Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout Newcomers Hart, Prock and Millican Ready to Make Noise in Gainesville

GAINESVILLE, FL – March 3, 2023 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – The Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout is back in 2023 to help kick off the season at the 54th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway, and with it comes a trio of first-time competitors in the specialty race.

Austin Prock, Josh Hart and Clay Millican are in the Callout field for the first time, joining a loaded eight-car lineup that also includes reigning Top Fuel world champ Brittany Force, defending Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout winner Steve Torrence, Justin Ashley, Mike Salinas and Doug Kalitta.

It presents a golden opportunity for the first-time Callout drivers to start the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series on a strong note, but also win the big money on the line at the specialty race.

“There’s some elite drivers in here and to be in that same group in this Callout, that’s really special,” Prock said. “We worked hard to get in here and it’s going to be a blast. I’m looking forward to it and I’m excited for a little bit of the smack talk. I like that it’s at the first race of the year. It’s going to show who did their homework in the off-season.”

The one-day shootout takes place on Saturday, March 11, with the first-round selections being made on Friday in the Top Eliminator Club at the famed Gainesville Raceway. Force gets the first selection and with Hart, Prock and Millican making up the final three spots, each will likely be called out.

That’s fine for Hart, who is ready for a big year in his 11,000-horsepower R&L Carriers dragster. He’s already had one magical moment in Gainesville, winning the Gatornationals in his Top Fuel debut in 2021 – one of just eight drivers in NHRA history to win their first event – and he wouldn’t mind another one.

“We’ve got a little bit of confidence and I’m more comfortable in the car than I’ve ever been before,” said Hart, who advanced to two final rounds in 2022. “It’s going to be an awesome Callout and I’m super stoked. I learned a lot last year and I’m ready to roll. I’m proud to be a part of this group.”

With big money and bragging rights on the line, as well as a special broadcast on Fox Sports 1 (FS1) leading into NHRA Gatornationals eliminations on FOX on Sunday, March 12, Millican will try to grab the spotlight in his 11,000-horsepower Parts Plus/NurtecODT/Rick Ware Racing dragster.

He joined Rick Ware Racing as part of a new Top…