The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season is highlighted by a pair of marquee events — the Aug. 28-Sept. 2 Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park and the Nov. 14-17 In-N-Out NHRA Finals at In-N-Out Burger Pomona (Calif.) Drag Strip.
Thus, the route to a successful season could be a victory in the U.S. Nationals and securing a title when the six-race NHRA Countdown to the Championship concludes prior to Thanksgiving.
“Everybody pretty much focuses on getting to Indy and positioning yourself the best you can for the Countdown. Traditionally, we’ve done that since we started this whole Countdown,” three-time NHRA Funny Car champion Ron Capps told SPEED SPORT.
However, according to Capps, managing a season is much more complex than it seems on paper.
“You have that mindset where I’m not sure we split it up necessarily,” Capps began. “I think years ago when I came into this sport and I’m racing (John) Force, Chuck Etchells and Al Hofmann and all those guys, you focused on the summer months, because that meant getting used to these tracks and getting your tune-up right to fight for a championship.
“Those were the races when championships were won back in the day, with Force, a lot of them, through tricky track conditions in the summer.”
A number of Force’s 16 titles were clinched by the end of the summer, specifically during the 1990s. Between 1990 and 2002, Force stockpiled 12 of the division’s 13 championship trophies.
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