Things aren’t always what they seem. Tony Schumacher knows that, and that’s why he’s patient and methodical ... and a wee bit frustrated when he hears the uninformed chatter about his Top Fuel future and whether he, who has won 86 times, can win a race again.

"We didn't have the same team last year. I had horse**** parts last year. The car was junk. There was no way to win in that thing. We won this race here by the other car [Brittany Force’s] smoking the tires. We needed people to fall on their swords to win. But it's all new stuff now. And it's not stuff they used. It's a lot of DSR parts they didn't use before. So it's figuring 'em out,” he said.

Of his current team – which is led by Mike Neff, Phil Shuler and Jon Schaffer – Schumacher said, “Anyone that's ever worked with them knows that they're really good at what they do. And once they get there, they'll hold it for a long, long time. In 2018, when [Neff] came over, we were not very good at the first half of the year. Second half of the year, we ran low E.T. mostly every run. So it took that much time. That was the last year of the Army, so we were under a lot of pressure to figure this out. The first six or seven or more races -- I don't even remember how many it was -- they had parts in the car that they couldn't figure out. They couldn’t figure out how to make power. It was just different, new to them. And when they figured it out by Chicago it made massive power, and then they started backing it up. We held it together and we dominated at the last half, finished No. 2 [in the standings], and we were low E.T. on the last run of the year.

“So we'll get it right,” he said. The 2023 team’s mentality, he said, is “We got to beat ‘em, take 'em out, instead of just, ‘Aw, we'll get close enough to win some rounds.’ That's not what they're doing. I know their goal. I got to work with them before, so they will be good -– not ‘OK’ –- good. That's what we hired those guys for.

“I know that we'll be champs again,” Schumacher said. “And I know that we'll win races. And I still get to drive a damn race car. I put this whole deal [with SCAG Power Equipment] together. It was cool. I think that was a very special part of it. For the first time, I actually assembled the team. I actually assembled the sponsor. I brought it. I represent a great company that has fallen in love with the sport, and I couldn't be any prouder than that.”

Schumacher has seen Joe Maynard, like SCAG (who’s represented on Tim Wilkerson’s Funny Car and Erica Enders’ Pro Stock car), drill deeper into the sport since he first indulged wife Cathi (who passed away in June) by investing in the eight-time series champion. He has seen Maynard fund part of Wilkerson’s operation, and he has seen Maynard enter a business agreement with his on-track rival Justin Ashley.

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He indicated he has sifted fact from fear and made his peace with the reality that Maynard has aligned himself also with Ashley.

“I'm not even worried about that because this is their home,” Schumacher said, nodding to his JCM Racing pit area. “This is their home, their lounge. This is their spot.

“I have talks with Joe about it. I've talked with Randy [SCAG executive Gloede] about it. I bring up things like’ Days of Thunder’ when Tom Cruise, when they hire a new guy and he goes, ‘Who are you going to be pulling for when it comes down to the [end]?’ And I'll bring that up, too.” But he said he knows that “this budget doesn't leave this [organization]. Not one penny goes to fund something else.

“My dad [one-time mega team owner Don Schumacher], he was very good at saying, ‘Well, it's all in one.’ We funded a lot of cars, and they had to race against me. This will not be that situation. Not a dollar of this car will go to fund a car trying to beat me. Doesn't make Justin my teammate because Joe owns it. I love the guy. I think he's a great driver. I think [crew chief] Mike Green [with whom Schumacher earned two titles], the whole team, is great. But what makes him a teammate in NASCAR is being able to draft with someone. What can anyone out here do? We can't even share information. They're a Toyota car,” he said.

“So Joe [can buy a stake in] two cars or fund five. We need more cars out here. We're looking at 13 cars in a Top Fuel field. I wish everybody out here had a couple. But they don't, because it's an expensive sport. So that doesn't bother me that there's other stuff out there. I'm proud of Joe for jumping in and helping,” Schumacher said. “We wouldn't want to see Justin actually parked halfway through the year. We want him out here. Joe's doing a good job at that stuff. None of that crap bothers me and the way I drive a car. If I helped -– and I feel like I did, I feel like I helped by finding SCAG –- great. I think SCAG has done a magnificent job spreading a little bit out.”