NHRA Top Fuel Star Clay Millican Is Coming To Drag-And-Drive With Dentley
From a 10,000hp nitro dragster to a beat-up Dodge truck, some might call Clay Millican’s choice of vehicle for his next project a step down — but that couldn’t be any further from the truth.
For the last half a decade, Millican has been transforming his late son Dalton’s four-door Dodge pickup into a drag-and-drive ready monster, complete with a twin-turbo 6.1L Hemi and a funny car-style roll cage. Known as Dentley, the truck will make its first competition runs at some stage in 2023. He’s on the entry list for Sick Week 2023 Presented By Gear Vendors Overdrive, which takes place around Florida from February 12 to 17, but he currently rates himself a 50-50 chance of making it as the time crunch of a new NHRA season approaches.
The truck has gathered a solid following online thanks to its unique platform and a heartfelt story.
“You give a teenage kid a vehicle and you know it will have a dent in every spot, so that’s why it’s called Dentley,” Millican said. “This is such a special vehicle, being my son’s truck, but you know, it wasn’t necessarily fun to drive. Then Jeff Lutz got involved and it has been a five-year long process to build and become something I enjoy driving. The stories I hear about racers fixing stuff on the side of the road might sound miserable to some, but to me it sounds fun.”
Being a professional Top Fuel driver means Millican rarely has time for other forms of competition, and even in the off-season this is the case, with NHRA testing just one of the pressures Millican faces right now. Even if he doesn’t make it to Sick Week, Millican can’t wait to be involved in the drag-and-drive scene.
“For the last year we have been all about getting Dentley finished to get to an event. I just want to participate. Drag-and-drive has become a culture, and while I’ve been 330mph and upside down on fire, I love anything to do with racing or being motorized.”
Millican has set his expectations low as far as performances, with the truck never having seen a dyno or scales.
“We have done nothing but add weight to it so all I want it some tens and if it goes faster than that, I will be pumped up!
“My idea was this is something I can do where I don’t necessarily need to be the fastest guy. I’m not going to compete with Tom Bailey or anyone going super fast, I just want to enjoy driving, hanging out with my friends and going down a drag strip because that is what I enjoy doing.
“Jeff Lutz built this truck, and he has done very well at drag-and-drive. He said keep it cool and keep it charging. Those are usually the biggest problems you can have. We have tried to stay with parts that are readily available, and I will have plenty of friends around to hold my hand and make sure I do everything correctly.”
