{"id":100691,"date":"2025-05-14T15:18:32","date_gmt":"2025-05-14T15:18:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/j-r-todd-dhl-team-seeking-more-glimmers-of-hope-in-chicago\/"},"modified":"2025-05-14T15:18:32","modified_gmt":"2025-05-14T15:18:32","slug":"j-r-todd-dhl-team-seeking-more-glimmers-of-hope-in-chicago","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/j-r-todd-dhl-team-seeking-more-glimmers-of-hope-in-chicago\/","title":{"rendered":"J.R. Todd, DHL Team Seeking More \u2018Glimmers of Hope\u2019 in Chicago"},"content":{"rendered":"

Five races into the 2025 season, J.R. Todd\u00a0and his DHL GR Supra team continue to make progress in their return to form; they\u2019ve enjoyed some glimmers of hope but want more. The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series continues May 16-18 at the Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals near Chicago.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Todd is now eighth in the NHRA Funny Car point standings on the strength of a No. 4 qualifying effort in Las Vegas and round wins in both Las Vegas and Charlotte. The DHL Funny Car is going down the track and making solid runs on most passes. That\u2019s positive.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo get better, you have to go down the track; it\u2019s a process, and of course, we want instant results,\u201d Todd said. \u201cIt\u2019s a bit of a long process so every time we go down the track, it\u2019s more data for Dickie and Jon-O (Crew Chief Dickie Venables and Assistant Crew Chief Jon Oberhofer) to look at and fine tune things. We\u2019re definitely getting more consistent \u2013 we\u2019re slowly picking away at it to get quicker and quicker.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll get a better sense of where we are now that we\u2019re back to two-wide racing so we get two shots at each lane during qualifying instead of one in each lane \u2013 it takes away some of the guesswork of only having one shot at each lane at the four-wide races. We had some issues in qualifying in Charlotte but rebounded pretty well on Sunday. We made a couple of pretty good runs so I\u2019m confident we can hit the ground running Friday in Chicago.\u201d<\/p>\n

Strong runs fix most things and energize the team, especially when they end with a win light signifying a round win on Sunday. Each run is one more step in the process, but a win light is not only helpful but also hopeful.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt definitely feels good, especially when they\u2019ve been hard to come by,\u201d Todd said. \u201cWhen you get one, you can\u2019t help wondering if it\u2019s your day to keep turning them on. It just goes to show how difficult it is to win out there. Guys that are winning make it look easy, and it\u2019s anything but easy. I don\u2019t think confidence is down for anyone on our team; they know it\u2019s a work in progress, and we\u2019ve shown glimmers of hope. We don\u2019t know when the breakthrough will come, but we know it\u2019s coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

Race Information:<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals\u00a0<\/p>\n

Route 66 Raceway; Joliet, Ill.<\/p>\n

TV Schedule (All times eastern): \u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n