COURTNEY FORCE RACED TO THE FINAL ROUND SUNDAY AT THE STRIP AT LVMS.

LAS VEGAS (April 9, 2018) — Courtney Force steered her Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car to the final quad of the DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. John Force raced to the second quad and defending world champions Brittany Force and Robert Hight had first round finishes. Courtney Force, starting the day from the No. 1 qualifying position, had the best time of her first-round quad with a 3.967-second pass at 317.87 mph and was second quickest in the second round with her 4.126 pass at 298.67. In the final quad, Force and her Advance Auto Parts Camaro had a 4.007-second pass at 300.53 that was third to race winner J.R. Todd and runner-up Jack Beckman. “It was a great day for our Advance Auto Parts team with CarQuest onboard we got this Chevrolet Camaro all the way to the last quad of the day,” Force said. “We picked up a lot of points and made it all the way to the semifinals. This was a great outing for the first Four-Wide in Las Vegas. We had a good race car that qualified No. 1. We dropped a hole in the second round today and that slowed us down which we gave up lane choice in the final quad. We dropped a hole in the final and I think we will get that corrected before we get to Houston. This is a great team and I think overall we had a great weekend.” Force is second in the Funny Car points standings after the semifinal finish. The weekend came to a close during the second round of eliminations for 16-time world champion John Force. He powered his BOSS Shops branded PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil Chevy Camaro SS to a 4.050 pass at 315.34, only missing out on a trip to the finals by 0.015 seconds of reaction time. “Bottom line we are finding our problems. We didn’t get the wins in Top Fuel or Funny Car but Courtney was close. I feel confident with this team,” said Force, who moves up to 11th in the points standings, just 18 points out of the top 10. “It was great to have Boss Shop on this PEAK Camaro this weekend. Bruton Smith had a great crowd our here all weekend and we put on a good show for the fans. I am going to get with my team and we will do some testing tomorrow. For all my sponsors from Auto Club to Chevrolet to Monster to PEAK and Advance Auto Parts we are going to keep fighting.” Brittany Force, the No. 3 qualifier of the event, had a first round exit after her Monster Energy dragster smoked the tires and she pedaled to a 4.690 pass at 175.52. Force was bettered by Doug Kalitta’s 3.819 and Richie Crampton’s 3.832. “It’s tough. Our team is looking for its first win of the season and it would have been great to accomplish that here at the inaugural Las Vegas Four-Wide Nationals,” Force said. “It would have been cool to be the first Top Fuel team to do that. We had some good qualifying passes and we ended up No. 3. We went up there in lane 2 and it blew the tires off the Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster and I tried to pedal it. There were too many cars out in front of me so we had to let it go. We will regroup and head to Houston in another week.” After her crash in Pomona that landed her an overnight hospital stay, Force has all but put the nightmare of pedaling the race car behind her and turned the incident into a learning experience that she was able to practice during her efforts on Sunday. “That pedal definitely took me back to Pomona. It is race day. It is game on and we are looking for a win. What happened in Pomona is behind us and we are ready to fight it out for that first win of the season. When it wasn’t running smooth down there and it smoked the tires you have to pull your foot out of it and make sure you let it settle. That is the one thing I learned coming out of Pomona. You have to make sure the car is completely settled. I got back on it and it started to go. I think it was a good pedal job on my end but it wasn’t enough to turn on a win light,” added Force who remains ninth in points. Robert Hight ended his weekend when his Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car crossed the finish line with a 6.165 pass at 109.93 after it got into to trouble at half-track. “That wasn’t the way we wanted to start our race day. We had some troubles throughout qualifying. We started strong with a great first run and then couldn’t find consistency," Hight said. "This Auto Club team will get it figured out. We tested before this race and we’ll test tomorrow. I feel good about our chances to get some momentum for Houston and the next four-wide in Charlotte. The crowd the last two days here in Las Vegas was amazing. I have a lot of confidence in this Auto Club team.”

COURTNEY FORCE ENDS WINLESS STREAK WITH NHRA ARIZONA NATIONALS VICTORY

CHANDLER, Ariz. (Feb. 26 2018) — A weekend filled with a well of emotions ended on the ultimate high-note for John Force Racing at the 34th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Wild Worse Pass Motorsports Park outside of Phoenix. Courtney Force will head back to Yorba Linda, Calif. with a Wally while her father, 16-time world champion John Force, will head home with another hospital visit. The drag racing legend ended his race day with an engine explosion during the second round. John Force won the round before his PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil Chevy Camaro burst into flames, went out of control, made contact with the retaining wall, and collided with opponent Jonnie Lindberg in the opposite lane. Force was transported to a local hospital for evaluation while Lindberg exited the car under his own power. Force was later cleared and returned to Wild Horse Pass after racing had ended. “My struggles continue, but I’m a big boy, I’ll fix it,” said Force who is 11th in points. “Really glad to know that Jonnie Lindberg is okay. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. I think I still have another championship in me. Depending on what the doctors say, I’m gonna come out and watch Robert test his Auto Club Chevrolet tomorrow and then get ready for Gainesville.” On the opposite side of the spectrum, Courtney Force powered her Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car victory ending her 43-race winless streak. Force over powered Tommy Johnson Jr. in the final round with a 3.834-second pass at 337.16 mph. Her speed bettered the track record she set during qualifying. Johnson Jr. smoked the tires to the 6.814 at 101.57. “Every single one of my guys on the Advance Auto Parts Chevy Camaro has been working so hard. Today was a tough day,” said Force who last won on May 1, 2016 at the NHRA SpringNationals in Houston. “We had a 40-minute turnaround in the semifinals and didn’t have lane choice in the finals but we were able to go down there and lay down a killer number. “Thanks to my guys. They helped give me the confidence to get in that car today. They make me feel safe in that car because of the amazing job they do on it,” explained Force who now has nine career victories. “Brian Corradi and Dan Hood, they’ve been unbelievable, getting us the No. 1 qualifier hat and then to top it off get the Wally at the end of the weekend. Pretty incredible. Definitely a great start to our season. Been looking for a win for a long time now. Feels like forever. This one definitely feels good and I know it will make my dad feel better.” The victory puts Force second in the points standings behind only Matt Hagan who she defeated in the second round, just moments after seeing her father’s wreck. “Hagan actually came up to me when I had to race him and told me you’re a great driver you know how to do this, just clear your head,” Force said. “I know he didn’t want me to beat him but it was really nice of him as a competitor to tell me you know what to do out here and just remember that. It’s great to have competitors out here that are so amazing and so supportive even when you have to race them.” Force also had a win against two-time world champion Del Worsham before facing Hagan. She would have raced her father in the semi-finals but instead made a solo run. “Coming from Pomona trying to get our heads on straight and focus on putting that behind us and have a fresh start when we come to Phoenix and then dad goes up and has a huge explosion in the lights,” said Force who recorded her first win at the Arizona Nationals. “That’s one of the things that’s out of your control. I’m glad to see that Lindberg’s okay. You have to just switch your focus and get back in your car. My dad and my crew chiefs are the ones that gave me the confidence to get back in my race car and battle it out all day long. These cars are unpredictable. We know that as drivers. You just have to go out there and fight hard.” Top Fuel world champion Brittany Force piloted her Monster Energy dragster to a second-round finish just two weeks after a scary crash at the season-opening Winternationals. Force put up a 4.661 run at 156.12 and was out done by Billy Torrence’s 3.723 pass at 320.74 “Overall, looking at our weekend, I’m happy with it. I’m not disappointed in anything,” Force explained. Coming back from a wreck like we did in Pomona, that first run, climbing back in that car, it’s not easy. It’s definitely tough. And especially, also doing it again in that first round. It takes you back. I think it’s a work in progress. It’s going to take some time,” said Force. “I’m happy with our Monster Energy team. We pulled out our old car, didn’t have time to test it, just took it down there and made some pretty good passes. I pulled my foot out of it on that first run. It moved around a little bit and I clicked it a little bit early. But I’d rather play it safe than end up like we did last weekend.” Force had a first-round win against Clay Millican to put her eighth in the Top Fuel points standings. Two-time and reigning Funny Car would champion Robert Hight fell in the first round to Tommy Johnson Jr. after the pair both pedaled to the finish-line. Hight’s 4.806 pass at 273.44 was bettered by Johnson Jr.’s 4.715 at 225.60. “It was a racetrack that was in the 90s (temperature-wise). We’ve run 3.79 on a racetrack in the 90s so you go up there anticipating running a low .80 to win,” Hight explained. “Obviously, we didn’t make enough changes based on what we were seeing out there with the cars not making it (down the track). We needed to make a lot bigger move than we ever anticipated we needed to. If we had gone up there trying to run 3.95, we probably could have navigated it. We’ll test tomorrow (with) some new stuff that hopefully we’ll have on our car at Gainesville and get ‘em there.”

BRITTANY FORCE ESCAPES SERIOUS INJURY FROM POMONA, CALIF. INCIDENT

POMONA, Calif. (Feb. 12, 2018) — NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series racer Brittany Force escaped serious injury after a racing incident in the first round of Sunday’s eliminations at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. Force’s Monster Energy dragster went out of control during the pass, made contact with the guard wall and came to rest past the finish line. She was responsive, speaking with medical personnel, and was transported to a local hospital for evaluation. Force suffered no major internal injuries but does have some bruising of the lungs. A CT Scan was negative and the MRI showed subtle findings likely from previous injuries. She was admitted overnight for observation simply as a precaution. Much like her father’s explosion on Friday evening, Force’s Simpson safety gear, including her Steilo Helmet, R3 head and neck restraint, fire suit, neck collar and belts, kept her conscious and securely strapped into the driver’s seat. “You look at how these cars evolved over 40-50 years. We made a lot of changes after the loss of Eric (Medlen, former JFR driver who lost his life in a 2007 testing accident). A lot came out of that. Building better chassis, safer. Want to thank Simpson safety for building helmets, equipment and everything to keep our drivers safe. The car giving way when it hit the wall head on allowed it to take the impact and fold up (as it was designed to do),” John Force said. “I want to thank Schumacher Racing for creating the canopy (over the driver’s seat). When the car was upside down, you know that protects the drier’s head. Want to personally thank Don Schumacher for his investment (in the canopy program). Very important. Thanks, Don. Safety Safari was right on top of it, as always, that’s why they’re the best in the business. Finally, John Medlen, was one of the first to come to me, and want to know if she was okay. I didn’t have an answer at the time. But he’s lived it. He knows what all of us go through: owners, friends, parents and sponsors. End of the day, we keep addressing it to get it better.” Brittany Force, the No. 2 qualifier, was racing Terry Haddock in the first round when her Monster Energy dragster smoked the tires. Force attempted to pedal her 11,000 hp race car before it took a hard left and made contact with both guard walls.

PROUD JOHN FORCE ACCEPTS HONORARY DOCTORATE FROM UNOH

LIMA, OH (January 10, 2018) – An emotional and proud John Force, legendary NHRA Funny Car driver, accepted an honorary doctorate today at the University of Northwestern Ohio in a special ceremony presided over by university president Dr. Jeffery Jarvis. The 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree for his historic motorsports career and his dedication to racing safety.

“I never had this kind of opportunity. I learned on the race tracks and in the boardrooms. I got an education at truck stops across the country,” Force told students and faculty during the special ceremony. “I am honored to receive this doctorate mainly because I saw the passion these UNOH students have for motorsports as well as their other programs. They are really turning their passions into careers here. I could not be more impressed with what I saw around campus and I am excited to be Dr. Force.”

Force, as well as 2017 NHRA Funny Car champion Robert Hight, 2017 NHRA Top Fuel champion Brittany Force and winningest female Funny Car driver Courtney Force, toured the UNOH campus. The group met with students in a variety of degree programs and also spent time with the students on the successful UNOH motorsports team.

UNOH president, Dr. Jeffrey A. Jarvis, presented Force with the honorary degree during a special ceremony at the UNOH Event Center. Current students, faculty, staff and special guests were in attendance filling the center to near capacity.

“John Force is truly a wonderful role model and icon in the motorsports industry. He is not only a championship driver, but he embraces a love for the future of the sport which lies within many of our students today,” said Jarvis. “John Force Racing has employed UNOH graduates for many years. It was an easy decision to honor a man that has had such a large impact on the racing industry, the business community, and educational environment. We are thrilled to have John Force join the UNOH family.” 

The University of Northwestern Ohio is the first university to honor Force in this way. With this degree, Force became the first drag racer recognized in this manner. He became the third motorsports luminary after Richard Petty and Richard Childress to receive honorary doctorates. Childress was honored by UNOH in 2013.

For additional information contact Sara Slaughter, John Force Racing PR at sara@johnforceracing.com or UNOH Director of Public Relations and Marketing, Stephanie Malloy at smalloy@unoh.edu. 

Story courtesy Sara Slaughter, JFR-PR.

All Photos courtesy JFR PR.

Editor's Note: I guess we need to call him Dr. Force now. And it seems only fair since we call Warren Johnson, "The Professor". DW.

Robert Hight Wins another NHRA Funny Car Championship.

Photo Credit: Ron Lewis.

POMONA, Calif. (Nov. 11) – Auto Club of Southern California driver Robert Hight ran the gamut of emotions during the Auto Club NHRA Finals this weekend at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

In the end, it was pure elation, as Hight captured the 2017 Funny Car championship.

“It’s been an eventful weekend,” Hight said. “Twenty-four hours ago, I wasn’t even qualified for this event, and we were leading the points. We got it together, got in the 15th spot. If you’re in, you have a chance, especially when you have a team like we’ve got with (crew chief) Jimmy Prock, (co-crew chief) Chris Cunningham. You just believe that those guys are a couple adjustments away from turning this thing around.”

The right adjustments were made, and Hight sped to a first-round win over Tim Wilkerson that eliminated John Force Racing teammate Courtney Force from title contention. Then, Del Worsham knocked off second-place Ron Capps, and Hight had the second championship of his career – this one coming eight years after his first.

“Del Worsham came over to me before first round and said, ‘I don't think I can outrun him, but I’m not going to give it to him. I’m going to make sure my car goes down the track,’” Hight said. “Del Worsham did the right thing by making it go down the track. It’s pretty cool; it’s been 10 years since Chevrolet has won a championship in Funny Car, and we’re back.”

Hight came into the final race of the 2017 season leading by 20 points over Capps, but struggles in qualifying dropped that to eight before race day. Hight and his team struggled to get down the track in qualifying, and Hight had to pedal his Chevrolet Camaro SS in the final session to get in the 16-car field at No. 15.

But Prock and Cunningham tuned Hight to an incredible pass of 3.839 seconds at 332.51 mph in the first round Sunday, and qualifying was forgotten. Hight made another stellar run in the second and third rounds, beating Courtney Force in the semifinals to reach his seventh final of the season.

After getting the win light, though, the engine in Hight’s Auto Club car exploded, and the Camaro darted from left from the right lane.

Force, fortunately, had slowed from tire smoke and wasn’t close to Hight as he bounced off the wall in the left lane. The concussion from the explosion knocked the parachute handle out of Hight’s reach, but he was busy trying to control the car and slow it down.

Eventually, it reached the gravel pit past top end and ran into the nets. Hight was unhurt, but the car was too damaged to continue. The team brought out a backup chassis and a third body; the first, sporting a special California Highway Patrol paint scheme, was damaged in Q4.

The third body was built for Brittany Force’s Funny Car, and the JFR team had to swap decals for the final round.

There, Hight went up in smoke against Tommy Johnson Jr. and couldn’t get the race win, but the championship trophy was his.

“That was a crazy, crazy run,” Hight said. “When I got back to the pits, there were Advance crew members and PEAK crew members, and we really rallied to get this thing back together.”

But that was typical of JFR this season. John Force brought Prock and Cunningham to the team, and eventually moved them to lead Hight’s group. Hight responded with four victories – and two in the Countdown to the Championship – and national records in elapsed time (3.793 seconds) and speed (339.87 mph).

“We did a lot of work over the winter to put John Force Racing back together,” Hight said. “This was kind of a building year. It’s crazy how this building year turned into a dream. We could’ve never dreamed that we’d win two championships.

“Everybody worked their tail off and was quiet and knew they had a job to do. This is just huge for John Force Racing. For a couple of years, we have struggled but it is such a great group. We signed a long-term deal with Auto Club and they deserve better than what we were giving them. Jimmy Prock, Chris Cunningham they got us back in the game. It’s been a long time and you want it so bad.”

And Hight joined legends like John Force, Kenny Bernstein, Don Prudhomme, Raymond Beadle, Matt Hagan, Frank Hawley, Cruz Pedregon and Tony Pedregon as a two-time Funny Car champion.

“Not many guys can say they are a two-time champion,” Hight said. “There are only a handful of guys who are a two-time Funny Car champ.”

But Hight was quick to credit his team at the race track – and the guys back at John Force Racing in Brownsburg, Ind.

“We have a bunch of people back in Indianapolis at Force American Made who we need to really thank,” Hight said. “They build all this stuff. They build our race cars, mount our bodies, build all of our parts, engine parts, clutch parts and superchargers. These guys run those Hurco machines, and they really work their butts off. This championship is as much for them as it is for us.”

Story and Photo Credit Courtesy JFR-PR Lee Montgomery & Michael Harker.

Robert Hight's "New" paint scheme celebrates CHP and AAA of SoCal.

Robert Hight's CHP paint scheme celebrates California Highway Patrol, Auto Club of Southern California

Editor's note: Updating with fresh quotes. POMONA, Calif. (Feb. 8) – Past Funny Car champion Robert Hight, the Auto Club of Southern California and the California Highway Patrol introduced a special CHP paint scheme Wednesday that will adorn Hight’s Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car at the season-opening NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series race. The CHP scheme will run in the Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona this weekend, as well as the Auto Club NHRA Finals here in November. The unveiling was made at the NHRA press conference. The CHP scheme celebrates Auto Club of Southern California’s long relationship with the California Highway Patrol and also helps kick off the new NHRA Salutes First Responders program. “I am honored to be driving the Auto Club/CHP Chevrolet Camaro SS to kick off the 2017 NHRA season,” Hight said. “This car makes sense on so many levels. First, this car helps kick off the NHRA’s Salutes First Responders program. And second, the Auto Club and the CHP are very close partners in keeping the California highways safe for all of the motorists. My race team is very excited after our testing in Phoenix and will be very motivated to get this car in the winner’s circle.” The black-and-white Chevrolet is designed to look like a CHP cruiser and will help bring awareness to California’s Move Over law. The Move Over law, passed in 2007 and amended in 2009 to include tow trucks and construction vehicles, requires drivers to move over a lane to the left when safe to do so and/or slow down if they see a stationary emergency vehicle displaying flashing lights.   “If you’ve driven on a California freeway, you’ve seen the message on illuminated signs all over the Southland: ‘Move Over or Slow for Workers. It’s the Law,’” said Kathy Sieck, Auto Club Senior Vice President of Public Affairs and Publications. “California, like every state in the union, has a move-over law designed to protect first responders, and these laws can literally be life-saving.  We want to make California drivers more aware of their responsibility so we can keep our roads safe and help protect those who protect us.” The NHRA Salutes First Responders program will highlight police, fire, medical and recovery services and the military during the 24 races on the 2017 schedule.  “It was Auto Club who decided years ago to help stranded motorists on the road,” 16-time Funny car champion John Force said. “They said, ‘We’re going out to get them.’ There was no one to protect them back then, so Auto Club stepped up with the ‘Highway Patrol Service.’ Then the CHP was founded, so Auto Club and CHP work hand-in-hand. Robert’s CHP car is really cool-looking, and we can’t wait for everyone to see it.”  Editors Note: Besides the very cool Wrap on the JFR TF/FC Driven by Robert Hight, the real hero of the event was Andrew Tachias (pronounced: Tack-E-Us). From KABC's Rob Mc Millan. "It was four years ago this week that Riverside officer Andrew Tachias was shot nine times by rogue ex-LAPD cop Christopher Dorner. Tachias didn't know at the time if he'd survive that day, much less return to the force. He had been with the department less than three months that night of Feb. 7, 2013 when he and his training officer, Michael Crain, were ambushed as they sat in their patrol car at a Riverside intersection. Crain did not survive the attack. But now after a long recovery, Tachias is slowly getting back to work. And the experience hasn't soured him on law enforcement. The college track star has been visiting his alma mater, the University of California at Riverside, to help inspire students to follow his own career path. The Riverside Police Officers Association has sponsored a scholarship in his name for student athletes who are interested in law enforcement careers". "I want them to understand the will to survive and how to fight through it," Tachias said. Editor's Note: It was my honor to talk to Andrew this week, and with a lump in my throat, I got to give him a hug. I cannot imagine what he went through, but as all of my family that is not in Motorsports, is in Law Enforcement, I have a better understanding of what goes on having been on the job as a Range Officer for many years. Dicken Wear, Editor-in-Chief.  Robert Hight CHP TF/FC Photo by: Dicken Wear Leah Pritchett, Andrew Tachias, Tony Schumacher.  Photo by: Dicken Wear  Jeffrey Spring, Robert Hight and CHP Officers.  Photo by: Dicken Wear JFR, Robert Hight TF/FC with CHP Wrap. Photo by: Dicken Wear.

Open House for all JFR Fans in Riverside and Anaheim areas of SoCal today.

NHRA fans can meet the John Force Racing drivers at  John Force RaceStation Meet and Greet

YORBA LINDA, Calif. (Feb. 3) – John Force Racing is hosting a Meet and Greet with all four of its drivers at the John Force RaceStation before the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season-opener in Pomona. The Meet and Greet will be held Wednesday, Feb. 8 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the John Force RaceStation, 22722 Old Canal Road, Yorba Linda, Calif. Admission is free. Fans can meet all the JFR drivers: PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car driver John Force, Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car driver Robert Hight, Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car driver Courtney Force and Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster driver Brittany Force. An autograph session for all four drivers is scheduled from 5:30-6:30 p.m. The JFR Museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and a car show presented by Mac Speed and Custom is scheduled for 4-7 p.m. (please contact Eric Miner for any car show questions: (714) 580-7848). A local Girls Scouts troop will be on hand selling cookies during the event. Also, tickets to the season-opening Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona will be raffled off at 6:30 p.m. You must be present to win. For more information on the RaceStation, visit http://shop.johnforceracestation.com/.

Notice Courtesy of John Force Racing.

Force and Pritchett Dominate Nitro Spring Training

COURTNEY FORCE AND LEAH PRITCHETT DOMINATE NITRO SPRING TRAINING

CHANDLER, Ariz. --- Nitro Spring Training came to an end Saturday at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler, Ariz. where NHRA Funny Car and Top Fuel teams put all their off-season hard work to the test one week before the start of the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.

Leah Pritchett had the unofficial quickest run in NHRA history in her Papa John’s Pizza Top Fuel dragster Saturday morning. Pritchett and her crew put down a 3.654-second pass at 331.85 mph during their first try of the day after they ran the two quickest passes Friday with a 3.677 and a 3.685.

“I have to be totally honest, we didn’t come out here to be the quickest,” said Pritchett, who won her first Top Fuel event at Wild Horse Pass in 2016. “That wasn’t the goal. The goal was to get the power that we created in the offseason to the track. We exceeded our expectations yesterday and today we did the same. For it to blast off at .65 on a warmer day today, man I’m stoked for (my team), that’s a lot of hard work and they just put it on the track.”

With a track temp of 104 degrees on Saturday afternoon, Pritchett ran a 3.697 at 327.51 to give her ownership to four of the top five times of the weekend. 

Steve Torrence, who holds the Top Fuel ET national record at 3.671, had the second quickest machine when he ran a 3.691 on Friday. Brittany Force, pilot of the Monster Energy dragster for John Force Racing, had the third quickest with a 3.695 narrowly out running  Doug Kalitta, who finished second in the points standings in 2016, and his Mac Tools dragster with a 3.697 on Saturday. Defending world champion Antron Brown was fifth with his 3.701 run from Thursday in his Matco Tools dragster.

Rookie Troy Coughlin Jr., who will be racing a full season for Kalitta Motorsports, closed out testing with his best run of the weekend posting a 3.763 at 317.42 in his SealMaster Top Fuel dragster.

Courtney Force and her Advance Auto Parts Chevy Camaro SS ran the weekend’s quickest time for the Funny Car class. Her 3.804 at 333.33 from Friday is unofficially the quickest run in Funny Car history. She was also quickest Friday with a 3.841 and then a 3.847.

“It was a pretty unbelievable run,” Force said. “It’s all thanks to (my crew); I’m just the one piloting the car down to the other end. But it was really exciting hearing them come on the radio and be so excited about it. I feel like I had my hands full on multiple runs, but it’s really great being able to make so many great passes just in testing – the 3.84s and then the 3.80 unofficially. It’s a great feeling. I’m proud of my guys; it’s all because of them.”

Defending Funny Car world champion Ron Capps’ NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T was the second quickest Funny Car with a 3.854 pass on Friday. Force’s father and 16-time world champion John Force had a 3.856 in his PEAK Chevy Camaro SS to take the third spot from teammate Robert Hight who ran a 3.859 Friday in his Auto Club Chevy Camaro SS.

J.R. Todd, who is making the transition from Top Fuel to Funny Car racing the DHL Toyota Camry for Kalitta, made a 3.909 pass at 312.93 for his best run at testing on Friday and Del Worsham, now racing for his family team, Worsham Racing, tested Friday and made a 4.060 pass at 283.01.

The 2017 Mello Yello Drag Racing season gets underway February 9-12 with the Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Pomona, Calif. Qualifying will be televised on FS1 at 7 p.m. ET on Friday and live on FS1 Saturday at 1 p.m. ET. The Finals will be live on FOX Sports at 4 p.m. ET.

***

	Press release courtesy  the NHRA Communications Dept. Troy Coughlin, Jr.: Photo by Dicken Wear John Force: Photo by Dicken Wear John Force: Photo by Dicken Wear Jack Beckman: Photo by Dicken Wear Ron Capps  and Rahn Tobler: Photo by Dicken Wear Ron Capps: Photo by Dicken Wear Robert Hight's Auto Club Crew: Photo by Dicken Wear Robert Hight: Photo by Dicken Wear

NHRA 2016 Winternationals, Pomona, CA.

Robert Hight 2016 NHRA Winternationals. (Photo by Dicken Wear)

John Force 2016 NHRA Winternationals. (Photo by Dicken Wear)

Ron Capps 2016 NHRA Winternationals TF/FC Champion. (Photo by Dicken Wear) 

Ron Capps NAPA TF/FC 2016 NHRA Winternationals winner. (Photo by Dicken Wear)

John Force at 2016 NHRA Winternationals. (Photo by Dicken Wear)

56^th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals

1^st of 24 races in the NHRA Mello Yello Series

Auto Club Raceway at Pomona

Pomona, Calif.
February 14, 2015

Final round results from Sunday’s 56^th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, first race in the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series:

FUNNY CAR –Ron Capps, Carlsbad, Calif., Napa Dodge Charger, 3.981, 324.28 mph, def. Del Worsham, Villa Park, Calif., DHL Toyota Camry, 3.962, 324.36 mph

TOP FUEL – Steve Torrence, Kilgore, Tex., CAPCO dragster, 3.735, 326.48 mph, vs. Doug Kalitta, Ypsilanti, Mich.,  Mac Tools Toyota dragster, 3.753, 324.36 mph.

PRO STOCK – Greg Anderson, Mooresville, NC, Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro, 6.617, 207.85 mph def. Jason Line, Mooresville, NC, Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro , 6.609, 209.82 mph.

* * * *

J. FORCE, HIGHT RACE TO SEMIS AT WINTERNATIONALS

POMONA, CA ---- The 2016 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season started with some success for John Force Racing even though none of the drivers raced into the winner’s circle at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. Led by strong performances from seven-time Winternationals winner John Force and three-time winner Robert Hight who each raced to semi-final finishes John Force Racing will leave California as No. 3 and No. 4 in Funny Cars and with quarter-finalist Courtney Force in the No. 6 position.

For the eleventh straight year JFR advanced at least one Funny Car to the semi-finals at the historic Circle K NHRA Winternationals. No. 3 qualifier Robert Hight and the Auto Club Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car defeated Tommy Johnson Jr in the first round and took out teammate Courtney Force in a close second round battle.

The semi-final race against eventual winner Ron Capps was an even closer race pitting two of the 2016 championship contenders against each other. It was a rematch of last year’s semi-final race with Capps once again getting the win against Hight. The race saw Hight’s 3.949 second run at 313.44 mph just miss getting around Capps’ 3.938 seconds at 321.35 mph. At about 700 feet Hight lost a blower belt and his Auto Club Chevy Camaro went silent as Capps zoomed past the 2009 Funny Car champion at the finish line.

“This Auto Club Camaro is running really good whether it is cool or hot. This car is right there at the top. I am bummed this race car quit quit a bit before the finish line. We lost a blower belt. I think we let one get away there. Those guys are a tough team to race and they definitely threw on at it today. We are going on to Phoenix with some confidence and momentum,” said Hight, who won twice in 2015.

On the other side of the Funny Car ladder 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro SS started from the No. 9 qualified position for just the third time at the Winternationals. In 1984 Force raced to the semi-finals from the No. 9 spot but today he was not able to get to his first final from the bottom half of the field.

In the opening round Force had to outrun veteran Tim Wilkerson and then in the second round Force won a monster match-up against Jack Beckman. Last season Beckman had JFR’s number winning every match-up against team JFR. Today it was Force and his Jon Schaffer tuned Funny Car coming out on top 4.01 seconds to 4.131 seconds.

In the semi-finals Force had to race the defending NHRA Funny Car champion Del Worsham and it was a great race but the results were not what Force was looking for. Force had a starting line advantage but at the finish line Worsham tripped the finish line scoring system with a 3.978 to Force’s 4.033 seconds.

“I feel all the work that we did as a team to get these cars into the 3.8s and to be able to run 3.90s in the heat. We have accomplished a lot. Now we have to polish it. We have a lot of work to do but as a team I think we will be fine,” said Force. “We have Alan Johnson and Brian Husen over on that Monster Energy dragster and I think the alliance with CAPCO is going to be great. I think we have put the team together right. Let Mike Neff focus on the Funny Cars with Danny Hood, Ronnie Thompson and Jon Schaffer. We are going to get a lot better.”

Courtney Force and the Traxxas Chevrolet Camaro SS team showed the competition this weekend that they’re here to make an impact on the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello series season. Force qualified with a stout 3.945 second pass at 322.88 mph on Friday and showed consistency throughout qualifying. After three impressive passes, Force found herself in the No. 6 position going into race day. She was set to have lane choice over veteran driver Gary Densham in the opening round. Unfortunately, Densham couldn’t make the call Sunday morning and Force had a bye run.

The Traxxas team took advantage of the opportunity to push the car in round one and see how the Traxxas Chevy would respond, knowing they were set to make an appearance in the second round of eliminations. The Traxxas machine lived up to The Fastest Name in Radio Control when Force posted her career-best ET and speed on the single run. Her 3.925 ET at 329.34 mph was low ET and quickest of race day.

“For this Traxxas Chevrolet Camaro team, the Fastest Name in Radio Control, it was awesome to get this car down the track here at Pomona for the Winternationals; my home track. It’s unfortunate Gary Densham wasn’t able to match up against me. Winning a race like that – no one wants to win a race like that. I just want to say I’m glad he’s okay after that crazy crash he had yesterday when he went into the sand,” said Force.

The round win bought her a tough match-up alongside teammate and John Force Racing President Robert Hight in the second round. Hight was 9-5 against Force in prior events going into second round, but Force had a 5-3 edge in previous second round matchups.

The 27-year-old had lane choice by .003 of a second and took the right lane. Both Camaros launched hard together, Force’s .068 light to Hight’s .067. Both were on good runs until Force’s Traxxas machine got loose and Hight sailed across the finish line, 3.955 ET at 324.67 mph to Force’s 4.101 ET at 258.62 mph.

“In the second round my Traxxas Chevy dropped a hole down track. I stayed in it. I tried to drive that thing all the way to the finish line, hoping for a win, but at that point being down a cylinder, we just lacked the power we needed to get past Robert,” said Force.

“We had a good car all weekend so that has me excited for the season and the upcoming race at Phoenix. I’m really happy with how Dan Hood and Ronnie Thompson have been tuning this race car and it’s making me feel more confident as a driver every time I get in it,” said Force.

The Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster and Brittany Force made a solid run in the first round but did not advance. Force was edged off the starting line by J.R. Todd and her quicker elapsed time of 3.756 seconds, which was third quickest of the session, was bested by the combination of Todd’s reaction time and his 3.766 second pass for a margin of defeat of .019 seconds.

Over the course of the weekend the Monster Top Fuel dragster was one of the most consistent dragsters on the property posting times of 3.794, 3.753, 3.800, and 3.744 in qualifying. Her average elapsed time of 3.769 seconds easily puts her near the top of the category for the weekend.

“Even though we went out in the first round I still feel confident leaving the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. Every run our Monster Energy dragster went down the track. We ran great numbers all weekend. We came out this morning and ran 3.75 and you can’t be down on that kind of performance,” said Force, a six-time Top Fuel finalist. “I am always proud of my whole team. They have been working their butts off all off-season. We made a lot of changes and a lot of them had to do with getting me comfortable in the dragster. I know we are going to have a good year and we are just getting started. This is the first race and we will let it go and move on to Phoenix.”

(Reprinted from Elon Werner: JFR Public Relations).