Reigning Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock world champion Johnny Pluchino will roll into the third annual Mountain Motor Pro Stock Invitational (MMPSI) at Bradenton Motorsports Park with Ross Environmental Services on the side of his Ford Mustang. In a continuation of a partnership that started with Pluchino’s championship weekend in Las Vegas last fall, Pluchino will represent Ross Environmental Services in the $25,000-to-win shootout held in conjunction with the Drag Illustrated World Series of Pro Mod, Feb. 27-March 1.
“I’m extremely excited to bring the Ross Environmental Services group back out with us as we chase the $25K,” said Pluchino, a two-time PDRA Extreme Pro Stock world champion. “After launching our partnership and winning the NHRA championship in Vegas, I got a chance to head down to their facilities in Ohio to check out their operation and I was extremely impressed. It’s a third-generation family deal, so it’s close to home with our team. It’s just an impressive company that’s been around for over 75 years and I’m honored to be able to carry their name.”
Pluchino enters the MMPSI with momentum from the last running of the event, as well as from the end of the season. He started his 2024 campaign with a runner-up finish at the MMPSI, then won the first two events on the PDRA Extreme Pro Stock tour, adding No. 1 qualifier efforts at the second and third races. He closed out the PDRA season with a win at the Brian Olson Memorial World Finals. On the NHRA side, he went into the season finale as the points leader with two wins in five races. The New York native swept the Ford Performance NHRA Nationals, qualifying No. 1, winning the race, and securing the first-ever NHRA world championship for the class.
“I can’t ask for more than that,” Pluchino said. “You can only write those things down on paper and they usually don’t come true, but we were fortunate to have it all play out in our favor. We hope to keep performing at that level. It’s extremely difficult to maintain that, but we will work as hard as we can to do so.”
With Ross Environmental Services on board, Pluchino is determined to kick off his championship defense season with a big-money win at Bradenton. Working with his father, 2016 PDRA Extreme Pro Stock world champion John Pluchino, the second-generation driver has consistently proven himself at the MMPSI over the past two seasons. He’s still chasing that trophy, though, but he’s confident this is the year it goes home with him.
“Starting off the season, we just gotta go out there and pick up where we left off,” said Pluchino, who also thanked returning partners like Jon Kaase Racing Engines, Ram Clutches, Kelling Equipment Repair, Feather-Lite Batteries, and Maxima Racing Oil. “We left off extremely strong. We know we’re the ones to beat, whether everyone feels that way or not, but you gotta go out there and you gotta get the job done. We’re motivated.We’ve got two races like this under our belt in the last two years. We went to the semis and the finals, so the next step is to win the thing.”
Pluchino will hit Bradenton Motorsports Park for MMPSI qualifying sessions on Friday, Feb. 27 and Saturday, Feb. 28, before rolling into eliminations on Saturday, March 1.
To learn more about Ross Environmental Services Inc, visit www.RossEnvironmental.com.
This story was originally published on February 14, 2025.
The post Johnny Pluchino to Banner Ross Environmental Services at Mountain Motor Pro Stock Invitational first appeared on Drag Illustrated.