Team Force hits the Winter Nationals for a fresh start in 2017

Published February 10, 2017

Monster Energy driver Brittany Force ready to begin 2017 title chase in Pomona

POMONA, CA – Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster driver Brittany Force had a breakout season in 2016. But she hopes to scale even bigger heights for the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season, which starts with the Circle K NHRA Winternationals this weekend at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

“People have asked me about the championship the last few years, and it was hard for me to answer because we hadn’t gotten our first win yet,” Force said. “For me, I wanted to focus on getting that first win, and then you wrap your head around the next step, which is winning more races and building up to that championship. Now that we’ve gotten that first win off our back, I know we can do it.

“We had three wins last year and had our best season yet, but we’re going harder this year. We want more this year: We want more wins and ultimately that championship.”

Force scored her first career Top Fuel win at Gainesville, Fla., last March and followed up with victories at the first Charlotte race and at Brainerd, Minn. She led the points standings for four weeks before finishing a career-best sixth in the final Top Fuel standings.

Force’s Monster Energy team remained mostly intact, with crew chief Brian Husen and tuning consultant Alan Johnson returning to lead Force in to 2017. Force and her team tested at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park last week, posting several quick runs and showing consistency needed for championship-contending teams.

“I’m definitely pumped for the season,” Force said “It’s been a long off-season. It felt good to go out at test on Phoenix. We definitely needed to be out there testing – I needed it just because I was out of the seat for so long. It felt good to get back in there, but now I’m ready for some competition. I’m ready for the season to start, ready for some wins and to go after that championship.”

Force has mysteriously struggled at the Winternationals, as she’s looking for her first round win here. She’s done better at the second Pomona race and still enjoys racing at the famed track.

“I love running at Pomona,” Force said. “It’s my home track, and I grew up there watching my dad and then I ran Super Comp and A/Fuel. Now, I’m out here for my fifth season driving a Top Fuel car. More than anything, I want to bring a win home from there. My friends and family always come out to watch, so to be able to win the first race of the season would be awesome and set us up for the year. We’re ready to get to Pomona and throw down.”

The season-opening and 58th annual Circle K Winternationals at Auto Club Speedway begins Friday, with the first two rounds of qualifications. Qualifying continues Saturday, while elimination rounds take place Sunday. . FOX will televise three hours of live eliminations coverage at 1 p.m. Pacific.

Auto Club of Southern California driver Robert Hight ready for resurgence in 2017

– Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car driver Robert Hight has had a stellar career, winning the 2009 championship and piling up 37 victories along the way.

But Hight is ready for a fresh start for the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series – which begins with the Circle K NHRA Winternationals this weekend at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona – after a un-Hight-like 2016 that saw him win once race and finish eighth in the points standings.

“Cannot wait to get going again,” Hight said. “2016 wasn’t my best year, and this Auto Club team needs to go out and redeem themselves. We’re a better team than No. 8 – which is what’s on the side of our car. We have a lot to prove this year.

“We have a great team: Jon Schaffer and Jason McCullough over here helping Mike Neff, and we’ve got some new guys who are gung-ho. The attitudes are just unbelievable. Everybody together so well in testing, and it was just so much fun to be with a team like this. When we start running well and winning races, it’s only going to get better. We can go win Pomona. We’ve done it several times, and I believe we’ve got the car to do it.”

Hight has four victories at Pomona, including three in the season-opening race. Hight lives and works in Southern California in nearby Yorba Linda.

“Pomona is probably one of my favorite races,” Hight said. “Everything is new. You get to go out there and see everybody’s new paint jobs. A lot of fans come out to see what everyone has new for the year. It’s just exciting, and everybody can’t wait to get going. It’s been too long of a winter, and this time of the year, we’ve got good weather. You know Pomona is fast, and you can go out there and set records.

“For me, it’s special because it’s Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. We’re going to show off for our sponsors. We’ve got a new program with Auto Club that all the fans need to come out and see at the midway. Joey Logano and I did some filming, and it’s going to be a lot of fun. The fans are going to be in for quite a treat.”

Hight has won at least two races per season in 11 of the 12 years he’s driven the Auto Club Funny Car. He begins 2017 with co-crew chiefs Schaffer and McCollough joining crew chief Neff.

“I cannot wait for Sunday morning of the Winternationals,” Hight said. “It’s race day – it’s finally here. Everybody starts with the same points, and with any luck, you win that race and you’re the new points leader. That’s the goal.”

The season-opening and 58th annual Circle K Winternationals at Auto Club Speedway begins Friday, with the first two rounds of qualifications. Qualifying continues Saturday, while elimination rounds take place Sunday. FOX will televise three hours of live eliminations coverage at 1 p.m. Pacific.

Courtney Force seeks initial title as 2017 begins for Advance Auto Parts Funny Car driver

– Courtney Force put her fellow NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Funny Car competitors on notice last week that she intends to be a solid contender in this year’s championship fight.

Force heads into this weekend’s season-opener, the Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Speedway at Pomona, with a wave of momentum. She posted the top three fastest times during the Nitro Spring Training test last weekend at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix. During the test, she clocked a time of 3.804 seconds in her Advance Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro SS, unofficially the quickest elapsed time in history.

That should serve as a warning to others that Force is prepared to improve on last year’s sixth-place result in the points standings. Much of her team from last year – including crew chief Daniel Hood and co-crew chief Ronnie Thompson – returns intact, which Force said is important to challenging for victories and the title.

“Based on what we’ve seen at Phoenix during the test, and coming off last season, I think that we’ve definitely got into a pretty good rhythm, and now we’re looking to challenge in 2017,” Force said. “We’re obviously gunning for that championship, just like everybody else out here, and I think I’ve got a great team and a great race car that’s ready to go after it.”

Force has already shown well in five previous Winternationals. She won the 2013 event from the No. 1 qualifying spot – the only time she has reached the finals in this race – and has qualified No. 1 twice.

“We’ve won the Winternationals before, so we’re hoping to go out and do it again,” Force said. “Obviously, we want to start the season off strong, and impress our new sponsor, Advance Auto Parts. I think we have a great race car, one that is capable of winning. We’ll see how we do at Pomona, but looking forward to the whole 2017 season.”

PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil driver John Force seeks 17th title as NHRA season opens at Pomona

POMONA, CA – Sixteen-time NHRA Mello Yello Funny Car champion Johrce will mount his assault on an unprecedented 17th title when the series opens up the 2017 campaign this weekend with the Circle K Winternationals at Auto Club Speedway in Pomona.

Driving the PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS, the all-time leader in NHRA Funny Car victories (147) seeks a strong start to 2017 after a busy offseason. Force reunited with longtime crew chief Jimmy Prock in January and also obtained the services of co-crew chief Chris Cunningham. With Prock, Force won the 2013 championship.

The partnership has already proven worthy. Force was fourth-quickest during last week’s Nitro Spring Training at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix. The test should prove to be a springboard to a successful season.

Force is a 16-time winner at Pomona, a track just 20 miles from his team’s headquarters in Yorba Linda. Of those 16 victories, seven have come in the Winternationals

“It sets the pace for the season, the mood of the season,” Force said. “We’ll get after it. We’ll take what we learned from the test, make some adjustments, and go to Pomona.”

And like his previous 34 fulltime seasons, Force’s mind is on another title run. The last of his Funny Car championships came in 2013, with Prock leading the crew.

“That’s the dream; that’s what you go to bed (thinking about) every night,” Force said. “But I know my daughter Courtney’s looking at that, as is Robert Hight, and so are 20 others out here. But if you didn’t have the dream to win, you wouldn’t chase it. Every kid out here believes they can just get on a roll and make it happen. I’m going after 17; I don’t want to stop on sweet 16.”

The season-opening and 58th annual Circle K Winternationals at Auto Club Speedway begins Friday, with the first two rounds of qualifications. Qualifying continues Saturday, while elimination rounds take place Sunday. FOX will televise three hours of live eliminations coverage at 1 p.m. Pacific.

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