NHRA officials announced Jan. 6, that Circle K, one of the nation’s premier convenience retailers, has been named the title sponsor for the 2014 NHRA Winternationals.
The tradition-rich season-opening event for the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, scheduled for Feb. 6-9 at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Southern California, the Circle K NHRA Winternationals is always a fan-favorite event where NHRA race teams unveil their new cars, sponsors and paint schemes and begin their quest to win NHRA world championship titles.
The Circle K NHRA Winternationals, which will be televised to a national audience on ESPN2 HD, is one of the most iconic NHRA events, having been contested annually at the Los Angeles County Fairplex dragstrip since 1963. Many of the greatest stars in NHRA drag racing have won the event, including Don “The Snake” Prudhomme, “Big Daddy” Don Garlits, Shirley Muldowney, Bob Glidden, Kenny Bernstein, John Force and Tony Schumacher.
The defending Circle K NHRA Winternationals winners are Shawn Langdon in Top Fuel, Courtney Force in Funny Car and Vincent Nobile in Pro Stock. Langdon, a Southern California native, used the momentum from winning the Winternationals to capture his first NHRA Mello Yello Series Top Fuel world championship in 2013. Force, the youngest daughter of 16-time Funny Car champ John Force, will be one of the pre-race favorites at the controls of her 8,000-horsepower Traxxas Ford Mustang.
“We are thrilled to partner with Circle K for the 54th running of the NHRA Winternationals, one of the most popular and highly-anticipated races of the season,” said Gary Darcy, senior vice president of sales and marketing, NHRA. “Circle K has a great presence throughout Southern California and will be a terrific partner in activating throughout the marketplace.”
This story was originally published on January 6, 2014. 
