Adult C57BL/6 mice received varying dosages of a novel mitoNEET ligand, NL-1, at 15 mins, 6 hrs, 12 hrs, 18 hrs, and 24 hrs following severe CCI. Mitochondria were isolated at 25 hrs post-injury. State V mitochondrial respiration (mediated through complex 1) was significantly elevated in mitochondria derived from NL-1 treated (20 mg/kg) mice compared to that from vehicle-treated mice. In addition, compared to vehicle, the 10mg/kg had an effect size of 7.43. Data expressed by percentage of average sham. N=4/group, mean ± SEM, One-way ANOVA, Compared Drug Treated to Vehicle, Dunnett Post-Hoc, F3,15 = 7.32, **p=0.0032.