Honda Performance Development-built Civic Type R engines are a cornerstone of the series
Exclusive partnership includes Parella Motorsports Holdings, HPD, Ligier, Hankook Tires and SCCA Pro Racing; opportunity to earn FIA Super License points
2022 calendar features 18 rounds at six iconic circuits around the United States

Santa Clarita, Calif. (October 19, 2021) – Honda Performance Development (HPD) has reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to the F4 United States Championship and Formula Regional Americas, as the title battles in both series come down to the upcoming season finale weekends at the Circuit of the Americas.
“Honda Performance Development exclusively partners with the F4 United States Championship and Formula Regional Americas for the development of North American single-seat racers,” said John Whiteman, Manager, Commercial Motorsports for HPD. “Both series are exclusively powered by HPD-prepared Honda engines; and have continued to grow under the leadership of Parella Motorsports Holdings, in partnership with Ligier and Hankook Tires.” The FRA and F4 US championships offer global developing drivers the opportunity to demonstrate their skills on an international platform, with affordability and safety as top priorities. Both series’ cars are powered by equally strong, reliable, HPD-modified versions of the current Honda Civic® Type R® engine, with the FRA powered by a turbocharged 303-horsepower edition, while the F4 series uses a normally aspirated 160-bhp engines.
In addition, the FIA, world governing body for motorsports, awards up to 18 “Super License” points for FRA competitors, and 12 for drivers in F4US, more than available in any other North American development series.
Now in its sixth season, the F4 US Championship continues to be the most successful F4 regional series in the world. The 2021 title will be decided later this month at the US Grand Prix in Austin Texas, in front of the Honda-powered Formula 1 teams fighting for the FIA World Championship.  The fourth FRA champion will be decided two weeks later at the SVRA finale, also at Austin, Texas. 
F4 and FRA competitors and champions, including Dakota Dickerson, Kyle Kirkwood, Ernie Francis Jr., and Linus Lundqvist, continue to have success and advance in single seater and sports car racing.

Charlestown, IN (September 21st, 2021) – The Greene County Fairgrounds in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania was host to four potent Champions Tour classes of the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League on Saturday September 18th . The event was also the site for the first Champions Tour points champion to be crowned for 2021 in the ARP Super Stock Diesel Truck division. The ARP Super Stock Diesel Truck class was loaded with contenders for the title as several trucks had a mathematical chance to clinch the title. Entering the event Erik Stacey and the SmokinYa HD Chevrolet held the lead and like his fellow competitors would have to be at the top of his game to clinch the title. In the end Stacey would hold off a valiant effort by past champion Cody Hastings and the Against the Grain Dodge who won the class. Stacey would finish fourth in competition, providing the two-point cushion for the title over Hastings. The Summit Racing Mini Rod class continued with a tight, two-tractor race that will be decided at this weekend’s Pro Pulling Nationals in Wheatland, Missouri. Bill Leischner and the past class champion machine Bobcat Jr. won the class in Waynesburg, but it was the Sawed Off machine and Grayson Shelton gaining two points on the Green Streak Black of Austin Boyd, who keeps a six-point spread on Shelton entering Wheatland.  Emerging as a first-time winner in the Optima Batteries Super Modified Two Wheel Drive Truck class was Tony Fleming and his Hi Maintenance Chevy. A pair of pullers were able to draw closer to class points leader Russ Nichols and his On the Edge Ford; Chad Mayhill and the 2-Timin Ford crept closer to Nichols with a fifth in Waynesburg and Jeremy Nelson’s third place finish in the Midnight Gambler gives him a mathematical shot at the title next weekend in Wheatland.  The final class in Waynesburg, the Unlimited Super Stock Tractor class, offered a bit of clarity with class leader Josh Blackbourn and the Considered Armed and Dangerous – HD CaseIH taking second place in competition, furthering his grip on a potential 2021 points title. The battle rages in second and third place where Colin Ross and his Triple Bypass McCormick took the win in Waynesburg and gained four points on the current second place Extremely Armed and Dangerous CaseIH of Terry Blackbourn who finished third in the evening of competition.  Make plans to attend the season finale Pro Pulling Nationals this coming weekend in Wheatland, Missouri at the famed Lucas Oil Speedway or watch both sessions on September 24th and 25th on MAVTV Plus; champions will be crowned and memories made!

For the latest in news from the Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League stay tuned here at www.propulling.com and follow us in social media at our Facebook page, on Twitter (@propulling) and on Instagram (propullingleague). See us in print media with our Pro Pulling Magazine, published bi-monthly and covering the wide range of Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League National and Regional events as well as our Member-States. Get your subscription to Pro Pulling Magazine at www.hookmagazine.com/propulling.html  Lucas Oil Products is the world leader in high-performance lubricants and problem-solving additives, and distributes hundreds of unique formulations in 40 countries, with continued growth every year. Its television production arm, Lucas Oil Production Studios, manages high-def facilities that create more than 300 hours of programming for CBS, CBS Sports, NBC, NBC Sports Network, the Lucas-owned MAVTV Motorsports Network, and the MAVTV Plus App (Formerly Lucas Oil Racing TV), accessible on all the most popular handheld devices, smartphones and computers.

The Decorah, IA driver will claim Rookie of the Year Honors at the NGK/NTK World Finals on Nov. 4-6CONCORD, NC – OCOTBER 18, 2021 – English Football Manager Sean Dyche once said, “Consistency of performance is essential. You don’t have to be exceptional every week, but as a minimum, you need to be at a level that even on a bad day, you get points on the board.” World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models driver Tyler Bruening’s consistency helped him put points on the board in 2021—vaulting him to third in the standings.  The Decorah, IA driver’s 12 top-fives and 27 top-10s will crown him the 2021 Rookie of the Year at the NGK/NTK World Finals at The Dirt Track in Charlotte, Nov. 4-6.  It’s a position Bruening didn’t expect to be in when he joined the Series.   “To be honest, no, we really didn’t picture ourselves being third in the points and leading the Rookie deal,” Bruening said. “But I knew we could do it as long as we had some things go our way, we had a little luck, and we’ve been able to piece together a lot of good nights, and it’s what you’ve got to do to contend for a championship and contend for those wins.” Bruening and the Skyline Motorsports team set realistic goals at the start of the season—goals they’ve met with one exception. He’s still searching for his first trip to World of Outlaws Victory Lane.   “Obviously, we want to win every night, and we feel like we’ve got a good enough race car to do that every night,” Bruening said. “Its just sometimes things don’t go your way, and sometimes everything does go your way, and a little bit of circumstance is going against you. We’re right there; we’re definitely competitive enough to get that first win. “You got to be consistent, you got to have good speed, and you’ve got to have a good handling race car to be upfront to contend for those wins. We’ve had all of those things and pieces in place. It’s just literally just putting a whole night together.” An area separating Bruening from the rest of the World of Outlaws regulars is he’s the only full-time driver that runs a Capital Chassis. While it may seem like a disadvantage, it keeps his team on a forward path at the track.  “Sometimes when you get a lot of your same chassis at a racetrack, or a lot of guys you’re trying to get information from, it can sometimes hinder you a little bit and second-guess yourself on what you should do and what you’re feeling with the car,” Bruening said. “At times, it makes your notebook a bit thinner, but, in all honesty, we just concentrated on the 16 car and what this car needs for me, and I think that’s shown pretty much all year.”  Bruening will venture into new territory at the NGK/NTK World Finals, racing at The Dirt Track in Charlotte for the first time. Despite not having laps on the 4/10-mile track, he still expects to end the season on a high note.  “To finish the year off the right way, to keep the momentum rolling into next year is definitely an important thing,” Bruening said. “I’ve never been to [World Finals]; I’ve been and attended the race, but I’ve never raced at the track, so I’m excited for the environment and the excitement that particular event brings, and we’re really looking forward to it.” Even though he hasn’t reached Victory Lane, Bruening’s consistency gave him a season to remember and a milestone he’ll cherish for the rest of his career. By taking it one night at a time, he put himself on a path toward getting points on the board, no matter the adversity he faced.   “It’s been a long year; It’s been a long season. It’s just the second time we’ve ran a full tour like this, and each year it’s getting better and better,” Bruening said. “So, we’re looking forward to finishing off the year the right way and keep that momentum rolling into 2022.” Bruening and the World of Outlaws return to action Nov. 4-6 at The Dirt Track at Charlotte for the NGK/NTK World Finals.   For tickets to the three-day event at the Charlotte Dirt Track, CLICK HERE. If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online or through the DIRTVision App.

The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Drydene (Official Motor Oil), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Morton Buildings (Official Building), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider) VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, including: Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, MSD, Penske Racing Shocks, Quarter Master, Slick Woody’s (Quick Time Award), and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Capital Race Cars, FireAde, Integra Shocks, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics, Reliable Painting, and Rocket Chassis.Founded in 1978, the World of Outlaws®, based in Concord, NC, is the premier national touring series for dirt track racing in North America, featuring the most powerful cars on dirt, the World of Outlaws NOS® Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series. Annually, the two series race nearly 140 times at tracks across the United States and Canada. CBS Sports Network is the official broadcast partner of the World of Outlaws. DIRTVision® also broadcasts World of Outlaws events over the Internet to fans around the world. Learn more about the World of Outlaws.

Top Fuel — Mike Salinas, 3.854 seconds, 245.05 mph def. Steve Torrence, 10.316 seconds, 81.57 mph.

Funny Car — Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Camry, 3.921, 327.66 def. J.R. Todd, Camry, 3.939, 326.32.

Pro Stock Motorcycle — Angelle Sampey, Suzuki, 6.773, 196.85 def. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 6.760, 197.83.

Super Stock — Greg Stanfield, Chevy Camaro, 9.872, 131.91 def. Jeff Dona, Pontiac Firebird, 9.684, 139.33.

Stock Eliminator — Brett Candies, Ford Mustang, 9.147, 142.85 def. Mark Lewis, Chevy Camaro, 10.777, 115.89.

Super Comp — Jack Sepanek, Dragster, 8.930, 178.87 def. Adam Gerber, Dragster, 8.973, 152.73.

Super Gas — Jacob Elrod, Chevy Corvette, 10.039, 150.87 def. Tim Powell, Corvette, 11.361, 93.34.

Top Dragster presented by Vortech Superchargers — Chad Taylor, Dragster, 7.088, 186.90 def. Steve Furr, Dragster, Broke.

Pro Modified — JR Gray, Chevy Camaro, 5.699, 250.64 def. Jose Gonzalez, Camaro, Foul – Red Light.

• Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) driver Ron Capps and his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car take the lead in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) “Countdown to the Championship” after a semifinal appearance at the Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway
• Capps earned the No. 2 qualifier position and won his 800th career elimination round on the way to a semifinal appearance to move him into the Funny Car championship lead by one point over his DSR teammate Matt Hagan
• Defending world champion Hagan qualified No. 3 by resetting Bristol Dragway’s speed record with the first 330-mph Funny Car pass in the facility’s history but dropped to second in the battle for the category crown after an early eliminations exit
• No. 7 qualifier Cruz Pedregon drove to quarterfinal battle against Capps; Snap-On Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat remains in hunt for third Funny Car championship
• Leah Pruett earned a No. 6 starting position by driving her Mopar Dodge//SRT Top Fuel dragster with the second-quickest run of the second qualifying session before being early round setback eliminated her from contention with two playoff events remaining

October 17, 2021, Bristol, Tennessee — A single point separates two Don Schumacher Racing Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Cars in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) “Countdown to the Championship” playoff battle after Ron Capps took the lead from stablemate Matt Hagan by qualifying No. 2 at Bristol Dragway, scoring his 800^th career round win and then driving to a semifinal appearance at the Thunder Valley Nationals.

Fresh off a winning performance last weekend at Texas Motorplex, Capps arrived at Bristol Dragway second in the championship battle with a 33-point deficit and as the winningest Funny Car driver at the venue with five career wins (2001, 2006, 2012, 2017, 2018). He proceeded to qualify his HEMI®-powered machine second on the timing sheets with a 3.945-second run at 325.61 mph and earn two valuable bonus points.

The opening round of eliminations saw the 2016 Funny Car champ dispose of No. 13 seed Blake Alexander while No. 3 qualifier and points leader Hagan was upset by No. 12 seed J.R. Todd, signaling the start of a shift atop the championship standings. 

Capps’ quarterfinal match-up was with fellow HEMI-powered driver and third place championship contender, Cruz Pedregon. The two competitors battled closely the entire length of the track with a solid 3.919-second run at 329.83 mph by Capps to beat Pedregon’s 3.920 sec./326.63 mph pass, collect his 800^th career elimination round victory and, for a tenth time this season, advance to the semifinals. 

With championship implications in play among the top-five contenders, Capps lined up his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat against Todd, who was looking to improve on his fifth place standing and tighten up the points race. As he did against his previous two adversaries, Capps was quicker off the starting line but found himself fighting to keep his racecar in the lane. By mid-track it drifted to the centerline where it made contact with a timing block and nullified his run. An automatic five-point penalty was deducted from the DSR driver’s total and the win awarded to his opponent, but despite the setback Capps moved past Hagan to take the lead in the Funny Car championship by a single point with just two playoff series events remaining. 

The Cruz Pedregon Racing Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat began its race day from the No. 7 spot after a 3.975 sec./ 320.13 mph qualifying effort to pair up with No. 8 seed Dave Richards for the opening round. Pedregon lead early, never trailed and recorded his quickest pass of the weekend, 3.964 seconds at 294.11 mph, en route to his 12^th first round win of the year, the most for him since 2015 (15). Following the solid side-by-side battle against Capps that resulted in a quarterfinal loss, Pedregon, who is chasing his third Funny Car championship title, drop a spot and into a tie for fourth place in the standings with John Force. 

Defending NHRA world champ Matt Hagan began his drive at the Thunder Valley Nationals with the Funny Car points lead and qualified his DSR Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat No. 3 for eliminations with a best run of 3.958 seconds at 330.31 mph to reset Bristol Dragway’s speed record with its first 330 mph Funny Car pass. Hagan collected a total of four important bonus points for setting the quickest run of the second qualifying session and putting himself third on the timing sheets in the final session.

With two playoff wins and a runner-up finish last weekend at Texas Motorplex, Hagan’s DSR HEMI-powered machine was lined up for the opening round with lane choice over Todd and its driver looking to turn on win lights and maintain the lead in the points battle. The three-time Funny Car champ drove it straight down the lane for a quick 3.958-second elapsed time run, the exact same as his best qualifying effort, but unfortunately his opponent’s winning 3.924-second pass ended any hopes of advancing further on this race day. Hagan sits in second place behind Capps in the “Countdown to the Championship” and all top-five contenders (Todd, Pedregon and Force) within 100 points of each other heading to the Dodge//SRT Nationals presented by Pennzoil at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the penultimate race of the 2021 NHRA season.

DSR Top Fuel pilot Leah Pruett powered her Sparkling Ice Spiked Mopar Dodge//SRT dragster to the second-quickest run of the second qualifying session to collect two bonus points and secured a spot in the top half of the eliminations ladder. Her No. 6 seeded position paired her up for an opening round contest against No. 9 seed Spencer Massey. With the move to holding the Thunder Valley Nationals in autumn came cooler track conditions that made race day setups more of a challenge than usual for all competitors. 

As the DSR 11-thousand HEMI horsepower dragster launched, Pruett immediately worked to find traction and keep her ride off the wall while her opponent headed for the finish and, despite a fiery explosion in the closing feet, turned on the win light. While the first round loss effectively eliminated the team’s Top Fuel championship hopes, Pruett remains sixth in the rankings and expects to close out the season with strong results in the final two playoff events beginning with the Dodge//SRT NHRA Nationals Presented by Pennzoil October 29-31 in Las Vegas.

ADDITIONAL NOTES and QUOTES
 
FUNNY CAR:
Matt Hagan, DSR Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
(No. 3 Qualifier – 3.958 seconds at 330.31 mph) 
Round 1: (0.084-second reaction time, 3.958 seconds at 326.16 mph) loss No. 12 J.R. Todd (0.069/3.924/324.90

“It’s a tough one but J.R. Todd and that team, they did their homework and outran us and he left on us. That’s drag racing. I hate to lose and I’m trying to put a smile on right now, but it burns you up inside. We’ve got to go to these last two races and really make them count. That’s why we race them on Sunday because you never know what’s going to happen. I’ve got all of the confidence in (crew chief) Dickie Venables, and we’ll regroup and give it all we’ve got in Vegas.”

Ron Capps, DSR NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
(No. 2 Qualifier – 3.945 seconds at 325.61 mph)
Round 1: (0.081-second reaction time, 3.945 seconds at 328.38 mph) defeats No.13 Blake Alexander (0.097/7.575/78.95)

Round 2: (0.077/3.919/329.83) defeats No. 7 Cruz Pedregon (0.098/3.920/326.63)

Round 3:  vs No. 12 J.R. Todd

“This is an all-out battle. We talk about the Countdown to the Championship and talk about how much tighter it seems this year. A lot of press people and media were saying it’s just Matt Hagan and me still in the hunt, and I’m quick to caution everyone because there are so many other cars who can step up and run great and we’ve seen that today with J.R. Todd and that DHL team and Alexis DeJoria. J.R. beat Matt first round and knocked us out in the semis. By no means, especially with Pomona (Calif.) being points-and-a-half, is this thing over. We wanted to grab more points while we were here at Bristol this weekend. The good thing is, we lead the points going into Vegas. It’s almost even. We’re having so much fun and we still have such a great NAPA hot rod and we showed that with qualifying second and making three solid, consistent laps. I’m excited about going to Vegas.”

Cruz Pedregon, Cruz Pedregon Racing Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
(No. 7 Qualifier – 3.975 seconds at 320.13 mph)
Round 1: (0.085-second reaction time, 3.964 seconds at 294.11 mph) defeats No. 8 Dave Richards (0.129/4.023/311.63)

Round 2: (0.098/3.920/326.63) loss to No.2 Ron Capps (0.077/3.919/329.83)

“Bristol is a little tricky with a few bumps which always gives the track personality, it adds to the racing, and adds to the challenge of the race. We had a warm track but then it turned cold so it was really a matter of crew chiefs adjusting. (Crew chief) JC (John Collins) and the team did a great job of  giving me a good car for qualifying. We lost one of the runs (Friday) due to the clocks malfunctioning early on the very first run. We estimated that we would have qualified in the top five there, but didn’t get an elapsed time. We recovered and got a good 3.97 (seconds) qualifying time which put us in the seventh spot. We went out there in the first round and made a good solid run with a 3.96 sec. against Dave Richards. I had to actually shut it off early as the car was drifting over on me a little bit towards the center line but we made a great run. 

“Seems like we’re racing Ron Capps every week and lost another close nail biter with a 3.92 to 3.91 that could have gone either way. We just lost by a fender there at the finish line but overall a good race for us. Our goal is to always go to the semis and we came up one short, but still a quarterfinal is not a bad outcome. These are the final countdown races and everybody’s giving you their best shot. We have plenty of life left. We’re still leaving here in the top four in points, but we’re within striking distance of the championship. (Matt) Hagan went out relatively early, Capps went out in the semis, so yeah, we’re ready for the last two. The Dodge//SRT Las Vegas Nationals is going to be a great race. There are more cars in the hunt now so I think that’ll make for closer racing and then Pomona is a points-and-a-half race. It’ll make the champion really earn it before they close the deal.” 

 
TOP FUEL:
Leah Pruett, DSR Okuma Mopar Dodge//SRT Dragster  
(No. 6 Qualifier – 3.691 seconds at 327.11 mph) 
Round 1:  (0.076-second reaction time, 7.565 seconds at 81.47 mph) loss to No. 9 Spencer Massey (0.056/3.745/328.46)

“Drag racing does not disappoint on the roller coaster of emotions. We had a great qualifying effort, making that run in the 3.60s and had a lot of confidence going into race day. But man, the navigation of this track is pretty tricky. This is probably one of the bumpiest tracks on the circuit but that’s its characteristic, and all race tracks are different and we just didn’t have a hold of it today. Had a real hard shake and ended up into smoke early. It’s interesting how fast things happen, of course. Priority No. 1 is that Spencer (Massey) is safe after his explosion. I got to see it firsthand ahead of me. At one moment there was nothing, and the next moment I’m driving through a range of parts raining down from the atmosphere, dodging and weaving trying to avoid driving over anything. Everyone is safe; unfortunately for us, that first round loss pretty much takes us out of any championship contention but we will continue to be on the massive offense to finish out the season in the highest point standing we possibly can, hurt some feelings along the way, and continue pushing forward as this Mopar team does. I really did think our Sparkling Ice Spiked car was in good position to bring home a Wally trophy this weekend but we will continue to shine and shatter expectations.”

NHRA Championship Points Standings:
Following the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway
 
FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses)
1. Ron Capps (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) – 2,490 (2) 

2. Matt Hagan (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) – 2,489 (3/1-TJ Johnson Jr.)

3. J.R. Todd – 2,407 (1)

4. Cruz Pedregon (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) – 2,389 (1)

4. John Force – 2,389 (3)

6. Bob Tasca III – 2,343 (2)
7. Robert Hight – 2,337 (2)

8. Alexis DeJoria – 2,319 (1)

9. Tim Wilkerson– 2,249 (1)

10. Blake Alexander– 2,184
 
TOP FUEL (season wins in parentheses)
1. Steve Torrance – 2,575 (9)

2. Brittany Force – 2,503 (1)

3. Justin Ashley – 2,428 (2)

4. Mike Salinas – 2,425 (1)
5. Billy Torrence – 2,357 (2)

6. Leah Pruett (Mopar Dodge//SRT) – 2,291 (1)

7. Clay Millican – 2,265 

8. Antron Brown – 2,252 (1)

9. Shawn Langdon – 2,228
10. Doug Kalitta – 2,180

DodgeGarage: Digital Hub for Drag Racing News

Fans can follow all the NHRA action this season at DodgeGarage, the one-stop portal for Dodge//SRT and Mopar drag-racing news. The site includes daily updates and access to an online racing HQ, news, events, galleries, available downloads and merchandise. For more information, visit www.dodgegarage.com.

@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram

The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel continues to share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers on the track. Fans can see action from the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers, competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

Mopar

Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) offers exceptional service, parts and customer care. Born in 1937 as the name of a line of antifreeze products, the Mopar brand has evolved over more than 80 years to represent both complete vehicle care and authentic performance for owners and enthusiasts worldwide.

Mopar made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era with performance parts to enhance speed and handling for both on-road and racing use. Later, the brand expanded to include technical service and customer support. Today, Mopar integrates service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance customer and dealer support worldwide.

Mopar is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Follow Mopar and company news and video on:

Company blog: blog.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Media website: media.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Mopar brand: www.mopar.com

Mopar blog: blog.mopar.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/mopar

Instagram: www.instagram.com/officialmopar

Twitter: @OfficialMOPAR

YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/mopar and www.youtube.com/StellantisNA

Dodge//SRT

For more than 100 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Their influence continues today as Dodge shifts into high gear with muscle cars and SUVs that deliver unrivaled performance in each of the segments where they compete.

2021 marks the year that Dodge is distilled into a pure performance brand, offering Hellcat-powered, 700-plus-horsepower SRT versions of every model across the lineup. For the 2021 model year, Dodge delivers the drag-strip dominating 807-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock, the new 797-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT Redeye, the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world, and the new 710-horsepower Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, the most powerful SUV ever. Combined, these three muscle cars make Dodge the industry’s most powerful brand, offering more horsepower than any other American brand across its entire lineup.

In 2020, Dodge was named the “#1 Brand in Initial Quality,” making it the first domestic brand ever to rank No. 1 in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS). The Dodge brand also ranked No. 1 in the J.D. Power APEAL Study (mass market). These results are historic because it marks the first time a domestic brand has earned top spots in both J.D. Power studies in the same year.

Compass Racing Acura drivers Matt McMurry, Ashton Harrison and Mario Farnbacher take Silver Cup honors in Indianapolis 8 Hour International GT Challenge
McMurry, Harrison also score overall win in three-hour SRO GT World Challenge America “race within a race”
Harrison becomes first female overall race winner in World Challenge history

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (October 17, 2021) – The #77 Compass Racing trio of Ashton Harrison, Mario Farnbacher and Matt McMurry took Silver Cup class honors today in their Acura NSX GT3 Evo at the Indianapolis 8 Hour Intercontinental GT Challenge. The class win followed a breakthrough victory earlier in the day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as Harrison and McMurry claimed the overall and Pro/Am class win in the opening three-hour Fanatec GT World Challenge America portion of the race.

In her GT3 racing debut, Harrison became the first female overall race winner in SRO GT World Challenge history, driving the opening and closing stints. In the first hour, Harrison made up six positions to gain the SRO lead, with co-driver McMurry maintaining their advantage through his hour-long stint. Harrison returned to the drivers’ seat for the final hour to complete the historic run, claiming both the overall and Pro/Am class wins.

The GT World Challenge America contest was a race within a race, with the finishing order for World Challenge cars determined by their position after three hours of the Indianapolis eight-hour SRO Intercontinental GT Challenge. Following the Compass Racing duo to the three-hour finish was the Racers Edge Acura NSX GT3 Evo of Dakota Dickerson and Taylor Hagler, second in the Pro/Am class and third overall.

Following the conclusion of the GT World Challenge America portion of today’s race, McMurry and Harrison were joined by third driver Farnbacher, and the trio went on to the Silver Cup class victory – and sixth overall – despite contact from a Ferrari that sent McMurry off course less than 25 minutes from the finish. McMurry fell to second in the resulting spin, but quickly recovered to finish second on track, with the trio awarded the class victory when the leading #26 Audi was penalized for entering a closed pit lane late in the race.

In the #93 Racers Edge Acura, Jacob Abel joined Dickerson and Hagler after the three-hour mark, and the trio went on to finish third in the Silver Cup class and eighth overall to complete a historic day for Acura and for the SRO championship, featuring a pair of talented women racers on the podium for both the Intercontinental GT Challenge and the GT World Challenge America.

SRO Intercontinental GT Challenge Indianapolis Eight-Hour Acura Silver Cup Race Results
1st – #77 Ashton Harrison, Matt McMurry, Mario Farnbacher, Compass Racing Acura NSX GT3
2nd – #93 Taylor Hagler, Dakota Dickerson, Jacob Abel, Racers Edge Acura NSX GT3 Evo

SRO Fanatec GT World Challenge America Indianapolis Acura Overall, Pro/Am Race Results
1st – #77 Ashton Harrison, Matt McMurry, Compass Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo [1st Pro/Am]
3rd – #93 Taylor Hagler, Dakota Dickerson, Racers Edge Acura NSX GT3 Evo [2nd Pro/Am]

Quotes
Ashton Harrison (#77 Compass Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo) 1st overall and Pro/Am GT World Challenge America; 1st in Silver Cup (and sixth overall) in Indianapolis 8 Hour [first female overall race winner in SRO World Challenge history]: “I’m just thankful for this opportunity, this is my first GT3 race and I’m so thankful to Acura, HPD and Harrison Contracting for their supporting me, and allowing me to do this. It’s been great working with Compass, as coming from other series, they’ve been so helpful with this learning curve. Thankfully, I’ve been here [at the IMS road course] before in smaller cars, but there was a definite learning curve with the increased aero and horsepower of the NSX. But Acura and the HPD Academy have been great. I’ve been working to put what I learned there into practice here this weekend.”

Jacob Abel (#93 Racers Edge Motorsports Acura NSX GT3 Evo) 2nd Pro/Am World Challenge America; 3rd Silver Cup, eighth overall, for the full eight-hour IGTC event: “Absolutely a good day for us. This was the first endurance race for pretty much everyone on our team so I think it was a really good one for us. For me, personally, it was the longest I’ve ever been in a race car, think it was just under two and a half hours. That was definitely exhausting, but we had some great pace. We had some good luck, and some bad luck, and it all kind of balanced out. In the end, I think if we could’ve gotten back on the lead lap, with the pace we had, we might’ve challenged for the win. But all-in-all, we can’t complain at all. To finish on the podium, in a field this deep, in our first endurance race, we’re definitely happy with that.”

Lee Niffenegger (Program Manager, Honda Performance Development): “Overall, it was an excellent weekend for our Acura NSX GT3 Evo teams here in Indianapolis. The first overall GT World Challenge America win for a female racer – HPD Academy student Ashton Harris – and co-driver Dakota Dickerson. And a one-three finish in the Silver Cup class for the full eight-hour race. You can’t ask for a whole lot more it what turned out to be a wild endurance race.”

Next
This weekend’s race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway closed out the 2021 Fanatic GT World Challenge America season. The 2022 season gets underway April 15-17 at Sonoma Raceway, just north of San Francisco, California.

Social media content and video links from this weekend’s Fanatec GT World Challenge America races from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course are available on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (www.twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).

October 17, 2021

Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Menards/Atlas/Mohawk team bounced back from a mid-race setback to race inside the top 10 before finishing 13^th in Sunday’s Autotrader 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

DiBenedetto started the final 500-mile race of the 2021 Cup Series season from 13^th place and drove up to 11^th before the Competition Caution flag flew at Lap 26.

Crew chief Jonathan Hassler elected to change just two tires under the yellow flag, and the time saved on pit road allowed DiBenedetto to restart the race from sixth place.

He quickly drove into the top five and ran as high as third place before dropping out of the top 10.

The Menards team pitted before the end of Stage One to make adjustments and service the No. 21 Mustang, and fell a lap off the pace. DiBenedetto took the wave-around at the end of the Stage and restarted the race from 16^th place.

In Stage Two, a caution flag flew just after the team had made a green-flag pit stop, and that put the No. 21 Mustang two laps in arrears. 

The team used the wave-around to regain one lap, and as the third Stage got underway, DiBenedetto found himself battling Austin Dillon for the Free Pass position.
 
He took that spot when Dillon headed to pit road for a green-flag stop.
 
This time, the caution flag was DiBenedetto’s friend, as a spin by Chase Briscoe allowed the Menards Mustang to rejoin the lead lap and line up 14^th for a restart with 54 laps remaining.

During a flurry of late-race restarts, DiBenedetto worked his way as high as seventh place, before losing ground on the last two restarts and ending the race in 13^th place.

“We came from two laps down back to seventh place and thought we were going to sneak off a good finish, but the top lane restarts hurt us at the end,” DiBenedetto said. “The Menards/Atlas/Mohawk team had to work hard today.
 
“Now, we’re just hoping for a very good last three races.”
 
With their finish, DiBenedetto and the Wood Brothers team were able to regain 18^th place in the points standings heading into this weekend’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

BRISTOL, TN (October 17, 2021) — Racing at one of her favorite tracks on the NHRA circuit veteran driver Alexis DeJoria won for the sixth time in her career and first time with her new Bandero Premium Tequila ROKiT Toyota Camry team today at Bristol Dragway, home of the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Almost a decade ago in 2012 during her rookie season DeJoria raced to the final round but was unable to seal the deal. Today in front of a packed house that roared with every win light DeJoria, the No. 1 qualifier, defeated Paul Lee, earned a second round bye, Robert Hight and J.R. Todd to secure her first win of the 2021 season.

“Round one always makes me want to throw up in my helmet,” said DeJoria. “It’s the worst round for me. It’s not nerves, I just want to get past first round. After that, it gets better. We got the win and I’ll just leave it at that. Then we got the bye in round two which was a gift this week. We just haven’t had much luck.” 

“The first two rounds went great. Obviously, we made it down the track with another good run on our bye run. Just to make it to the semis and the finals was a huge deal. I was just happy to make it to another final and have it be against another Toyota Funny Car. Two Toyota cars in the finals, it couldn’t be better than that. Even though I’m not teammates with J.R. anymore, all of those guys are always going to be teammates to me. We’re Toyota cars and we’re friends and I was just there a long time. I love racing him and I think that’s why I have such good lights against him.”

Bristol Dragway has held a special place in DeJoria’s memory going back to her rookie season. Racing as a team car for Kalitta Motorsports with Del Worsham as her mentor and crew chief the young driver raced to the final round. Today, once again partnered with Worsham, this time as co-owners of their own team, the Bristol experience was even more special. 

“Bristol is a very special track to me,” said DeJoria. “When Del was my crew chief in 2012, this was the first place where we went to a final round and lost a great race to Ron Capps. So, to come back here together again and make it to the final and then win means the world to me. This is one of my favorite tracks, if not my favorite. It’s just beautiful here and all the sounds and the people. I just love it here.”

After a final round appearance at Denver earlier this season and multiple semifinal appearances the pressure to secure a victory in 2021 was mounting with every event. The team knew they had the pieces to win but getting them to align on race day was problematic. Once DeJoria saw the fourth win light today the emotions poured out of the now six-time national event winner.

“It’s a huge weight taken off our shoulders,” said DeJoria. “We were number one qualifier and that was the first step. Getting that elusive number one after getting a ton of number twos, that was amazing. Then to get the Wally at the same race is insane. Whatever happens after this, I just hope for the best, but we’re good because we got a Wally. This is a huge confidence builder for me and our whole team. We knew we could do this, it’s just a matter of time.”

For the fifth consecutive Countdown race a different Funny Car driver captured the Wally. The category has never been as deeply competitive with drivers throughout the Top Ten vying for round wins and victories. The win was as significant to DeJoria as her 2014 U.S. Nationals victory the veteran driver explained to the Bristol media.

“I would say it’s one of the biggest because as a part-team owner definitely,” said DeJoria. “Coming back after taking the two years off and getting to work with my mentor, old teammate and friend in Del Worsham. I look up to him and I learned everything I know from Del. To be able to do this with him again and do something we couldn’t do at Kalitta when he ended up driving the other car. But we always wanted to do this again and we were able to make it happen.” 

After outrunning Hight in the semifinals with the quickest Funny Car run of the day, 3.904 seconds, DeJoria had lane choice over her Toyota teammate Todd, but she knew it would be a tough race. Todd had defeated his own monster list of opponents that included two points leaders, Matt Hagan and Ron Capps, as well as 16-time Funny Car champion John Force.

“It’s hard when the tree is long like that. For us, it seems like an eternity in the car. You’ve got your foot off the clutch, and you’re holding the brake and have the fuel on the high side and you’re just sitting there,” explained DeJoria. “Luckily, I was hungry and know that feeling in the finals it was like I was back in Indianapolis. I was up there saying, I’m just happy to be here and I’m going to do a damn good job and I’m going to win.”

Qualifying Results

Q1: 5.469 sec, 131.52 mph; Qual. 7

Q2: 4.303 sec, 214.86 mph; Qual. 8

Q3: 3.907 sec, 326.79 mph; Qual. 1

Bonus Points: +4 (3^rd quickest of Q2 and quickest of Q3

Race Results

First Round
Driver                                  Qual       R/T         ET           MPH 
Alexis DeJoria                   1             .125       4.030     269.83 (W)

Paul Lee                              14           .119       8.033     87.70

Second Round
Driver                                  Qual       R/T         ET           MPH 
Alexis DeJoria                   1             .093       3.931     321.04 (W)

Bye

Semifinal Round
Driver                                  Qual       R/T         ET           MPH 
Alexis DeJoria                   1             .086       3.904     327.74 (W)

Robert Hight                      5             .073       3.934     329.10

Final Round
Driver                                  Qual       R/T         ET           MPH 
Alexis DeJoria                   1             .002       3.921     327.66 (W)

J.R. Todd                             12           .067       3.939     326.32                  

Camping World Funny Car Countdown Top Ten

1.          Ron Capps                                                2490

2.          Matt Hagan                                             2489

3.          J.R. Todd                                                   2407

4.          Cruz Pedregon                                        2389

4.          John Force                                               2389

6.          Bob Tasca III                                            2343

7.          Robert Hight                                            2337

8.          Alexis DeJoria                                         2319

9.          Tim Wilkerson                                         2249

10.        Blake Alexander                                      2184

BRISTOL, TN (October 17, 2021) — Second year driver Justin Ashley and the Smart Sanitizer Top Fuel dragster powered by Vita C Shot raced to another semifinal in the incredibly competitive NHRA Countdown to the championship today at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Through five races the 2020 Rookie of the Year has two final rounds including a win last week at the Texas NHRA Fall Nationals and two additional semifinals. He has moved from seventh to third place in the Camping World Drag Racing Series with two races remaining in the 2021 season.

Today as the No. 5 qualifier Ashley defeated 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon and Countdown competitor Billy Torrence in the first two rounds before dropping a close race to the three-time and reigning Top Fuel champion Steve Torrence. Last weekend it was Ashley getting the win light in the final round over Torrence for this second career victory. Today both cars made clean runs again and Torrence was just a shade quicker to the finish line winning. 

Ashley opened his race day posting a track record and personal best speed in his first round win over Langdon. When the Smart Sanitizer Top Fuel dragster crossed the finish line the scoreboard lit up from an impressive and historic 334.48 mph pass. When Ashley was alerted to the speed record the young driver could barely contain his enthusiasm.

“Wow, how about that,” said Ashley. “We just eclipsed 330 mph yesterday for the first time and this was a big swing. My hat is off to this team led by Dustin Davis and Mike Green and this entire Smart Sanitizer Vita C Shot team. We are moving on and we just have to stay focused on ourselves and do the best we can.”

The second round race was a rematch from the Texas Fall Nationals second round. Once again Ashley got the jump off the starting line and that was the difference in the race as his 3.708 second run got the win over Torrence’s quicker 3.705 second pass. Ashley had the speed to match the elapsed time hitting the stripe at 333.33 mph.

In the semifinals racing the veteran Steve Torrence for the second race in a row Ashley came up just a little short of advance to his third final round in the Countdown.

“Today went really well and we got another semifinal finish,” said Ashley. “Being in the championship hunt against a driver like Steve it is almost like you must win every race. He is always on his A game. It was a tough loss but overall when you look at the weekend as a whole it was fantastic. We ran in the 3.60s a ton and we really have nothing to complain about. The car is running awesome. Now at this point we shift our focus to Vegas. We are going to take what we learned here and apply it to Vegas in two weeks.”

Qualifying Results

Q1: 3.726 sec, 329.50 mph; Qual. 2

Q2: 7.270 sec, 90.30 mph; Qual. 7

Q3: 3.688 sec, 330.80 mph; Qual. 5

Bonus Points: +2 (2^nd quickest in Q1)

Race Results

First Round
Driver                                  Qual       R/T         ET           MPH 
Justin Ashley                     5             .064       3.690     334.48 (W)

Shawn Langdon                10           .056       3.739     327.43

Second Round
Driver                                  Qual       R/T         ET           MPH 
Justin Ashley                     5             .074       3.708     333.33 (W)

Billy Torrence                     4             .081       3.705     327.27

Semifinal Round
Driver                                  Qual       R/T         ET           MPH 
Justin Ashley                     5             .108       3.691     334.15

Steve Torrence                  1             .059       3.677     331.69 (W)

Camping World Drag Racing Series Countdown Top Ten – Top Fuel

1.          Steve Torrence                                    2575

2.          Brittany Force                                      2502

3.          Justin Ashley                                        2428

4.          Mike Salinas                                         2425

5.          Billy Torrence                                       2357

6.          Leah Pruett                                           2291

7.          Clay Millican                                         2265

8.          Antron Brown                                      2252

9.          Shawn Langdon                                   2228

10.       Doug Kalitta                                          2180

NASCAR CUP SERIES AUTO TRADER ECHO PARK AUTOMOTIVE 500 TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT OCTOBER 17, 2021  KYLE LARSON CAPTURES EIGHTH WIN OF 2021 AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAYLarson Secures Spot in Final Four FORT WORTH, TX (October 17, 2021) – In his debut season with Hendrick Motorsports, Kyle Larson and the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE team will be one of four drivers to compete for the title of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Champion. Starting from the pole, Larson captured the Stage Two win and led a field-high 256 laps in route to victory lane at Texas Motor Speedway in the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500, the first race of the NCS Playoffs Round of 8. The win marks Larson’s eighth win of the 2021 season and 14th-career win in 257 starts in NASCAR’s premier series. Larson’s victory at the 1.5-mile Texas oval gives Chevrolet its 16th NASCAR Cup Series win thus far this season, the most of all manufacturers, and 811th all-time win in NCS history. With just three races left in the season, Chevrolet continues to sit atop of the Manufacturer Standings as the Bowtie brand battles for its 40th title. Team Chevy and Hendrick Motorsports teammate, William Byron, brought his No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE across the finish line in the runner-up position to give the Camaro ZL1 1LE a 1-2 finish of the 501-mile race. Chase Elliott, No. 9 Kelley Blue Book Camaro ZL1 1LE, finished 7th; Tyler Reddick, No. 8 CC Ready Mix Camaro ZL1 1LE, finished ninth; and Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Freeway Insurance Camaro ZL1 1LE, finished tenth to give Chevrolet five of the top-10 finishers.  The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Kansas Speedway for the Hollywood Casino 400 on Sunday, October 24, at 3 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel.  KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT: THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by our race-winning driver, Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. Congratulations, Kyle. We’ll go ahead and open it up for questions.Q. I can’t jinx you now; you’re locked into the final Championship 4. What does that mean to you? What you were going around the track, what were you thinking?KYLE LARSON: Yeah, it’s awesome. I mean, we had a good points lead or whatever from the cutoff going into it, but still, you know, Harvick had his issues last year and didn’t make the Final Four. That will always be on my mind.We had a fast, fast car today, and we had a good couple stages, so even if I didn’t come out with the lead or the win or whatever, I wanted to play it smart and take what I could get. I got good shots from behind me every restart and allowed me to get clear into 1 every time and then do some blocking for a few laps. Fine on all those restarts and we had a great race car to allow me to be aggressive with the blocks, and fast, too, to stay out in front of William. Q. Want to get your thoughts on breaking the tie with Chase Elliott and Tim Richmond on the all-time wins list.KYLE LARSON: Yeah, that’s cool. Hopefully Chase and I are both going to get a lot of wins throughout our career and catch Jimmie or Jeff some day. Yeah, it’s been cool to be teammates with him this season. He’s definitely pushed me to be better, and it’s nice having him there to listen to how he communicates with everybody in the competition meetings and stuff and really getting a look at his data more. I feel like we’ve got a great bunch of drivers and teams and crew chiefs, and that allows all of us to go out there and make ourselves better. Q. I know this is kind of a weird stat because it’s like 36 races and everything and not like all of NASCAR history, but apparently you have a pretty good shot now to get the all-time laps led record since it went to a 36-race season. Do you care about that number? Do you care about that mark?KYLE LARSON: I definitely care. I don’t know what the mark is or what the number is, but yeah, I’m probably 2,300 or so now, close to it. So yeah, that would be really, really cool. I led a lot more laps today than I thought I would, so yeah, it’s definitely a goal of mine. I think somewhere in the back of my mind like it’s a goal. It’s not like something I am upset about if I don’t lead any laps in a race or anything, but once I am leading I want to stay in the lead to help catch that record or whatever.But you have to have a fast race car to do that, and our race car has been really good all season long, especially today to have a dominating run like we did. Hopefully these next few weeks are a lot like today. Q. I was just curious about Phoenix in a couple weeks; do you like the benefit of having practice and qualifying, or do you wish it was like it was last year?KYLE LARSON: Well, I could kind of take it either way, really. We had practice at the 600 and Nashville, and we won those two. I can’t remember what all races we’ve had practice at. But as far as the ovals go for practice, I think we’ve won those.It kind of doesn’t — like I said, it could go either way for me. I think yes, I’m probably — I like having practice to give yourself — it kind of helps your confidence out, whether it’s good or bad, leading into the race with practice. But it also gives — if your car is great or whatever, it gives other people an opportunity to make their car better.But our team has done a really good job this year when we have had practice of not like getting crazy with trying different things. You kind of just get a head start on the race and your adjustments, what they may be.Yeah, I haven’t really thought too much about the practice and qualifying or all that at Phoenix, but hopefully it’ll go good for us. Q. Were you worried about the guys that were behind you that were on fresh tires because Christopher Bell on that last restart started third.KYLE LARSON: Yeah, so obviously Brad had taken the top on the other restarts behind William, and Brad is a really good pusher. I was nervous about that. Honestly like when they told you there was one to go, I was like, please, Brad, take the bottom, take the bottom, take the bottom. He took the bottom, because I was worried — I’m sure you guys will write a story about this, but I was worried about Bell being behind me because just — I felt like — not that he would wreck me or anything, but maybe he wouldn’t give me the push that I needed to get clear out to the lead, so I really wanted Brad behind me.I felt like if Brad was behind me, I could — I could anticipate it better because I knew I was going to get a good push, but I was ready for him to try and pull out and try and take me three wide or anything because he’s trying to race his way into the playoffs and lock in. I was at least ready for that.I wasn’t sure what to be ready for if Bell was behind me, so yeah, I was glad when Brad chose the bottom and gave me a great push like I knew he would. I protected a little bit and was able to get clear of the lead. Q. You had said from the start of the playoffs that Harvick last year was on your mind, and even this morning 47 points over the cushion is not enough. It seemed like you were sort of anticipating, like hey, I might have to race my way in on points. Is it sort of an odd feeling to be sitting here like oh, I’m in, I don’t have to worry about that for the next two weeks, that part of it’s gone?KYLE LARSON: A little bit. Not really. I had such a good day today in stage points and stuff and I was positioned well to where if I finished in the top four or five, I was still going to probably gain a lot I would think on the cut line. I wasn’t too worried about it. Still, yes, it probably still would have been on my mind going to Kansas, but as long as I went to Kansas and ran up front in the stages and stuff, too, I would have felt really good about it.I just was more worried about like if you get in the wall or something like Denny or Truex or get caught up in a wreck, stuff like that, which now we don’t have to worry about. So that’s good.But yeah, I mean, I’m not going to plan on racing any differently these next two weeks. I still want to win stages, win some races and keep this momentum going into Phoenix. Q. You’ve kind of alluded to this, but for a large part of this race it seemed to be on kind of an auto control and then the last 60 laps happened. During that course of time you saw various playoff guys disappear, you had to hold off restarts I think six times in the last 60-some laps. What were you thinking? Were you just focusing on what you were doing, or were you paying attention to the scenarios that were kind of developing behind you?KYLE LARSON: Well, I was more just thinking about William and how I’m going to beat him because I felt like he was the only guy that really had a car capable of passing us in the lead. I mean, even all race long on all the other restarts and throughout those 50-, 60-lap runs, I was just trying to make notes in my mind of what he was doing behind me, how he was trying to figure out how to make runs and stuff. I felt like I was doing a good job of maintaining the runs that he was getting behind me.I was making notes of all that, and then obviously things are going to get more aggressive there at the end, so trying to make plans for if he’s behind me, if he’s side by side with me. Finally stayed side-by-side with me on the restarts, what to do, how aggressive I needed to be, stuff like that. You’re always trying to plan ahead and think ahead, so you’re not really in auto pilot ever throughout a race, even if it’s 500 miles. You’re just trying to plan and be prepared for any moment that might come up. THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Kyle. Congratulations. CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE, PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT: THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by members of our race-winning team. We have crew chief Cliff Daniels and executive vice president and general manager of Hendrick Motorsports, Jeff Andrews. Congratulations, guys. We’ll open it up for questions. Q. Cliff, it seemed like before the race you were saying, hey, look, we can play this conservatively, like we don’t have to go out and hit a home run today, and then your car is so fast you don’t even have to worry about it. Can you talk about how that changes things for you guys now?CLIFF DANIELS: Yeah, it does for sure, and obviously coming into the day, it’s nice to have the point gap, but I think the last round taught us that nobody is ever safe, and certainly with the point gap we knew we weren’t safe. So it’s tough to certainly just tell yourself you want to call a race conservative, and then when we knew we had a fast car — I wanted to make sure to keep tires on it. We never did lefts or rights, we were either four tires or I think we did fuel only the one time.So wanted to make sure we weren’t really exposed, had a big tire deficit or were going to be short on fuel at any point, trying to be smart about how we called that.And then, yeah, I think you asked about moving forward, too. Moving forward we still want to be aggressive to get wins if our car is capable of it. I think as a company now we’ve got to put our focus on making sure we get the 9 to Phoenix, as well, but our job is still going to go win races every week if we can, and that’s our goal. Q. Cliff, a lot of times we hear people say, hey, the goal is to get to the Final Four because you just can’t bank on what happens in one race. I’d think seven wins would be a successful season, but now that you are there to the Final Four, do you feel like whatever happens over the next three weeks doesn’t define this year?CLIFF DANIELS: Yes and no. The yes part is absolutely we’ve had a great year, and I think it’s really shown a lot of strength of our team, of our organization, but to really see that through, right, to prove what we’ve hopefully earned, you want to walk away with a big prize at the end of the year.We’re certainly going to be focused on that as everybody is who’s in contention. You know, I think changing anything from our perspective now would be a mistake. We’ve had a very common mindset every race throughout the year. It’s what’s got us to this point, so even though we’re locked in, I’m sure my team is going to get a little grumpy at me on Tuesday because I’m going to walk in and tell them we have to win Kansas. That’s just the mentality that we’ve had all year, so we’ll keep it going. Q. Cliff, now what? You say you go in on Tuesday, but do you focus on the next few weeks, or do you specifically focus on Phoenix?CLIFF DANIELS: Well, we’re going to — first, I think part of what helps the Phoenix focus is just the timing of the schedule. Since it’s a Friday, Saturday, Sunday show, the truck is going to leave like Tuesday of that week, and the way these race formats go, our hauler didn’t leave until Friday morning this week, so you’re just going to have two less days that week.So now we are very fortunate that we have a little bit more time just to really plan out the way the next three weeks can go with emphasis on Phoenix where if you’re not locked in right away, you’re kind of giving everything you can for that week, and to not be talking out of both sides of my mouth, we have really good cars in the system already coming for Kansas, already coming for Martinsville. I looked at them with a lot of our guys last week. Both cars look great, so we’re going to finish those out like they are already in process to be, and then when our Phoenix cars get in the system, make sure that they’re top-notch and ready to go. Q. Kyle said something, someone mentioned to him that the last time a driver had eight points wins at Hendrick was Jimmie in 2007. He said some of these guys were on that team. Are there a lot of guys who were with Jimmie back then who are with you now? And how does this run compare to that run 14 years ago?CLIFF DANIELS: From what I know of that run, because I wasn’t at Hendrick then, I would say anything like that is probably hard to compare. Obviously the record that Chad and Jimmie have completely speaks for itself, and to even be mentioned in a conversation with them, first off, is a big blessing and pretty cool just to even have that.I know that I think that there may be one guy on our team that was with Jimmie in exactly the year ’07, and then three of our pit crew guys I believe have been on this team since 2009. If it’s not 2009, it’s 2010, that at least three of those guys have been together.Then there’s another handful of us that have been there, two guys since ’13, another two guys since ’14, and I’m on the group that was the end of ’14, beginning of the ’15 season.So certainly couldn’t be more fortunate to have learned from the champs of Jimmie and Chad for the years that all of us were with those guys, and we have some younger guys on our team that — I think the way we operate, the way we tried to go race every week has kind of resonated within our team. We have such a strong group, it’s just really special to be a part of. Q. I don’t know the exact number, but I believe that you guys are going to have a shot at the single season laps led record since it went to 36 races at least. Do you care about that, Mark?CLIFF DANIELS: I know it’s a really big deal to Larson. I didn’t even realize we were going to be that close in contention to it. That’s pretty cool. I think the way races are nowadays, we’ve seen especially with some of the races that we’ve had this year where we’ve led a lot of laps and we haven’t won, I would love to be leading a category of wins per year, but I’m sure that — what does the King have? The King has 20 something in a year, I think?The King has got a lot, so that would be probably a pretty lofty goal to ever get to, but we’ll take laps led if we can get there at the end of the day. Taking our group of guys, taking our team and all the resources we have at Hendrick Motorsports and putting fast cars on track is so cool and so fun to be a part of that hopefully we keep it going, and whatever the numbers end up, we’ll be happy about.FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use. About ChevroletFounded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE Team Show Grit and Determination at Texas Motor Speedway

14th

15th

17th

“I love Texas Motor Speedway, and our entire Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet team came here this weekend with the goal of backing up our performance from 2020 and finding Victory Lane. Things just didn’t fall that way. We ran in the top-10 early in Stage 1, but we were too tight to stay up there. Even though we threw the kitchen sink at our No. 3 Chevy during pit stops, our Chevy never got dialed in to my liking. The day became even harder with a couple of cut right-rear tires, and untimely cautions that caused us to fall off the lead lap. Our team never gave up, though, and we were able to fight our way back from two laps down. By the last restart, we were too loose. It definitely made things interesting. We worked hard to finish 14th. I’m proud of everyone on this Richard Childress Racing team for sticking with it today.” -Austin Dillon

Hard-Fought Battle for Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Clark Pipeline Services Chevrolet Team at Texas Motor Speedway

9th

8th

12th

“Man, we came so close today. We definitely gave it all we had and put everything on the line to try and find Victory Lane at Texas Motor Speedway. This Clark Pipeline Services Chevrolet team came so close. We had speed right from the start of the race, and Randall Burnett and the guys did a good job of keeping up with adjustments throughout the race. We cut a right-rear tire at one point so I’m glad we were able to recover from that. After the midway point of the race,our Chevy would get tight in the resin, and loose out of the resin, so it was interesting managing that today. At the end, we just didn’t get a good enough chance to make a run at the No. 5 car. Another car got into us on the second-to-last restart and that’s what caused us to fall back. I’m just glad we didn’t have to pit for a tire rub and could hang on to finish ninth. It was a little disappointing after running in the top-five and battling for the lead for most of Stage 3, but I know that this team is capable and we will get to Victory Lane soon.” -Tyler Reddick

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCEAUTOTRADER ECHO PARK AUTOMOTIVE 500 TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES OCTOBER 17, 2021TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:POS.   DRIVER1st      KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE 2nd     WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE 7th      CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CAMARO ZL1 1LE 9th      TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CC READY MIX CAMARO ZL1 1LE 10th    DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAY INSURANCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE 
TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS: POS.  DRIVER1st      Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)2nd     William Byron (Chevrolet)3rd      Christopher Bell (Toyota)4th      Brad Keselowski (Ford)5th      Kevin Harvick (Ford)
The NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Kansas Speedway for the Hollywood Casino 400 on Sunday, October 24, at 3 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. 
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES: KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Race WinnerYOU SURVIVED SEVEN STAGE 3 RESTARTS AND GOT IT TO VICTORY LANE. WELCOME TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME EVER FOR YOU, KYLE“Yeah, this is unreal. I knew we had a good shot to win today, and our car was amazing. That’s probably the best 550 package, intermediate car, we’ve had all year. So, thanks to everybody on this No. 5 team, HendrickCars.com, Rick Hendrick, this is so cool; we had a lot of people from HendrickCars here. We get to go race for a championship in a few weeks. This is crazy.” HOW ABOUT THOSE SEVEN RESTARTS YOU HAD IN STAGE 3? YOU NEVER ONCE FALTERED. HOW DID YOU KEEP IT TOGETHER FOR ALL OF THEM?“I just got good pushes from behind me, really. I tried to stay patient on the throttle to keep them to my back bumper. And thankfully, I was able to just barely clear them every time into (Turn) 1 and not have to fight off of (Turn) 2. So thanks to William (Byron) and Tyler (Reddick) and Brad Keselowski, anybody who was ever behind me (laughs), especially Brad there in that last restart. So, it was just awesome to win and hope we can get some more wins throughout the rest of the year.” HOW BIG WILL IT BE TO HAVE TWO WEEKS NOW TO GET READY FOR PHOENIX AND FOCUS ON THAT RACE AND GO RUN FOR A TITLE?“Yeah, it’ll be cool. I don’t think we’re going to lose focus on Kansas or Martinsville, but I definitely think we can shift a little bit more to our Phoenix car and I really look forward to that. I love the West Coast. I love Phoenix. We’ve always been fast there. At least I was really fast earlier this year in the No. 5 and made a lot of mistakes. But I think we should have a good shot. Our team has been so strong all year long and we might as well close it all out.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 2ndYOU CAME UP JUST SHORT TODAY WITH A SECOND PLACE FINISH. YOU GAVE YOUR TEAMMATE, KYLE LARSON, A RUN FOR HIS MONEY TIME AND AGAIN. WHERE DID HE HAVE THAT EDGE ON YOU ON THOSE RESTARTS?“Just control of the lanes. It’s all about the push. And I think here at Texas, the shortest lane kind of wins because of the way the track kind of separates into Turn 1. Our Axalta Chevy was fast all day. We just never quite got control. I think he (Kyle Larson) was definitely better than us in that first Stage. And then I was right there with him the rest of the time and it was just clean air, basically. But congrats to those guys. Kyle really deserves it. They’ve been awesome all year and flawless on pit road; and pit calls and everything. Our team is right there and I think we’re building something really good for years to come.” YOU WERE ELIMINATED FROM THE PLAYOFFS LAST WEEK. WHAT KIND OF A STATEMENT CAN YOU MAKE IF YOU CONTINUE TO HAVE RUNS LIKE THIS?“Yeah, we’re here to stay. Rudy (Fugle, Crew Chief) is going to be in it for a long time, I feel like, and we’ve got a good team; a good young team, myself included, so I feel like we can do a lot of good things. I saw that last week. Just didn’t finish it off with the contact there, but yeah this week we had a pretty good run and had a shot at a win.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 7thONCE THAT RIGHT FRONT TIRE ISSUE HAPPENS, IT WAS A TOUGH UPHILL BATTLE FROM THERE. “Yeah, it definitely was. I appreciate everybody continuing to fight through that and get our car a lot better. I thought by the end, we were decent. Just by that point, obviously, it was too late. I had another one vibrate again after that, so I’m not really sure what we had going on there. I’m still currently confused. So, we’ll see. But congrats to Kyle (Larson, race winner). Hopefully we can join those guys in Phoenix and I’m looking forward to these next two weeks. I think we can run good at the next couple and I feel like we’re all super close in points. I don’t know where everybody shakes out.” YOU’RE EIGHT BELOW: “Yeah, there you go. I feel like if we just go do our job these next two weeks and control what’s in our hands, we’ll be alright.” WHEN YOU HAVE A TOUGH DAY LIKE THIS WHEN YOU HAVE ISSUES WITH THE RIGHT FRONT, WHAT DO YOU AND ALAN (GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF) TALK ABOUT THIS WEEK GOING TO KANSAS? WHAT DO YOU FOCUS ON?“There’s nothing really glaring as to what would cause that. So, I’m really confused. We’ll talk about it and maybe we’ll get to the bottom of why that happened. But regardless, just proud of the fight. Obviously, it could have been a lot worse. So, I’m looking forward to Kansas.” DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAY INSURANCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 10th “It was a good day; up and down. I feel like we probably missed it a little bit on the adjustments in the middle of the race. And then right there at the end, during one of the stops when everyone came for tires and I was the first car without tires, I feel like we should have come for tires. We deserve maybe a little bit better, but we’ll have to keep working.”
ON THE CONTACT WITH THE NO. 19 (MARTIN TRUEX JR.):“I feel so bad for him. I feel like I ruined the race for him, but he just can’t be doing that. I’m racing as well here. I have a lot of respect for the guys in the Playoffs. But one thing is respect, another is taking advantage of the situation. He wasn’t even close to being clear and I don’t know why he did that. We’re in the last 10 to 12 laps of the race; I’ve got tires and he doesn’t have tires. I don’t know, I think he’s just got to be a little smarter.” 
ERIK JONES, NO. 43 MEDALLION BANK CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 12th“Up and down day for the Medallion Bank Chevy. Finally got back on the lead lap at the end and got a top fifteen. Proud of the effort to stay in it all day as a team. Hope to take what we learned to Kansas and improve on it”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 14th “I love Texas Motor Speedway, and our entire Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet team came here this weekend with the goal of backing up our performance from 2020 and finding Victory Lane. Things just didn’t fall that way. We ran in the top-10 early in Stage 1, but we were too tight to stay up there. Even though we threw the kitchen sink at our No. 3 Chevy during pit stops, our Chevy never got dialed in to my liking. The day became even harder with a couple of cut right-rear tires, and untimely cautions that caused us to fall off the lead lap. Our team never gave up, though, and we were able to fight our way back from two laps down. By the last restart, we were too loose. It definitely made things interesting. We worked hard to finish 14th. I’m proud of everyone on this Richard Childress Racing team for sticking with it today.”

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE AUTOTRADER ECHO PARK AUTOMOTIVE 500 TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY FORT WORTH, TEXAS OCT. 17, 2021KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1 ILE – Race Winner YOU SURVIVED SEVEN STAGE 3 RE-STARTS AND GOT IT TO VICTORY LANE. WELCOME TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME EVER FOR YOU, KYLE“Yeah, this is unreal. I knew we had a good shot to win today, and our car was amazing. That’s probably the best 550 package, intermediate car, we’ve had all year. So, thanks to everybody on this No. 5 team, HendrickCars.com, Rick Hendrick, this is so cool; we had a lot of people from HendrickCars here. We get to go race for a championship in a few weeks. This is crazy.”
HOW ABOUT THOSE SEVEN RESTARTS YOU HAD IN STAGE 3? YOU NEVER ONCE FALTERED. HOW DID YOU KEEP IT TOGETHER FOR ALL OF THEM?“I just got good pushes from behind me, really. I tried to stay patient on the throttle to keep them to my back bumper. And thankfully, I was able to just barely clear them every time into (Turn) 1 and not have to fight off of (Turn) 2. So thanks to William (Byron) and Tyler (Reddick) and Brad Keselowski, anybody who was ever behind me (laughs), especially Brad there in that last restart. So, it was just awesome to win and hope we can get some more wins throughout the rest of the year.”
HOW BIG WILL IT BE TO HAVE TWO WEEKS NOW TO GET READY FOR PHOENIX AND FOCUS ON THAT RACE AND GO RUN FOR A TITLE?“Yeah, it’ll be cool. I don’t think we’re going to lose focus on Kansas or Martinsville, but I definitely think we can shift a little bit more to our Phoenix car and I really look forward to that. I love the West Coast. I love Phoenix. We’ve always been fast there. At least I was really fast earlier this year in the No. 5 and made a lot of mistakes. But I think we should have a good shot. Our team has been so strong all year long and we might as well close it all out.”

BRISTOL, TN (October 17, 2021) — Two days of qualifying and a very cool race day challenged Tim Wilkerson and the Levi, Ray & Shoup Summit Racing Ford Mustang Funny Car at historic Bristol Dragway. After the Friday and Saturday qualifying sessions, Wilkerson had powered his 11,000 horsepower Funny Car to the No. 4 qualifier position. He came out of the trailer on Friday with the quickest run of the day and the provisional No. 1. Throughout the two sessions on Saturday Wilkerson along with car chief Richard Hartman looked at ways to repeat that performance after track conditions began to change following overnight rains and dropping temperatures.

Neither run on Saturday moved the team to the finish line under power. The tricky track conditions kept all the Funny Car teams on their toes. Many crew chiefs and teams were discussing managing the track conditions which included an exceptional launch zone for the first 60 feet followed by a track surface that was unwieldy to the power generated by the short wheel-based Funny Cars that cover the 1,000-foot race track in less than four seconds.

On Sunday morning air temperatures barely crept above 50 degrees and track temperatures hovered around 75 degrees at the start of eliminations. A chaotic first round of Top Fuel which featured nearly half a dozen engine explosions resulting in a significant amount of down time had tuners re-evaluating their decisions. Wilkerson made some adjustments based on his two Saturday runs with the hope that he could capture the magic that put him at the top of the field on Friday night.

His first round opponent was No. 11 qualifier and fellow Mustang driver Bob Tasca III who through three rounds never cracked the four second barrier on any of his runs. Wilkerson knew the team would step up and he was also confident he had made the appropriate changes for his Levi, Ray & Shoup Summit Racing Mustang Funny Car. Unfortunately, his tuning moves did not equate to race day success.

“We made some adjustments based on what happened yesterday and they didn’t work at all,” said Wilkerson, in his crew chief lounge in the pits. “We made some changes on Saturday and didn’t get the results we wanted so I tried something else and that didn’t work either which is very frustrating. I am going through the run now and hopefully we can figure it out. I have some time before Las Vegas, but we just missed it today.”

At the hit of the throttle Wilkerson knew he had his hands full as he was forced to pedal his race car to try and get it to hook up and power down the track. Without a strong launch there was no chance for the two-time 2021 winner and reigning U.S. Nationals champion to catch up to Tasca who was on a decent run. The team will have a week off before the second to last NHRA national event in two weeks at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Qualifying Results

Q1: 3.965 sec, 295.27 mph; Qual. 1

Q2: 7.575 sec, 88.36 mph; Qual. 2

Q3: 7.035 sec, 121.97 mph; Qual. 4

Bonus Points: +3 (Quickest of Q1)

Race Results

First Round
Driver                          Qual    R/T      ET        MPH 
Tim Wilkerson             4          .125     6.522   103.46

Bob Tasca III                11        .095     4.016   288.77 (W)

Camping World Funny Car Countdown Top Ten

1.       Ron Capps                                  2490

2.       Matt Hagan                                2489

3.       J.R. Todd                                    2407

4.       Cruz Pedregon                           2389

4.       John Force                                  2389

6.       Bob Tasca III                               2343

7.       Robert Hight                              2337

8.       Alexis DeJoria                             2319

9.       Tim Wilkerson                           2249

10.     Blake Alexander                        2184

 CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION NHRA THUNDER VALLEY NATIONALS BRISTOL DRAGWAY IN BRISTOL, TENNESSEE OCT. 17, 2021                                                                                                    Chevrolet drivers head to Las Vegas in title hunt • Brittany Force sets track speed record, reaches Top Fuel semifinals• No. 5 qualifier Robert High advances to Funny Car semifinals

BRISTOL, Tenn. (Oct. 17, 2021) – Another semifinal appearance and bonus points accumulated in qualifying at the Thunder Valley Nationals were beneficial to Brittany Force in her quest for a second National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Top Fuel championship.
Force reached the semifinal for the second consecutive event after qualifying third and setting the Bristol Dragway speed record in the Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet dragster. The 2017 NHRA Top Fuel titleholder remained second in the standings heading into the penultimate event of the Countdown to the Championship Oct. 29-31 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
“Overall, happy with our semifinal finish,” said Force, whose 333.58 mph pass in in the third round of qualifying reset the track Top Fuel record. “This Flav-R-Pac/Monster Energy team stayed No. 2 in points and we’re looking forward to Vegas.”
Teammate Robert Hight advanced to the Funny Car semifinals in the Automobile Club of Southern California Camaro SS. John Force, driving the PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Camaro SS, fell in the quarterfinals. He is tied for fourth in points.
Chevrolet Pro Stock competitors will join the John Force Racing trio at Las Vegas. Greg Anderson, driving the HendrickCars.com Camaro SS, takes an 81-point lead over reigning champion Erica Enders in the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Camaro SS.
The last of eight races in the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown will also be conducted. Aaron Stanfield, driving the Janac Brothers Racing Chevrolet COPO Camaro, locked up his second consecutive championship a few weeks ago at Madison, Illinois. 
CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT
TOP FUEL:
BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, FLAV-R-PAC CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (No. 3 qualifier, fell in semifinals): “I was really proud to be running this Flav-R-Pac car at my favorite race on the circuit, the Thunder Valley Nationals. We made some good passes all weekend long, starting Friday night. We had a few issues going rounds today and the boys had a lot of work, but they pulled it together and git us to that starting line.”
FUNNY CAR:
JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK ANTIFREEZE & COOLANT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 6 qualifier, fell in quarterfinals): “Not what we were looking for today. Bit of a rough go through the whole weekend. We’re still in the hunt though. Two races left, points and a half in Pomona. We’ll be good. Still have some fight in us.”
ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 5 qualifier, fell in semifinals): “We qualified well this weekend. We put up some good runs, thought we had a competitive Chevy. We got outrun today, wish things were different. But we’re still out here to win. There are two races left in the season and we’ll be out there just like everyone else looking for wins.”

About ChevroletFounded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

BRISTOL, Tenn. (Oct. 17, 2021) – Brittany Force with the Flav-R-Pac dragster and Robert Hight with the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car raced into the semifinals Sunday at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. John Force and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro had a second-round finish. Coming into race day in the No. 3 qualifying spot after setting the track speed record on Saturday, Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac team first competed with Lex Joon. Force would win the round but have a massive explosion near the finish officials assume caused the timing system to trip leaving her without a valid time. Second round would put Force against Spencer Massey. The Flav-R-Pac dragster would run 3.671-seconds at 332.10 mph with another smaller explosion down track but their efforts would still defeat Massey’s 3.777 at 320.13. In the semifinals Force and the Flav-R-Pac team would run into tire smoke early to go only 8.209-seconds at 79.25 mph falling to eventual race winner Mike Salinas and his 3.698 at 330.55.   “I was really proud to be running this Flav-R-Pac car at my favorite race on the circuit, the Thunder Valley Nationals. Overall, happy with our semifinal finish. We made some good passes all weekend long starting Friday night,” said Force who is still second in points. “We had a few issues going rounds today and the boys had a lot of work, but they pulled it together and got us up to that starting line. This Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team stayed two in points and we’re looking forward to getting to Vegas, the second to last race of the season.” After a solid qualifying effort that positioned Robert Hight in the No. 5, the Auto Club team would race their Chevy Camaro to a 3.940-second pass at 328.46 mph to hand Cory Lee and his 7.391 at 96.08 the first-round loss. Lined up with longtime rival Bob Tasca III in the second round, Hight drove to a solid 3.920-second pass at 329.84 mph, bettering Tasca’s 4.338 at 220.55. The victory would set Hight up against event No. 1 qualifier and eventual winner Alexis DeJoria in the semifinals. The Auto Club Chevy would put up a 3.934-second run at 329.10 mph, but it wouldn’t be enough for DeJoria’s 3.904 at 327.74. “We qualified well this weekend. We put up some good runs, thought we had a competitive Chevy,” Hight said. “We got out run today, wish things were different but we’re still out here to win. There’s two races left in the season, and we’ll be out there just like everyone else looking for wins.” John Force and the PEAK Chevy started race day off facing Jim Campbell in the first round. Force would lay down a 3.997-second pass at 272.12 mph despite having to shut off early and take the win over Campbell who drove into tire smoke for only an 8.069 run at 77.10. The second round put Force against 2018 world champion J.R. Todd. The PEAK Camaro would run into trouble to run only 4.118-seconds at 324.59 mph and be bettered by Todd’s 3.916 at 328.78. Force will head into the final two races of the season sitting tied for fourth in the championship points standings. “Not what we were looking for today. Bit of a rough go through the whole weekend,” said Force who is now tied for fourth in points. “We’re still in the hunt though. Two races left, points and a half in Pomona, we’ll be good, the PEAK Chevy team, we still have some fight in us.” The Dodge SRT // Nationals, the second to last event in the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, kicks off Oct. 29-31 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. -30-

BRITTANY FORCE, 35, Flav-R-Pac Top Fuel dragsterQualifying: 3rd 3.672-seconds at 333.58 mphBonus Qualifying Points:+5 (quickest Q1; 2nd quickest Q3)Race Results: Beat Lex Joon, Spencer Massey; Lost to Mike Salinas

ROBERT HIGHT, 52, Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy Camaro SSQualifying:5th; 3.968-seconds at 323.50 mphBonus Qualifying Points:+2 (2nd quickest Q1)Race Results: Beat Cory Lee, Bob Tasca III; Lost to Alexis DeJoria

JOHN FORCE, 72, PEAK / BlueDEF PLATINUM Chevy Camaro SSQualifying:6th; 3.968-seconds at 322.73 mphBonus Qualifying Points:+1 (3rd quickest Q1)Race Results: Beat Jim Campbell; Lost to J.R. Todd

Photo Credit: PEAK Chevy, Gary Nastase, Auto Imagery; Flav-R-Pac dragster: Lucas Priamo/TheBLOCK.com; Auto Club Chevy: Ron Lewis

Unofficial NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Top 10 Points Standings TOP FUEL – 1. Steve Torrence,   2,575; 2. Brittany Force, Monster Energy/ FLAV-R-PAK dragster, 2,502; 3. Justin Ashley, 2,428; 4. Mike Salinas, 2,425;  5. Billy Torrence, 2,357; 6. Leah Pruett, 2,291; 7. Clay Millican, 2,265; 8. Antron Brown, 2,252; 9. Shawn Langdon, 2,228; 10. Doug Kalitta, 2,180.           FUNNY CAR – 1. Ron Capps, 2,490; 2. Matt Hagan, 2,489; 3. J.R. Todd, 2,407; 4. Tie, John Force, PEAK/Blue Def Platinum Chevy Camaro SS, and Cruz Pedregon, 2,389 each; 6. Bob Tasca III, 2,343; 7. Robert Hight, Auto Club of Southern California Chevy Camaro SS, 2,337; 8. Alexis DeJoria, 2,319; 9. Tim Wilkerson, 2,249; 10. Blake Alexander, 2,184; 11. Jim Campbell, 2,150.

PORTSMOUTH, OH (October 16, 2021) – Ricky Thornton Jr. topped off his first full-year running with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series as he snuck by race leader Brandon Overton on a lap 83 restart on Saturday Night at Portsmouth Raceway Park. The 2021 Eibach Springs Rookie-of-the-Year winner went on to score the biggest win of his racing career by capturing the 41st Annual General Tire Dirt Track World Championship presented by Optima Batteries. Thornton pulled away from Overton and Jonathan Davenport in the final laps to record a 2.145 second advantage over Overton for the $100,000 victory. Thornton’s previous career high late model wins were both $20,000. Devin Moran was in charge the first 35 circuits, Overton led laps 36-82. Overton and Davenport rounded out the podium. Mike Marlar and 2021 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series National Champion, Tim McCreadie completed the top five. In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the first time since winning at Bubba Raceway Park in February, Thornton’s win was impressive over a stout field of cars. “I was kind of worried. I didn’t want those yellows, but then I could get a run off of four on the restart and go half a lane better into one. I finally stayed with him (Overton) on the front straightaway, and I thought it’s now or never. It’s 100 grand, I would have wrecked my mom to win.” Thornton became the 26th different driver to win the crown jewel event that started in 1981. “It’s wild. I can’t really explain it. We were lucky enough to run second last year. To win it this year is amazing. We gambled on tires. This is awesome, I have always wanted to be a late model driver and I think this kind of solidifies it. We have been so excited to run the Lucas Oil series and we look forward to doing it again next year.” Overton was looking for his first win in the event and his 29th overall this season but lost ground to Thornton in the waning laps. “I guess I just didn’t get going enough on that restart. He had a head full of steam going down in there. It is what it is. Sometimes you just run second. Congrats to those guys, they did a good job. They gambled on tires, and it paid off. Nobody needs to feel bad for me for running second, we have had a great year. We will take our second place and head to the house.” Davenport, like the top two ahead of him at the finish, was looking for his first win in the richest race on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series schedule. Davenport tried his best to make the top side work in turns three and four. “Me and Brandon pretty much had the thing as far as tires. Ricky went a little different, so he was definitely better late in the race. We just wore ours down and didn’t have much tread left. The top of three and four died just a little too early before I could get up there and surprise them.” The winner’s Todd and Vickie Burns-owned SSI Motorsports Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Clements Racing Engine and sponsored by Hoker Trucking, Sub-Surface of Indiana, Dyno One, Inc., West Side Tractor Sales, Excel Floor Covering, Certified Inspection Service Co, Inc., D&E Outside Services, Shelby Materials, Penske Racing Shocks, and VP Race Fuels. Completing the top ten were Tyler Erb, Earl Pearson Jr., Spencer Hughes, Hudson O’Neal, and Jimmy Owens. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt SeriesRace SummaryGeneral Tire Dirt Track World Championship Presented by Optima BatteriesSaturday, October 16th, 2021Portsmouth Raceway Park – Portsmouth, OH Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Ricky Thornton, Jr. / 15.254 seconds (overall)Fast Time Group B: Devin Moran / 15.661 seconds Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 2. 9Z-Mason Zeigler[3]; 3. 39-Tim McCreadie[2]; 4. 1T-Tyler Erb[4]; 5. 11R-Josh Rice[5]; 6. 11W-Ronnie Whitt[7]; 7. 5M-Ryan Markham[8]; 8. 33K-Kevin Wagner[9]; 9. 1L-Corey Lewis[6]; 10. (DNS) 21H-Robby Hensley Summit Racing Equipment Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 11H-Spencer Hughes[1]; 2. 25-Shane Clanton[2]; 3. 19R-Ryan Gustin[6]; 4. 28E-Dennis Erb Jr[3]; 5. 11J-Jared Hawkins[4]; 6. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[8]; 7. 10-Nathon Loney[5]; 8. 81F-Brandon Fouts[7]; 9. 20B-Todd Brennan[10]; 10. 32A-Robert Starrett[9] Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 40B-Kyle Bronson[1]; 2. 81E-Tanner English[2]; 3. 49-Jonathan Davenport[3]; 4. 14-Josh Richards[4]; 5. 17D-Zack Dohm[5]; 6. 15B-Dean Bowen[6]; 7. 69-Jon Hodgkiss[7]; 8. 144-Anthony Kinkade[8]; 9. 21E-Richie Edwards[9]; 10. (DNS) KC44-KC Burdette Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 9-Devin Moran[1]; 2. 76-Brandon Overton[2]; 3. 12J-Jason Jameson[4]; 4. D8-Dustin Linville[6]; 5. 2S-Stormy Scott[5]; 6. 17ST-Shannon Thornsberry[8]; 7. 1B-Nick Bocook[9]; 8. CJ1-Charlie Jude[10]; 9. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[3]; 10. 6T-Tim Dohm[7] Fast Shafts Heat Race #5 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 20-Jimmy Owens[3]; 2. 1G-Devin Gilpin[4]; 3. 99B-Boom Briggs[6]; 4. C9-Steve Casebolt[5]; 5. 44B-Colton Burdette[8]; 6. 111M-Matthew Lux[7]; 7. 71R-Rod Conley[9]; 8. 2M-Allen Murray[10] (DQ) 22F-Chris Ferguson[1]; (DQ) 1S-Brandon Sheppard[2] Lucas Oil Heat Race #6 Finish (8 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 0-Scott Bloomquist[1]; 2. 157-Mike Marlar[3]; 3. 71-Hudson O’Neal[5]; 4. 71C-RJ Conley[8]; 5. 111V-Max Blair[4]; 6. 66C-Matt Cosner[7]; 7. 48-Colton Flinner[2]; 8. 1SB-Shane Bailey[9]; 9. 18C-Chris Carpenter[6]; 10. 145-Chase Frohnapfel[10] LINE-X B-Main #1 Running Order (10 Laps, Top 2 Transfer): 1. 1T-Tyler Erb[1]; 2. 28E-Dennis Erb Jr[2]; 3. 11R-Josh Rice[4]; 4. 14-Josh Richards[3]; 5. 11J-Jared Hawkins[5]; 6. 17D-Zack Dohm[6]; 7. 11W-Ronnie Whitt[7]; 8. 33K-Kevin Wagner[13]; 9. 10-Nathon Loney[11]; 10. 144-Anthony Kinkade[15]; 11. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[8]; 12. 81F-Brandon Fouts[14]; 13. 20B-Todd Brennan[17]; 14. 21H-Robby Hensley[20]; 15. 5M-Ryan Markham[10]; 16. 32A-Robert Starret[19]; 17. 21E-Richie Edwards[18]; 18. 69-Jon Hodgkiss[12]; 19. 15B-Dean Bowen[9]; 20. 1L-Corey Lewis[16]; 21. (DNS) KC44-KC Burdette UNOH B-Main #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 2 Transfer): 1. D8-Dustin Linville[1]; 2. 2S-Stormy Scott[4]; 3. C9-Steve Casebolt[2]; 4. 44B-Colton Burdette[5]; 5. 71C-RJ Conley[3]; 6. 111V-Max Blair[6]; 7. 111M-Matthew Lux[8]; 8. 66C-Matt Cosner[9]; 9. 71R-Rod Conley[11]; 10. 18C-Chris Carpenter[17]; 11. 1B-Nick Bocook[10]; 12. 48-Colton Flinner[12]; 13. 17ST-Shannon Thornsberry[7]; 14. CJ1-Charlie Jude[13]; 15. 1SB-Shane Bailey[15]; 16. 145-Chase Frohnapfel[19]; 17. 46-Earl Pearson Jr[16]; 18. (DNS) 2M-Allen Murray; 19. (DNS) 6T-Tim Dohm Jim Dunn Non-Qualifier Finish (25 Laps)1. 44B-Colton Burdette[2]; 2. 17D-Zack Dohm[5]; 3. 111V-Max Blair[6]; 4. 11J-Jared Hawkins[3]; 5. 111M-Matthew Lux[8]; 6. 48-Colton Flinner[18]; 7. 71C-RJ Conley[4]; 8. 71R-Rod Conley[12]; 9. 33K-Kevin Wagner[9]; 10. 1SB-Shane Bailey[24]; 11. 10-Nathon Loney[11]; 12. 18C-Chris Carpenter[14]; 13. 11W-Ronnie Whitt[7]; 14. 144-Anthony Kinkade[13]; 15. 5M-Ryan Markham[21]; 16. CJ1-Charlie Jude[22]; 17. 32A-Robert Starret[23]; 18. 1B-Nick Bocook[16]; 19. 20B-Todd Brennan[17]; 20. 17ST-Shannon Thornsberry[20]; 21. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[15]; 22. (DNS) C9-Steve Casebolt; 23. (DNS) 66C-Matt Cosner; 24. (DNS) 21H-Robby Hensley; 25. (DNS) 145-Chase Frohnapfel General Tire Dirt Track World Championship Presented by Optima Batteries Feature Finish (100 Laps):

Race StatisticsEntrants: 60Lap Leaders: Devin Moran (Laps 1-35); Brandon Overton (Laps 36-51); Ricky Thornton, Jr. (Lap 52); Brandon Overton (Laps 53-82); Ricky Thornton, Jr. (Laps 83-100)Wrisco Feature Winner: Ricky Thornton, Jr.Arizona Sport Shirts CJC – Presented by DirtOnDirt Feature Winner: Ricky Thornton, Jr.Brandon Ford TV Challenge Feature Winner: Ricky Thornton, Jr.Margin of Victory: 2.145 secondsCautions: Devin Gilpin (Lap 23); Dustin Linville (Lap 25); Kyle Bronson (Lap 30); Josh Rice (Lap 36); Scott Bloomquist (Lap 80); Josh Richards (Lap 82); Jason Jameson (Lap 84)Series Provisionals: Josh Richards; Earl Pearson, Jr.Fast Time Provisional: n/aSeries Emergency Provisionals: n/aTrack Provisionals: Brandon Fouts; Josh RiceBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Ricky Thornton, Jr., Brandon Overton, Jonathan DavenportPenske Shocks Top 5: Ricky Thornton, Jr., Brandon Overton, Jonathan Davenport, Mike Marlar, Tim McCreadieOptima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Earl Pearson, Jr. (Advanced 17 Positions)Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Tim McCreadieHot Rod Processing Most Laps Led: Brandon Overton (46 Laps)Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Brandon OvertonEibach Springs Rookie of the Race: Ricky Thornton, Jr.Dirty Girl Racewear Fastest Lap of the Race: Jimmy Owens (Lap # 2 – 16.041 seconds)Fast Shafts Tough Break of the Race: Kyle BronsonOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Anthony BurroughsARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Race EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Brandon Overton – 14.773 secondsTime of Race: 54 minutes 00 seconds Lucas Oil Point Standings:

BRISTOL, Tenn. (Oct. 16, 2021) – Despite morning showers, John Force Racing teams had the opportunity to take advantage of both qualifying runs on Saturday at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac dragster team land in the No. 3 spot while setting the track speed record. Robert Hight and the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro are No. 5 and John Force and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy are No. 6. The second qualifying session was a bit of awash for the John Force Racing hot rods, all three cars drove into tire smoke before mid-track. First up was Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac dragster who recorded a 6.480-second run at 91.36 mph. Force was followed by father John Force and the PEAK Chevy who went 8.160-seconds at 77.85 mph and then Robert Hight and the Auto Club Camaro went 6.390 at 102.74. Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac team found improvement in the final qualifying session. Force would handle her Top Fuel dragster to a 3.672-second pass at a track record 333.58 mph. The rest of the category would also make some moves through the two qualifying sessions, shifting her into the No. 3 qualifying position to race Lex Joon in the first round. “Overall good qualifying. Two solid passes for this Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team. We have a great ladder tomorrow,” Force said. “Looking to go out and win Thunder Valley and put Flav-R-Pac in the winners circle. We want to end on a high note since this is the last time this season we’ll be representing Flav-R-Pac as our primary sponsor.” Qualified No. 3 and No. 4 coming into the Saturday evening session, Robert Hight and John Force would line up side-by-side. Both Chevy’s would go up in smoke at the same time with the Auto Club Camaro crossing the finish line at 8.247-seconds and 84.04 mph and the PEAK Camaro recording an 8.404-second run at 77.75 mph. Hight and the Auto Club Chevy Camaro, who land No. 5 with their 3.968-second pass at 323.50 mph from Friday night, will line-up with Cory Lee in the first round of eliminations on Sunday. “Not the day we wanted. It’s a real tight race track and that’s what we’re going to see tomorrow too, so we really wanted to get down the track,” Hight said. “We’re not used to racing here in October, not having the heat of summer is helpful and hopefully we got some good data from our early numbers. This Auto Club team, Jimmy Prock, Chris Cunningham, we’ll be ready tomorrow.” Sitting No. 6 off the efforts of their 3.968-second pass at 322.73 mph, Force and the PEAK Chevy Camaro will take on Jim Campbell in the first round. “Well, we’re in it. It’s going to be cool tomorrow so all these runs would have been helpful. But we have that one run from Friday night, and we’ll be in the fight tomorrow,” Force said. “This PEAK Chevy team are working hard.” Eliminations at the NRHA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway are slated for Sunday at 11:30 a.m. Television coverage continues with a second qualifying show Sunday at 1 p.m. followed by the finals at 2 p.m. ET all on FOX Sports 1 (FS1).

BRISTOL, TN (October 16, 2021) — Alexis DeJoria drove her Bandero Premium Tequila ROKiT Toyota Camry Funny Car to the No. 1 qualifier position today at the 20th Thunder Valley Nationals at historic Bristol Dragway. It was the fifth career No. 1 for DeJoria and her first since the Charlotte Four-Wide Nationals in 2016. The qualifying effort is the best of the season for DeJoria after six No. 2 qualifiers. 

“This is the first No. 1 qualifier for DC Motorsports since Del Worsham and I began in 2020 and I’m so happy that it came at the same track where I went to my first Funny Car final with Del as my crew chief in 2012,” said DeJoria, a five-time national event winner in Funny Car. “Everything’s going to come together and we’re going to break through for a win very soon. This track has a lot of very good memories for me. To come back here with our own team and get a No. 1 qualifier is huge. We have had so many No. 2s and I am not complaining but this No. 1 is so gratifying. It means so much. It kind of feels like a win. This is a huge weight lifted off our shoulders.”

Alexis DeJoria, Bandero Premium Tequila ROKiT Toyota Camry Funny Car, Thunder Valley Nationals No. 1 qualifier

The No. 1 time of 3.907 seconds at 326.79 mph was almost five hundredths quicker than her nearest competitor in qualifying. The cooler track temperatures throughout the day made it tricky for all the teams. Following the run DeJoria shared with the media how close that run came to not happening.

“That run has a couple hiccups down track, but I just stayed in it and I drove through it,” said DeJoria. “I didn’t think it was going to be a 3.90. I did not think it was going to stick. It feels good right now but tomorrow is a new day. It is a confidence booster going into tomorrow. We didn’t make it down the track the first two runs. Hopefully we can build on what we did tonight.”

DeJoria will face No. 14 qualifier Paul Lee in the first round. Final eliminations will begin tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. ET with Top Fuel followed by Funny Car.

Honda claims TC manufacturers’ crown with HPD Honda Civic Type R
Eric Powell, Kevin Boehm finish 1-2 in tight TC Drivers’ Championship battle
Carter Fartuch again leads Honda Civic Si drivers in TCA

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (October 17, 2021) – HPD Honda Civic Type R racers finished 1-2 in the SRO TC America Drivers’ Championship, sweeping the 2021 season finale weekend on the road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as Honda also claimed the TC Manufacturers’ crown.

TC Honda Civic Type R
Friday’s opener became a race of tire choice and management, as the 45-minute event was run on a wet-but-drying IMS road course. Starting third, Kevin Boehm used rain tires to grab an early advantage in his #9 DXDT Honda Civic Type R, leading the TC class by as much as four seconds. But as the laps wound down and the track dried rapidly, Mike LaMarra began a late-race charge in his ‘slick’ shod LA Honda World Civic Type R, snatching the victory from Boehm on the white-flag lap.

That result set up a championship showdown for Saturday’s season finale between Boehm and fellow Honda driver Eric Powell, who finished fifth on Friday. On Saturday, Boehm did all he could – leading every lap for his third win of the season. But Powell’s sixth-place result was more than enough to claim the title by a narrow 7.5-point margin.

TCA Honda Civic Si
Tires also were the tale in Friday’s TCA contest, as Jose Blanco took the early lead on wet weather tires in his VGMC Racing Honda Civic Si. But late in the race, the cars fitted with dry-weather ‘slick’ tires had the advantage, and late-race contact resulted in an unrepresentative 12th-place finish. TCA Championship contender Carter Fartuch also struggled in the changing conditions, finishing seventh.

Fartuch again led the way for Honda on Saturday, taking the checkers fifth in his Honda Civic Si, but lost out in his TCA championship battle, finishing third in the final points tally to Caleb Bacon and Luke Rumburg.

Quotes
Eric Powell (#28 Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type R) 2021 TC America champion; Honda also wins TC Manufacturers’ Championship: “I’m kind of at a loss for words. It’s such an amazing feeling. I’ve been at this for a long time, racing for almost 25 years. I’ve won a lot of races, but never a championship, and a lot of times that was due to reliability issues. But this Honda Civic Type R that HPD has put in my hands has been rock-solid reliable all year. It’s incredible. The Skip Barber School has given us the resources to succeed, and I couldn’t ask for anything more. It’s super exciting.”

Kevin Boehm (#9 DXDT Racing Honda Civic Type R) Saturday TC class winner, finished 2nd in the TC Drivers’ Championship: “It’s the teamwork we had as a group. We have Operation Motorsport on board, and they’re donating their time, to basically come and learn how to work on these race cars. Together, we really just try to make it go as fast as it can. That’s the most memorable thing, along with having my wife and my dad working alongside me as well, it’s been incredible. To finish at the top of the podium, in the last race of the season, was just great.”

Mike LaMarra (#37 LA Honda World Honda Civic Type R) Friday TC class winner: “It’s fantastic [to win at Indianapolis}. This is the second time I’ve won here in sports car racing and it’s a real special place, obviously. It feels great. I took a gamble by starting on slicks, hoping that they would take me up to first [place]. It paid off, big time, and I couldn’t be happier!”

Next
This weekend’s races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway closed out the 2021 SRO Touring Car America championship season. The 2022 season gets underway April 15-17 at Sonoma Raceway, just north of San Francisco, California.

HPD has two ready-to-race Civic models for touring car competition. The line starts with the affordable and reliable Civic Si TCA race car, then leads to the Civic Type R TC racer that puts legendary Type R performance on track, Our unparalleled trackside support at every level from HPD engineers is a unique benefit that no other manufacturer can offer. Find out more about these cars and our touring programs at: https://hpd.honda.com/Motorsports/Touring.

Social media content and video links from this weekend’s SRO Touring Car America races at Indianapolis are available on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (www.twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).

TC Indianapolis Friday Race Results
1st TC – #37 Mike LaMarra, LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Type R
2nd TC – #9 Kevin Boehm, DXDT Racing Honda Civic Type R
5th TC – #92 Eric Powell, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type R
8th TC – #73 Ken Fukuda, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type R
TCA Indianapolis Friday Race Results
7th TCA – #16 Carter Fartuch, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si
8th TCA – #780 Sally McNulty, Team Sally Racing Honda Civic Si
9th TCA – #20 Mike Stillwagon, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si
10th TCA – #77 Mario Biundo LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Si
11th TCA – #2 Colin Harrison, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si
• 12th TCA – #99 Jose Blanco, VGMC Racing Honda Civic Si

TC Indianapolis Saturday Race Results
1st TC – #9 Kevin Boehm, DXDT Racing Honda Civic Type R
6th TC – #92 Eric Powell, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type R
7th TC – #73 Ken Fukuda, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Type R
9th TC – #37 Mike LaMarra, LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Type R
TCA Indianapolis Saturday Race Results
5th TCA – #16 Carter Fartuch, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si
6th TCA – #77 Mario Biundo LA Honda World Racing Honda Civic Si
7th TCA – #20 Mike Stillwagon, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si
8th TCA – #780 Sally McNulty, Team Sally Racing Honda Civic Si
11th TCA – #2 Colin Harrison, Skip Barber Racing School Honda Civic Si
• 12th TCA – #99 Jose Blanco, VGMC Racing Honda Civic Si