19-year-old Ultimate Callout Challenge entrant, Edge Thompson, represents the next-generation of energetic, ambitious, and results-driven diesel enthusiasts.
When your dad names you after Edge tuners, is involved in tractor pulling, and raises you around all-things diesel, chances are pretty good you’ll grow up to have an affinity for compression ignition. Such is the case for Edge Thompson. The Stephenville, Texas native is 19 years old now and has already managed to rack up an impressive resume. Not only did Edge field a truck to compete at UCC 2026, but he managed to complete all three tortuous events and place seventh out of 17 competitors. Even with the likes of WP Developments’ Ethan Patterson and 2025 UCC champ Josh McCormack in his corner, Edge proved calm under pressure, unafraid of a challenge, and in possession of the kinds of fabrication, mechanical, and electrical skills it can take decades to accrue.
As it turns out, this year’s Ultimate Callout Challenge was only a sign of things to come from Edge. The same ’07 Dodge Ram he competed with in Indianapolis is steadily being fine-tuned to dominate the pulling track—and when it’s converted back into drag race trim there is no telling how deep into the 5’s he and the truck will go. In preparation for his return to UCC in 2027, Edge will be making appearances at select NHRDA and ODSS events, where he and his fire-breathing third-gen will compete in the 5.90 Index category. Enjoy this inside look at Edge’s UCC 2026 experience, the truck he brought to the fight, and (more importantly) where he’s headed in the future.
Having attended Ultimate Callout Challenge as a spectator on several occasions, Edge Thompson knew he wanted to compete at the biggest event in the industry. Fast-forward to his acquisition of the ’07 Dodge Ram 2500 shown here (from the farm just down the road from him, no less) and a key piece of the UCC puzzle was in place. But Edge’s Texas-Indiana connection stretches beyond Ultimate Callout Challenge. Just two days after graduating high school, Edge was headed for the Indianapolis area, destination WP Developments. There, WP’s Ethan Patterson would take him under his wing, providing an invaluable learning experience for a youngster who was well on his way to a career in diesel.Surviving an event like UCC takes a near-bulletproof engine—and sometimes a second one. Leaving nothing to chance, Edge sourced a “backup” deckplate power plant from 2025 champion Josh McCormack. However, this was his primary workhorse at UCC 2026, a wet deckplate 6.7L Cummins from Wagler Competition Products. It rocks a crankcase girdle, ARP main studs, Wagler rods, a CNC ported, big valve cylinder head anchored in place via ARP studs, and all the bells and whistles that go along with it. The billet side-draft intake manifold is also a Wagler piece, while the cold-side pipe adapter came from King Speed.With a big single bolted to the Steed Speed exhaust manifold, you’re looking at Edge’s drag strip arrangement. Dual external wastegates are in place to keep the charger from overspeeding when all the engine’s nitrous kits come alive. For the dyno portion of UCC, a compound configuration was installed, and consisted of a GT70 based Forced Inductions atmosphere charger with a massive 122mm compressor wheel and an 85mm AirTec Innovations turbo on the manifold. All the piping (hot and cold) required to accommodate either the single or the compounds was fabricated by Edge. A thick core, air-to-air intercooler from On3 Performance is tasked with dropping intake temps.Under the 6.7L Cummins’ valve cover, Edge installed a set of competition injectors from S&S Diesel Motorsport. Purchased from S&S’s Michael Cordova, owner and driver of the world’s quickest (and fastest) 1/8-mile diesel, the Ordnance units are equipped with 500-percent over nozzles. In support of the high-flow injectors is a pair of gear-driven 14mm stroker CP3’s from Exergy Performance. A gear-driven Waterman fuel pump has the job of supplying a steady diet of pressure and volume to the high-pressure fuel pumps.Fine-tuning that competition fuel system is made simple, efficient, and safe through the use of a Motec standalone ECU and S&S’s diesel-specific firmware. Calibrating is a collaborative effort between Hardway Performance’s Ryan Milliken (left), WP Developments’ Ethan Patterson (right), and Chris Hetherington (also from WP Developments). It’s no surprise that the transmission is a WP Developments specialty: an all-billet shaft 48RE with GPZ clutches and a bolt-together, triple disc, billet stator converter. With an ability to make stator changes between events (drag racing vs. sled pulling, for example), the converter’s stall speed can be optimized for each event.When it comes to dyno day at UCC, swinging for the fences is not a suggestion. If you want any chance of keeping pace with the heavy hitters, you have to bring an obscene amount of nitrous to the party. Edge did that in the form of five solenoids positioned in the hot-pipe (four of which were Nitrous Express Lightning 375’s). Unfortunately, Edge’s electronically progressive system had a double-activation provision, a safety measure he forgot about in the heat of the moment. “So, we thought we were arming the system, but it wasn’t actually arming,” Edge told us. Needless to say, Edge competed fuel-only at UCC 2026.The biggest advantage of knowing how to weld is that if a part doesn’t exist, you have the ability to produce it yourself. At just 19 years of age, Edge is one of the most talented fabricators you’ll come across. And with access to a laser cutter and a water jet in his dad’s shop, the possibilities for making custom parts are virtually endless. As it relates to his UCC truck, the weight box, the one-off tabs that hold the front clip in place, the various suspension parts and brackets, the hood stack, all hot and cold-side piping, were all whipped up by Edge. You name it, Edge built it.Despite the inability to use any of the nitrous he brought with him to UCC (including the .115 spool jet to help get him off the line), Edge still managed to run a 6.07-second ET in the 1/8-mile, and at a respectable 118 mph. That was good enough for ninth overall in the drag race portion of UCC. Perhaps the craziest part was that on the same pass, all hell broke loose in the front driveline when a U-joint gave way. The truck’s drag strip setup includes air-compatible, Precision Racing Suspension coilover shocks, Hoosier 29.5’s, and a 4,900-pound race weight.Prior to hitting the dyno at UCC, Edge and crew switched over to a set of Mickey Thompson ET Drag Pro Radials, added a few hundred pounds worth of tractor weights aft of the rear axle, and bolted the compound turbo arrangement into place. On the rollers, the truck laid down a solid 1,686 hp (and 2,046 lb-ft of torque). Again, with the nitrous system unable to be activated, those numbers were achieved on fuel alone. With N2O in the mix, there is little doubt Edge’s Dodge would’ve made 2,500-rwhp or more aboard the Northwest Dyno Series SuperFlow.Transforming the truck from a drag racer into a sled puller is extensive, but not as time consuming as you might think. In fact, Edge told us it takes he and his team roughly 30 minutes to swap the pulling axle and suspension under the rear of the truck. The axle is a factory, dual rear wheel AAM 1150, which Edge built truss-like gussets for. Solid suspension replaces the four-link configuration to eliminate any travel out back. At UCC, and (once again) thanks to having no available help from the nitrous system, Edge never quite got the charger lit, and ultimately pushed through the brakes at the starting line. He traveled 232 feet (an Eighth Place distance).Undeterred by what happened in Indy, Edge redeemed himself in the dirt less than two months later. At LB Lonestar Nights, he and the third-gen turned in a solid effort while hooked to the sled. Shortly after that, Edge swept the weekend at the De Leon Peach and Melon Festival truck pull in De Leon, Texas. The back to back wins and the smooth A-to-B passes with the sled in tow proved Edge had lined out the chassis for pulling—allowing him to turn his attention back to drag racing.Late nights, all-night thrash sessions, very little sleep, and immense pressure. It’s all in a weekend’s work at Ultimate Callout Challenge. Luckily, Edge had a great team behind his 2026 effort, with Ethan Patterson, Josh McCormack, and all the guys from The Dynamic Mechanic in his corner. When we asked Edge what the highest of highs was at UCC he replied: “Being able to compete and make it all the way to the end. I was proud of myself.” As the youngest entrant in the history of UCC finishing Seventh Place overall out of 17 competitors, we’d be proud, too.So, what’s next for the youngest competitor in UCC history? Without question, there will be a return trip to Indy next June. But in the meantime, Edge plans to convert the truck back into drag race form, break into the 5’s in the 1/8-mile, and accumulate more seat time behind the wheel. His next stop will be Ennis, Texas on September 25-26th. There, at the NHRDA World Finals, Edge will be trying his hand in the 5.90 Index category for the first time. After that, expect him to spend the winter testing and working toward the ultimate goal—a UCC crown.
