NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

For the last two seasons, Austin Prock and his family-led Funny Car program made winning look almost routine. Race wins piled up . Championships followed. Expectations soared. From the outside, it appeared effortless. From the inside, Prock knew better.

The 2026 season has presented a different challenge. After leaving John Force Racing and helping build a new program at Tasca Racing from the ground up, Prock has found himself navigating unfamiliar parts, new combinations, and the steep learning curve that comes with recreating a championship-caliber operation. The experience has tested both the team and the driver. It has also reminded Prock exactly who he is.

"When everything's going right on one of these race cars, it's stressful and it's a lot of hard work," Prock said. "Fortunately, the last two years we've made it look really easy, but that was years and years of effort all compiled into two seasons."

The foundation of that success was built long before the trophies arrived.

A Family of Fast

Prock credits much of it to his father, Jimmy, who spent years refining the championship package that ultimately dominated the Funny Car category. Adding brother Thomas to the team only accelerated the process. That combination produced one of the most successful stretches in recent Funny Car history. But when the Prock family joined Tasca Racing this season, they essentially started over.

"We cleaned house," Prock said. "Everything that [my dad] had in there, we got rid of, and we came up with our own package."

The challenge was magnified by the reality that many of the components that powered their success at John Force Racing were proprietary and unavailable outside the organization. For a family that had spent decades working within one system, learning an entirely different approach required patience.

"My dad worked at Force's for 25 or 27 years, and I've been there since high school," Prock said. "So getting outside of that bubble and learning the nuances of all the other parts the competition is running has definitely been a learning curve."

The results haven't always shown the progress being made behind the scenes. Yet Prock believes every test session, every difficult race weekend, and every frustrating setback has strengthened the team's understanding of the car.

"Every step of the way we've gotten more intelligent," he said. "We've become better at our craft, and this car is really showing a lot of potential."

In fact, Prock believes the current struggles may eventually produce an even better race car than the one that dominated a year ago.

"When we do hit it, I think you're going to see a more powerful and quicker race car than what you've seen in previous years."

While the technical side of the challenge has been substantial, Prock says the biggest lessons have come mentally. Over the last several seasons, he has learned that driving a Funny Car at the highest level requires far more than quick reaction times and driving skill. It requires managing pressure, expectations, criticism, and self-doubt.

"I've really learned how mental this sport is as a race car driver," he said. "Your brain has to be able to handle so much information and so many different circumstances and levels of pressure." Ironically, Prock says having a dominant race car can sometimes increase that pressure.

He sees similarities between his own experience and the season currently being enjoyed by Top Fuel standout Shawn Langdon.

When a team provides a car capable of winning every weekend, drivers often find themselves worrying about becoming the weak link.

"You think everything would just be easier," Prock said. "It actually puts more pressure on the driver because you look at being the one that could potentially screw it up." Learning to block out that noise became one of the defining challenges of his championship seasons. Now, after enduring a more difficult year, Prock believes he's emerging as a stronger competitor.

"It's made me tougher," he said. "It's made me able to lock in better and block out the noise."

Champion-to-Champion Advice

That perspective is why Prock has a message for fellow racers experiencing their own struggles, including reigning Flexjet NHRA Factory Stock Showdown champion Mark Pawuk, who is in a very similar situation developing Dodge's all-new Charger Drag Pak platform this season.

To Mark Pawuk: "Don't ever forget who you are and what you've done in the past," Prock said.

The advice comes from experience.

There were moments earlier this season when Prock admits he questioned himself. During one particularly difficult stretch, he found himself sitting at home replaying mistakes and wondering whether he would ever return to Victory Lane.

Then his fiancée offered a simple reminder.

"I was beating myself up as a race car driver," Prock recalled. "My fiancée pointed at my trophies and said, 'You see those two trophies in front of you? Driver of the Year, back-to-back years. Not very many people can say that.'"

The reminder helped reset his perspective.

"It reminded me that I can do it. I just have to go up there and do what I know how to do."

For Prock, success isn't about overthinking. It's about trusting the work. Trusting the team. Trusting the equipment.

"It's when I don't think about driving that I'm the best," he said. "Sometimes you just need to remind yourself what you've done and where you came from."

That mindset has carried him through the difficult moments of 2026 and reinforced a belief that has guided him throughout his career.

"The person that works the hardest is always going to win the most in anything in life."

Love of Speed

Despite the frustrations and growing pains, Prock's love for drag racing remains unchanged. The victories matter. The championships matter. But the journey itself remains the greatest reward.

"I truly do enjoy racing in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series," he said. "I really love racing with my family and this team."

It's the combination of struggle and success that keeps him coming back. The long nights. The setbacks. The breakthroughs. And ultimately, the chance to stand in the winner's circle holding a Wally.

"When all that work and effort finally comes together, and you're holding the trophy at the end of the day, you just can't make that feeling anywhere else."

It's why Prock remains optimistic about what's ahead. The wins haven't come as easily this season. The road has been harder. The learning curve has been steeper. But if the last few months have proven anything, it's that Austin Prock's greatest strength may not be the race cars he's driven.

It may be the resilience he's developed when they don't perform perfectly.

"You never work a day in your life when you get to do what you love," Prock said. "And I'm one of those lucky individuals."