Courtney Force records Englishtown No. 1, the fifth of season for Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet
ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. (June 10) – It doesn’t matter if it’s a primary car or a spare car, Courtney Force is going to find a way to take an Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS to the top of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Funny Car bracket.
She did it again this weekend, putting a spare car in the No. 1 spot for the 48th annual NHRA Summernationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park. Her pass of 3.862 seconds at 331.12 mph set the track record for elapsed time in Friday’s second qualifying session, and with much higher ambient and track temperatures Saturday, no one was able to make a run close to Force’s time.
Force went quickest during the first day of qualifying for last weekend’s New England Nationals in Epping, N.H., but her car exploded following a problem with the engine, and she was relegated to a spare car. She finished qualifying in the No. 2 position and took the car to the finals despite not making a full pass during three more qualification attempts.
This weekend, there were no problems in qualifying. All four of Force’s passes were under the four-second mark, including both of Saturday’s efforts which notched her a large number of bonus points. And with her efforts, she’ll face No. 16 Jeff Diehl, who made a best pass of 6.432 seconds at 81.27 mph.
Now, the focus returns to going rounds Sunday, surpassing last weekend’s finals run and going on to win her first race of the season.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Force said. “We’ve known from the start of the season that we’ve had something good. (Crew chief) Dan Hood and (co-crew chief) Ronnie Thompson have given me a great race car all year long. To have five No. 1 qualifiers is pretty incredible. It’s great to drive a hot rod like this, especially a spare car.
“They’ve nicknamed it the ‘old junkyard dog,’ and it’s running pretty good. They can call it whatever they want. It’s running fast and it was the one that took us to the finals last weekend. Hopefully we can seal the deal this weekend.”
It marks Force’s 15th No. 1, tying her with older sister Ashley Force Hood, who also recorded 15 No. 1s during her four-year career between 2007 and 2010. And now she’s hoping to join her father, John Force, as a winner at Englishtown on Sunday. John Force has four victories here.
“I grew up watching my dad race here,” Force said. “It’s a fun track for me. I’d like to get a win here. It’s cool to tie my sister in No. 1s. I’ve got to give her a little more credit as she did this in four years, while it’s taken me close to six. It’s pretty amazing and I’ve learned a lot from her. It’s cool to have some stats that match hers.”
Elimination rounds begin at 11 a.m. Eastern Sunday, with taped delay television coverage beginning at 6 p.m. Eastern on Fox Sports 1.
4-Second Reads:
Qualifying Round 1 (Right Lane): 3.934 seconds/324.05 mph; straight down the track (No. 3 of session and No. 3 overall; one bonus point)
Qualifying Round 2 (Left Lane): 3.862 seconds/331.12 mph; another great pass and quick ET of the weekend (No. 1 of session and No. 1 overall; three bonus points in session and four overall)
Qualifying Round 3 (Left Lane): 3.930 seconds/321.04 mph; quick pass in heat of the day (No. 2 of session and No. 1 overall; two bonus points in session and six overall)
Qualifying Round 4 (Right Lane): 3.977 seconds/318.09 mph; solid pass and stands on Q2 time (No. 4 of session and No. 1 overall; no bonus points in session and six overall)
This is the 15th time in her career and fifth time this season Force has qualified No. 1. Her most recent No. 1 came in the NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway, the last of a four-race streak in which she captured the top spot. The 15 No. 1s are the most of any qualifying position, tied with her 15 No. 2s.
Force has 26 round wins in 36 elimination rounds from the No. 1 position, and has made it to the finals five times, with four victories. Her last finals from the No. 1 spot was last year in Denver, while her last win from the No. 1 spot was 2014 in Dallas.
This is Force’s best career start at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park. Her previous best came in 2015, when she qualified No. 6.
Force is looking for her first career finals appearance at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park. Her best result came in 2012, when she made it to the semifinals.
Force has now qualified in the top half of the bracket on 34 consecutive occasions and hasn’t qualified worse than No. 4 in 10 races this season. She is the only driver to qualify among the top four drivers in every event this season.
Force will face Jeff Diehl in the first round of Sunday’s race. Force is 3-1 all-time against Diehl, including 2-0 this season (both times in which she has qualified No. 1).