At Sonoma, record speed, career-best time gives
Auto Club driver Robert Hight 52nd No. 1 of his career

Photo credit: Gary Nastase and Auto Imagery
SONOMA, Calif. (July 29) – Robert Hight’s stellar record-setting pass in Friday’s second qualifying session for the NHRA Sonoma Nationals at Sonoma Raceway was strong enough for his 52nd career No. 1 qualifier in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.

Hight’s pass of 3.807 seconds at 339.87 mph in the Auto Club of Southern California/California Highway Patrol Chevrolet Camaro SS was more than four hundredths quicker than the field over the four qualifying sessions, and his speed was the first to top 339 mph in any professional NHRA category.

He also garnered another bonus point in Saturday’s final session, with a run of 3.909 seconds at 329.26 mph. That run was what Hight considered a baseline setup and will be similar to what the team will run Sunday, as qualifying Saturday was contested in the heat of the day.

“Things are definitely going the right direction for us,” the 2009 Funny Car champion said. “It’s a big deal because everybody always talks about sweeping the Swing. We got one leg down, and to come in here and get low ET and to set the quickest run in history, that is pretty awesome.

“I am just glad our Auto Club Chevy made it down the track this last run because you don’t want to go into Sunday, no matter what position you are in, making only one great run like that moonshot that we took last night. So it was a good baseline run for us tomorrow and we are going to take them one at a time and see how it goes.

“I hope there are plenty more of these green hats (given to the No. 1 qualifier in each category) because I want to give them to the great California Highway Patrol guys that have been hanging around with us all weekend. I want to hopefully give each one of them a green hat, and with a little luck, give them a yellow one (given to the race winner in each category) at the end of the day tomorrow.”

Hight’s pass Friday earned him his second career No. 1 at Sonoma – his “home track,” as he grew up in northern California – and third of the season. It is also the 10th No. 1 for John Force Racing in 2017. Teammates John and Courtney Force qualified No. 2 and 4, respectively.

“I have only won (Sonoma) once as a driver, and I want to do it again,” added Hight, the 2008 Sonoma winner in Funny Car. “This really is my home track. I grew up about six hours north of here in northern California and the first national event I ever attended was right here. So I have been to every single national event here either as a fan, a crew member and now as a driver. But I also won it with Jimmy Prock, and we are back together.”

Hight is also looking to avenge a pair of first-round losses earlier this season as the No. 1 qualifier, as dropped cylinders in Epping and Chicago forced early exits.

And, if his top speed holds up through Sunday, it will be the ninth race in 15 this season he will have run the top speed this season.

Not that any of that really matters to Hight. What he’s aiming for is a Western Swing sweep; he won last weekend’s Mile-High Nationals in Morrison, Colo., for his first victory of the season, extending his streak of seasons with at least one victory to 13 – all in succession.

Track conditions are obviously different – Bandimere Speedway in Colorado sits more than 5,800 feet above sea level, while the elevation of Sonoma Raceway is just 15 feet. The air is also different.

“In Denver, you have to change everything,” Hight said. “Your spare engines have to be changed and when you get back from there you have to put everything back to a sea-level tune-up. I think it’s almost 2,000 miles after you drive to California and then we go on up to Seattle which is another great race track where you have great air, lot of trees, lot of oxygen. What is cool is to start out that Western Swing with a win and get some momentum, get everyone’s attitude up, and on a high note. Our guys couldn’t wait to roll in to Sonoma, get set up, and get out here on this race track.”

Hight will matchup against No. 16 Todd Gibbons in the first round Sunday, marking the first time the two will compete.

Elimination rounds begin at 11 a.m. Pacific on Sunday, with live television coverage beginning at 1 p.m. on Fox Sports 1.

4-Second Reads:
Qualifying Round 1 (Right Lane): 4.507 seconds/184.62 mph; strong launch but slows at about the 330-foot mark (No. 8 of session and No. 8 overall; no bonus points)
Qualifying Round 2 (Left Lane): 3.807 seconds/339.87 mph; pass straight down the middle for third quickest pass in NHRA Funny Car history and fastest in NHRA history in any category (No. 1 of session and No. 1 overall; three bonus points in session and three bonus points overall)
Qualifying Round 3 (Right Lane): 8.947 seconds/80.86 mph; smoke from the car before the 100-foot mark (No. 9 of session and No. 1 overall; no bonus points in session and three bonus points overall)
Qualifying Round 4 (Left Lane): 3.909 seconds/329.26 mph; solid pass in the heat of the day puts Hight near the top of the charts for the session (No. 3 of session and No. 1 overall; one bonus point in session and four bonus points overall)
This is the third time this season and 52nd time in his career Hight has qualified No. 1. Hight also qualified No. 1 at Epping, N.H., and Joliet, Ill.
Hight’s last victory from the No. 1 qualifying position came in May 2012 at the Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C.
This is the second time Hight has qualified No. 1 at Sonoma. He was also No. 1 at Sonoma in 2006.
Hight’s matchup against Todd Gibbons marks the first time the two will compete against each other.