Robert Hight and the Cornwell Tools / AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car team are the provisional No. 1 qualifiers Friday night at the Menards NHRA Nationals at Heartland Motorsports Park. John Force has the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro SS sitting No. 4 and in Top Fuel, Austin Prock has the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist in the No. 7 spot, while Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac / Monster Energy is sitting in the No. 11 spot.
Hight, who is looking for his third No. 1 of the season, 80th of his career, and fifth at Heartland Motorsports Park, handled the Cornwell Tools Camaro to a stout 3.948-second pass at 321.19 mph in Friday’s night qualifying session.
“That run was definitely much needed. We went off of last year when we ran 3.93 here under similar conditions,” Hight said. “We’ve been struggling; this Camaro hasn’t been cooperating with every adjustment Jimmy Prock makes. He’s set on this new clutch combination but believes he’s been the one making mistakes. He beats himself up pretty bad, and it was just awesome to hear the excitement in his voice when he told me what it ran.
“We needed that run big time. We are coming off a win at Norwalk Match Race, which was good for the team and morale,” Hight continued. “We ran well, so maybe things are on a little bit of an upswing for us.”
John Force and the PEAK Chevy landed the No. 4 spot with a 3.977-second pass at 317.12 mph under the lights at Heartland Motorsports Park.
Austin Prock and the Montana Brand team were on a quality pass before slowing near the finish line for a 4.039-second run at 254.71 mph for the No. 7 provisional spot.
Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac dragster lost traction and had to shut off early during their first qualifying attempt. They’ll start day two from the No. 11 spot.
The Menards NHRA Nationals at Heartland Motorsports Park continues with qualifying Saturday at 3 and 5:30 p.m. Eliminations will begin Sunday at 11 a.m. Television coverage of the event will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) with qualifying shows Saturday at 7 p.m. ET and Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. Eliminations will be airing on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.
This story was originally published on August 12, 2023. 
