Grudge and no-time (N/T) racing standout Mario Johnson has never been known for doing anything second-rate, and when he chose to return to the 4.84-inch bore-space arena with another car of his own, he did it the only way he knows how: first class all the way.
Johnson set the bar high two years ago with the debut of his spectacular ’67 Camaro, Lucky Luciano, and his new ’69, known as Pressure, follows right in its footsteps with show-winning looks. The most notable difference this time around, though, is Johnson’s transition from nitrous oxide injection to a ProCharger-boosted combination.
Last season, Johnson teamed up with friend Randolph Scott and veteran racer and promoter Mike Hill to campaign the Uncle Sam Camaro. While talking strategy in the offseason, Johnson iterated that in order to compete adequately with the level of competition in today’s 4.84 shootouts, a new build was necessary.
“This build started off as a partnership between Randolph and myself,” Johnson begins. “He had a brand new Fulton nitrous engine, but in the midst of the build he took on a new business venture and went to do that, and that was when I decided I was going to do something different. I always try to be a trendsetter of some type, and looking at the rules for three years and having the experience in the class, I just wanted another challenge. I’m not a turbo man, so I didn’t want to do turbo, but I felt like ProCharger was badass, and I love zoomie headers, so that’s the direction I chose to go.”
Johnson secured the services of Teddy Houser Race Cars in North Carolina to construct the stunning new piece that features a Joe Van O carbon-fiber body, one-off RC Comp polished wheels, Strange Engineering’s new Evolution series brakes, a custom Hammer Concepts rearend housing, a FuelTech ECU and electronics, and Menscer Motorsports 4-way adjustable shocks and struts at all four corners. The unique color started as orange and was mixed with several other candy colorways to produce a striking hue to compliment the polished parts and pieces.
“Teddy and Zach Houser are like family to me, and so we put our heads together, and I got with Ziff Hudson and we came up with a plan,” Johnson explains. “I always try to outdo myself, and with this build that’s what we did. I had never worked with ProCharger, so I called up Fletcher Cox, and he connected me with their team.’ There haven’t been ProCharger cars in the 4.84…
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