Camping World
TORRENCE, HIGHT, ENDERS AND M. SMITH CLAIM KEY PLAYOFF WINS AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
ST. LOUIS – Four-time defending Top Fuel world champion Steve Torrence is back in the title hunt, powering to his second straight win at 
World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday at the 11th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals.
Robert Hight (Funny Car), Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also picked up wins at the 19th event in the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season and the third of six races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.
Torrence put together a run of 3.741-seconds at 328.70 mph in the final round in his 11,000-horsepower Capco Contractors dragster, slipping past Josh Hart, who went 3.749 at 329.67. Torrence, who also knocked off Buddy Hull, Clay Millican and Doug Kalitta to reach the final round, picked up his second win this season and 53rd in his career, jumping three spots in the standings to move into second in the title chase. He trails Justin Ashley by just 14 points with three races remaining as the Texan seeks his fifth straight world title in Top Fuel.
Torrence also won for the fourth time in St. Louis, posting an excellent reaction time of .027 in the finals and hanging on for the victory.
“We’ve struggled all year, some of it self-inflicted, but this was a great weekend for us,” Torrence said. “We’re glad to be back in this Countdown to the Championship and it’s been a heck of a year. To come here and have success, it’s nothing short of a blessing. I tried to screw it up a couple times today and my guys saved me, and I was able to step up in the final round.
HIGHT, TORRENCE, KORETSKY AND M. SMITH QUALIFY NO. 1 IN FRONT OF SELLOUT CROWD AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
ST. LOUIS – On the strength of the fastest Funny Car run since 2019, points leader Robert Hight held on to the No. 1 qualifiying position in 
front of a sellout crowd on Saturday at World Wide Technology Raceway during the 11th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals.
Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Kyle Koretsky (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all qualified No. 1 at the third of six races in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship.
The NHRA and officials at World Wide Technology Raceway also announced a sellout crowd during Saturday’s racing action, as the passionate fanbase packed the track to close out qualifying in St. Louis. It is the seventh sellout crowd for the NHRA this season.
“Once again, our race fans in St. Louis and the Metro East delivered,” said Chris Blair, World Wide Technology Raceway’s Executive Vice President and General Manager.
TORRENCE, HIGHT, KORETSKY AND M. SMITH TAKE PROVISIONAL NO. 1 SPOTS AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
ST. LOUIS – Four-time defending Top Fuel world champion Steve Torrence made his best run of the season on Friday at World Wide 
Technology Raceway, taking the provisional No. 1 qualifier to open the race weekend at the 11th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals.
Robert Hight (Funny Car), Kyle Koretsky (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) are also provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the third of six races in the Countdown to the Championship during the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.
Torrence powered to a run of 3.655-seconds at 327.43 in his 11,000-horsepower Capco Contractors dragster during the first qualifying session in St. Louis, looking to make up some ground in a hurry. If it holds, Torrence, who is currently fifth in Top Fuel points, would pick up his third top qualifier of the season and 34th in his career. Torrence, though, is trying to rack up victories in the Countdown to the Championship after falling in the second round at the first two playoff races. He’s had recent success in St. Louis as the defending event winner and will hope to add to that this weekend.
“That’s a year’s work that goes into a run like that,” Torrence said. “These guys have worked really hard to get the car where it’s at. We’re behind the eight-ball right now, but we’re going to do everything we can. We didn’t get to be the four-time champs by doing dumb stuff, but we have backed ourselves into a corner.
PRO STOCK’S AARON STANFIELD ONLY FOCUSED ON WINS HEADING TO NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
ST. LOUIS – With a victory last weekend, Aaron Stanfield jumped right back in the championship mix, but the rising star in Pro Stock said the chase for an NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series world title in the class won’t be his main focus heading to this weekend’s NHRA Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway.
Stanfield moved back to second in points heading to the halfway point of the Countdown to the Championship playoffs and now trails Elite Motorsports teammate Erica Enders by just 64 points with four races remaining this year. But the three-time race winner in 2022 insists counting points won’t be on his radar going to St. Louis.
It’s an approach that has never served him well before and it’s a mindset he’ll be sure to avoid even as the title talk heats up at World Wide Technology Raceway. Instead, he’s focused on another win in his Janac Brothers Chevrolet Camaro, knowing full well that another standout playoff performance will keep him in a great position.
FUNNY CAR FAN-FAVORITE TIM WILKERSON LOOKS TO SHINE IN FRONT OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS AT NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
ST. LOUIS – Tim Wilkerson remains right in the thick of things in the Countdown to the Championship, already advancing to one final round in the NHRA Camping World Series’ six-race playoffs. Now the veteran has a chance to put on a show at his home track in front of plenty of family and friends at this weekend’s NHRA Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway.
A proverbial thorn in the side of the bigger teams in the loaded Funny Car ranks, Wilkerson continues to perform at a high level in his 11,000-horsepower Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang. He’s currently eighth in points and is just 58 points out of fifth heading towards what will be a busy weekend for the fan-favorite driver.
The guest list among family, friends and sponsors is well past several hundred and growing by the day, as Wilkerson will aim for a big weekend at the halfway point in the Countdown to the Championship.
BROWN, CAPPS AND STANFIELD GET PLAYOFF WINS AT BETWAY NHRA CAROLINA NATIONALS
CONCORD, NC – Three-time world champion Antron Brown picked up his first playoff win in six years on Sunday at zMAX Dragway, 
driving to the Top Fuel victory at the 14th annual Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals.
Ron Capps (Funny Car) and Aaron Stanfield (Pro Stock) also picked up wins at the second of six races in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship.
Brown put together a run of 3.672-seconds at 335.73 mph in his 11,000-horsepower Matco Tools dragster, slipping past points leader Justin Ashley on a holeshot in a thrilling final round to win his first race in the Countdown to the Championship since 2016. It is Brown’s third victory in the past five races and the 71st in his career, as the first-year team owner also moved to second in the points standings with four races left in 2022. To reach the finals, Brown beat three standout competitors, including Reading winner Austin Prock, Brittany Force and Clay Millican. He followed with a .035 reaction time in the final round, which was enough to allow him to beat Ashley’s quicker 3.671 at 333.99.
J. FORCE, KALITTA AND ENDERS GRAB PROVISIONAL NO. 1 SPOTS AT BETWAY NHRA CAROLINA NATIONALS
CONCORD, NC – Looking to sweep both races at zMAX Dragway this season, legendary Funny Car driver John Force rolled to the 
provisional No. 1 position on Friday in Charlotte at the 14th annual Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals.
Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel) and Erica Enders (Pro Stock) are also provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the second of six races in the Countdown to the Championship during the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.
Force, who has won the four-wide race at the track the past two years, just missed the track record at the second race in the playoffs, going 3.854-seconds at 330.47 mph in his 11,000-horsepower PEAK Chevrolet Camaro SS. If it holds it would be the 16-time world champion’s second No. 1 qualifier this year and 165th in his career. Force has forged an impressive rhythm at the state-of-the-art facility in recent years and is trying to make a move in the points standings as well. He’s currently fourth in points and is looking to make a big push this weekend.
“It’s a great track to run numbers like this, but there’s a stack of them right behind me that can do the same, and we’re going to have conditions like this tomorrow,” Force said. “We’ve got a good team and it’s coming around, (but) we’ve got a lot of work to do. They were all there tomorrow, but at least we got to shine for one night. Our team had a great weekend last weekend with Robert (Hight) and Austin (Prock) both winning, and we’re back in the fight in the Countdown.”
PRO STOCK STANDOUTS BO BUTNER AND CAMRIE CARUSO LOOKING TO MAKE BIG MOVES AT BETWAY NHRA CAROLINA NATIONALS
CONCORD, NC – With five races left in the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, Bo Butner knows he has ground to make up starting at this weekend’s Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway. But coming off his first No. 1 qualifier in three seasons, the former Pro Stock world champ feels like he’s in a strong position to make a big move this weekend in Charlotte.
He moved up to ninth in the points standings after a positive result at the Countdown to the Championship opener at Maple Grove Raceway, but he’s after an even bigger weekend in Charlotte in his Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Chevrolet Camaro. The potential is there and Butner, who is also after his first victory at zMAX Dragway in the Pro Stock ranks, believe his team is on the verge of breaking through.
“I’m really looking forward to this weekend. I like going to one race right after the other, especially right now, when the JHG Chevy Camaro is picking up,” Butner said. “It’s a great time of year for it; this is the second race of the Countdown, and after getting that No. 1 qualifier last weekend, we know we have a car that can win. We’ve waited all year to have this feeling, and it’s great to have it going into Charlotte.”
DEFENDING TOP FUEL EVENT WINNER JOSH HART LOOKS TO JUMP IN TITLE HUNT AT BETWAY NHRA CAROLINA NATIONALS
CONCORD, NC – A year ago, Josh Hart played the spoiler role perfectly in his fall visit to zMAX Dragway during his rookie season, beating a trio of Top Fuel title contenders en route to second career NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series victory. Now in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs for the first time, Hart hopes a second straight victory at the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals can put him in the thick of the championship conversation.
Hart’s playoff debut in his 11,000-horsepower R+L Carriers dragster didn’t go as planned last weekend at Maple Grove Raceway, with the rising star falling in the opening round. That dropped Hart to seventh in points, but this weekend represents a perfect bounce-back weekend, especially considering his zMAX Dragway resumé.
Last year, Hart beat the likes of Mike Salinas and points leader Justin Ashley en route to the final round, and then got past former world champ Brittany Force, who had been the points leader in the class for the bulk of the 2022 season, to collect a second win in his storybook rookie season. Hart just missed out on qualifying for the Countdown to the Championship last year, but he’s been determined to make the most of his first postseason appearance this season.
PROCK, HIGHT, ENDERS AND GLADSTONE OPEN PLAYOFFS WITH WINS IN FRONT OF CAPACITY CROWD AT PEP BOYS NHRA NATIONALS
READING, PA – It was a dominant start for John Force Racing to open the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, as Top Fuel’s Austin 
Prock and Funny Car points leader Robert Hight powered to wins on Sunday in front of a capacity crowd at Maple Grove Raceway at the 37th annual Pep Boys NHRA Nationals.
Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Joey Gladstone (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also picked up wins at the first of six races in the Countdown to the Championship during the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.
Opening the postseason from the 12th position, Prock drove to his second career win and first of the season with his run of 3.755-seconds at 329.67 mph in his 11,000-horsepower Montana Brands/Rocky Mountain Twist dragster in the final round against points leader Justin Ashley. Prock also jumped six spots in the standings with five races remaining in 2022. His day started with round wins against Doug Foley, Steve Torrence, and Indy winner Antron Brown, outdueling Brown on a spectacular pedalfest in the semifinals. From there, he won a thrilling side-by-side race with Ashley to finish off a monumental weekend.
