Five events collectively don’t add up to 20 percent of the National Hot Rod Association's Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season. But that's how many Auto Club Funny Car driver Robert Hight won.

That was more than anyone else in his class won, yet he finished fifth in the final standings. So as he prepares for the 2015 season, the President of John Force Racing understands just how difficult it is to earn a championship.

Robert HightFive events collectively don’t add up to 20 percent of the National Hot Rod Association's Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season. But that's how many Auto Club Funny Car driver Robert Hight won.

That was more than anyone else in his class won, yet he finished fifth in the final standings. So as he prepares for the 2015 season, the President of John Force Racing understands just how difficult it is to earn a championship.

He already knows the complexities of helping procure marketing partners, which right now is a key task for him at JFR. But the troubles aren't behind him once he slips into his race car. He has just as many hurdles on the track.

"It's not getting any easier, I can tell you that," Hight, a 10-year Funny Car veteran driver, said. "You look at the competition in Funny Car today versus 10 years ago when I started. Any given weekend, anybody out here can win. It is that close. You are seeing cars separated by hundredths of a second. It is insane how close the competition is. We are going to have to continue to adapt and get better.

"When you win a race in this Funny Car division, it means a lot," he said. "We won five races last year, and I think that shows what kind of team we have. We can't forget that. We are still going to be strong next year. We have the funding that we need from the Auto Club of Southern California, and we have a lot to prove.

"I want to prove to these new sponsors that are coming on board," Hight said, referring to Peak, Lucas Oil, and others yet to be announced, "that they made the decision to join John Force Racing. I want all of us to do our job on and off the track for the sponsors. We want to win that championship. We have to keep doing our job, and our job is to win races and promote to sell our sponsors' products."

For him, it’s mind-boggling to experiment with all the elements required for his second series crown. Just as astonishing is the fact he has a decade of driving experience under his belt.

"From a guy that thought he would never get a chance to even feel what it is like to drive a Funny Car or any kind of race car to say that I am a veteran with 10 years of experience is pretty cool. It is somewhat of a blur," Hight said. "I look back at the beginning of my career, and I wonder how I got through some of those experiences. I was learning on the fly and learning things as I went at every race. When I look back at the early runs I made I just think ‘Wow! A lot has changed.’

"By no means do I think I have it all figured out or do I think that I am done learning. I still have a lot to learn and I am excited about what the future has to hold," he said. "I have more responsibilities now as president of John Force Racing. We have been working hard to find new sponsors and I feel really proud when we do get a new sponsor."

He said he's proud of the path he and crew chief Mike Neff carved in their first full season together.

"Winning five races, which was the most of any Funny Car driver last year, was the highlight. We had a good run at the beginning of the year, and we went to a lot of finals (seven, second only to boss Force's 12). We went a little flat in the middle and towards the end of the season, but getting those five wins was a good start. I am excited about next year since we are all staying together. We’ll be looking for more wins and better results. I believe with what we have in place we can really do that," Hight said.

"We have been to every race track together now, and we have won a lot of races and rounds together. The next goal is to win a championship together," he said. "I have won as a driver, and he has won a couple as a crew chief [including his 2005 run with driver Gary Scelzi at Don Schumacher Racing] and now we have to put it together and win another championship together. I know I believe in him, and he believes in me. We have all the pieces with sponsorship, a new manufacturer that we can’t wait to announce and a great team. Neff and I have a lot to prove. We are both fairly young in the sport, and I think there will be a lot of championships for us in the future. And we need to get started in 2015."

While Force and Hight continue to work with Indianapolis-based agency JMI to secure sponsorship for Brittany Force's dragster and more investors in the boss' Funny Car, sisters Brittany and Courtney Force look to add to their accomplishments, too, in 2015.

Courtney ForceSaid Courtney Force, "The biggest [2014] highlight for me was becoming the winningest female in Funny Car history, after our Traxxas team picked up our fifth win of my career, at Sonoma, California. Going into the Countdown and getting back-to-back wins [at Dallas and St. Louis], totaling seven for my career, made this a highlight in itself."

Memorable for Brittany Force "was locking into the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown in the No. 7 position in Brainerd.That was a proud moment for me, knowing regardless of the final races I would be standing on stage at our awards banquet next to the best Top Fuel drivers. "Being part of what was called the NHRA's Year of the Woman – one in which Erica Enders-Stevens earned the Pro Stock championship and Alexis DeJoria won three finals – excited both Force sisters, they said.

"I think it’s amazing, and I’m honored to be a part of such a monumental year for women," the Funny Car driver and four-time winner in 2014 said. "It’s exciting to be a part of history and to watch so many great female drivers breaking records week after week.  This really goes to show how far our sport has come and it makes me excited for what is in the future."

Her Top Fuel-driving sister, who reached four final rounds and led the qualifying field three times, said, "I'm proud of all the ladies in our sport, and I'm glad the 100th win was achieved during our 2014 season. Women are definitely moving into this sport, and I think that could be inspiring for our female fans in their own personal  achievements at home, in work, or even in life. With 100 wins set, I know that's not the end and women in the sport will advance beyond that much quicker than the first time around."

Courtney Force, who was in the championship mix until she bowed out and left her father to duke it out with eventual king Matt Hagan, said her biggest goal next season is to claim her first series title in JFR's Traxxas-branded entry.

"I'm looking forward to hopefully more wins and records to be broken," she said. "Obviously my personal goal is to become more consistent as a driver but as a team to go after that championship in the 2015 season.

"The fact that we have a great team and car and had such an impressive season last year gives me the motivation to have more consistency in the Countdown next year.  My main motivation is to get the win for my team and my sponsors, and for the new ones coming on board.  I want these sponsors to be excited and proud that they have come on board with our teams at John Force Racing," she said.

Completing her third season in the Funny Car class is a milestone she called "unbelievable." She said, "As a driver, I think I’ve pushed myself harder than ever before and am learning with every pass, at every track on the circuit. I think we have reached a point where we are strong as a team, and I’ve been working hard to make less mistakes and try to improve my lights."

She said she saw her most significant improvement as "knowing the lanes at each race track. Some tracks are entirely different than others, although we are only going one direction. But from a driver’s stand point, the feeling of each unique track, the car, and the lane is something I’ve continued to understand and memorize throughout the season.

"Plus," she said proudly, "we made our best finish yet . . .we finished fourth."

Like Hight, Courtny Force said she recognizes "the sheer competitiveness between drivers on the race track. There are so many impressive cars competing week after week, and you have to fight to the end, because there is only one winner. The adrenaline, the competition, the unexpected, the team work, the speed, and the smell of the nitro excite me most about being a Funny Car driver."

Brittany ForceBrittany Force said she, too, has "definitely come a long way and believe I have improved as a driver since my rookie season. I feel I'm more of a competitor on the track, now that I've gained some experience and seat time. Everything from reaction off the starting line to pedaling the car are things I feel more confident about, especially on Sunday. I also have noticed I feel much more comfortable in the seat, which plays a big part in performance on the track. Like I've always said, I still have so much to learn ahead of me but I feel like I'm off to a pretty good start.

"In 2015, my main goal will be earning my first win and locking into a proud position in the Countdown when our season concludes. I want to go beyond what our team did last year by winning some races, locking into the Traxxas Shootout, qualifying at all 24 events, and moving up the ladder from our Number 10 finishing position."

Compiling more seat time was a huge factor for Brittany Force.

"I feel I improved the most this past season in my comfort level in the seat. I feel much more confident about doing my job as a driver, making sure to keep the car in the groove, having a decent reaction time, and pedaling the car on a run if needed. During my first season I was still learning so much, but now I feel I have just as good  a chance winning a race because I'm doing my job as a driver," she said.

Brittany Force said she's eager to return to her home track, Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Calif., in February for the Circle K Winternationals.

"Being able to start the season with a clean slate is what really motivates me going into the 2015 season. Rolling into Pomona, where everyone will have the same [place in the] point standings, means anything is possible in my third season," she said. "Also, I already have a list of goals for this season which will also be personally motivating throughout the entire season."

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