Mother Nature made a mess of the 2026 Funny Car Chaos and Nitro Chaos schedules, washing out three events and disrupting others. Keith Zimmerer and Garry Wheeler Jr. weren’t about to let the weather decide their championships.
Zimmerer turned a six-point championship loss in 2025 into a four-win season that carried his Lindsay, Texas-based “Penny Pincher II” team to the Funny Car Chaos title. Wheeler survived a three-way points battle, winning the Nitro Chaos finale at Cordova Dragway to become the first two-time champion in series history.
Both championships came in a season where rain reduced opportunities to recover from mistakes. For Zimmerer, however, there weren’t many mistakes to overcome.
Zimmerer and tuner Will Hanna opened the season with a victory at Tulsa Raceway Park, then added wins at Texas Motorplex, Great Lakes Dragaway and Mo-Kan Dragway. Four victories in five appearances left little opportunity for anyone else to challenge.
The performance recalled the early Funny Car Chaos seasons when three-time champion Ken Singleton seemed almost unbeatable. This time, Zimmerer was the one everybody was chasing.
“Our team had a strong outing in 2026 capped with four wins and the FCC Championship,” Zimmerer said. “We race all out, no BS in our pits. The results are satisfying knowing the amount of effort the team put into this season and we were successful by surrounding ourselves with great people. Thank you to my mom, dad, wife, daughter, Will, Ricky, Joey, Doug, Mike, Joe, Cody & Cindy, Tony & Willa, Stevie and Maxima Racing Oils. The 2027 season will probably look different but I am excited for new challenges. Floor it!”
Indiana’s Justin Malott made a late charge, winning three consecutive events in his “Must Be Nice” 1957 Chevrolet-bodied Funny Car. Malott finished second in the championship standings, followed by Jordan Ballew, Wayne Hofmann and Cody Chatfield.
Despite the weather problems, 71 drivers earned points in Funny Car Chaos competition during 2026. The participation came as the series prepares to celebrate its 10th anniversary next season, having welcomed more than 200 Funny Car teams since its inception.
Funny Car Chaos began in 2017 with a premise that wasn’t particularly complicated: Give independent Funny Car racers somewhere to compete without requiring everyone to run essentially the same equipment.
The concept welcomed nostalgia-style Funny Cars alongside modern-bodied machines, allowing combinations that ordinarily wouldn’t share an eliminations ladder. It was an approach that favored variety over uniformity and gave independent racers an alternative to tightly regulated professional categories.
While Zimmerer controlled much of the Funny Car Chaos season, Wheeler faced a considerably tougher championship fight in Nitro Chaos. Two of five scheduled events were lost to rain, leaving the title to be decided at Cordova.
Wheeler entered the finale with a narrow points advantage over Brian Kohlmann and Colin Thomas. The Tulsa, Oklahoma-based Grand Prix Racing team needed a strong showing, and Wheeler responded by winning the RBS Superchargers A Field at the Twisted Shifterz CHAOS Championship Finals.
Driving the Jon Brook-owned dragster, Wheeler secured his second Nitro Chaos championship. The victory made him the first driver to win the title more than once.
Wheeler’s dragster uses a 392 Hemi burning more than 90% nitromethane, with John Russell handling the tuning responsibilities. The combination reflects an earlier generation of Top Fuel racing, although its performance remains competitive in the outlaw nitro ranks.
Grand Prix Racing also expanded its operation in 2026, introducing a second dragster with rookie Trent Work driving. Work finished fourth in the standings, giving the organization two of the top four championship positions.
“We are so thankful for the opportunities our team owner Jon Brook has given us to compete in the Nitro Chaos series,” Wheeler said. “This season we brought out a second car, trained a second crew and managed to lock up our second Chaos Championship. I’d like to thank our crew for all their hours at the shop and hard work at the track. Our team would like to thank CP-Carrillo, Arias Pistons, Carter-Maxwell, Dove Fuels, MSD, Molinari Clutches, DMP Awnings, ABC Salon, T&T Truck Repair, Kryptonite Kustomz, Dicus Benton Machine Shop and of course Grand Prix Auto Sports Center for their support. We’ll be busy during the off-season celebrating this Championship and getting ready to defend our title next season!”
The team celebrated at Cordova by firing the dragster and treating those gathered in the pits to a series of throttle whacks. It was an appropriate celebration for a team campaigning equipment with roots in drag racing’s mechanical past.
Kohlmann finished second in the championship standings, followed by Thomas, Work and Levi Keenen. Despite holding only three events, Nitro Chaos attracted 33 different independent nitro teams during the season.
Nitro Chaos debuted as a standalone event July 30-31, 2021, at Eddyville Raceway Park in Iowa. It eventually developed into a companion championship series for nitromethane-powered race cars that didn’t necessarily have a regular home in conventional professional drag racing.
The concept followed the philosophy that helped Chris Graves establish Funny Car Chaos. Give independent racers a place to compete, put different combinations on the same track and let the Christmas Tree settle the arguments.
Both series have endured in an environment where racing costs continue climbing and opportunities for independent teams can be limited. Their appeal has been built around allowing competitors to race the equipment they own rather than forcing them into an increasingly expensive technical formula.
The 2027 schedules are nearing completion, with announcements expected through FunnyCarChaos.com and NitroChaos.com.
Zimmerer will attempt to defend a championship he missed by six points the previous year, while Wheeler will pursue an unprecedented third Nitro Chaos title. Neither can count on 2026 carrying over into next season.
