CHEVROLET AT RICHMOND
What: Virginia NHRA Nationals
When: Friday, June 8-Sunday, June 10
Where: Virginia Motorsports Park in North Dinwiddie, Virginia
TV: FS1 live qualifications, 2:30 p.m. ET June 9
FS1 taped eliminations and finals, 6 p.m. ET June 10
Chevrolet Poised to Add to Win Total in Pro Categories
Virginia Motorsports Park hosts NHRA after nine-year absence
DETROIT (June 7, 2018) – Reigning National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Mello Yello Funny Car champion Robert Hight has displayed the past two races that a driver’s qualifying position doesn’t necessarily carry much weight on race day.
The driver of the Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS was the No. 14 qualifier at Topeka, Kansas, and advanced to the final before falling to John Force Racing teammate and Funny Car points leader Courtney Force (Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS). On June 3 at Joliet, Illinois, Hight secured his first win of the season and 42nd of his career after qualifying 12th.
“There are no easy ones in this class,” said Hight, who climbed to third in the standings through nine of 24 races. “Qualifying 14th or 12th or first, it just shows you how tough it is out here. When you win one of these you definitely earned it. There is a lot of pride in winning, especially with so many competitive cars out there right now. You saw a lot of first-round upsets in Chicago and you’re probably going to see more this week.”
It is the 14th consecutive year that Hight has won at least one race, and the victory at Route 66 Raceway marked the 21st different venue where he visited the winner’s circle.
He’ll attempt to add to that total this weekend in the Virginia NHRA Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park in North Dinwiddie, Virginia. It is the first National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event at the facility since 2009.
“I know we’ll face some of the same challenges this week at Richmond with the summer heat and the different way the NHRA is prepping the track, but I have confidence that (crew chief) Jimmy (Prock), Chris Cunningham and the rest of my guys will give me an Auto Club Camaro that can win no matter the conditions and no matter where we start.”
Chevrolet has won every Pro Stock race this season, but only Vincent Nobile (Mountain View Tire Chevrolet Camaro SS) is a two-time winner. At Chicago, Jeg Coughlin Jr. (JEGS.com/Elite Performance Chevrolet Camaro SS) earned his 59th Pro Stock win and first since June 2014 by defeating No. 1 qualifier Greg Anderson (Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS) in the final.
Elite Performance-prepared Camaros have won five of the past six Pro Stock events.
“There’s absolutely no reason to stop now,” said Coughlin, who won the 2000 race at Virginia Motorsports Park. “When you run through race day like we did in Chicago with the best car in every round, you become a believer in the fact you should be able to do that time and again.
“Our goal now is to repeat and get this JEGS/Elite Chevy to be as consistent as possible, so we can have a lot more days that end in the winner’s circle. If the guys continue to give me a stout race car and I do my job behind the wheel, it should happen more and more.”
Driving their Chevrolet COPO Camaros in Stock Eliminator competition this weekend will be David Barton of Robesonia, Pennsylvania, the 2017 SAM Tech Factory Stock Showdown champion; Dan Fletcher of Churchville, New York; Allen George of Coplay, Pennsylvania; Jack Matyas of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; Chip Johnson of Fayetteville, North Carolina; James Reed of Lincoln, Illinois; and Bob Letellier of Biddeford, Maine.
Letellier will also drive a COPO Camaro in Super Stock competition, along with Steve Szupka of Northampton, Pennsylvania; and Bob Bagley of Warsaw, Virginia.
FS1 will telecast qualifications live at 2:30 p.m. ET June 8 and will telecast taped eliminations and finals at 6 p.m. ET June 10.
CHEVY RACING ENGINEERING PREVIEW
ROGER ALLEN, CHEVY RACING NHRA PROGRAM MANAGER: “It’s great that the NHRA is returning to Virginia Motorsports Park after a long absence, and we’re looking forward to showing the fans the Chevy power in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and the Sportsman categories. Robert Hight in Funny Car and Jeg Coughlin Jr. in Pro Stock posted big wins last week at Route 66 Raceway. Jeg and the other drivers with Elite Motorsports power have really mixed up the class, with eight different Team Chevy winners in the nine races. It’s great competition in each class.”
CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT
TOP FUEL
BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (reigning class champion; No. 2 qualifier and winner at Houston; No. 1 qualifier at Charlotte; No. 2 qualifier at Chicago): “Richmond is a new track on the circuit, so I am looking forward to racing there. I have never been to the track and I am looking to get a win for the Advance Auto Parts and Monster Energy team. I am excited about going to a new track. It would be awesome to be the first Top Fuel team to get a win when we returned.”
FUNNY CAR:
ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (reigning class champion; won at Chicago and three-time runner-up; holds Funny Car track elapsed time record, set in 2008; third in points): “Qualifying obviously didn’t go that well (at Chicago) but when you have a team like this behind you, you never lose faith. I always believe in them. I know we’ll face some of the same challenges this week at Richmond with the summer heat and the different way the NHRA is prepping the track, but I have confidence that Jimmy (Prock), Chris Cunningham and the rest of my guys will give me an Auto Club Camaro that can win no matter the conditions and no matter where we start.”
COURTNEY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier and winner at Phoenix, Atlanta, and Topeka; five-time No. 1 qualifier; class points leader): “I am excited to go to Richmond. I remember going to that track with my dad as a kid. The Richmond race is where I celebrated my seventh birthday. It was in the winner’s circle with him, so I have a lot of great memories from that track. I am excited to go back and see what I remember about the facility. I am looking forward to racing on a new track. We were able to win the inaugural race in Epping, New Hampshire, so hopefully our Advance Auto Parts team can do that again.”
JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK COOLANT & MOTOR OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (has 1,293 round wins and 148 class victories; four-time winner at track): “I went a couple rounds (at Chicago) but my car ran good every round. Even though it’s just one race, I’m moved it back in the Top 10. We’ve still got nine races to go and my car is starting to act like a race car. I’m excited about going to back to Richmond. It’s a great motorsports market and it’s really great that the NHRA is going back there (after a nine-year absence). I’ve won races there before but going back now is kind of personal because it’s the last race Eric Medlen won before he passed away.”
PRO STOCK:
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (next final round will be 152nd in his 20 seasons competing in Pro Stock, which would break Warren Johnson’s record; No. 1 qualifier five times this season; class points leader): “I’m excited to get to Richmond, because that’s a racetrack where I have not won. I’ve won at all the rest of them on the current tour, but that one, they’ve added it back to the schedule, and that’s great for me. I like Virginia Motorsports Park and have great memories of racing there in the past. It used to be a really good Pro Stock track, and I expect the same thing this year. Hopefully, we can improve our position by one round on race day. We have a pretty good qualifying set-up, but right now with my car we’re still working on that race day set-up. I think with what we’ve learned this week we’re getting closer and closer to closing the deal.”
VINCENT NOBILE, MOUNTAIN VIEW RACING, MOUNTAIN VIEW TIRE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (two-time winner and runner-up at Charlotte four-wide this season; No. 1 qualifier at opener): “We are excited that’s VMP stepped up when Englishtown went away. I have never raced there but I’ve been there when my father, John Nobile raced. It’s a nice track and I know they have been working tirelessly to get it ready for this weekend. Hope to keep the consistency this Chevrolet Camaro has and get that win.”
JEG COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM/ELITE PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (won at Chicago for 59th Pro Stock victory and 77th national event win overall): “Chicago was certainly a huge, huge win for us. It felt like the culmination of this wave of momentum we’ve been building for a couple months now with much improved qualifying positions and better runs on race day. We finally turned that final corner at the JEGS Route 66 Nationals and got that long-awaited win. I can tell you, no matter how many times you’ve won, it’s always nice to get another one and having gone the longest spell of my driving career without a win in Pro Stock, it certainly felt great to bust that streak.”
BO BUTNER, KB RACING, JIM BUTNER AUTO GROUP CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (reigning class champion; earned sixth Pro Stock win and second in a row at Auto Club Raceway in season opener; celebrates birthday June 10): “”I had one of my first NHRA events ever in Super Stock there in Richmond a long, long time ago. I also won an ADRL race there with a Super Car Shootout that (drag racing announcer and historian) Bret Kepner started, and that’s how (fellow Pro Stock and Sportsman racer) Drew Skillman and I started racing heads-up together. Virginia Motorsports Park is different, which is neat. Right now, I’m thinking about getting back on my game. I’m overthinking, and we can’t do that. No matter where you qualify, you still have to go do your job – and that’s what I’m going to do. We’ll have fun.”
JASON LINE, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (runner-up in first two races of season; seeking 50th national event win – 47 in Pro Stock, two in Stock Eliminator; won at track in 2006; celebrates birthday June 10): “I like going to Richmond, and it’s been a long time. Virginia Motorsports Park is a fun place, and the fans in that area have been short-changed the last few years. I think they’ll enjoy having us there as well, so that makes it even more fun. It’s really cool to have a win there – not a lot of Pro Stock drivers do – and I don’t know if that gives us any kind of an advantage, but it’s just a neat thing to be able to say. My blue Summit Racing Chevy Camaro has been getting better and better over the last few races, so I am certainly looking forward to this weekend.”
TANNER GRAY, GRAY MOTORSPORTS, VALVOLINE GRAY MOTORSPORTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (won at Gainesville; runner-up at Atlanta; No. 2 qualifier at Chicago): “Going to Virginia Motorsports Park will be a lot like last year. Last year there were 24 tracks that I hadn’t been to, so I don’t think that it will be a problem. They are pretty much all the same. It might be a little more challenging for the crew chiefs than the driver.”
DREW SKILLMAN, RAY SKILLMAN MOTORSPORTS, RAY SKILLMAN AUTO GROUP CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier and finalist at Charlotte four-wide): “This four-week stretch will help us build consistency, especially on my part, in the car. I haven’t been performing the way I know I am capable of. I’m looking forward to going to Virginia Motorsports Park to get this season righted.”
JOHN GAYDOSH, GAYDOSH RACING, PYPES PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “I’m excited to get back to racing this weekend after being off for a couple events. We have updated power from Chris (McGaha) this weekend and we expect big things. Chris went over the motor, made some updates and gave our Camaro more power. It’s a good weekend to show what we got. We’re hoping to see some good numbers with the changes we made and climb up the qualifying ladder past 13th. That has been the number we have stalled at. And to top it off Chris keeps landing in fourth. Since we started getting power from him we have had to race each other at two of the four races I’ve competed in.”