Patience was truly tested on Saturday as the teams, drivers and fans endured a prolonged wait at the In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.

After persistent rain showers intermittently disrupted the afternoon and evening hours, the drivers of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series finally took to the track a few hours behind schedule, with some utilizing the delay to their advantage.

Amid the weather-induced turmoil, Brittany Force was one of a handful of drivers to improve on their times from Friday. After sitting out the rain, Force stormed to the top of the time charts behind the wheel of her Mark Christopher Auto Center/Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster to earn her first No. 1 qualifier of the season and the 47th of her career at the 64th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals.

“It makes for a long day,” Force explained. “It is not easy. You want to get out there and get in that car and make some runs. To sit around and wait for it to stop raining all day is tough. But it comes with the territory and we do it all the time during the season. Just a big thank you to the fans who stuck it out with us.”

Force picked up a few hundredths from her Friday time to shoot past provisional top qualifier Billy Torrence with a 3.711-second pass at 335.73 mph in her John Force Racing entry. In addition to giving the team its first pole position of the year, it was a much-needed confidence boost for the two-time champion after starting the year with a poor opener two weeks ago in Gainesville.

“It wasn’t the start that we wanted, but you learn from it,” said Force of her bottom-half qualifying effort and first-round exit at the Gatornationals. “You put it behind you and you move forward. We are taking the combination of what we did last year and what we did when we won the championship the season before and that is our new tuneup we are going into the season with.”

Tony Schumacher also improved on his time from Friday to jump into the second position with a 3.735 at 331.85 mph. Billy Torrence dipped two spots to third with a 3.745, with Steve Torrence (3.750) and Justin Ashley (3.753) rounding out the top five.

While another successful qualifying effort is certainly a plus for the championship-winning JFR entry, Brittany Force isn’t just satisfied with moral victories anymore. With 47 career top qualifier awards compared to 16 wins, she is ready to flip those numbers beginning this season with a concerted effort to go rounds on Sundays.

“(Today) we had two consistent runs, which is what we have been focusing on coming into this season,” Force said. “We need consistent runs that go down the racetrack. We are not trying to do these crazy runs that light the board on fire. Let’s get down there, let’s get in the show, and let’s go rounds on race day. So far we are in a good place and we are anxious to see what we can do tomorrow.”

With crew chief David Grubnic calling the shots, and some new sponsors joining the team this year, it is more important than ever that the team prolong their stay on Sundays, accompanying what is already a first-class qualifying program.

“We really want to make the sponsors happy,” Force said. “We want to get them in the winner’s circle. We’ve had a lot of No. 1 qualifiers, but our focus is on race day. That is where the points really add up. That is what matters at the end of this thing when we return here at the end of the season to try and chase down a championship. We love those No. 1s, and it is a great way to kick off the season, but we are ready to go rounds tomorrow.”

Force earns a first-round bye thanks to a shortage of entries in the Top Fuel category, and she will face the Antron Brown-Clay Millican winner in Round Two of eliminations.