FORCE SALUTES CAPPS AND HIGHT
"I'm going to get emotional here," Force, at the time one round-win away from clinching his unprecedented 14th series title, said. "You know how much I love [Ron] Capps and how much I lover Robert [Hight]. Then he referred to those two drivers' last-ditch efforts to knock him aside to claim a first championship: "You've got to throw a Hail Mary. But I've seen Hail Marys before, so I'm going to keep my mouth shut."
Following his Round 1 victory over Jim Head in the Castrol GTX Ford Mustang,
John Force couldn't help but talk about his chief rivals in this championship
hunt.
"I'm going to get emotional here," Force, at the time one round-win
away from clinching his unprecedented 14th series title, said. "You know how
much I love [Ron] Capps and how much I lover Robert [Hight]. Then he referred to
those two drivers' last-ditch efforts to knock him aside to claim a first
championship: "You've got to throw a Hail Mary. But I've seen Hail Marys before,
so I'm going to keep my mouth shut."
In addressing the crowd near the
starting line in a special ceremony after Capps' Hail Mary failed, Force said,
"You can win a lot of championships and give credit to your [team and sponsors].
What's really amazing -- maybe I'm getting old and emotional -- the fans are the
one who give you heart."
But once again, he gave kudos to Capps, who
joined him in a losing battle last year against Gary Scelzi.
"The kid
that's fought me for years, made me sweat, is Ron Capps," Force said. "In my
heart, Ron Capps, you're the champion. Heart makes you young. In our heart, it's
about beating the competition. I really mean it from my heart. Ron Capps and
Robert Hight, they're champions. That's how I feel."