar NHRA Mile-High Nationals. In true Judy fashion, she laid holeshot on Big Daddy and took the win light.

Judy is survived by her husband of 39 years, Mark Gunson, Brighton, Colorado; her daughter Nancy Lilly-Brown (Milt Brown), Greeley, Colorado; her grandchildren, Sharnay Brown (Travis Weger); Colorado Springs, Colorado; Keaton Brown (Annie) Loveland, Colorado, and Kenji Lilly; great-grandson, Grayson Weger, Colorado Springs; her brother Jerry Gardner (Linda), Thornton, Colorado; and her nieces, Whitney, Lauren, and great-niece, Hayley Gardner. Judy was preceded in death by her son, Philip Lilly.

God Speed, Judy; try not to beat up on the ‘Old Boys’ Super Stock Club in heaven.