Buddy Hull is coming off one of the best weekends of his drag racing career, so he is ready to keep that momentum flowing at the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park, just outside of Phoenix, Arizona, March 21-23. The driver for Jim Dunn Racing is currently sitting in the No. 8 spot in points for Funny Car, his debut in the Top 10, with plans to keep climbing from there.
“Gainesville was a very good weekend for us,” said Hull. “We made it to the quarterfinals after getting past Daniel Wilkerson in round one, and we made a run that was a career-best at the 1/8th mile, which shows how much work Jon Dunn put into the car during the off-season. I think it’s a real indicator of how this season is going to go for us. Seeing real improvement through our results on the track.”
Two weeks ago, at the AMALIE Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Hull made it to the second quarterfinal of his career, the first since his son, Maverick, was born in mid-August. He then fell during the second round to eventual race winner, Chad Green.
“It was super special to have Maverick here for this win,” said Hull. “He slept through it, but just knowing he was on the starting line with my wife, Madi, means a lot. Raising a racetrack kid means he’s going to be here for all the big and small moments of my career, which just makes the whole experience even better. I’m incredibly lucky to be able to do what I do, surrounded by my family.”
This weekend, Hull will be busy on the NHRA Stage on Friday at 11:30 a.m., leading New Fan Orientation with Hannah Rickards. Jim Dunn Racing will also be hosting over 200 USD employees as they attend the event. USD will be featured this weekend on the nitro Funny Car, with a soaring eagle livery. And to top it all off, there will be an in-car camera to further highlight all of the action.
USD has been servicing customers in the southwest for over 45 years, with a commitment to advanced technology and superior customer satisfaction. They are an authorized full-line distributor of ACDelco (General Motors), Motorcraft (Ford) and Mopar (Chrysler) original equipment auto parts and accessories. Their corporate headquarters and largest warehouse is located in Phoenix, Arizona, about 20 minutes north of the track.
“We are so excited to have a large group of USD employees out to the track,” said Hull. “They’ve had a long relationship with both Jim Dunn Racing and the Dunn family, and I loved getting to meet and interact with them last year at this race. This is their home race, so we want to do them proud.”
In addition to USD, Hull will also be repping season-long sponsors Lescure Mechanical Services, Mooneyes, Blaze Exhaust Probes, KGC Construction, Vertex Roofers and General Contractors, Crow Safety, Koppl Pipeline Services, True Brand and Wiley X.
“Being No. 8 in points is a great place to start in for the weekend,” said Hull. “But for the sake of my team, my sponsors, my family and myself, I owe it to everyone to keep going and moving on up in the point standings. Jim, Jon and the rest of the team have given me a great car, and it’s my job to be as aggressive as I can with it and go some rounds. I think Phoenix is going to be another great weekend for us.”
Hull and the Jim Dunn Racing team will have two qualifying runs on Friday, March 21, and then two more qualifying runs on March 22 at Firebird Motorsports Park. The top 16 quickest Funny Cars will advance to race day starting on Sunday, March 23 at 11 a.m. PT, with the first round of eliminations live on FS1; for tickets or more information on the NHRA Arizona Nationals, visit nhra.com.
This story was originally published on March 19, 2025.
The post Hull Flying High Coming Into Phoenix first appeared on Drag Illustrated.