Chevy Racing–NHRA–Topeka

CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
MENARDS NHRA HEARTLAND NATIONALS PRESENTED BY MINTIES
HEARTLAND PARK TOPEKA AT TOPEKA, KANSAS
SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2017

Chevrolet Extends Pro Stock Winning Streak to Eight

• 18-year-old Tanner Gray claims second Pro Stock victory of the season
• Pro Stock runner-up Jeg Coughlin Jr. becomes 10th driver with 400 round wins
• Brittany Force sets national Top Fuel speed record with pass of 333.66 mph
• Jeff Lopez claims Stock Eliminator victory in his Chevrolet COPO Camaro

TOPEKA, Kan. (May 21, 2017) – Tanner Gray, who seven weeks ago became the youngest winner in NHRA history, claimed his second Pro Stock career victory in the Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented by Minties at Heartland Park Topeka.

Gray, the No. 6 qualifier driving the Gray Motorsports Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro SS, defeated five-time Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. in the final round of the eighth race of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.

“I wouldn’t be sitting here if not for my crew. They make my job easy,” Gray said. “If you have a good race car, it’s going to make the driver look good.”

Chevrolet has won every Pro Stock race this season. Gray, who turned 18 on April 15, won at Las Vegas in his fourth NHRA Pro Stock event. His father, Shane, and paternal grandfather, Johnny, also won at Topeka in their careers.

“It’s an awesome deal with three generations out here,” said Shane Gray, who also has won a Pro Stock race this season in a Gray Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS. “It’s been an awesome run for me and the kid is just starting out.”

Coughlin picked up his 600th career round victory with a holeshot win over No. 1 qualifier Bo Butner (Butner Auto Sales Chevrolet Camaro SS) in one of the semifinals. Coughlin cut a .001-of-a-second light in defeating the winner of two races this season. Coughlin is the 10th NHRA driver to reach 600 round wins. John Force (1,274) in the all-time leader.

Gray dispatched Vincent Nobile (Mountain View Tire Chevrolet Camaro SS) in the other semifinal.

Greg Anderson (Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS) and KB Racing teammate and reigning Pro Stock champion Jason Line (Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS) were first-round winners.

Robert Hight, the No. 3 Funny Car qualifier in the Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS, advanced to the semifinals for the second consecutive event before falling to 2016 class champion Ron Capps for the third time in the past four events.

Courtney Force ran the second-quickest speed in Funny Car history (338.68 mph) and the fourth-quickest elapsed time (3.821 seconds) in winning her first-round matchup. Force, who had been the No. 1 qualifier the previous four events, was the No. 2 qualifier in the Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS. Force, who was the No. 1 qualifier and won at Heartland Park Topeka in 2014, fell in the second round of eliminations.

John Force, the No. 6 qualifier in the PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS, lost on a holeshot in the first round. Force is a six-time winner in 12 final-round appearances at Heartland Park Topeka.

Brittany Force set the Top Fuel national record speed with a pass of 333.66 mph in the Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster in the first round of eliminations. Force, the No. 4 qualifier for the event, lost on a holeshot (.005 of a second) in the second round.

The NHRA New England Nationals at Epping, New Hampshire, is next up June 2-4 on the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule. Anderson won the Pro Stock event in 2016 to lead Chevrolet drivers. FS1 will telecast qualifications live at 7:30 p.m. ET June 2, and it will telecast eliminations and finals at 4:30 p.m. ET June 4.

Jeff Lopez of Irving, Texas, the No. 3 qualifier of 52 entries in Stock Eliminator, won the event in his Chevrolet COPO Camaro. Tyler Cassil of Belton, Missouri, was the No. 2 qualifier. Ryan Montford of Wichita, Kansas, was the No. 5 qualifier, and Robin Lawrence of Rockfield, Kentucky, was the No. 8 qualifier.

Montford, also competing in Super Stock in his Chevrolet COPO Camaro, was the No. 6 qualifier of 37 entries and advanced to the semifinals.

ROGER ALLEN, CHEVROLET RACING NHRA PROGAM MANAGER: “The event at Heartland Park Topeka provided a lot of excitement for spectators with records set and reset by Brittany Force in Top Fuel and Courtney Force in Funny Car. Congratulations to Tanner Gray for winning the Pro Stock race and to Jeg Coughlin Jr. for joining nine other big names of the sport with 400 career round wins. Also, congratulations to Robert Hight for reaching the Funny Car semifinals for the second consecutive race in the John Force Racing Chevrolet Camaro SS.”

An interview with TANNER GRAY, GRAY MOTORSPORTS VALVOLINE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 6 qualifier, wins second race of his rookie season):

Q: ANYTHING CHANGE MENTALLY FOR YOU WHEN YOU KNEW YOU WOULD RACE ONE OF THE ALL-TIME GREATS IN THE CLASS?

TANNER GRAY: No, my dad just told me to have fun. I felt like I was pretty consistent all day. Jeg is one of the greatest drivers to come to the sport, if not the best, and my guys gave me a great race car. I wouldn’t be sitting here if not for them. They make my job easy. If you have a good race car, it’s going to make the driver look good. If you have a bad one, you’re going to look bad. They put a lot of hard work in this new car. I’m very fortunate to be here.

Q: IS IT A DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE TO COMEPETE WITHOUT YOUR DAD COMPETING, TOO?

TANNER GRAY: I keep the same mind-set whether he’s there or not. He’s always supporting me and has my best interests in mind. I just worry about cracking the tree, hitting my shift points and see what happens.

Q: HAS IT SNUCK INTO THE BACK OF YOUR MIND THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE A CHAMPIONSHIP-CALIBER CAR AND THAT YOU COULD COMPETE WITH THESE GUYS?

TANNER GRAY: I had that mind-set coming into the year. You have Dave Connolly and some of the best crew guys in the business. We have a great engine shop back home and those guys work their butts off, so there’s no doubt that we have a championship-caliber team and so far I feel like I’ve shown that I’ve been able to compete with the best of them on my days. My deal is I just have to get more consistent as a driver. Just because you win a race doesn’t mean you’re the best. I need to go back and continue to hit the practice tree, continue to study and just try to grind it out.

Q: HAD YOUR FATHER, GRANDFATHER OR DAVE CONNOLLY TALKED TO YOU ABOUT HEARTLAND PARK?

TANNER GRAY: No, not really. I think Q2 was the first time that I even walked up to the start line. Dave’s a really good crew chief, and my dad and grandpa have won here. But throughout the day they don’t interfere. They just make sure that they’re there to support me. Dave knows what every track is like, he knows how to set the car up, and he’s won himself. That’s an advantage. Dave has been here and driven. He knows to a certain degree what the car needs and what it wants.

Q: DID THE WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGH YOU A CURVEBALL THIS WEEKEND?

TANNER GRAY: I think it did on engine tune-up stuff. I think everybody struggled the first part of the week with engine tune-up. But I think us, KB and Elite kind of did the best job of picking up on it and adapted to it. Absolutely, the weather conditions were tricky.