Todd Paton
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Hometown: | Rancho Santa Margarita, California | ||
| Birth Place: | Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Canada | |||
| Date Of Birth: | December 13, 1969 | |||
| Best ET: | 3.940 seconds (1000′) / 4.703 seconds (1/4 mile) | |||
| Best Speed: | 317.72 mph (508.35 km/h) | |||
| E-mail: | toddpaton@toddpaton.com |
This 44-year-old driver has a long list of accomplishments in his 23 year career. Todd took over the driving duties of the family Alcohol Funny Car from his father in 1991. One year later, Paton won his first of seven IHRA national events, and captured the IHRA World Championship in 1993 and again in 1995.
The first of Paton’s four career NHRA national event wins in Federal-Mogul Funny Car came at the prestigious U.S. Nationals in 1996. The popular driver has been voted Canadian Drag Racer of the Year five times and finished in the top ten in the NHRA Federal-Mogul Funny Car points battle from 1996 to 1999.
Paton, a married father of two, upgraded to a fuel Funny Car license the day after capturing the Federal Mogul Funny Car title at the 1999 Mac Tools Gatornationals. On his second lap in a nitro car, he recorded a 5.325 @ 283.91 mph.
In his professional debut at the 2000 NHRA Gatornationals, Todd showed what he and the team were capable of right away, running 4.916 at 315.42 mph on his very first lap in the Nitro Fish car. After taking a year off from the NHRA tour in 2001, during which time he moved from Canada to the United States to be closer to the NHRA tour, he returned for a full assault on the 2002 NHRA PowerAde Funny Car tour with his Nitro Fish Camaro.
During the 2002 season Todd posted many round wins, including victories over John Force, Ron Capps and Dean Skuza, to name a few. Along the way, he bettered his career-best performance to 4.876 seconds, and nearly matched his career-best speed by running as fast as 313.95 mph.
After beginning the 2003 season behind the wheel of a funny car, Todd switched to a Top Fuel dragster in which he finished a respectable third in the IHRA Points Series. In 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2010, he earned five more Top 10 finishes in Top Fuel.
Besides being licensed to drive both Nitro Funny Cars and Top Fuel Dragsters, Todd also has a commercial pilot’s license, in addition to a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Sciences. He currently works for Racepak Data Systems in Rancho Santa Margarita, California. In 2013, Todd, who was born in Saskatchewan, Canada, fulfilled his citizenship requirements and officially became a U.S. citizen.