Backstretch Motorsports

Brown, Edwards and Rivas round out provisional No. 1 qualifiers

SONOMA – NHRA sophomore sensation Ashley Force powered her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to the provisional No. 1 qualifying position in Funny Car at the FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway on Friday.

The other provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the 15th of 18 regular season races (24 total) in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series were Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Chris Rivas (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

[read more...]

ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. – After nearly 15 years since his last No. 1 qualifier, Funny Car driver Jim Head raced to the provisional top spot Friday at the place he last collected his No. 1 qualifier, the Lucas Oil NHRA SuperNationals.

Larry Dixon, Greg Anderson and Chris Rivas were also No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the 11th of 24 events on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

[read more...]

With Milestones and History in Tow, Force Heads to Thunder Valley

BRISTOL, Tenn. – In what is shaping up to be one of the most competitive Funny Car seasons in NHRA history, John Force and his daughter Ashley have teamed up to provide plenty of early season buzz with some memorable milestone performances.

First, at Las Vegas in early April, 25-year-old Ashley became the first female to lead the Funny Car point standings with a runner-up finish in her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang. John then arrived at Atlanta Dragway in late April and became only the second driver in NHRA history to attend 500 NHRA events, joining Pro Stock legend Warren Johnson on that short list.

[read more...]

First it was Danica Patrick and Japan, Now there’s Ashley Force , and there’s Antron Brown following JR Todd from last season.

Diversity is alive and well in racing. At least in the IRL and NHRA.

Scott Speed not only took the Red Bull team to an ARCA win at the Kansas Lottery 150, he scored another top ten finish in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event there.

Speed is acclerating the learning curve with style. Watch for seat vacancy to both appear and be filled with Speed before Cup seasons’ end over at Red Bull NASCAR. I don’t think there will be a third car.

[read more...]

BROWN WINS AT HOUSTON, EARNS FIRST CAREER TOP FUEL WIN

Becomes first NHRA driver to win in Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle

BAYTOWN, Texas (March 30, 2008) – Antron Brown made NHRA history Sunday afternoon at Houston Raceway Park as the 32-year-old raced his David Powers-owned Matco Tools dragster to the win at the 21st annual O’Reilly Spring Nationals. He becomes the first driver in NHRA history to earn wins in both Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle. He won 16 races during his 10-years in the two-wheel category.

After qualifying the Matco Tools/iLocate GPS dragster in the No. 12 position with a run of 4.644 seconds on Friday afternoon. The New Jersey native bested veteran racer Doug Foley, 29-time Top Fuel winner Cory McClenathan, perennial title contender Doug Kalitta, and two-time series champion Larry Dixon to earn his first career Top Fuel win and 17th NHRA victory.

[read more...]