Jenna Haddock picks up sponsor for Sonoma

July 31, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

After losing her major sponsor just one race ago, Top Fuel rookie contender Jenna Haddock will roll into the peaceful wine country of Napa Valley for the 28^th annual NHRA Sonoma Nationals at Infineon Raceway, the second stop on the famed Swing, with the support from the Sonoma County Les Schwab Tires group of stores.

Les Schwab Tires, headquartered in Bend, Ore. was founded by Les Schwab in 1952. It has grown into one of the largest independent tire dealers with over 450 locations in the country. The Sonoma County group is made up of four locations, Windsor, managed by Rob Paulson, Rohnert Park, managed by Manny Castrellon, Santa Rosa Montgomery, led by David Lindsey and Santa Rosa Avenue, managed by Jessy Usher.

“Les Schwab’s motto is ‘doing the right thing since 1952’ and that’s everything Jenna and her husband Terry represent,” expressed Usher, spokesperson for the group. “The hard work and devotion they put into racing exemplifies our values. They are that one small team working hard and we were that one store that worked hard to be what we are today. Yes, we’re a corporation but we’re family-owned and partnering with Jenna is a great way to show what we support as a company. It’s a perfect match.”

This will be Jenna Haddock’s first time in competition at the beautiful facility and six years since her last visit. She faces the challenge with her usual enthusiasm and exuberance that is making her a fan favorite around the country.

“I am super excited to have Les Schwab join us,” said Haddock. “We’ve known Jessy and the group for several years. They’ve been an associate sponsor for us and when Patriot left us, I offered them a full spot for Sonoma and they took it. We’re a small team and losing our major sponsor was a tough blow. So I can’t thank them enough for coming on board to help me. We did a display at the Santa Rosa Avenue store earlier this week and we had a blast. They are all such great people. Two representatives from each store will be joining us at the track for the race and I can hardly wait to show them a great time. I can’t tell you how proud I am that they have chosen me to represent them and I will do my best.”

Running a limited schedule, Jenna Haddock is currently 18th in Top Fuel points standings, attending 6 events this season.

“I love my race car and driving it and I’m excited to get to be in the car and do this for another weekend. Because we run a limited schedule, I usually have to wait several weeks between races. But we ran Denver last week and now I get to do it again. We are looking to make some good runs and make some progress on our numbers. And most of all we want to have a good clean weekend.”

Jenna Haddock loses sponsor

July 18, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

Jenna Haddock, the wife and new NHRA Top Fuel driver for Terry Haddock Racing just announced the departure of major sponsor Patriot Grading on her Top Fuel Dragster.

Patriot Grading & Engineering is headquartered in Fontana, California and owned by Bascom Mellon. They joined Jenna Haddock in Denver last season at her Top Fuel debut for the Mopar Mile High NHRA Nationals, and have remained on-board since as major sponsor. Patriot Grading is a full-service grading contractor that serves the Southern California region. Budgetary cuts and more emphasis on regional advertising were cited as their reasons for departure.

This was a very difficult decision to make,” said Mellon, “but I’m just a regional guy. That’s all I am and there’s no advantage for me to advertise nationally when things are tight. It has nothing to do with Jenna; I wish her the best. I hope someone will step up and help her so she doesn’t have a blank car in Denver. And I’m hoping I can join her again for the World Finals in Pomona.”

Haddock plans to honor her existing commitments to associate sponsors by competing in the NHRA Western Swing as originally scheduled, as well as a few previously arranged match races between those dates. Beyond those dates, Jenna and her team will have to evaluate their options on finishing the 2015 season.

“I want to thank Bascom, his wife Ashley and Patriot Grading from the bottom of my heart,” expressed Haddock. “I couldn’t have realized my dream without their support. I can’t deny that this hurts us both emotionally and financially. But I understand that sometimes tough business decisions have to be made. We’ve become friends with Bascom and Ashley and I will miss the special bond that we have developed. We will remain friends and they are always welcome to join us at the races.”

New Gumout Dragster Livery unveiled

June 19, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

NHRA Top Fuel driver Leah Pritchett and her Dote Racing team unveiled the new “Solid Gold” Gumout dragster Friday afternoon prior to this weekend’s 15th Annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

The new gold livery will adorn the dragster for the next three NHRA national events – this weekend’s Bristol, Tenneesee event, Norwalk, Ohio (NHRA Summit Racing Equipment Nationals July 2-5) and Joliet, Ill (NHRA Route 66 Nationals July 9-12).

Solid Gold Gumout Dragster

The new livery is representative of the Gumout Expert Series, with its signature gold packing, an exclusive line of Gumout premium performance additives and kits available only at AutoZone. The Expert Series includes products formulated with the most advanced cleaning and conditioning agents on the market. From single use products to specialty kits, the Gumout Expert Series lineup offers solutions to drivers looking to maintain newer vehicle performance as well as those with older vehicles who wish to restore lost engine performance.

We, at Gumout, are very excited to debut the new “Solid Gold” Gumout dragster Friday for Leah and the Dote Racing team at Bristol,” said Rusty Waples, Global Group Brand Manager at ITW Global Brands. “When we discussed our idea with Leah, she asked if we could really go gold and we told her, “absolutely!” That said, it’s about as gold as you can get and it mimics our new packaging for the Gumout Expert Series. We’re enthusiastic to see the reaction of the NHRA racing fans as they get the chance to see the car close-up in the pits.”

For nearly 70 years, Gumout has been vehicle owners’ trusted source for automotive performance products and made a successful return to NHRA professional drag racing in 2014.

“We went back and forth on how to do this gold dragster and finally just decided lets be all-in and go big – and gold, bullion-style,” laughed Pritchett, recent runner-up at the NHRA Southern Nationals. “I love the red dragster, but this, this is going to be fun to roll out to the lanes the next three events for Gumout. Even more fun to roll out of Bristol with a Wally!”

Pritchett enters the event after recording the quickest elapsed time of her 18-year racing career with a sensational 3.736-second clocking at Englishtown. This is on the heels of advancing to her first Top Fuel final round at Atlanta Dragway last month.

Qualifying for the 16-driver Top Fuel field will begin tonight with two rounds at 5:30 and 8 p.m. EDT. Final eliminations for the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals is scheduled Sunday (June 21) at Noon EDT. The ESPN telecast of the eliminations will be live on June 21 starting 3 p.m. EDT.

Strong run continues for Brittany Force

June 15, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

Top Fuel driver Brittany Force continued her strong run in her Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster at this weekend’s 3rd annual NHRA New England Nationals in Epping, New Hampshire. For the third straight event, the Monster Energy team advanced in rounds, coming just short with a 1/100th of a second loss in the semi-finals.

Brittany Force qualified in the number 10 position. First round of eliminations, this would match her up against the number 5 qualifier, Doug Kalitta. With Doug holding the winning record at 6-3 against Force, and having been to the finals of this event the year before, Brittany would need to be at the top of her game in the first round to defeat the veteran. She took the starting line advantage and never trailed, finessing the throttle when the dragster teetered on losing traction and salvaging the pass to a 4.287 second elapsed time at 211.03 mph performance.

Pedaling the car happens so fast and it comes with experience. I am still learning and every run is different. I think I handled that run pretty well. I got out of it and let it settle down and then I got back on the throttle nice and smooth,” said Force. “It hooked up again and got us far enough down the track to get the win over Kalitta. I don’t mind pedaling this Monster Energy dragster and I am getting better at it.”

Though pedaling would get her the win out of round one, she would give up lane choice in the next round to number 2 qualified Richie Crampton. The drivers are even at 3-3 in previous encounters. But it would be Brittany this time, taking the win with a superior 3.885 second pass at 316.08 mph as Crampton hazed the tires. The run was the second-fastest of the session, and gave Force lane choice into the semi-finals.

Now in her third consecutive semi-final round, a personal best for Force, she was paired with three-time Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon. Hoping to propel herself to her first back-to-back final round finish, and another shot at her elusive first win, Force was ready to turn the tables on the veteran, who held a 2-0 record against her. Though it would be Brittany out of the gate first, Dixon overcame a starting line disadvantage (.100 to .081) to get the win, with a 3.855 second E.T. to Force’s 3.894 second performance. The margin of victory was just 0.0105 seconds (approximately 5 feet).

“Looking back at the last three races I think this Monster Energy team is on fire right now. We have never performed like this. It is more than just performance this whole team has pulled together. We are pushing our dragster during qualifying and then showing up on race day and going rounds. I am very proud of the entire team especially my crew chiefs Todd Smith and Ronnie Thompson. They had to be patient all year long because we couldn’t push the car because we didn’t have the funding. Now with Monster Energy we can really press it. Overall it was a great weekend and you can’t complain about going to two semi-finals and a final in the last three races. We are ready to get to Bristol and that is one of my favorite tracks.”

Brittany leaves the event No. 8 in NHRA Mello Yello Championship Points heading into this coming weekend’s 15th annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, Tennessee.

Leah Pritchett Golden teaser

June 15, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

The Dote Racing Gumout Top Fuel dragster driven by Leah Pritchett is undergoing a mid-season makeover. The team promises a “Golden” experience, offering this sneak-peak teaser photo:

The shiny new look will be debuted Friday, June 19 at the 15th annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, Tennessee.

Brittany Force runner-up in Top Fuel

June 10, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

Brittany Force falls just short of first win

Brittany Force runner-up Englishtown — Brittany Force Photo: Gary Nastase, John Force Racing

For the fifth time in her career and the first time this season, Brittany Force raced to a runner-up finish in Top Fuel at the 46th Annual Toyota NHRA Summernationals in Englishtown, New Jersey. Her bid to become the eighth woman to win in drag racing’s Top Fuel class fell just short to New Jersey native Antron Brown in the final round. Force qualified No. 6 and worked her way to the final round by defeating Richie Crampton, Tony Schumacher and Terry McMillen.

Overall this was an awesome day for this Monster Energy team. I am so proud of every one of my guys. They put everything into this dragster this weekend. We went all the way to the final and I don’t even know how that happened it was just a blur today. You can tell they are bummed and they really wanted to take home that win but I am so proud of them and especially my crew chiefs Todd Smith and Ronnie Thompson,” said Force.

Force and the Monster Energy team faced Richie Crampton in the first round, hoping to avenge the semi-final loss against Crampton in Kansas. Both former Rookie of the Year recipients were quick off the line, but Crampton lost traction immediately and aborted, while Brittany thundered through to a 3.848 second elapsed time at 316.01 mph. The win was critical for the team and would move Brittany into round two with lane choice against 8-time Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher.

Again, the pair would leave the line together, but Schumacher would also go up in smoke instantly, allowing Brittany to take the win with another consistent 3.838 second E.T. at 314.02 mph. For the second race in a row, Force bested the former World Champ, evening her career head-to-head record against ‘The Sarg’ at 3-3.

It always helps when you get multiple round wins against anyone. We just use that to keep moving forward and to keep pushing a little bit harder. Really now having Monster Energy on board we now have the power to push harder. We can be more aggressive and push the performance,” said an excited Force.

Brittany Force runner up — Brittany Force launch Photo: Gary Nastase, John Force Racing

Force moved on to face Terry McMillen in round number three. She would again reach the finish line first with a 3.899 at 314.09 mph, but would lose a fuel line at the top end and upset the blower. This would cost her lane-choice in the final against Antron Brown. Though she would leave first, Brittany shook the tires shortly after the launch. She tried to pedal, but seeing the hometown boy was out ahead she clicked off. Antron drove straight through the finish, with a solid 3.843 at 318.47 mph.

We pushed it all the way to the finals this weekend. Earlier in the season we were playing it safe because we didn’t have a sponsor and we couldn’t press as hard on the parts. We are a lot more confident and we are proud to be teamed up with Monster Energy.”

Brittany Force Top Fuel — Brittany Force Photo: Gary Nastase, John Force Racing

Two weeks ago, Force raced to her first semi-final finish of the season, and her advance to the final round of Englishtown moves her up in the Mello Yello point standings from 11th place to 8th place. The runner-up finish marked the first final for her new sponsor Monster Energy, who last saw the final round with Kenny Bernstein’s Funny Car team, where they lost to John Force at Brainerd August 2007.

Brittany Force, in her third professional year of Top Fuel, is only 29 points out of 7th place with nine races left in the regular season, and is now headed to Epping, New Hampshire for the 3rd Annual NHRA New England Nationals this weekend.

I love having back to back races. That is the best part about having some momentum. We ended on a good note and we went to our fifth final. We only have a few days off and we go right back into the next one. I like to get into that groove and so does my team,” said Force, on the prospect of racing three weekends in a row.

Leah Pritchett lands first TF Final

May 17, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

Leah Pritchett and her Dote Racing team had a stellar weekend, filled with many memorable firsts for the 26 year-old driver. After a career-best qualifying performance Saturday, she made her way through the tough 16-car Top Fuel field to her first ever final round appearance in Sunday’s eliminations. The Gumout dragster came up just short in the final against former NHRA Mello Yello Series champion Antron Brown in the 35th annual Summit Racing Equipment Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway.

Now residing in Avon, Ind., California native Leah Pritchett started off her Sunday by clocking a 3.805 second elapsed time at 317.64 miles per hour to defeat drag racing legend Chris Karamesines 3.998 second at 305.15 mph run in the opening round.

In the second round, Leah scored victory over J.R. Todd with another strong 3.813-second pass at 319.29 mph. J.R. had problems in the other lane, running just 5.433 second E.T. at a coasting 132.19mph. This placed Pritchett in the semi-final round, the third semi-final appearance of her Top Fuel career.

Pritchett would take on three-time NHRA Mello Yello Series Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon in the semi-finals. She scored a major upset victory, running a 3.936 second E.T. after Dixon ran into trouble down the track and had to abort the run. The former Heritage Funny Car world champion advanced to her first final round in Top Fuel against Antron Brown.

It was an incredible run through the Top Fuel field today,” said Pritchett. “I even got my husband, Gary (a crew member on Steve Torrence’s Top Fuel team), to help me before the final round. Gary helped me pack the parachute and mix the fuel today. Everything worked well for the Dote Racing team and the Gumout dragster. It turned into a one-lane (right) track at the end and Antron had the right lane. We tried to stay with him but we hazed the rear tires at the 330-foot mark. Overall, it was a great showing with a little one-car team against the big squads.”

Pritchett’s search for her first NHRA national event title came up short, as she lost to Brown’s 3.887 second charge with an off-paced 4.202 second attempt at 260mph. Though she wasn’t able to land her first Top Fuel win, Leah has three NHRA national titles in the Pro Modified class.

It was a tricky track with the final round having a 126-degree track temperature,” she said. “So it was tough going against Antron who had the better lane. But everything worked well up until that point of the day. You needed a ‘hot track’ setup here and you might in Topeka next week too. I’m anxious to get the Gumout dragster back at the track after this weekend.”

Career best qualifying effort for Leah Pritchett

May 17, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

Leah Pritchett starts 3rd in Atlanta

NHRA Top Fuel racer Leah Pritchett recorded her best career Top Fuel qualifying performance Saturday during the Summit Racing NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway. Leah took the Gumout dragster to the third qualifying spot in the 16-driver field for Sunday’s elimination drag races.

The 26-year-old veteran driver from Avon, Ind., drove her nitro-burning Top Fuel car to a 3.792 second elapsed time at the Commerce, Georgia drag racing facility during Friday’s round, a time that would hold the No. 3 position secure through two rounds on Saturday.

Pritchett’s third starting spot in Sunday’s final eliminations places her behind former NHRA Mello Yello Series champions Antron Brown and Tony Schumacher in the 16-driver Top Fuel division. Brown notched the No. 1 spot at 3.758 seconds followed by Schumacher’s 3.767 and Pritchett’s 3.792.

In addition, Pritchett’s third qualifying position was best of the female drivers in the nitro classes at Atlanta Dragway which included Brittany Force (10th) in Top Fuel and Alexis DeJoria (8th) and Courtney Force (10th) in Funny Car

Again the track conditions are tricky here at Atlanta Dragway,” said Pritchett, who’ll take on drag racing legend Chris Karamesines in the first round of eliminations Sunday beginning at 11 a.m. EDT. “it was difficult to get all of the horsepower to the pavement Saturday but we still ran a 3.88. And that was one of the best passes of Saturday. Now, we’ll concentrate on winning rounds in eliminations. Looks like almost anyone could get to the final round on Sunday. I want to be in that position on Sunday afternoon with a chance to win the race.”

Pritchett posted three consistent qualifying runs at Atlanta Dragway – 3.792, 3.809 and 3.887, some of the most consistent numbers in the class. Pritchett is looking for her first Top Fuel victory in her third season in the Top Fuel class, having captured three NHRA national events previously in the ProMod

ESPN2 will televise the final eliminations of the 35th NHRA Summit Racing Equipment Southern Nationals at 9 p.m. EDT Sunday.

Monster Energy Top Fuel unveiled

May 15, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

Brittany Force debuts new Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster

Brittany Force and John Force Racing just unveiled their new Monster Energy Top Fuel Dragster at the 35th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals in Commerce, GA. The unveiling took place in the Force Racing pits amidst the media and spectators.

The 3 year sponsorship announcement for the Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster was made Wednesday by Monster and the John Force Racing team.

Photos: Gary Nastase Photography/ John Force Racing

Monster Energy last appeared in NHRA competition with the support of Kenny Bernstein’s Monster Energy Funny Car. Brittany and Courtney are credited with landing the sponsorship deal for John Force Racing, presenting their motorsports / female racer pitch to the company themselves and working out the details of the arrangement. Company executives were so impressed by the women’s business savvy and presence, they were sold on the idea. John Force himself had tried many times for a meeting with Monster related to sponsorship, but was unsuccessful at ever even gaining a meeting.

Brittany Force lands Monster Sponsorship

May 13, 2015 // by Horsepower & Heels

The long-awaiting announcement of the primary sponsorship on the Top Fuel dragster of Brittany Force was just announced. Monster Energy Drinks has come on-board at John Force Racing to fully-fund the program, starting at this weekend’s 35th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals in Atlanta, GA. The contract with Brittany and the Top Fuel operation will extend for the next 3 years as a primary sponsor, with associate billing on the rest of the John Force Racing camp.

Monster Sponsorship

VP of Sports Marketing for Monster Energy, Mitch Covington, is excited for the company’s return to drag racing, having previously backed veteran driver, Kenny Bernstein in 2006.

““You can’t even mention drag racing without including John Force and John Force Racing,” said Monster Vice President of Sports Marketing Mitch Covington. “Their winning dominance and high performance heritage are simply unmatchable. John is a personality that actually transcends the sport and his daughter Brittany is every bit the fierce competitor as her dad – and she’s a lot prettier than John. The next generation of JFR, Monster Energy is thrilled to have Brittany at the controls of the Monster Energy Top Fuel Dragster this season. Monster is all about unleashing the beast, and there is no other beast like a 10,000 horsepower, asphalt wrinkling, Nitro guzzling dragster.”

Having tried to make in-roads himself with Monster previously no to avail, news of a meeting from persistent efforts by Brittany and Courtney left him skeptical. But the girls were able to put the presentation and pitch together, landing a deal that pleasantly surprised Force.

John Force first approached us about this deal over a year ago, but it wasn’t his presence that sold this opportunity,” said Covington. “The credit for this goes directly to Brittany and Courtney Force, who were the ones that really delivered the presentation, and put this deal into motion.”

“When the meeting finally occurred with Monster, you could already feel an electricity in the room. It was as if they were already Brittany’s best friends. I am so proud of this next generation, because they are showing they have what it takes not only on the racetrack, but that they are doing what it takes on the business end as well.” John Force, CEO of John Force Racing, Inc.

Monster’s activation of their brand and their athletes is also a great added bonus to the partnership between the companies. Known for the cross-promotion of their athletes across a wide variety of different extreme sports, Brittany’s likeness would join that of Ken Block, Rob Dyrdek, Vaughn Gittin Jr and many more in the Monster camp. The expected involvement with NHRA Drag Racing will be similar to their presence with NASCAR in terms of marketing activation, with some limitations in respect to the series title sponsor, also a beverage company.

Brittany Force could not be more pleased with the pairing, saying that her entire team are huge fans of Monster, stocking the drinks in their pits long before the announcement was made.

I am so excited to be teamed up with Monster Energy as the primary sponsor on my Top Fuel Dragster. You see the Monster logo on everything from NASCAR to Action Sports and to have them back in the NHRA seems like a perfect fit. The great thing about partnering up with Monster is how easy it will be for me to promote their brand because my team and I love to drink Monster. I can’t wait to get them into the winner’s circle. My whole team is fired up and we will definitely unleash the beast starting this weekend,” said Brittany.

The team is expected to debut their full Monster Energy livery at this weekend’s NHRA event in Commerce, GA .