CHEVROLET AT INDIANAPOLIS
What: 64th Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals
When: Friday, Aug. 31-Monday, Sept. 3
Where: Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis
TV: FS1 live eliminations, 11 a.m. ET Sept. 3
FOX live eliminations and finals, 1 p.m. ET Sept. 3
Chevrolet Drivers Primed to Run Full Speed in the ‘Big Go’
Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals is final opportunity to qualify for Countdown
DETROIT (Aug. 29, 2018) – Courtney Force has watched her father, John, sister, Ashley, and John Force Racing teammate Robert Hight win the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals. The Funny Car points leader would like to add her name to the list in the most prestigious event of the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) season.
The 64th Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, will be contested Aug. 31-Sept. 3 at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis. The “Big Go” is the last of 18 regular-season events and carries additional weight for drivers seeking to secure one of the 10 spots in each Mello Yello Drag Racing Series category for the six-race Countdown to the Championship. A point-and-a-half system (150 points to win) will be used, which will add to the drama.
Reigning NHRA Top Fuel champion Brittany Force (Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster) and 2017 Funny Car champion Robert Hight (Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS) will be the co-honorary starters for race day Sept. 3. There will be a special tribute to Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen, who died at age 81 in June.
Additionally, some of the biggest names in NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series history will be at the Chevrolet Performance display to greet fans throughout the weekend.
Courtney Force is locked in to the playoff on the strength of four wins and 10 No. 1 qualifiers in the Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS. A victory in the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals would be a strong statement entering the Countdown that begins Sept. 13-16 at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pennsylvania.
“It’s the biggest race of the season, there’s always an incredible turnout and it’s always really exciting. A number of (JFR) drivers have won at this track and to have a sponsor like Chevy, it makes it even more of a reason to do well,” said Force, whose 12 career Funny Car wins is the most for a female in NHRA history. “I would love to win the race and go into the Countdown in the top spot. It’s a huge goal.
“We’ve had a pretty good race car all season and we’re just trying to keep our focus. I’m very fortunate to have a good team that’s been positive with me.”
Force was the No. 3 qualifier at the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals last year but fell in the first round of eliminations. Entering the Countdown sixth in points, she advanced to the final round in each of the first two races and added another runner-up finish to place a career-high third in the standings.
“In 2017, we had a great qualifying car and a career-best finish,” she said. “We’ve made it into a winning race car this year. It’s been kind of a slow progress of trying to get here, but I feel like we’ve turned it around for the best. I have so much confidence in the car and the team. The biggest thing that I learned (from Brittany) is anything is possible. I was so proud of her and that motivated me. My sister was able to win a world championship and now I think we’re capable of doing it, too.”
Hight, a two-time winner and three-time runner-up, is third in the standings. He’s won at Indianapolis in 2013, ’08, and ’06. Sixteen-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force, who has a special Chevrolet Accessories livery for the race weekend on the Chevrolet Camaro SS, has won the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals four times. He is eighth in points.
During testing last week at Lucas Oil Raceway, Brittany Force ran the low elapsed time of all Top Fuel competitors at 3.739 seconds and 330.55 mph in the Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster. Force, with one win this season, is eighth in the standings.
Four-time Pro Stock world champion Greg Anderson, driver of the Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS, will be aiming for his seventh Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals victory. The Pro Stock front-runner holds a 20-point lead over sophomore driver Tanner Gray (Gray Motorsports Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro SS), who leads the class with four victories.
Drew Skillman (Ray Skillman Auto Group Chevrolet Camaro SS), the 2017 Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals Pro Stock winner, is seeking his first win of the season.
The fifth of seven rounds of the School of Automotive Technology (SAM Tech) Factory Stock Showdown will be contested this weekend.
Driving a Chevrolet COPO Camaro are 2017 series champion David Barton of Robesonia, Pennsylvania; Stephen Bell of Shreveport, Louisiana; L. Scott Libersher of Wilmington, Illinois; Waldemar Rodriguez of Cidra, Puerto Rico; Doug Hamp of York, Pennsylvania; Daniel Stevenson of Bolingbrook, Illinois; Aaron Stanfield of Bossier City, Louisiana; Daniel Condon of Wilmington, Illinois; Arthur Kohn of Richmond, Texas; Randy Taylor of Artesia, New Mexico; Leonard Libersher of Wilmington, Illinois; Richard Bierie of Acworth, Georgia; Peter Gasko Jr. of Monroe Township, New Jersey; David Janac of Caldwell, Texas; and Clay Arnett of Hartville, Indiana.
Bell won the 2018 series opener at Gainesville, Florida, and Kohn won the event at Concord, North Carolina.
Jeff Taylor of Sellersburg, Indiana, the current leader in the Stock Eliminator national standings, will seek to increase his point lead in his Chevrolet COPO Camaro. Taylor won at Gainesville early in the season. Jeff Strickland of Red Bay, Alabama, the 2016 Stock Eliminator champion who won at Atlanta in his COPO Camaro, will also be competing.
Also driving their COPO Camaros among the 182 entries will be Marion Stephenson of Williamsport, Indiana; Brett Candies of Thibodaux, Louisiana; Jeff Lopez of Irving, Texas; Vic Cagnazzi of New York City; Jeff Warren of Clinton, North Carolina; Jesse Alexander of West Bend, Wisconsin; Kevin Mitchell of Champaign, Illinois; Richard Rinke of Oxford, Michigan; Gerard Noonan of Monroe Township, New Jersey; Jim Boburka of Coraopolis, Pennsylvania; Dan Fletcher of Churchville, New York; James Reed of Lincoln, Illinois; Steve Novosel of Troy, Michigan; Jeff Tietz of Spring Grove, Illinois; Philip Giles of Flatonia, Texas; Todd Patterson of Augusta, Kansas; Brad Jarvis of Catin, Illinois; Adam Berberich of Mooresville, North Carolina; and Lane Goldstein of Woodland Hills, California.
Strickland, Cagnazzi, Giles, and Rinke will do double duty, driving their Chevrolet COPO Camaros in Super Stock competition. Also driving their COPO Camaros among the 182 entries are Rich South of Etna, Ohio; J. Allen Sherman of Lottie, Louisiana; and Jeff Myers of Decatur, Indiana.
The expansive Chevrolet Performance display in the paddock will feature a variety of Chevrolet production vehicles, including the 2019 Corvette ZR1 Coupe, 2018 Corvette Stingray Coupe, 2019 Camaro 3LT Coupe, 2019 Silverado Trail Boss, and 2019 Silverado 3500 High Country. Also on display will be a Corvette Z06 cutaway, 1988 Monte Carlo, a John Force Racing Funny Car, and a Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen Funny Car, plus interactive displays, accessories, and crate engines.
The NHRA Legends Tour will showcase eight renowned stars at the Chevrolet Performance display to greet fans. The lineup:
Friday (5:15 p.m.) – Shirley Muldowney, Don Garlits, Richard Tharp, Darrell Gwynn, and Kenny Youngblood.
Saturday (3:30 p.m.) – Don Prudhomme, Kenny Bernstein, Ed McCulloch, Tom Prock, Al Segrini, Terry Vance, Roland Leong, Muldowney, Garlits, Tharp, Gwynn, and Youngblood.
Sunday (11 a.m.) – Prudhomme, McCulloch, Prock, Segrini, Leong, and Youngblood.
Monday (12:20 p.m.) – Garlits and Prudhomme.
Also, Chevrolet NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series drivers will be available for autographs and photos with spectators at the display throughout the weekend.