CHEVROLET RACING AT POMONA

What:
56th Circle K NHRA Winternationals
When:
Thursday, Feb. 11-Sunday, Feb. 14
Where:
Auto Club Raceway, Pomona, California
TV:
FS1: Qualifying – 10:30 p.m. ET, Friday (tape delay)
FS1: Qualifying – 1 a.m. ET, Sunday (tape delay); eliminations and finals – 5 p.m. ET, Sunday (live)

Chevrolet Looks for Fast Start to 2016 Season at Pomona
Circle K NHRA Winternationals kicks off Mello Yello Drag Racing Series

DETROIT (Feb. 10, 2016) – Chevrolet heads to historic Auto Club Raceway this weekend for the season-opening Circle K NHRA Winternationals with determination to surpass its 2015 success and focus on claiming Mello Yellow Drag Racing Series championships.

Chevrolet recorded 29 national event victories last year in three different Eliminator categories during the 24-event National Hot Rod Association season. The Bowtie Brand was awarded the NHRA Manufacturer Cup as drag racing’s leading manufacturer for the 21st time since 1996.

The Chevrolet Camaro SS was the car to beat in the Pro Stock class with 22 victories. Greg Anderson posted four victories in his Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS and was runner-up in the championship. The veteran KB Racing driver, who has won five times at Pomona, returns to challenge for a spot in the Countdown to the Championship.

KB Racing’s Jason Line also will be a contender in the Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS. In the season opener at Pomona last February, Line claimed his fourth Winternationals Pro Stock victory by outrunning rookie Drew Skillman in the final round. It was Line’s 36th career victory.

Skillman, who went on to win at St. Louis and claim three No. 1 qualifier positions, looks to better his fifth-place finish in the class in the Ray Skillman Chevrolet Camaro SS. Chris McGaha won three events in his Harlow Sammons of Odessa Chevrolet Camaro SS and placed fourth in the Pro Stock standings.

There are 11 Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock cars entered for the Winternationals.

Pro Stock teams have been recently conducting comprehensive test programs in preparation for the Winternationals. In July, NHRA officials announced a series of changes for the Pro Stock category designed to increase spectator appeal, make the class more relevant from a technology standpoint, and reduce and control costs for teams.

Key changes for the 2016 season include electronically-controlled throttle body fuel injection systems, an NHRA-controlled 10,500 RPM rev limiter, removal of hood scoops and shortened wheelie bars.

The Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway will mark the 50th anniversary of the Funny Car class at the event. John Force, who has 143 Funny Cars victories and 16 class championships since 1978, leads the John Force Racing contingent into the Winternationals.

At the NHRA Nitro Spring Training last weekend at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix, John Force Racing cars claimed seven of the 10 quickest runs of the final day. Robert Hight, the 2009 Funny Car world champion and winner at Brainerd in 2015, was second quick on the final day with a 3.885 e.t. at 329.34 in his Auto Club Chevrolet Camaro SS.

Teammate Courtney Force was third with a career-best run of 3.890 at 323.89 in her Traxxas Chevrolet Camaro SS. John Force, who added two victories in 2015 to his career total, had a best run of 3.914 in his Peak Chevrolet Camaro SS. He has seven career victories at Pomona.

In Top Fuel at the recent spring training, Brittany Force continued to impress in her John Force Racing’s Monster Energy Drink/Chevrolet. She posted the quickest run of the final day of 3.721 at 319.07. Force finished a career-best seventh in the Top Fuel standings last season.

In addition, six Chevrolet COPO Camaro drivers ae part of the Stock Eliminator and Super Stock classes this weekend.

Chevrolet also will welcome fans to its Chevrolet Performance Display during the weekend. It will include a number of Chevrolet’s award-winning production vehicles, examples of Chevrolet engines, and a selection of performance parts and accessories that are available for fans to purchase from their local Chevrolet dealer.

FS1 will telecast eliminations live at 5 p.m. ET Sunday. Qualifying coverage will air on FS1 via tape delay at 10:30 p.m. ET Friday and 1 a.m. ET Sunday.

CHEVROLET ENGINEERING OUTLOOK FOR CIRCLE K NHRA WINTERNATIONALS
ROGER ALLEN, CHEVROLET RACING PROGRAM MANAGER, NHRA: “It’s going to be an interesting year, particularly in the Pro Stock arena with the rules changes and competition from Dodge. It gives us that opportunity to do better job with the new rules package than the competition and gain an advantage. In Top Fuel and Funny Car, John Force Racing will have more experience in its second year with Chevy and is back in full swing. We’re looking for the team to step up its game. Overall, we’re looking forward to another exciting season and are confident of continued success from the Chevy teams.”

CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT – CIRCLE K NHRA WINTERNATIONALS
TOP FUEL:
BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY/CHEVROLET TOP FUEL DRAGSTER: “Teaming up with (tuning consultant) Alan Johnson and Brian Husen as my crew chief has been great. They have made a lot of changes to this Monster Energy dragster. They run a whole different system that what we used to run. It takes some time to adjust to that and I am learning the car. It is starting to feel like home. We ran a couple of 3.72s and I am ready to get to Pomona.”

FUNNY CAR:
JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “I am excited about getting the season started. We had a great week of testing in Phoenix and my PEAK hot rod is ready. My crew chief Jon Schaffer and my team have worked hard over the off-season and we will be ready for the Winternationals. I told my sponsors that we will be racing for the championship. We have been in the championship hunt until the last day of the season for just about 20 years. We came up a little short last season, but we had so much new stuff going on I didn’t know how it would turn out. I had a whole new team and they did a really good job.”

PRO STOCK:
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “There are a whole bunch of changes and the bottom line is somebody is going to gain an advantage with all these changes and challenges. I believe that I have a deep team that can respond quicker than some of the other teams and find that advantage. That is our goal. We’ve worked extremely hard through the winter with the hope that we could gain an advantage at least to start the season. When we go to Pomona, I know the class won’t be as tight as it was last year because of all these rule changes. Somebody will be out ahead, and that needs to be us.”

Chevrolet Teams and Drivers at Circle K NHRA Winternationals
Funny Car
Team
Car
Event Notes
John Force
John Force Racing
Peak Chevrolet Camaro SS
Seven-time Pomona winner; 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion
Courtney Force
John Force Racing
Traxxas Chevrolet Camaro SS
No. 1 qualifier at Ponoma 1 in 2015
Robert Hight
John Force Racing
Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS
Fourth on the all-time Funny Car wins list with 36

Top Fuel
Team
Car
Event Notes
Brittany Force
John Force Racing
Monster Energy/ Chevrolet Top Fuel Dragster
Finished career-high seventh in 2015 standings

Pro Stock
Team
Car
Event Notes
Greg Anderson
KB Racing
Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS
Five-time winner at Pomona; finished second in 2015 Pro Stock standings
Jason Line
KB Racing
Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS
Won Pomona 1 in 2015 for his 36th Pro Stock title; fourth time he’s won opener
Shane Gray
Gray Motorsports
Gray Manufacturing Tech Chevrolet Camaro SS
Raced to five semifinal rounds in 2015; No. 1 qualifier at Brainerd
Chris McGaha
Harlow Sammons Racing
Harlow Sammons of Odessa Chevrolet Camaro SS
Won first career race in 2015; finished fourth in points
Vincent Nobile
Elite Motorsports
Mountainview Tire Chevrolet Camaro SS
No. 1 qualifier at Pomona 1 in 2014
Bo Butner III
Jim Butner Auto
Butner Auto Sales Chevrolet Camaro SS
Raced to one final round in rookie season of 2015
Drew Skillman
Elite Motorsports
Ray Skillman Chevrolet Camaro SS
Runner-up at Pomona 1 in Pro Stock debut
Matthew Hartford
Hartford Racing
Total Seal-CIP1.com-Nitrofish Chevrolet Camaro SS
Posted quarterfinal finish at Pomona 2 in 2014
Aaron Strong
Strong Racing
Strong Trucking/FigSpeed Chevrolet Camaro SS
Made Pro Stock debut at Sonoma in July 2015
Joey Grose
Grose Racing
Skyler Electric/Big Chief Chevrolet Camaro SS
Returned to Pro Stock competition in 2014
Alex Laughlin
Laughlin Motorsports
Gas Monkey Garage Chevrolet Camaro SS
Qualified for six NHRA national events in 2015; to run full schedule in 2016

Super Stock
Car
Dave Bridgewater
Rotolo Chevrolet/Bridgewater Chevrolet COPO Camaro
Rodger Comstock
MTS/Hoosier/Lucas/MCNX WR. Chevrolet COPO Camaro
Ali Afshar
Lucas Oil Protect Harvest Chevrolet COPO Camaro
Brian Broaddus
DNB Engineering Chevrolet COPO Camaro

Stock Eliminator
Car
Dave Bridgewater
Rotolo Chevrolet/Bridgewater Chevrolet COPO Camaro
Dan Fletcher
Peak/K&N/ATI Chevrolet COPO Camaro