2013 Hall of Fame
The Mattera Family
E.G. and Mary Lou
Mattera are not racers
at MIR themselves, but
they raised a clan that
made a definite impact
on the Budds Creek
facility for more than
20 years. Seven
different members of the
Mattera clan have won
events at MIR and four
of the seven have won
track championships.
Only the youngest
Mattera brothers and
grandson have yet to do
that and it may only be
a matter of time.
The Mattera racing
family covers three
generations. E.G. and
Mary Lou provided the
education, support, and
encouragement. Their
sons Joey, John, Bobby,
Tony, and Danny all won
at MIR, and grandsons
Christopher and Jacob
look to continue the
family tradition.
E.G. was the mechanic
and then manager of the
police vehicle shop for
Prince Georges County,
Maryland. Using his
mechanical expertise, he
helped sons Joey and
John build their first
cars. He also introduced
them to Danny
Fitzmaurice. Danny got
Joey started in drag
racing. Joey, in turn,
got his brothers
involved. The youngest
Mattera Brothers were
nowhere near driving age
when Joey hit the strip,
but one by one, as they
came of age, each
Mattera brother entered
the sport and eventually
entered the MIR record
books.
Joey began with a Chevy
Nova that he raced from
1986 to 1995. He won
most of his races with
that car, but eventually
took his first
championship in a
dragster. Joey was the
Super Pro track champion
in 1997 and 1998, and
finished number two in
points a number of
times. Among his
accomplishments, Joey
made a perfect run in a
foot brake car in 2003.
That Pontiac Grand Am
sits waiting for his son
Christopher to come of
driving age. Joey is 49
and does Maintenance and
Operations for a public
school system. He is
married to Tracie and
has two kids,
Christopher and
Nicholas.
John raced a Chevy
Camaro right out of high
school. At times, he
dominated the Heavy
Eliminator/Mod ET
category, winning more
than a third of the
overall track
championships in that
category since 1990!
John’s amazing eight
track championships
began in 1991 and
continued through 2006.
They included
championship years in
1992, 1999, 2000, 2001,
2002, and 2005! John won
the Rick's Jewelers Ring
for the Queen
championship. Even when
John didn’t win the
track championship, he
was close. John finished
number two in points
many times, and finished
no worse than third for
many straight years.
John is 48 and a Truck
Driver. He is married to
Dawn and they have a son
Brandon.
Bobby began driving in
1987 and began racing in
1989. He didn’t race for
as long as his brothers,
but he certainly left
his mark! Bobby won the
track championship in
the Super Pro category
in 1991 while brother
Joey finished second!
Bobby is 44 and is a
Federal Government
Employee. He is married
to Laura and they have
twin girls, Megan and
Allyson.
Tony came next. Using
his street driven
machine, Tony delivered
pizzas by day and raced
at MIR by night. He won
the Rick's Jewelers Ring
for the Queen
championship and
regularly finishes in
the top ten in Heavy
Eliminator/Mod ET. In
fact, Tony led the
Bracket Finals team in
Mod ET in 2008 only to
fall short of the
eventual track
championship by 10
points. Tony is 38 and a
Fire Alarm Technician.
He is married to Lora
and they have four kids,
Caylee, Jacob, Leah, and
Gillian.
Danny is the youngest
brother at 35. He hasn’t
racked up a track
championship yet, but
was a top ten finisher
in 2006 and 2007. Among
his accomplishments,
Danny won two $5000
races in one day at MIR
in his Camaro. He also
won races at other
tracks. Danny took a
break after the 2007
season, but began racing
again last year. He is a
Fleet Manager for a
communications company.
Along with girlfriend
Jenna Peterson, they
take care of Albert the
dog and Thumper the cat.
Joey’s son Christopher
was the first Junior
Dragster racer in the
Mattera clan. He won the
MIR Junior Dragster
track championship in
2012. Christopher
finished number two in
2010, and only a
redlight in the final
round of the
championship race
prevented him from
winning that year.
Christopher has 5 Raider
ET challenge wins, an
Ironman, and quite a
list of weekly wins. He
has already won 4 races
so far this season (2 of
them Raider ET races).
By the way, as of last
weekend, September 8,
2013, Christopher’s win
in Junior Dragster
marked the sixth
consecutive week that a
Mattera has won at MIR.
Tony’s son Jacob rounds
out the Mattera Racing
Army. He is just getting
started, but racked up
top ten finishes in
2010, 2011, and 2012. If
history holds true,
Jacob too will one day
grace the wall of
champions near the MIR
winner’s circle.
Racing families like the
Matteras are what keep
the sport of drag racing
vibrant and healthy.
Their dedication and
work ethic transcends
the generations and
offers other racers and
spectators alike
something to aspire to.
MIR is proud to
recognize the Mattera
Family as 2013 Legends
of Budds Creek.
.
|