CHEVROLET IN NHRA
AMALIE MOTOR OIL NHRA GATORNATIONALS
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA
TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT
March 12, 2023
TEAM CHEVY CAPTURES PRO STOCK WALLY AT TRICKY GATORNATIONALS
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA (March 12, 2023) – The season-opening AMALIE Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at the legendary Gainesville Raceway proved tricky for many Team Chevy drivers. However, Elite Motorsports’ Troy Coughlin, Jr., driving his JEGS.com/Elite Performance Chevrolet Camaro SS, came through the day with clean runs and raced to his third Pro Stock victory in his eighth final round.
“We’re feeling great,” said Coughlin, Jr. “The whole team and everybody at Elite is working so hard. You can tell the guys in the engine shop and dyno room worked really hard over winter. Everybody at Elite has worked extremely hard between grooming the cars and having everything ready to go. We have eight cars fielded. It’s a lot of work, and there’s a lot of new faces on our team, and everybody’s tremendously got everything running extremely well. We’re lucky to have wonderful partners and wonderful people here, and we’re excited to start our 2023 season.”
For the John Force Racing foursome, Round 2 proved tough. Both Austin Prock (Top Fuel) and Robert Hight (Funny Car) faced mechanical issues, leading to being shut off on the starting line. Brittany Force (Top Fuel) fell to competitor Mike Salinas in a tight race to the finish, while John Force (Funny Car) lost to Chad Green.
“Coming into the first race of the season this Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team struggled a little bit,” noted Brittany Force. “We got a chance to play in the All-Star Callout and made it to the semis where we were taken out. We qualified well. We ran a .69 which is really awesome for us. We made a handful of good runs. On race day we got beat in the second round. We just didn’t push the car enough. We ran a 3.75, and Salinas had a 3.69. This weekend wasn’t for us. That round wasn’t for us. We pack up and we move straight to Phoenix, and we’ll try it again there.”
The FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown saw Aaron Stanfield racing in to the finals, but falling to Joseph Welch. Factory Stock is back in action next April 28-30, at the 13th annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at ZMax Dragway in Charlotte.
Up next for the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series is the NHRA Arizona Nationals Friday, March 24-26, 2023, at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park. Broadcast of Sunday’s eliminations will air live at 7 p.m. ET on FS1.
ROUND 1 RECAP
Top Fuel:
No. 12 Austin Prock defeated No. 5 Clay Millican with a run of 3.706 ET at 331.53 MPH.
No. 1 Brittany Force defeated No. 16 Keith Murt with a run of 3.692 ET at 333.99 MPH.
Funny Car:
No. 2 John Force defeated No. 15 Dave Richards on a solo run after Richards faced a mechanical issue on the line.
No. 3 Robert Hight defeated No. 14 John Smith with a run of 3.843 ET 334.98 MPH, at the time setting a new low ET of the event.
Pro Stock:
No. 8 Bo Butner III defeated No. 9 Deric Kramer with a run of 6.577 ET at 210.44 MPH.
No. 10 Greg Anderson defeated No. 7 Christian Cuadra with a run of 6.575 ET at 209.10 MPH.
No. 6 Kyle Koretsky defeated No. 11 Chris McGaha with a run of 6.533 ET at 209.82 MPH.
No. 3 Mason McGaha defeated No. 14 Fernando Cuadra with a run of 6.654 ET at 210.21 MPH.
No. 12 Camrie Caruso defeated KB Titan Racing teammate No. 5 Dallas Glenn with a run of 6.529 ET at 210.47 MPH.
No. 15 Jerry Tucker defeated No. 2 Erica Enders on a solo run after Enders’ Elite Motorsports car failed to start on the starting line.
No. 1 Troy Coughlin Jr. defeated No. 16 Larry Morgan with a run of 6.560 ET at 211.26 MPH.
ROUND 2 RECAP
Top Fuel:
Prock was defeated by Leah Pruett after facing a throttle stop issue on the starting line.
B. Force was defeated by Mike Salinas in a close race at the finish line.
Funny Car:
Hight faced a mechanical issue on the start, losing to J.R. Todd in Round 2.
J. Force defeated by Chad Green at the finish line in a close race.
Pro Stock:
Anderson defeated Tucker with a win of 6.625 ET at 208.65 MPH.
Coughlin, Jr. defeated Kramer with a pass of 6.564 ET at 210.41 MPH in a close race to the finish line.
Koretsky red lit vs. M. McGaha, with McGaha getting the win.
Glenn defeated Matt Hartford with a lap of 6.547 ET at 209.92 MPH.
SEMIFINALS
Pro Stock:
M. McGaha defeats Anderson with an .019 reaction time in a close race, going 6.607 ET at 209.72 MPH.
Coughlin Jr. defeated Glenn on a holeshot with a run of 6.586 ET at 209.43 MPH.
FINALS
Pro Stock:
Coughlin, Jr. defeated M. McGaha with a 6.637 ET at 208.71 MPH for the NHRA Gatornationals Wally.
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with 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.
