For weeks, the focus around Ron Capps Motorsports’ Top Fuel program centered on Rob Flynn’s appointment as lead crew chief. On Tuesday’s CompetitionPlus Power Hour, rookie driver Maddi Gordon confirmed the other half of the equation — veteran tuner Troy Fasching will serve as assistant crew chief for her first season in Top Fuel.
While Flynn’s leadership had already been announced, Fasching’s role had not been formally detailed. Gordon’s comments provided clarity and shifted attention to a technician whose career has quietly shaped multiple competitive Top Fuel programs.
“I mean, our team is so, great,” Gordon said.
“I mean, of course, I’m biased, but I really feel like we’ve gotten to know these guys who are, like I said earlier, so passionate about the sport, so passionate about our team,” she added. “We’ve got Rob Flynn and Troy Fasching, these two guys that have had so much experience in the sport.”
Fasching’s experience spans nearly every layer of a nitro operation. He has worked as a crew member building short blocks and superchargers, progressed into assistant crew chief roles, and served as a lead tuner on one of the sport’s most established teams.
“And then same with Troy Fasching,” Gordon said. “He’s been in our sport for a lot of years, gone through all different aspects, the crew member side, building short blocks, blowers, moving his way up to assisting crew chief. We’re really, really excited to have him on board with us.”
Most recently, Fasching served as co-crew chief for Scrappers Racing’s second dragster in 2024, assisting during Gary Pritchett’s Top Fuel debut. That assignment continued a career defined by steady advancement and technical depth.
His longest tenure came at Kalitta Motorsports, where he spent much of the 2010s and early 2020s working alongside Flynn on Doug Kalitta’s Top Fuel program. Following Jim Oberhofer’s departure late in 2018, Fasching was elevated to crew chief and guided the team through the remainder of that season and beyond.
During that stretch, he played a critical role in Kalitta’s championship pursuits, including strong campaigns in 2014 and 2021. The Flynn-Fasching pairing developed a reputation for consistency across changing track conditions and weather variables.
That history now becomes part of Gordon’s rookie foundation. In Top Fuel, where performance windows are narrow and mechanical demands are extreme, continuity inside the tuning department often proves decisive.
Gordon said watching Flynn and Fasching work together has reinforced her confidence in the program.
“It’s really cool to see Rob and Troy both work together because they’ve worked together in previous years and they really have a great way of complementing each other up in the lounge, working on the car, whatever it might be,” she said.
His path through the sport — from hands-on engine builder to assistant and lead crew chief — offers depth that complements Flynn’s strategic oversight. Together, they form a structure designed to balance performance and development.
For Gordon, the value of that experience is already evident.
“They work really, really well together and I’m really fortunate to be able to come into a team that, some guys have worked together, some guys haven’t, but to be able to work with Rob and Troy, I’m enjoying getting to learn them and kind of seeing how I can best fit and help them as a driver,” she said.
