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NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION MEDIA CONFERENCE

January 27, 2016

Tony Pedregon

SCOTT SPEED: Next up we have Tony Pedregon. Tony comes from the seat of his Funny Car, where he has 43 career wins and two world championships. He retired at the end of last year, and this year will be the lead color commentator for our new FOX Sports coverage for this coming season. He is obviously a second‑generation drag racer following in his father's footsteps, and his brother Cruz will still compete in the Funny Car ranks.
Tony, first off, thank you for joining us, and we talked a little bit yesterday in Indianapolis, but how excited are you to get this new second chapter of your career going?
TONY PEDREGON: Oh, very excited. You know, one of the things that I've found interesting, I've been doing this as a profession for so many years, it would have been 20 years this year, that, you know, as we prepare for racing season, I think especially in the month of January, you're really in full swing, and you start to feel some of the pressures and really the excitement in a different capacity.
I've been losing weight. I've been just nonstop trying to pay attention to previous shows, to the dos and don'ts, how to improve moving forward, what we're going to be doing on the new FOX Sports show. But in a different way, I'm excited.
In fact, I was never able to lose really anything beyond five pounds, and I've lost 12 pounds, and then I learned that you don't even have to lose weight because the TV doesn't add 10 pounds anymore with the flat screen and HD, it was with the radius screen. But anyway, I'm excited I've lost weight and I'm in good fight shape.

Q. Tony, it was amazing to watch you just last week up there at zMax Dragway with Antron Brown there, with John Force there, and you were absolutely incredible in what you were doing in dealing with them. Did you feel any challenge at all in what you were doing?
TONY PEDREGON: No. No, I didn't, but I can tell you that it is hard work. It's completely different than I thought. I just thought it would be a natural transition because I've had numerous interviews, but I did learn in a short amount of time that being on the other side of the camera is completely different. You just have to take a different approach.
But being around John and Antron and even the media folks that we had yesterday, it's funny because I still feel like one of the guys in terms of I've been around them, I've done so many functions with them, I almost felt like one of the drivers. But I kind of keep having to remind myself I'm not‑‑ but that's okay, because really my position with the new show is‑‑ and I think it creates a good balance, bringing Dave Rieff and John Kernan, Jamie Howe, everyone has experience specifically in our sport with the exception of me.
So my approach is I'm going to heavily rely on them, Ken Adelson and Peter the producer and the executive producer, they've provided good direction, but I just need to better understand my role and ask them to point out if I can bring our audience into the car and onto the track. That's really my goal, and I think across the board it's going to be‑‑ the great product is still on the track. People are going to tune in to see quick and fast and explosive race cars. We just need to be able to try to put them there somehow.

Q. That's an interesting comment that you just made about the premier part of the sport is out on the track. For the fans who currently attend NHRA events, they are closer to the athletes, to the competitors than any other sport than I can even think of throughout the entire spectrum. What's it going to be like to show people who have never been there how much they've missed an opportunity to just reach out and touch an athlete?
TONY PEDREGON: You know, I think the challenge, and even being a former team owner, the biggest challenge with any business is marketing and putting the product in the consumer's hand one time, and if you think about our sport, it's the same. It's a great product, which is where it starts. Our challenge is marketing, and I've always felt, even in my previous role as a team owner and as a driver, it was important to‑‑ if we could put it in their hand, if we could give them the experience one time, so that continues to be the challenge of the sport.
Live TV is going to improve that. It's going to do wonders for the sport, the consistency and the programming and the scheduling, but I think that the new approach and something that I feel is important that the initiatives for FOX is we have a great fan base. We have the viewers, some of them like Top Fuel cars, some of them like Funny Cars, Pro Stock, so we've got a lot of diversity.
The goal across the board is to appeal to a new audience, so in that regard, we want to be‑‑ we're selling entertainment. We're selling cars that are quick and fast, and there's so many different personalities, male and female, there's Hispanic, there's African‑American, so there's all this diversity that really no other level of motorsports has to offer, and it's our job, it's FOX Sports' responsibility to bring that to life, and I'm a small part of that, and in my position if I can somehow appeal to the person that's flipping through, they're going to see something that they've never seen before, and again, the challenge for me is somehow putting them in that seat, and I think I can do that. I've just been involved in Funny Cars and Top Fuel cars. I'm going to get in a Pro Stock car. At some point I'm going to get on a Pro Stock bike. I'm very familiar with them, but I want to be able to speak to specifically what I'm going to be talking about and covering better so that the viewer can have that same experience.

Q. You were absolutely awesome with the recent media tour that we had there, and it was great to see that you have a brand new wonderful friend.
TONY PEDREGON: Well, you know, you throw Force and Antron, and there are a lot of personalities, and the job is for the drivers, they have to cooperate. They have to be interesting. I think Terry, the new PR‑‑ Terry, he had to pull him off the stage because they weren't going to stop. But that's just a part, a small part of what you're going to get.
So the media's interest really should be that it's not just the same old thing going down the racetrack. We were putting a lot of effort behind what we're doing to make the show more efficient, to lessen the oil downs, to improve the quality of racing, but I know as a fan, as a fanatic of the sport, if I had a choice to go to NASCAR, and I love all forms‑‑ I grew up around the corner from NASCAR, I would still be going to drag races. It starts with a great product, and myself and the whole team is putting a lot of effort into making it a lot better.

Q. Tony, you actually just touched on what I was going to ask you about, so you're transitioning to a new role right as the NHRA is sort of putting a new emphasis on live TV coverage. I think ESPN did five hours of coverage that is live and this year FOX is doing something like 17 live events. I was hoping you could expand upon what you think of as the NHRA as a live TV sport, and as a color commentator does that new emphasis on live coverage make your job any harder or easier than it would have been had you taken this route a few years ago perhaps?
TONY PEDREGON: You know, the timing for me was good. I think the experience that I had, and even some of the challenges that I had as a small business owner and a team owner, it just‑‑ it expanded my résumé I guess I would say. When I came into the sport, I drove a car‑‑ not a lot of people know, they just think I fell out of the sky and drove for John Force, but there was a lot of years of hard work that led up to me earning that position for John, so I drove for him for eight years, and then making that transition to a team owner, it really helped me understand the sport in so many different perspectives.
But the timing for me is good because I think I can speak better to really a diverse audience. A lot of them are interested just in the fact that these cars accelerate the way that they do, and they run at these outrageous speeds and they have this ungodly amount of horsepower. But the live aspect for me is it's a challenge‑‑ it's really scary when you think about it because I think that what FOX Sports is going to do, especially in the summer when they have the four events that will not only be on live but they will be on FOX, not FOX sports, so that really is going to give us access to probably another million fans, so when you think of it in those terms, that we're going to be live and there's so much pressure that's going to be on all of us, it's a little intimidating, but that's not my focus. My focus is being able to do a good job for the people that hired me but really for the audience, and for me that is going to mean that I need to break the technical side of our sport down really in layman's terms, because the fans that we have, they understand it, they get it. They're going to be tuning in whether they like me or Warren Johnson or John Force. They're tuning in to watch racing.
So my job is to be objective, to be unbiassed, whether it's John or my brother or anyone else. I specifically want to do a good job in pointing out the things that the common viewer really doesn't know that would find interesting. When cars‑‑ we use the term drop cylinders, if I use that term, I'm going to explain what a dropped cylinder is. So I'm really going to shy away from some of the terms that were being used previously because as a viewer, I want to know what is that thing you just called pedaling. If you say pedaling, I'm looking for somebody on a bicycle. I may use the term or explain it differently that the driver has to get in and out of the throttle to allow the car to regain traction.
So I think those are the things that are going to be interesting. When I say the drivers are going to play an important role, I'd like to see less redundancy in the way of being‑‑ the first 10 seconds, that the content is the sponsors that the viewer can see. They're staring at an eight‑foot logo on the side of the car, so really everyone has a stake in this. The drivers have to be interesting if they want airtime. I have to do a good job.
I'm confident in the team around me, but really the direction that the production is going is completely different. I've seen some of the graphics that the group from FOX Sports has done, and it's really amazing. I almost think that I'm getting out of the seat at the wrong time, but for me the timing is right. I've had some close calls in my career. It's never enough for a driver, so I'm excited about my new position.

Q. Tony, I have a question expanding on some points that you just made, the first regarding the lingo of the sport. Every baseball fan knows what going yard means. They know that, and in NASCAR they know what a slide job is. They know what it is. You referenced pedaling. Have you thought or have you sat with a sheet of paper and tried to conceive what the jargon can and will be? You've suggested that you might go in a different direction. You in a strange way control that, and cool names stick. You could come up with something. I agree with you, the words "pedal fest" didn't really do it for me, but I also couldn't come up with anything better. I have to admit that, otherwise I would have and thrown it out. Have you done that? Are you spending time trying to come up with a jargon, a lingo that you want to use to spread out to new fans?
TONY PEDREGON: I have, believe it or not, and I've put a lot of thought into it. I can't say that I'm not completely there, but I've got about two and a half weeks to be there. But I agree with you. Some of the terms we understood because we've grown up around it, we're fans. But again, the direction is‑‑ and the objective is for this sport to grow, I was listening to Leah and even to Erica, and I know guys like Larry Dixon and Tommy Johnson and Antron, and not a lot of them have really had the opportunity that I had. I was a hired driver. I started at the bottom of our sport. I worked my way up, and I really had the opportunity‑‑ it was luck, it was timing, it was a lot of things that played a role into becoming a team owner.
So really until‑‑ for this sport to continue to grow, we need to grow the popularity, because the TV racing is one thing that can change the game. So I want to do a good job. I know that FOX Sports has their A team behind us, not their B team or C team. I've met them. I've seen them. They were in California. A couple days later I saw them in Charlotte. So I know that they are behind building this sport. They want to produce not a good show, a great show. I've seen what NHRA has done and what they've achieved by putting the production in house. They can see it. It's all the time hands on, and you know, I've run a business, and that's the only way to do it.
I can see all these good things happening, and if everybody does their job, it may take a little while. I don't want it to take too long, but I think the current fans we have are going to like it. They may be critical. Nobody likes a transition or change, but the goal should be where is this sport going to be in one year or in three years from now, and so my goal is to see some of those drivers evolve like I did and have the same opportunity, and if that rating can improve, you'll see the sponsors come‑‑ a lot of good things will become of everybody doing a good job, but live TV is something that it's hard to not get excited about that because I think what we've all done in the sport, even myself, I'm guilty of it, I think we've lowered our standards so much that we've almost gotten used to chasing the show on Sunday or chasing qualifying.
So I think it's time to expect more, and I'm putting the work in, and I can see all of my teammates that I'm going to be working with, they're nonstop around the clock. I've got John Kernan out waiting for me in the shop, and I know he's been working around the clock. So these are good things that this group is doing.

Q. And my follow‑up regards what I would call the unapologetic, tell‑it‑like‑it‑is call‑out, much like Charles Barkley brought to the analyst's position. When and in what other sport do you see an analyst have such popularity and the ability to drive ratings? People know that they're going to get the real deal from Chuck. The challenge is he's calling out someone who is hundreds of thousands of miles away in another arena. You are on the property with these guys. Same with NASCAR, we see it, and there is a lack of willingness to say straightforward that someone didn't do their job when 10 minutes from now you could see them or they could see you, and it's like, oh, hey, what's going on. It's easier for Charles Barkley to call out an athlete in an arena 1,500 miles away that he may not see. Are you prepared to do that? Are you ready to do that? And do you think that's vital to the success of your job and your broadcast?
TONY PEDREGON: Well, to answer your last question, I think that's very vital, and I think that's very observant for you to bring that up, and just ironically, Charles Barkley, one of his quotes was when they hired him, he wasn't hired to protect one of his buddies like Michael Jordan, because he had a relationship with a lot of the players. Not all of them. But I think my record speaks for itself, at least in the previous capacity as a driver. I've always been vocal. That's never really been an issue with me.
And I think that my position‑‑ hey, if they want to pull me back, I'm going to have somebody in my ear if they want to say, Tony, tune it down or give me instructions, then they'll do that.
However, I've put some thought into exactly what your question is, and I think that‑‑ I want to have a mutual understanding with most of the drivers regardless of what category or what class they're in. I'm going to call what I see on the track. I'm going to point out things that most of the viewers don't know or may find interesting, but I think that I'd rather have a mutual understanding that they are going to need me and I'm going to need them, and as long as we have that understanding, they may or may not like it. If they do a good job, I'm going to point it out. If they don't do a good job, I may point out my thoughts and give me opinions.
The one thing that I can say is what you see is what you get, and I think the fans, if nothing else, will at least appreciate that authenticity, and I think that's important with any product or any TV show that people know that they're getting the real thing, and they'll get that with me.

Q. Tony, in your new capacity, your new role as a TV analyst, have you accepted the fact that you might not ever race in competition again, and if so, how are you handling that?
TONY PEDREGON: I have, and you know, I'm still in the same shop that Cruz is in. I have offices here in this facility, and I can see what they're going through, and some of it I miss and some of it I don't. It's really a high‑pressure business, and you know, what most people don't realize is I think the perception is that the off‑season is‑‑ team owners go to Florida and they go fishing. But if you spent a little time around these race shops, it's really the busiest time of the year for all of them. So there are some things that I miss and then some things that I don't, only because I'm just going a different direction. I've conceded to the fact that if I never get in a race car again, I'm actually okay with that.
I mentioned I've been doing this for so long, I've had some good times, I've had some not‑so‑good times that I really thought that I wouldn't pull out of it, and I've had some friends that unfortunately didn't walk away. I was very close with Eric Medlen. I respected Scott Kalitta, and myself, we were close to the same age, we had kids, so there were so many things that we had in common, and Darrell Russell, and so many others that, hey, they really gave their lives to the sport.
I respect that and what they've done and everything that's lost their lives in this sport. I remember when I was a kid, my dad used to tell me about friends of his that had some accidents, so as exciting and entertaining as it is, it's not the safest occupation, but I have a feeling that when I'm up in the tower, I'm probably going to miss it more than any other time.
So it really hasn't hit me, but I'm having my moments.

Q. As a follow‑up to that question, would you say that the last few years, the struggle being real just to‑‑ at times I saw the heartbreak in your eyes of having to sit out a session or sit out a race, the struggle just to make ends meet on the racetrack? Would you say that that made your decision more easy than if you were right in the mix, mixing it up with John Force and Don Schumacher?
TONY PEDREGON: It was tough to go through that, but you know, one thing that I always kept in mind, even going through tough times, Bobby, if you knew and if most people knew where I came from and where Cruz came from and a lot like us, we grew up in a very modest upbringing, and I tell people, hey, we all come from the same dirt, and really in a way I mean that. It's funny, my wife even pointed out to me, hey, what are you doing, and it's as if I were pulling a lever on a slot machine, but hey, I'm no different or was no different than any other team owner. Small business owners sometimes will take some risks, will stick with it sometimes longer than we have to, but in the back of my mind I always knew that your character shows not when things are going good, because I've been there, too, when I was in the points lead, winning races, the guy to beat, on the top, but the times that you really need to show your true colors are when things are tough.
To answer your question, as hard as it was, I knew financially‑‑ it was almost like getting in a fight with one hand behind your back, so I knew I wasn't able to compete on the level that I wanted to, but there was a lot of us. There was a lot of us that couldn't. I would have continued.
I think that some better things were on the horizon for the sport, but it was a decision that felt right to me, and at least up to this point, I'm good with it. It may change when I see a couple cars turning the win light on, but still, I think I'm still going to have to make the transition. But the exciting thing is the audience that tunes in, they're going to get to see it, and they'll see it live.

Q. When you were going to square off with John Force you didn't have a hand tied behind your back, you had them both out there.
TONY PEDREGON: I had them right to my side, though, out of respect.

Q. You touched a little bit earlier saying you got a lot of support and guidance from your producers and everything already. I was wondering if in the off‑season did you get any kind of media training or did you talk to any consultants or anything like that to prepare you for this change?
TONY PEDREGON: I did, and I'm still in the process of them providing some coaching, and that was one of my requests. I accepted the position, but I was smart enough to understand that being on one side of the camera and simply talking about what you just went through in a car, I did know and really mostly because of my conversations with Cruz and his experience in the booth for the year, so that was one of the things that I wanted, I knew I would need. I knew that it would only help me transition.
So I have been myself putting a lot of time in, but they've also provided some expert coaching and training, and it's still taking place, and I think one of the things that's going to be important for us is to really work together as a team, and we're going to do a rehearsal and a walk‑through at the Phoenix test, so I think we'll get a lot accomplished just to gear up for that first event.

Q. And also you talked a little bit about getting into a different way of presenting and everything, but I'm sure you've heard the criticism that NHRA drivers are too nice to each other and everything. Is there any way to bring that out without trying to foster a WWD kind of a wrestling kind of a thing? Is there a way to bring out a little bit more personality, and is that something that you would like to see between the drivers so that they're not just congratulating each other all the time?
TONY PEDREGON: I'd love to see it. I think everyone would love to see it, as long as it's authentic. Yes, there is a way for myself and for any pit reporter, for anyone at the end of the track, and that is going to be our job and our responsibility, to help the driver when they get out of the car. We want the real story. Okay, we'll help them mentioning the sponsor names and we'll point those things out, but we just want a real genuine interview, and there are going to be some times that we get some good stuff, and I think the job for FOX Sports is to capture that. We need to complement that.
But I think to your point, not everybody loves one another, even though they may say it on TV, and those are some of the things that I'd like to point out, and they or may not like it. But again, this is entertainment. As long as we have a mutual understanding that we want a good show, I think the end result should show on TV.

Q. Tony, as far as the changes that you're going to be going through and you're going to have a guy, producer barking in your ear and you have to ask questions and your commentary has got to be concise, what do you think is going to be your biggest hurdle going from track to the booth?
TONY PEDREGON: Building chemistry with my team, with Dave Rieff, Jamie Howe and John Kernan. I've worked with them. I know them all. I think they do a very good job, but I think the challenge for all of us, including the production team, is to have time together, to build a chemistry. I knew how vital that was for a racing team, and that's something that's really underestimated that people don't realize is that from what we call a bottom‑end guy that's responsible for torquing the rods all the way to your crew chief, there's a lot of good ones, and there's some good talent with this team, and I think the chemistry and working together and being smooth and being able to work off of one another, I've been watching a lot of NFL, and I've seen how well John Gruden and Mike Tirico and Phil Simms, these guys just build that chemistry and you can only get that in time, and our goal is to be able to achieve that in short amount of time.
SCOTT SPEED: Tony, thank you very much for your time and being patient, and we will see you when the series kicks off in your new role as we head into Pomona in a couple weeks.

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