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NHRA
NHRA: Courtney Force, Traxxas Team Up For Rookie Funny Car Run
Courtney Force, the 23-year-old daughter of 15-time NHRA champion John Force, will make her Professional driving debut Feb. 9-12 in a Ford Mustang.
Courtney Force's new Ford Mustang Funny Car. (CourtneyForce.com)
Courtney Force, the 23-year-old daughter of 15-time NHRA champion John Force, will make her Professional driving debut Feb. 9-12 at the 52nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in a Ford Mustang sponsored by Traxxas, the world leader in ready-to-run radio-controlled vehicles.
The announcement was part of a wide-ranging press conference at John Force Racing headquarters in Yorba Linda, Calif., that also solidified the team’s 2012 driver and crew chief lineup and addressed other future plans.
Courtney, who for the last four seasons learned how to deal with all of the off-track aspects of professional racing and has proven herself a skilled interviewee, a reality TV star, a spokesperson for Ford Motor Company’s Driving Skills for Life program, a national marketing contest winner, and a fan favorite, finally will get a chance to show what she can do on the track.
“For Traxxas, Courtney represents more than just a female driver on the track. The family that she comes from has been racing, and she’s been a part of racing all of her life. She’s not just another girl at the racetrack; she’s a girl that has real DNA and John Force DNA embedded in her, and it shows,” said Mike Jenkins, Traxxas president. “Take a couple of minutes and talk with Courtney; you’ll see the competitiveness that comes out in that girl. She’s going to represent our company and our brand. She’s been a top pick for us for a very long time -- we’re proud to have her on.”
After winning an NHRA national event in the Top Alcohol Dragster class and earning Top Agent honors in the marketing contest that fueled Ford’s Fiesta Movement introduction in 2010, Courtney spent last season testing in a Ford Funny Car after selected NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series tour events.
In anticipation of her pro debut, she will continue to test this month in Florida in a Traxxas Ford Mustang prepared by veteran crew chiefs Ron Douglas and Scott Wible.
“Courtney proved she has the same competitive drive that’s made her father successful, working her way through the Super Comp and Top Alcohol Dragster ranks,” said Jamie Allison, director of Ford Racing. “We’ve only seen a small portion of what she’s capable of achieving, [and] we’re happy to welcome her officially as a member of the One Ford Funny Car team in 2012. It’s something we’ve all anticipated, and we are very excited and happy to have her on the Ford team.”
“I’m excited to finally be getting ready for my first professional race,” said Courtney, who hopes to compete for the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award, which identifies the season’s top rookie on the NHRA’s 23-race Full Throttle tour. “This is what I’ve always wanted to do, and to have had my sister Ashley, my dad, brother-in-law Robert Hight, and Mike Neff teach me makes it that much better. I have had the best teachers. I’m just going to learn all I can and see where it takes me.”
Although she was successful in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series for Sportsman drivers, winning in the Top Alcohol Dragster class in Seattle in July 2009, she admitted to some trepidation after initial laps in her BrandSource Funny Car.
“Steering the car was one of the biggest changes for me,” she said of the differences between a 270-mph dragster and a 315-mph Funny Car. “You don’t want to oversteer in a dragster, [but] then you get in a Funny Car, and you almost have to oversteer to keep the car going straight. There’s just a lot more manhandling of the Funny Car than there used to be in the dragster, but it’s definitely been fun.”
Courtney acknowledged that she is excited not only about competing against her father and other teammates, but also against Alexis DeJoria, another female driver who made her Pro debut late last season.
“Watching Alexis last year just made me that much more eager to get out there with her because she’s having fun with it, and she’s done really well. I can’t wait to get out on the track and start making laps and promoting my great sponsors Traxxas, Ford Racing, Castrol, Auto Club, Mac Tools, and BrandSource.”
Douglas, who helped direct Ashley Force Hood to second- and third-place finishes and back-to-back Mac Tools U.S. Nationals Funny Car titles in her two most recent seasons in the NHRA Full Throttle Series, will try to work the same magic this year with her sister Courtney. Sharing tune-up responsibilities with Douglas will be veteran Wible and a crew consisting of Kyle Darr, Steve Easton, Mark Freidenfelt, Dustin Johnson, Chris Kullberg, Robert Proctor, and Brad Robinson.
With 19 years of experience working with some of the most productive teams and well-known drivers in drag racing, nine as crew chief, Douglas brings a wealth of knowledge to his new role, including victories with three drivers in two nitro categories. Douglas, who has worked at Don Schumacher Racing and Doug Herbert Racing and for two-time NHRA Funny Car champion Cruz Pedregon, provided additional crew-chief experience that supported battery-mate Dean “Guido” Antonelli when the two hooked up to combine to make Force Hood a legitimate title contender.
“The preparation of the car is our No. 1 priority,” Douglas said. “We want to make sure the product is right before we ever take it to the starting line. We make sure the car is prepared properly and safely – that’s priority one. Then we’ll decide how we want to attack the racetrack.”
The announcement was part of a wide-ranging press conference at John Force Racing headquarters in Yorba Linda, Calif., that also solidified the team’s 2012 driver and crew chief lineup and addressed other future plans.
Courtney, who for the last four seasons learned how to deal with all of the off-track aspects of professional racing and has proven herself a skilled interviewee, a reality TV star, a spokesperson for Ford Motor Company’s Driving Skills for Life program, a national marketing contest winner, and a fan favorite, finally will get a chance to show what she can do on the track.
“For Traxxas, Courtney represents more than just a female driver on the track. The family that she comes from has been racing, and she’s been a part of racing all of her life. She’s not just another girl at the racetrack; she’s a girl that has real DNA and John Force DNA embedded in her, and it shows,” said Mike Jenkins, Traxxas president. “Take a couple of minutes and talk with Courtney; you’ll see the competitiveness that comes out in that girl. She’s going to represent our company and our brand. She’s been a top pick for us for a very long time -- we’re proud to have her on.”
After winning an NHRA national event in the Top Alcohol Dragster class and earning Top Agent honors in the marketing contest that fueled Ford’s Fiesta Movement introduction in 2010, Courtney spent last season testing in a Ford Funny Car after selected NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series tour events.
In anticipation of her pro debut, she will continue to test this month in Florida in a Traxxas Ford Mustang prepared by veteran crew chiefs Ron Douglas and Scott Wible.
“Courtney proved she has the same competitive drive that’s made her father successful, working her way through the Super Comp and Top Alcohol Dragster ranks,” said Jamie Allison, director of Ford Racing. “We’ve only seen a small portion of what she’s capable of achieving, [and] we’re happy to welcome her officially as a member of the One Ford Funny Car team in 2012. It’s something we’ve all anticipated, and we are very excited and happy to have her on the Ford team.”
“I’m excited to finally be getting ready for my first professional race,” said Courtney, who hopes to compete for the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award, which identifies the season’s top rookie on the NHRA’s 23-race Full Throttle tour. “This is what I’ve always wanted to do, and to have had my sister Ashley, my dad, brother-in-law Robert Hight, and Mike Neff teach me makes it that much better. I have had the best teachers. I’m just going to learn all I can and see where it takes me.”
Although she was successful in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series for Sportsman drivers, winning in the Top Alcohol Dragster class in Seattle in July 2009, she admitted to some trepidation after initial laps in her BrandSource Funny Car.
“Steering the car was one of the biggest changes for me,” she said of the differences between a 270-mph dragster and a 315-mph Funny Car. “You don’t want to oversteer in a dragster, [but] then you get in a Funny Car, and you almost have to oversteer to keep the car going straight. There’s just a lot more manhandling of the Funny Car than there used to be in the dragster, but it’s definitely been fun.”
Courtney acknowledged that she is excited not only about competing against her father and other teammates, but also against Alexis DeJoria, another female driver who made her Pro debut late last season.
“Watching Alexis last year just made me that much more eager to get out there with her because she’s having fun with it, and she’s done really well. I can’t wait to get out on the track and start making laps and promoting my great sponsors Traxxas, Ford Racing, Castrol, Auto Club, Mac Tools, and BrandSource.”
Douglas, who helped direct Ashley Force Hood to second- and third-place finishes and back-to-back Mac Tools U.S. Nationals Funny Car titles in her two most recent seasons in the NHRA Full Throttle Series, will try to work the same magic this year with her sister Courtney. Sharing tune-up responsibilities with Douglas will be veteran Wible and a crew consisting of Kyle Darr, Steve Easton, Mark Freidenfelt, Dustin Johnson, Chris Kullberg, Robert Proctor, and Brad Robinson.
With 19 years of experience working with some of the most productive teams and well-known drivers in drag racing, nine as crew chief, Douglas brings a wealth of knowledge to his new role, including victories with three drivers in two nitro categories. Douglas, who has worked at Don Schumacher Racing and Doug Herbert Racing and for two-time NHRA Funny Car champion Cruz Pedregon, provided additional crew-chief experience that supported battery-mate Dean “Guido” Antonelli when the two hooked up to combine to make Force Hood a legitimate title contender.
“The preparation of the car is our No. 1 priority,” Douglas said. “We want to make sure the product is right before we ever take it to the starting line. We make sure the car is prepared properly and safely – that’s priority one. Then we’ll decide how we want to attack the racetrack.”
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