- Fall Fling Advanced Product Design $15,000 Wednesday Paused Due to Weather
- Stanfield Leads Tough Field into St. Louis Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown at NHRA Midwest Nationals
- BRITTANY FORCE AND MONSTER ENERGY TEAM CONFIDENT HEADING TO NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
- AUSTIN PROCK AND MONTANA BRAND LOOK TO BUILD MOMENTUM AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
- ROBERT HIGHT AND AAA CHEVY ON A ROLL HEADING TO NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
- JOHN FORCE AND PEAK CHEVY LOOKING FOR AN UPSWING AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
- OPTIMISM AND DETERMINATION FUEL KING HEADED TO ST. LOUIS
Fall Fling Advanced Product Design $15,000 Wednesday Paused Due to Weather
Bristol, TN — Advanced Product Design $15,000 Wednesday at the RAD Torque Systems Fall Fling presented by Optima Batteries at Bristol 
Dragway began with a time run session for all racers on property to get their equipment dialed in for the rest of the weekend.
In the afternoon during the second round, a storm with heavy rain and lightning overtook the track and by the time it passed the sun had set. As the Bristol Dragway track staff made an effort to clear off the track with jet dryers, the dew point increased which would create unsafe conditions by the time the track was projected to be fully prepped.
The Fling Team made the decision to begin ATI Performance $30,000 Thursday as scheduled with a new entry time trial in the morning before going straight into first round. “Our racers pre-entered this race for the 30K, 100K, and 30K main events,” said promoter Peter Biondo. “We want to deliver as promised, and we’ll see how the week progresses as far as coming back to continue eliminations of the 15K event.”
Stanfield Leads Tough Field into St. Louis Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown at NHRA Midwest Nationals
MADISON, IL – The Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown season heads into its final three events of 2023 beginning with this weekend’s NHRA 
Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway where Chevrolet COPO Camaros, Ford Mustang Cobra Jets and Dodge Mopar Challenger Drag Paks continue to vie for the championship title.
Points leader and most recent event winner Aaron Stanfield and his Stanfield Racing Engines Chevrolet COPO Camaro are hoping they are in the home stretch to their second Factory Stock Showdown championship.
“I want to keep going rounds and hold onto this lead for sure,” said Stanfield, who was the 2020 champion. “The biggest thing is how much support I have gotten this season. Everyone on this team has chipped in to get us where we are now.”
With his most recent win at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pennsylvania just two weeks ago, Stanfield also put a target on his back in the form of the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown Bounty program. In eliminations, $1,000 will be rewarded to the competitor who can defeat Stanfield, if he goes undefeated, the bounty grows $1,000 each event weekend until someone can get the job done.
BRITTANY FORCE AND MONSTER ENERGY TEAM CONFIDENT HEADING TO NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
MADISON, IL – Brittany Force and the Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet dragster team enter this weekend’s NHRA Midwest 
Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway sitting sixth in the championship points standings and are determined to make a splash through the last four races of the season.
While Force and her Monster Energy team are still looking for their first win of the season, they have been on a hot streak qualifying in the top five for the last four consecutive races. While they’ve been consistent through qualifying, they haven’t been able to translate that performance to race day. In the first two races of the Countdown, they’ve had second-round exits.
“The Midwest Nationals is race three of six in this Countdown. It’s easy to stay motivated when you’re coming right out of one event into another. We competed in Reading, Pennsylvania then Charlotte and now St. Louis for three back-to-back races. This Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team enters this event sitting sixth and we still have complete confidence we can make some big moves to get us closer to the top,” Force said. “Our qualifying has improved the last several weekends, we’ve been more consistent and earning bonus points to put us higher in the field. With three attempts this weekend, we want to take full avenge of those small points with some solid runs to put us at least in the top five. We need to go rounds on race day, we set the track record speed last year, but this year, we need to bring home a St. Louis win.”
AUSTIN PROCK AND MONTANA BRAND LOOK TO BUILD MOMENTUM AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
MADISON, IL – Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster team are sitting eighth in points heading 
into the NHRA Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway. Just 154 points back, a continued boost in performance could put the young team right back in the championship conversation with four events left in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship
Prock and the Montana Brand team picked up John Fore Racing’s only Top Fuel win so far this season at the spring Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway, the track they just came from for the Carolina Nationals. The Montana Brand dragster found momentum last weekend after qualifying only tenth, the Chris Cunningham and Joe Barlam-led team finished with a semifinal appearance.
“We’re coming off a bit of momentum in Charlotte at the Carolina Nationals. I think we’re all looking forward to firing off strong in St. Louis at World Wide Technology Raceway,” Prock said. “We have all the pieces to the puzzle to succeed on this Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team, we just need to utilize them efficiently. Once we do that, we will come out victorious.”
ROBERT HIGHT AND AAA CHEVY ON A ROLL HEADING TO NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
MADISON, IL – Robert Hight and the AAA / Cornwell Tools team return to familiar AAA livery on their Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car for 
this weekend’s NHRA Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway. They will try to improve their 25-point lead at the third of six events in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship.
Hight and the AAA team kept their points lead after finishing runner-up at last weekend’s Carolina Nationals. They had entered North Carolina with just a three-point gap after picking up a victory at Maple Grove Raceway to open the Countdown to the Championship. In addition to his win in Reading, Pennsylvania, Hight hoisted the Wally at the Four-Wide at zMAX Dragway and the Arizona Nationals, he also has a runner-up finish at Brainerd International Raceway.
“We’ve hit our stride at the right time. This AAA team, we had a rough patch but we got through it. My crew chiefs, Jimmy and Thomas Prock and Nate Hildahl, and all our guys stuck through it. I don’t think any of us had any doubt we’d be right in the thick of things when it mattered most,” Hight said. “We’ve got to keep it going. It’s going to take wins to get this championship locked up, going rounds is good and we’ve done that so far, we just need more of it. Those small points in qualifying will be important too. We lost last year by three, we’re not going to let that happen again.”
JOHN FORCE AND PEAK CHEVY LOOKING FOR AN UPSWING AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
MADISON, IL – John Force and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS team enter this weekend’s NHRA Midwest Nationals 
at World Wide Technology Raceway sitting ninth in the Camping World championship points standings and are looking to make up some ground at the third of six events in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship.
Force and the PEAK team are on the hunt for their first win of the season. They’ve reached the finals once at the rain-delayed New England Nationals, but Force has made four trips to the semifinals and qualified inside the top half of the field at 11 of 17 events so far this season including picking up the No. 1 qualifying position at the Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways just outside of Seattle. Last weekend, at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte for the Carolina Nationals, Force had a consistent race car during qualifying securing the fourth spot but ran into trouble early on race day for a first-round exit.
“It’s been a tough season, we’ve struggled, but we’re not out of it yet. It’s competitive in Funny Car, maybe the most competitive it’s been, so no one is running away with it yet,” Force said. “We’ve had some consistency lately, figured some things out, so we just need to keep at it, keep our heads up. I think we’re all looking forward to St. Louis and hopefully ending these three back-to-back races on a good note.”
OPTIMISM AND DETERMINATION FUEL KING HEADED TO ST. LOUIS
CHICAGO, IL – After a very rough outing at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in August Funny Car team owner and driver Chris King took a few 
weeks to evaluate his program and determine what the best course of action was for his Howards Cams/Competition Products Dodge Funny Car team. King made the tough decision not to compete at the Dodge Power Brokers U.S. Nationals, but the up-and-coming driver did attend the race and spent time with tuners and began conversations with additional crew members to improve his team’s manpower. Ultimately, King decided to forge ahead and with new parts, additional crew members and a positive attitude and the Chicago fireman and Funny Car driver is eager to get back into competition this weekend at the NHRA Midwest Nationals from World Wide Technology Raceway.
“There were a lot of sleepless nights after Brainerd,” said King, who has competed in three events so far this season. “I asked myself why am I still doing this and how badly do I want this. At the end of the day, I want to be out here full time. I have some great sponsors supporting me and I feel like we made some great additions to the team after Brainerd. The amazing thing is how supportive the NHRA driver and crew chief community is. I talked to a lot of guys who gave me some suggestions and we also were able to pick up some parts that will keep us going.”
Pruett & Hagan Head to NHRA Midwest Nationals in St Louis
Madison, IL – The NHRA Midwest Nationals near St. Louis is the 18th race on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series’ 21-race 
schedule and it is the third round in the six-race Countdown to the Championship. Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) drivers Leah Pruett (Top Fuel) and Matt Hagan (Funny Car) are both in the Countdown, with 2023 marking Pruett’s seventh appearance in the NHRA postseason and Hagan’s 12th.
Pruett is fourth in the Top Fuel standings heading into St. Louis, 76 points behind championship leader Doug Kalitta. Hagan is tied for third with Ron Capps in the Funny Car standings, 69 points behind leader Robert Hight. Pruett’s best career points finish is fourth, earned three times (2018, 2019 and 2020). Hagan is a three-time champion (2011, 2014 and 2020).
Pruett is representing Code 3 Associates on her Top Fuel dragster at St. Louis. Hagan, meanwhile, has American Rebel on his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car.
Pro Mods, Top Alcohol Funny Cars Coming to Tulsa for Osage Casino Hotel Throwdown in T-Town
TULSA, OK — The upcoming fall edition of the Throwdown in T-Town at Osage Casino Hotel Tulsa Raceway Park will contest TWO Events 
in a 3 day period due to the first MWDRS Race being canceled due to rain in Tulsa back in May, we are into our 2nd round of racing in most classes. We will have something for everyone, from nationally touring Pro Mods and Funny Cars to nostalgia Gassers, local sportsman racing, and much more. It all goes down Oct 5th-7th, and FREE TICKETS for the event are available now.
“This has become a nationally recognized, can’t-miss event,” said Keith Haney, co-owner, Tulsa Raceway Park. “Whether you’re a fan or a racer, you’ve gotta make plans to be a part of this event. Fans have come to expect a thrilling, diverse show at the Throwdown, and they absolutely pack the place. Racers come from all over the country because they want to put on a great show in front of a huge crowd. It’s a win-win for everyone involved.”
The headliner for the Throwdown in T-Town is the Summit Racing Equipment Mid-West Drag Racing Series (MWDRS) presented by J&A Service DOUBLE EVENT, with their Stroud Safety Pro Mod and J&A Service Funny Car classes leading the way.
LANGDON, KALITTA AIR CAREERS TEAM NOT GIVING UP
YPSILANTI, MI – Shawn Langdon’s Kalitta Air Careers Toyota team is running better but not yet well enough to challenge for a 
championship making this weekend’s third of six playoff races a pivotal event. The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series resumes this weekend at the NHRA Midwest Nationals in Madison, Ill., the third of six races that make up the Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs.
Langdon’s season has not lived up to expectations, but a recent uptick in performance is reason for optimism. The Kalitta Air Careers team made six consistent runs in Reading, Pa., two weeks ago and appeared ready to step up its performance. With a second-consecutive quarterfinal appearance last weekend in Charlotte, Langdon, who has two wins in three St. Louis final rounds, did move up to 10th in points, but if the team is to have any shot at contending, a strong performance this weekend reaching deep into the eliminations ladder is vital.
“We go into St. Louis with the same game plan we had for Charlotte – try to get our Kalitta Air Careers car running as well as it can so we can continue getting better,” Langdon said. “We made six really good runs in Reading, but we weren’t able to keep that going in Charlotte (last weekend) so we’ll give it another shot this weekend. Mathematically, we can still win a championship, but realistically, it’s a long shot. We’d probably need to win at least two of the four races we have left so our goal is to continue improving our performance and hope we can keep moving up in points. St. Louis has a nice race track, and the weather looks good so we’ll go in there and keep working as hard as we can to keep getting better for Kalitta Air, Revchem, Toyota, Future Energy Solutions and everyone else who supports our team.”
