Toyota Gazoo Racing North America NHRA Gainesville Post Qualifying Report — 3.11.23

CAPPS’ TOYOTA GR SUPRA CLAIMS NUMBER ONE QUALIFIER AT NHRA SEASON KICKOFF
Toyota Dragsters Qualify Second and Third in Gainesville

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 12, 2023) – Ron Capps picked up where he left off last season by claiming the number one qualifier spot for Sunday’s NHRA season kickoff race at Gainesville Raceway. The reigning 2022 Funny Car Champion ran his quick lap of qualifying in the final round on Saturday with a pass at 3.874 seconds. Toyota teammates J.R. Todd (sixth) and Alexis DeJoria (ninth) will also start amongst the top-10 qualifiers.

In Top Fuel, Steve Torrence (second) and Doug Kalitta (third) both posted times of 3.723 in their Toyota dragsters. Antron Brown (sixth), Justin Ashley (ninth) and Shawn Langdon (11th) will line-up to start the 2023 season Sunday morning.

Toyota Post-Qualifying Recap
NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series
Gainesville Raceway
Race 1 of 21

TOYOTA TOP FUEL QUALIFYING POSITIONS

NameCarQualifying PositionFirst Round Opponent
Brittany Force*Monster Energy Top Fuel Dragster1st (3.699)Massey
Steve TorrenceCapco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster2nd (3.723)Palmer
Doug KalittaMac Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster3rd (3.723)Massey
Antron BrownMatco Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster6th (3.734)Langdon
Justin AshleyPhillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel Dragster9th (3.768)Salinas
Shawn LangdonCMR Construction and Roofing Toyota Top Fuel Dragster11th (3.776)Brown

(*non-Toyota driver)

TOYOTA FUNNY CAR QUALIFYING POSITIONS

NameCarQualifying PositionFirst Round Opponent
Ron CappsNAPA Auto Parts Toyota GR Supra Funny Car1st (3.874)Haddock
J.R. ToddDHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car6th (3.900)Alexander
Alexis DeJoriaBandero Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car9th (3.954)Pedregon

(*non-Toyota driver)

TOYOTA QUOTES

RON CAPPS, NAPA Auto Parts Toyota GR Supra Funny Car, Ron Capps Motorsports

FC Qualifying Result: 1st

What does it mean to start the season off with the P1 qualifying spot?

“Obviously after last year to get the pole in Pomona and to win the championship was great, but to start the season off, we had a plan in testing and Guido and the guys on this 2023 GR Supra body, you just want to come out and do okay. To come out here and make a statement. It’s very tight in qualifying. The speed was up. I can’t say enough about our Toyota people and all the help we get with our NAPA folks – just a team effort.”

How do you feel going into tomorrow’s race?

“You never want to be cocky about tomorrow. It’s nice to have the number one spot and have the choice. The yellow hats are great for number one qualifier, but those trophies at the end of Sunday are more important. You sleep better on Saturday night for sure.”

STEVE TORRENCE, Capco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster, Torrence Racing

TF Qualifying Result: 2nd

How do you feel about your car’s performance in qualifying and chances for tomorrow’s race?

“Great day for the Capco Toyota dragster. We went out and we were a little too conservative in the Callout first round. Went up there this round and really made some improvements. I still think there’s a lot of room to improve, just looking at the time slip, but we’ll go from there. I’m excited going into race day – I feel like we have a really good car. Better than I’ve had in a year. Confident and moral and everything is really high over hee on the team and we’re ready to go.”

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 14th 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.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SpeedwayMedia.com

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