Man of many hats: 16-time Funny Car champion
John Force an owner, driver – and father
EPPING, N.H. (May 31) – At the NHRA New England Nationals this weekend at New England Dragway, you’ll see sixteen-time Funny Car champion John Force wearing one PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil hat.
But in all reality, he will wear three hats this weekend – and every race weekend on the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.
One, he’s the team owner for John Force Racing, supervising four race teams – his own PEAK Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, Robert Hight’s Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Funny Car, Courtney Force’s Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Funny Car and Brittany Force’s Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster.
Two, he’s a driver of the PEAK Chevy, battling for his 17th NHRA championship.
And finally, he’s dad to Adria Hight, Ashley Force Hood, Brittany Force and Courtney Force.
“You’ve got to wear three hats,” Force said. “You’ve got to be an owner, and you want to see any of your cars win.
“I drive right next to (Courtney), so you want to beat her, and that can be an aggravation on some days – different hat there.
“But then as a dad, you worry about their safety. They’re the ones who chose to get in these cars.”
Somehow, Force has the energy at age 68 to successfully handle all three tasks. And he’s still competitive, having won at Gainesville earlier this season for his 148th career victory.
“My cars right now, Robert Hight is real fast in the Auto Club Chevrolet,” Force said. “My daughter Brittany just set the national speed record in the Monster Top Fuel dragster. Courtney and myself are right in there.”
In addition to Brittany’s record-setting speed of 333.66 mph in Topeka two weeks ago, Courtney Force and Robert Hight own the second- and third-fastest speeds in Funny Car history, 338.68 mph and 338.09 mph, respectively.
John Force didn’t quite match those speeds in Topeka, but after a recent test at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis, he’s confident of improvement for his own team.
And he’s hoping those big speeds can happen at New England Dragway this weekend.
“I probably raced there 35 years ago,” Force said. “I’ve been racing for four decades. I raced at New England in the early days on the old track. Now, there’s a lot of upgrades, a lot of changes. It’s great for the fans. The track surface is really good, and if we get good weather, speed, ET records can be set.”
Two qualifying sessions are slated for Friday (5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Eastern) and Saturday (noon and 4:30 p.m.), with final eliminations scheduled for Sunday at 11 a.m.
Fox Sports 1 will televise one hour of live qualifying on Friday at 7:30 p.m. Eastern, with an hour of qualifying coverage on Sunday at 12:30 a.m. Eastern. FS1 will have three hours of eliminations at 4:30 p.m.
4-Second Reads:
John Force has competed in four races at New England Dragway and every race since the inaugural event in 2013.
Force has advanced to the final round of the NHRA New England Nationals twice, winning the 2015 edition of the race. He defeated Tommy Johnson Jr. in the finals. He lost the finals in 2013 to daughter Courtney Force.
Force is 11-3 in elimination rounds at New England Dragway.
Force qualified No. 1 in the inaugural race at the track in 2013.
Force is 4-0 in first-round matchups at New England Dragway. He has also won all four of his second-round matchups at the track.
Force is currently third in Funny Car points standings, where he has remained for five consecutive races.
In his career, Force has 148 victories and 1,274 elimination round wins, both records. He has 155 No. 1 qualifying spots, of which 60 have resulted in victories, also both records.
Force’s most recent NHRA victory – 2017 NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla.
Force’s most recent No. 1 qualifying effort – 2017 NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla.
Force’s best time/speed at Epping – 3.886 seconds (2016 Q2); 329.75 mph (2016 Q2)
Force’s best time/speed of career – 3.832 seconds (2017 Gainesville); 335.15 mph (2017 Pomona 1)