Entire too much in life, we hear Icon, Legend, GOAT, etc. when describing people and their importance to an industry, sport, business, etc. When we speak of John Force though, there is no way that we can overstate how huge his legacy and importance to the motorsports industry is.

For me personally, since the late 80’s early 90’s John has been the face of NHRA, and the face of drag racing when it comes to the casual fan or even the most hard core of fans. When you ask someone if they like drag racing and they have no real interest in drag racing, you can mention John’s name and there’s a damn good chance they know who that is.

John has been a favorite driver of ages of fans from 8 to 88. Fans from Boomer’s to Gen Z and beyond. Looking at everything that he has done for drag racing and taken it out of the local speed shops and garages and put it in front of corporate America in his own way! From Championships to TV shows, John is and continues to be a constant within our industry.

About a week ago John suffered a frightening explosion and then collision while racing at Virginia Motorsports Park, and was subsequently taken to the hospital, where he has remained to date of this writing. We in the drag racing community continue to keep John, his family, his team, and his fans in our thoughts and prayers.

On a personal note, I have interacted with thousands of racers over the last 30 years, from every level of drag racing, and John is one of those that I always enjoy interactions with. While I might not have the media “celebrity” status of others, John has always been welcoming to me. He always had an effort to say hello, to smile, and to treat me with respect and warmness. That attitudes extends outside the track as well. I have seen John in casual social settings and he has continued to treat me the same as I described before.

The records that John has set, the image that John has created for NHRA and drag racing, the example of how to be a winner, those are all things that are and will never be matched in my mind. He truly is the GOAT of drag racing in so many different ways, and I look forward to having more interactions with him when he heals up from all of this.

So, as I said, the legacy he has created and the importance of John to the drag racing community can never be overstated. Drag racing as a whole would look much different today if it weren’t for John Force and his dedication to excellence.