NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Courtney Force has watched her dad, John Force, win the prestigious Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals. She has watched her sister, Ashley Force Hood, win in back-to-back years and watched teammates Robert Hight, Mike Neff and Gary Densham all win the world’s biggest drag race.

Now, Courtney Force hopes to join the John Force Racing stable of Funny Car winners at Indy, something that can happen at this weekend’s 62nd annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis.

Force has already accomplished a great deal in her young career, including becoming the winningest female driver in Funny Car history, but a win at the race known as the Big Go in her 10,000-horsepower Traxxas Chevrolet Camaro would be the biggest feather in her cap yet.

“It would be huge for me,” said Force, who has eight career wins. “It is right up there with winning a championship. If you get a championship and a win at the U.S. Nationals you have definitely accomplished a lot. The best drivers are out here and to be able to race them and get a win would be huge for the Traxxas Chevy Camaro team. That is our goal going into this race. I think we have a great race car and it has been performing well. I am excited to get out to the race. I grew up coming to this race and this is one of my favorite tracks. It would mean a lot to be able to get a win at the same track where I saw my dad get some of his biggest wins.”

Morgan Lucas (Top Fuel), Jack Beckman (Funny Car), Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Jerry Savoie (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were last year’s winners. For the first time, the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals will be aired live on FOX and FOX Sports 1 (FS1). It also serves as the last race of the 18-race regular season before the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship begins.

Force saw her dad win the prestigious Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals four times growing up, including the most recent in 2002. His next win at the event would tie him with Ed McCulloch for the most in Funny Car history, but Courtney Force has other plans this season.

She bounced back from a first-round collision with the wall in Seattle with a semifinal appearance in Brainerd, remaining second in the points standings behind five-time 2016 winner Ron Capps. With a number of standouts, including Brainerd winner and defending world champion Del Worsham, defending event winner Beckman and two-time world champ Matt Hagan close behind, Force knows a strong outing in Indy would also set her up nicely to begin a run for a first Funny Car world championship.

“I think our entire Traxxas team has been mentally preparing for the U.S. Nationals starting with the Indy test session,” Force said. “You get your game face on. We are trying new things and working on details to get this Camaro ready for this race track a week from now. Coming off of the race in Brainerd when we went to the semifinals we learned a lot about this race car.

“That was a brand new race car from top to bottom. We brought that car to Indy and we also made runs with another new race car that will be our back-up car. We are trying a lot of new things so we are prepared for Indy and the Countdown to the Championship. The U.S. Nationals is the biggest race of our season. It’s the Big Go. This is one of the most important races of the entire season. This is the one everybody wants to win. Mentally we are all getting ready.”

Force said she will use her sister as a resource during a rigorous race weekend that also includes the Traxxas Nitro Shootout. It can make for a hectic stretch of days, but it’s one that John Force Racing has mastered over the years. The JFR team won the Chevrolet Performance Nationals six straight years from 2008-2013 in Funny Car, and Courtney Force hopes to start a new streak in 2016.

“Once you are in your race car you are in the zone and ready for the race,” Force said. “There is a lot going on mentally but I have the faith in my team that we have a great race car. I just have to focus on driving the race car and pretend it is any other race. I think we are all ready. As a driver you have to block out all the distractions and get your game face on.”

That hasn’t been a problem, as Force has rebounded in resounding fashion after not finishing in the top 10 a year ago. She won an early-season race in Houston and has been consistent all summer in a loaded Funny Car class. Competing in her sponsor’s specialty race, the Traxxas Nitro Shootout, is another added bonus for what Force hopes is the biggest weekend of her career to date.

“It feels great knowing we are already locked into the Traxxas Shootout,” Force said. “I’m really excited we have secured a spot with that win in Houston. That win was huge for us and that win was a game changer. We can just focus on what is important going into the race.”

The first of five Mello Yello Series qualifying sessions is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 2. Two more sessions will take to the track on Saturday, Sept. 3 at 2:45 p.m. and 6:45 p.m., and the final two qualifying sessions will take place on Sunday, Sept. 4 at 11:15 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Final eliminations begin at 11 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 5. The Traxxas Nitro Shootout for Top Fuel will be contested Saturday, Sept. 3 with rounds at 4 p.m., 5:15 p.m. and 8 p.m. The Traxxas Nitro Shootout for Funny Car takes place on Sunday, Sept. 4 for the eight qualified drivers, with rounds at 12:30 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4:45 p.m.
 
FOX national broadcast and FS1 will televise coverage of the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals for the first time in event history. FS1 will air highlights from the event on Sunday, Sept. 4, at noon and 5 p.m. EST. The broadcasts will continue on FS1 with two hours of live coverage on Monday, Sept. 5 starting at 11 a.m. EST. The extensive coverage will then continue live on the FOX national broadcast channel at 1 p.m. EST.
 
Tickets for the world’s most prestigious drag race can be purchased by calling the NHRA Ticket Sales Center at 800-884-NHRA (6472), or online at www.NHRA.com/tickets