CHEVROLET AT LAS VEGAS
What: Dodge//SRT NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil
When: Friday, Oct. 29-Sunday, Oct. 31
Where: The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada
TV: FS1 will telecast eliminations live at 5 p.m. ET Sunday, Oct. 31
Stakes high for Chevrolet drivers at Las Vegas event
Title contenders in all three pro classes enter penultimate Countdown race
DETROIT (Oct. 28, 2021) – Chevrolet drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock will aim to score maximum points toward their National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) championship quests this weekend at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The penultimate race of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship will also mark the NHRA’s 1,000th national event, which includes 930 Top Fuel, 912 Funny Car and 898 Pro Stock races.
Chevrolet has been the commanding brand on the dragstrip and the Camaro has been the leading model with 2,970 final-round appearances, which began with Ben Wenzel winning the Stock class in his ’67 Camaro Z-28 and Bill Jenkins driving his big-block ’67 Camaro SS to the Super Stock title at the 1967 U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis.
The powerful Chevrolet COPO Camaro, which regularly visits the winner’s circle in Stock, Super Stock and the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown classes, is a direct descendent of the ’67 Camaro.
Chevrolet won the first NHRA Pro Stock event in 1970, with Jenkins driving a 1968 Camaro to victory at Pomona, and has 344 wins and counting (226 in Camaros). Chevrolet has recorded 146 Funny Car wins since 1967 (66 in Camaros) and 12 Top Fuel victories.
Chevrolet swept the No. 1 qualifiers for the April 18 four-wide event at The Strip, with Brittany Force securing the first of her 11 honors on the season in Top Fuel, teammate Robert Hight claiming No. 1 in Funny Car and Greg Anderson rising to the top in Pro Stock.
Force, driving the Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster, is second in the Top Fuel standings. Sixteen-time Funny Car champion John Force is tied for fourth and Hight is seventh in the standings. Hight and Brittany Force advanced to the semifinals in the most recent event.
“Our Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac team is anxious to get to Las Vegas. We’re looking to win this thing and set ourselves up in the best position possible to win the championship at the Auto Club Finals,” Force said. “We had success at The Strip in 2019 when we won the event so it’s a very comfortable track for my entire team. It’s going to be a challenge but we’re ready for it.”
Anderson, who earlier this month passed Warren Johnson to become the all-time leader in Pro Stock victories with 98 in the HendrickCars.com Camaro SS, holds an 81-point advantage over reigning champion Eric Enders in the Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Camaro SS. She has won three of the past four events at The Strip and has seven Wallys total.
“The way I see it, it’s time to go to Vegas to try to win a championship,” said Anderson, who has eight career wins at The Strip. “I would love to go there and extend my lead enough that it doesn’t even matter at Pomona. That’s my goal, though it’s certainly going to be difficult to do. It’s a great place for us and a great place for our competition, too. Erica has had a good run. We’ll see who the track shines on this weekend.”
The event will also feature the finale of the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown season. Aaron Stanfield, driving the Janac Brothers Racing COPO Camaro, has already locked up his second consecutive title. Chevrolet drivers have won six of the seven races.
FS1 will telecast eliminations live at 5 p.m. ET Sunday, Oct. 31.
CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT
TOP FUEL:
BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONSTER ENERGY/FLAV-R-PAC CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (Second in points; won at track in 2019): “The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway is a special track for me. My first full pass in a Top Fuel dragster was there back in 2012. It took seven years to end up in that Vegas winner’s circle, which I think shows you how competitive this sport is.”
FUNNY CAR:
JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK ANTIFREEZE AND COOLANT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Tied for fourth in points; six-time winner at track): “We’ve had a good season. We’ve had some bumps along the way, all three teams, but we all made it in the Countdown. We’re here, that’s what matters. This PEAK team, Danny Hood, Tim Fabrosis, Joe Barlam, they’ve really given me a great Chevy. I’ve had to learn to keep up, and I am. That’s why we’re here, they’ve worked hard, and I’ve had to do my job, really hold on with the rest of these young guys out here.”
ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Seventh in points; five-time winner at track): “It hasn’t been a consistent year for us. This Auto Club team has worked hard, Jimmy Prock and Chris Cunningham, they’ve put together some great runs in this Chevy. We’ve had some bad luck, made some mistakes and because the competition this year has been so tight, so intense, those mistakes and bad luck have put us in a tough spot. The goal is still to go out and win, qualify well, put up good reaction times, go rounds on Sunday and put this Auto Club car in the winner’s circle.”
PRO STOCK:
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Points leader; eight-time winner at track): “The way I see it, it’s time to go to Vegas to try to win a championship. I would love to go there and extend my lead enough that it doesn’t even matter at Pomona. That’s my goal, though it’s certainly going to be difficult to do. I love racing at Vegas; it’s been very good to me. It’s great racing in front of team owner Ken Black. It’s a great place for us and a great place for our competition, too. Erica (Enders) has had a good run. We’ll see who the track shines on this weekend. (Off since Oct. 10): We spent a lot of time in the shop trying to make our engines better. We went to Darlington last week to work on our car set-up. I think we did all we could do and we’re happy with the results. Itching to get to Vegas and see if we’ve made any ground.”
DALLAS GLENN, KB RACING, RAD TORQUE SYSTEMS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Third in points): “Two races left in my rookie season and I can’t believe the position we’re in. You always have faith in your equipment and yourself as a driver but it’s really cool to put both of those together for the most part this year. The RAD Torque/ Summit Racing/KB Racing Chevrolet Camaro is still mathematically in the hunt for the championship, although it’s a longshot. As long as the championship comes home with KB, I’m happy.”
KYLE KORETSKY, KB RACING, LUCAS OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Fourth in points; runner-up in 2020 season finale at track): “It’s down to the wire; we’re three points out of third behind Dallas (Glenn) and I’m looking to make it a KB 1, 2, 3 for the Countdown championship. Mathematically, we still have a shot at the title. I did a bit of bracket racing in New Jersey in my Camaro just to keep me in the car and down the track. I have all the confidence in the world in the (KB Racing) guys who prepare the car and I’m looking to go to Vegas to win. I feel real confident and I’m ready to make a statement in these last two races.”
TROY COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM/ELITE MOTORSPORTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (Seventh in points): “The world title isn’t in the cards for us this year but we continue to grow and I love to compete no matter what’s at stake so we’re going to have fun this weekend. If we can get in there and take out some of teams fighting Erica (Enders, teammate) for the championship, then we’ll be really happy. And sure, a win would be awesome.”
About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. 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.
