NHRA pros at Gainesville, Fla.

Brittany Gets First Win as Track Challenges Other Drivers

Results compiled by Kay Burk
Photos by Adam Cranmer, Steve Gruenwald and Ron Lewis

Terry McMillen (Adam Cranmer photo)

Brittany Force raced to her first career victory and took control of the Top Fuel point standings Sunday, March 20, at the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals. Robert Hight (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were also victorious at the third of 24 events in the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.

John Force Racing made team history winning their first Top Fuel national event and also winning Funny Car as Brittany Force and Robert Hight were victorious. The wins secured berths for both drivers in the Traxxas Shootout.

The event saw several upsets and plenty of tire smoke in an entertaining weekend for the fans but a trial for tuners and drivers.

TOP FUEL

(Steve Gruenwald photo)

It was the second consecutive final round for Brittany Force as she had come up short in Phoenix against Leah Pritchett. It was the eighth final round appearance of her Top Fuel career. At Gainesville her Monster Energy dragster was the quickest in every round of eliminations.

In the opening round win she posted a stellar 3.739-second run at 319.45 mph over Lucas Oil-backed Morgan Lucas (3.770/316.75). In the next round she got the win light with a 3.808 at 311.05 over rookie Tripp Tatum (3.890/320.05), who had gotten past Pritchett in the first round. In the semifinals Ms. Force won with an outstanding run of 3.729/323.89, quickest Top Fuel run of the day, and advanced to the final by dispatching Dave Connolly’s 3.861/305.36).

Brittany is the sixth different driver to get their first pro win with Alan Johnson after Blaine Johnson in 1995, Gary Scelzi in 1997, Bruce Sarver in 2000, Shawn Langdon in 2012, and Khalid alBalooshi, also in 2012.

At the end of the day Force’s crew chief Brian Husen was relieved and excited to get Force’s first win out of the way.

"Everyone has been working their tails off, and it is great to see it all come to fruition.  Nobody is slacking on this team and it is more of a relief.  I wasn't worried whether we were going to get her that first win or not. It was more a matter of when.  Now we have got that out of the way and can be done with it," said Husen.

Team owner John Force summed up a historic day for his organization.

“Took several years for (Brittany) to struggle and go through all the teams that she loved and the crew chiefs.  But what Alan (Johnson) said was that you could put me over there with that other stuff but to make me any better, put me with what I know.  And that is what we did,” said John Force. “It’s early in the season, but just mentally this is great to deliver for Monster Energy, to deliver for Chevrolet, to deliver for Auto Club that’s been so loyal to us, to Mac Tools, to Peak and everybody.  The only one that didn’t deliver today was me, but what I think I am looking at is that I made the right calls.  A lot of it is money, and I have had to take money out of my pocket to make this program work.   I invested in this Top Fuel team and in Alan Johnson and he made this team work.”