NHRA–CHEVROLET AT READING

CHEVROLET AT READING

What: Dodge NHRA Nationals
When: Friday, Sept. 14-Sunday, Sept. 16
Where: Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pennsylvania
TV: FS1 taped qualifications, 7 p.m. ET Sept. 14
FS1 taped eliminations and finals, 7:30 p.m. ET Sept. 16

Chevrolet Seeks Quick Start in Countdown to the Championship
Courtney Force in Funny Car, Tanner Gray in Pro Stock enter as No. 1 seeds

DETROIT (Sept. 12, 2018) – A quick start is crucial to Chevrolet drivers – on the dragstrip and in the initial round of the six-race National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship.

Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pennsylvania, this weekend hosts the Dodge NHRA Nationals, with 19 Team Chevy drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock seeking to cash in on a big points day.

Following the 18-race regular season that concluded Sept. 3 with the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, points were recast. The top seeds in each of the four professional categories enter the Countdown with a 20-point advantage over the second-place finisher, 30 over third place, and 10-point increments through the 10th-place qualifiers.

Courtney Force, driving the Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, and 19-year-old Tanner Gray in the Gray Motorsports/Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock are No. 1 seeds. Force led all Funny Car drivers with four victories and 10 low-qualifier honors in the regular season.

“We have a target on our back right now,” said Force, the first female to be the top seed in the Countdown in the Nitro categories. “We’re extremely glad to have a 20-point lead over the No. 2 guy … but it doesn’t make it any easier. The biggest thing for me is not to count up all of the little points and try to focus on what we have been doing all season — getting the car running consistent, being focused as a driver and going rounds.”

Gray topped Pro Stock with five wins, including two in the past three races during a last-season surge.

“We have to be consistent all through qualifying (this weekend), making sure we make good runs on race day, to get the Countdown off to a good start,” said Gray, who was the NHRA’s rookie of the year in 2017. “At the end of the day, it’s going to come down to who has the most consistent car.”

Chevrolet drivers swept 2017 titles in categories it competes, with eventual champions Brittany Force (Top Fuel) kicking off the Countdown as the sixth seed, Robert Hight (Funny Car) as the second seed, and Bo Butner (Pro Stock) as the top seed. Additionally, Courtney Force was sixth in points entering the playoffs and wound up a career-best third.

Victories by Brittany Force and Butner at Maple Grove Raceway in the 2017 Countdown fueled their drives to the titles.

Force, driving the Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet dragster, is the No. 8 seed this year. Hight, driver of the Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS, is No. 3, and Butner is No. 9 in the Jim Butner Auto Sales Chevrolet Camaro SS. Sixteen-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force, driving the PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS, is No. 9 in Funny Car points.

Representing the host state in Stock Eliminator in their Chevrolet COPO Camaros are David Barton of Robesonia, Pennsylvania; Philip Lankford of Langhorne, Pennsylvania; Jack Matyas of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; James Jeschke Jr. of Baden, Pennsylvania; Jim Boburka of Coraopolis, Pennsylvania; Donald Belles of Collegeville, Pennsylvania; Bob Letellier of Biddeford, Maine; and Mike Lettelier of New York City.

Barton, an engine builder, is the reigning School of Automotive Machinists and Technology (SAM Tech) Factory Stock Showdown champion.

Bob Lettelier is also scheduled to drive his COPO Camaro in Super Stock competition. Also entered in their Chevrolet COPO Camaros are Steve Szupka of Northampton, Pennsylvania; Bob Bagley of Warsaw, Virginia; and Victor Ricci of Easton, Pennsylvania.

FS1 will telecast taped coverage of eliminations and finals at 7:30 p.m. ET Sept. 16.

The Chevrolet Performance display at the racetrack will feature a variety of production vehicles for spectators to check out, including a 2018 Corvette Stingray Coupe, 2018 Camaro Hot Wheels Convertible, 2018 Malibu Redline Accessorized, 2018 Silverado 2WD Short Box Crew Cab, and a 1988 Monte Carlo with Connect & Cruise System LS376/575 – T56.

CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT

TOP FUEL
BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (reigning class champion; No. 2 qualifier and winner at Houston; won at track in 2017; eighth in points): “We have had great luck at Maple Grove Raceway in the past,” Brittany Force said. “We won there last season and we have been to a lot of final rounds there. It seems to be our track. We are hoping to turn some things around in the Countdown. We haven’t picked up a win since Houston. We are excited to get on track and drive this Advance Auto Parts dragster into the winner’s circle. I have a new motivation and different energy going into the next six races. There is no room for mistakes. All you are concentrating on is getting the car down the track. We want to qualify well and go rounds on race day. That is the focus for Reading.”

FUNNY CAR:
COURTNEY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (10-time No. 1 qualifier and winner at Phoenix, Atlanta, Topeka and Richmond; class points leader): “The points are reset and our Advance Auto Parts team is going to be ready in the Countdown (but) it definitely made me feel good that we’ve got a little bit of a head start.”

ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (reigning class champion; two-time winner and three-time runner-up; holds track Funny Car elapsed time and speed records, set in 2017; third in points): “We are going to start in the No. 3 spot and we will be only a couple rounds out of first place. A whole new season starts at Maple Grove Raceway.”

JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, CHEVROLET ACCESSORIES PEAK CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (has 1,305 round wins and 149 class victories; seven-time winner at track; ninth in points): “I still love the sport. I still love driving my hot rod but, bottom line, I want to win.”

PRO STOCK:
TANNER GRAY, GRAY MOTORSPORTS, VALVOLINE GRAY MOTORSPORTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (five-time winner this season; first in points): “I strive to be the best driver I can be and continue to work and not really settle for what I am right now. There’s always work to be better than I was yesterday.”

GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier nine times this season and 102 in career, tying Bob Glidden for third all time; won at Denver; his 152 final rounds is most in Pro Stock history; holds track Pro Stock speed record, set in 2015; second in points): “Not having the extra points for starting No. 1 stinks, but the simple truth, and I think everyone in the world knows it, is that it’s going to go down to the last race – just like it has the last few years. Anybody can beat anybody, and that’s going to happen in the Countdown. Nobody is going to run off with a series of wins, and it’s going to be a logjam by the time we get to Pomona. You better be in that logjam if you want a chance to win the championship.”

ERICA ENDERS, ELITE MOTORSPORTS, MELLING PERFORMANCE/ELITE MOTORSPORTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (won at Charlotte; five-time runner-up; holds track Pro Stock elapsed time record, set in 2014; third in points): “I wasn’t the last (wo)man standing, but what an Indy it was. We are going into the Countdown in the third spot. It’s up to Reading to kick this thing into high gear.”

JEG COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM/ELITE PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (three-time winner this season; runner-up at Indianapolis; four-time winner at track; fourth in points): “I really embrace the playoffs. It’s a very exciting time with lots of dramatic moments. It’s awesome to have our JEGS.com Elite Performance Chevrolet Camaro up to speed and contending for race wins every weekend. It should be a great Countdown to the Championship. The regular season was interesting. The first third of the schedule we were just struggling to find our way. The team made some pretty dramatic changes at that point and everything turned around for us. We won our first race in a few years’ time at the JEGS.com Nationals in Chicago and managed to add a couple other wins in the weeks following that race. We have really shown the championship caliber of this Elite group.”

VINCENT NOBILE, MOUNTAIN VIEW RACING, MOUNTAIN VIEW TIRE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (two-time winner and runner-up at Charlotte four-wide; fifth in points): “A first-round loss was not the way we wanted to end the season – the preseason, I guess you could call it. Going into the Countdown fifth is better than 10th or not qualifying at all. We’ll go to Reading, basically my home track now that Englishtown is gone. I’ll have a lot of family there and hopefully we can turn this thing around.”

DERIC KRAMER, KRAMER RACING, AMERICAN ETHANOL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (two-time winner and three-time runner-up; sixth in points): “Being at Indy (Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals) was great. It’s a huge show. Not the result we wanted in the first round (loss to Matt Hartford). Car didn’t run very well, so we’ll figure it out for Maple Grove. I was told that if you win all six you don’t have to worry about points, so I’ll just try to do that.”

DREW SKILLMAN, RAY SKILLMAN MOTORSPORTS, RAY SKILLMAN AUTO GROUP CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier at Charlotte four-wide; earned 100th round win at Richmond; seventh in points): “We didn’t qualify well at Indy but the car was running good on race day and we made it to the semifinals. If we can hook up the car in qualifying and continue to make consistent runs on race day, we’ll do OK in the Countdown. Anybody can win every week, so I figure I’m due.”

JASON LINE, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (three-time runner-up; seeking 50th national event win – 47 in Pro Stock, two in Stock Eliminator; has 100 final-round appearances in Pro Stock and Sportsman classes; righth in points): “I’m looking forward to starting the Countdown in Reading because that’s been a pretty good place for me in the past. Change is always good, and I need a fresh start. It’s time to hit the reset button and make something happen to finish this year strong. We’re not exactly where we want to be right now, and I’m going to have to do a really great job driving, but I’m absolutely thinking about the championship. We’re going to have to find a little bit of consistency and a little bit of speed, but it can absolutely happen.”

BO BUTNER, KB RACING, JIM BUTNER AUTO GROUP CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (reigning class champion; winner at season opener; runner-up at Gainesville; won at track in 2017; ninth in points): “This is kind of like the way we rode in last year. We were kind of quiet, then we showed up. We have a chance to do that again. Last year, I hated to reset the points – but this year, I absolutely love it. Going to Maple Grove this week is a positive for us. I’ve won there in Stock, Comp, and Pro Stock, so we’ve had a lot of success there. Let’s get going. I’m ready.”

CHRIS MCGAHA, HARLOW SAMMONS RACING, HARLOW SAMMONS OF ODESSA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (two-time winner; 10th in points): “I haven’t won a round since Denver, so maybe I’ve got all my losing out of the way and we can start winning in the Countdown. The car is running good. We just have to qualify better. Everyone knows they have to bring it now.”