Zayne Condello

I was originally introduced to drag racing by my Nonno (grandfather) at a very young age. From that day onwards, I had an obsession with the sport. Growing up around cars was a crucial point in my career and passion; it didn’t just fuel my interest, but it also taught me multiple life lessons about the wrongs and rights in life. 

Drag racing has not just been a side hobby for me; it has become a big part of my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Something about the thrill of strapping into a race car gets me going. Racing has been a lot more then just a fun sport to me aswell, I and a lot of other people struggle with mental health issues, but I have found that my best course of action to help myself has always been putting a helmet on and letting speed and concentration take care of my worries for me, that would have to be the biggest reason I am still here pushing in this sport.

There are quite a few Australian drivers that I look up to quite a bit (Joe Condello, Tomi Raikko, Simon Barlow and Sean Maher). There has always been something about a crazy short wheel base car that is trying to pull you the longest way down the track every pass has sparked my interest, but the bracket racing side of the sport holds a special place in my heart. Cutting lights, driving the stripe, all the calculations made before the race has even started, it’s just one massive thrill, and I love it. If we were talking about my favourite driver from the states, that is also a multi-answer question, my top pick would have to be between Clay Millican, Donnie Hagar, and GallstarTV.

I have always wanted to go over to the States to race the big guys of the sport. I think this point in my junior dragster career would be the perfect time to go over and race against some of the best in the world. Aside from racing, getting over to America has always been a massive dream of mine, so not only getting there but to race there as well would make it one of, if not my biggest child hood dream come true.

I have always had a love for bracket racing while also going fast. After a lot of thinking about what my future in drag racing holds for me, I believe a blown big block dragster would be my ultimate dream. I have always wanted to race in a class called Supercharged Outlaws, but I also want to do something a bit more classic, like Modified, and that dragster would allow me to meet the criteria for both classes.

If we were to talk about the possibility of stepping into a Group 1 car, I’ve always loved the Pro Slammer class, which is a sedan-based vehicle with a big blower and insane horsepower! It would be awesome to get to steer one of those, but first, I would like to follow my love of bracket racing.