LAS VEGAS, NV – Courtney Force, one of the top female athletes in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, will travel to Las Vegas this weekend with hopes of adding another victory to her list of accomplishments at the 13th annual NHRA Toyota Nationals, Oct. 24-27 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

“Our Traxxas team has had some pretty good luck in Vegas in the past so I’m hoping  we can get out there, have a consistent car all weekend and get qualified in the top half of the field,” said Force. “It’s always exciting coming out to The Strip at Las Vegas because the energy of the town and the fans is unbelievable. Our teams have had pretty good luck here in the past so were hoping to continue that in such a crucial point in the Countdown. This is such a great facility so our teams always look forward to coming here,” said Force.

Continue reading →

LAS VEGAS, NV – Whether or not she wins the Auto Club’s Road to the Future Award as this year’s Rookie-of-the-Year in the Mello Yello Series, Brittany Force’s sense of accomplishment will be no less pronounced than that of sisters Ashley and Courtney after their first seasons.

In fact, entering this week’s 13th annual Toyota Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, one could make a case for the 27-year-old would-be schoolteacher having done more in her debut year than either of her siblings, both of whom went on to claim NHRA rookie honors.

Granted, she hasn’t won a race like Courtney did last year in the Traxxas Ford Mustang and she hasn’t been to a final round like Ashley when she became the first woman in Funny Car history to reach that plateau at this very race in 2007.

Continue reading →

LAS VEGAS, NV – This weekend Courtney Force will race a Rookie of the Year themed Traxxas Ford Mustang specialty car aimed to reflect her Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award in 2012. Force designed the black and turquoise Funny Car herself. The hot rod features a collage of photos of the racing sensation as she grew up in the first family of NHRA drag racing.

“This car represents my past and hopefully my future in racing. It represents the growth of me as a driver and our team and the foundation of it all. It shows where my passion for racing really began. Winning the Auto Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award for Rookie of the Year is a big deal to me and I just want this car to show how thankful I am for the support of my family, my team, my sponsors and of course the fans who helped get me to where I am today,” said Force.

Continue reading →

YORBA LINDA, CA – Rookie Top Fuel driver Brittany Force did not spent her first Saturday off in over a month at the movies or the mall but rather rolling up her sleeves and getting her hands dirty finishing two backyards and a front yard for deserving Habitat For Humanity families in Santa Ana, California. The Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award contender organized a group that included John Force Racing teammates, representatives from sponsor System 51 and a few friends to lay sod and finish the landscaping on two homes.

“We met with Habitat for Humanity in June or July and it has taken a while to get a free weekend to come out and get involved. It was so much fun to work with my teammates and some of our sponsors helping some great families. Giving back to the community is something I would be doing even if I wasn’t a professional driver,” said Force after a long day.

Continue reading →

READING, PA – For the 28th time in his legendary career John Force has won back to back races taking the title at the 29th annual Auto Plus NHRA Nationals today at Maple Grove Raceway. Force outran rookie driver and former John Force Racing crewman Chad Head in the final 4.106 seconds to 10.002 seconds. Winning from the No. 1 qualifier position for the first time since at the 2004 Auto Club NHRA Finals, Force gave credit to not just his Castrol GTX crew chiefs but the entire John Force Racing team of crew chiefs and crewmen.

“This is a good race car. (Crew chiefs) Jimmy Prock and Danny DeGennaro have things really going. Robert (Hight) told me that this was a great team when I came over here. What is most exciting is the team work,” said Force. “The other crew chiefs are all trying to win but they are also helping us when we are headed to the semi-finals or the finals. They were up on the starting line rooting for me and you could see the sincerity. Back at the trailer the crew chiefs are going over the computers and Robert is showing me the videos so I can see anything that can help me on staging.”

Continue reading →

Reading, PA – The qualifying efforts by John Force and his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang team this weekend brought a well-deserved No. 1 qualifier recognition to the John Force Racing stable when Force ran a career-best at 3.987 on Friday evening.

This was the first three-second run for John Force Racing as a whole, and with that excitement came the delight of putting a front loading washer and dryer set in the hands of lucky fan Jason Blough of Lincoln University, Pa. at the 29th annual Auto Plus NHRA Nationals, compliments of BrandSource and the “Win with Force” promotion.

“Getting that three second run is important for the sponsors like Ford, Castrol BrandSource, and Auto Club. It means we can race with anyone. The cool air has given championships and it has taken away championships. We know in the last three or four races we are right there with everyone. We can run in the heat. Friday we ran pretty decent. Last year they shattered the record. You get caught up in trying to run national records and you will beat yourself. We are going to come out here again and just try to run smart in the conditions that we get. Then we are going to try and win on Sunday,” said Force.

Continue reading →

READING, PA –  The trio of John Force Racing Ford Mustangs held onto their top qualifying spots at the 29th annual Auto Plus NHRA Nationals as qualifying concluded today. Led by 6-time winner at Maple Grove Raceway John Force who moved into the Mello Yello points lead with his No. 1 qualifying effort. The No. 1 spot was an NHRA record 144th top spot and his eighth No. 1 at Maple Grove Raceway. Force has three of his six wins from the No. 1 position at the Auto Plus NHRA Nationals.

Force picked up three more qualifying points today running 4.036 seconds in the final qualifying session in his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang.

“It got a little warmer today so that 4.03 was kind of a surprise. Jimmy Prock will swing for the fences on you. My guys are really working together. They are watching everything including the points. I don’t want to watch that stuff. I’ll look at it at the end of the season when it is all over. I have a good race car right now. It is great to see the fans in the stands,” said the 136-time winner. “Getting to hear them cheer like that is pretty exciting it has been a while. I think I lost my focus in racing. I have always loved this sport. It is what I do. Sure running good makes you feel good when you can compete. I struggled as a driver earlier this year. My guys stayed by me and I got that new car and I couldn’t get comfortable in it.”

Continue reading →

READING, PA – John Force became the seventh driver to break the 4.00 second barrier today at Maple Grove Raceway. The 15-time NHRA Funny Car champion grabbed the provisional No. 1 qualifier spot with a near record run of 3.987 seconds at 323. 50 mph. It was the fifth quickest elapsed time in NHRA history. Two of the five quickest times have been posted at Maple Grove Raceway. Quickest previous time for a JFR Ford was 4.005 seconds by Robert Hight in the Auto Club Ford on Oct. 12, 2008 at Richmond, Va. Force’s previous quickest time was 4.010 second from this June’s race in Joliet, Illinois.

“I joked we are a little late because Schumacher’s cars ran that here last year but you look at the points for the championship. You don’t want them to get a national record. You want to gobble up the points. We’ll see what the weather is tomorrow. For today we feel really good about it,” said Force in the Maple Grove media center. “I want to clarify Jimmy Prock runs my car with Danny DeGennaro. They work as a team with Mike Neff and Ron Douglas and Dean Antonelli and John Medlen from the dragster. We all work together. Neff’s car ran 4.07 with Robert Hight and the Auto Club. It is a team effort. Jimmy Prock is throwing hard balls. I am pretty excited.”

Continue reading →

AT COUNTDOWN MIDPOINT HIGHT POISED FOR RUN TO CHAMPIONSHIP

READING, PA – Robert Hight and the Auto Club Ford Mustang team entered the Countdown to the Championship in 9^th place but with the momentum of a win at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis. They made huge strides in Charlotte winning again and jumping to 3^rd in the Mello Yello point standings. The past two races only one thing has stood between the 2009 Funny Car champion and four consecutive finals. John Force.

Hight and the 15-time Funny Car champion have met the past two races in the semi-final round with Force getting wins and advancing to the final. The winningest driver in NHRA history has a runner-up (Dallas) and a win (St. Louis) to show for his efforts and with three races to go Hight who now sits on 4^th place knows he has a great car and some stiff competition.

“We won Charlotte and the past two races we have run up against John Force in the semi-finals. We are qualifying great and running really well on race day. No one in the Auto Club pits is hanging their head. We are doing what we need to do. Every race we have made up points on Matt Hagan so we are focused on that,” said Hight.

Continue reading →