CHEVROLET IN NHRA
CIRCLE K NHRA FOUR-WIDE NATIONALS
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA
TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT
APRIL 30, 2023
CHEVROLET SWEEPS ALL THREE PRO CATEGORIES AT ZMAX DRAGWAY IN CHARLOTTE
AUSTIN PROCK, ROBERT HIGHT, DERIC KRAMER TAKE HOME WALLYS FROM THE CIRCLE K NHRA FOUR-WIDE NATIONALS TO GIVE CHEVROLET 428 TOTAL NHRA PRO WINS
- Robert Hight, in the John Force Racing Camaro SS Funny Car, notched his second win of the 2023 NHRA season, the 63rd of his career, his seventh at zMAX Dragway, and the 157th class win for Chevrolet
- Austin Prock, from John Force Racing, notched his first Top Fuel win of the season, the fourth of his career, and 20th for Chevrolet in Top Fuel
- Deric Kramer of KB Titan Racing raced his Camaro SS to his fifth career NHRA Pro Stock victory, his first since Charlotte 2019, and the 252nd victory for Chevrolet in the Camaro body
- John Force raced to a semi-final finish
- Brittany Force (Top Fuel) went out in semi-final quad with tire shake
- Chevrolet was represented in all three pro category final rounds.
- Brittany Force earned her 45th No. 1 qualifier Saturday, her third in a row in 2023.
- Matt Hartford earned the No. 1 qualifier spot Saturday for KB Titan Racing, with teammate Dallas Glenn earning No. 2 for second consecutive event
CHARLOTTE (April 30, 2023) – After more than a three and one-half hour rain delay, the NHRA Circle K Four-Wide Nationals resumed at zMAX Dragway at Charlotte Motor Speedway near Charlotte, NC. Chevrolet was represented in all three Pro classes, Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock final rounds, and came away with three wins.
Robert Hight drove his John Force Racing Camaro SS Funny Car to his second victory of the 2023 NHRA season and the 63rd of his career over runner-up Alexis DeJoria. Scoring a semi-final finish in the final Funny Car quad run was 16-time NHRA Funny Car Champion John Force and Ron Capps.
It was Austin Prock, driver of the John Force Racing Top Fuel dragster, capturing the Wally for the Bowtie brand in Top Fuel, earning his fourth career victory and first of the season against runner-up Leah Pruett. Josh Hart and Steve Torrence scored semi-final finishes in the final quad run of the event.
Deric Kramer kept KB Titan Racing’s winning streak alive, scoring the Wally in Pro Stock with a win in his Camaro SS over teammate Dallas Glenn. Matt Hartford and Fernando Cuadro, Jr. were the semi-finalists.
Len Lottig took his COPO Camaro to Factory Stock Showdown Winner’s Circle, notching his first win this season, with his last coming at Gainesville in 2022.
Up next for the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series is the Gerber Collision and Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals in Joliet, Illinois May 19-21, 2023. Broadcast of Sunday’s eliminations will air live at 6 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1).
ROUND 1 RECAP
Top Fuel:
· No. 1 Brittany Force, her 45th No. 1 qualifier award, and No. 16 Doug Foley defeated No. 8 Antron Brown and No. 9 Clay Millican
· No. 7 Austin Prock and No. 2 Justin Ashley defeated No. 10 Mike Salinas and No. 15 Jacob McNeal
Funny Car:
· No. 7 John Force, and No. 2 Cruz Pedregon defeated No. 10 Blake Alexander and No. 15 John Smith.
· No. 3 Robert Hight and 11 Mike McIntire, Jr. defeated No. 11 JR Todd and No. 14 Alex Laughlin
Pro Stock:
· No. 1 Matt Hartford, and No. 8 Deric Kramer advanced over No. 9 Troy Coughlin, Jr. and No. 16 David Cuadra.
· No. 13 Aaron Stanfield, along with No. 6 Greg Anderson defeated No. 4 Christian Cuadra and No. 9 Chris McGaha
· No. 2 Dallas Glenn and No. 15 Fernando Cuadra, Jr. defeated No. 7 Camrie Caruso and No. 10 Mason McGaha.
· No. 3 Kyle Koretsky, along with No. 14 Jerry Tucker, defeated No.6 Erica Enders and No. 11 Bo Butner, III
SEMIFINALS
Top Fuel:
· Austin Prock defeated Ashley, Pruett and Dakin
Funny Car:
· Robert Hight, defeated J Force, Pedregon and McIntire
Pro Stock:
· D. Glenn, M Hartford and D Kramer defeated K Koretsky, J Tucker, A Stanfield and G Anderson, to advance to the Four-Wide Finals..
FINALS
Top Fuel:
· A Prock defeated Pruett, Torrence and Hart to capture Wally
Funny Car:
· R Hight defeated DeJoria. J Force and Ron Capps to win Wally.
Pro Stock:
· Kramer defeats Glenn, Hartford and F. Cuadra, Jr. to win Wally
ROBERT HIGHT, AUSTIN PROCK, DERIC KRAMER NHRA WINNER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:
ROBERT HIGHT:
THOSE CHANGES PAID OFF WITH THE WIN, HOW GOOD OF A FEELING IS THAT TODAY?
“This is a big weekend for us. The car went down the track in every run and really hats off to the NHRA and the Safety Safari. They have had challenging conditions all weekend and I know they have worked long, long hours. They couldn’t get rubber on the track earlier in the week with it raining. And they just did a great job, and as you can see, there was a lot of side-by-side racing. All four cars, all four lanes. Great E.T.s and speed. So good job to NHRA Safety Safari. Its tough enough to do two lanes, and prep them right, but to do four, they really deserve to be sitting up here and not me. We did change our car around. Two first round losses in a row and we stayed and tested in Vegas on Monday. And we actually had some ignition problems and I was thinking ‘awe man, we aren’t really going to get the data that we need with the clutch’. Because the engine didn’t run right. But Jimmy (Prock) says, ‘nope, we are going to be fine’. To come in here and make seven respectable runs, and get down the track every run. You can see it in his eyes that there is more left in him. He is really excited. I am proud of him easing into it and not overdoing it and giving me a chance to win. When you are up against the group that we had in the final, whoever comes out on top, that is a big deal.”
HUGE WIN OBVIOUSLY WITH MATT (HAGAN) GOING OUT EARLY FIRST ROUND AND YOU HAVE A CHANCE TO MAKE UP GROUND
“You get excited, and you hear that he lost first round and you know the door is open and the opportunity is there. You can’t let that effect you, you have to just stay focused and one run at a time. First round I had a horrible light, but got my act together on the second and third and we got the job done. So, its 40 points to the winner in the final. So, that is a big swing here. This was a big day for us and we needed this to get right back in this hunt. And I think he and I are the only ones that have won this year. He’s got one on me, so I have to catch him.”
HOW MUCH DID THE TWO-HOUR WAIT EFFECT YOU PERSONALLY?
“Its not easy. You know, you have got to get up for these runs. You can’t stay up all day long and stay ready like that. You have to kind of relax a little bit, hope it quits raining, and get back up all over again. Its not what you like to do. You want to get out there because you have already waited long enough for first round, you know? You want to get this show on the road.”
AUSTIN PROCK
YOU FINISHED FIRST IN ALL THREE QUADS AND YOU WERE ASKED EARLIER TODAY IF YOU LIKE THIS FOUR-WIDE AND YOU SAID YOU WOULD LIKE IT IF YOU WIN IT. WALK US THROUGH YOUR RACE DAY
“It was a great weekend overall. Just like Robert’s (teammate Hight) car, we went down the track all seven runs this weekend. And to rebound like we did after an awful weekend in Vegas, really shows how strong this team is. I never have had much success here in Charlotte and believe I went out from pretty much going out every first round to winning it. Super proud of my team and this category is just brutal right now, so they are extra special.”
WHAT WAS YOUR PERSPECTIVE OF THE FOUR-WIDE?
“I felt like I came into Vegas with a better mindset of how to handle it. And having them back-to-back like we did, you are just more comfortable coming into the second four-wide. So, now that I am comfortable going four-wide it’s going to feel odd going back to two-wide. It really is as hard as you make it.”
DID YOU SEE STEVE JUMP OUT AHEAD OF YOU AND WERE YOU WORRIED THAT HE MIGHT HAVE A HOLESHOT ON YOU?
“I had two people red light against me today. The first one I spent my composure, and it was a 70 red, I think. When Steve hit the gas, it startled me, and I kept my composure again and I was .049 on the tree. I think I was .049 both times that someone red lit against me. I heard them leaving and I was like, ‘crap am I late?’. I am going down there, and I saw his header flame out of the corner of my eye, so that caught my attention. I probably drove it inside a little bit. When you are in the outside lanes, if you are quick, you can catch the win light. I missed that, so I didn’t even know I won until I turned the corner. I didn’t know if he red lit or he just got a massive hole shot on me. I don’t use a radio, so this four-wide stuff, when you are in the middle lanes, its miserable sitting in the shutdown area because you don’t know what you ran or if you won, lost, or what. So, my crew chiefs were so confident today that they told me we are going to go out there and out-run everybody. I didn’t even look at the time slip, but I believe we did.”
DERIC KRAMER
CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT IS GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND AFTER GETTING BACK INTO THE WINNERS CIRCLE?
“Yeah, absolutely. It’s a fun car to drive. First and foremost, and that is enough to keep someone out here. But once you hoist the Wally and you get that feeling, just like Jason Line told me about my very first win, is that once you do it, you want to win another. When the drought is so long and you think it’s never going to happen again, that when it finally does, its euphoria.”
YOU MADE IT TO THE FINAL QUAD AT VEGAS AND NOW WIN HERE. ARE YOU STARTING TO FEEL GOOD ABOUT HOW THINGS HAVE GONE?
“I think we as a team have been struggling with the car for the last couple of years. Just little gremlins that occasionally show up. And we were able to solve those right before the end of the year and then we were able to build momentum in the offseason. We go to the finals in the race and then we stayed and tested the next day, and just getting more and more laps makes me comfortable, makes the crew more comfortable, we get more data, and it just all compiles. If the car is consistent, and the car is fast, then it takes pressure off of you and then all you have to do is go out there and do your job as best you can. Then the chips chips will fall wherever they do. When the car is running that good, there is a good chance you can keep going.”
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.
