Austin Prock has always described driving a Nitro Funny Car as a form of wrestling, not against another driver, but against more than 11,000 horsepower fighting him for 1,000 feet. After two championship seasons wrestling a Chevrolet Camaro for John Force Racing, Prock now finds himself grappling with something entirely different: perception.
In a move that reshaped the Funny Car landscape, Prock left John Force Racing to drive a Ford Mustang for Bob Tasca III, a decision announced last week but one that had been quietly forming late in the 2025 season. The move immediately made Prock one of the most discussed figures of the offseason, not because of his ability, but because of what he walked away from.
In professional wrestling terms, there are heroes and villains, babyfaces and heels. Prock does not pretend to care which role he is assigned, as long as it ends with win lights and trophies.
“Nobody wants to be the bad guy, but if I’m the bad guy for the series, someone’s got to be it,” Prock said during a teleconference Tuesday. “The thing that’s going to aggravate them the most is when we start winning.”
Prock leaned fully into that reality, promising performance rather than apologies. He pointed directly to Gainesville, saying the plan is to “drop the door and run 84,” and made it clear that success, not approval, will define this next chapter.
“When we start turning on win lights, they’re going to be the angry ones and I’ll be smiling in victory lane with the trophy,” he said.
Prock acknowledged he was never naïve about the response his departure would generate. John Force Racing has one of the most loyal fan bases in motorsports, and Prock understood that stepping away would come with backlash.
“The way I look at it, if you’re an Austin Prock fan, you’re an Austin Prock fan,” he said. “And what I’ve realized is a lot of people are John Force fans and whoever’s in that seat over there, they root for.”
Prock framed the situation with restraint, noting there are “three sides of the story” and declining to dissect the split publicly. Instead, he returned repeatedly to the core motivation behind the move.
“We made our decision based on wanting to race as a family,” Prock said. “That’s the most important thing to me.”
He accepted that hard feelings would exist and did not attempt to soften them. “All the hard feelings that people have towards me and my family, it is what it is,” he said. “I can tell you one thing, they’re really going to be mad when we start winning races.”
Prock even cited Dale Earnhardt as proof that being disliked is not necessarily a disadvantage. “He was one of the most hated drivers in the series,” Prock said. “So it’s not always a bad thing.”
If Prock lost one fan base, he gained another by joining Tasca Racing. He said the transition has already reinforced why he races in the first place.
“I love the fans,” Prock said. “The fans are the reason that we’re able to live out our dream.”
He made the point plainly: without fans in the stands, there is no sport, and no driver gets to make a living strapping into a Nitro Funny Car. Prock said meeting new supporters and growing his base is part of the responsibility that comes with the move.
“I’m excited to meet my new fans,” he said. “I hope I can continue to build my fan base and the rest will right itself.”
From an operational standpoint, the transition came together faster than even Prock expected. Conversations with John Force did not go as anticipated, and suddenly Prock was shaking hands with Tasca.
“It definitely wasn’t on my bingo card,” Prock said. “But life changes sometimes.”
What made the move viable was continuity. Thirteen members of Prock’s team made the transition with him, preserving chemistry and shared experience that had already produced championships.
“It’s the people that you surround yourself with that put in the work,” Prock said. “That’s how we excel in this sport.”
The practical challenges, however, have been significant. Nearly everything on the new operation is changing, from chassis components to supply chains.
“Getting parts on time,” Prock said, calling it the biggest hurdle. “I would say 95 percent of everything is being changed.”
Even so, there are familiar constants. The car will still be a Ford Mustang Dark Horse, still running on nitro, and still built with championship intent. What is gone is the insulated ecosystem Prock experienced at John Force Racing.
“When you race there, you’re kind of in your own world,” Prock said. “You have access to all this tooling and all these parts that you can only get in that building.”
Leaving that environment forced the Procks into new relationships and a more self-contained operation. It has been an adjustment, but one Prock believes will ultimately sharpen the team.
“We’re having to make relationships with parts manufacturers,” he said. “Everything’s a lot different.”
That adjustment came while Prock carried a secret through the Countdown, something he admitted was personally difficult.
“It was tough,” Prock said. “It definitely was tough and it was tough that it had to be a secret.”
Prock described the strain of competing at the highest level while knowing change was imminent, especially given his relationships within the team he was leaving. Still, he said professionalism demanded focus.
“When you put that helmet on, the best driver is able to block out anything that’s going on in their lives,” he said. “You just have to shut your brain off and go to work.”
That mindset carried him through the end of the season and into what he views as another proving ground. Prock said he always races with something to prove, primarily to himself.
“I always kind of race with a chip on my shoulder,” he said. “I’m definitely hungry.”
He described the coming season as grittier, with a willingness to fight for every round win. The grind, he said, has already started.
“I’ve been in the race shop seven days a week,” Prock said. “We’re ready for battle.”
Prock downplayed individual rivalries, including renewed matchups with familiar competitors. When the helmet goes on, he said, every other Funny Car becomes the target.
“If there’s 20 Funny Cars out there, they’re all my rival on Sunday,” he said.
The partnership with Tasca carries symbolism as well as speed. Tasca voluntarily stepped out of the driver’s seat to make room for Prock, a gesture that left a lasting impression.
“He told me that early on and that meant a lot,” Prock said. “I felt bad taking his ride away from him.”
Instead of resentment, Prock said Tasca’s enthusiasm has fueled confidence. Tasca has repeatedly said this is the most excited he has been for a season in his career, something Prock takes seriously. Tasca is definitely not retiring as he told CompetitionPlus.com that he’ll race again but it will be dependent on sponsorship for a second car.
“He’s really given us the keys to the race team,” Prock said. “We’re doing things the Prock way and he’s footing the bill.”
The move also reunites Prock’s family with Ford, a brand deeply woven into Tasca’s identity and motorsports history. Prock said the alignment feels natural.
“These two families coming together, we’re planning on it being a dynasty,” he said.
The irony of the pairing has not been lost on either side. Prock and Tasca are the only two Funny Car drivers to have run 340-plus mph, a statistic that now links them as teammates.
“We definitely joke about it,” Prock said, noting plans for merchandise celebrating the shared milestone.
As testing approaches in Gainesville, Prock acknowledged the unknowns that come with building something new. Bench racing and theory will soon give way to reality.
“You never really know until you pour that nitro in the fuel tank and you fire it up,” he said.
Despite the uncertainty, Prock’s outlook remains unchanged. Whether cast as hero or villain, he believes the only response that matters comes at the finish line.
“If winning makes me the bad guy,” Prock said, “I’m fine with that.”
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