Motorsport News

Torrence, Wins Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout: Ashley, Hight, Anderson & Sampey No.1 at U.S. Nationals

220904 hight - U.S. Nationals (678)

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – September 4, 2022 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Top Fuel’s Steve Torrence put together a pair of impressive runs on Saturday, rolling to the victory in the Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout specialty race at Lucas Oil Raceway as part of this weekend’s prestigious 68th annual Dodge Power Brokers NHRA U.S. Nationals.

Justin Ashley (Top Fuel), Robert Hight (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Motorcycle) are also the current No. 1 qualifiers at the 16th of 22 races during the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season and the final event of the regular season.

In the final round of the specialty event with a total purse of $130,000, Torrence, the four-time defending world champion, went 3.692-seconds at 329.02 mph in his 11,000-horsepower Capco Contractors dragster to slip past points leader Brittany Force, who had a run of 3.704 at 330.31. Torrence beat Justin Ashley in the semifinals, while Force advanced to the final with a victory against Mike Salinas. It continues the strong momentum for Torrence, who won in Brainerd and was stellar on the starting line on Saturday to collect the $80,000 prize.

“First, tons of respect for Brittany Force and that team because they’ve been bad to the bone, but them Capco boys have been bad to the bone for five years,” said Torrence, whose run also has him qualified second. “We didn’t forget what we were doing, but you’ve got to persevere and stay with the boys who brought you there. I’ll tell you what, we’re standing proud. We don’t look stupid now because we’re walking away with the cash. I’m only as good as the car that they give me, but when you’re confident in it, you’re confident in yourself.”

Ashley bounced back from his semifinal loss to Torrence by holding onto his provisional No. 1 spot in Top Fuel, doing so in impressive fashion with a spectacular run of 3.671 at 335.32 in his 11,000-horsepower Phillips Connect dragster, breaking the track speed record in the process. It keeps Ashley on track for his second No. 1 qualifier of the season and the young standout was thrilled to make an incredible run to stay at the top of a Top Fuel field that is already among the quickest in history.

“Obviously, we didn’t accomplish what we wanted to and win the shootout, but we really went up there with a plan and we executed on it,” Ashley said. “To go out there tonight and run 335 miles per hour, that’s the type…

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