COMMERCE, Ga. (AP) — Robert Hight raced to his third Funny Car victory in a row and fourth overall this season on Monday at the rain-delayed NHRA Southern Nationals.
Hight, the 2009 Funny Car world champion, defeated John Force Racing teammate Courtney Force in a thrilling final at Atlanta Dragway with a performance of 4.049 seconds at 315.05 mph in his Ford Mustang.
Force, who was trying to earn the 100th victory for women in NHRA history, trailed in her Mustang with a 4.117 at 316.01. It was the sixth final-round appearance in a row for Hight, who extended the John Force Racing team’s consecutive final round streak to 14 races.
“We’ve just got to take it one run at a time,” said Hight, who won his 33rd career event.
“It’s a total team effort. First round I was able to save it and pedal the car. Second round my team definitely saved me. My brain got a mental overload. Luckily my team gave me a 4.05 that run. After that we got in sync, we were back as a team again.”
Spencer Massey (Top Fuel), Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were winners at the NHRA Drag Racing Series event.
In Top Fuel, Massey beat Doug Kalitta with a 4.269 at 245.85 to claim his first win of the season and 15th of his career. Massey became the third Don Schumacher Racing driver to win a Top Fuel event in 2014, joining teammates Antron Brown and Spencer Massey.
Jeg Coughlin powered his Dodge Dart to his 57th career Pro Stock win with a 6.558 at 211.63, defeating rival Greg Anderson in the final. The win earned Coughlin, the five-time and reigning Pro Stock world champion, his third career victory at Atlanta and first of the season.
Krawiec was the dominant racer all weekend in Pro Stock Motorcycle, racing to victory as the No. 1 qualifier over teammate Andrew Hines with a final-round performance of 6.806 at 197.45. It was the first win of the season for Krawiec, a three-time Pro Stock Motorcyle world champion. It was his third win at Atlanta Dragway.
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