TEAM CASTROL/JOHN AND ASHLEY PRE-RACE PACKAGE FOR DALLAS
TEAM CASTROL/JFR 25TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON JOHN FORCE/ASHLEY FORCE HOOD Pre-Race Package for the 25th annual O’Reilly Super Start Batteries Fall Nationals Sept. 23-26, 2010 The Texas Motorplex Dallas, Texas Third race in the Countdown to 1 playoffs for the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Championship * * * * follow John Force Racing at _www.twitter.com/jfr_racing_ (http://www.twitter.com/jfr_racing) To celebrate 25 years of Castrol sponsorship, go to _www.castrolforce.com_ (http://www.castrolforce.com/) * * * * Castrol/JFR 25th Anniversary Flashback: The Texas Motorplex was the site of the 2007 crash in which John Force suffered the most serious injuries of his drag racing career. In a semifinal showdown with fellow Hall of Fame driver Kenny Bernstein, Force’s Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford suffered a blown tire after winning the race. Subsequently, it crashed into Bernstein’s Dodge at more than 300 miles per hour. That started a chain of events that ended in the 14-time champion being airlifted out of the track to Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas where he underwent six hours of surgery and was hospitalized for a month while undergoing accelerated physical therapy. The sport’s biggest winner suffered a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken bones in his hands and feet as well as his fingers and toes, tendon damage due to a severe laceration of the right knee and a dislocation of the left wrist so severe that it initially was diagnosed as a fracture. After returning to California, Force continued to re-hab and, on Feb. 7, 2008, was back in his Castrol Ford for the start of qualifying at the Kragen O’Reilly Winternationals in Pomona, Calif., an event in which he reached the semifinals. In his 2008 return to the Motorplex, he qualified seventh and then beat Cruz Pedregon and his daughter, Ashley Force Hood, before losing to Tim Wilkerson. EVENT OVERVIEW: John Force’s bid for an unprecedented 15th NHRA Funny Car championship this week brings him back to the site of some of his biggest accomplishments and most bitter disappointments. Entering the third of six races in the NHRA’s Countdown to 1 playoffs, the 130-time tour winner is nursing a -fourpoint lead over Jack Beckman although four other drivers, including teammates Robert Hight and Ashley Force Hood, remain solidly in contention for the $500,000 champion’s bonus. Although he’s won seven times (six times in this event), Force hasn’t reached the winners’ circle since beating Frank Pedregon in the 2005 final. Moreover, he has been involved in three crashes at the Motorplex including a 2007 accident that left him with career-threatening injuries (see above). While this week’s race isn’t “make-or-break�?? insofar as Force’s bid is concerned, it could be so for Hight and Force Hood. The reigning Full Throttle Champion and the Texas Motorplex track record holder at 4.063 seconds and 305.56 mph, Hight is the defending event champion at the wheel of the Auto Club Ford Mustang that owns the quickest times at both the traditional quarter mile and 1,000 foot distances (4.636 and 4.005 seconds, respectively). Although he failed to qualify in 2007, a misstep that probably cost him the championship, Hight has started from No. 1 three times in the last four years. Force Hood, who had reached the semifinals when she opted to withdraw from the 2007 race because of her father’s crash, is seeking her first victory at the Motorplex since she won in the Top Alcohol Dragster class in 2004. The two-time reigning Mac Tools U.S. Nationals champion, she is trying to become the first woman ever to win the NHRA Funny Car title and the fourth different John Force Racing driver to do so. * * * * JFR RACING HISTORY AT THE TEXAS MOTORPLEX: Wins – 13. Seven by John Force for Castrol GTX (1992-1995, 1999-2000, 2005); two by Robert Hight for the Auto Club of Southern California (2006 and 2009); two by Tony Pedregon for Castrol SYNTEC (1996, 2003); one by Gary Densham for the Auto Club (2001) and one by Ashley Force Hood for Castrol GTX (Top Alcohol Dragster, 2004). Last year – After barely qualifying for the Countdown to 1 playoffs, Robert “Top Gun�?? Hight sped into the Funny Car points lead by winning his second straight Full Throttle tour event en route to the team’s 16th championship in 20 years. Notable #1 – John’s 1992 final round race with Cruz Pedregon was one of the sport’s classics. Trying to chase down Pedregon, who had taken over the points lead, he hit the guardwall not one time, not two times, but three times in losing a final round showdown despite the fact that the first impact automatically disqualified him. Notable #2 – It was at the 1997 Castrol Nationals, a spring race no longer contested at The Motorplex, that Force was involved in another bizarre incident in a race with Ray Higley. Force had won the heat handily and was decelerating when Higley lost control beyond the finish line and hit his car from behind. The incident inflicted only minor damage to the car and Force went on to runner-up honors. Notable #3 – At the 1989 Fall Nationals, Force was involved in a first round race with Ed McCulloch, now crew chief for Ron Capps but then one of the premier drivers in the Funny Car division. Both cars lost traction at the start and, out of control, were obscured by tire smoke. Obviously one car hit the guardwall and NHRA initially ruled that it was Force who did so. The sport’s biggest winner refused to get off the track until NHRA officials checked McCulloch’s car body, which was found to have impact damage while Force’s had none. Force was re-instated but lost in the following round to eventual series champion Bruce Larson. Notable #4 – Robert Hight has qualified his Auto Club Ford No. 1 a category-best 38 times over the last six seasons. Although he’s won just five times from the front of the pack, he’s done so twice at the Motorplex (2006 and 2008). * * * * PRO POINTS (Current 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Series point standings after three of six events in the Countdown to 1 playoffs): FUNNY CAR – 1. John Force, Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang, 2245; 2. Jack Beckman, MTS Dodge Charger, 2241; 3. Matt Hagan, Diehard Dodge Charger, 2203; 4. Ashley Force Hood, Castrol GTX Ford Mustang, 2192; 5. Bob Tasca III, Quick Lane/Motorcraft Ford Mustang, 2160; 6. Robert Hight, Auto Club Ford Mustang, 2157; 7. Ron Capps, NAPA Dodge Charger, 2123; 8. Tony Pedregon, Komatsu Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 2085; 9. Tim Wilkerson, Levi, Ray and Shoup Ford Mustang, 2082; 10. Del Worsham, Al Anabi Toyota Solara, 2077. TOP FUEL – 1. Larry Dixon, 2355; 2. Cory McClenathan, 2270; 3. Tony Schumacher, 2207; 4. Doug Kalitta, 2190; 5. Brandon Bernstein, 2172; 6. Antron Brown, 2146; 7. Shawn Langdon, 2134; 8. Steve Torrence, 2115; 9. Morgan Lucas, 2104; 10. David Grubnic, 2066. PRO STOCK – 1. Mike Edwards, Pontiac GXP, 2260; 2. Greg Anderson, Pontiac GXP, 2233; 3. Greg Stanfield, Pontiac GXP, 2226; 4. Jeg Coughlin Jr., Chevrolet Cobalt, 2180; 5. Allen Johnson, Dodge Avenger, 2164; 6. Jason Line, Pontiac GXP, 2159; 7. Ron Krisher, Chevrolet Cobalt, 2121; 8. Shane Gray, Pontiac GXP, 2105; 9. Rodger Brogdon, Pontiac GXP, 2085; 10. Johnny Gray, Pontiac GXP, 2075. PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE – 1. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson V-Rod, 2347; 2. L.E. Tonglet, Suzuki, 2281; 3. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-David/son V-Rod, 2180; 4. Michael Phillips, Suzuki, 2176; 5. Hector Arana, Buell, 2171; 6. Matt Smith, Buell, 2167; 7. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 2160; 8. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 2085; 9. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 2078; 10. David Hope, Buell, 2061. * * * * TELEVISION (all on ESPN2, all times Eastern Daylight): Qualifying – Saturday, Sept. 25, 10:30 pm-12 midnight NHRA RaceDay – Sunday, Sept. 26, 10-10:30 am Race Highlights – Sunday, Sept. 26, 7-10 pm Repeat race highlights – Wednesday, Sept. 29, 3:30-5:30 am * * * * NEXT EVENTS (2010 NHRA Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship): 26th annual Toyo Tires Nationals, Oct. 7-10, Reading, Pa. 10th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals, Oct. 28-31, Las Vegas, Nev. 46th annual Auto Club Finals, Nov. 11-14, Pomona, Calif. * * * * CONTACTS: For John Force Racing, Inc.: Elon Werner Kelly Antonelli Chad Light 214-244-1184 317-858-8900 714-921-8123 _elon@johnforceracing.com_ (mailto:elon@johnforceracing.com) _kelly@johnforceracing.com_ (mailto:kelly@johnforceracing.com) _chad@johnforceracing.com_ (mailto:chad@johnforceracing.com) For Castrol: Dave Densmore Lori Anne Gola _denswood@aol.com_ (mailto:denswood@aol.com) _lorianne.gola@bp.com_ (mailto:lorianne.gola@bp.com) 214-244-0008 973-633-2393 For Ford Racing: Kevin Kennedy _kkennedy@pcgcampbell.com_ (mailto:kkennedy@pcgcampbell.com) 313-203-7108 For the Auto Club of Southern California: Rick Lalor _lalor.rick@aaa-calif.com_ (mailto:lalor.rick@aaa-calif.com) 714-885-2085 * * * * For additional information or photos, contact one of the representatives above or go to _www.johnforceracing.com_ (http://www.johnforceracing.com/) or _www.nhra.com_ (http://www.nhra.com/) . * * * * FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE force returns to scene of his worst crash DALLAS, Texas – With his bid for the 2010 Full Throttle Funny Car championship suddenly under siege, John Force this week brings his Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang back to the site of the 2007 crash that ultimately led him to commit himself to creating a safer competitive environment for a new generation of racers. After squandering most of his points lead with a first round exit last week at zMax Dragway in Charlotte, N.C., Force tries to rally the troops in this week’s 25th annual O’Reilly Super Start Batteries Fall Nationals at Billy Meyer’s Texas Motorplex. Although he has won seven times on the all-concrete track, Force’s resume includes almost as many lows as highs, the biggest of which was the crash in the 2007 semifinals that left him with the most serious injuries of his 33-year NHRA career. “It would mean a lot to win it,�?? Force said of this weekend’s race, the third of six in the NHRA’s Countdown to 1 playoffs. “I want to get closure. That’s where I got hurt and every time I race there, that’s in my head. “So (winning Sunday’s race) could be as important to me as the championship. I don’t want to ever leave this sport and not win (again) in Dallas,�?? said the 130-time NHRA tour winner. “I just need to get that out of the way.�?? Of course, “getting that out of the way�?? this week would be doubly advantageous for the 61-year-old icon insomuch as it would enable him to extend the points lead that has been his after all but two of the 19 races completed thus far this season. While he has ridden out numerous crashes and engine fires in his career, none was as serious as the one in 2007 when his Mustang blew a tire and collided with Kenny Bernstein’s Dodge, sending both into the wall at 300 miles per hour. Bernstein was uninjured but Force suffered a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken bones in his hands and feet as well as his fingers and toes, a significant laceration to his right knee and a left wrist dislocated so badly that it initially was thought to be broken. It took six hours of Sunday night surgery to put him back together. Even though he benefitted from the track’s proximity to Baylor University Medical Center and its staff of trauma doctors, the 14-time champion was hospitalized for a month in Dallas before returning to his home in California to continue his rehabilitation. -more- force/o’reilly super start fall nationals 2222 To the surprise of everyone except those within his inner circle, Force was back in competition to start the 2008 season but struggled the next 24 months to recapture the form that made him the sport’s all-time winner. After failing to reach a single final round last year, he has come back with a vengeance this year. In a season in which he is celebrating 25 years of Castrol sponsorship, Force has gone to more final rounds than any other Funny Car driver (eight), shares the category lead in victories with reigning series champion Robert “Top Gun�?? Hight, has started from No. 1 on three occasions (his first such starts since 2006) and has posted the year’s quickest time at the 1,000 foot distance (4.021 seconds). That newfound success is a product of a complete overhaul, not just of his team, but of his equipment and even himself. After making wholesale changes to his crew, adding Mike Neff to the crew chief mix, switching to a chassis developed in-house at John Force Racing, Inc., as part of the Eric Medlen Project for race car safety, and working himself back into fighting shape through daily gym workouts, Force finds himself contending for yet another championship. “It’s a struggle every day to race against all these kids,�?? said the 2008 inductee into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in Detroit. “I’m just happy to be able to compete again (but) I really do want this championship. I’m 61 and don’t know how many more chances I’m gonna have.�?? * * * * Force at The Texas Motorplex: �?? Of his seven wins, only one has come from a starting position other than No. 1 (he won in 2005 from a No. 7 start) �?? In 27 career appearances, 23 in the Fall Nationals and four in the defunct spring race, Force never has failed to qualify a Castrol Funny Car �?? After losing in the first round in 1986 and 1987, John has won at least one round in all but one subsequent race. He lost to Ron Capps in the first round in 2006. The Breakdown: At The Texas Motorplex: 27 races, 27 starts, 13 final round s, 7 wins , 11 No. 1 qualifiers, 63-20 round record (77.2%) At the O’Reilly Super Start Batteries Fall Nationals: 23 races, 23 starts, 10 final rounds, 6 wins, 8 No. 1 qualifiers, 52-17 round record (75.3%) 2010 Season 19 races, 8 final rounds, 4 wins, 3 No. 1 qualifiers, 33-15 round record (68.7%) Career 545 starts, 210 final rounds, 130 wins, 134 No. 1 qualifiers, 1071-415 round record (72.1%) Notable: Although he won’t do so this week, John Force has clinched four of his 14 Funny Car Championships at the Motorplex, earning the decisive points in 1995, 1997, 1999 and 2001. -www.johnforceracing.com- For more information about Castrol-branded products and services, please visit us at Castrol.com/US force/o’reilly super start fall nationals 3333 FORCE’s Edge Overall NHRA records (which also are Funny Car division records) – Most career victories (130) – Most series championships (14) – Most career final rounds (210) – Most career rounds won (1071) – Most consecutive series championships (10, 1993-2002) – Most consecutive seasons with one or more victories (22, 1987-2008) – Most consecutive seasons with at least one final round appearance (24, 1985-2008) – Most consecutive seasons with multiple tour victories (18, 1990-2007) – Most consecutive national events without a DNQ (395, 1988-2007) – Most consecutive Top 10 seasons (26, 1985-present) – Highest winning percentage, one season (91.5%, 65-6) Other NHRA Funny Car division records – Most final rounds, one season (16, 1996) – Most victories, one season (13, 1996) – Most rounds won, one season (65, 1996) – Most career No. 1 starts (134) – Most No. 1 starts, one season (11, 1996) – Most consecutive final round appearances, one event (nine, 1992-2000, Atlanta, Ga.) – Career starts (545) Milestones – First start, Oct. 8, 1978, World Finals, Ontario, Calif., lost to Gordie Bonin – First round win, June 1, 1979, Cajun Nationals, Baton Rouge, La., over Tom McEwen – First final round, June 1, 1979, Cajun Nat’ls, Baton Rouge, La., vs. Kenny Bernstein. – First No. 1 qualifier, May 25, 1986, Cajun Nationals, Baton Rouge, La. – First tour victory, June 28, 1987, Le Grandnational, Montreal, over Ed McCulloch – First Funny Car driver to break 4.90 second barrier, July 6, 1996, Topeka, Kan. – First drag racer to win Driver of the Year award for all of American motor sports (1996) – First Funny Car driver to break 4.80 second barrier, Oct. 24, 1998, Dallas, Texas – First (and only) drag racer to win 100 events, April 14, 2002, Houston, Texas – First Funny Car driver to break 4.70 second barrier, Oct. 2, 2004, Joliet, Ill. – No. 2 (behind Don Garlits) in balloting to determine Top 50 drivers in NHRA’s first 50 years (2001) – First win at 1,000 foot distance, Feb. 14, 2010, Winternationals, Pomona, Calif. – First (and only) drag racer to win 1,000 racing rounds, May 4, 2008, Madison, Ill. – First Funny Car driver to win in four-wide format, March 28, 2010, Charlotte, N.C. -more- force/o’reilly super start fall nationals 4444 Awards – Driver of the Year (1996) – Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (2008 inductee) – AARWBA Auto Racing All-America Team (14 times, 1990, 1993-2002, 2004-2006) – Jerry Titus Memorial Award (most AARWBA votes, 4 times, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2002) – AARWBA Comeback Award (2008) – Speed TV Comeback Award (2008) – SAE Motorsports Achievement Award (2008) – AutoSport Magazine’s John Bolster Award for lifetime achievement (2005) * * * * JOHN FORCE By the Numbers 1 position presently occupied in Countdown to 1 driver standings 2 events this season after which he WAS NOT No. 1 in points 3 pins securing the bones in his left ankle, the result of a 2007 crash in Texas 4 time winner of the Jerry Titus Memorial Award as the driver receiving the most votes in balloting for the AARWBA Auto Racing All-America team (1996, 1999, 2000, 2002) 5 Fall Nationals wins from the No. 1 qualifying position (all but 2005) 6 victories in the O’Reilly Super Start Batteries Fall Nationals (1993, 1998-2000, 2003, 2005) 7 overall victories at the Texas Motorplex including win in the spring, 2000 in the Castrol Nationals 8 final rounds this season, most among Funny Car drivers 9 runner-up finishes before winning for the first time at Montreal, Canada in 1987. 10 straight Funny Car titles (1993-2002), an NHRA record 26 consecutive Top 10 finishes (1985-present), another NHRA record 130 tour events won, an NHRA record 134 No. 1 qualifying performances, four short of the record 210 final round appearances, an NHRA record 1071 competitive rounds won, another NHRA record -www.johnforceracing.com- For more information about Castrol-branded products, contact us at Castrol/US.com To celebrate 25 years of Castrol sponsorship, go to _www.castrolforce.com_ (http://www.castrolforce.com/) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE force hood has eye on first full throttle title DALLAS, Texas – Inspired by brother-in-law Robert “Top Gun�?? Hight’s worst-to-first 2009 championship run, empowered by her repeat victory in the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals and energized by last week’s milestone 100th professional round win, Ashley Force Hood goes back to work this week at the wheel of the fastest Funny Car ever to negotiate the 1,000 foot course at which races have been contested the last two years. When the 27-year-old phenom rolls her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang onto the all-concrete surface at the Texas Motorplex for the start of the 25th annual O’Reilly Super Start Batteries Fall Nationals, she’ll be just 53 points off the lead enjoyed by her father, 14-time NHRA champion John Force. Despite a second round exit last week at Charlotte, N.C., Force Hood actually gained ground for the second straight event and now is looking forward to the prospect of cooler weather, something she believes will provide a boost for her national record-holding, 316.38 mile per hour Mustang. “Hopefully these next couple of races the weather will cool off a little,�?? said the 2004 graduate of Cal State Fullerton. “The cooler weather seems to be a little better for our Castrol Mustang and it’s also nicer for the crew guys and the fans. “The weather last weekend seemed like the worst of the season,�?? she said. “Maybe it was the humidity, but I have never seen so many engine explosions and oildowns, especially in Top Fuel. Fortunately, we are still at a point in the Countdown where going out in the second round is not the end of the world. We’re still right there.�?? Indeed, Force Hood again is poised to claim a Full Throttle championship that just slipped through her grasp a year ago when Hight won three of the six Countdown races to complete an unlikely title run from the 10th and final starting position. While her second place finish was disappointing – especially after she led the points with only three races remaining, Force Hood has adopted Hight’ s championship model as her own in a bid to become the first woman champion in the 42-year history of NHRA Funny Car class. “Last year, Robert showed that if you can just make the Countdown, anyone can win the championship,�?? she said. “We struggled earlier this year but we kept remembering what (Hight’s) Auto Club team did a year ago. That was our motivation.�?? -more- ashley/o’reilly super start fall nationals 2222 For Ashley, the return to the Motorplex always is bittersweet. It was the track on which she won one of her first races in the Top Alcohol Dragster class in her first season as a full-time driver (2004). After turning pro in 2007, it also was the first race in which obviously had a car capable of taking her into the Funny Car winners’ circle. En route to NHRA Rookie-of-the-Year recognition, she qualified fifth at the Fall Nationals, recorded quick time of the event in a first round victory over Ron Capps (4.786 seconds at the quarter mile distance) and had earned the right to pick her lane against Cruz Pedregon in the semifinals when her father was involved in the worst accident of his 33-year career. When the sport’s best-know driver was airlifted to Baylor University Medical Center for six hours of surgery, Ashley withdrew from the event to be with her family, giving Pedregon a free ride to the final round. Ashley hopes to get back to the semifinals – and perhaps beyond – in this week’s return to the Motorplex. Nevertheless, her focus isn’t on a title won by John Force Racing drivers 16 of the last 20 seasons. “I’m trying to take it one round at a time,�?? she said, “because each round is really a learning experience. I just try to learn from my mistakes and get better every week. We just need to stay focused and not get ahead of ourselves. It’s all about these next few races. We were hating the points structure last year but, so far, we’re loving it this year. The Countdown gives you a chance – and that’s all you can ask for.�?? * * * * Ashley at The Texas Motorplex: �?? Ashley is the NHRA national record holder for Funny Car speed at the 1,000 foot distance at 316.38 mph.�?? Ashley won the 2004 Super Start Batteries Fall Nationals in the Top Alcohol Dragster category. The Ashley Report: At the O’Reilly Super Start Batteries Fall Nationals 3 races, 3 starts, 0 final rounds, 0 wins, 0 No. 1 qualifiers, 5-3 round record 2010 Season 19 races, 3 final rounds, 1 win, 3 No. 1 qualifiers, 20-18 round record Career 88 races, 84 starts, 16 final rounds, 4 wins, 12 No. 1 qualifiers, 100-80 round record Notable: When Ashley beat Del Worsham in the first round last week at Charlotte, she became just the 26th Funny Car driver in 42 years to win as many as 100 racing rounds. She reached that milestone in her 88th pro races, six races sooner than her father. Quickest to that milestone among Funny Car drivers was Cruz Pedregon, who did it in 53 races. Reigning champ Robert Hight got to 100 in 69 races, second best in FC. -www.johnforceracing.com- For more information about Castrol-branded products and services, please visit us at Castrol.com/US