Author: Mike Haag

SONOMA, Calif. — Cruz Pedregon is an avid boxing fan and the two-time Funny Car world champion feels like he’s been knocked down on more than one occasion during what has been a frustrating 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season. But the 35-time event winner is determined to land a knockout punch or two at some point this season in his 10,000-horsepower Snap-on Tools/WIX Filters Toyota Camry. With time running out before the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship begins and Pedregon currently outside the top 10, he hopes that spark comes soon and is eyeing this weekend’s…

SONOMA, Calif. — It took all of one race for Bo Butner to have a better July than what ended up as a frustrating June during his 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season. After an impressive start in the redesigned Pro Stock class, Butner fell on hard times in June, winning just one round during a rigorous stretch of four straight races. With a week off, Butner regrouped in his Jim Butner Auto Chevrolet Camaro, advancing to the final round on July 10th in Chicago. That has paved the way for what the rising Pro Stock star hopes…

By Elon Werner, John Force Racing DENVER, CO — John Force, the winningest driver in NHRA history, continued to add to his legendary body of work winning for the 7th time at the Mopar Mile High NHRA Nationals in ten final round appearances and for the unprecedented 144th time. This is the 29th season Force has won at least one Funny Car national event, an accomplishment unequaled in all of motorsports. The 16-time Funny Car champion had to defeat his youngest daughter and NHRA superstar in her own right, Courtney Force, in the final round to get the win. In…

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Mission accomplished, a record set, and a torch passed to the next generation. Kyle Busch set a Brickyard record for laps led and became the first driver to sweep both a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series race from the pole in the same weekend, but the real symbolism of Sunday’s Crown Royal 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway didn’t come until the event was over. As Busch spun his No. 18 Toyota in a celebratory burnout and took his customary bows near the yard of bricks, Tony Stewart and…

MORRISON, Colo. – The two winningest drivers in their respective classes in NHRA history, John Force and Tony Schumacher, scored historic victories Sunday at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway near Denver. Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were winners at the first NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series finals in history to be televised live on a national broadcast network. It was the first win of the season for both legendary drivers, who have earned the most world championships and victories in Funny Car and Top Fuel, respectively. They gave epic performances…

JEFF GORDON, INTERIM DRIVER OF THE NO. 88 AXALTA CHEVROLET SS, AND RICK HENDRICK, OWNER OF HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS, met with members of the media at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to discuss Jeff climbing behind the wheel of the No. 88 Chevrolet SS for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. as he continues to heal from concussion like symptoms.  Full Transcript: WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS OF GETTING BACK IN THE CAR? JEFF GORDON: “I certainly woke up feeling good when I saw Dale Jr.s’ Tweet that he’s seen progress. I texted him right away as soon as I saw that. So, that is great news. Great…

MORRISON, Colo. – Defending Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals Top Fuel winner Steve Torrence will try to earn his second consecutive victory on Thunder Mountain Sunday from the No. 1 qualifying position. Courtney Force (Funny Car), Alex Laughlin (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also will lead their classes into tomorrow’s 11 a.m. eliminations as top qualifiers at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event at Bandimere Speedway near Denver. The race is the first of three consecutive weekends of racing known as the NHRA Western Swing. Torrence claimed his seventh No. 1 of the season and 12th…

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service SPEEDWAY, Ind. – About the only thing Kyle Busch didn’t win on Saturday was the one prize he wasn’t eligible for. But the driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota won everything else, capping a phenomenal day at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with a victory in the Lilly Diabetes 250 NASCAR XFINITY Series race—and he did so with tires that were 23 laps older than those of his pursuers. Busch led 62 of 63 laps but had to hold off Kevin Harvick on a two lap dash in overtime to win for the…

AUSTIN, Tx. – The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) dialed up a mid-week classic with the 4th annual Aspen Dental Dirt Derby 150 at Eldora Speedway. Featuring the sole dirt track race on NASCAR’s schedule, Wednesday night’s event in Rossburg, Ohio, was met with a tremendous amount of fanfare as spectators packed the grandstands early for the highly anticipated dirt track event. For Austin Wayne Self, making his first NCWTS career dirt track start, expectations were realistic as he hoped to simply gain experience and finish the race unscathed.  However, with strong backing from his team, the 20-year old, Self, impressed in his…

Teams take over Mid-Ohio for test: Agendas varied in the one-day team test Thursday at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, but they shared one common goal: finding the quickest way around the 2.258-mile permanent road course in Lexington, Ohio, that plays host to The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio from July 29-31. A total of 17 cars logged test laps, with official times not reported since it was a team test day. Some teams used the day to fine-tune setups for the upcoming race weekend. Several others used the opportunity to test and evaluate current or former Indy Lights presented by…