August 12, 2023 | By NHRA PR

Hight, Torrence, Glenn secure No. 1 qualifying spots at Heartland Motorsports Park

Topeka, KS —  Robert Hight hung on to the No. 1 qualifier position in Funny Car at Heartland Motorsports Park, earning his 80th career top spot on Saturday at the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor.

Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) also qualified No. 1 at the 13th of 21 races during the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.

Hight’s strong run of 3.948-seconds at 321.19 mph in his 11,000-horsepower Cornwell Tools/AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS from Friday held up, handing the multi-time world champ his third No. 1 qualifier this season and a remarkable 80th in his standout career. Hight also made a strong run to close out qualifying on Saturday as he looks for his third win of the 2023 season. Currently fourth in points, Hight has his sights on a major move over the next three races and he’ll open eliminations on Sunday against Jack Wyatt.

“That 80 is a big number, it shows I've been doing it a long time, but it also shows I've had great teams behind me,” Hight said. “You're not No. 1 qualifier without a really good racecar. This is a tribute to all the good people I've worked with. This is big for us. I think we're turning a corner with this new combination; it's starting to respond. Jimmy [Prock, crew chief] was happy.

“It's not too late to get back in this points deal and leave Indy with the No. 1 spot. It can happen. Points and a half at Indy, we do good here, do good at Brainerd, we're right back in the thick of things. That's our mindset.”

Defending and back-to-back world champ Ron Capps took second in qualifying with a 3.950 at 314.17 and Matt Hagan’s 3.960 at 318.24 put him third.

A host of competitors came close, but Steve Torrence claimed his first No. 1 qualifier of the season thanks to Friday’s run of 3.764-seconds at 326.24 mph in his 11,000-horsepower Capco Contractors/Toyota dragster. He nearly topped it in his final run of the day where Torrence went 3.767 and Leah Pruett made a huge jump with her pass of 3.768, but the Texan hung on for his 35th career top spot. He’ll open eliminations against Terry Totten, trying to pick up his second win in three races and possibly move into the points lead in the process.

“This morning I felt safe. The conditions have changed and evolved to cloudy and cool,” Torrence said. “The big thing is, picking up bonus points throughout the rounds, that's key, that's crucial. We need to pick up those points. I've won a championship by less than two or three points. It'll be a big deal at the end. Consistency wins races and championships, and that, along with being quick, is what we pride ourselves in. We're going to do the best we can to keep this up.”

Pruett’s 3.768 at 325.77 put her second in qualifying, while Doug Kalitta went to third with a 3.799 at 316.45.

Topeka continues to be very good for Pro Stock points leader Dallas Glenn, who turned in a terrific Saturday with two strong runs, including a 6.642 at 205.26 in his RAD Torque Systems to close out the day and give Glenn his second No. 1 spot this season. Glenn tied KB Titan Racing teammate Greg Anderson earlier in the day with a run of 6.653 and 205.66, and Anderson made an impressive pass of 6.645 at 205.79 in the final session. But Glenn responded with his run to move to the No. 1 spot for the fourth time in his career. He’ll open eliminations against Fernando Cuadra Sr., looking for his fourth win in 2023.

“As a driver, you cannot make any mistakes,” Glenn said. “If you miss one shift, you can fall back four or five spots, just that easy. I don't know exactly what it is, but it's probably two-hundredths between No. 1 through No. 9. It's going to be a really tight field and a really tough Sunday, and we've got a lot different weather rolling in for tomorrow so that's going to throw an extra variable into the mix, but I think we have a really good car for them.”

Anderson took the second spot after making three stellar runs during qualifying, while Matt Hartford claimed third with a 6.657 at 206.23.

Eliminations for the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor begin at 10 a.m. CT on Sunday at Heartland Motorsports Park.

SATURDAY QUALIFYING RESULTS AND SUNDAY ELIMINATION PAIRINGS

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Sunday's first-round pairings for eliminations for the 34th annual Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor at Heartland Motorsports Park, the 13th of 21 events in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday.

DNQs listed below pairings.

Top Fuel -- 1. Steve Torrence, 3.764 seconds, 326.24 mph vs. 16. Terry Totten, 4.193, 274.33; 2. Leah Pruett, 3.768, 325.77 vs. 15. Lex Joon, 4.106, 251.39; 3. Doug Kalitta, 3.799, 316.45 vs. 14. Austin Prock, 4.039, 254.71; 4. Tony Schumacher, 3.801, 322.04 vs. 13. Scott Palmer, 3.967, 267.69; 5. Clay Millican, 3.806, 322.04 vs. 12. Buddy Hull, 3.946, 260.86; 6. Mike Salinas, 3.808, 323.66 vs. 11. Antron Brown, 3.864, 322.65; 7. Justin Ashley, 3.818, 322.88 vs. 10. Josh Hart, 3.854, 319.90; 8. Brittany Force, 3.820, 295.59 vs. 9. Shawn Langdon, 3.826, 318.54.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Jacob McNeal, 4.397, 196.24.

Funny Car -- 1. Robert Hight, Chevy Camaro, 3.948, 321.19 vs. 16. Jack Wyatt, Dodge Charger, 4.270, 245.54; 2. Ron Capps, Toyota Supra, 3.950, 314.17 vs. 15. Dave Richards, Ford Mustang, 4.250, 295.40; 3. Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.960, 318.24 vs. 14. Alex Laughlin, Charger, 4.197, 291.82; 4. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 3.967, 316.60 vs. 13. Blake Alexander, Mustang, 4.123, 308.64; 5. John Force, Camaro, 3.977, 317.12 vs. 12. Alexis DeJoria, Supra, 4.121, 298.27; 6. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 3.991, 320.74 vs. 11. Terry Haddock, Mustang, 4.097, 302.82; 7. J.R. Todd, Supra, 4.011, 319.52 vs. 10. Chad Green, Mustang, 4.039, 313.73; 8. Paul Lee, Charger, 4.014, 308.35 vs. 9. Cruz Pedregon, Charger, 4.021, 310.77.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Chris King, 4.524, 231.99.

Pro Stock -- 1. Dallas Glenn, Chevy Camaro, 6.642, 205.26 vs. 16. Fernando Cuadra, Ford Mustang, 6.762, 203.92; 2. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.645, 205.79 vs. 15. David Cuadra, Mustang, 6.746, 204.05; 3. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.657, 206.23 vs. 14. Fernando Cuadra Jr., Mustang, 6.726, 204.05; 4. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.660, 207.05 vs. 13. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.719, 204.85; 5. Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.660, 205.51 vs. 12. Cristian Cuadra, Mustang, 6.703, 204.42; 6. Deric Kramer, Camaro, 6.661, 205.63 vs. 11. Jerry Tucker, Camaro, 6.677, 205.69; 7. Kyle Koretsky, Camaro, 6.662, 205.29 vs. 10. Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.673, 206.10; 8. Camrie Caruso, Camaro, 6.666, 205.82 vs. 9. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.667, 205.57.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Mason McGaha, 6.793, 202.70.

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HAGAN, TORRENCE AND GLENN WIN MISSION #2FAST2TASTY NHRA CHALLENGE IN TOPEKA

By NHRA (Topeka, KS) – Funny Car’s Matt Hagan powered to his second win in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge for Tony Stewart Racing on Saturday at Heartland Motorsports Park, defeating Chad Green in the final round of the bonus race as part of this weekend’s Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor.

Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) also won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge in Topeka.

Hagan made the best Funny Car run on Saturday, going 3.960-seconds at 318.24 mph in his 11,000-horsepower American Rebel Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat, racing past Green’s 4.039 at 313.73 in the championship round of the bonus race. Hagan, who is second in points, won the bonus race in Denver and capped off that weekend with an event win, and will look to do the same this weekend in Topeka. He defeated J.R. Todd earlier in the way, chasing down Green to finish off his day in style.

“That bonus money goes a long way with my guys, and you want to dig deep on the starting line for them,” Hagan said. “But Chad had a .010 light against me, he was digging a little bit deeper than I was, I think. Chad's a great driver, he's come a long way with his program and what he's doing. They're a tough car, and there's just no easy draws out here. You have to bring everything you've got, and then you have to bring a little bit more. That's just what it takes to turn win lights on in a Funny Car.

“I've been very, very blessed to have (Dickie Venables) tuning the car and letting me drive the wheels off of it. I'm excited we were able to pull down our second #2Fast2Tasty win, and I can't wait to see what happens on raceday tomorrow.”

Top Fuel’s Steve Torrence stayed red-hot in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, winning the bonus race for the third straight event, knocking off points leader Justin Ashley in the final round with a run of 3.767 at 319.90 in his 11,000-horsepower Capco Contractors/Toyota dragster. Torrence has impressed over the last three races, winning in Seattle, Sonoma and now Topeka on Saturday, also handing Ashley his first defeat in the bonus race. Torrence knocked off Antron Brown earlier in the day and then made the best run in the class on Saturday to pick up yet another win.

“Justin Ashley has shown himself to be a fierce competitor, and he's got a good team over there,” Torrence said. “Admittedly, we've not been the CAPCO boys of the past. We're doing the best we can to get back to that. I think that at some point, we might have given these guys a false sense of hope that we aren't the team we used to be. Maybe we're not there yet, but we're coming back. It gives me a lot of confidence and makes me feel excited about the rest of the year. We're building the steam, building the momentum at the right time, and that CAPCO train is coming.

“We need to get those challenge points. Justin had built a little bit of a lead, and we're cutting that down. [The Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge points] are going to be crucial.”

Dallas Glenn had appeared in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge before, but was able to put together a winning performance for the first time on Saturday in Topeka, knocking off Erica Enders in the finals. Enders went red on the starting line, but Glenn would have been difficult to track down, as the points leader made the quickest run of the weekend in the category, going 6.642 at 205.26 in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro against the defending world champ.

Glenn knocked Camrie Caruso earlier in the day with another stellar run, putting on another strong performance to close out the day.

“This definitely takes some pressure off,” Glenn said. “I've been in four or five of these already and just haven't been able to seal the deal so to finally be able to do it when I've got such a good car, it means a lot. To try to get three championship points, that's a big deal. We've got the points lead right now going into Sunday, we've got No. 1 qualifier. This car is running awesome right now and I just want to keep the momentum going.”

Eliminations for the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor begin at 10 a.m. CT on Sunday at Heartland Motorsports Park.

MISSION #2FAST2TASTY NHRA CHALLENGE ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Final round-by-round results from the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge at 34th annual Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor at Heartland Motorsports Park.

TOP FUEL CHALLENGE:

ROUND ONE -- Justin Ashley, 3.838, 319.67 def. Josh Hart, 4.113, 267.06; Steve Torrence, 3.879, 291.45 def. Antron Brown, 4.074, 247.47;

FINAL -- S. Torrence, 3.767, 319.90 def. J. Ashley, 3.842, 319.37.

FUNNY CAR CHALLENGE:

ROUND ONE -- Matt Hagan, Dodge Charger, 4.065, 302.75 def. J.R. Todd, Toyota Supra, 4.307, 219.83; Chad Green, Ford Mustang, 4.135, 302.75 def. Ron Capps, Supra, 4.160, 256.26;

FINAL -- M. Hagan, 3.960, 318.24 def. C. Green, 4.039, 313.73.

PRO STOCK CHALLENGE:

ROUND ONE -- Dallas Glenn, Chevy Camaro, 6.653, 205.66 def. Camrie Caruso, Camaro, 6.685, 205.94; Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.660, 207.05 def. Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.676, 206.42;

FINAL -- D. Glenn, 6.642, 205.26 def. E. Enders, Foul - Red Light.