Courtney Force Scores Fourth Win of the Year After Beating Her Father John

So far, NHRA’s Funny Car class has been the Courtney Force show. For the 4th time in nine races, Courtney took home the win in the fastest class in all of drag racing, extending her points lead and sending a message to the rest of the field that she has no intention of releasing her stranglehold on the class.

Racing from the number one qualifying position, Force took on Jeff Diehl in the opening round. As the only driver that Diehl has beaten more than once, the matchup felt a bit like an upset waiting to happen, but by the time the cars reached the 100’ mark, that notion had been erased when Diehl’s car smoked the tires. Force would haze the tires farther down track, but her 4.208 elapsed time was more than enough to send Diehl’s 6.723 to the trailer.

In the second round, the #8 qualifier Jim Campbell was in the opposite lane and things went about the same as the opening round. Force left first and was pulling away at every incremental timer, so it was of little consequence that Campbell also smoked the tires. Force laid down her quickest run to that point in the weekend with a stellar 3.971 at 325.45 MPH.

In the semifinals, JR Todd would be the opponent alongside another victorious pass for Courtney. Force once again left the line first and was pulling away when Todd got loose, slowing to a still-competitive 4.115 to Force’s 4.067.

In the final round, Force would face none other than her father, the winningest driver in Funny Car history, John Force. Ironically enough, the final round would be the only time Courtney failed to leave on her opponent all day, with dad taking the slightest of holeshots with a .067 to his daughter’s .068 light. Courtney’s Advance Auto Parts Camaro would wipe out that advantage before the cars reached the 60’ cones, but the cars stayed locked together through the 1,000 foot timers, with Courtney puling ahead at the stripe to win with a 4.039 to John’s 4.076.

Courtney’s fourth win on the season was also the fourth time this year she’s won from the number one qualifying spot, giving her a huge point total for each of those events. She now has a commanding 173 point lead over #2 runner Jack Beckman going into Bristol.