| BROWNSBURG, Ind. (Jan. 26, 2026) – John Force Racing rolls into a new era of competition for the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season with an expanded lineup of drivers, crew chiefs and crew who collectively have the singular focus of winning for the 24-time championship organization. “This is a great time to be part of John Force Racing and I’m more excited about getting the season going than I have been in a long time,” said 16-time NHRA Funny Car World Champion and team owner John Force. “There are new crew chiefs and crew members bringing fresh blood to the race shop, sharing their experience and know-how with the crew chiefs and crew already established here who have won races and championships and set national records. We’re back to having four teams in Top Fuel and Funny Car and I can’t wait to see them go down the track at Gainesville.” Continuing to call the shots for 2012 NHRA Funny Car World Champion Jack Beckman and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet SS Funny Car team will be veteran crew chiefs Danny Hood and Tim Fabrisi. Beckman’s first full season with the PEAK SQUAD garnered a third-place finish in the 2025 point standings on the strength of two victories (Pomona 1, Chicago) and three runner-up finishes (Richmond, Indianapolis, St. Louis) as well as five No. 1 Qualifier spots (Gainesville, Chicago, Richmond, Brainerd, Indianapolis). Long-time John Force Racing crew chief Chris Cunningham moves from the PEAK SQUAD to join forces with co-crew chief Jason Bunker, most recently with Cruz Pedregon Racing, in overseeing the performance of the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car team with driver Jordan Vandergriff. Vandergriff will make his Funny Car debut in 2026 after competing in 11 Top Fuel events in 2019, earning a runner-up finish at Dallas and two other semi-final showings. After a five-year hiatus from the competition, he made two starts last season in relief of injured Top Fuel driver Shawn Reed. David Grubnic and John Collins will continue to prepare the John Force Racing Top Fuel Dragster in 2026 with Josh Hart now behind the wheel and a new primary partnership with Hart’s Burnyzz Speed Shop. Last year, Grubnic and Collins guided two-time NHRA Top Fuel World Champion Brittany Force, who stepped out of the seat at season’s end to start a family, to a fourth-place finish in the point standings with two wins (New Hampshire and Las Vegas, her female record-breaking 19th in the class) one runner-up finish (Seattle), and six No. 1 Qualifier positions (Pomona1, Richmond, Sonoma, Indianapolis, Charlotte2, Las Vegas). The team also set the NHRA speed national record multiple times, the final mark of 343. 51 mph made at Indianapolis. Hart, who has two NHRA Top Fuel victories to his credit (2021 Gainesville and Charlotte), finished 10th in last year’s Top Fuel point standings as team owner and driver. The decision-makers on the Bandero Premium Tequila Chevrolet SS Funny Car team with driver Alexis DeJoria are Mike Neff, who has been both driver and crew chief with John Force Racing and was DeJoria’s crew chief last season, and Jonnie Lindberg, also a former driver who was co-crew chief the past two seasons at Paul Lee Racing. The six-time NHRA Funny Car event winner finished 12th in last season’s point standings, with semifinal finishes at Gainesville, Epping, Seattle and Indianapolis. John Force Racing kicks off the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season, the sanctioning body’s 75th anniversary, March 5-8 with the AMALIE MOTOR OIL NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway. |
