MORRISON, CO – July 17, 2022 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Brittany Force made the most of her final qualifying pass on Saturday at Bandimere Speedway, powering to the No. 1 position in Top Fuel at the 42nd annual Dodge Power Brokers NHRA Mile-High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway.
Matt Hagan (Funny Car), Aaron Stanfield (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also qualified No. 1 at the 11th of 22 races during the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. The stop in Denver marks the first event in the three-race NHRA Western Swing.
Force picked up her fourth No. 1 qualifier of the season and 36th in her career by going 3.758-seconds at 325.61 mph in her 11,000-horsepower Flav-R-Pac dragster to close out qualifying on Thunder Mountain. She’ll meet Terry Totten to open eliminations and was thrilled with how her team bounced back after struggling during qualifying on Friday. It was a different story on Saturday, as Force made two quality runs, going to No. 1 to close out the day. The former world champ will now try to win for the first time in Denver and jump back into the points lead in the process.
“We turned it around with two solid passes today, so we’re feeling good and in a great position for tomorrow,” Force said. “It’s game on tomorrow and we’re trying to get back on top as the points leader. I’ve struggled here in the past, so we’re looking to turn it around here. I believe in this team, but it’s tough out here. There’s no other track like this one. After Friday, our focus wasn’t going to No. 1. We wanted two solid passes, but lucky for us we went to the top.”
Justin Ashley jumped to second during the final session thanks to his standout run of 3.765 at 327.51, while provisional No. 1 qualifier Leah Pruett improved on her Friday run to qualify third with a 3.771 at 322.50.
In Funny Car, Hagan held onto the No. 1 spot by improving on his run from Friday with an impressive pass of 3.908 at 323.12 in his 11,000-horsepower Dodge Power Brokers Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat. It gives the three-time world champion his fourth top position during the 2022 season and the 47th in his career. After two great days of qualifying, Hagan will try to win for a second straight year on Thunder Mountain at his sponsor’s race and possibly take the points lead in the process.
“All in all, the car is running great,” Hagan said. “We were able to stay No. 1 and I’m pretty happy with the performance. I think…
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