CHEVROLET IN NHRA
2023 TEXAS NHRA FALLNATIONALS STAMPEDE OF SPEED
TEXAS MOTORPLEX
ENNIS, TEXAS
TEAM CHEVY RACE ADVANCE
OCTOBER 15, 2023
ERICA ENDERS RACES TO THE DALLAS WIN AND BECOMES THE WINNINGEST FEMALE IN NHRA HISTORY WHILE EARNING CHEVROLET THEIR 380TH VICTORY IN PRO STOCK
- In her 350th NHRA start, Erica Enders captured her 47th drag racing victory to further solidify herself in the history books and become the winningest female in NHRA history.
- Enders’ 47 NHRA wins came from behind the wheel of a Chevrolet, with 46 in Pro Stock and one in Super Gas.
- Enders’ Dallas win Sunday captured Chevrolet their 380th Pro Stock win and 261st in the Camaro for the Bowtie brand.
- Enders leaves the Texas NHRA FallNationals event the Pro Stock points leaders with two races, Las Vegas and Pomona, left in the Countdown to the Championship.
- 16-time champion and veteran driver John Force raced to the final round to finish runner-up after defeating Jeff Diehl in Round 1, Cruz Pedregon in Round 2, and JR Todd in the semifinals.
- Veteran driver Lottig, driver of the ITI Trailers and Truck Bodies Chevrolet COPO Camaro, captured his second career FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown No. 1 Qualifier Friday after three rounds of qualifying.
- Chevrolet also captured victories in both Stock Eliminator and Super Stock, with Jerry Emmons and Tyler Wudarczyk racing to their respective national event win for the Bowtie brand.
- Greg Anderson, driver of the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock, captured his second No. 1 Qualifier of the season and five bonus points toward the Countdown to the Championship with his run of 6.480 ET at 211.76 MPH.
- Deric Kramer raced his way to a $7,500 payday bonus after his career-best Friday night pass of 6.486 ET as part of Texas Motorplex’s Friday Night Live program. The driver with the fastest ET of the evening in each category wins prize money as well as a pair of custom Corral Boots.
ENNIS, Texas (October 15, 2023) – Capturing her 47th NHRA victory, her 46th in Pro Stock and one in Super Gas, Erica Enders, driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock further solidified herself in the drag racing history books to become the winningest female in NHRA history.
Defeating KB Titan Racing’s Dallas Glenn in her 79th career final round with her pass of 6.469 ET at 211.55 MPH to Glenn’s 6.493 ET at 210.40 MPH, the native Texan leveraged her 350th race to capture her third win of the season and continue her strong march to a potential sixth championship.
With her 47 NHRA victories coming from behind the wheel of a Chevrolet, Enders said of her Wally trophies and wins, “We have a lot that mean an awful lot to us, but this one does a lot for self-confidence and for my team. As a little girl that eight years old with big dreams to be a professional driver one day in a junior dragster and working my way through the Lucas Oil Series, and now being here for 20 years, this one will sit proudly alongside some other ones. This has been quite the journey for us; it has not been easy. Way more valleys than peaks, but my team, man. Richard Freeman gave the opportunity ten years ago, and we’ve never looked back. This is quite the exciting weekend for us.”
“Congratulations to Erica Enders on becoming the winningest woman in NHRA history, said Jim Campbell, U.S. Vice President for Performance and Motorsports. “Erica’s preparation, hard work, determination and focus on teamwork has been instrumental to her success. We are proud that Erica’s 47 wins and five championships have been in a Chevrolet.”
John Force, driver of the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, carried the Chevrolet nitro teams to the final round, defeating Jeff Diehl in Round 1, Cruz Pedregon in Round 2, and JR Todd in explosive fashion in semifinals, with the car facing a “blow up” towards the finish line and splitting the body. While Force walked away and readied for the final round, his John Force Racing team readied his Chevrolet to face Matt Hagan. While Force smoked the tires early in the run, and Hagan was able to capture the victory, it was still a strong day for the 16-time champion and drag racing legend.
“I had a race car this weekend that was back in the hunt,” said Force. “(Crew chiefs) Daniel Hood and Tim Fabrisi and Mac Savage and the whole team ran this hot rod into 3.80s every run. Then it got in trouble in the semifinals when we had that explosion after it spun the tires. We got it back together thanks to all the teams joining in to help. I was in my moment because that’s how I lived and grew up in racing and I love being a part of it. It gets my energy up! I just couldn’t get the job done with Hagan. We wanted to help Robert (Hight) and cut a few points but he’s still only three rounds behind with two to go.”
Facing a tough day at a critical time, the Top Fuel pairing of Brittany Force, driver of the Flav-R-Pac/Monster Energy Chevrolet dragster, and Austin Prock, driver of the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster, along with teammate Robert Hight, driver of the AAA/Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, saw their race days end prematurely in Round 1 after being defeated by their competitors.
After securing his second career FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown No.1. Qualifier, Lenny Lottig faced off in his ITI Trailers and Truck Bodies Chevrolet COPO Camaro against Doug Hamp in the finals, with Hamp getting lane choice in the finals. Seeing an all-Chevrolet semifinal and final round, Lottig nabbed the win for the Bowtie brand in the category at the FallNationals after Hamp lost traction at the start and Lottig running of 7.628 ET at 172.42 MPH. With Aaron Stanfield leaving Dallas still leading the points and also representing Chevrolet, the Bowtie brand occupies the top two spots in the Championship with Stanfield leading and Stephen Bell in second.
In Stock Eliminator, Jerry Emmons raced to the FallNationals win in his Chevrolet SS 396, defeating Jimmy Hildago with his run of 10.514 ET at 113.36 MPH to Hildago’s 10.892 ET at 107.05 MPH. Additionally, in Super Stock, Tyler Wudarczyk picked up his sixth national event win in his Camaro, defeating Victor Penrod for the Wally trophy.
With two races to go in the 2023 NHRA Countdown to the Championship, the penultimate event sees Team Chevy drivers and teams heading to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the NHRA Nevada Nationals October 26-29, 2023. In competition and representing the Bowtie brand, Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown take to the track that weekend to battle it out. Broadcast of Sunday’s eliminations air at 5 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). 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:
“It was a tough Sunday for this Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy team. We qualified well. We had three killer runs and went into the show from the number four position and got beat first round. It’s hard to pack up and leave on that note (but) we head to Vegas next and we are looking to surprise everyone and come out and win it. This team can win! We’ve done it before, and we have two more races to get it accomplished this year.”
Austin Prock, driver of the Rocky Mountain Twist/Montana Brand Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster for John Force Racing:
“Not the way we wanted to end our weekend. We had a strong race car all weekend and just missed the set-up first round. The track was technical and got the best of us, but we will come out swinging again in Las Vegas, a win there would be a dream come true.”
Robert Hight, driver of the AAA/Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car for John Force Racing:
“Not the weekend that we hoped for. “This would have been a great opportunity to gain some points (but) this championship is far from over and the AAA/Cornwell team will bounce back in Vegas!”
Greg Anderson, driver of the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for KB Titan Racing:
“Every matchup is tough out here. These guys are bad to the bone, and I said that before. Anybody can beat anybody right now. Obviously, (Aaron Stanfield) did a better job. So, my hat is off to him. It’s an absolute dog fight out here. There are so many cars that can win, so many drivers that can go low or double-o lights on you. The price of poker right now is so high. Just disappointed I didn’t get it done. It’s been a good run lately, but I didn’t get it done there and that’s going to cost. Now, I need a miracle.”
Troy Coughlin, Jr., driver of the JEGS.com Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for Elite Motorsports:
“It’s racing. You sign the waiver at the gate, and it’s a danger. That’s just part of the game. It’s definitely unfortunate for everybody at Elite Motorsports, for all of our sponsors – JEGS.com, White Castle, really everybody on the car. I can tell you that everybody at Elite Motorsports is going to work extremely hard. We’re going to get it together for Vegas. The effort that goes into getting these things ready is second to none – the best. Everybody bands together and works so hard, so it’s really exciting. It’s definitely my driving force to becoming a better driver. Really, I could’ve done a better job keeping it off the wall. I knew (Erica Enders) was probably around me where the motor started to expire. I probably should’ve steered a little bit more to the inside. Things happen so fast and in the moment. The cockpit was full of smoke, my helmet full of smoke. You’re struggling to breathe, you’re not breathing your normal air. A lot of things aren’t like they are. You get into a routine. A lot of things are so different, but we’ll be back in Vegas.
Have you had a chance to assess (the car)? Obviously, the motor expired and there’s some body damage, but do you have a lot of work to do?
“I would say there’s going to be some hours involved. I would say I’ll be getting a couple of pizzas and a few things for the fellas.”
ERICA ENDERS, driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for Elite Motorsports – Texas NHRA FallNationals Winner’s Press Conference:
YOUR FIRST RACE AT TEXAS MOTORPLEX WAS IN A JUNIOR DRAGSTER, AND NOW YOU’RE LEAVING BOTH A PRO STOCK WINNER AND THE WINNINGEST FEMALE IN NHRA HISTORY. YOU ALSO HAVE THE POINT LEAD. THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT YOU BEING IN TEXAS…
“We definitely came in here on a mission. Greg (Anderson) was just a little bit over around behind me, Matt (Hartford) was on his heels. It’s just such a tight field, and then you see everybody qualify on Friday and Saturday, and the top half is separated by just a few thousandths of a second. It’s absolutely crazy, cutthroat competition. I love racing at the Motorplex. Great day. I’m super stoked. My guys are amazing. We didn’t feel like we performed super well in qualifying. Yes, we ran in the top of the pack and qualified No. 3, but we were just missing it. I’m really grateful.”
DID YOU EVER IN YOUR WILDEST DREAMS IMAGINE DOING WHAT YOU JUST DID TODAY (RACING FROM JUNIOR DRAGSTERS TO BECOMING THE WINNINGEST FEMALE IN NHRA HISTORY)?
“I don’t think so, but I say this a lot – ‘The magic of being a kid is actually believing what you think to happen will happen,’ and it did just that. As little kids, my sister and I grew up watching our dad race in the Sportsman series, and we just wanted to follow in his footsteps. NHRA came out with the Junior Drag Racing League when I was eight years old, and I drove those cars for nine years. I raced in the Lucas Oil Series for five, and now I’ve been racing Pro Stock for 20. I kind of have to pinch myself, and check myself when I get mad about things that happen when they do because I’m so blessed to do what I get to do for a living with the people that matter the most to me.”
YOU BROKE A TIE TODAY WITH ANGELLE (SAMPEY). YOU ARE THE WINNINGEST FEMALE IN NHRA HISTORY WITH 47 NATIONAL EVENT TROPHIES. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?
“That’s pretty cool, and in all of motorsports. I’m pretty stoked for that. When I first started racing Pro Stock, Shirley Muldowney had 18 wins, and Angelle (Sampey) had so many. It just seemed so far away and I felt I’m never going to race that long to be able to accomplish that many wins. To have Angelle (Sampey) here this weekend while we do it is pretty awesome. She had a great showing in her first outing in Top Alcohol Dragster, so I’m really proud of her.”
WHAT A RACE DAY YOU HAD. IT’S TREMENDOUS. WALK US THROUGH YOUR RACE DAY…
“It was an awesome day. Epic, really. In qualifying, we felt like we missed it a little bit. Even though we were running at the top of the field, we just weren’t hitting on what we wanted to and felt like there was so much more out of that car. Going up for first round, of course there’s those Sunday nerves, but it’s also the Countdown. Greg (Anderson) and Matt (Hartford) were right behind me. There’s just so much on the line, it’s hard to control your emotions up there. We went out there and went a 46 first round. The guys were excited that everything looked great on the graph when we got back, and we knew that we had a racecar. Then it was my turn to dig myself out of a ditch and get my reaction times back to normal. Progressively all day long, I got better. We had a tremendous racecar. My guys worked really hard.
“Again, when our backs are against a wall, we perform. When Aaron (Stanfield) beat Greg (Anderson), and (Troy Coughlin, Jr.) beat Matt (Hartford), I was the third pair behind them, and I was just so excited in the car just because of how everything was going. To have three Elite (Motorsports) cars in the final four is pretty substantial. Just thrilled for our entire performance today, and we parked it in the winner’s circle.”
YOU STARTED A LONG WAY BEHIND ANGELLE (SAMPEY), AND TO BECOME THE WINNINGEST FEMALE IN NHRA, YOU HAD A BIT OF CATCH UP THERE. TELL US ABOUT THAT JOURNEY…
“I guess I didn’t really realize how close we were until (NHRA) called me in the middle of the summer and said this is approaching, and these are the things we want to do when it happens. Jokingly, I was like ‘Man, I don’t want to talk about it because when we started talking about Greg’s (Anderson) 100th win, it took him a while to get there. Don’t talk about it. I don’t want jinx it. I just want it to come naturally.’
“As a little kid growing up, Angelle (Sampey) was one of my idols, one of my heroes. We had her t-shirts and her autographs and whatnot. For it to come full circle, and when we turned pro in 2004, making our pro debut in ’05, I only had one national event Wally, which was Super Gas. The first seven seasons of my pro career went winless. So, it took us a long time. I remember like it was yesterday tying Shirley Muldowney with 18 (wins), when we won the U.S. Nationals in 2015. Here we are at 47. It’s pretty crazy. To not have it for just drag racing, but for motorsports worldwide is, it’s pretty substantial. While, yes, I just want to be viewed as a driver, it is totally badass and I’m super thankful for the opportunity.
“I always thought, ‘I’m not going to race that long, to get that many wins.’ Here we are, and we’re not done yet. It’s been a long journey but it’s been really fun. It goes to show you, if you don’t ever give up, great things can happen.”
DALLAS IS A PLACE WHERE YOU COULD LOSE A CHAMPIONSHIP, NOT WIN IT, BUT LOSE IT. HEADING TO VEGAS NEXT WHERE YOU ARE KNOWN TO DO WELL, HOW IMPORTANT WAS THIS?
“To have things go right well here for us is huge. To spread the lead just a little (in the Countdown to the Championship), and as you mentioned going to Vegas, we’ve won nine or 10 nationals there. It’s no secret it’s my favorite place to race because it’s just so good to us. Coming off of a win here, and obviously we hope to carry the momentum through to Las Vegas, but then you have Pomona that’s points and a half, and it can throw a wrench in your spoke. You just have to put your head down and go to work. Again, I love racing here (in Dallas). They closed Houston, which was my home track, so this is my new home. I’ve raced here since the early ‘90’s with my family, so another huge thank you to the Meyer family for what they do for our sport, for loving it as much as we do, and making this so fun to win here.”
LAST YEAR WAS A BIT OF A DIFFERENT STORY THIS TIME THEN, AND YOU HAVE QUITE HAD THE SEASON LIKE THAT THIS YEAR…
“Lots of valleys and the start of the season was really not great at all. I don’t think we won a round for six races, which was just terrible and really painful, but it also makes me value my team that much more. We don’t get mad, we don’t have any less fun. Losing sucks, but winning is great. They put their heads down, and they went to work, and we figured out our problem even though week after week after week we were having the same issues. Being in June we were 15th in points, and we’re sitting here in the lead in points is absolutely unbelievable to me. Thankful for that, and yes, three semifinals in our first three Countdown races, and while we were slightly discouraged, my team owner was just like ‘We’ve got to semi out.’ Don’t lose before the (semifinals) and we’ll count it as a good day. So we keep our heads up and we keep going, and then we finally parked it in the winner’s circle here. But, it’s not over. It’s going to be a dog fight. I know that. These guys are really tough. We’re just going to do our best.”
Round 1 Recap:
Top Fuel:
No. 8 Austin Prock fell to No. 9 Antron Brown after losing traction on the start to Brown’s 3.682 ET at 329.0 MPH.
No. 4 Brittany Force fell to No. 13 Spencer Massey after she lost traction mid-track to Massey’s run of 3.719 ET at 327.58 MPH.
Funny Car:
No. 2 John Force defeated No. 15 Jeff Diehl on a blistering run of 3.839 ET at 331.74 MPH to Diehl losing traction mid-track.
No. 3 Robert Hight fell to No. 14 Terry Haddock after losing traction mid-track to Haddock’s 4.266 ET at 298.73 MPH.
Pro Stock:
No. 1 Greg Anderson defeated No. 16 Chris McGaha with Anderson running 6.481 ET at 211.83 MPH to McGaha’s 6.533 ET at 211.53 MPH.
No. 8 Kyle Koretsky falls to No. 9 Aaron Stanfield after smoking the tires mid-track as Stanfield ran 6.503 ET at 210.72 MPH.
No. 4 Jerry Tucker fell to No. 13 Camrie Caruso after Caruso ran 6.526 ET at 210.65 MPH to Tucker red-lighting on the start.
No. 5 Dallas Glenn defeated No. 12 Bo Butner, III after Butner took off to the left at the start of his run to Glenn getting a solid, straight run at 6.492 ET at 210.84 MPH.
No. 2 Troy Coughlin, Jr. defeated No. 15 Mason McGaha with his run of 6.476 ET at 212.56 MPH to McGaha’s 6.530 ET at 210.85 MPH.
No. 7 Matt Hartford defeated No. 10 Fernando Cuadra, Jr. with his 6.509 ET pass at 212.11 MPH to Cuadra, Jr.’s 6.518 ET at 211.56 MPH.
No. 3 Erica Enders defeated No. 14 Eric Latino in a close race with Enders running 6.467 ET at 212.23 MPH to Latino’s 6.530 ET at 210.95 MPH.
No. 6 Deric Kramer fell to No. 11 Christian Cuadra after Cuadra ran 6.508 ET at 211.34 MPH to Kramer smoking the tires and facing issues on the run.
Round 2:
Funny Car:
Force defeated Pedregon with a 3.845 ET at 327.68 MPH to Pedregon’s 3.889 ET at 328.59 MPH.
Pro Stock:
Anderson fell to Stanfield with his run of 6.488 ET at 210.69 MPH to Stanfield’s 6.498 ET at 210.50 MPH.
Caruso fell to Glenn with her run of 6.536 ET at 211.03 MPH to Glenn’s 6.515 ET at 209.29 MPH.
Coughlin, Jr. defeated Hartford with his run of 6.501 ET at 211.84 MPH to Hartford’s 6.509 ET at 210.74 MPH.
Enders defeated Cuadra with her run of 6.473 ET at 211.74 MPH to Cuadra’s 6.511 ET at 211.33 MPH.
Semifinals:
Funny Car:
Force defeated JR Todd, with Todd smoking the tires mid-track and Force facing an explosion and body split towards the end of the run. With Force okay and getting to the finish line first, he moves on the final round. Force took the winlight with a run of
Pro Stock:
Stanfield fell to Glenn after facing issues on the starting line, with Glenn running 6.500 ET at 210.40 MPH.
Enders defeated Coughlin, Jr. with her run of 6.476 ET at 211.88 MPH to Coughlin, Jr.’s 6.843 ET at 164.08 MPH.
Finals:
Pro Stock:
Enders defeated Glenn with her pass of 6.469 ET at 211.55 MPH to Glenn’s 6.493 ET at 210.40 MPH.
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