Eurodragster.com - What is your background?

Justin Arias - I was born and raised in SoCal to parents Nick Arias III and Cindy Gibbs and have been surrounded by racing since day one. My brother and I didn’t really have much of a choice then, but we wouldn’t have it any other way. My parents met through drag racing, and between the two, we were always out somewhere whether at the track or Museum in Pomona, the shop at Arias, rolling in the dirt and El Mirage or go kart racing. We’re very fortunate to have been raised by an amazing family.

Eurodragster.com - On Instagram you describe yourself as a “3^rd  Generation Piston Guy”.?

Justin Arias - Yes, my late grandfather Nick founded Arias Pistons back in 1969, but goes back in the piston industry to 1956 when he and Bob Toros founded Venolia Pistons. My dad was in it early, running his own machine in grade school, cutting buttons and eventually taking over as GM later on. He also designed the forgings, made many of the wood patterns for the Arias engines, and ran them through their own personal R&D department in dad’s 280+ MPH injected gas lakester on the salt flats. (Talk about a hard act to follow.)

Eurodragster.com - How did you start in drag racing?

Justin Arias - I’m new to the sport as a driver. I started go kart racing at 5 with my dad and brother and we were quite competitive for a few years, running alcohol Briggs & Stratton engines built by Terry Nash of Nash’s Karts. It was either karts or junior dragsters, and my dad chose karts instead. However, I have always been obsessed with top fuelers of the 60s and finally got to experience my first push start in the Poachers AA/FD at the 2013 CHRR and it just went downhill from there. I soon after got hired as a full-time mechanic and became a father of two beautiful boys so my priorities were elsewhere. As they’ve grown older and I got hired at CP-Carrillo a couple years back, the opportunity to pilot a couple racecars popped up so I figured I’d call the legendary Mr. Frank Hawley for some pointers.

Eurodragster.com - What was it like to gain your Super Comp license in 2024?

Justin Arias - It was an honor to be a student of Frank Hawley. I don’t think most of my other classmates knew the extent of his driving achievements, nor did Frank boast about them. I certainly did, though, and it was an amazing experience to learn from a hero of mine. I also made him feel old by telling him I was a third generation student of his, too (Sorry, Frank). It felt natural to be behind the wheel, but I took it very seriously and ended the weekend with 6 signed timeslips for a SC license. Frank also told me I did well, and supported me on my upcoming driving opportunities. That felt good to hear.

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Eurodragster.com - Is your racing life influenced by your grandfathers’ experiences?

Justin Arias - 100%. My grandfathers are Nick Arias Jr. and Steve Gibbs, both International Drag Racing Hall of Fame inductees (amongst many others), but what I love the most about them is they never taught us to have some shoe to fill. Nor did my parents. I favor vintage racing history and photography as my own personal hobbies and passions but am fascinated by the fact that they were there to experience it all first-hand, and the impact they had on the industry. I have nothing but respect for their achievements and only use them as inspiration to work hard and preserve the history and legacy they left.

Eurodragster.com - What are your racing aims in 2025? Which class and what further licensing procedures will you need to go through?

Justin Arias - I will be driving Mike Charpilloz’s 1969 GTO BB/FC, as well as a little seat time in Dave Rosenberg’s “Surfers Paradise” 7.0 nostalgia front engine dragster. My dad drove Dave’s dragster back in the day too, so it’d be really cool to drive a hot rod my dad has piloted before. I’ll have to bump my license to Advanced E.T. for those two cars. Dennis Taylor just made me a gorgeous one piece driving suit and my Simpson helmet will be getting paint by Eric Reyes here pretty soon, so things are taking place!

Eurodragster.com - How did Arias Pistons come into being in 1969?

Justin Arias - After selling his interests to Bob Toros and Joe Pisano of Venolia Pistons over some conflicts, my grandfather worked as a mechanic at Warren Biggs Chevrolet and eventually purchased the piston division assets from Lou Senter of Ansen Auto. He founded Arias Pistons in September, 1969 with my grandmother Carmen in Gardena Ca. The business stayed in the same building until November of 2017 when it was sold to CP-Carrillo.

Eurodragster.com - What is the history of CP Carrillo?

Justin Arias - The three Calvert brothers of Dave, Barry and Peter started working at Arias back in the 70’s for my grandpa Nick, and eventually left for other opportunities in the industry. In 1998, the three of them founded CP Pistons in Irvine, Ca and eventually purchased Carrillo rods in the later 2000s.  CP-Carrillo sets the standard for pistons- their stuff is just unbelievable. (Biased, maybe.)

Eurodragster.com - How did the merger into CP Carrillo take place?

Justin Arias - After the passing of my grandfather in 2017, the CP-Carrillo group made an offer to the family and moved many of the employees and machines to Irvine. Many of the Arias forgings are used today, but made with the cutting-edge technology CP-Carrillo / Pankl utilizes today, as well as the engineering behind it too. I got hired on my grandpa Nick’s birthday, January 20^th, 2023, and it’s been the best career decision I’ve ever made. I continue to sell CP & Arias pistons to many of our old friends and customers, and it is nothing short of an honor to keep it all going.

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