Pedregon was raised in Torrance, California, into a family steeped in drag racing. His father, Frank Pedregon Sr., was a professional racer, and the sport became the defining thread linking the Pedregon brothers: Cruz, Tony, and Frank Jr. Cruz is of Mexican American descent and is fluent in Spanish, regularly engaging with Hispanic media throughout his career.
Pedregon began his racing journey in 1980 driving a 1953 Kenworth truck. He progressed to go-karts in 1986, winning the track championship at Ventura California Raceway that year. In 1987, he entered NHRA competition driving an Alcohol Dragster. After three years in that category, he moved to Alcohol Funny Cars, and in 1991 he stepped up to Top Fuel competition on a partial schedule.
In 1992, Pedregon captured the NHRA Funny Car Championship, making him the only driver besides John Force to claim the title during that decade. He was also among the first Funny Car drivers to record a five-second elapsed time, underscoring his standing at the cutting edge of the sport's performance envelope.
His dominance continued through the mid-1990s. In 1994, he was the only Funny Car driver to defeat John Force in a final round all season, and he qualified in the top half of the field at fifteen of eighteen national events. In 1995, he won the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis for the third time in four years, having previously won there in 1992 and 1994. In 1996, he ran a limited schedule, still managing a win and a third-place points finish.
In 1997, Pedregon became the only motorsports driver to receive the Premio De Oro, an award recognising outstanding Hispanic athletes. By 1998, he was qualifying first for a career-high twelve events.
In 1999, Pedregon formed his own racing team and returned to competition on a partial schedule. After taking 2001 off to serve as a colour analyst for ESPN's NHRA television coverage, he returned as an owner-driver in 2002. His first win as an owner-driver came at Englishtown in 2000. Through the early 2000s, he steadily rebuilt his competitiveness: in 2004, he earned his first No. 1 qualifier since 1998 at Columbus; in 2005, he collected No. 1 qualifiers at Englishtown and Chicago; and in 2006, he won his first race in six years, qualifying for twenty-one of twenty-three events and reaching three final rounds.
The 2008 season delivered Pedregon's second NHRA Funny Car championship, sixteen years after his first. He mounted a remarkable charge through the season-ending Countdown to the Championship playoffs, winning three of four final-round appearances, including victories in the last three events. He also won the $100,000 NHRA Showdown at Indianapolis that year. The championship was clinched when his brother Tony Pedregon defeated the last remaining rival in contention at the final race.
Cruz Pedregon's two championships — separated by sixteen years and representing both a factory-era peak and a self-funded revival — place him among the most decorated Funny Car competitors of his generation. His record of consistency, his role as a standard-bearer for Hispanic representation in drag racing, and his longevity as both driver and team owner make him one of the sport's most significant figures.