Ashley, Green, Hartford Win Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge; Ashley, Pedregon and Caruso are also ranked #1 in the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals

POMONA, CA – April 2, 2023 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Justin Ashley took the win in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge as part of the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals, also taking the top qualifying position at Top Fuel to close Saturday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.

In the #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge Mission, Chad Green (Funny Car) and Matt Hartford (Pro Stock) also picked up bonus event wins at Pomona. Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car) and Camrie Caruso (Pro Stock) qualified No. 1 in the third of 21 races during the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.

Ashley went 3.707 seconds at 330.15 mph in her 11,000 horsepower Phillips Connect Toyota dragster powered by National Debt Relief to beat Leah Pruett in the final round, earning the bonus purse and bonus points for the account back for the championship playoffs. The run also gave Ashley, who won last weekend in Phoenix, his third career No. 1 ranking and plenty of momentum heading into Sunday.

“This is probably the best Saturday I’ve ever had at the racetrack,” said Ashley, who will race Krista Baldwin in the first round of eliminations on Sunday. “It’s been pretty amazing and just a really positive step in the right direction. It’s a new set-up and a new combination and my team has obviously done a great job learning and adapting and I thought you’ve seen the results here in this last session.”

Brittany Force finished No. 2 with a 3.712 at 328.86 and Pruett was third with a 3.725 at 331.04.

It was a memorable moment for Chad Green, who took the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge win over Alexis DeJoria with a 3.974-316.08 run in his 11,000-horsepower Bond-Coat Ford Mustang. Green defeated Robert Hight, who finished third in the standings, before and then passed DeJoria, who qualified second, with a strong run in the final round of the bonus event, enjoying the biggest moment of the his young Funny Car career in the process.

“It’s a very important moment for us,” Green said. “It’s our first win in Funny Cars as a team. This season]is going a little better than I expected to start the season, but we’re not surprised. I mean, we have a nice car. We have a good group of guys and we are focused this year.

“It definitely shows that we’re for real and we feel like we can do some damage. We definitely don’t have the car running as fast as we think we can run it, but it’s been very consistent.”

Pedregon’s 3.865 at 302.28 from Friday in his 11,000-horsepower Dodge Charger Hellcat SRT Snap-On Tools kept the two-time champion in the lead, giving him the top spot for the first time this season and 63rd in the his career He’ll open eliminations against John Force, looking for his second straight win at the In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip after closing out 2022 with a win.

“I didn’t think the .86 was going to hold up at all, especially last night because I turned the engine off and I was like, ‘Man, I could probably wring his neck a little bit more.’ I thought we left a little on the table there, but the weather warmed up just enough to keep guys from getting there,” Pedregon said.

Hartford enjoyed some redemption in the Pro Stock ranks, winning the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA challenge. He defeated Camrie Caruso, who beat him in the semifinals in Phoenix, and then Kyle Koretsky in the final round in his GETTRX Chevrolet Camaro, going 6.546 at 210.80 in the final round to win the bonus points and purse bonus to the special race. Hartford also finished second in the standings.

“I felt like we should have won in Phoenix if the driver had done his job and to come here and have a chance to get redemption, it’s really executed and NHRA and Mission did a phenomenal job of putting it together ” said Hartford. “It was great, but with all that said, we’ve got a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”

Caruso enjoyed a breakout moment Saturday in his Powerbuilt Tools Camaro, finishing as the No. 1 qualifier as his 6.518-211.79 streak from Friday held. It gave the 2022 NHRA Rookie of the Year her second career No. 1 finish and plenty of excitement heading into eliminations, where she will meet Steve Graham in the opening round.

“I think we’ll be fine (Sunday),” Caruso said. “My guys are really smart and they know what they’re doing. I’m just going to keep trying to stay calm and not let anything get me down. We’re going to focus on trying to get win lights and see what we can do on race day.”

Eliminations for the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals begin at 11 a.m. PT on Sunday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.

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POMONA, CA — Sunday’s first round matchups for eliminations at the 63rd Annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at In-N-Out Pomona Dragstrip, the third of 21 NHRA Camping World events Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on the results of the qualifier, which ended on Saturday. The DNQs are shown below the pairings.

Top Fuel — 1. Justin Ashley, 3.707 seconds, 330.15 mph vs. 14. Krista Baldwin, 6.088, 107.32; 2. Brittany Force, 3.712, 328.86 vs. 13. Ron August, 4.078, 245.54; 3. Leah Pruett, 3.725, 331.04 vs. 12. Austin Prock, 3.816, 322.34; 4. Antron Brown, 3.730, 329.34 vs. 11. Doug Kalitta, 3.793, 325.30; 5. Mike Salinas, 3.731, 334.40 vs. 10. Clay Millican, 3.771, 329.10; 6. Steve Torrence, 3.736, 324.59 vs. 9. Josh Hart, 3.769, 330.07; 7. Shawn Langdon, 3.758, 333.33 vs. 8. Tony Schumacher, 3.762, 323.27.

Funny Car — 1. Cruz Pedregon, Dodge Charger, 3.865, 302.28 vs. 16. John Force, Chevy Camaro, 4.162, 230.61; 2. Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Supra, 3.883, 333.49 vs. 15. Jeff Arend, Chevy Monte Carlo, 4.120, 300.26; 3. Robert Hight, Camaro, 3.892, 329.99 vs. 14. Terry Haddock, Ford Mustang, 4.021, 310.91; 4. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 3.899, 329.50 vs. 13. Jason Rupert, Mustang, 3.998, 316.23; 5. JR Todd, Supra, 3.935, 328.86 vs. 12. Alex Laughlin, Charger, 3.993, 302.82; 6. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 3.938, 324.51 vs. 11. Chad Green, Mustang, 3.974, 316.08; 7. Blake Alexander, Mustang, 3.941, 322.19 vs. 10. Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.962, 302.96; 8. Ron Capps, Supra, 3.943, 327.74 vs. 9. Paul Lee, Charger, 3.957, 314.02.
Did not qualify: 17. Jeff Diehl, 4.298, 238.05; 18. Steven Densham, 4.330, 243.28.

Pro Stock — 1. Camrie Caruso, Chevy Camaro, 6.518, 211.79 vs. 16. Steve Graham, Camaro, 6.601, 208.33; 2. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.524, 211.13 vs. 15. Deric Kramer, Camaro, 6.586, 209.39; 3. Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.528, 211.59 vs. 14. Jerry Tucker, Camaro, 6.573, 209.43; 4. Dallas Glenn, Camaro, 6.528, 211.33 vs. 13. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.569, 210.18; 5. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.533, 209.72 vs. 12. Mason McGaha, Camaro, 6.563, 210.14; 6. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.534, 211.03 vs. 11. Fernando Cuadra Jr., Ford Mustang, 6.547, 210.18; 7. Cristian Cuadra, Mustang, 6.534, 210.64 vs. 10. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.546, 210.31; 8. Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.539, 210.47 vs. 9. Kyle Koretsky, Camaro, 6.542, 210.47.
It didn’t qualify: 17. Alan Prusiensky, 6.631, 207.37; 18. Shane Tucker, 6.636, 207.15; 19. Fernando Cuadra, 13.100, 68.32.

POMONA, CA — Final results from Saturday’s Mission Food 2Fast2Tasty Challenge at the 63rd Annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at the In-N-Out Pomona Dragstrip.

Mission Food 2Fast2Tasty Top Fuel Challenge: Justin Ashley, 3.707 seconds, 330.15 mph def. Leah Pruett, 3.732 seconds, 326.48 mph.

Mission Food 2Fast2Tasty Funny Car Challenge: Chad Green, Ford Mustang, 3.974, 316.08 def. Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Supra, 4.493, 192.17.

Mission Food 2Fast2Tasty Pro Stock Challenge — Matt Hartford, Chevy Camaro, 6.546, 210.80 def. Kyle Koretsky, Camaro, 6.558, 210.31.

POMONA, CA — Mission Food 2Fast2Tasty Challenge Final round-by-round results from the 63rd Annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at In-N-Out Pomona Dragstrip.

MISSION FOOD 2FAST2TASTY TOP FUEL CHALLENGE:

A WHEEL — Leah Pruett, 3.725, 331.04 def. Shawn Langdon, 6.908, 91.06; Justin Ashley, 3.751, 331.20 def. Steve Torrence, 3.749, 328.14;

FINAL — J. Ashley, 3.707, 330.15 def. L. Pruett, 3.732, 326.48.

MISSION FOOD 2FAST2TASTY FUNNY CAR CHALLENGE:

A WHEEL — Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Supra, 4.333, 209.30 def. Ron Capps, Supra, 4.410, 211.26; Chad Green, Ford Mustang, 4.529, 190.94 def. Robert Hight, Chevy Camaro, 5.780, 121.01;

FINAL — C. Green, 3.974, 316.08 def. A. DeJoria, 4.493, 192.17.

MISSION FOOD 2FAST2TASTY PRO STOCK CHALLENGE:

A WHEEL — Kyle Koretsky, Chevy Camaro, 6.542, 210.47 def. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.554, 210.57; Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.542, 211.06 def. Camrie Caruso, Camaro, 6.550, 210.73;

FINAL — M. Hartford, 6.546, 210.80 def. K. Koretsky, 6.558, 210.31.

About Camping World Holdings, Inc.

Lincolnshire, IL-based Camping World Holdings, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries) is the largest United States retailer of recreational vehicles and related products and services. Our vision is to build a long-term legacy business that makes RVing fun and easy, and our Camping World and Good Sam brands have been serving RV consumers since 1966. We strive to create long-term value by to our customers, employees and shareholders. combining an exclusive and comprehensive assortment of RV products and services with a nationwide network of RV dealers, service centers and customer service centers, along with the industry’s broadest online presence and a team of highly trained associates and knowledgeable in serving our customers, the RV lifestyle. , and the communities in which we operate. We also believe that our Good Sam organization and family of programs and services allow us to uniquely connect with our customers as stewards of the VR enthusiast community and the VR lifestyle. With RV sales and service locations in 42 states, Camping World has grown to become the premier destination for all things RV. For more information, visit www.CampingWorld.com

About NHRA

Based in San Dimas, California, NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 21 national events including the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series, Flexjet NHRA Factory Stock Showdown™ and Top Fuel Harley Series. NHRA offers competition opportunities for drivers of all skill levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. program. Street® for teenagers and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for 5-17 year olds. With 120 member tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete in a variety of national and international locations. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services® (YES) program reaches more than 30,000 students annually to spark their interest in automotive and racing-related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to watch all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three race facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Source: National Hot Rod Association

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