DENVER, CO – John Force did not become the NHRA’s biggest winner by playing things conservatively.  That was true when he was a 25-year-old rookie, when he was a 41-year-old first time champion and when, at age 61, he became the first drag racer to earn RACER Magazine’s Racer-of-the-Year award.

“Sometimes,” the 15-time champion has said, “you just gotta shake things up” which is why, in advance of this week’s 34^th annual Mopar Mile-High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway, he let go of the crew and crew chiefs that began the season working on his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang.

Not that Mike Neff and his crew are going very far.  In fact, they’ll set up shop this week just one pit spot to the right where they will assume responsibility for Robert Hight’s Auto Club Mustang while Hight’s crew chief, Jimmy Prock, moves the other direction to work his magic for Force.

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DENVER, CO – Robert Hight and his Auto Club Ford Mustang will head to one of his favorite tracks this weekend. The 2009 NHRA Funny Car champion will return to the track where as a rookie he won the race and took the points lead. At that time the Hight was sitting on top of the world leading the points over eventual Funny Car champion Gary Scelzi and John Force. Five years later Hight was back in the winner’s circle having defeated Force in a great side by side battle. Force would go on to win his 15^th NHRA Funny Car championship at the end of the season.

Hight has dominated qualifying at Bandimere Speedway only qualifying in the bottom half one time since 2005 and going into race day as the No. 1 or No. 2 qualifier four times. Hight’s confidence has been high on the mountain top especially when you consider teams only get one shot a year racing in the rarified air outside of Denver.

“I have enjoyed a lot of success at the Mopar NHRA Mile-High Nationals. That win my rookie year was awesome because I took the points lead over Scelzi. I have led the points every year I have raced. I am looking to keep that streak alive but I know we will have to dig deep to get the job done,” said Hight, who has reached one final in 2013 (Las Vegas1).

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YORBA LINDA, CA – Fans of NHRA superstar Funny Car driver Courtney Force will not have to look far to find a copy of her cover shot on ESPN The Magazines 2013 Body Issue. Force’s photo will be the only shot that will grace the cover of all the ESPN magazines distributed nationally on newsstands which include Wal-Mart, Barnes & Noble, airport newsstands, CVS pharmacies, and newsstands in major cities across the country on Friday, July 12th.

“When I found out I was going to be on the cover of the newsstand issue of the Body Issue I couldn’t believe it. I have to thank the photographers Mark Williams and Sara Hirakawa who took such amazing photos. I want to thank all my family and fans that have been so supportive,” said an excited Force.

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NORWALK, OH – This weekend Courtney Force managed to turn a No. 10 qualifying position into a semi-final appearance and hang on to the No. 7 spot in the NHRA Mello Yello Funny Car point standings at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals.

The 25-year-old female racer, who will grace the cover of ESPN The Magazine’s Body Issue on July 12th, posted a 4.07 in the opening round against Tim Wilkerson today to kick off eliminations. Courtney also set the track speed record with the first round run of 319.67 mph.

“We were matched up with Tim Wilkerson in the first round today. We had him in the opening round last weekend in Chicago, also. He’s a tough competitor. He’s definitely got a good race car this year and he had lane choice over me. It made me a little nervous, so I felt like I had to step up my game. We got down there and had a great pass. We were able to outrun him with a 4.07 so I was excited for round two,” said Force.

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NORWALK, OH – There is only one track left that John Force has not been the No. 1 qualifier after this weekend’s effort at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk. His Friday night 4.021 second pass was a track record and checked the famed Norwalk facility off the list of tracks Force has not been the best in qualifying.  The lone remaining track is Bristol Dragway. This was the 25th different track and 30th different event Force has been the No. 1 qualifier.

On today’s effort Force talked about the strategy behind his runs in both sessions. Crew chief Mike Neff who has won the past two NHRA events here was looking for the edge to go rounds on Sunday.

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NORWALK, OH – John Force and Robert Hight were a potent 1-2 punch at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park on Friday night. Force’s Castrol GTX Ford Mustang set the track record with a provisional No. 1 elapsed time of 4.021 seconds at 317.72 mph. Right behind Force was teammate Robert Hight and the Auto Club Ford Mustang who ran 4.030 seconds at a track speed record of 318.77 mph.

“I was amazed it was hotter than heck and we came out and ran that 4.13 or whatever we ran in the heat. We got a handle in the heat,” said Force, who is in position to pick up his first No.1 qualifier at Summit Motorsports Park. “We are OK but we are not where we want to be. We are not where we want to be to win a championship. There are just a bunch of good race cars out here. To get low for tonight is good.”

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NORWALK, OH – After a tough weekend in Chicago, Auto Club Road to the Future Award candidate Brittany Force puts that race behind her as she rolls in to Norwalk for the 7^th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals.

With two blown engines and a first round loss in eliminations throughout last weekend, Force and her Castrol EDGE Top Fuel team take what they learned at Route 66 Raceway and hope to apply those concepts coming into Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park. She also believes that having these back-to-back races contribute to the learning process as well.

“I think, as a driver and for my team, having back-to-back races is helpful,” Force said. “It keeps us all in that momentum and in that groove of trying to keep everything consistent. Learning from each run and really just keeping that focus rather than going home for a week and getting out of that rhythm. It helps me as a driver feel more comfortable in the car coming back after only a few days and getting right back in it.”

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NORWALK, OH- Courtney Force will visit Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park this week for the last of a back-to-back four-race swing, the 7th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, July 4-7.

“I’m looking forward to the fact that weather this weekend in Norwalk looks a little more cloudy and slightly cooler than last year so maybe we can see some fast times like we did this past weekend in Chicago. It makes everyone’s jobs a lot more fun to see great numbers like the 3.98’s and 3.99’s we saw, especially the crew and their crew chiefs. They are the backbone behind low numbers and fast times.  It shows how far we’ve come in the NHRA and what these cars can really do,” said Force.

The 25-year old from Yorba Linda, Calif. currently sits No. 7 in the NHRA Mello Yello Funny Car point standings. Force and her Traxxas Funny Car team have picked up two wins so far this season at Pomona for the Winternationals and the 2013 inaugural event in Epping, N.H.

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NORWALK, OH – Robert Hight’s 2013 season has started off slowly but in recent weeks his Auto Club Ford Mustang has shown the signs of explosive power that fans have come to expect from one of the most dominant Funny Cars of the past decade. Since 2005 Hight and his Auto Club Ford Mustang have posted the most wins, 27, of any Funny Car team over that period. Ron Capps is second with 25 wins since 2005. Entering the 7th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio, Hight will be looking for his first win of the 2013 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. His last win was April of 2012 at the Four-Wide NHRA Nationals.

“This is the longest I have gone without a win but I think I have a car that can win we just haven’t put a perfect weekend together yet. With as competitive as the Funny Car class is now that is what you need a near perfect weekend. We made two 4.05 runs in qualifying and another 4.05 in the first round. Then we ran 4.09 in the second round last weekend but didn’t get a Wally,” said Hight, No. 10 in the Mello Yello Funny Car points.

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NORWALK, OH – Drag racing icon John Force tries to keep his streak of final round appearances intact this week on one of the few racetracks on which he has not yet won an NHRA tour event.

The sport’s all-time winner, who has climbed from 10^th to third in the Mello Yello driver standings in less than a month, tries to make it four finals in four weeks when he sends his resurgent Castrol GTX Ford Mustang after the Funny Car Championship at the seventh annual Summit Racing Equipment Nationals.

Force, who is bidding this year for an unprecedented 16^th NHRA Funny Car title, has won NHRA tour events at 24 different tracks, but never at Summit Motorsports Park where he is 0-for-6 with only a runner-up finish in 2010 to show for his effort.

The irony is that he is a many-time winner of the track’s largest independent event, the August “Night Under Fire,” and has been successful enough in that race to have had a spectator grandstand named in his honor.

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