CONCORD, N.C. — Angelle Sampey-Drago, the most successful female driver in NHRA history, is coming out of retirement.
Sampey-Drago will make a comeback at age 44 with her old team, Star Racing. Announcement of her return came during the second day of qualifying for the Carolina Nationals at zMax Dragway.
A Pro Stock motorcycle driver, Sampey-Drago retired seven years ago with 41 career wins.
Driver Michael Ray resigned from Star Racing earlier this week.
"I had a top 10 list of people that I needed to call and tell them before they read it on the Internet or they heard it from someone else," owner George Bryce said.
One of those people is his 17-year-old daughter, Julie, who, Bryce said "helps us make a lot of the decisions in life and business."
"I told her what happened and she said right away, 'Hang up the phone, call Angelle, tell her it's an emergency, tell her to come over right now and start practicing.' "
After consulting with her family, Sampey-Drago agreed to return. She hasn't raced since the 2008 Pamona Finals in California. Her last race win was at Houston in 2007.
Sampey-Drago retired in order to take care of her family, which now includes a 3-year-old. Her first time back on a bike was earlier this week in a test in Valdosta, Ga.
"I was scared to death for my first race. I literally almost gave myself a heart attack," Sampey-Drago said. "I had chest pain, I was scared."
After a few runs to get the nerves out, she buckled down and ran a 6.90 pass. As she took the bike back to the finish line and shut it off, she couldn't wait to stop. When it finally did, she "was jumping up and down and screaming and yelling like I had just won a race."
That's when Sampey-Drago said she knew she still had the passion.
Sampey-Drago will make her return either at Dallas next weekend or the following weekend in St. Louis. She needs four wins to tie the late Dave Schultz's Pro Stock Motorcycle record.
"That was the one thing I kept telling [myself]," Sampey-Drago said. "If ever there's a glimpse of a chance to come out [of retirement], that would be why."