Father and Daughter’s Impressive Collection of Eight-Second Mustangs Racking Up Wins
To the casual observer, what Gabriela “Gaby” Lujan accomplished at the recent National Mustang Racers Association (NMRA) World Finals in Bowling Green, Kentucky on September 30th and October 1st could easily seem like a dream debut weekend.
She captured not only the NMRA All-Female True Street class win, but followed it with a victory in the 8.60 Street Race class the next day, her first appearance in that class. In reality, for the Lujan family, street-legal Mustangs and racing are a way of life, for not just the family, but also several close friends.
This ’93 Ford Mustang coupe belongs to William Lujan, the head of Lujan Motorsports based out of Miami, Florida. If that name seems familiar, it might be because William is a back-to-back Sick Week 275 Street Race class champion with a supercharged 1990 Mustang hatchback.
William also participates in the NMRA 8.60 Street Race class, a new class to the series in 2022 which loosely uses some rules similar to most drag-and-drive 8.50-cage limited classes.
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That red Mustang would pull double duty status in 2023 at NMRA events, as Gaby and father William got equal time behind the wheel.
“I attended the NMRA Spring Break Shootout in 2022 (in a 2015 Eco boost Mustang), and the car's fastest pass was 12.83 at 106 mph,” said Gaby. “I instantly knew that it was too slow for me!
“I started borrowing dad's car in January 2023 to get my NHRA license, and then used it in March and June for NMRA's All-Female True Street, in which I was able to win both events.”
Although those appearances in the red hatchback could have made it appear that Gaby would take over the driving duties from William, plans were actually in the works for William’s white notch to be ‘reborn’ once again for Gaby to pilot. “Technically, the car is under his name and I'm the ‘hired’ gun,” Gaby joked.
The rebirth of the former nitrous car would be extensive, as the car actually caught fire on April 1, 2015 at the now-defunct Palm Beach International Raceway. “What an April Fool’s joke that was,” said Gaby. William did fix it after it caught fire, but after it broke in 2017, he parked it inside the family garage for several years. “We actually used it as a table, but eventually brought it to the shop in December 2022, and started building it in January this year.”
The white coupe will not just be focused on NMRA events in 2024, as Gaby will join Team Lujan as a competitor on Sick Week. The Lujan Motorsports team also includes Alex Corella, who won the 2022 Sick Week Street Race class, and Wilfredo Blanco who scooped up the 2023 Sick Week Dial-Your-One (DYO) class.
For the 2024 edition of Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive, Lujan Motorsports Team will have six rides in attendance.
“All of them are Ford-powered Fords, five Fox Mustangs and one S550 Mustang,” said Gaby. “Four of them did Sick Week in 2023: Willie Lujan, Alex Corella, Willy Blanco, and Gil Correa. We will also have a Sick Ward vehicle (second-gen Lightning). It would be huge if we could all finish the week, that is all we ask, and if we win, that is just the cherry on top!”
To get the white coupe prepped for NMRA as well as drag-and-drive duty, the Lujans acquired a 347 cubic inch small block Ford engine from fellow Ford enthusiast Sharad at UPR Products.
“It was built by MPR Racing Engines, has Trick Flow cylinder heads and intake, with a custom grind camshaft, and porting of the heads and intake done by Flowtech Induction,” said Gaby.
William stayed with the supercharged route by dialing up good friends at Vortech for a YSI blower, and selected FTI Performance for the Powerglide transmission and converter.
UPR Products came in clutch for a complete front and rear suspension setup, Lethal Performance provided their Division X fuel system, and a FuelTech FT600 tuned by Lance controls all the functions. All of this happened under one roof at the Lujan Motorsports shop.
With the Fox Mustang known as ‘Jolly Rancher’ and Gaby starting out on a double-win weekend, she’s looking forward to next year’s Sick Week and joining her large family for another fun event.
“Drag-and-drive events appeal to me because it is a whole week of racing,” said Gaby. “You are constantly doing something whether you are racing, fixing your car, or chatting with different people. There are so many different cars and combinations, the community is great (everyone is willing to help), and you get to explore different places.”
Next year’s Sick Week will be Gaby’s first time as a competitor, and she knows it could be a smooth or a rocky week.
“Sick Week 2022 was the most stressful week ever,” she admits. “Thankfully Sick Week 2023 was easygoing. There was a lot of carnage, late nights, and rushing (fixing the car in time to race) in 2022, but 2023 we pretty much only had minor issues Day 0 and Day 1 (a transmission issue on Willy's S550, and fuel pump issues for Alex Corella).
“I am definitely looking forward to participating in Sick Week 2024. It will definitely be a little more stressful with six total cars, but we are definitely looking forward to it!”
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Sebas Lujan, Lujan Motorsports and Chris Simmons Photography.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com