EVENT RESULTS EVENT NOTEBOOK POINTS AFTER EVENT ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS FINAL SPORTSMAN RESULTS

FRI. GALLERY SAT. GALLERY SUN GALLERY

 

SUNDAY NOTEBOOK
 

 

TOP FUEL STAR BRITTANY FORCE GETS HISTORIC FIRST VICTORY OF 2021 - Top Fuel driver Brittany Force finally parlayed a No. 1 qualifying position into the winner’s circle at Topeka, Kan., Sunday.

Force clocked a 3.783-second elapsed time at 324.75 mph to outlast Clay Millican’s 3.830-second lap at 288.58 mph at the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor at Heartland.

“It feels great,” Force said about the victory. “It's been tough on us this season. We came out strong. We've had a good season. We're No. 3 in points. We've had a bunch of No. 1 qualifiers. It's just, we keep getting stuck on race day, and that's hard for a driver, a crew chief, our entire team. That's where you really want to excel. That's where you really want to do well is on race day.

“Like I said, we have a closet full of No. 1 hats, but we don't have those race day hats. So, I knew we were getting closer. I knew it was right around the corner for us. Over the last few races, it's been driver error, it's been team error, just little things kept getting us. We knew eventually our luck was going to turn around.”

Force defeated Scott Palmer in the first round, had a bye run in second round and then knocked off three-time reigning world champion Steve Torrence in the semis before ousting Millican in the finals. She improved her 2021 elimination-round record to 15-10.

Force, who pilots the Monster Energy dragster for John Force Racing, captured her 11th career Top Fuel national event title. This was Force’s first victory since the fall race in Las Vegas, Nov. 3, 2019. Her father, legendary John Force, won for an NHRA-record 154th time in his nitro Funny Car moments before she went in the burnout box, but that didn’t change her mind set at all. 

“When I'm in that car, I knew he was in the lane in front of me, but it's no different than before when I sat behind them, or any other run,” Brittany said. “When there's somebody in front of me, my focus is not there. Yes, I could see the excitement. I could see what's going on. But, in that moment, I was on the radio talking to Grubnic about what our plan was, where they want me to point the car, what are we doing up there on the starting line. That's where my focus was. Again, you could see what's going on. You could see the commotion in the background, but that was not where my focus was. I could set on that once I got down to the top end and figure it out there.”

Force began the event by snaring her fourth consecutive No. 1 qualifying position. She now has 26 No.1 qualifying spots in her career. Prior to Sunday, her best race day finish were runner-up efforts in Charlotte, N.C., and Norwalk, Ohio.

Co-crew chiefs David Grubnic and Mac Savage are the tuners behind Force’s success.

Force, the 2017 NHRA Top Fuel world champion, arrived in Topeka third in the points standings and moved up one spot to second – 342 points leader Steve Torrence.

“Definitely that run against Steve was a huge one for us,” Force said. “He's No. 1 in points. He's won most the races this year. He's the guy that we're chasing down. We knew that was going to be a tough one for us to get past. But we had a consistent race car all weekend long. The only run we didn't make was, I think it was Q2 or, shoot I don't remember which one it was. There was only one qualifying run we didn't make it down there, But every other run just solid passes down the racetrack (with) consistency.”

Force acknowledged claiming the No. 1 qualifying position with a 3.717-second elapsed time at 322.27 mph Saturday benefitted her team on race day.
“Yesterday, was big for us,” Force said. “When we made that run in the heat. That Q3 run in the heat was big for us. We knew that would help set us up for today, because that's always where we struggled was that Q2 run that I don't think we made it down there. That's in the heat of the day. That's the one that's most comparable to race day on Sunday and that's where we'd end up going wrong. So, we finally did get a run in the heat. It was solid, it was good, and it set us up for strong day today.”

As much as Force appreciates her six No. 1 qualifying spots this season, she was glad to talk about Sunday rather than Saturday.

“It feels good,” said Force to talk about a win. “No. 1 qualifier, that’s just as exciting. But really the big excitement is on race day. Like I said, it would get tough when you get those No. 1 qualifiers, and then you'd go out and you wouldn't do so well on race day. For a while, I thought the No. 1 qualifiers were jinxing us. I didn't want them anymore. It seemed like it was working against us, and that's just superstitions of a driver.”

In four of the five previous races Force had qualified No. 1 she lost in the second round. Force credited Grubnic for swinging for the fence in qualifying.
“That's David Grubnic,” she said. “Every run we go up there he never wants to play it safe. He always wants to push. He wants to see how far he could push this car, how far you can push this team and see really what we’re capable of. He's afraid of backing down. That's what it really is. He never wants to back down. He wants to push all the way and then he excels. No. 1 qualifiers and a win today.”

Brittany said sharing the winner’s circle with her dad in Topeka is something she will cherish.

This will be one I'll never forget,” she said. “This has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember. The thought of it, I remember there's been so many close calls where we thought, ‘Hey, this could be our day that we're going to double up.’ Just to get a race win is hard enough, and then you want to do it with your teammate. It's almost impossible.

“It's like you almost put it on the back burner. To double up with your dad. You both run well all weekend long, and then you double up. It just seems impossible. So today we pulled off the impossible, and it's pretty cool that will always share this. This will be a special racetrack for us, and it's pretty cool to have that with him.”

After John Force Racing parked its entire race operation after two races in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Brittany said the 2021 season had a different feel, one of worry.

“Honestly, coming into the beginning of the season when we went testing at the beginning of the season, I was worried,” Brittany said. “I mean, just normal standard season how we've been doing it since I've been driving since 2013 where after the holiday season off, you'd be out of the car for barely two months and getting back out there to go testing. 

“So nervous. Feel everybody in our pit area, crew chiefs, the team, me as a driver, you get this fear of, “oh, my gosh. I haven't done this in so long. Am I going to forget how to how to drive this thing? It's been too long. That was my concern. A year out. I've never been out of the seat that long. It's only been a couple of months. So going into it all this season that was my biggest fear was I have to deal with those nerves and that pressure of being out of the seat for so long. But once we got out there, beginning of the season went testing, we were all so freaking excited to be back. It was gone. It was not there. We were just pumped to be back out at a racetrack, be together again and doing what we love.”

Force believes her team has what it takes knock Torrence off his championship throne, a place he has sat three years in a row.
“I think we're one of the best teams out here,” Force said. “I don't know if we're still third in points, but we got one of the best cars out here. We run killer weekend after weekend and our consistency is finally getting better. We finally stepped it up on race day. We're turning a corner at the right time. We're getting ready to go into the countdown. 

“So, all those silly mistakes we’ve made an all season long, we're putting those behind us. We've learned from them. They won't happen again. You will not see us making those mistakes again. We're moving forward from them. And this is a great place to have this win right here before we go into a Countdown.” Tracy Renck

JOHN FORCE PEAKING AT THE RIGHT TIME WITH TOPEKA WIN - Cruz Pedregon wasn't wrong when asked about 16-time John Force before their semi-final match at the NHRA Heartland Nationals in Topeka, Kansas.

"He's got some miles, but he's pretty good," Pedregon said. 

Force beat Pedregon to advance to the Funny Car final round, where he knocked off No. 1 qualifier J.R. Todd to pick up national event win No. 154 in his storied career. 

Pedregon, now Force's friendly rival, had the champ scratching his head before the final. 

"Cruz Pedregon was hugging me at the other end," Force said following his semi-final victory. "I don't know why. One [brother] wants to beat me up, and the other guy wants to hug me. He was just excited because he cares. He knows what it takes. He knows how hard it is to keep winning."

But this was the kind of day Force had, keeping focused amid distractions all day. 

"God lives in Topeka," Force said he declared in a group setting, which was his first troublesome moment. "And then I joked and I got in trouble. And [God] lives in a trailer court down here," and the lady goes, 'That ain't funny." 

"But I grew up in trailer courts."

Trailer courts aside, Force knew the past NHRA champion Todd was going to bring him all the battle he could handle. 

"I just had a car that was pretty fast," Force said. "Wasn't the quickest. J.R. Todd was the quickest. I told him in the final, 'You're the baddest kid on the planet here in Topeka.

"I don't know what the reactions were, and I don't want to know, but J.R. Todd, he was out, and I tried to steal all I could on that tree. And he was out there, and I could see just the nose of him. And then he got in trouble. I went around him at the other end."

Todd smoked the tires enabling Force to drove around for his tenth career Topeka win. He also managed to wrestle away the point lead from both Bob Tasca and Ron Capps, who traded the lead like a tennis match. It was anyone's game headed into Topeka with only three rounds separating the first six places. 

It's the first time Force has led the points standings since 2014.

"I don't want to even look at the points," Force admitted. "They told me in the semis that I had taken the lead, but Todd could have taken it away. That'll jump around. It is what it is, but I love racing. And they're always asking me, 'What would make you happiest?" 

"What hit me today was, we had a crowd here. Friday was off, but Saturday and Sunday was good. It wasn't packed, but it was good. And that's where our hearts are, with the people. Otherwise, to win doesn't matter if nobody's there. And so I said on TV, "We're going to bring it. We want a crowd, but I'm telling people, 'Get off the couch. I want to see a packed house at Indy.'" 

"That's what I want. And we will entertain you, not just John Force racing, but the racers do because our hearts are in it. And when we see the crowd, we come alive, and that's what we really want. We want our crowds back. This pandemic has been tough on the kids, the adults. Let us entertain you. Come here."

It's only fitting that Force got another win at the track where he achieved his most emotional victory ever. In 2008, Force fought his way to a win after the Dallas crash that nearly ended his career. 

And for Force, he made a bit of history this time, scoring only the third father-daughter victory since 2004. Daughter Brittany won Top Fuel from the No. 1 qualifying position. 

Force looked back to 2008, in the midst of this monumental occasion for the drive his daughters instilled in him. 

"They told me I was finished, and I'm looking at my daughters, and they are like, 'Dad, you can't be finished,"; I've recalled. 

"I wanted to be around here to teach them. Now they're teaching me. I want to tell her things about a dragster; I've never driven one."

Force seems to be racing these days with an extra pep in his step. He swears he's not out to prove anything. He says it's just Force being Force. 

"I've done it all. I don't need to prove nothing. When it's over ... a guy asked me, 'Well, how will you retire?" 

"One day, they'll say, 'Anybody seen Force?" 

"Because a couple of times, at races, in the last few years, I wanted to get on my bike and drive out the gate just to go down the road and see what's on the other side. But I hear the nitromethane, and I charge back in the gate, like a drug addict. That's the way I've always been."

And as Pedregon puts it, "He's got some miles, but he's pretty good."

PRO STOCK DRIVER DALLAS GLENN CLAIMS SECOND WALLY OF SEASON AT TOPEKA - Thanks to a perfect light in the finals, rookie Dallas Glenn was celebrating a Pro Stock win Sunday in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series.

Glenn, with a 0.000 light edged Kyle Koretsky in the finals at the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor in Topeka, Kan., Sunday.

Glenn clocked a 6.681-second elapsed time at 205.01 mph to defeat Koretsky’s 6.651-second lap at 206.13 mph at Heartland Motorsports Park.

“I feel like I just raced teammates all day with the exception of Troy,” said Glenn, who drives for KB Racing. “When you have that many cars out there it's just kind of hard to avoid them. The car was excellent all day. It was awesome. It wasn't two of the greatest runs in the semis and the final. But as long as it's good enough to get the win that's all that matters. I felt like I did my job really well and the car’s just working really good right now. I'm really excited for the countdown coming up here in Indy next, because we got a real fast car for it.”

This was Green’s 10th career Pro Stock race and second win. He also took home the title in Charlotte, N.C., May 16. Glenn, who drives a Camaro for KB Racing, entered the Topeka event fifth in the points and moved up to fourth, 256 points behind Greg Anderson.

Glenn, who was the runner-up in Sonoma, Calif., the last event on the circuit, defeated Deric Kramer, Matt Hartford, Troy Coughlin Jr., and Koretsky in the finals by approximately four feet.

“When we went into Q3 and stuck that other motor in and when I made the corner and they told me I went to No. 1 I'm like, ‘oh, we got a good one in it now.’ Went back and looked at the run and I saw that it really wasn't even that good of a run. So that got me really excited, Because I know that there's a lot left in it, and I'm going to come and surprise them. I think that's what we did. All the KB cars are running really, really good right now and I think it's a good time to really start getting your stride right when the Countdown comes along.”

Glenn was happy that his Camaro kept making strides in qualifying.

“We were looking at some of the numbers from Friday night and really nobody really ran that well,” Glenn said. “Kyle is, like Jason Line says, ‘He was the least worst,’ is what he said. That's what Jason would say. We kind of knew that it was going to dry out on Saturday a little bit as far as the humidity. So, we knew that as long as the track was there and stayed good, that we were all going to pick up. Definitely, this is one of the tightest fields we've had all year and it was just crazy racing all day.

“Friday, that was just there for some data so that we can figure out what to do on Saturday, because we knew it was going to be just drier. Normally when it's drier, we run better too.”

Glenn also was thrilled to talk about his season performance.

“It's hard to put into words,” Glenn said. “I got to experience it with Jason and KB for years, at least working on the crew. I'm still working the same as I did last year, but now I get to climb in, and it just wears you out. I'm more worn out now than when I was working on it. But this is like a dream come true. This season has taught me a lot. I've had a lot of highs and I've had some lows where I've been struggling, and we've gotten a little taste of everything this year.”

Not having lane choice in the finals is something Glenn thought might upend him.

“I know that he had lane choice, and I was going to the right lane,” Glenn said. “My car was not as happy over there. I knew, and it didn't make a very good run in the semis. I know that Kyle has been really good. He was 20-something on me when we had to run Q1. So, it's kind of been back and forth. I've had to race him like five times this year. I knew that he's got a really fast car, and he was going to be really on it, because I know how bad he really wants that No. 1. How bad he wants to win. So, I just kind of went in there and I rolled in a little bit quick, and it almost cost me, but I just tried to hit it as best I could. It was a little bit of a long tree which usually I hit him a little better.”

Glenn also took a moment to talk about the rivalry between KB Racing and Elite Motorsports.

“The competition for how different all the cars are and how different all the programs are, they run identical,” Glenn said. “The competition is just brutal. You can just miss one shift. Kyle won by one-thousandth. I don't know how much he won in the semis against Erica, but I know it was tight. You miss one shift and you're going home. So, it demands perfection and the competition right now, we had 19 or 20 cars here. The competition is just incredible right now.” Tracy Renck

SATURDAY NOTEBOOK
 

BLACK AND YELLOW - There isn't much Troy Coughlin Jr. hasn't done in drag racing, yet he seems to keep racking up accolades. Saturday at the NHRA Heartland Nationals in Topeka, Kan., Coughlin claimed his first-ever NHRA Pro Stock pole position on the strength of a 6.600, 205.07 during the final qualifying session. 

The road to the top was breached in Saturday's warmest session of the event. 

Coughlin was one of a handful of drivers who blistered Friday night's qualifying in a much warmer Q-2 session on Saturday.

The third-generation drag racer pulled the Jegs Camaro to the top of the list with a 6.617, 205.51; almost .02 quicker in conditions eight degrees hotter. 

How?

Friday morning, rain left quite a bit of moisture lingering in the air. By Saturday morning, it was all gone. 

Coughlin felt the difference in the seat of his pants at the hit of the throttle. 

"It felt really aggressive really early, which thank God it stuck," Coughlin said. "But no, you're just so focused on getting the car down the race track and trying to shift on time and just making a good lap."

Saturday's breakout, Coughlin admits, is something he wouldn't have imagined.

"It's hot, the track, the sun's beating on it," Coughlin explained. "You probably think, okay, we're going to be within one or two of yesterday's, but we ended up picking up, everybody picked up. 

"It just goes to speak to the class and the group that's running all these cars and that's a testament to all the teams out here. They're very smart, they know their cars, they know the track they're on, they know what's out there. So it makes it exciting. It's very intense."

HELLO, IT'S ME AGAIN - Brittany Force has been brutal in qualifying lately, scoring her fourth consecutive No. 1 spot. In Saturday's final session, she drove the Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster to a 3.716, 329.02 for her fourth consecutive pole position. 

"We've been Number One a handful of weekends in a row," Force said. "But really, our focus is tomorrow. We need to turn our luck around on race day."

For now, No. 1 will be a good accolade for her to sleep on. 

"We'll take the Number Ones," Force said of her fifth top qualifier in 2021. "That's points right now for us. We'll take as many points as we can get to inch us closer to that Number One spot. And again, the real excitement is Race Day. That's where we want to do well. That's where we want to succeed. That's where we want to go rounds. We've had two solid passes out of the three. I will take that."

In her previous three No. 1 starts, Force's efforts have stalled in the second round. She already knows what it's going to take to get over the hump which has tripped her.

"Consistency," Force said. "Figuring, making sure we have this car on point to run in the heat, the conditions that it needs to be and keeping it consistent all throughout the day tomorrow."

By qualifying No. 1, Force clinched a berth in the Countdown to the Championship. 

TODD'S RUN HOLDS - J.R. Todd maintained his top spot at Heartland Motorsports Park. For the second time in 2021 and fifth time in his Funny Car career Todd will start from the No. 1 position. Todd secured the top spot with a stand-out run during the first qualifying session on Friday night, a 3.884 second pass that outpaced his Toyota Racing teammate Alexis DeJoria for the No. 1 position.
 
"We've been struggling to capitalize on the Friday night run that is usually pretty crucial for qualifying,” said Todd, who also has nine No. 1s in Top Fuel.  “We haven't run that well (3.884 seconds) in a long time. It's a testament to all the DHL Toyota guys for digging deep and not giving up. I feel like we've got some momentum coming from Pomona where we gained a lot of points on the cars in front of us. It was nice to get the three points Friday and, hopefully, we can keep pace with those guys heading into the Countdown. It's a good time to start building momentum."
 
Todd will receive a competition bye in the first round tomorrow. In the second round he will face the winner of the Chad Green versus Ron Capps match-up. Earlier this season he was No. 1 at the Southern Nationals in Atlanta and raced to the semifinals.

SCARY MOMENT - During the second qualifying session at the Menards NHRA Nationals Presented By PetArmor in Topeka, Kan., Tim Wilkerson’s Funny Car crossed the center line and collected Cruz Pedregon’s car. The two made contact with the wall before both coming to a stop. Both drivers exited their vehicles under their own power.

Wilkerson was remorseful about the incident.

“I feel awful for Cruz; especially he’s an innocent victim of all this lousy driving of mine,” Wilkerson lamented. 

According to Wilkerson, his engine lost multiple cylinders making the LRS-sponsored Mustang a handful to drive. 

“I lift off the throttle and I just got the wheel turned as hard as I can and the stupid thing just keeps plowing right,” Wilkerson explained. “I was turning as hard as I could, hoping Cruz wasn’t there. Well, then he ended up in front of me and his parachutes get caught up in my car, and I couldn’t steer it and just having a terrible time.”

Pedregon was unavailable for comment after the incident. 

“I’ll try to make it up to him somehow,” Wilkerson said. “I don’t know how, but I’m just thoroughly disgusted with myself and did the best I could, but I couldn’t get it to turn. So, I don’t know. Disgusting that tore up a car and tore up another body and guys at Ford, they’re going to have to help me out a little bit I hope.”

TWO STEPS BACK, FIVE FORWARD - Pardon Bob Tasca if he’s not really in tune with how to react these days. In the first seven events of the season, the Motorcraft-sponsored driver reached three finals, winning twice and grabbing hold of the point lead from April until July. 

Then came the Western Swing, where Tasca won only two rounds in three races and dropped to second in the regular-season championship chase. 

Please don’t feel bad for Tasca; he’s not in a natural slump. He’s just in uncharted territory. 

“A lot of years in my career, at this point in the season, I was really struggling to get into the top 10, and there’s a lot of pressure,” Tasca explained. “That’s a lot of pressure because the sponsors expect a championship-contending program, and that’s what we want to deliver to them. 

“The last couple of years, I’ve had a car that has put me in a position to win, race in, and race out. Certainly, the last three races were lower expectations. But then again, we were trying some stuff. So the luxury of being at the top at this time of the year is you can start the see what works, and what doesn’t work, as you’re getting ready for the championship and I know Mike {Neff] and John [Shaffer] did a little bit of that over the last three races. 

“Coming into this race, we pretty much said, ‘okay, we could go back to some things that we were doing that we know works and we went out there last night and went to No. 3 qualifier with a great run. So I think the difference in this program for me as the owner and driver is confidence. It’s just a real high level of confidence that we have.”

Tasca isn’t cocky, because as he says, that attitude never works well in his favor. 

“No one’s been more humbled out here than me,” Tasca said. “But confident. I think that’s the difference between this team than the teams that I’ve been on in the past. So really looking forward to getting to Indy and getting this seven-race shootout on, and I’ve said to my guys, if we have a seven-race run like we did the first seven races of the year, we win the championship. Period. 

“I think that’s what we’re really looking at is to put together the run that we had early in the year during those last seven races and knock a couple down and get into Vegas and Pomona with a shot. And I’ve done it twice in my career where I’ve gone into Vegas with a shot. This year, I certainly have. I think the best shot to do that with the team that we have, and we’ll see. It’s going to be exciting.”

Unofficially, Tasca has clinched his berth into the 2021 playoffs. 

“We got great leadership at the top with Mike Neff and Jon Schaffer and a lot of confidence with this team,” Tasca said. “So the expectations are high, and we want to put a race car out there that can go out there and really compete for the win every single weekend, and we’ve done that. 

“We’re really starting to hone in on our setup for the countdown. Really excited. This is obviously my best shot to win the championship, I know that, the guys; I this team know that, and you’ve got to really seize that opportunity because you don’t get it every year. So we’re pretty confident that the setup that we have is going to give us a real shot to do that in the next couple races.”

CAPPS CLINCHES - Funny Car point leader and Pomona race winner Ron Capps clinched a berth in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs during qualifying at Heartland Motorsports Park where he posted the third-quickest E.T. of Q3.

Capps final run was his best of the weekend, a 3.968 elapsed time at 324.36 miles per hour. He starts eighth, and faces Chad Green in the first round. 

“We wanted to get down Friday night," Capps said. "That was the run to really position yourself in the top of the field for qualifying under the lights here at Heartland Park, and we missed it just a little bit. But to go down both runs on Saturday in the heat with the sun on the track is the NAPA Know How I brag about with Guido (Dean Antonelli) and (John) Medlen. 

"It’s just like Pomona. We had to go down the track and we gained one point that last session and we moved ourselves up a few spots on the ladder. That will allow us to sleep a little better on Saturday night and gives us better data for Sunday."

HIS TURN TO SUB - Clay Millican said a few weeks ago, he was not enthused watching another driver behind the wheel of his race car. On Saturday, the driver of the Parts Plus-sponsored dragster got to be that guy.

Millican got the nod to drive the Nitro Ninja Dragster fielded by the Lagana Brothers, Dom, and Bobby, at the highly successful Northern Nationals in Martin, Mich. Yes, he drove some else’s dragster and loved it. 

“That was one of the coolest things I have done in I don’t know how long,” Millican said. “I mean, it was old-school match racing at its best. And for me, personally, it was one of the most pressure-packed runs that I have made, because Dom Lagana could have invited anybody in the country, in the world as far as that goes, to drive his race car. But yet he chose me to do it. So the last thing I wanted to do to was go out there and to put it in golf terms, shake it, you know what I mean. Go out there and mess up.”

For Millican, seeing Lagana coordinate and command the efforts for the family-owned dragster was well worth the price of admission if he had been charged to get in the event. 

“To watch Dom Lagana is unbelievable,” Millican said. “That guy is one of the most motivational, unbelievable spirits because he’s not slowing down. I mean, anybody could not fault him if he was down and out, and I’m sure he has his down-and-out moments. 

“To watch him around that race car, you could tell he was at home. To watch him, get down and do the bottom end with no questions asked, no nothing. To watch his face while I was sitting in his car, warming it up, you could see pure joy. For a guy that’s been through what he’s been through, he’s an incredible human being and I absolutely had a blast.”

Lagana was critically injured in a non-racing automobile accident on August 10. He has since returned to the NHRA tour as a crewmember on the CAPCO Racing Top Fuel dragster. 

Millican has had a connection with Dom for decades and has remained one of the biggest fans.

“We’ve known him since he was a pre-teenager,” Millican explained. “So we’ve watched him grow up, and we’ve not only raced against Bobby and Dom, we raced with them. There were times when the Werner Enterprises team made sure they were able to go, whether it meant rolling a motor over so they had a motor for their car or them going with us to the NHRA races when we weren’t doing IHRA. There’s a big connection, long history and it was an incredible, unbelievable, awesome weekend that I will not forget.”

Millican said one day if Dom chooses to drive again, words won’t be able to describe being able to witness the feat.

“I think it would be just absolutely awesome,” Millican said. “He’s an amazing young man. If he makes that decision, the entire industry will work their tails off to help him make it happen. The video of him being in the funny car warming it up was awesome and if he wants to do it, no doubt he can make it happen.”

JAWS, ONCE A BABY FISH - Funny Car racer Paul Lee has made a significant rise through the ranks on the Camping World Drag Racing Series. However, it pales in comparison to what round wins he's racking up in the business world. 

Earlier in the week, Lee announced his Wharton Automotive group had acquired Silver Star Transmissions, a TREMEC Elite Distributor, which leads the industry in TREMEC 5 and 6-Speed kits.

"It fits our brand," Lee said. "We want to be the go-to place for everything driveline, whether it be a stick shift, standard or torque converter and automatic. We're now an official TREMEC Elite dealer, of which there's only 10 in the country. So now we're able to be a full supplier of anything driveline. That's been our goal."

In the aftermarket parts industry, where investment firms and aftermarket conglomerates are buying up smaller brands to make one-stop shops at an alarming rate, Lee's team is making their mark in a hurry. 

"We're doing that on a smaller scale, though," Lee explained. "Obviously, a lot of the bigger companies that are out there, that have 30 or 40 brands, they have all different segments of driveline. They could be air cleaners or carburetors, or rear ends and Wheels and tires. But we're not doing that. 

"We're sticking with our core competency, which is our expertise. That is automotive driveline, whether it be racing or aftermarket. We're not going out of our core competency just to be big. We're expanding and laterally, in these different directions. So we can be a complete driveline supplier. And no one's done that yet."

Lee admits winning off the track generates the same rush as his 11,000 horsepower 50th-anniversary McCleod Funny Car produces. 

"This was a goal I had some years ago," Lee admitted. "I first had to build up McLeod to where it is today to be able to support acquisitions in other areas of aftermarket. And we've done that. It's been a long, hard road. Got a great team behind me that helps us get here. It's not just me, my vice president Bob Scheid, Greg Samuels down at FTI, all the guys at Silver Sport Transmissions. I mean, it takes a team to do this and without the people, you don't have a business. 

"We're not just acquiring businesses just to acquire; we're actually assembling a team of people that are the best in the industry. That's the goal. I'm the coach, and I'm just assembling the All-Star team."
 
ONE DAY, MAYBE - For now, Gary Pritchett feels content running alongside a Top Fuel dragster instead of behind the wheel of one. 

Pritchett proudly plays his role as a crewman on the multi-time championship-winning dragster driven by Steve Torrence. 

However, this doesn’t mean he won’t take a lap when the opportunity presents itself. 

Pritchett first drove a fuel car back in 2015, behind the wheel of the Connie Dote-owned Top Fueler, where he made three laps to procure his driving credentials. 

“Dom [Lagana] always said for years, ‘We’ll get you a lap someday,” Pritchett said. “When I worked with him in Martin, Michigan, they had to make a test lap. It had been about six years since I drove so it was my fourth lap and it was an experience of a lifetime. But on this day, it was more about Dom and not me. He is so special to me; just seeing him happy with doing this was what it was all about, not me getting to drive.”

Behind the wheel of the Lagana Nitro Ninja Dragster at US 131 Dragway in Martin, Mich, Pritchett drove to half-track and carded a 3.22, 265, and a 4.16 while coasting through the 1000-foot timers. It was the first pass for the dragster in nearly two years. Clay Millican then took over the driving chores for the weekend at the independent Northern Nationals event. 

Pritchett gladly stepped aside for the more experienced driver, but this doesn’t mean one day he doesn’t aspire to be on the same level of driving experience. 

“That’s the ultimate goal one day down the road is maybe to enter a Top Fuel national event, but for right now, I’m full-time with the Capco boys. We’re building a legacy here and making history and I want to be a part of that,” Pritchett said. “I want to make the car go fast. I get the same feeling working on the cars as I do driving. When we win, when Steve wins, I feel like I’m driving.”

For the record, Pritchett does climb behind the wheel of a race car when he can. He drives the tribute alcohol-burning Funny Car of his late godmother and drag racing legend Carol “Bunny” Burkett.

“We have a race coming up on October 2nd,” Pritchett said. “It’s a Bunny tribute race at Maryland International Raceway. We got 32 cars coming for a tribute. Maybe one day I’ll enter a national event if this car’s not racing., Maybe one day, we’ll see. But for now, I got that lap. Maybe next year I might get to run the Martin Match Race, we’ll see.”

When Burkett mentored Pritchett, one of Torrence’s original crewmembers, she mentored him the right way. 

“I started racing with her when I was 18 months old,” said Pritchett, who is now 34. “That’s all I know. Live and breathe and did everything drag racing. Right out of high school I moved to Brownsburg, Indiana. When I was 18 years old started with David Powers. 2006, 2007 with Rob Flynn and Hot Rod Fuller, and the rest is history. I have been Top Fuel racing ever since then.”

BO KNOWS HIS OWN PACE - Bo Butner has very little schedule to adhere to, and these days that suits him just fine. 

"Randi Lynn [Shipp] wanted to run stock, so we showed up, and I'm running a Comp car for Richard [Freeman] and running our Super Gas car. So we've been bracket racing and enjoying life."

And he's been watching some Pro Stock too. 

"Yeah, still watching," Butner admitted. "I watch them every week. I text Greg and give him s*** all the time. I want him to hurry up and get this stupid win over. Then he can just go back to winning normal, I tell him. 

"I miss the guys. I miss all of them. It's all the teams, but It's still tough and just takes a big commitment."

Not even a rent here and there, Butner quickly downplays the notion. 

"Like I said, we go bracket race," Butner said. "We can do what we want. I can stay at home. I have zero schedule right now, which is nice."

But for Butner, right now might be a key word to watch.  

FEELS LIKE THE FIRST TIME -  John Cerbone, of Yorkton Heights, New York, blasted to the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown No. 1 qualifier position today at the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by Pet Armor. Cerbone drove his 2019 Chevrolet COPO Camaro, which flies the livery of Saw Mill Auto for car owners Robert and Danielle Falcone along with Ronnie Mayo, to the top spot for the first time in his Factory Stock career with an impressive 7.909 second, 164.13 mph pass during the second qualifying session. It is Cerbone’s first No. 1 qualifier of 2021 and his previous best starting position was fifth. He will face Jesse Alexandra in the first round and he is the fourth different driver to earn a No. 1 qualifier in the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown this season though five races.

“This is my first No. 1 in Factory Stock Showdown and I have to thank the Falcones, Ronnie Mayo and the Barton Racing team along with my wife Pattie,” said Cerbone. “I knocked the electrical out when I was crossing the finish line which is why my speed was down. I was just shoving it into neutral thank goodness so my ET was good. I have been racing the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown class for a year and a half. I like everything about this class. I think the cars are great and the people are great. Every time you go up there you are racing someone that can beat you. You can lose to anyone in this class at any time.”

Friday night David Barton and Aaron Stanfield were the class of the field posting identical 7.934 second passes with Barton getting official provisional top honors on speed, 175.37 mph to 175.19 mph. Eighteen Factory Stock competitors were vying for the 16 spots in Sunday’s field.

Going into race day the $1,000 bounty will be on Denver winner and No. 11 qualifier Stephen Bell who will face David Janac in the first round. Since the inception of the bounty at the Houston SpringNationals earlier this season it has paid out every race with a different racer collecting the additional cash bonus. Competition will begin tomorrow at 11 a.m. CDT from Heartland Motorsports Park.

A ROOKIE AGAIN - When you’re a jack of all trades, there’s plenty of opportunities to be a rookie. Former everything in drag racing Alex Laughlin lives the dream in his latest new kid on the block moment. 
 
Laughlin is making his second start in Top Fuel with Scott Palmer Racing this weekend. 
 
“The goal for this weekend is to make this feel more normal,” Laughlin said. “This came together really fast, but now we’ve been to a race and made some good runs. I’ve driven just about everything, but this is just so far beyond anything I’ve ever done. I’m really looking forward to this weekend, being able to get more laps and keep learning. That’s the first goal, and the second goal is, I want to turn on a win light. I’d love to be able to get that first-round win in Top Fuel.”
 
Laughlin raced well and qualified well in Denver, making a 300-mph run before falling in the first round of eliminations. He’s got nothing but praise for his Top Fuel mentor Palmer. 

“Scott has been unbelievable,” Laughlin said. “He’s been extremely accommodating, helping me get my license and all that. There have been so many moving parts, but being part of something where you can get that help, it’s really refreshing. It helps me focus on driving the car. When you can’t do that, it can really affect you. Scott helped give me a lot of confidence, even more than I had in myself. He knew I could handle this, and that really gave me a lot of confidence.”

Laughlin heads into Sunday’s race day as the tenth seeded entry with a 3.846, and will face last season’s Rookie of the Year Justin Ashley in the first round. 

ANTRON CLINCHES - No. 2 ranked Antron Brown powered to the second-best pass of Top Fuel Q2 and officially clinched a Countdown playoff spot

Brown saved his best for last, running 3.808 seconds at 322.34 miles per hour to qualify No. 8. He races Shawn Langdon in Sunday's final eliminations.

“We had a good day today here in Topeka," Brown said. "We were second-quickest of that first session with a great 3.82 in the heat and we’re going to have that information to help us prepare for tomorrow. We feel very comfortable going into race day. 

"We ran decent with a 3.80 and stepped up a little bit more and we knew the track could have held more. We’re getting prepared for tomorrow and running that .82 and .80 gives us the consistency we need on a hot race track to have a good race day. 

"We have a tough first-round match-up with Shawn Langdon, one of the best drivers in the sport. That’s a car you don’t want to race first round. We’re going to keep our heads down, do what we do, and have fun." 

 

 

IF HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF - Oddly enough, Deric Kramer hasn’t raced Pro Stock at Heartland Park - Topeka since 2018, Pro Stock raced here the last night. 

Kramer has been in a slump lately, losing in the first round at the past four races, and now finds himself ninth in the regular-season points despite climbing as high as second earlier in the season. 

“It was an awesome weekend (in 2018), qualifying No. 1 and capping it off with a race win,” Kramer said. “It’s nice being the reigning champ the past three years, but it’s good to go back to Topeka. You never forget that first win. We’re struggling right now, and that’s not hard to see, but we’re going to keep trying. It’s nice going someplace where you at least have some expectations of what you should be doing. We did it right once before (in Topeka), so we should be able to do it again. That’s what we’re shooting for.”
 
Pro Stock is competing this weekend in the ninth of 17 races this year, and only one race follows the Topeka race before the Countdown to the Championship playoffs begins. Kramer understands there’s little room for error if he wants to be in the championship hunt.  

“We haven’t been able to get down the race track,” Kramer said. “We have to get down the track on every attempt. That lets to better qualifying positions, better performances, all of it. It’s been a struggle, that’s for sure, but it’s not something we’re trying to dwell on. At the end of the weekend, we want to win or lose on an actual run. That’s been the hardest part. There’s a lot of losing in drag racing, but losing when you don’t even get the opportunity to win is frustrating.”
 
Kramer, though, is confident the team can make a swift turnaround in crunch time. He qualified second earlier this year and Atlanta, advancing to final rounds in Las Vegas and Houston. Kramer knows he has a car capable of winning.
 
“If we didn’t think we could fix things, we would go,” Kramer said. “Our intention is to win and have a chance to win at every race we go to. We’ve gone back to the basics, and we’ll go from there, but we still think we can go out there and win.”

Kramer starts from the No. 13 spot with a 6.644, 208.10 best, and faces Dallas Glenn in the first round of eliminations. 

FAST REMINDER - It's definitely not like a roller coaster ride. This is how part-time Funny Car racer Chad Green describes his feelings when he climbs behind the wheel of a fuel Funny Car after racing his Pro Modified. 

"No, it doesn't take your stomach away, but I don't think you can compare it to a rollercoaster," Green counseled. "It's way worse.
It just reminds me every time of how damn fast they are. It's just crazy. It's a cloud of adrenaline."

Green's last outing was at the NHRA Summit Nationals in Norwalk, but unfortunately, he missed the cut, ending qualifying at the No. 17 entry. 

"I'm trying to make as many races I can, so I don't have that big off time in between them," Green explained. 

Green landed in the eighth spot in the 15-car field, with a 3.962, 320.05, and will race Ron Capps in the first round. 

CLOSE QUARTERS - Only .072 seconds seperated No. 1 qualifier Coughlin to Cristian Cuadra's 6.672  206.23 which claimed the final available position in the 16-car field.

FRIDAY NOTEBOOK 

ANYBODY'S GAME - Past NHRA Funny Car champion J.R. Todd is sixth in the championship points and he's not a bit concerned with just three races left in the regular season. Why?

Less than three rounds of racing separate Todd from the top spot in the category.
 
“You look at the point standings and it could not be any tighter when you think about it,” Todd said. “We have had nine races and the top six drivers are only 57 points apart. One good weekend can jump you right to the top. I like our chances in Topeka as well as Brainerd and for sure Indy. These last three regular season races can set us up for a strong run in the Countdown, for sure.”
 
In 2007 Todd raced to the final round in Top Fuel at the NHRA Topeka Nationals. The last time the event was contested, in 2019, Todd secured his second career No. 1 qualifier. The 2018 Funny Car champion now has four career No. 1s in Funny Car, including one from this season’s Southern Nationals.

Todd fired a strong opening session salvo as he claimed the provisional No. 1 with a 3.884 elapsed time at 332.67 miles per hour. 

"We've been struggling to capitalize on the Friday night run that is usually pretty crucial for qualifying,” Todd said following Friday’s lone pass. “It was nice to make a hell of a run. We haven't run that well in a long time. It's a testament to all the DHL Toyota guys for digging deep and not giving up. I feel like we've got some momentum coming from Pomona where we gained a lot of points on the cars in front of us. It's nice to get the three points tonight and, hopefully, we can keep pace with those guys heading into the Countdown. It's a good time to start building momentum."

THE KID WAS HOT TODAY - Kyle "Kid Chaos" Koretsky had barely exited his Lucas Oil-sponsored Pro Stocker following the provisional No. 1 qualifying pass at the NHRA Heartland Nationals before his biggest fan was on the phone offering congratulations. Four 2021 national event winners had yet to run, but the voice on the other end of the phone was confident his 6.634 elapsed time would hold.  

The caller was Koretsky’s dad, Kenny, a former Pro Stock racer. 

“By the time Ricky got down to the top end to pick me up, my dad was already calling and talking to him,” Koretsky said. “He’s pumped up. But we’ll go one round at a time and keep our eye on the prize here for Sunday.”

Pro Stock has two sessions remaining on Saturday afternoon; the first at 2:30 and the final at 5:30. The temperature is expected to be in the mid-80 degree range. 

“I think it might be enough to hold,” Koretsky said. “Greg Anderson was a couple of thousandths behind us. But hey, we’ll see. But I think if the field moves up, we can move up. We got plenty of power, and as long as I do my job, make a clean run, we’ll be all right.

“The Q1 it was a good run, and these KB guys give me the best motors. Greg went back and worked on them, and they’re badass back there in the shop. I feel good.”

BILLY, BILLY: THE HOT DEALY - When you're hot, you're hot. And while the temperatures were mild on Friday at the NHRA Heartland Nationals, Billy Torrence continued to show his hot hand at the drag strip in Topeka, Kansas.

Last month, the elder member of the two-car CAPCO Top Fuel team took a break from nitro racing long enough to drive his Super Comp dragster to the divisional race title here at Heartland Park - Topeka. Ironically, it was the same weekend his son Steve was winning the NHRA Sonoma Nationals title. 

Torrence thundered to a 3.717 elapsed time at over 322 miles per hour to claim the provisional No. 1 spot. 

A two-time national event winner in Super Comp before he started driving Top Fuel dragsters, the elder Torrence has won seven times as a pro, most recently at the June 13 TascaParts.com Nationals at Epping, N.H.  

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN - Robert Hight learned early in his drag racing career the meaning of intimidation. In June 1995, to be exact. 

Hight had just landed his first paying gig in drag racing with John Force. He found himself on a flight to Topeka, Kan., with drag racing tuning legends Austin Coil and Bernie Fedderly in a whirlwind orientation.

"Didn't have a clue what I was going to be doing," Hight admitted.  "All I knew was we had a match race coming in Canada, and by the next weekend, I had to learn how to do the clutch by myself . So I had to pay attention and learn here in Topeka." 

Force was in the midst of an eleven final round season, a year in which he led the championship points from start to finish.  

"In typical John Force fashion, they really ran great, number one qualifier, everything else," Hight said. "But it wasn't like I could get excited because it wasn't like I did anything to make it to be a part of that. I was just there to learn. 

"It was a very intimidating, and Austin Coil; he's intimidating. But luckily, he took me under his wing and taught me things and I wouldn't be where I'm at today if it wasn't for him and Bernie."

The intimidation factor on a 1-to-10 scale?

"It was off the charts," Hight said. "It was out of control because you're on this team that's winning championship after championship. This was in John's heyday when he was winning a dozen races a year. And we only had 18 races back then, so it was like, okay, I can't be the weak link here, I have to learn. And think about it, you're learning from the best. There they're winning races for a reason, so I'm in the right place. I just got to focus and pay attention and do my part to learn so that I'm not the one screwing things up here."

Hight said his best bet was to take his shots as they came his way. 

"You can't overthink it," Hight said. "I just took it as it came and learned and went to the next race, which was a match race in Canada, and did the clutch by myself, got through that."

Nothing could have prepared the rookie for his immediate future. 

"I had no idea going into Denver what my job was going to be," Hight said.  "I may just be the guy that cleans the truck and trailer when it pulls in because now the clutch guy can come back and run. And Austin coil, when he got to the track on Thursday, he says, you're our new clutch guy."

For nearly a decade, Hight held the revered role of clutch specialist for John Force. But in those early days, Hight, an avid baseball fan,  said it felt as if he was the minor leagues and called up to the big leagues. 

"It's getting into the playoffs, and it's like, 'okay, we just called you up and you're going to start the game in the playoffs," Hight said. 

Just to be clear, before the Force gig, Hight had never done the clutch for any time, much less got paid for it. 

"No, but I had paid attention to other teams," said Hight, who had previously worked for Top Fuel driver Roger Primm. "When I had time, I was always watching and learning. I always feel that you have two eyes and two ears and one mouth, and you need to use them proportionally. And I always paid attention and really tried to learn things, not talk other than ask questions when the time was appropriate. But anyway, that's how I got to where I was at, just learning and paying attention.

"Then getting paid to do it, I had to pinch myself. I'm getting paid to do this job, and it was a dream come true. I mean, back then it was tough to become a crew member. There was a lot of teams out here and hard to get on a team, but the top tier teams were John Force, Prudhomme, Bernstein. If you wanted to learn, you wanted to be on a winning team and get to the top, that's where you needed to be. So I want to thank Roger Prim for giving me the opportunity and hiring me, and then John Force team for hiring me and I'm still here, 26 years later."

Hight is the defending Funny Car winner at the Menards NHRA Nationals, where he rallied to victory in 2019. It was his third win at the event, he also won in 2010 and 2011. 

He has started from No. 1 four times at Topeka and has gone to the finals five out of the last 10 starts. If Hight takes the points lead this weekend, an easy task with a victory, it would be the 14th time in his 16-year career contesting for a championship that he has held the points lead.

Fate was not on Hight’s side Friday, as a timing issue kept him from getting an elapsed time and putting him at the bottom of the qualifying order headed into Saturday’s final sessions. 

 

AS A CUCUMBER - Having a level-head in the most volatile situations is an asset any driver can utilize. For Troy Coughlin Jr., this practice has been a reason for his success in a high-intensity sport. 

As a result, Coughlin has won three championships in the NHRA's sportsman ranks as well as eight national event titles, ten divisional wins, and four high-dollar bracket race victories.

It's hot in Topeka, especially in August. 

"I love this time of the year because everything starts to get more intense," Coughlin Jr. said. "It brings out the best in people, and I love to race when stakes are high. We've had a steady first half of the season, and I know without question we have a car and team capable of big things.

"These yellow and black guys have been making gains across the board, both in the engine shop and on the car itself, so we couldn't be in a better position. I'm continually amazed at the effort put in (crew chief) Mark Ingersoll, Kelly Murphy, Steven Hurley, Eric Luzinski, and Kyle Bates."

Coughlin has managed two final-round appearances and qualified in the top half of the field at eight of nine races. At the last stop in Pomona, Calif., he qualified a season-best fourth. 

"We'd love to break through and get a win this weekend," Coughlin Jr. said. "I just need to execute each run as perfectly as I can and then move on to the next one. If we do that seven times, we'll be in the winner's circle come Sunday afternoon."

If drag racing success flows freely in the genes, the Coughlin comes from great stock. His uncle Jeg Coughlin Jr. is a three-time champion at the facility, having won the Super Stock title in 1994 and the Pro Stock trophy in 2000 and 2013. His own father, Troy Coughlin Sr., also found success here when he took home the Pro Stock title in 2002.

Coughlin was second quickest to Kyle Koretsky, stopping the timers at 6.634 seconds at 205.51 miles per hour. 

 

NEW PLAN IN PLACE - Top Fuel Rookie of the Year Justin Ashley’s eagerness to get back behind the wheel is to both maintain the momentum of a runner-up finish at the NHRA Winternationals and also put a new nutrition program through its paces. During an incredibly hot event Ashley and his Smart Sanitizer Top Fuel team defeated Buddy Hull, Brittany Force and Antron Brown before squaring off with Leah Pruett in the final round. 

Throughout the day Ashley was maintaining the fuel for his race car but the young driver was not maintaining his personal fuel situation. The second year driver was unable to compete in the final round climbing out of his 11,000 horsepower Top Fuel dragster with a severe case of heat exhaustion.
 
“Immediately after Pomona I went to work developing a better nutrition plan,” said Ashley after the event. “We’re going to be racing in similar conditions throughout the remainder of the summer. It’s important to be ready. During the week I am especially focused on my nutrition but at the races I have a tendency to let it get away from me because I am focused on the race car and other responsibilities. I have a much better plan in place now with the help of Antron Brown and many others within the drag racing community. I am excited to get back into the race car. This is what I love to do.” 
 
The biggest positive from the race in California was it highlighted the continued development of his young team under the direction of veteran crew chief Mike Green. With track temperatures soaring over 140 degrees Ashley’s dragster, backed by Auto Shocker, KATO Fastening Systems and others in addition to Smart Sanitizer and Strutmasters, made consistent runs down the track.
 
“We had a great weekend in Pomona in very tricky conditions,” said Ashley.” I anticipate the conditions to be similar in Topeka with the heat this weekend. We have a lot of confidence heading into this race with Mike Green as our crew chief and a great Davis Motorsports team behind him. We’ll look to continue carrying some momentum into this race. A race that will be another new track for me and a fun experience. My father won there in 2007 so we will be looking to add another win for the family.”

THIS FUNNY CAR'S FOR YOU! - Cruz Pedregon showcased a new scheme on his Snap-on Tool-sponsored Dodge Hellcat. 

The Snap-on® “Makers and Fixers” Dodge® SRT® Hellcat® Funny Car carries the signature Snap-on red and black colors with racing stripes featuring special messaging around SnaponFranchise.com. A large "Own It" badge stands out on the hood as a visual reminder of the opportunity to own a Snap-on franchise.

"Snap-on is our primary sponsor, so I get to meet and ride along with many of the franchisees throughout the year calling on shops and customer," Pedregon said. "I've even been through their training course, so I have a real appreciation for what they do and the Makers and Fixers they serve. I dedicate this race to all the first-rate franchisees who really inspire me, and the plan is to make them proud here at one of my favorite tracks.”

Pedregon was No.7 following Friday’s first session with a 3.962. 

MAINTAINING MOMENTUM - Coming off a semifinal finish at the recent NHRA Lucas Oil Winternationals, driver Jim Campbell and the Jim Dunn Racing team is feeling confident. The team made consistent qualifying runs throughout NHRA’s Western Swing and turned that into multiple round wins in Southern California. 
 
“Pomona was a great weekend for our entire crew, but especially for my dad and our driver Jim Campbell, two Southern California natives who got to experience some round wins at their home race,” team manager, Jon Dunn said. 
 
Jim Dunn Racing has done promotions with their team for close to a decade reaching back to the Grime Boss Funny Car and many promotions since then. 

Dunn said the team’s relationship with Menards is as strong as ever. 

“We just ran the Sqwincher Funny Car in Norwalk in a promotion with Menards, and have their associate logos on the car this weekend in Topeka," Dunn explained. "Big Jim Dunn always enjoys signing autographs for Menards guests at the Topeka race.”
 
The Nitro Funny Car team has DiPinto Logistics as its primary sponsor, along with increased presence from Lucas Oil. The team has been expanding its relationship with Lucas Oil throughout the season, recently hosting pit area hospitality at multiple events, and planning on a strong presence at the NHRA national event in Brainerd just one week after Topeka.  

Campbell got off to a good start in Friday’s lone session, posting a 4.096, 308.14 pass.

 

 

POP GOES THE COOKIE? - Leah Pruett rolled out a sweet-looking Top Fuel dragster out of her DSR hauler on Friday, literally. Her dragster is sporting the branding of Cookie Pop.
 
“I am a big-time Oreo fan, and separately, a huge popcorn fan, so Cookie Pop is the perfect way for me to get the best of both worlds while on the go,” said Pruett of the sweet-and-savory snack which combines popcorn with some of America’s favorite cookie and candy brands, at only 150 calories per serving. “Our team definitely has a sweet tooth, so representing the Cookie Pop brand is right up our alley.”

DSR VIP hospitality guests are treated to Cookie and Candy Pop snacks throughout the Topeka race weekend.

Unfortunately, Friday’s run in likely the best conditions Top Fuel will face didn’t turn out as planned with Pruett smoking the tires and coasting to a 6.142.