JOHN FORCE EAGER TO RACE AT LUCAS OIL NATIONALS IN BRAINERD
BRAINERD, MN (August 19, 2015) —- There is no other track or NHRA national event that John Force has dominated like the 34th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals. Force has won more times at Brainerd International Raceway than any other driver in any other professional category. The winningest driver in NHRA history has eleven wins and fifteen final round appearances. This weekend he will be racing the sleek blue Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car with Peak Anti-Freeze as well as new sponsors Lucas Oil and Chevrolet joining Auto Club, Traxxas, and Mac Tools.
“It’s an exciting race first of all. I have been on fire there, been sent to the burn center but I have come back and won that race a ton. Hell I don’t even know how many times I have won it but I love racing there. This is a Lucas Oil race and I want to do well there for my new sponsor. Forrest, Charlotte and Morgan have been great for me and for the NHRA so you want to win their race,” said Force.
Force currently sits solidly in the Top Ten in the No. 4 position with only two regular season races remaining before the start of the Countdown to the championship. The 16-time Funny Car champion is confident in his team’s chance of making the play-offs as well as the Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster team piloted by his daughter Brittany Force, sitting No. 9 in points with a sizeable lead over the non-Top Ten teams. He is definitely keeping an eye on his other two Funny Car teams with regards to the Countdown and also the lucrative Traxxas Shootout.
“Starting with this race it is all about the Countdown. We are also trying to get cars into the Traxxas Shootout because that is the last race for Robert (Hight) or Courtney (Force) to get a guaranteed spot. There are two more races before the Countdown starts and we want to get everyone into the Top Ten. You want to win the race of course because that is a big deal for your sponsors but you are also preparing and building momentum for Indy and the Countdown,” said Force, who was runner-up in 2014 at the Lucas Oil Nationals. “There is a lot going on that weekend because you are trying to get drivers into the Shootout, you want to stay in the Top Ten and I want to represent Lucas Oil as best I can. It is almost the beginning of the Countdown and you need every point you can get. This is the toughest competition I have ever seen in Funny Car.”
Force has had a resurgent season with a new team that is continuing to gel with every race and qualifying run. Led by Jon Schaffer, a 27-year old cred chief from Discovery Bay, California Force has won twice and also appeared in two more final rounds this season all with completely new team that Force feeds off of through their youth and excitement. Schaffer learned under the tutelage of Mike Neff the previous four seasons at JFR and has taken the reins of the Peak Anti-Freeze Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car like a seasoned pro.
“I get a lot of confidence and motivation from by crew chiefs and my crews. That goes all the way back to the great Austin Coil. He taught me how to drive and now I have this young kid Jon Schaffer and he is giving me a great Chevy hot rod and we are doing our best every weekend. I am amazed by the positive energy all my guys give me and I just get excited driving this race car. I tell everybody I feel like I am 20 years old when I put on my fire suit and I need that to take on all these Funny Car drivers out here,” said Force who is seeking his 144th national event win.
HIGHT LOOKING TO LOCK UP TRAXXAS SHOOTOUT SPOT WITH LUCAS OIL NATIONALS WIN
BRAINERD, MN (August 18, 2015) — With only one race left before the Traxxas Shootout fan vote starts Robert Hight and the Auto Club Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny car team are looking to lock up their first win of the season and guarantee a chance to race for $100,000 during the Chevrolet Performance US Nationals. The 34th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway has been an elusive track for Hight but the 2009 NHRA Funny Car champion knows that his past performance doesn’t impact his future success.
“Brainerd is one of the few tracks that I haven’t even been in final. The good news is hopefully that trend will change this weekend and we can get our first win at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals. This Funny Car competition is tough and you can see by the fact that only six different drivers have won a race so far. There are some cars that have been running really consistently and we want to join that group and get on a roll this weekend,” said Hight who has 34 NHRA Funny Car wins to his credit.
So far this season Hight has five semi-final round appearances and a runner-up in Las Vegas. He made is his career quickest run, 3.974 seconds, in Sonoma and raced to the semi-finals. The team has been qualifying in the top half consistently but race day gremlins have sidelined them before they could get four round wins on Sunday.
“We started the season with some success and then we decided we needed to go in a different direction. We made a commitment to make some changes for the long term. We are starting to see some positive results even though it hasn’t shown up in the win column yet,” said Hight.
With one race remaining until the cut off for the Traxxas Shootout Hight is focusing on getting the maximum result from this weekend at Brainerd International Raceway. His previous best performance at the Lucas Oil Nationals was a semi-final finish at the 2007 event where he started as the No. 3 qualifier and lost to teammate and boss John Force in the semis. Hight and the Auto Club Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car team have started from the top half of the field seven times including last year’s No. 5 qualifying starting position.
“We need to start on Friday with quick runs and get to the back of the pack for the rest of the weekend. Qualifying bonus points are becoming more valuable every race. With just two races until the start of the Countdown you don’t want to leave any points out there for some of the drivers we are chasing or that are behind us to grab from this Auto Club team,” said Hight.
Hight has eight top half starting positions so far this season and in four of the previous five races Hight has started No. 5 or higher in qualifying.
Following the Lucas Oil Nationals voting for the Traxxas Shootout will commence and Hight could need the support for his loyal fans to secure the final spot in the $100,000 to win specialty race. Fans will be able to vote for their preferred Funny Car and Top Fuel drivers on www.nhrafanhub.com and the final spot will be decided by lottery selection on Wednesday, September 2nd. Hight can avoid the fan vote by securing her first win of the season this weekend in Brainerd.
BRITTANY FORCE WANTS TO MAKE IMPACT AT LUCAS OIL NATIONALS
BRAINERD, MN (August 19, 2015) — Brittany Force has been riding a wave of momentum since she announced new primary sponsor Monster Energy for her Top Fuel dragster team. Since the mid-April addition to the John Force Racing Top Fuel dragster the third year driver has steadily moved up the point standings and currently sits No. 9 in the Top Fuel standings with two races left in the regular season. The Yorba Linda, Calif., driver is not taking anything for granted headed into the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals.
“We are No. 9 in the points but there is a lot of racing left before the Countdown starts. I want to keep running well in qualifying and also the key is going rounds on Sunday. I have so much confidence in my crew chiefs Todd Smith and Ronnie Thompson. They have given me a great race car and every race I feel more and more comfortable,” said Force, who has five final round appearances.
This season Force has raced to a final round in Englishtown and three other semi-final appearances. All of these strong finishes have occurred since the addition of Monster Energy, a sponsor Force helped secure along with her sister and fellow race Courtney. Force’s Top Fuel dragster is only four points out of 8th place in the points and just 21 points out of 7th place. The buffer between Force and the critical No. 11 spot is 119 points so round wins are still critical to securing a Top Ten regular season finish.
“Having Monster Energy on the side of this 10,000 horsepower dragster has given me a lot of confidence. They are a great sponsor and have brought a lot of energy to the team. Every weekend we talk about unleashing the beast on the track and we try and give our best every weekend. NHRA drag racing is the ultimate extreme sport and when you hit the finish line at over 300 mph nothing feels better,” said Force.
The Traxxas Shootout will be conducted at the Chevrolet Performance US Nationals Labor Day weekend outside of Indianapolis. This $100,000 to win specialty race for Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars features eight of the top drivers in each category. The first seven positions are secured by winning a race before the Lucas Oil Nationals and Force will be vying for the final spot through the fan vote which will commence at the conclusion of the Brainerd national event. Fans will be able to vote on www.nhrafanhub.com and they can vote once from each of their devices (computer, smartphone, tablet, etc.) until Tuesday, September 2nd.
“I want all my fans to head to nhrafanhub.com after the race and vote for this Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster team. The whole team has worked so hard this season and we have come close to getting that win needed to guarantee a Traxxas Shootout spot. Hopefully we will get enough votes to give us a good chance in the lottery before the US Nationals,” said Force.
COURTNEY FORCE HANDLING PRESSURE HEADED TO BRAINERD
BRAINERD, MN (August 19, 2015) — With the pressure of the 2015 NHRA Mello Yello Series Countdown to the Championship brewing in the Traxxas Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car pit, Courtney Force is entering the seventeenth stop along the NHRA’s regular season, the 34th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway. There are just two events remaining for Force to race her way into her fourth run at a Funny Car Championship with Traxxas, The Fastest Name in Radio Control.
“This is another huge race and puts a lot of pressure on my Traxxas team, but we thrive on that pressure. That’s racing. We are motivated and going to do everything as a team to do well at Brainerd. We are in a tough position, but also excited and ready for this race. We’ve got no other choice at this point, but to push each other and give it 110% all weekend long,” Force said.
Last year, Force qualified in the No. 11 spot and made a quick exit in the first round against Alexis DeJoria. Ironically enough, Force and DeJoria are two of the drivers currently competing for a spot in the Countdown. Force is on the outside of the field in the No. 11 spot, just 73 points out of the No. 10 position. Her teammate Robert Hight and DeJoria are tied for the No. 9 spot.
“Brainerd has all the excitement. The fans and the electric energy throughout the race weekend makes this place spectacular. This is a race that is famous for ‘The Zoo,’ where all the fans hang out throughout the weekend. But it’s also a high-pressure race for the drivers. This is a huge points race for my team and since we have stumbled and gone out early on race day lately, we really need to be on our game this weekend,” Force said.
The team tested prior to the 38th Annual Kelly Services Night Under Fire at Summit Motorsports Park. The action-packed event referred to as the “largest single-day drag race in history,” sold out and offered standing room only by the start of the race. Force’s 4.00 ET at 322 mph beat Matt Hagan’s 4.04 ET at 317 mph and the Traxxas team took home the Night Under Fire trophy.
“We are excited that we got some extra runs under our belt while at Night Under Fire which was just what our team needed. We pushed our car and think that this will help us be even more prepared for Brainerd. We even picked up the win in front of a sold out crowd. Although it wasn’t a national event win, it was still a boost my team and I needed going into Brainerd,” Force said.
Following the Lucas Oil Nationals voting for the Traxxas Shootout will commence and Force could need the support for her legion of fans to secure the final spot in the $100,000 to win specialty race. Fans will be able to vote for their preferred Funny Car and Top Fuel drivers on www.nhrafanhub.com and the final spot will be decided by lottery selection on Wednesday, September 2nd. Force can avoid the fan vote by securing her first win of the season this weekend in Brainerd.