funny car 270 mph
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Funny Car Nearly Takes Flight During 270 MPH Run


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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUud0lGU0x0

Funny Cars and dragsters that compete in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) are in the business of going insanely fast in a short amount of time. Needless to say, controlling these cars when you're going well over 200 MPH can be an extremely daunting task. So much so that there have been some instances of cars actually getting airborne during some more extreme runs.

Back in 2016, there was almost an instance of a Funny Car going into orbit, when racer Cruz Pedregon's Funny Car nearly took flight as it was going around 270 MPH. Amazingly, Pedregon maintained control of the car as it almost lifted off the track. Even more amazingly, he managed to win that race by a landslide, despite almost losing control.

What a wild scene!

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Pedregon suffered a sore back as a result of the wheelie, while his Snap-on Tools Toyota sustained an unrepairable amount of damage. According to the NHRA, the insane speed that Pedregon was traveling at caused the front wheels to be lifted to 45-degree angle. On top of that, the front tires came up while Pedregon was 339 feet into the run and they didn't slam back onto solid ground until the 1,121-foot mark. Pedregon claims he was going as fast as 270 MPH during the insane run.

"I saw nothing but sky and was just hoping I was not around," Pedregon said.

While Pedregon took his foot of the throttle as soon as he could, it was too late to prevent the high-speed liftoff.

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"It already past the point of no return," he said.

Considering the severity of such Funny Car stunts as this, it's amazing that Pedregon made it out of this relatively unscathed.

This post was originally published on October 31, 2016.

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