Herbert returns to racing after tragedy
His sons were killed last month in a car crash, and he's back where he feels relaxed -- behind the wheel of a top-fuel dragster.
Doug Herbert didn't need to post a monster number Thursday. The oversized driver nicknamed "Dougzilla" needed only an uneventful run down the quarter mile at Pomona Raceway for his life to regain some sense of normalcy.
It has been anything but normal since Jan. 26, when Herbert was called away from testing his top-fuel dragster in Phoenix by...
Read the full story in the Los Angeles Times, by Martin Henderson
Tags: crash, Doug Herbert, NHRA, Pomona, race, racingESPN Drag Racing Analyst Mike Dunn Feels 2008 Could Be Year for Women in Funny Car
NHRA POWERade Series Season Begins This Weekend on ESPN2
As the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series season rolls to the starting line this weekend, ESPN drag racing analyst Mike Dunn feels that drag racing fans will see history made this year with the first victory by a woman in the Funny Car class.
ESPN2 will have prime-time, same-day coverage of both qualifying and final eliminations from the 48th annual CARQUEST Auto Parts Winternationals from Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, Calif. Qualifying coverage airs Saturday, Feb. 9, from 8-10 p.m., while finals coverage airs the next night from 7:30-11 p.m. ESPN Classic re-airs the finals Monday, Feb. 11, at 10 a.m.
Dunn, a 22-time winner in NHRA competition during his career and one of only three drivers to score 10 or more wins in both the Top Fuel and Funny Car classes, said that the Funny Car class will be one of the most interesting to watch this season, starting this weekend at Pomona.
“You have Melanie Troxel moving over from Top Fuel to Funny Car,” Dunn said. “And obviously with Ashley Force in her sophomore season, that’s going to be a good story because I think one of them, if not both, will win a race this year. Both of them have very good race cars. They definitely have a shot.”
All eyes in Pomona will be on NHRA superstar John Force, returning from serious injuries suffered in a crash during last year’s Dallas event. Force will be trying to win his 15th NHRA Funny Car title in the 2008 season.
“The biggest story to start off the season is the comeback of John Force after that accident,” said Dunn. “He tested in Phoenix and although he’s hobbling around and still doing his rehabilitation he was able to get in and out of the car and post the quickest and fastest times for his class on the weekend, so that’s going to be a big story to watch.”
Every February since 1961, fans have flocked to Pomona for the traditional opening of the drag racing season, and second-generation driver Dunn enjoys the excitement of the event that he started attending with his father, Hall of Fame racer “Big Jim” Dunn.
“As a kid growing up in Southern California, I used to love going to the Winternationals because everybody had new equipment and new paint schemes and everybody was just excited to get the season started after the winter,” he said.
“There’s just a whole different vibe to that race than probably any other race,” he said. “It’s our second-oldest race, only to the U.S. Nationals, so it’s a big event to win and it means a lot.”
Paul Page anchors ESPN2’s coverage from Pomona, joined in the booth by Dunn for analysis. Gary Gerould and Dave Rieff report from the pits.
Rieff and Dunn also host NHRA RaceDay at 11 a.m. Sunday on ESPN2. Originating from Nitro Alley at Pomona, the show will set up that day’s final elimination action with interviews and features. An episode of NHRA Thrills and Spills airs Sunday at 7 p.m., prior to the start of finals coverage.
Visit www.espnmediazone.com for ESPN's latest releases, schedules and other news, plus photos, video and audio clips and more.
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John Force says he will be ready
John Force is getting his health back after his horrific crash. His physical therapist says Force's goal of participating in the Phoenix pre-season testing January 27-30 is achievable.
The National Speed Sport News has this article:
YORBA LINDA, Calif. — Just over three months after suffering severe injuries to his feet, hands and legs in a 300 mile-per-hour crash, John Force climbed into and out of the cockpit of his Castrol Ford Mustang Funny Car last week in a special rehabilitation session at the John Force Racing complex supervised by physical therapy director Robert Ortmayer.
“It wasn’t easy,” Force said, “but I could do it. I said I’d be ready (for the NHRA’s 2008 season) and I will.” ...
Rehabbing Force expects to be back at Phoenix test
Just over three months after suffering severe injuries to his feet, hands, and legs in a 300-mph crash, John Force climbed into and out of the cockpit of his Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang Funny Car last week in a special rehabilitation session at the John Force Racing complex supervised by physical therapy director Robert Ortmayer...
Tags: crash, Force, Ford, Funny Car, John Force, NHRA, racingNHRA driver John Force revisited
December 30, 2007 by Robert
Filed under NHRA, Racing News
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John Force's goal for the beginning of 2008 is simple: get healthy enough to drive his Funny Car in testing in late January.
"I promise you, I'll be there," Force, a 14-time NHRA Funny Car champion, said last week by phone from his home in California. "I'm working every day, and I will be ready. I can't wait." ...
Dallas Morning News, TX - Dec 25, 2007By RICHARD DURRETT / The Dallas Morning News
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NHRA mandates crash sensors for Funny Car, Top Fuel classes (Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
December 23, 2007 by Robert
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By JOHN STURBIN
All vehicles competing in the NHRA's volatile Funny Car and Top Fuel classes next year will be equipped with Ford Racing "Blue Box" crash sensors, the result of seven months of testing primarily conducted by star-crossed John Force Racing in 2007. Ford Racing offered the crash sensors -- mandatory equipment in the Champ Car World Series from 1996-2006 -- as part of its ...
Tags: crash, Force, Ford, Funny Car, John Force, motorsports, NHRA, racing, Top FuelSafer Funny Car in works
December 16, 2007 by Robert
Filed under Racing News
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After Eric Medlen's fatal testing accident and a crash that left John Force seriously injured, Force and Ford are leading the development of a safer race ...
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NHRA: John Force Recovery Progresses (Speed TV)
December 16, 2007 by Robert
Filed under Racing News
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The lengthy physical therapy sessions he is undergoing five days each week are beginning to pay big dividends for drag racing icon John Force as he tries to recover from injuries suffered in a Sept. 23 crash at the Texas Motorplex.
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