Don 'Snake' Prudhomme Scratches 28-Year Itch, Wins Class at NORRA Mexican 1000

• Don 'The Snake' Prudhomme's class win at the 2021 NORRA Mexican 1000 was his first in a racing event since an NHRA win in 1993.

• Prudhomme and co-driver/navigator Rich Minga battled the grueling off-road layout, with only minor delays due to either mechanical issues or penalties.

• This was Prudhomme's third try at the race through Baja in Mexico.

Ole’ to The Snake!

Legendary drag racer Don “Snake” Prudhomme earned his first win behind the wheel in 28 years, capturing the Evolution Stock Turbo class Friday in the annual week-long NORRA Mexican 1000 across the Baja peninsula in Mexico.

The win—Prudhomme’s first since his last triumph as a drag racer (the 1993 NHRA fall race at Texas Motor Speedway) before retiring at the end of that season—was quite the achievement, as Prudhomme turned 80 years old on April 6. It was his third attempt at earning a class win in the event, falling short in both 2018 and 2019 (the race was not contested last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

The race ended Friday, and Prudhomme returned to his Southern California home on Saturday and went straight to bed, a testament to the grueling nature of the 1,000-mile race.

Prudhomme was shown 31st overall. The overall winner was Rhys Millen from the Evolution Unlimited Buggy Class.

OVERALL RESULTSNational Off-Road Racing Association Mexican 1000

“I’m feeling pretty good,” Prudhomme told Autoweek on Sunday morning. “You stand in the winner's circle with a margarita in your hand, which is pretty cool. That’s way different than I ever did in the NHRA. But it’s a Mexican tradition down there, when you win and they put a big margarita in your hands.”

Prudhomme was in great spirits when he spoke Sunday, still riding the high of taking the checkered flag first. He and co-driver/navigator Rich Minga battled the grueling off-road layout, with only minor delays due to either mechanical issues or penalties. He and Minga crossed the finish line with a winning time of 19:49:18, a margin of victory of over three hours on their closest competitor.

“I am pretty sore but winning this race in the Turbo Class ranks right up there with any of my drag racing wins,” Prudhomme said. “I think I drove 600 of the 1,000 miles and Rich was great throughout the event.”

Prudhomme said one of the biggest keys to the win was to maintain his patience and composure.

“I had to quit thinking I was 80 years old,” Prudhomme said with a laugh. “You had to keep that out of your mind. We had a really good car, an amazing car. The real key was Rich Minga and P.J. Jones’ team (Jones also won his UTV class in the overall event).”