Veteran NHRA Pro Stock driver John Gaydosh confirmed to CompetitionPlus.com he’s retiring from driving.

Gaydosh made that decision after suffering another serious back injury. Gaydosh’s most recent back injury happened when he was lifting some equipment at his Gaydosh Performance shop in Baltimore, Md.

“It was something I couldn’t lift by myself, and I did,” Gaydosh said. “I hurt my vertebrae and I have to have surgery (Aug. 17). I’ve already had three discs fused together. I got a cage in my back already. Yeah, they're going to do another fusion and add another part to the cage. So, no more driving for me.”

Gaydosh acknowledged being forced to walk away from driving is tough.

“It's a little upsetting, but it is what it is,” Gaydosh said. “To be able to live and go on to the next day is better than not to.”

Gaydosh competed in the NHRA’s Pro Stock class for 10 years before walking away from the sport after he competed at the 2018 NHRA Mello Yello Series event in Reading. Pa.

Following the 2018 Reading race, Gaydosh sold his 2013 Camaro to another racer based in Sweden.

Gaydosh came back to the sport and ran a limited schedule in 2021.

Gaydosh was hopeful Chris Sweeney was going to drive his Pro Stock Camaro at the Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, Tenn., this weekend, but the pieces didn’t all come together. Gaydosh said when Sweeney runs his Pro Stock car it will be powered by engines from Chris McGaha.

“Yeah, it just didn't work out right now, but we're hoping to be at Norwalk, which we should, be ready for Norwalk (June 23-26). He wants to try to run Indy. We're going to run a couple PDRA races, with my engine in it, and let him drive. Chris has done some Pro Mod stuff and some small tire racing. He said this is the hardest car he's ever had to drive, but the easiest down the track. Learning how to, there's so many switches and buttons and you got to do this a certain way. If you muff the burnout, you can tear the clutch out of it. It's hard to figure out. ‘It's a finesse,’ that's what he said. It's more finesse than it is anything else, with these.

“Chris and I have known each other for about 10 years. He bought one of my older Pro Stock engines from me, to run Top Sportsman with and stuff. We've stayed friends over the last 10 years, back and forth with racing.”

Gaydosh has a 2019 Camaro that he purchased from Wally Stroupe.

“I bought it brand new,” Gaydosh said. “I only have 24 runs on it, myself.”

Gaydosh last ran the car in Reading, Pa., last September.

“If he (Sweeney) can come up with the funding and he thinks he can, for next year, we might run 18 races next year,” Gaydosh said.