"We caught a break when Tony beat Cruz. That was big for us. We are only three rounds behind Cruz
from the 10th spot. We have two races and I am up for the challenge." - Robert Hight
With two races before the NHRA Countdown to 1 Robert Hight finds himself on the outside looking in.
Prior to the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals Hight had been making slow but steady progress in reeling in
the two drivers in front of him, Cruz Pedregon and Matt Hagan. In Brainerd the unthinkable happened
when persistent rain showers rolled in on Saturday washing out the final qualifying session before
Hight was in the field.
Hight was forced to watch Sunday's racing action from the sideline. It could have been much worse.
Teammate Mike Neff was the last funny car to make a lap down the track on Saturday and his 4.12
second effort was enough to put him at the top of the field and shuffle everyone back. The shuffle
moved Cruz Pedregon into a first round match-up with Matt Hagan. For Hight this meant that at least
one of the drivers he was chasing would only gain one round on him.
Cruz Pedregon defeated Hagan but it set up a race with his teammate and brother Tony Pedregon. The
next big break came when Cruz lost to his brother Tony Pedregon in the second round. When it was
all said and done Hight spotted Hagan 20 points and Pedregon 40 points on race day with only two
races left before the Countdown.
"We caught a break when Tony beat Cruz," Hight said. "That was big for us. We are only three rounds
behind Cruz from the 10th spot. We have two races and I am up for the challenge. I have been in
pressure situations before and I am confident in my abilities. Not qualifying was tough. Trust me.
I want to be out there racing for Auto Club, Castrol, Ford, Mac Tools and the rest of our sponsors.
We are not out of this Countdown by a long shot," said Hight.
"It all boils down to doing everything right no matter what racetrack you are at. If you do that,
you put yourself in position to win. We definitely need to qualify and go rounds. Winning would be
nice, and that is what we are going for."
Teammate and father-in-law John Force raced to the semi-finals at Brainerd and put a little more
distance between himself and number ten Cruz Pedregon. At the conclusion of the event Force's crew
and Hight's crew were furious making adjustments to Hight's Auto Club Ford Mustang and Force's own
Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang. In an unprecedented move Force and Hight will be trading
teams this weekend at the TOYO Tires NHRA Nationals as well as the fabled Mac Tools U.S. Nationals
in Indianapolis.
"I said I wouldn't shuffle my crew chiefs for three races," Force said, "but I am moving a driver.
I earned enough (points) to get my Castrol GTX High Mileage Mustang into the Countdown. It's not
secure, but it's close enough. To be safe, I should have gone one more round. I have about a 100
point lead with two races to go. Somebody is going to really have to do some damage to catch me,
but we've got to get Robert back in the hunt, so I'm going to move Robert over to my car and I'm
gonna drive the (Jimmy Prock tuned) Mustang."
Hight reached the finals at Reading in 2007 but he has never qualified higher than 7th at Maple
Grove Raceway. Last year he dropped a tire smoking battle with teammate Mike Neff in the first
round. This year Hight will be looking to maximize the opportunity team owner John Force has given
him.
Did you know.
- Hight will be participating in the Great American Vehicle Adventure at Dodger's Stadium
on August 29th where he will sign autographs in the morning.
- Hight and sister-in-law Ashley Force Hood are featured in an Auto Club of Southern
California television commercial that is getting rave reviews on the Full Throttle Drag racing
Series.
- Hight and his three teammates will be cruising to Cabo San Lucas for New Year's Eve as
part of the John Force Racing Fan Cruise III sponsored by AAA. Fans can get more information by
calling 1-888-874-7222.
The Driver
Robert Hight, 39, driver of the Auto Club of Southern California Ford Mustang, is entering 2009
following his fourth consecutive Full Throttle Top Five finish. He is the only Funny Car driver to
have led the points each of the last four seasons. The 2005 winner of the Auto Club's Road to the
Future award that identifies the Rookie of the Year, he owns the two quickest 1000 foot times in
Funny Car history (4.056 and 4.005 seconds) and well as the quickest quarter mile times in Funny
Car history (4.646 and 4.636 seconds).
Get team info here: http://www.johnforceracing.com
Follow John Force Racing at http://www.twitter.com/jfr_racing
