Point Leader, Series Champ Prock Starts from No. 2 in Cornwell Chevy

RICHMOND, VA – Beset by memories of Virginia Motorsports Park, the track on which her dad was seriously injured last year after crashing his Funny Car at 300 miles per hour, two-time Top Fuel World Champion Brittany Force had something more positive on which to focus Saturday after driving her Chevrolet Accessories dragster to the No. 1 qualifying position for Sunday’s 15th NHRA Virginia Nationals.

The 18-time pro tour winner shared center stage with John Force Racing teammate “Fast Jack” Beckman who, driving the latest version of Force’s PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet SS, raced to the top of the order in Funny Car as the only driver able to break four seconds. He’ll start Sunday one position ahead of teammate, reigning series champ and point leader Austin Prock.

It’s the 18th time JFR Funny Car and Top Fuel drivers have qualified No. 1 at the same NHRA event, the second time they’ve done so this season (after Force and Prock were No. 1 at the Lucas Oil Winternationals in Pomona, Calif.)

A winner two races ago at Epping, N.H., Brittany opened Saturday with a solid 3.893 before dipping to 3.839 at 327.98 miles per hour, a performance that secured the 54th No. 1 of her career. She’ll roll to the starting line Sunday against point leader Tony Stewart knowing that the only other time she qualified No. 1 at this event, she finished in the same position. Continue reading →

RICHMOND, VA – If Hollywood was writing the script for this week’s Mission Foods Series drag race at Virginia Motorsports Park, “Fast Jack” Beckman would qualify the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet SS No. 1 on Saturday and set a track record before powering his way to victory in Sunday’s 15th NHRA Virginia Nationals.

It’s a scenario that likely would be very popular at a venue at which Hall of Famer John Force won four times (1995, 1996, 1999, 2000) before he was seriously injured in the 300 mile per hour crash of the 2024 version of the PEAK Chevy during last year’s opening round.

Unfortunately for Force fans, though, Hollywood isn’t involved in the process, which means that such a storybook ending falls solely on the shoulders of Beckman, the 2012 World Champion, and a PEAK Squad led by crew chiefs Daniel Hood, Chris Cunningham and Tim Fabrisi.

“Since this was the site of John’s big accident last year, (we) would like nothing more than to stand with him in the winners’ circle on Sunday,” Beckman said of Force, who has battled back from a TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) to manage the team he founded more than 50 years ago. Continue reading →

RICHMOND, VA – Although he’s lost in the opening round every time he has qualified the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS No. 1 this season, don’t expect Funny Car World Champion Austin Prock to turn timid when he defends his title this week in the 15th NHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park.

“I’m really eager to get back to the track and hop back in my race car after a weekend off,” said the current Mission Foods point leader. “We had a great Cornwell Tools Chevrolet last year and it was an emotional win (coming on the day on which teammate and mentor John Force was injured in a high-speed crash), so we’re looking to (successfully) defend our title.

“We’ve got a little bit of a chip on our shoulder after the last two weekends (both resulting in first round exits),” admitted the world’s fastest race car driver (at 341.68 miles per hour, the NHRA national record he set last fall at Pomona, Calif.), “but I believe we’re going to bounce back and prove why we’re the points leader. It would be huge for our team.”

Last year, in a season in which the 29-year-old broke Force’s single season record by qualifying the Cornwell Chevy at the top of the order in 15 of 20 events, Richmond was one of two races he won from a starting position other than No. 1 (No. 3). Continue reading →

RICHMOND, VA – When she left last year’s NHRA Virginia Nationals after a second-round loss to Tony Stewart, two-time Top Fuel World Champion Brittany Force wasn’t sure if or when she would race again in the wake of the 300 mile per hour crash that sent her dad to VCU Medical Center with a Traumatic Brain Injury.

Nevertheless, 12 months later, the 38-year-old is back at Virginia Motorsports Park at the wheel of her Chevrolet Accessories dragster and John Force is back, too, as the manager of the team he founded more than half a century ago.

“After a devastating departure from Richmond last season, I’m eager to leave something good behind this time around,” Brittany said of her return to a venue at which three years ago she set track records for both time (3.654 seconds) and speed (335.82 mph) enroute to the winners’ circle.

“Although emotions were running high, our team had a solid outing last year,” she recounted, “winning our first (Mission Foods) 2Fast2Tasty challenge on Saturday and making a second-round appearance on Sunday.” Continue reading →

Funny Cars Out in Round One, Monster Energy Dragster in Round Two

BRISTOL, TN – Qualifying promise morphed into race day disappointment Sunday for all three John Force Racing drivers competing in the 23rd NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

The only one able to advance beyond round one was two-time Top Fuel World Champion Brittany Force who, after struggling during qualifying, flashed the form that carried her to the winners’ circle last week at Epping, N.H., in a first round victory over former European Top Fuel Champ Ida Zetterstrom.

Her 3.811 second, 330.39 mile per hour charge in the Monster Energy Chevrolet was the second quickest time of the opening round and her quickest of the weekend, but it just wasn’t quite good enough to earn her the choice of lanes in round two against Justin Ashley, whose first round 3.783 turned out to be the quickest of the race.

Against Ashley, the Monster lost traction near the first of the “tunnel bumps” at Bristol, about 330 feet down track, slowing the 18-time tour winner to 4.925 seconds at only 160.40 mph and sending her into the next race in the Mission Series, the two-day NHRA Virginia Nationals, in sixth place in points. Continue reading →

Cornwell Tools Chevy Starts from No. 1 Qualifying Position

BRISTOL, TN– On a track on which he was virtually untouchable a year ago, Funny Car point leader Austin Prock took the first step toward a repeat performance Saturday when he drove the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS to the No. 1 qualifying position for Sunday’s 23rd NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

On a day when the NHRA Safety Safari’s track drying equipment once again got almost as much track time as the race cars, the 29-year-old Prock took advantage of breaks in the weather to coax his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS to the two quickest times of the day at 3.931 and 3.958 seconds, the latter coupled to a best of the event speed of 329.10 miles per hour.

“We had all four seasons here today,” Prock said. “The weather changed every five minutes. It’s tricky, but I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

His Saturday numbers will send the reigning series champion into Sunday’s eliminations as the No. 1 qualifier for the second straight year at Bristol Dragway, for the third time this season and for the 18th time in 28 Funny Car races since sliding into the seat formerly occupied by three-time World Champion Robert Hight. Continue reading →

JFR Funny Cars 2-3 in Provisional Qualifying Order; Brittany Fifth

BRISTOL, TN – Poised to run side-by-side for the provisional No. 1 qualifying position Friday evening at Bristol Dragway, Jack Beckman and Austin Prock were foiled by heavy rain that brought a premature end to first day preliminaries at the 23rd NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

Unable to make the second of their two Friday runs, the John Force Racing teammates wound up third and fourth in the first day order based on times posted in Q1.

“It’s a bummer we didn’t get to make a run in the second session,” Beckman said. “Austin and I were the quickest two Funny Cars in session one which dictates that we run at the back of the pack for the second session. Because of delays and weather, we’re the only two Funny Cars that didn’t get to make a second run.

“However, the silver lining is we know that we’re solidly qualified and we’ll have lane choice for the first round of the Mission Challenge tomorrow.” Continue reading →

BRISTOL, TN – The PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet SS in which Jack Beckman won twice this season, the car in which he had qualified No. 1 two times in seven races, the one that had propelled him to second place in the Mission Foods driver standings and proven itself to be the most consistent in the category won’t be available to him for this week’s 23rd NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

Badly damaged in an impact with the guard wall during the semifinal round of last week’s NHRA New England Nationals at Epping, N.H., that particular Chevy is in for repair but, according to the 2012 Funny Car World Champion, that’s not a cause for concern.

“The wrecked car has already been placed on the chassis jig (at the John Force Racing shop facility in Brownsburg, Ind.) for repairs,” Beckman said, “and the team loaded up another near-complete car to serve as a backup (this week). We will unload last year’s Finals-winning chassis for Bristol (and) I fully expect us to be quick right out of the trailer and one of the cars to beat on Sunday.” Continue reading →

BRISTOL, TN – One might not think Austin Prock would have nothing to prove this week in his return to Bristol Dragway, the track on which last year he qualified his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS No. 1, was quickest in every round of eliminations and posted top speed of the meet enroute to the winners’ circle.

However, one would be wrong.

After an early exit last week at Epping, N.H., the result of an almost immediate loss of traction when he hit the throttle on the 341.68 mile per hour Chevy in the opening round, the reigning series champion is coming in with a bit of a chip on his shoulder.

“Coming off a rough Sunday in Epping we’re looking to rebound,” said the Funny Car point leader. “We don’t blow the tires off at the hit (like we did). I can’t tell you the last time it did that. I got it to recover, but it just wasn’t enough. We had a great car, and we screwed it up.” Continue reading →

BRISTOL, TN – Riding a wave of momentum from a dominating victory in last week’s New England Nationals at Epping, N.H., two-time Top Fuel World Champion Brittany Force now turns her attention to a venue she loves but a race that has not loved her back – at least not yet.

In 11 appearances in the Super Grip Thunder Valley Nationals, contested this week for the 23rd time at Bristol Dragway, the 38-year-old Force has advanced no further than the semifinals in a Monster Energy dragster in which she set the current NHRA national records for time (3.623 seconds) and speed (341.59 miles per hour) while becoming the first Top Fuel driver to break the 340-mph barrier.

“Bristol is truly one of my favorite tracks,” proclaimed the second youngest of Hall of Fame driver and team owner John Force’s daughters. “The facility is beautiful and there is no racetrack like it.”

Nevertheless, while she owns elapsed time and/or speed records at 11 of the 17 tracks that host events in the NHRA’s Mission Foods Series, Bristol Dragway isn’t among them. Furthermore, while she has started 53 tour events from the No. 1 qualifying position, her only No. 1 start at “Thunder Valley” came in just her second year on the pro tour (2014). Continue reading →