Hight, Torrence, Koretsky and M. Smith Qualify No.1 in Front of Sellout Crowd at NHRA Midwest Nationals

ST. LOUIS, IL – October 2, 2022 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – On the strength of the fastest Funny Car run since 2019, points leader Robert Hight held on to the No. 1 qualifiying position in front of a sellout crowd on Saturday at World Wide Technology Raceway during the 11th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals.

Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Kyle Koretsky (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all qualified No. 1 at the third of six races in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship.

The NHRA and officials at World Wide Technology Raceway also announced a sellout crowd during Saturday’s racing action, as the passionate fanbase packed the track to close out qualifying in St. Louis. It is the seventh sellout crowd for the NHRA this season.

“Once again, our race fans in St. Louis and the Metro East delivered,” said Chris Blair, World Wide Technology Raceway’s Executive Vice President and General Manager.

“As we’ve demonstrated time and again, they love NHRA drag racing as well as the other major events we host at World Wide Technology Raceway. This weekend is magical because it has 10 years of date equity, perfect weather, and thousands of loyal enthusiasts. World Wide Technology Raceway is the greatest comeback story in the history of sports venues for one reason: We have the best racing fans on the planet.”

Hight’s pass of 3.853-seconds at 336.32 mph from Friday in his 11,000-horsepower Chevrolet Camaro SS held up during the final two sessions on Saturday, giving the three-time world champ his fifth No. 1 spot this season and 76th in his career. It was also the fastest run in the class in three years as Hight aims for his eighth victory of the season on Sunday.

“That run last night, I’m glad it stuck and I’m really proud of the guys,” Hight said. “I love being here in St. Louis and there’s nothing like seeing the stands full. There’s not any better fans than here and we’re going to put on a great show for them tomorrow. That shows you NHRA drag racing is exciting and hopefully we’ll have a great crowd tomorrow. It’s been crunch time all year long and we’ve had big battles every weekend. You’ve got to be on our game on the starting line and your car has to be right.”

John Force qualified second with a 3.853 at 334.15 and defending world champ Ron Capps, who won last weekend in Charlotte, moved to third to close out the day with a 3.863 at 331.94.

Four-time Top Fuel defending world champ Torrence clinched his third No. 1 this season in his dragster, thanks to Friday’s run of 3.655 at 327.43 in his 11,000-horsepower Capco Contractors dragster. That was a season-best run for the defending event winner, who put together a pair of good runs on Saturday as well. That gave him plenty of bonus qualifying points heading into eliminations, where he’ll open the day against Buddy Hull and will look to make up some major ground in the loaded category.

“I’m looking forward to going into race day tomorrow. We’ve got good momentum. The car is running well, and we will be excited to see what we can do,” Torrence said. “It’s an opportunity for us to capitalize. We need to be there to try to capitalize on things the best we can. We’ve been working pretty diligently to try to get this thing turned around and in the direction that we want it to go, and that is what we have been focused on.”

Josh Hart improved to the second spot on the final pass of the day, going 3.667 at 333.33 and Shawn Langdon took the third spot after a pass of 3.679 at 329.02. Points leader Justin Ashley qualified seventh with a 3.698.

Koretsky got pushed on Saturday in Pro Stock, but he was up for the challenge, improving to a 6.510 at 211.00 in his Lucas Oil Camaro to earn his second No. 1 qualifier during the 2022 campaign. His KB Racing teammate Greg Anderson, the defending world champion, ran an identical 6.510, but Koretsky was slightly faster to take the top spot into eliminations. Koretsky, who is currently fifth in points, will try to pick up his first win of the season and gain some ground on points leader Erica Enders.

“We’re in the Countdown and now’s the time to get your ducks in a row and make every run as clean as possible. I think that’s what we’ve done this weekend and we’ll be good for eliminations tomorrow,” Koretsky said. “This is where it counts and every point counts, and consistency also counts. Our guys are digging deep and we’re chasing them hard. We’re definitely not going to give up.”

Anderson qualified second, going 6.510 at 210.97, while last week’s winner Aaron Stanfield was right behind in third with a 6.511 at 211.33. Enders took fourth with her 6.511 at 210.34.

In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Smith’s track-record run of 6.709 at 202.82 from Friday on his Denso Auto Parts Buell held up, giving the defending world champ his fourth top spot this year and the 51st in his career. It was also a career-best run for the five-time world champ, who takes plenty of momentum into eliminations. Smith will look to jump back in the points lead on Sunday after falling in the second round last weekend in Charlotte. Should that happen, it would mean the points lead would change for the sixth straight race in the class.

“I think we have the best bike out here,” Smith said. “All in all, this Denso bike is fast and mean, and if I can do my job on Sunday, we can turn on four win lights tomorrow. That’s our goal, but tomorrow is a big day and hopefully we can do our job.”

Eliminations for the NHRA Midwest Nationals begin at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway.

***

MADISON, IL — Sunday’s first-round pairings for eliminations for the 11th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway, the 19th of 22 events in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.

Top Fuel — 1. Steve Torrence, 3.655 seconds, 327.43 mph vs. 16. Buddy Hull, 3.822, 315.78; 2. Josh Hart, 3.667, 333.33 vs. 15. Scott Palmer, 3.809, 323.74; 3. Shawn Langdon, 3.679, 329.02 vs. 14. Kyle Wurtzel, 3.804, 319.52; 4. Doug Kalitta, 3.684, 334.32 vs. 13. Doug Foley, 3.782, 315.64; 5. Brittany Force, 3.685, 335.48 vs. 12. Austin Prock, 3.748, 329.18; 6. Tony Schumacher, 3.694, 326.79 vs. 11. Leah Pruett, 3.729, 329.18; 7. Justin Ashley, 3.698, 331.94 vs. 10. Mike Salinas, 3.710, 330.72; 8. Clay Millican, 3.703, 334.24 vs. 9. Antron Brown, 3.707, 331.85.
Did Not Qualify: 17. Lex Joon, 3.878, 310.91; 18. Jacob Opatrny, 4.669, 162.78; 19. Cameron Ferre, 5.785, 117.18.

Funny Car — 1. Robert Hight, Chevy Camaro, 3.853, 336.32 vs. Bye; 2. John Force, Camaro, 3.853, 334.15 vs. 15. Terry Haddock, Ford Mustang, 5.532, 128.84; 3. Ron Capps, Toyota Supra, 3.863, 331.94 vs. 14. Daniel Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.786, 149.30; 4. Matt Hagan, Dodge Charger, 3.867, 335.48 vs. 13. Jim Campbell, Charger, 4.358, 210.41; 5. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 3.890, 331.20 vs. 12. Bobby Bode, Mustang, 4.189, 228.85; 6. Cruz Pedregon, Charger, 3.897, 331.36 vs. 11. Dale Creasy Jr., Charger, 4.027, 290.32; 7. Alexis DeJoria, Supra, 3.914, 332.67 vs. 10. J.R. Todd, Supra, 3.989, 309.84; 8. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 3.928, 324.59 vs. 9. Blake Alexander, Mustang, 3.941, 323.66.

Pro Stock — 1. Kyle Koretsky, Chevy Camaro, 6.510, 211.00 vs. Bye; 2. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.510, 210.97 vs. 15. Fernando Cuadra Jr., Ford Mustang, 6.589, 208.17; 3. Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.511, 211.33 vs. 14. Fernando Cuadra, Mustang, 6.572, 209.75; 4. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.511, 210.34 vs. 13. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.572, 210.11; 5. Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.522, 210.60 vs. 12. Mason McGaha, Camaro, 6.564, 210.80; 6. Dallas Glenn, Camaro, 6.523, 211.59 vs. 11. Mike DePalma, Mustang,
6.551, 210.60; 7. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.527, 211.26 vs. 10. Camrie Caruso, Camaro, 6.544, 207.37; 8. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.528, 210.87 vs. 9. Deric Kramer, Camaro, 6.539, 210.60.

Pro Stock Motorcycle — 1. Matt Smith, EBR, 6.709, 202.82 vs. Bye; 2. Angelle Sampey, Suzuki, 6.726, 201.67 vs. 15. Malcolm Phillips Jr., Suzuki, 9.557, 95.59; 3. Eddie Krawiec, Suzuki, 6.745, 199.88 vs. 14. Jianna Evaristo, Suzuki, 7.563, 131.60; 4. Angie Smith, EBR, 6.748, 201.19 vs. 13. Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 7.113, 186.82; 5. Joey Gladstone, Suzuki, 6.777, 199.58 vs. 12. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 6.891, 195.76; 6. Marc Ingwersen, EBR, 6.785, 198.82 vs. 11. Ron Tornow, Victory, 6.872, 191.97; 7. Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 6.791, 197.42 vs. 10. Ryan Oehler, EBR, 6.842, 198.29; 8. Kelly Clontz, Suzuki, 6.827, 197.88 vs. 9. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.835, 198.20.

About Camping World Holdings, Inc.

Camping World Holdings, Inc., headquartered in Lincolnshire, IL, (together with its subsidiaries) is America’s largest retailer of RVs and related products and services. Our vision is to build a long-term legacy business that makes RVing fun and easy, and our Camping World and Good Sam brands have been serving RV consumers since 1966. We strive to build long-term value for our customers, employees, and shareholders by combining a unique and comprehensive assortment of RV products and services with a national network of RV dealerships, service centers and customer support centers along with the industry’s most extensive online presence and a highly trained and knowledgeable team of associates serving our customers, the RV lifestyle, and the communities in which we operate. We also believe that our Good Sam organization and family of programs and services uniquely enable us to connect with our customers as stewards of the RV enthusiast community and the RV lifestyle. With RV sales and service locations in 42 states, Camping World has grown to become the prime destinations for everything RV. For more information, visit www.CampingWorld.com

About NHRA

Headquartered in San Dimas, Calif., NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 22 national events featuring the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by D-Wagon, Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown and Top Fuel Harley Series. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League for youth ages 5 to 17. With over 120 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.

Source: National Hot Rod Association

####