John Force showed off his sensitive side in a television ad for
the ninth annual Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. In it, the 14-time NHRA
Funny Car champion picked daisies, pondered the meaning of life and tumbled down
the hillside, Jack-and-Jill-style.
That's not the John Force rivals likely will see this weekend, though.
"We need to hurt some feelings," said the 126-time tour winner, "and I don't mean
our own. It's a long season, but we need to start showing that we can still compete.
"What did Waylon say in that song?," Force asked, an obvious reference to the late
country-and-western singer, Waylon Jennings. "We may be used, but we ain't used up.
Yeah, that's it. We ain't used up. We've still got something for em."
At age 60, Force definitely has been used and abused, but don't think the 14-time
Auto Racing All-America selection can't still drive the wheels off the Castrol GTXR High
MileageT Ford Mustang that holds the key to his latest NHRA title bid.
Although he suffered crippling injuries in a crash little more than a year-and-a-half
ago, Force's problems the last 18 months have been more mechanical than physical.
Physically, he may be in better shape than he was before the accident. His weight is
down, his strength is up, he's quit drinking and, for the first time in his racing life, he has
embarked on a regular exercise regimen.
On the other hand, the Mustang he'll drive this week bears little resemblance to the
one he crashed at the Texas Motorplex (Sept. 23, 2007) and, even though he and.his
crew chiefs championed the design, his own team has experienced difficulty in
adapting to the new technology.
Not only is the chassis heavier, the result of more bracing and padding and the
addition of a third side rail the runs above the driver's shoulder, the BOSS 500 engine
that sits between the frame rails is a new in-house design and the clutch that applies
the power to the race track also is new.
All of those simultaneous changes have wreaked havoc with a team that once so
completely dominated the series that it won 10 consecutive titles.
"(Co-crew chiefs Austin) Coil and Bernie (Fedderly) are figuring it out," Force said.
"We've got a race car that's good enough to win, but as competitive as it is, everything's
gotta be just right. The days of having an easy round or two are over. You need to
bring your best every time you go up there.
"There are 14 or 15 cars that can win," he continued. "We've got four of them with
Robert Hight, Mike Neff, me and Ashley (Force Hood, his 26-year-old daughter).
Ashley's got the best car right now but I think we're getting better."
If that's true, then maybe drag racing's biggest winner can add to his legend this
week with what would be his first win at the 1,000 foot distance at which Funny Car and
Top Fuel races have been contested in the year since two-time world champion Scott
Kalitta lost his life in a crash at Englishtown, N.J.
"The focus is still on safety," Force said, "but I think we're starting to have a race car.
I'm excited."
At Bristol Dragway:
- In 1999, driving a Superman version of his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang, John won the
inaugural Winston Showdown, a special event that featured a Funny Car versus Top
Fuel Dragster format. As the No. 1 qualifier, he earned the maximum $210,000 which
still represents the biggest payday of his career.
- John has gone to the finals three times in the last five years with wins in 2004 and
2007 and a runner-up in 2006.
Did You Know?
- John is trying to extend to a record-setting 23 the number of consecutive seasons in
which he has won at least one NHRA tour event and to 25 the number of consecutive
seasons in which he has reached the finals. He currently shares those records with
Warren Johnson.
- John hasn't qualified No. 1 since Sept. 1, 2006. That's 59 races, equaling the longest
drought of his career
- John hasn't appeared in a final round in 22 races, the longest in his career he has
gone without racing for a title. His last final round appearance was June 1, 2008 at
Topeka, Kan., a race he won by beating Tim Wilkerson.
Force and Coil:
- Over the 25 years they have been together, John Force and Austin Coil have gone to
the final round in 42 per cent of ALL the races they've run (198 of 472) in the NHRA
series.
- Force and Coil were winless in their first 31 races together, finally earning a
breakthrough win on June 28, 1987 at Montreal, Canada.
- En route to 14 NHRA championships and 126 tour victories, there always have been
three constants - Force, Coil and Castrol.
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