The “Bee” is back and just in time for the Dodge NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway, located near Reading, Pennsylvania. NHRA Top Fuel driver Leah Pritchett’s dragster will once again feature special “Angry Bee” graphics, a callout to the new Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack 1320, at her sponsor’s title event on September 13-16, 2018.
This season marks the third with Dodge as title sponsor of the Dodge NHRA Nationals. The brand also served as primary sponsor of the Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals in Denver and the NHRA Dodge HEMI® Challenge in Indianapolis earlier this year.
“We are proud to celebrate our role as title sponsor of the Dodge NHRA Nationals held near Reading, Pennsylvania, during a season in which the Dodge brand has deepened its commitment to the NHRA and its fans,” said Steve Beahm, Head of Passenger Cars, Dodge//SRT, Chrysler and FIAT, FCA North America. “We look forward to cheering on Leah in her ‘Angry Bee’ graphics, which call attention to the Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack 1320 built and geared for grassroots Sportsman racers.”
Pritchett debuted the 1320-themed livery on her Top Fuel dragster at the Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals in July, where she helped to announce the new street-to-strip Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack 1320 drag car. Pritchett raced her “Angry Bee” Mopar Dodge 1320 Top Fuel car, which features a modern tweak of the legendary Dodge Super Bee logo, all the way to the event win at Denver. The Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) driver hopes to repeat that result at the Dodge NHRA Nationals, which kicks off the six-race NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoffs.
“I’m glad to be back in the ‘Bee.’ We received a ton of positive feedback when we carried those graphics in Denver,” said Pritchett, a two-time winner in Top Fuel this year, in addition to her recent Factory Stock Showdown victory at the NHRA U.S. Nationals. “It’s a really cool look, and hopefully we can end our weekend at the Dodge NHRA Nationals in winner’s circle and give Dodge two wins in the two NHRA National events that the brand sponsors.”
Pritchett and her DSR teammate, Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat NHRA Funny Car driver Matt Hagan, will once again battle for bragging rights in a pair of Dodge Challenger SRT Demon vehicles in between qualifying rounds at Reading. The DSR duo dueled at Bandimere Speedway during the Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals in July, ending in a 1-1 tie. Pritchett owns a 4-2 advantage over Hagan in the “grudge match” series, which began in 2017 at Denver and Reading.
This story was originally published on September 6, 2018.