READING, Pa. (Sept. 15, 2023) – Brittany Force and the Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet dragster team and Robert Hight in the Cornwell Tools / AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS both hold the provisional No. 2 spot in their respective categories Friday at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway. John Force in the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro SS are No. 5 while Austin Prock in the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist dragster are No. 7.
Brittany Force and the Monster Energy team came out of the box swinging at Maple Grove Raceway. Force handled her Monster Energy dragster to a solid 3.745-second pass at 335.40 mph to put her in the No. 1 spot as well as earn her three bonus points after the first session. Into the evening, the David Grubnic and Brandon Hazleton tuned hot rod just missed taking the provisional No. 1 with an impressive 3.689 pass at 336.57 that landed them in the No. 2 spot.
“Very good start out here at Maple Grove Raceway for our Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team. We paid down two solid runs. Our second run put us in the NO. 2 spot, right behind Justin Ashley in No. 1. Two down two to go in qualifying,” Force said. “We’re feeling confident after those two runs. This team really needed them. It boosts our momentum going into this first race of the Countdown in Reading, Pennsylvania. We’re currently fifth in points and we plan to move all the way up, with those five bonus points from qualifying today are putting ourselves in a really good position to make that climb.”
Entering as the defending champion, Robert Hight and the Cornwell Tools Chevy hit the ground running in the first session of qualifying at Maple Grove Raceway. A 3.910-second pass at 330.72 mph would put Hight in the No. 1 spot and earn him three bonus points. In the second session, Hight had another exciting pass at a blistering 3.879 at 329.34 that was only bettered by one competitor, putting him No. 2 for the day.
John Force and the PEAK team had a solid start to their visit to Maple Grove Raceway. A 3.925-second run at 329.34 mph would put the 16-time champion in the No. 4 spot. In the second session of the day, Force improved to a 3.898 at 334.32 but would be shuffled into the No. 5 spot.
Austin Prock and the Montana Brand team had a rough start to qualifying smoking the tires early in the first session to go only 6.079 seconds at 102.73 mph. They picked things up in the second session with a stout 3.728-second pass at 329.83 mph to jump from No. 12 to No. 7.
Competition at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway continues with qualifying Saturday at 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. Eliminations will be run Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Television coverage of the first of six NHRA Countdown to the Championship events begins with qualifying shows Friday at 10:30 p.m. ET and Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1). Eliminations will be covered by FOX Broadcasting Network with shows Sunday at either 4:30 p.m. or 2:00 p.m. ET, check your local listings.
