Category: NHRA

• Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) Top Fuel pilot Leah Pruett drove her Dodge Power Brokers dragster to their strongest eliminations performance of the season to date by advancing to the semifinals at the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Summit Racing Equipment Nationals near Norwalk, Ohio
• From her 15th place starting spot on the eliminations ladder, Pruett upset No. 2 qualifier Justin Ashley and beat No. 7 Steve Torrence on her way to her first semifinal appearance of the season
• With this weekend’s performance, Pruett and the Dodge Power Broker dragster moved into the Top Fuel championship standings’ top-ten as the team prepares for the western swing that begins in Denver, Colorado, with the Dodge Power Brokers Mile-High Nationals July 15-18.
• TSR Funny Car pilot Matt Hagan qualified his Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat among the top-five positions on the eliminations ladder for a ninth time this season 
• Hagan’s second quarterfinal finish of the year wasn’t quite enough to keep him atop the Funny Car points standings but he remains in second place x points behind rival and event winner Robert Hight within 
• Defending Funny Car winner at Norwalk, Cruz Pedregon qualified his Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the top half of the eliminations ladder for the tenth time this season and advanced to his team’s eighth quarterfinal appearance of the year

June 26, 2022, Norwalk, Ohio — Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) Top Fuel pilot Leah Pruett recorded her strongest performance of the season to date aboard her Dodge Power Brokers dragster with a semifinal appearance at the 15th annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Summit Racing Equipment Nationals near Norwalk, Ohio, the tenth of 22 Camping World Drag Racing Series events this season.

After four qualifying runs put her 15th on the ladder, Pruett kicked off eliminations by upsetting No. 2 qualifier Justin Ashley with her quickest pass of the weekend. She lined up her Dodge Power Brokers dragster against Steve Torrence in the quarterfinals, was quicker on the launch, and put in another solid run to stay ahead of her competitor at the finish line with a 0.0172-second margin of victory to advance.

Pruett’s opponent for her first semifinal appearance of the season was No. 3 qualifier Mike Salinas who had the slight advantage off the start as she lost traction right at the hit of the throttle. While disappointed by the loss, her performance this weekend put her back into the top-ten in the Top Fuel standings and has her looking forward to getting her 11,000 horsepower Dodge//SRT HEMI®-powered machine back on track in July for the first of three western swing events that begin with the Dodge Power Brokers Mile-High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway.

In Funny Car action, the category points leader heading into the weekend, TSR driver Matt Hagan, qualified his Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat among the top-five positions on the eliminations ladder for a ninth time this season. His lap of 3.917 seconds at 329.91 mph put him fifth on the qualifying timesheet and set up a first round match-up with No. 12 seed Tim Wilkerson. 

Looking to repeat his 2018 winning performance at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park, Hagan staged his HEMI-powered Funny Car next to No. 12 seed Tim Wilkerson for the opening round and made a solid pass to advance while his opponent lost traction at the start.

The Dodge Power Broker Funny Car moved on to the quarterfinals where Hagan faced off against No. 4 qualifier Bob Tasca III, but saw his ride lose traction early in the run which brought the day to an earlier end than has been the case after advancing to the final round six times in ten events this season to date. The quarterfinal result, combined with Hagan’s closest championship rival Robert Hight’s eventual event win at Norwalk, meant a drop to second place in the standings but just 21 points behind the new points leader.

Winner of last year’s Funny Car Wally trophy at Norwalk, Cruz Pedregon was looking to defend that performance as he qualified in the top-half of the Funny Car eliminations ladder for a tenth consecutive event this season by taking his Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat for a 3.960 seconds lap to put him in the eighth spot. Pedregon also earned an extra bonus point in qualifying for recording the third quickest elapsed time lap in the first session of the weekend.

In his opening elimination round pairing with No. 9 seed Chad Green, Pedregon hit the throttle first and never looked back with a 3.972-second lap that wasn’t far off his qualifying time. That set up a quarterfinal battle against No. 1 qualifier Ron Capps in which Pedregon’s 3.982 sec./323.50 mph run wasn’t quite enough to beat his opponents 3.974/327.59 winning effort. The team’s eighth quarterfinal performance of the season keeps Pedregon fifth in the Funny Car standings.

The NHRA returns to action July 15-18 near Denver, Colorado, where Dodge//SRT and Mopar will mark their 33rd season as title sponsors of the Dodge Power Brokers Mile-High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway, the longest continuous event sponsorship in motorsports history.

ADDITIONAL NOTES and QUOTES:

Leah Pruett, Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel Dragster 

(No. 15 Qualifier – 3.862 seconds at 313.58 mph)

Round 1: (0.058 -second reaction time, 3.776 seconds at 327.98 mph) defeats No. 2 Justin Ashley (0.050/3.852/317.49)

Round 2: (0.062/3.798/325.61) defeats to No. 7 Steve Torrence (0.075/3.802/327.51)

Round 3: (0.076/6.062/135.36) loss to No. 3 Mike Salinas (0.063/3.822/296.89)

“Advancing to the semifinal was a long time coming and it didn’t come easy. Even though we were consistent in qualifying with our 0.86’s, we kept trying to go faster and the car was going slower. This entire year, the car has been very conversational and very reactive to what we ask it to do. This whole weekend, it was not cooperating. We were trying to throw more at it and it kept slowing down. It hung on there through the first two rounds. I’m very proud of all of my guys bolting this Dodge HEMI together. They are quality men with quality parts and great decision making skills. I’m proud of myself for being up on the wheel. 

“My takeaways are yes, we get excited about some round wins, but we didn’t get overzealous. We are highlighting how we got to this point and we will also be highlighting why we smoked the tires in the semifinal. We didn’t think we were too far over center, but we got a better handle on going rounds. Being in the top ten right now, we are good at clinching onto what we know and moving forward with momentum. We will do the same thing with the points. This was very needed on all parts – for morale, attitudes and performance of the car. It was an awesome weekend to do it in our Dodge Power Brokers dragster as we brokered it to the semifinal.”

Matt Hagan, Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car  

(No. 5 Qualifier – 3.917 seconds at 329.91 mph) 

Round 1: (0.070-second reaction time, 3.948 seconds at 322.65 mph) defeats No. 12 Tim Wilkerson (0.058/8.509/104.92)

Round 2: (0.064/4.876/173.45) loss to No. 4 Bob Tasca III (0.046/3.941/327.27)

“Having qualified fifth this weekend, we had a good race car. We are just trying to gather more data in the heat. Dickie Venables (crew chief) always has a great handle on what he’s doing and the decisions to make next. I know he’s always got a great game plan. Once we get out to Denver, we’ll be doing the Dodge Drive Event on Wednesday and Thursday, so we’ll have a long and productive weekend to start the western swing. 

We’ll be changing up our entire combination and use the one we had last year when we won at Bandimere. We will take what we learned here and tuck it away until we get to another hot race track with similar conditions and we can apply the knowledge we learned this weekend in the Dodge Power Brokers Funny Car. All in all, it’s tough when you’ve been on such a roll to go out in the second round a couple of times in a row, but that is drag racing. We will keep digging and growing and building our data to move forward.” 

Cruz Pedregon, Pedregon Racing Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

(No. 8 Qualifier – 3.960 seconds at 281.30 mph) 

Round 1: (0.063-second reaction time, 3.972 seconds at 316.75 mph) defeats No. 9 Chad Green (0.117/4.056/302.55)

Round 2: (0093/3.982/323.50) loss to No. 1 Ron Capps (0.038/3.974/327.59)

NHRA CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS STANDINGS:

Following the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Bristol Dragway

FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses)

1.   Robert Hight 929 (4)

2.  Matt Hagan (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 908 (3)

3.  Ron Capps: 829 (2)

4.  John Force: 655

5.  Cruz Pedregon (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 561

6.  Bob Tasca III: 517

7.  J.R. Todd: 509

8.  Alexis DeJoria: 490

9.  Tim Wilkerson: 443

10. Chad Green: 408

TOP FUEL (season wins in parentheses)

1.  Mike Salinas: 821 (3) 

2.  Brittany Force: 809 (3)

3.  Steve Torrence: 712 

4.  Justin Ashley: 711 (2)

5.  Austin Prock: 513

6.  Josh Hart: 509 

7.  Shawn Langdon: 467 

8.  Clay Millican: 462

9.  Doug Kalitta: 459

10. Leah Pruett (Dodge Power Brokers): 417

DodgeGarage: Digital Hub for Drag Racing News

Fans can follow all the NHRA action this season at DodgeGarage, the one-stop portal for Dodge//SRT and Mopar drag-racing news. The site includes daily updates and access to an online racing HQ, news, events, galleries, available downloads and merchandise. For more information, visit www.dodgegarage.com.

@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram

The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel continues to share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers on the track. Fans can see action from the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers, competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

Dodge//SRT

For more than 100 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Their influence continues today as Dodge shifts into high gear with muscle cars and SUVs that deliver unrivaled performance in each of the segments where they compete.

Dodge drives forward as a pure performance brand, offering SRT versions of every model across the lineup. For the 2022 model year, Dodge delivers the drag-strip dominating 807-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock, the 797-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT Redeye, the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world, and the Dodge Durango SRT 392, America’s fastest, most powerful and most capable three-row SUV. Combined, these three muscle cars make Dodge the industry’s most powerful brand, offering more horsepower than any other American brand across its entire lineup.

In 2020, Dodge was named the “#1 Brand in Initial Quality,” making it the first domestic brand ever to rank No. 1 in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS). In 2021, Dodge brand ranked No. 1 in the J.D. Power APEAL Study (mass market) — making it the only domestic brand ever to do so two years in a row.

Dodge is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Mopar

This year marks the 85th anniversary of Mopar.

A simple combination of the words MOtor and PARts, Mopar offers exceptional service, parts and customer-care. Born in 1937 as the name of a line of antifreeze products, Mopar has evolved over nearly 85 years to represent both complete vehicle care and authentic performance for owners and enthusiasts worldwide.

Mopar made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era with performance parts to enhance speed and handling for both on-road and racing use. Later, Mopar expanded to include technical service and customer support, and today integrates service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance customer and dealer support worldwide.

Complete information on Mopar is available at www.mopar.com. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Follow Dodge, Mopar and Stellantis news and video on:

Company blog: blog.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Media website: media.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Dodge brand: www.dodge.com

Mopar brand: www.mopar.com/

DodgeGarage: www.dodgegarage.com

Mopar blog: blog.mopar.com/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dodge and www.facebook.com/mopar

Instagram: @Dodgemoparmotorsports, @dodgeofficial and @officialmopar

Twitter: @Dodge, @OfficialMopar and @StellantisNA

YouTube: www.youtube.com/dodge, https://www.youtube.com/c/mopar and www.youtube.com/StellantisNA

CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT NHRA NATIONALS
SUMMIT MOTORSPORTS PARK IN NORWALK, OHIO
JUNE 26, 2022

• Robert Hight grabs Funny Car points lead with fourth victory of 2022
• Erica Enders extends Pro Stock points lead with fifth win of the season

NORWALK, Ohio (June 26, 2022) — Chevrolet drivers Robert Hight and Erica Enders helped their championship aspirations with victories in the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals.

Hight, driving the the AAA of Ohio Chevrolet Camaro SS, takes over the Funny Car points lead with his fourth victory of the season, while Enders extends her Pro Stock lead to 105 points with her series-leading fifth win of the year.

“I think its awesome and I am so proud of this team,” said Hight after the win. “They have worked so hard. It shows we are legit here and here to win. But, you know what, we have two weeks to get ready for Denver and go out there and try to sweep the swing. And that is exactly what this Auto Club team is going to try to do.”

Hight defeated Bob Tasca in the finals while his teammate John Force fell in the second round after dropping a cylinder. Force, the No. 2 qualifier in the PEAK/BlueDEF Platinum Camaro SS, extended his NHRA record with his 4,000th career elimination round win.

In Pro Stock, Enders met Elite Motorsports teammate Aaron Stanfield in the finals for the fourth time this season. She has won three of those meetings. “I go back to the old days and remember how long this journey has been,” said Enders, driver of the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS. “This is my 18th year in Pro Stock. I’m sure some of the viewers are sick of seeing this Melling Performance Chevy Camaro in the winner’s circle, but we went seven years winless.”

In Top Fuel, Brittany Force made it to the semis in the Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet dragster before falling to Josh Hart in a tight drag race and surrenders the point lead. John Force Racing teammate Austin Prock fell in the second round after losing a cylinders.

The Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown final was a classic face-off between David Barton in his Chevrolet COPO Camaro and Bill Skillman. Barton came up a blink short at the final and heads into the next round second in the standings. The battle for the Factory Stock Showdown world championship will continue Labor Day weekend at the U.S. Nationals.

Chevrolet teams will prepare for the annual Western Swing – three consecutive weekends of racing – starting July 15-17 at Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado. Brittany Force was the No. 1 qualifier in Top Fuel in the 2021 event. Pro Stock did not compete at Bandimere Speedway last year. FOX will telecast eliminations at 4 p.m. ET July 17.

CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT

TOP FUEL:

BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY/FLAV-R-PAC CHEVROLET DRAGSTER: ““Overall, our Monster Energy team had a good weekend at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio. We earned our third No.1 qualifier of the season, set both ends of the track record with a 3.666 at 333 mph run, and made a semi-final round appearance on raceday,” Force said. “We have a couple weeks off to reset and get ready for the Western Swing. We kick it off starting in Denver and then head to Sonoma and Seattle. We plan to keep the rhythm we’ve held all year and get back in another winners circle.”

AUSTIN PROCK, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONTANA BRANDS/ROCKY MOUNTAIN TWIST CHEVROLET DRAGSTER: “We made good progress today on our Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist car and I messed it up. I was .063 on the tree and got picked off,” Prock said. “Definitely pissed for my guys. They’re doing a great job and we just can’t seem to get it done. I’ll go to work to try and improve to make sure this doesn’t happen again. Looking forward to the Western Swing here in a few weeks

FUNNY CAR:

JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK/BLUEDEF PLATINUM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “Not a bad weekend for this PEAK Chevrolet team. We picked up quite a few qualifying points and we were strong through qualifying, even today, race day, we looked good,” Force said. “We dropped a cylinder out there, not sure why, but we’ll get it figured out and move onto the Western Swing. Good weekend for Robert and AAA over there getting the win and Brittany with Monster and Flav-R-Pac going No. 1. The Prock kid, they are pulling it together, he’s hard on himself so he’ll work at it and that Montana Brand team will be good.”

ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AAA OF OHIO CHEVROLET CAMARO SS: “I think its awesome and I am so proud of this team. They have worked so hard. AAA and everybody behind us, Chevrolet, Cornwell Tools was here with us. AAA of Ohio this weekend was a big deal. They love coming out here to the races, and there were some new faces. It shows we are legit here and here to win. But you know what, we have two weeks to get ready for Denver and go out there and try to sweep the swing. And that is exactly what this Auto Club team is going to try to do.

“This is big. I’ve never won here. We come here almost every year and race in Night Under Fire, a huge match race where the Badder’s pack in all the fans. I’ve won that thing a lot, but I could never get it done here for the National event. I think this is awesome being able to cross this one off and get the points lead, it’s big. I am so proud of this AAA team. They have worked so hard. AAA Ohio and everybody behind us, Chevrolet, Cornwell Tools was here with us. I’ve had so much fun this weekend and we’ve had a great time, and I’m not ready for it to end.”

PRO STOCK:

ERICA ENDERS, ELITE MOTORSPORTS, MELLING PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO: “I go back to the old days and remember how long this journey has been. This is my 18th year in Pro Stock. I’m sure some of the viewers are sick of seeing this Melling Performances Chevy Camaro in the Winner’s Circle, but we went seven years winless. I drove for multiple teams and struggled to find money. But I finally found a home here and these Elite Motorsports guys believe in me – more than I do sometimes. I don’t have to question where they stand and I’ll tell you what as a driver it clears my mind and makes me question nothing. I could not be more proud of these guys. And thanks again to Melling Performance. We are going to Jackson, Michigan, tomorrow to see the Melling family and all their great employees, and we get to take them some badass hardware to show them I am just so proud.”

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in nearly 80 countries with nearly 2.7 million cars and trucks sold in 2021. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Brittany Force, Erica Enders continue to pace Top Fuel, Pro Stock in points races

DETROIT (June 23, 2022) – Aaron Stanfield is looking to stitch together another solid race weekend in the Janac Brothers Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock car as the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Camping World Drag Racing Series heads to Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.

Stanfield earned his first victory of the season at Phoenix in February and has reached the finals the past two races – winning June 19 at Bristol Dragway — to make a dent in Elite Motorsports teammate Erica Enders’ points lead.

“Being able to hand my dad a Pro Stock Wally at Bristol on Father’s Day is probably up there among my biggest (accomplishments),” said Stanfield, who won twice in Top Dragster at Bristol before jumping in a Pro Stock car.

“I don’t know if it necessarily means it’s clicking for me just yet. They’ve done a really good job with my race car. I should be doing well with as fast as it is.”

Enders, driver of the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Camaro SS, has advanced to the final round in five of the seven races, winning four. She holds a 19-3 record on race day.

Enders is also the defending Pro Stock winner at Norwalk. She defeated Greg Anderson, who went on to claim the 2021 class title in the HendickCars.com Camaro SS, in the final. He continues the quest for victory No. 100 to join John Force (155) as the only professional drivers with triple digit wins.

Brittany Force, runner-up in Top Fuel at Norwalk last year, continues to pace the field in points in the Flav-R-Pac/Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster. Force, with three victories, has held the top spot in the standings for a career-best five races.

Robert Hight, the No. 1 Funny Car qualifier at Bristol in the Automobile Club of Southern California Camaro SS, also has three wins and holds down second in the standings. He also holds the track Funny Car speed record, set in 2017. John Force, who reached the semifinals last week in the PEAK/BlueDEF Platinum Camaro SS, is fourth in the Funny Car standings. His next round win will the record-extending 1,400th of his illustrious career.

Austin Prock, a semifinalist in two races of the past three races in the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster, is fifth in Top Fuel standings.

The race weekend will also feature the fifth round of the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown. David Barton of Reading, Pennsylvania, took a step toward his second title in the category by driving his Chevrolet COPO Camaro to the victory last week at Bristol in an all-COPO final round against Stephen Bell of Shreveport, Louisiana.

“I feel like we have good momentum going. Every single race we’ve had a car in the final,” said Barton, who moved to the top of the standings. “We’ll keep it rolling as good as we can.”

Following the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, Chevrolet teams will prepare for the annual Western Swing – three consecutive weekends of racing – starting July 15-17 at Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado.

CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT

TOP FUEL

BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY/FLAV-R-PAC CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (three-time winner this season; points leader; runner-up at Norwalk in 2021): “Heading into Norwalk, a quick turnaround from Bristol. Definitely OK with that. This Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team plans to pick up some points. We get four qualifying rounds before going into race day, which is awesome. We’re looking for a top three qualifying position and getting as many points as we can then going rounds on race day and getting into that winner’s circle.”

AUSTIN PROCK, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONTANA BRAND/ROCKY MOUNTAIN TWIST CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (runner-up at Pomona opener; semifinalist in two of past three races): “I’m excited for Norwalk. I have some unfinished business there. I was able to fill in for Clay last year and made it to the semis. I feel like that opportunity put me back on the map from a driving aspect. I’m looking to go all the way this year with my Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team. To get a win there would be an awesome story. I think we have the team to do it and we’re going to come in swinging.”

FUNNY CAR

JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK BLUEDEF PLATINUM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier and Charlotte four-wide winner; won at track in 2014): “I’ve got a lot of history in Norwalk. The Bader Family, they do as amazing job putting on a real show. The stands are always packed, which is what drag racers live for, turning that corner and seeing all those fans. That really gets you going, really gets my energy up. This PEAK Chevy is right there in the hunt. Danny Hood and Tim Fabrisi, my crew chiefs, they make the adjustments, and they figure this Camaro out, we’ll be ready to go.”

ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AAA OF OHIO CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (three-time winner this season; second in points; holds track Funny Car speed record, set in 2017): “I like these back-to-back races, I don’t like having all the downtime. So, I’m excited to be heading to Norwalk. We didn’t have the performance we wanted in Bristol and this gives an opportunity for this AAA team to quickly pick things back up,” Hight said. “We’re still second in points and it’s a tough field right now. We aren’t the only ones with three wins and when we aren’t winning, we still need to be going rounds, picking up qualifying points and making sure we’re still in it. We have to be consistent.”

PRO STOCK

KYLE KORETSKY, KB RACING, LUCAS OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier at Phoenix; runner-up at Gainesville; semifinalist in June 19 race at Bristol; third in standings): “Norwalk is a great track. Running back-to-back like this I feel better as a driver. I get more confidence. I was driving good and felt good (at Bristol). I thought if I could get past Greg (Anderson) in the second round I have a good shot at winning the race. The car was running good. In the semis, we just missed the setup a little bit. Norwalk, here we come. It is supposed to be good and hot, which my car likes and has a good tune-up for. We’ll be ready to go.”

DALLAS GLENN, KB RACING, RAD TORQUE SYSTEMS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (winner at Gainesville; No. 1 qualifier at Epping; semifinalist in June 19 race at Bristol): “Going to Norwalk is one of my top races every year, even before I start driving my RAD Torque Systems / KB Racing Chevrolet Camaro. I consider it one of the nicest facilities on the circuit and I know our car will respond well to it if we keep working off our semifinal round appearance momentum from Bristol last weekend.”

GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (reigning Pro Stock champion; seeking to become second pro driver with 100 wins; has three victories at the track): “The Summit Racing Equipment event is in just a few days at one of the nicest tracks we go to, and I’m looking forward to getting there. That’s been a good race for us, a good race for me, personally, and I would really like to have a get-well weekend there for this HendrickCars.com team.”

TROY COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (runner-up at Phoenix; from Columbus, Ohio): “I always love racing with family, I love racing in the great state of Ohio, and it’s great when you know you’ll have a ton of support in the stands with all the JEGS associates who are always on hand, so this weekend checks all the boxes for me. We found some issues with the suspension and shocks on our race car since the last race and everything has been corrected so we’re looking to have a strong rebound race. My thanks to Mark Ingersoll, Kyle Bates, Ricky Calloway, and Kelly Murphy for all the extra hours they’ve put in getting this new RJ Race Cars chassis up to speed.”

CAMRIE CARUSO, CARUSO FAMILY RACING, KINGS OF VAPOR CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (first season in Pro Stock; No. 1 qualifier and runner-up at Houston): “I have raced at Norwalk a bunch and I am excited to have Kings of Vapor on my Camaro this weekend. I won there in Top Alcohol Dragster and I have raced my 632 car there. My dad has won there in Pro Mod so I really enjoy Norwalk. The fans have always been great and I am looking forward to racing my Kings of Vapor Chevrolet Camaro Pro Stock car this weekend.”

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in nearly 80 countries with nearly 2.7 million cars and trucks sold in 2021. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Leah Pruett & Matt Hagan
Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel & Funny Car Drivers
Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals
June 24-26 | Norwalk, Ohio

Event Overview

Friday, June 24 (Nitro Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

● Nitro qualifying session (Q1): 5:30 p.m. EDT
● Nitro qualifying session (Q2): 8:30 p.m. EDT

Saturday, June 25 (Nitro Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

● Nitro qualifying session (Q3): 1:30 p.m. EDT
● Nitro qualifying session (Q4): 5 p.m. EDT

Sunday, June 26 (Nitro Eliminations, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

● Round 1: 11 a.m. EDT
● Round 2: 1:15 p.m. EDT
● Semi-Finals: 3:15 p.m. EDT
● Finals: 4:55 p.m. EDT

TV coverage

● Friday, June 24: Qualifying show (10:30 p.m. EDT on FS1)
● Sunday, June 26: Qualifying show recapping Saturday’s action (1:30 p.m. EDT on FS1)
● Sunday, June 26: Finals show (3 p.m. EDT on FOX)

Notes of Interest

● The Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio, marks the 10th event on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series’ 22-race calendar. Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) brings its two fulltime entries – one in Top Fuel for nine-time event winner Leah Pruett and one in Funny Car for three-time Funny Car champion Matt Hagan.

● Dodge Power Brokers and Direct Connection return to Pruett’s Top Fuel dragster and Hagan’s Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car this weekend in Norwalk. The Dodge Power Brokers program serves as the exclusive source for Direct Connection, Dodge’s factory-backed performance parts program, which is equipped with staff trained to deliver a performance-focused customer service experience.

● Pruett and Hagan will participate in a Dodge autograph session on Friday from 3:45-4:15 p.m. EDT and again on Saturday from 11:45-12:15 p.m. EDT. Both sessions will take place in the pits at the Dodge display.

● The Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals will serve as Pruett’s 181st career Top Fuel start and her seventh at Norwalk. For Hagan, this will be his 303rd career Funny Car start and his 13th at Norwalk.

● Pruett is eyeing her first victory in the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals. She is also seeking her first No. 1 qualifier at Norwalk.

● Hagan has one career win at Norwalk in 2018 (4.094 ET at 288.21 mph) when he defeated Courtney Force (4.220 ET at 227.54 mph). Hagan has two No. 1 qualifiers at the event, which came in 2015 (3.973 ET at 321.96 mph) and 2017 (3.865 ET at 333.33 mph).

● Hagan enters Norwalk with a 42-point lead in the Funny Car championship standings over his nearest pursuer, Robert Hight.

● Hagan has reached the final round in 13 of the last 35 NHRA events, including six of nine this year.

Leah Pruett, Driver of the Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel Dragster

Having raced last weekend at Bristol (Tenn.) Dragway, what advantage do you and the Dodge Power Brokers team get with back-to-back race weekends?

“Although our altitude and weather conditions will change at Norwalk, we are in what I would call our second phase of the season weather-wise. Back-to-back between here and Norwalk, it is hot. What we learned in Bristol, we will be able to utilize in Norwalk. From a mental standpoint, everything is fresh in your brain. The guys service the car on Monday on the road and we get to continue our momentum. We have high attitudes and we are ready to get to Ohio.”

You have four rounds of qualifying at Norwalk. What advantage does four rounds of qualifying have versus three rounds, which is what you have at the majority of NHRA events?

“I’ve been dreaming of these Fridays to come of having two rounds on Friday. It is so advantageous as a driver because you want to see that Christmas tree in your car and get acclimated as many times as possible. It’s also our happy place. The first run sets the standard for the entire weekend – a zero below or above. Once you get that first run, you see where you’re at and you’re hopeful to be able to improve upon that for your Friday night session, which is most likely going to be the quickest of the entire event. It’s almost a pre-qualifier for your qualifier. When we only have three sessions, it’s very easy to get behind the eight ball, and that’s not a place we like to be. We cherish the number of runs we get to have, especially as we’re starting to go rounds and gather data. It’s my favorite thing, and I also really enjoy it for the fans that they get to see a lot of action on Friday if they can’t make it to the track the whole weekend.”

Norwalk is known for its $1 per pound ice cream, which has inspired the tradition of winners receiving a special ice-cream-scoop trophy along with the Wally. What would it mean to bring home both trophies this weekend?

“I really do stay away from sweets as much as possible. I’m more of a spicy foods girl, but I will take any type of winner’s circle trophy. With the round wins that we’ve had, each one feels different. We don’t break our cycle and we don’t break our momentum, so to think about being in the winner’s circle with both of those trophies would be very deserving for everyone. It’d be like getting your cake and eating it too and having your ice cream. I guarantee it’ll be a lot of work to get there, but I believe we’re due for it. A win will be memorable no matter what, but it’d be even sweeter if we’re able to take home both trophies.”

Dodge’s headquarters is located 150 miles north of Norwalk in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Talk about the significance of competing in a quasi home race for Dodge.

“Norwalk is technically a homecoming for us. Not just as our largest partner, but power plant and supporter in helping us gain advantages. On both the Funny Car and Top Fuel side, we work remotely with the Detroit headquarters on a number of projects and this is our opportunity to have our face-to-face meetings with them and go over more details about our projects. That is something I look forward to. For those individuals to be out at the track with us, that might spur conversations that we haven’t been able to have via email and Zoom. Winning with the Dodge Power Brokers car always has an extra push of horsepower behind it because it’s so endemic and this team would not exist without Dodge and the people who are coming to Norwalk. It’s not added pressure, by any means, but rather a welcome backing. We can’t wait to unleash our HEMI horsepower for them to see and continue the programs that we have.”

Matt Hagan, Driver of the Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car

Having raced last weekend at Bristol, what advantage do you and the Dodge Power Brokers team get with back-to-back race weekends?

“Back-to-back race weekends are always good because we’re always learning something and can carry that into the next week with only a few days in between. It’s just like anything, when you stretch it out, the more time you have to think about things and even as a driver, you can sometimes overthink things. I have nothing but confidence in this group and what Dickie (Venables, crew chief), Mike (Knudson, co-crew chief), Alex (Conaway, car chief) and all the guys are doing out here making the calls. We just have to get ready to roll into these tracks with hot weather.”

What advantage does four rounds of qualifying have versus three rounds?

“Four rounds are always great, since it’s more data we get to collect. It’s more opportunity to record a low ET and collect more points. Dickie has been reviewing data from all the way back to 2014. Four rounds feels like old-school racing, but I understand why we generally now only have three rounds. On Friday night, we get to kind of let it all hang out and then on Saturday, we have to pull it back in to get a good pace for raceday.”

Norwalk is known for its $1 per pound ice cream, which has inspired the tradition of winners receiving a special ice-cream-scoop trophy along with the Wally. What would it mean to bring home both trophies this weekend?

“I have an ice-cream scoop trophy at the house from my win in 2018. It’s one of those trophies that stands out on the wall of Wallys, and it would sure be nice to add another one to it. I have four kids, so I guess I need to win three more ice-cream scoops.”

Dodge’s headquarters is located 150 miles north of Norwalk in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Talk about the significance of competing in a quasi home race for Dodge.

“We love to see Dodge folks out at the racetrack, so hopefully even more of them will make the drive to come see us at Norwalk. We love putting on a show for them. They do an amazing job keeping us surrounded by great people and parts. It’s amazing all the work they’ve done with the new car bodies as far as the wind tunnel goes and R&D. We’ve gone to their headquarters in the past, so it’s always nice to visit with more of their employees. Any time we can all rally around that and have support, we love it.”

• Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) Funny Car pilot Matt Hagan qualified his TruHarvest Farms Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat No. 4 on the eliminations ladder for the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Thunder Valley Nationals and came away with his second quarterfinal appearance of the year
• Hagan’s second round exit came on the heels of his win at the New England Nationals, his third victory of the season, and six final elimination appearances keeping the Dodge//SRT Mopar Funny Car atop the category’s world championship points standings after nine events
• Cruz Pedregon qualified his Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the No. 6 spot for eliminations at Bristol Dragway and advanced to his team’s sixth quarterfinal appearance of the season
• For her 180th career Top Fuel start, TSR driver Leah Pruett qualified her Mobile 1 Dodge//SRT dragster tenth and advanced to the quarterfinals 

June 19, 2022, Bristol, Tennessee — The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Camping World Drag Racing series made its ninth stop of the 22-event season at the Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway where all three Dodge//SRT supported entries recorded quarterfinal performances.

Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) driver Matt Hagan qualified his TruHarvest Farms Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat No. 4 on the eliminations ladder with a best lap of 4.014 seconds at 318.09 mph and also earned two bonus points for setting the third quickest time in both the first and third session. 

The three-time world champion staged his 11,000 horsepower Dodge//SRT Funny car next to No. 13 seed Phil Burkhart for the opening round, launched first, and began to pull away while his opponent lost traction early in his run. As the TSR machine approached the finish, it too began to lose traction forcing Hagan to ease off the throttle before earning his category-leading 24th round-win of the season.

In his quarterfinal matchup against No. 12 qualifier Alexis DeJoria, Hagan was once again quicker on the draw and in the lead when he lost traction and tried to pedal it a few times to try to stay in front. However, DeJoria was able to take advantage of Hagan’s issues to make the pass and turn on the win lights to end his day earlier than usual.

Hagan’s quarterfinal exit came on the heels of his win at the New England Nationals, the team’s third victory of the season, and six final elimination appearances. The result was enough to keep the Dodge//SRT Mopar Funny Car atop the category’s standings and ahead of his closest challenger, Robert Hight, by 42 points after nine national events.

Sitting fifth in the category standings, Cruz Pedregon qualified his Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the sixth place position on the eliminations ladder at Bristol Dragway with a 4.068 seconds at 312.71 mph run and earned a bonus point for running third quickest in the second session. 

In the opening round of eliminations, Pedregon had a quicker start and won a good side-by-side battle with No. 11 seed J.R. Todd to advance to the quarterfinals where he would face No. 3 qualifier John Force. Pedregon saw Force get off the start line first but was gaining ground on his opponent when he lost a cylinder and fell back, marking the team’s sixth quarterfinal result this year.

TSR driver Leah Pruett put her Mobile 1 Dodge//SRT dragster in the tenth spot on the eliminations ladder for her 180th career Top Fuel start with a best lap of 3.867 seconds at 318.32 mph in the third qualifying session. 

The nine-time event winner faced off against No. 7 seed Austin Prock in the first round and took her HEMI®-powered machine straight down the lane with her quickest run of the weekend at 3.835 seconds at 324.36 mph to advance to the quarterfinals where she would be paired with No. 2 qualifier Steve Torrence.

Pruett beat Torrence on the tree but soon saw him make the pass as her ride began to lose cylinders and end her day 

The NHRA is back in action next weekend at the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals, June 23-26, at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park near Norwalk, Ohio.

ADDITIONAL NOTES and QUOTES:

Leah Pruett, Mobil 1 Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel Dragster 

(No. 10 Qualifier – 3.867 seconds at 318.32 mph)

Round 1: (0.070-second reaction time, 3.835 seconds at 324.36 mph) defeats No. 7 Austin Prock (0.063/4.107/298.27)

Round 2: (0.069/3.960/306.74) loss to No. 2 Steve Torrence (0.072/3.891/315.86)

“Some weekends we have a very consistent race car and we get to progress with our ETs (elapsed times) and then sometimes we have a weekend like this where we were on both sides of the spectrum. I think we learned the most about our race car than we have all year. When we smoked the tires in the first round of qualifying on Friday, from an engine standpoint, we were less than powered, which is what we wanted and it shows that our clutch program is too aggressive. We have spent our entire weekend dialing in our clutch program. That’s something that’s been running very well all year and has not been problematic. Our car has been very cooperative when making all of our tuning adjustments. 

“Winning the first round was big and we were able to pick up from our qualifying efforts of an 0.86, but going into the second round, we dropped a cylinder at the step and that is the first time we’ve done that all year, including testing. Between now and Norwalk, we are going to do a deep dive into the fuel-system to see where that is coming from. There are a lot of ways to lose and a lot of ways to win. We’re going to continue to work on our ways to win. There are cars that can drop a whole cylinder and their engines can’t hang on. We dropped a cylinder at the hit and I was still able to hold on to give Steve Torrence a run for his money. We even left the line first and that is a testament to our Mobil 1 motor oil that it gave us every fighting chance we had. Other motors can’t be put to that test. We have a lot of confidence in our Mobil 1 product and Dodge HEMI engine. We’re onto some good momentum and look forward to Norwalk.”

Matt Hagan, TruHarvest Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car  

(No. 4 Qualifier – 4.014 seconds at 318.09 mph) 

Round 1: (0.074-second reaction time, 4.169 seconds at 279.79 mph) defeats No. 13 Phil Burkhart (0.145/7.915/76.96)

Round 2: (0.085/4.914/201.70) loss to No. 12 Alexis DeJoria (0.098/4.068/317.12)

“What an awesome weekend at Bristol as far as fans, friends and family members at the track that’s two hours from my home. There were a lot of Matt Hagan shirts everywhere. It was a really neat experience being able to run the TruHarvest Farms car for the first time in the NHRA and debut it here at Bristol. 

“It was a super tricky race track out there today and these cars are just as hard to pull back as they are forward, and we just had a really fast race car. You have some give and take in life. It’s just one of those things where having a fast race car like that is tough and tricky. I have all the confidence in my guys to roll into Norwalk (Ohio) with our Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat and keep doing what we’re doing. This was a challenging track, but the NHRA did a good job trying to prep it. It’s tough for all teams, so it comes down to which tuner, team and driver can find the right combination to get down the track.”

Cruz Pedregon, Pedregon Racing Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

(No. 6 Qualifier – 4.068 seconds at 312.71 mph)

Round 1: (0.049-second reaction time, 4.148 seconds at 302.89 mph) defeats No. 11 J.R. Todd (0.062/4.168/283.25)

Round 2: (0.101/4.177/289.88) loss to No. 3 John Force (0.078/4.096/300.60)

“I enjoy these racetracks that have what I call personality. They have some imperfections, bumps and what have you, but I kinda liken it to NASCAR where you have your road courses and your short track events. It gives a crew chiefs and the drivers an opportunity to kind of show a different skill set. Crew chiefs have to kind of slow things down and figure out where the bumps are, and while the bumps are not bad, they’re enough to upset the car. As a driver you need to be on your game. You need to be on your toes, keep the car in the groove, which is within a few feet left or right and also be ready to pedal the car by getting in and out of the throttle. It’s a challenge and whoever wins this race comes out really earning their keep from a team perspective. 

“We went to the second round quarterfinals after we had a great match up. Seems like we’ve been racing J.R. Todd, a lot. We raced him some twice in qualifying and it’s a championship caliber car and we had to go up against them in the first round. We ran a great 4.14 with a cylinder out at half track and it was a close race. Second round we went against John Force, a long-time nemesis of mine, and he got the better of us there. We actually dropped a cylinder about 400 feet out and that was our weekend. We’re outlasting the competition that is behind us in points and we’re just kind of holding our own there.”

NHRA CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS STANDINGS:

Following the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway

FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses)

1.  Matt Hagan (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 854 (3)

2.  Robert Hight: 812 (3)

3.  Ron Capps: 748 (2)

4.  John Force: 588

5.  Cruz Pedregon (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 507

6.  J.R. Todd: 435

7.  Alexis DeJoria: 434

8.  Bob Tasca III: 420

9.  Tim Wilkerson: 411

10. Chad Green: 373

TOP FUEL (season wins in parentheses)

1.  Brittany Force: 724 (3)

2.  Mike Salinas: 699 (2) 

3.  Justin Ashley: 672 (2) 

4.  Steve Torrence: 653

5.  Austin Prock: 459

6.  Shawn Langdon: 435 

7.  Clay Millican: 430

8.  Josh Hart: 414 

9.  Doug Kalitta: 405

10. Antron Brown: 370

12. Leah Pruett (Dodge Power Brokers): 346

DodgeGarage: Digital Hub for Drag Racing News

Fans can follow all the NHRA action this season at DodgeGarage, the one-stop portal for Dodge//SRT and Mopar drag-racing news. The site includes daily updates and access to an online racing HQ, news, events, galleries, available downloads and merchandise. For more information, visit www.dodgegarage.com.

@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram

The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel continues to share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers on the track. Fans can see action from the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers, competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

Dodge//SRT

For more than 100 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Their influence continues today as Dodge shifts into high gear with muscle cars and SUVs that deliver unrivaled performance in each of the segments where they compete.

Dodge drives forward as a pure performance brand, offering SRT versions of every model across the lineup. For the 2022 model year, Dodge delivers the drag-strip dominating 807-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock, the 797-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT Redeye, the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world, and the Dodge Durango SRT 392, America’s fastest, most powerful and most capable three-row SUV. Combined, these three muscle cars make Dodge the industry’s most powerful brand, offering more horsepower than any other American brand across its entire lineup.

In 2020, Dodge was named the “#1 Brand in Initial Quality,” making it the first domestic brand ever to rank No. 1 in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS). In 2021, Dodge brand ranked No. 1 in the J.D. Power APEAL Study (mass market) — making it the only domestic brand ever to do so two years in a row.

Dodge is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Mopar

This year marks the 85th anniversary of Mopar.

A simple combination of the words MOtor and PARts, Mopar offers exceptional service, parts and customer-care. Born in 1937 as the name of a line of antifreeze products, Mopar has evolved over nearly 85 years to represent both complete vehicle care and authentic performance for owners and enthusiasts worldwide.

Mopar made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era with performance parts to enhance speed and handling for both on-road and racing use. Later, Mopar expanded to include technical service and customer support, and today integrates service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance customer and dealer support worldwide.

Complete information on Mopar is available at www.mopar.com. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Follow Dodge, Mopar and Stellantis news and video on:

Company blog: blog.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Media website: media.stellantisnorthamerica.com

Dodge brand: www.dodge.com

Mopar brand: www.mopar.com/

DodgeGarage: www.dodgegarage.com

Mopar blog: blog.mopar.com/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dodge and www.facebook.com/mopar

Instagram: @Dodgemoparmotorsports, @dodgeofficial and @officialmopar

Twitter: @Dodge, @OfficialMopar and @StellantisNA

YouTube: www.youtube.com/dodge, https://www.youtube.com/c/mopar and www.youtube.com/StellantisNA

Leah Pruett & Matt Hagan
Top Fuel | Funny Car
NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
June 17-19 | Bristol, Tennessee

Event Recap

Leah Pruett, driver of the Mobil 1 Top Fuel Dragster:

● Earned No. 15 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (12.415 ET at 65.23 mph).
● Earned No. 13 qualifying position in Q2 on Saturday (4.277 ET at 209.17 mph).
● Secured No. 10 qualifying position in Q3 on Saturday (3.867 ET at 318.32 mph).
● Advanced to Round 2 on Sunday:

●  Round 1: 3.835 ET at 324.36 mph, beat Austin Prock (4.107 ET at 298.27 mph).

●  Round 2: 3.960 ET at 306.74 mph, lost to Steve Torrence (3.891 ET at 315.86 mph).

● Currently 12th in the Top Fuel championship standings, 378 points behind points leader Brittany Force.

Matt Hagan, driver of the TruHarvest Farms Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car:

● Earned No. 3 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (4.172 ET at 235.23 mph).

● Scored one bonus point for third-quickest run of the session.

● Unable to make a run in Q2 on Saturday due to mechanical malfunction. Following Q2, Hagan was the No. 7 provisional qualifier based off Friday’s Q1 run.

● Secured No. 4 qualifying position in Q3 on Saturday (4.014 ET at 318.09 mph).

● Advanced to Round 2 on Sunday:

●  Round 1: 4.169 ET at 279.79 mph, defeated Phil Burkhart (7.915 ET at 76.96 mph).

●  Round 2: 4.914 ET at 201.70 mph, lost to Alexis DeJoria (4.068 ET at 317.12 mph).

● Currently leads the Funny Car championship standings with a 42-point advantage over his nearest pursuer, Robert Hight.

Notes of Interest

● With an average temperature of 124 degrees, Bristol was home to the hottest track conditions the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series has had this season.

● By winning Round 1 at Bristol, Hagan has 24 round wins this season to lead the Funny Car category.

● The NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals marked Pruett’s ninth start at Bristol. She advanced to Round 2 for the third time this season.

● Hagan lives in Christiansburg, Virginia, located 120 miles northwest of Bristol, making the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals his home race. It was a special Father’s Day weekend for Hagan as he had numerous family members at the track supporting him.

Leah Pruett, Driver of the Mobil 1 Top Fuel Dragster

“Some weekends we have a very consistent racecar and we get to progress with our ETs (elapsed time) and then sometimes we have a weekend like this where we were on both sides of the spectrum. I think we learned the most about our racecar that we have all year. When we smoked the tires in the first round of qualifying on Friday, from an engine standpoint, we were less than powered, which is what we wanted and it shows that our clutch program is too aggressive. We’ve spent our entire weekend dialing in our clutch program. That’s something that’s been running very well all year and has not been problematic. Our car has been very cooperative when making all of our tuning adjustments. Winning first round was big, and we were able to pick up from our qualifying efforts of an .86, but going into second round, we dropped a cylinder at the step and that’s the first time we’ve done that all year, including testing. Between now and Norwalk (Ohio), we’re diving into fuel-system wise where that is coming from. There are a lot of ways to lose and a lot of ways to win. We’re going to continue to work on our ways to win. There are cars that can drop a whole cylinder and their engines can’t hang on. We dropped a cylinder at the hit and I was still able to hold on to give Steve Torrence a run for his money. We even left the line first and that is a testament to our Mobil 1 synthetic motor oil – it gave us every fighting chance we had. Other motors can’t be put to that test. We have a lot of confidence in our Mobil 1 product and Dodge HEMI engine. We’re onto some good momentum and look forward to Norwalk.”

Matt Hagan, Driver of the TruHarvest Farms Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car

“What an awesome weekend at Bristol as far as fans, friends and family members at the track that’s two hours from my home. There were a lot of Matt Hagan shirts everywhere. It was a really neat experience being able to run the TruHarvest Farms car for the first time in the NHRA and debut it here at Bristol. It was a super tricky racetrack out there today and these cars are just as hard to pull back as they are forward, and we just had a really fast racecar. You have some give and take in life. It’s just one of those things where having a fast racecar like that is tough and tricky. I have all the confidence in my guys to roll into Norwalk with our Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat and keep doing what we’re doing. This was a challenging track, but the NHRA did a good job trying to prep it. It’s tough for all teams, so it comes down to which tuner, team and driver can find the right combination to get down the track.”

Next Up

The next event on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series schedule is the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals June 23-26 at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.

CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
NHRA THUNDER VALLEY NATIONALS
BRISTOL DRAGWAY IN BRISTOL, TENNESSEE
JUNE 19, 2022

Chevrolet drivers celebrate Father’s Day with wins at Bristol

• Aaron Stanfield collects second Pro Stock Wally of the season
• David Barton wins Factory Stock Showdown in all-COPO Camaro final
• Robert Hight earns 73rd Funny Car No. 1 qualifier; John Force reaches semifinals

BRISTOL, Tenn. (June 19, 2022) — Aaron Stanfield collected his fifth career Pro Stock victory a few days after his daughter, Oakleigh, was born February 21. On his first Father’s Day, he dedicated his sixth Wally to his father – 2021 Super Stock champion Greg – earned at Bristol Dragway.

No. 1 qualifier Stanfield, making his fourth final-round appearance of the season in the Janac Brothers Chevrolet Camaro SS, defeated class points leader Erica Enders in the third meeting of the Elite Motorsports teammates in the final in seven National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Camping World Drag Racing Series events.

“As a team, we did a really good job today,” said Stanfield, who also won at Phoenix. “It was not a good show in the final round; we had some tire shake. I tried to shift through it, I saw some smoke (pouring from Ender’s Melling Performance Camaro SS) and I just stuck it back in gear and tried to get there. I want to say Happy Father’s Day to my dad. It’s the best gift I could give him. I’m glad we could get it done.”

David Barton of Reading, Pennsylvania, defeated Stephen Bell of Shreveport, Louisiana, in an all-Chevrolet COPO Camaro final among former Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown champions. Daniel Condon was the No. 1 qualifier in his COPO Camaro.

“It worked out well for us today,” said Barton, who moved to the top of the standings through four of eight rounds in his 2022 COPO Camaro. “This category is insanely hard. You’re either smoking the tires or pulling a 200-foot wheelie. It’s hard to find a balance, so this is gratifying.”

Robert Hight earned the 73rd No. 1 Funny Car qualifier honor of his distinguished career, which is sixth on the NHRA all-time list. Hight, driving the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS, lost in the quarterfinals. He remains second in the Funny Car standings.

John Force, driving the PEAK/BlueDEF Platinum Camaro SS, advanced to the Funny Car semifinals from the No. 3 qualifying spot and reached 1,399 career elimination round victories. He is fourth in the standings.

Top Fuel No. 5 qualifier Brittany Force lost traction early in her quarterfinal round run in the Flav-R-Pac/Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster and fell to Antron Brown. She retains the points lead built on three victories in the nine races. Austin Prock, driving the Montana Brand/ Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster, lost in the first round.

Darren Poole-Adams of Shelby, North Carolina, drove his Chevrolet COPO Camaro to victory in Stock Eliminator, defeating Todd Ewing’s ’67 Camaro in the final.

“I’ve been blessed this weekend. If you look at my stats, they’re probably the worst in drag racing. It just falls into my lap some days,” said Poole-Adams, who picked up his second national event Wally of the season.

L. Scott Libersher of Wilmington, Illinois, was runner-up in Super Stock in his COPO Camaro.

Chevrolet teams are back on track June 24-26 for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. FOX will telecast eliminations at 3 p.m. ET June 26. Erica Enders drove the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS to victory in Pro Stock in the 2021 event at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park. Brittany Force was runner-up in Top Fuel in her Chevrolet dragster.

CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT

TOP FUEL:

BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, FLAV-R-PAC/MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (No. 5 qualifier; fell in quarterfinals): “It was a tough weekend here at Thunder Valley for this Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team. We got eliminated in round two but, luckily we kept the points lead. We have a quick turnaround and get to head to Norwalk next weekend. We’ll look to make up some points and pick things back up, get our momentum back.”

AUSTIN PROCK, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONTANA BRANDS/ROCKY MOUNTAIN TWIST CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (No. 7 qualifier; fell in first round): “Not the performance we needed today, but it was another good weekend of logging data. This Montana Brand team made gains in the heat all weekend. On a positive note of exiting round one, I was happy with the recovery of the car to get it down the track. I have been working on getting better in that area as a driver and I think it showed today. One of these days that could win us a round. Glad we only have a few days to stew on the loss before getting to Norwalk.”

FUNNY CAR:

JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK/BLUEDEF PLATINUM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 3 qualifier; fell in semifinals): “Not a bad weekend, keeping ourselves in the hunt. This PEAK Chevy went a couple rounds, the guys worked hard, we improved through qualifying, that’s all you can ask for. We’ll take a couple days and then turn right around and head to Norwalk and look to get the job done.”

ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier; fell in quarterfinals): “Obviously not the way we wanted today to go. There was more out there for this Auto Club Chevy, but we’ll be OK. We figured things out from qualifying, the track was tricky, conditions were tough. I’m just glad we don’t get a break; we get to head right to Norwalk, Ohio, where conditions will be similar and we’ll be able to get back to where we need to be.”

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in nearly 80 countries with nearly 2.7 million cars and trucks sold in 2021. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

TOYOTA DOMINATES IN TOP FUEL AND FUNNY CAR AT THUNDER VALLEY
Capps Claims First GR Supra Funny Car Win and Ashley Takes Top Fuel Wally

BRISTOL, Tenn. (June 19, 2022) – After debuting at the first race of the 2022 season, the GR Supra Funny Car was driven to victory for the first time in Sunday afternoon’s event. Ron Capps, who joined Team Toyota earlier this season battled fellow Toyota driver, Alexis DeJoria in the semi-final round and faced Tim Wilkerson in the finals to claim the win.

The Toyota Top Fuel Dragsters worked their way into a domination of the semi-final round in Sunday’s NHRA event at Bristol Dragway. The four dragsters of Justin Ashley, Antron Brown, Shawn Langdon and Steve Torrence went head-to-head with Ashley and Langdon meeting in the final round where Ashley would capture his second win of the 2022 season.

Toyota Post-Race Recap
NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series
Bristol Dragway
Race 9 of 22

TOYOTA TOP FUEL FINISHING POSITIONS  —  Race Winner:    Justin Ashley

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Justin Ashley	Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Race Win	W. 3.824 vs. J. Hart (3.827) W. 3.917 vs. D. Foley (3.942) W. 3.816 vs. 3.873 (S. Torrence) W. 3.813 vs. 3.841 (S. Langdon)
Shawn Langdon	CMR Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Final Round	W. 3.809 vs. S. Massey (4.484) W. 3.853 vs. M. Salinas (3.816) W. 3.847 vs. 3.896 (A. Brown) L. 3.841 vs. 3.813 (J. Ashley)
Steve Torrence	Capco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Semi-Finals	W. 3.943 vs. L. Joon (3.943) W. 3.891 vs. L. Pruett (3.960) L. 3.873 vs. 3.816 (J. Ashley)
Antron Brown	Matco Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Semi-Finals	W. 3.863 vs. T. Schumacher (4.401) W. 3.930 vs. B. Force (6.338) L. 3.896 vs. 3.847 (S. Langdon)
Doug Kalitta	Mac Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Round 1	L. 4.065 vs. B. Force (3.844)

TOYOTA FUNNY CAR FINISHING POSITIONS  — Race Winner:      Ron Capps

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Ron Capps	NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Race Win	W. 4.052 vs. P. Lee (6.023) W. 4.031 vs. R. Hight (4.526) W. 4.016 vs. 4.050 (A. DeJoria) W. 3.984 vs. 4.075 (T. Wilkerson)
Alexis DeJoria	Bandero Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Semi-Finals	W. 4.114 vs. B. Tasca III (4.686) W. 4.068 vs. M. Hagan (4.914) L. 4.050 vs. R. Capps (4.016)
J.R. Todd	DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Round 1	L. 4.168 vs. C. Pedregon (4.148)

TOYOTA QUOTES

RON CAPPS, NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota GR Supra Funny Car, Ron Capps Motorsports

Final Result: Race Win

What is the best word you can use to describe today after having the issues in round one?

“GR. That badge isn’t just given out so thank you Toyota. Unbelievable. The NAPA people, I love representing you and I tell you that time and time again. Thank you. I don’t know what to say right now, this is unbelievable. Ron Capps Motorsports – to have two wins already is crazy. I’ve gotten my Dad a few of these trophies and my in-laws, my wife’s family. They’ve given up their whole lives to follow us around this racing circuit and I love them for it. Thank you for everything, I appreciate it.”

JUSTIN ASHLEY, Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel Dragster, Davis Motorsports

Final Result: Race Win

What does this win mean to you coming on Father’s Day?

“Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers out there that make dreams like this possible. I have to take a second and thank Phillips Connect and all that they do to put us in this position. Thanks to VitaC for all the energy we need to come out here and Toyota Gazoo Racing North America, Lucas Oil for letting us come out here. My guys did such a good job with this Top Fuel dragster all day. Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers out there. We’re very blessed to be here and we’re enjoying it. Thank you.”

SHAWN LANGDON, CMR Toyota Top Fuel Dragster, Kalitta Motorsports

Final Result: Final Round

After a great day that included a Super Comp win, there is obvious frustration to come up shy of the Top Fuel win, but what type of momentum does this give you?

“It’s so hard to not be mad about today and I’m not mad. I’m bummed. I wanted that double up so bad. Haven’t doubled up at a national event before and to have the opportunity and just lucky to have the opportunity, but when you have the opportunity there, you don’t want to give it away. All in all, great weekend to have the CMR group on board. We’ve had the last two races where the car has been running good so no complaints there. It’s only looking up from here.”

# # #

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.  

Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 43 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants.  By 2025, Toyota’s 14^th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.  With the more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, more than a quarter of the company’s 2021 North American sales were electrified.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

CHEVROLET AT BRISTOL

What: NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals

When: Friday, June 17-Sunday, June 19

Where: Bristol Dragway in Bristol, Tennessee

TV: FOX will telecast eliminations live at 3 p.m. ET June 19

Chevrolet drivers aiming to continue success at Bristol

Erica Enders in Pro Stock, Brittany Force in Top Fuel top their respective standings

DETROIT (June 16, 2022) – Erica Enders’ Drive for 5 is in full swing.

The four-time National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Pro Stock world champion has accumulated four victories in six races in the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro SS, including the past three outings, for an unprecedented start to her 18th season.

“In 2015, we had a tremendous year, a season winning nine of 11 finals and just claiming the championship in Vegas before the year was even over. And then this year we’re off to an even better start than we were in 2015,” said Enders, who hasn’t qualified lower than fourth this season.

That 2015 championship season – the second of her four with Chevrolet – included a victory at Bristol Dragway in Tennessee, where the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series visits this weekend.

The NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals will mark the first appearance of the Pro Stock class at the track since 2018, when No. 1 qualifier Greg Anderson was runner-up to Jeg Coughlin. Enders lost to Drew Skillman’s Camaro SS in the quarterfinals.

Enders claimed her 400th career elimination round win and her 37th victory in the final at Epping, New Hampshire. Add 28 runner-up finishes and Enders has advanced to the finals in 25% of her 270 career race day appearances. Since returning to the Chevrolet fold for the 2017 season after a one-year absence, Enders has registered 18 wins and 14 runner-up finishes in 99 races. Plus, championships in 2019 and ’20.

She has a sizable points lead in the Pro Stock standings over Elite Motorsports teammate Aaron Stanfield, who won the season opener at Pomona, California, in the Janac Brothers Camaro SS and most recently was runner-up to Enders at Epping.

“We’re ready to get on a roll, carry the momentum. It’s just important that we keep going rounds, keep parking these Elite Motorsports cars in the winner’s circle,” Enders said. “I know as well as anybody that there are way more valleys than there are peaks, but we’re going to enjoy the ride while it lasts and just try to capitalize on every single moment.”

Anderson, driver of the HendrickCars.com Camaro SS and the reigning Pro Stock champion, continues his quest for victory No. 100 to join John Force (155) as the only professional drivers with triple digit wins.

Brittany Force is also off to the best start of her Top Fuel career, owning three wins, a 16-5 elimination round record and two No. 1 qualifiers. The driver of the Flav-R-Pac/Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster has held the top spot in the standings for a career-best four races.

John Force Racing teammates Robert Hight (three wins) and John Force (one win) are also off to strong starts. Hight, who is second in Funny Car points, has been to the final round in each of the past three races in the Automobile Club of Southern California Camaro SS. John Force, who turned the top qualifier honor in the four-wide event at Charlotte into victory in the PEAK/BlueDEF Platinum Camaro SS, is fourth in the standings.

Austin Prock, a semifinalist the past two races in the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster, is fifth in the Top Fuel standings.

The competition this weekend will also include the fourth round of the Constant Aviation NHRA Factory Stock Showdown featuring the Chevrolet COPO Camaros.

CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT

TOP FUEL

BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, FLAV-R-PAC/MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (three-time winner this season; first in standings): “We head to Bristol next for Father’s Day weekend at one of my favorite tracks on the circuit. This Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team is heading in with the points lead and we hope to leave the same way. Being one of my favorite tracks, we’re looking for a long weekend and our fourth win of the season. A win at Thunder Valley has always been on my bucket list and we plan to make it happen this weekend. I’m glad we are bringing this race back on Father’s Day weekend. It’s how I’ve celebrated my dad on Father’s Day for the last 10 years and I’m glad we return to it this season.”

AUSTIN PROCK, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONTANA BRAND/ROCKY MOUNTAIN TWIST CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (runner-up at Pomona opener; semifinalist the past two races; fifth in points): “We’re coming off two semifinal appearances, just knocking on the door for our first win of this season. It’s going to be soon that my Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team are hoisting a Wally and it may just be this weekend. I remember racing with my dad on Father’s Day my whole life, so Bristol Dragway always has a special place in my heart. Nothing better than racing with family.”

FUNNY CAR

JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK/BLUEDEF PLATINUM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier and Charlotte four-wide winner; four-time winner at the track; fourth in points): “I love racing at Bristol Dragway. It’s tradition being there on Father’s Day weekend, it’s how I’ve celebrated with my girls for years now. This PEAK team, we’ll get out there and look to go some rounds, qualify well. We’re OK, we’re in it and we’ve been fast. I just need to do my job out there on track and I know my son-in-law Danny Hood and Tim Fabrisi, they’ll have this Chevy running right.”

ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (three-time winner this season; second in points): “Not a bad start to the season, eight races in with three wins and second in points. This Auto Club team is definitely looking for more though. We need to stay consistent, keep working hard and take it one run at a time. The class is really competitive, we were the first to three wins but we aren’t the only ones now and we need to keep it going. That’s the goal heading to Bristol. I haven’t won there in a while (2011) and it would be great to get it done on Father’s Day with my daughter, Autumn, there with me.”

PRO STOCK

KYLE KORETSKY, KB RACING, LUCAS OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier at Phoenix; runner-up at Gainesville; third in points): “This is my first drag race at Bristol, so I’m pretty excited. I think Q1 will be a learning curve and after that I’ll adapt pretty quickly. I have all the confidence that we’ll be just fine, and we get that yellow hat and a blue hat at the end of the weekend. Every little thing counts to be able to win in this class. I recently watched ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and in one scene he said, ‘It’s a dogfight,’ and that’s what it is (among Pro Stock competitors). It’s just good racing.”

DALLAS GLENN, KB RACING, RAD TORQUE SYSTEMS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (winner at Gainesville; No. 1 qualifier at Epping; fourth in points): “Coming back from that six-week hiatus to a No. 1 qualifier in the RAD Torque Systems / KB Racing Chevrolet Camaro was a definite morale booster for me as a driver and our team. We worked hard in that time off and to put it down on the track faster than anyone else in qualifying was cool to see. I’m glad we’re going to the majority of the races left this season so we can start rolling with the momentum.”

GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (reigning Pro Stock champion; seeking to become second pro driver with 100 wins): “Racing on Father’s Day has always been good to me. I’ve won a lot of races on Father’s Day. I can remember those special days with my father in the house and give him a trophy. Bristol is a cool racetrack. I understand they grinded (the racing surface to eliminate bumps) and they got it a lot better. We can out this year and the other group (Elite Motorsports) made a big gain, and we got a little behind the eight ball. We’ve had a month to work on stuff and have gotten a lot better. I wouldn’t say we’re ahead of them yet, but I would say we’re back even with them and the next step forward is to get ahead of them like we were last year. That’s the goal over the next couple of months. Being able to run the same is certainly better than where we were at the start of the year. But we’re not satisfied until we’re ahead of everybody.”

CAMRIE CARUSO, CARUSO FAMILY RACING, SAND HAULERS OF AMERICA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (first season in Pro Stock; No. 1 qualifier and runner-up at Houston): “I have a lot of support from my family especially, my dad and Papa Joe (grandfather) so racing on Father’s Day weekend will be really cool. This whole season has been a whirlwind, but Houston was a totally different level. We were No. 1 all weekend and then we had a tough ladder to get to the final round. Racing Erica was great, but I don’t really care who is in the other lane on Sunday. I know I have to do my routine and hit the tree as hard as I can.”

TROY COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (runner-up at Phoenix): “The goal now is to win my first Pro Stock race at the same track where Dad got his. How cool would that be? We have a new car this year and we’re still learning what it wants. It’s taking some time but once it all falls into place, look out. There has been so much work, so many hours, so much sweat put into figuring this car out. I know we’re really close. Hopefully, this is the weekend when it all comes together.”

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in nearly 80 countries with nearly 2.7 million cars and trucks sold in 2021. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Leah Pruett & Matt Hagan
Top Fuel | Funny Car
NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
June 17-19 | Bristol, Tennessee

Event Overview

Friday, June 17 (Nitro Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

● Nitro qualifying session (Q1): 8:00 p.m. EDT

Saturday, June 18 (Nitro Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

● Nitro qualifying session (Q2): 2:30 p.m. EDT
● Nitro qualifying session (Q3): 5:30 p.m. EDT

Sunday, June 19 (Nitro Eliminations, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

● Round 1: 12 p.m. EDT
● Round 2: 2 p.m. EDT
● Semi-Finals: 3:30 p.m. EDT
● Finals: 5 p.m. EDT

TV coverage

● Friday, June 17: Qualifying show (8 p.m. EDT on FS1)
● Saturday, June 18: Qualifying show (11 p.m. EDT on FS1)
● Sunday, June 19: Finals show (3 p.m. EDT on FOX)

Notes of Interest

● The NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol (Tenn.) Dragway hosts the ninth event on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series’ 22-race calendar. Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) brings its two fulltime entries – one in Top Fuel for nine-time event winner Leah Pruett and one in Funny Car for three-time Funny Car champion Matt Hagan.

● Pruett and Hagan come into Bristol representing Mobil 1 and TruHarvest Farms, respectively. Pruett’s Top Fuel dragster carries the colors of Mobil 1, the world’s leading synthetic motor oil brand. Meanwhile, Hagan’s Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car is emblazoned with TruHarvest Farms, Southwest Virginia’s largest producer of hemp-based products. TruHarvest Farms was founded in 2019 by Hagan. Sourced from its Christiansburg, Virginia location, TruHarvest Harms offers a comprehensive line of high-quality, hemp-derived CBD products that promote general health and wellness for individuals seeking an alternative to medications and supplements.

● The NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals will mark Pruett’s 180th career Top Fuel start and her ninth at Bristol. For Hagan, the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals will be his 302nd career Funny Car start and his 13th at Bristol.

● Pruett is looking for her first victory at the Thunder Valley Nationals. She has advanced to the finals once at Bristol in 2017, where her 3.881 ET at 307.09 mph run was bested by Clay Millican (3.825 ET at 316.38 mph). Pruett is seeking her first No. 1 qualifier at Bristol.

● Hagan enters Bristol as Funny Car’s most recent winner. The Christiansburg, Virginia-native scored his 42nd career win June 5 in the NHRA New England Nationals at New England Dragway in Epping, New Hampshire. The victory was Hagan’s fourth win in the last five NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series events at Epping (2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022).

● Hagan’s win at Epping expanded his lead in the Funny Car championship standing to 41 points over his nearest pursuer, Robert Hight.

● Hagan has one career win at Bristol in 2015 (4.164 ET at 303.23 mph) when he defeated Ron Capps (4.186 ET at 307.02 mph). He also advanced to the finals in 2016, but his 4.030 ET at 317.57 mph run fell short of the one from Tommy Johnson Jr. (4.038 ET at 313.22 mph). Hagan is seeking his first No. 1 qualifier at the event.

● Hagan is the current track record holder at Bristol for speed with a run of 330.34 mph, a mark he set on Oct. 16, 2021.

● DYK? Bristol Dragway is a 30,000 capacity drag racing facility located next to Bristol Motor Speedway. It was originally built in 1965, making 2022 its 57th anniversary. It is often called “Thunder Valley” due to the acoustics created by its location between two mountains. This season marks the first time all four NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series classes – Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle – have appeared together at Thunder Valley during the same weekend.

Leah Pruett, Driver of the Mobil 1 Top Fuel Dragster

With Bristol Dragway being located between two mountains, is that what makes the track so special?

“Experiencing a nitro race at Bristol is like none other. It might be a two-wide track, but it sounds and feels like a four-wide track with how intense the sounds of our Dodge HEMIs are firing off in the valley, echoing off the mountains. The pro pits are very close to the entire length of the track, with the main grandstands on the opposite side, so there’s not a time where you’re not feeling and hearing the action as if you’re on the line.”

How critical is lane choice at Bristol Dragway?

“Lane choice has been crucial in the past, for different reasons in different classes. A problematic area in one lane may give challenges to fuel cars, where pro stock sees challenges elsewhere. We know there have been some recent, great efforts to supply us with the smoothest surface possible, and I feel good about what we have to work with.”

How does Bristol’s unique environment affect the car’s tuning and setup?

“It’s no secret Bristol Dragway has some unique racing surface characteristics, which makes this even more of a tuner’s race when it comes to navigating where and when power is added in regard to the conditions.”

Matt Hagan, Driver of the TruHarvest Farms Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car

With Bristol Dragway being located between two mountains, is that what makes the track so special?

“Rolling into Bristol is always a special weekend for me because it’s usually on Father’s Day weekend. A lot of family and friends come out to the track, so when you can win there, it’s a big race. The last time I won it, it was probably one of my most emotional races. I had my kids and my dad there for Father’s Day. I’d love to be able to do that again. It’s close to home, so I grew up with a lot of the same people watching at local drag strips. You want to be able to put on a show for everyone. I’m excited to get to Bristol. It’s only two hours away from my house, so hopefully we can keep the momentum going and get those win lights turned on again.”

How critical is lane choice at Bristol Dragway?

“Lane choice is very critical at Bristol Dragway. In the past, each lane has performed a little different from the other, so being able to run the faster time and pick your lane is important.”

How does Bristol’s unique environment affect the car’s tuning and setup?

“We’re at a little bit of altitude at Bristol with the elevation being almost 1,500 feet. It’s not near the altitude conditions that we’ll see soon in Denver. There will be a little more compression, but I don’t see the Bristol altitude being an issue. The biggest factor we’ve had there is hot temperatures, so when it gets really warm, those are the conditions we struggle with.”