15-Time Funny Car Champ Aims for Another Bonus Race Victory

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – When eight of the sport’s A-list Funny Car drivers line up Sunday to compete for the $100,000 top prize in the second annual Traxxas Nitro Shootout, the spotlight will fall not on points leader Matt Hagan nor reigning series champion Jack Beckman nor even track record holder Cruz Pedregon.

Instead, it will shine most brightly on defending champion John Force and his suddenly spectacular Castrol GTX Ford Mustang.

A tour winner at Bristol, Tenn., and a Funny Car finalist in four of the last eight races in the NHRA Mello Yello Series, Force will roll to the starting line at Lucas Oil Raceway not only as the winner of more tour events than anyone else in history (135) but also as the winner of more bonus races than any other driver.

Over the last 20 seasons, the 64-year-old icon has won 12 specialty races, six of them at Indianapolis where he won five times in the Big Bud Shootout and once in the U.S. Smokeless Showdown. He won last year’s Traxxas Shootout at Dallas, Texas after it was postponed by rain at Indy.

In addition, the 2008 inductee into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America won four all-star races at Rockingham, N.C., and, in 1999, earned the biggest single prize in drag racing history when he took home $210,000 for winning the inaugural Winston Showdown, an event in which Funny Cars raced against Top Fuel dragsters.

Not only has the 15-time series champion won more big money races ($100,000 or more to win) than anyone else (six), his earnings in 40 such events exceed $1 million ($1,160,500).

“We’ve got a good hot rod,” Force said.  “We’ve only had this car four races so it’s taken a little time to work things out.  I’m excited about the Traxxas Shootout.  I think we can play but we’ve got a bad hombre in the first round with Cruz Pedregon.  Bottom line, everybody’s tough.  We’ll just go out and do what we do.”

While Force has won a record 39 rounds in NHRA bonus race competition, his youngest daughters, Courtney and Brittany, will be trying this week to win their first rounds; Courtney in her second Traxxas start and Brittany in her first after winning the fan vote and lottery in Top Fuel.

“This is very cool, and I’m so excited,” Brittany said after one of her 49 lottery balls emerged from the machine during Wednesday’s Top Fuel drawing.  “I remember watching my dad race in all the Shootouts growing up and to follow in his footsteps and get a chance to compete in the Traxxas Nitro Shootout, it’s awesome. This is an unbelievable feeling.”

The 27-year-old Top Fuel rookie will send her Castrol EDGE dragster against the season’s dominant car and driver in the first round when she lines up against points leader Shawn Langdon and the Al-Anabi dragster.