NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

After competing in just two races in 2020, last season's NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series should have been a year of rebuilding for Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac Top Fuel dragster pilot Brittany Force. The 2017 world champion and her crew chiefs, David Grubnic and Mac Savage, didn't seem to have any trouble reassimilating, however. They finished No. 2 in the Top Fuel standings, and this year, they intend to do one better. 

"We're coming right out of what turned out to be a really strong season, not just for me as a driver, but for the entire team," said Force, who reset both ends of the national record in 2019 (3.623 seconds, 338.17 mph) and continues to prove she's in command of one heck of a hot rod. Force was No. 1 qualifier at the first race of the 2022 season and No. 2 in Gainesville with a massive 3.684-second pass at 337.75 mph. 

"Coming off a season like we did last year, you have extra confidence," she said. "It was a little challenging to get back into the routine after taking a step back, but being able to pick right back up makes me realize how lucky I am. I'm blessed to be teamed up under the John Force Racing umbrella with a crew like this, from David Grubnic and Mac Savage to every single one of the guys below them. We're an awesome group together, and we want more wins. We want the championship."

Aside from the pandemic-impacted 2020 season in which she contested just two events, Force has won at least one race each year since 2016, but there was a marked change when Grubnic and Savage joined the JFR fray in 2019: Force's dragster emerged as one of the consistently quickest in the pack. The team qualified No. 1 a class-leading eight times in their first season together, and 2021 was even better with 12 No. 1 starts in the 20-race series.

Quick elapsed times and big speed, however, do not necessarily equate to victory, and victory, most often, is the way to the championship. Force claimed one victory in 2021 and two in 2019.

"It's absolutely in the back of all our minds," said Force. "That No. 2 [on the wing] shows how close we were, but we weren't close enough. I'm very proud of that number, but it's also something that gives you a boost of motivation. We want to turn that No. 2 into a No. 1.

"The biggest challenge is going to be how tough it is this season. The teams that showed up in Pomona — Tony Schumacher is back, Tony Stewart Racing is here now, my teammate Austin Prock is back — there have been a lot of shifts and movement with crew chiefs and teams, and it's going to be a tough season. If I'm going to be challenged like that, I want to do it with every single one of my guys. I'm excited about the possibility of what we're capable of, how far we can push ourselves, and what we can accomplish."