Robert Hight led a strong contingent of John Force Racing Chevrolets in the first round of qualifying Friday for the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, putting the Auto Club of Southern California Camaro SS in the No. 2 spot on Friday night.
Courtney Force was No. 3 and John Force No. 4 after the first of five qualifying sessions.
With the remnants of Hurricane Harvey threatening the Indianapolis area, NHRA officials decided to move up the first qualifying session by almost 90 minutes. John Force was the first of the JFR Chevrolets to make a run, and his PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil Camaro made a great pass of 3.849 seconds at 336.74 mph.
Courtney Force then followed with an even better pass of 3.847 at 302.28 mph in the Advance Auto Parts Camaro – the speed an indication that she had to click off the Chevrolet early.
Then came Hight, the NHRA Funny Car record-holder in elapsed time (3.793 seconds) and speed (339.87 mph). His run of 3.827 seconds at 330.96 mph wasn’t quite the pass Hight wanted, but it got him three points – one more than usual since this is the U.S. Nationals – as being second-quickest for the session.
“We were hoping for a lot better run, actually,” Hight said. “It’s kind of funny when you’re upset about a 3.82 and being second, but we’ve been spoiled lately. We’ve been low ET and running No. 1. Luckily, we get another shot at a night session. Look out tomorrow night. It’s going to be good conditions again and we’re going to try to break that 340-mph barrier. A great start for the whole team.”
Brittany Force ended up No. 12 in Top Fuel after her Monster Energy car shut off early in a 3.830-second pass at 244.21 mph.
Four more qualifying sessions are scheduled for the U.S. Nationals (all times Eastern): Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. and Sunday at 11:30 a.m. and 3:15 p.m.
Fox Sports 1 will provide two hours of qualifying coverage (all times Eastern): Sunday at noon and 5 p.m. and two hours of live eliminations at 11 a.m. FOX will provide three hours of live eliminations at 1 p.m.
John Force Racing PR/Photo Ron Lewis Photography
