Chad Anselmi is a hardcore racer that was dealt a devastating blow when he lost the use of his legs in a non-racing accident, but he hasn’t let that setback end his racing endeavours. With the help of his friends and great companies like Team Z Motorsports Anselmi is not only back on the racetrack, he’s piloting a great looking 2000 Mustang known as “RainMan” in the world of heads-up drag racing.

For Anselmi, life took an unexpected turn in 2000 when he was paralyzed in a car accident, and for a while, his new reality proved both physically and mentally challenging. It was Anselmi’s father that saw the struggles he was going through after the accident and took him to get hand controls on his Mustang to help return some sense of normalcy. “Every time I got in that car it was the only time I felt like my old self and it was the only time I was out of my wheelchair. When I was at the track, in the driver’s seat of that car, I wasn’t looked at as a kid in a wheelchair — I was a drag racer,” Anselmi says.

The Mustang that Anselmi currently drives actually was originally built for another customer at Team Z before he took possession of it. After a few attempts at purchasing the car in December of 2015, Anselmi was able to close the deal and make the car his. With the help of Brian Davis, Anselmi decided to set up his Mustang to run in Outlaw 632 and 28-inch tire No Time Shootouts all over the Midwest.

Under the hood of the hood of the Mustang is a 632 cubic-inch engine that was built by Holbrook Racing Engines and is backed by a Cameron Torque Converter Services TH400 and converter. Nitrous Express provided the fogger system that adds the power to the motor with a MSD Grid ignition helping to control everything. Anselmi reads the car’s vitals through a Racepak IQ3 dash and Chris Tuten Racing does the tuning from the date that comes out of the Racepak V300 recorder.

Team Z Motorsports really stepped up to make Anselmi’s racing dreams come true with this car. They used all their best suspension components on the car and added a 10-point chrome moly cage with a swing-out on the driver’s side so Anselmi can get in and out of the car easily with a custom platform. Zimmerman even took the time to help Anselmi at the track his first couple of visits to ensure the car worked as needed without any issues.

“Dave and his team at Team Z made sure everything in the car was within reach and worked flawlessly in case I needed to exit the car in a hurry. They modified my hand controls in the car so if the throttle ever got hung up I could force the throttle closed by making it a solid piece. They attached the parachute button to my hand controls so I can release the parachute without having to reach and find it and just made the car fit me perfectly,” Anselmi says.

Anselmi has always kept a positive attitude and enjoys doing what he loves despite his disability, and he’s thankful for those who have helped him. “None of this would even be possible without my wife, Kim, Brian Davis, Dave Zimmerman and Chris Tuten all helping and supporting me.”

To date, Anselmi’s best pass in RainMan has been a 4.63 at 159 mph, and there’s more in the car, for sure. Currently, Anselmi is dominating the Milan Dragway Outlaw 632 series and plans on heading to No Mercy in October to try his luck against the best in the United States.

For any of your chassis or suspension needs, check out Team Z Motorsports website and see what they have to offer.