CHEVROLET IN NHRA
2023 NHRA NEVADA NATIONALS
THE STRIP AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
TEAM CHEVY RACE ADVANCE
OCTOBER 27-29, 2023
CHEVROLET LOOKS TO CONTINUE WINNING WAYS AT THE PENULTIMATE RACE OF THE 2023 NHRA SEASON AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
DETROIT (October 26, 2023) – The Countdown to the Championship is on and heating up in NHRA, with The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway hosting Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown Team Chevy teams in the penultimate 2023 NHRA Nevada Nationals Oct. 27-29, 2023.
The most recent victor in the Pro Stock ranks for the Bowtie brand, Erica Enders, driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Chevrolet Camaro SS machine, comes off of her home-state win at Dallas, but also becoming the winningest female in NHRA by surpassing Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Motorcycle, Top Alcohol Dragster). Additionally, Enders is the defending winner of both events at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2022 and is the location where she secured her 2022 and 2015 World Championships. With five World Championships altogether, Enders holds more championships than any woman in NHRA history ahead of Angelle Sampey and Shirley Muldowney’s three titles and Brittany Force’s two.
In FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown, Aaron Stanfield, driver of the Stanfield Racing Engines Chevrolet COPO Camaro, as well as pulling double-duty and competing in Pro Stock as he has all season, leads the category points by 79 over fellow Chevrolet competitors Steven Bell (second with 720 points), and Lenny Lottig (third with 639 points). While the Factory Stock Showdown series did not compete at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2022, Stanfield enters the weekend as the defending winner of the most recent Fall event at the track in 2021.
“We have had good luck at Las Vegas and this race will be special because we will have the championship in the bag and can race without any pressure,” said Stanfield. “I want to carry positive momentum into the off-season and getting one more win at the Nevada Nationals would be a perfect way to wrap up 2023.”
Wrapping up their 2023 season with two events to go, the foursome of John Force Racing – Robert Hight, driver of the AAA/Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, John Force, driver of the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, Austin Prock, driver of the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, and Brittany Force, driver of the Flav-R-Pac/Monster Energy Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, look to end their season on high notes in both Las Vegas and Pomona after facing a tough season.
B. Force enters the weekend as defending winner of both 2022 events and looks to capture her first win of the 2023 season and her 17th with Chevrolet. Known for setting and resetting speed and elapsed time (E.T.) records in her career, Force additionally comes to Las Vegas defending her 2022 No. 1 Qualifiers during the Fall two-wide event.
“This Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team has had quite a year,” said B. Force. “We went from our strongest season in 2022, to our hardest season this year. I believe it’s in the hard times where you see your team’s true strength. We have stayed pushing forward and motivated to close the season out strong.”
Force’s teammate Hight enters this weekend looking to retake the Countdown the Championship points lead leaving Las Vegas while also looking to recover from the Texas NHRA FallNationals race at the Texas Motorplex in Ennis, Texas. Looking for his fourth win of the 2023 season, and 69 points out from Matt Hagan in first, and 36 behind Bob Tasca, III, a win in Las Vegas would aid Hight on his hunt for a fourth Funny Car championship.
“It’s been a challenging season; the competition has been tougher than ever. I have to give it up to my guys, this Cornwell Tools / AAA/ Flav-R-Pac team has kept their heads down and stuck to the plan and it’s been paying off lately. A bit of a hiccup in Dallas but we’re still in this,” Hight said. “We know it’s going to take a lot of hard work. We’ll bounce back. I have faith in this team, in Jimmy and Thomas Prock, Nate Hildahl, and all the crew. I think we’re all anxious to get back at it in Las Vegas.”
Finally, with the hard work and dedication Chevrolet’s Funny Car, Pro Stock, Factory Stock Showdown, Super Stock, and Stock Eliminator classes, a 28th Manufacturers Cup is on the horizon for the Bowtie brand, the seventh consecutive award as well as ninth in the past 11 seasons. Champions will be crowned at NHRA’s annual Camping World Drag Racing Series Awards Ceremony Monday, Nov. 13, 2023 at the Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Calif.
The 2023 NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway kicks off Friday, Oct. 27 near Las Vegas, with qualifying airing that evening at 7 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). Saturday’s qualifying session airs Sunday, Oct. 29 at 3 p.m. ET, with eliminations will follow, also airing on FS1, at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday. Coverage streams live throughout the weekend on NHRA.tv, and is available via AppleTV, Android TV, and Roku devices.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:
Brittany Force, driver of the Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster for John Force Racing:
“Heading into the final two events of this 2023 NHRA season this weekend in Las Vegas. I drove out early to do some local media which always gets me back in race mode after a weekend off. This Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team has had quite a year. We went from our strongest season in 2022, to our hardest season this year. I believe it’s in the hard times where you see your team’s true strength. “We have stayed pushing forward and motivated to close the season out strong.”
Austin Prock, driver of the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster for John Force Racing:
“This Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team is excited to get back to Vegas. We made some progress in Dallas at the Stampede of Speed FallNationals and I think that progress will show on The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. I’m ready to strap back in after a long off weekend and if we can have a little Lady Luck in Las Vegas.”
John Force, driver of the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car for John Force Racing:
“This PEAK Chevy team is right in the middle of the fight in this Countdown and we still got a shot, but it is a long shot. We are excited because Vegas is a great racetrack and we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Old World Industries. I’m very proud to be a part of this,” Force said. “Tom Hurvis gave me an opportunity years ago to drive the PEAK and BlueDEF Chevrolet, I will always be grateful for that. I’m looking forward to this weekend, we have a lot going on but more importantly, we have a car that got fast. The PEAK Chevy has progressively gotten faster all year. We are going to go into Las Vegas and get us a win.”
Camrie Caruso, driver of the Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for KB Titan Racing:
“Our Powerbuilt Tools/Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro has been running really well during the Countdown there are just a ton of great cars in this category. We just need everything to come together on race day and we could see four win lights for sure. I love that we get four qualifying runs and that will give us some great data. This KB Titan Racing team is looking to have a long day on Sunday.
“Last year coming into Las Vegas we were definitely battling to keep everything together. It was the end of our rookie season which was the longest season of my career. I don’t really remember too much about those last few Countdown races last year because so much was going on and we were just trying to do our best. This season has been awesome with KB Titan Racing, Powerbuilt Tools and Tequila Comisario. All our partners have stepped up and we are working on 2024 now so we will be even stronger next season.
“I couldn’t be out here without my family support. My dad and Papa are at almost every race and that is a huge help. My teammates at KB Titan Racing have been super helpful and we all want to try and take out as many competitors to Greg (Anderson) since he has the best shot for the championship from the KB Titan Racing team. Greg, Dallas (Glenn) and Kyle (Koretsky) have been so supportive had helpful this season we want to finish as strong as possible.”
Aaron Stanfield, driver of the Stanfield Racing Engines Chevrolet COPO Camaro in FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown:
On chasing his third title in FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown…
“We have had good luck at Las Vegas and this race will be special because we will have the championship in the bag and can race without any pressure. I want to carry positive momentum into the off-season and getting one more win at the Nevada Nationals would be a perfect way to wrap up 2023.”
Stephen Bell, driver of the Stanfield Racing Chevrolet COPO Camaro in FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown:
“Aaron (Stanfield) and I are best friends. I gauge every season on a couple things, if I get a win and if we are competitive at most races. We’ve had a good year this season. We were chasing that first championship and we came close. I am appreciative of Greg and Aaron Stanfield for giving a customer like me a car that can compete for the championship.”
Lenny Lottig, driver of the ITI Trailers & Truck Bodies COPO Camaro in FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown:
On winning the FlexJet bounty earlier this year…
“I love the Flexjet bounty program. I would love to see it carry over into 2024 if we win this weekend. We won two races in a row earlier this season with Charlotte and Chicago so Lee Hartman got a $2,000 payday in Bristol. I want that money to keep growing because that will mean I am still winning.”
TEAM CHEVY BY THE NUMBERS:
1,441: Round wins for John Force (1st all-time).
621: Round wins for Robert Hight; 13th all-time. Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car), sits 12th, with 625.
380: Number of wins in Pro Stock since 1970; 261 won in the Chevrolet Camaro body.
166: Number of career No. 1 qualifiers for John Force (1st all-time).
158: Number of Chevrolet Racing Funny Car wins since 1967.
82: Number of career No. 1 qualifiers for Robert Hight (6th all-time). Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel) is fifth with 88.
78: Number of Chevrolet Racing Funny Car wins with the Camaro body.
46: Number of career No. 1 qualifiers for Brittany Force.
27: Number of NHRA championships Chevrolet holds as a manufacturer since entering the first in 1966. No other manufacturer has won it more than Chevrolet.
24: Wins by John Force in a Chevrolet-bodied Funny Car.
18: Number of Pro Stock championships.
20: Chevrolet career Top Fuel wins in NHRA.
16: Number of Chevrolet career wins by Brittany Force.
7: Number of Funny Car driver championships.
2: Number of Top Fuel driver championships.
UPCOMING NHRA MILESTONES:
950: Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) is second all-time with 934 elimination round wins. He could reach 950 round wins with a decent run in the 18-race schedule.
624: Robert Hight achieved 621 Funny Car elimination wins in Chicago to rank 13th on the all-time NHRA list; Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car) sits 12th with 625.
452: By qualifying for his next race, Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) will extend his NHRA record from 451 to 452 consecutive race day appearances. His first appearance came in 2002 at Pomona 2, and he holds the longest career qualifying streak in NHRA.
138: Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) ranks third on the NHRA all-time list with 122 No. 1 qualifiers. He will tie Warren Johnson (Pro Stock, 138) for second to John Force (Funny Car, 166) on the list.
278: By qualifying for his next race, Robert Hight will extend his NHRA record to 278 consecutive race day appearances. His first appearance came in 2010 at Pomona 2, and he currently sits seventh in career qualifying streaks in NHRA (Doug Kalitta is sixth at 286).
65: Robert Hight moved into the top-10 in 10th on the all-time NHRA victory list with his win in Reading with 64. Jeg Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock, retired) is next ninth on list with 65.
47: Erica Enders has 46 career NHRA victories (45 Pro Stock, one Super Gas; all with Chevrolet). Her first win in Pro Stock came at Chicago, 2012, and her last win at Topeka, 2023 in Pro Stock. Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Motorcycle, Top Alcohol Dragster) and Enders are tied as the all-time NHRA female leader with 46.
18: Brittany Force (16 Top Fuel career wins) will move past Shirley Muldowney (18 wins) into third on the NHRA all-time victory list for females. Erica Enders (Pro Stock, 46) and Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Motorcycle, 46) are ahead.
6: Erica Enders (Pro Stock) could tie Warren Johnson (6 Pro Stock championships) for second on the class list. The same holds for Greg Anderson. Bob Glidden is the leader with 10. Enders currently holds five Pro Stock championships, the most of any female in NHRA.
3: Brittany Force (Top Fuel, two championships) would tie Shirley Muldowney (Top Fuel) and Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Motorcycle) for second on the NHRA all-time championship list by females with another title in 2023. Erica Enders (Pro Stock, five) is the leader.
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