30 UNDER 30
30 UNDER 30
TY TUTTEROW
Ty Tutterow has been around racing his entire life . It ’ s a sport he ’ s been fed turned into a passion he now eats , sleeps , and breathes . Despite being just 21 years old , he ’ s got 12 years of experience on 660 and 1320-foot tracks across the country . Thanks to his association with his father , Todd “ King Tut ” Tutterow and the growing conglomerate that is GALOT Motorsports , Ty has had the unique opportunity to go almost immediately from Junior Dragster racing to Pro Mod . He bracket raced his grandfather ’ s Camaro for a couple of years before licensing in a Pro Mod at the age of 18 . And next season he ’ ll be a full-time hired gun , driving a GALOT Motorsports car in PDRA Pro Boost with teammate John Strickland while Kevin Rivenbark and the eldest Tutterow will follow the NHRA Pro Mod tour .
Ty made his PDRA Pro Boost debut at the season finale this year . He qualified a respectable 12th , and , incredibly , made it to the finals in his very first event , where he was beaten by the newly crowned world champion and his teammate , Rivenbark .
“ It ’ s an honor to drive for GALOT ,” Ty stated humbly . “ The last two years the program has gotten so much stronger . We went nine for nine races in PDRA Pro Boost . I think we , without a doubt , have the most competitive Pro Boost cars and some of the most competitive Pro Mod cars , period . I ’ m very excited to pursue the PDRA tour next season . I ’ m beyond words , actually . It ’ s still sinking in .
“ It ’ s a big honor to be a part of this deal . None of this would be possible without having sponsors and people to help me get to this point . Hank Thomas Performance has helped me out since I started racing . The opportunity that Mr . Wells has given me is a once-in-a-lifetime deal . Who would think they ’ d put a 21-year-old in a Pro Mod car ?”
Ty has already been a full-time employee of GALOT Motorsports for two years now , maintaining the fleet of cars , assembling engines and transmissions , as well as servicing the trucks and trailers . And just because he ’ ll be a driver on the PDRA tour doesn ’ t mean he ’ ll skip out on NHRA . At those events he ’ s assigned to service the engine and clutch on his father ’ s blown Camaro . In his free time , both Ty and his father continue to bracket race .
Although Ty ’ s early success wasn ’ t necessarily expected , it ’ s also not surprising , given the people he ’ s surrounded himself with through the years , namely his father , as well as folks like Stevie Jackson , Phil Schuler and tuner Jeff Bohr .
“ I go into every race believing there ’ s a way we can win . Losing is not an option . Stuff happens , but when we go to the race track we go for one reason : to win . I think that ’ s helped us a lot in our performance . With Mr . Wells , everything is number one .” – LISA COLLIER DI
PHOTOS : IAN TOCHER
94 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated . com Issue 115