Needham moved out of stunt work, focusing his energy on the World Land Speed Record project that eventually became the Budweiser Rocket, driven most notably by stuntman Stan Barrett. The team failed to set an officially sanctioned World land speed record with the vehicle, and their claims to have broken the sound barrier in 1979 have been heavily disputed. In the 1980s, he and Reynolds co-owned the Mach 1 Racing team, which fielded the Skoal Bandit No. 33 car in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series for Harry Gant.