Entering this week’s 18th Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Motorsports Park, two-time Top Fuel world champion Brittany Force finds herself in the cockpit of a Chevrolet Accessories dragster that suddenly is running hot-and-cold, which, in her case, is a very good thing.
Always strong in cool conditions like those that existed when it set the current NHRA national records for time (3.623 seconds) and speed (341.59 miles per hour), Force’s Dave Grubnic-and-John Collins-tuned hybrid recently has shown itself to be increasingly adept on hot track surfaces that in the past would have been problematic.
Last week, for instance, in searing heat at Richmond, Va., the second youngest of John Force’s drag racing daughters made three strong runs, including a best-of-the-race 3.839 that enabled her to earn No. 1 qualifying honors for the 54th time in her pro career.
As a result, the 18-time tour winner is anticipating big things this week after missing last year’s event in the aftermath of her dad’s well-documented crash.
“Coming off a strong qualifying performance in the heat in Richmond, our team is definitely becoming more comfortable with our hot track tune-up,” she said. “Although we didn’t compete in the national event at Norwalk last year, we still were able to gather some data for our notebook in the ‘Night Under Fire’ match race (the annual summer event in which she was the Top Fuel winner). Our goal remains the same this week: qualify top five and turn on four win-lights on Sunday.”
Although she has never won the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, the former NHRA Rookie-of-the-Year has had her moments. She’s been a top-three qualifier in seven straight appearances at SMP, is the track record holder at 3.666 seconds (a mark she established as the No. 1 qualifier in 2022), has reached the semifinals in her last four starts, and was runner-up to Steve Torrence in 2021.
A winner last month at Epping, N.H., she is hoping to gain ground in the Mission Foods driver standings with only five races remaining before the points are adjusted for the Countdown to the Championship.
“We currently sit sixth in points and need to start making up some ground and improving our spot in the standings so we can put ourselves in the best position going into the Countdown,” she said.
The only woman to have won as many as 300 racing rounds in Top Fuel, Brittany is avidly supporting the new philanthropic initiative launched by her brother-in-law, Graham Rahal, and sister, Courtney, through the Graham and Courtney Rahal Foundation (GCRF) and Graham Rahal Performance (GRP).
Funds from the campaign, which will span the remainder of the season, will support the expansion of the Optimal BrainHealth for Warfighters program at the University of Texas at Dallas. This program, in partnership with Virginia High Performance, addresses specific brain health issues affecting military members.
This story was originally published on June 26, 2025.
The post Brittany Force Chases First Norwalk Win as Countdown Pressure Builds first appeared on Drag Illustrated.