Photo credit: Gary Nastase / Auto Imagery

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (November 4, 2024) – John Force Racing won the postponed 24th NHRA Nevada Nationals on Monday, picking up victories in the Top Fuel and Funny Car categories. Austin Prock, driving for the Cornwell Tools team, and Brittany Force, driver of the Chevrolet Accessories Top Fuel Dragster, each secured victory from the top qualifying position, while teammate Jack Beckman achieved a semifinalist finish in his PEAK Chevrolet.

Prock's victory was a significant achievement, tying the record for most Funny Car victories in a single season since 2000, when team owner and Hall of Famer John Force claimed 11 victories. The victory with teammate Brittany Force also marks the first one-two victory since Prock and Robert Hight shared the winner's circle at the Charlotte 4Wide on April 30, 2023.

In the final round of Funny Car, Austin Prock's Chevrolet Camaro SS met Paul Lee, repeating his duel at the Northwest Nationals in Washington earlier this year. He maneuvered his Camaro to the 1,000-foot mark in battle with Lee and secured a decisive victory, surpassing Lee in every metric on the NHRA's official timesheet. Prock recorded a reaction time of 0.065 seconds and an elapsed time of 3.830 seconds at 327.33 mph, beating Lee's reaction time of 0.089 seconds and 3.982 seconds.

“I mean, this team just ran out of lights this year,” said the former NHRA Rookie of the Year: “Excellent work from every single member of the Cornwell crew. They all carry their weight and gain weight when a man is behind or struggling. They support each other and that is what makes a team. We win and lose as a team, and we won as a team today.”

The victory virtually secures the 29-year-old's first championship in his career. At the last race of the 2024 season, he is only points away from a perfect race ahead of his teammate Jack Beckman.

“That’s our main goal this year, to win the championship. When I got in the race car at the beginning of the year, my dad (crew chief Jimmy Prock) said, “I want a world championship, so we're getting very close.” And it would be very special, it would be with my dad and my brother (Co-crew chief Thomas Prock), you know, all three of us Procks, together with this entire Chevy team.”

Prock's cross-class teammate Brittany Force also won in Vegas. Under the guidance of crew chief David Grubnic, Force and her Chevrolet Accessories Top Fuel team secured their third win at the Nevada Nationals and fourth overall at “The Strip” at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The victory marked a return to form for a team that once dominated the class, ending a two-year absence from the winner's circle since their last win at the event in 2022.

“This is definitely special, and it will always be special for us,” said the two-time NHRA Top Fuel Champion: “Not just for me, but for all of John Force Racing. It was a difficult season for all of us. And since this event here in Vegas, I haven't been in the winner's circle for two years. I felt good going into this race. You know, our team worked really hard and we saw the progress on the track. It's just incredible for our entire Chevrolet team and all of our sponsors. Monster Energy, Cornwell Tools, HendrickCars.com, all of them. It's incredible to get them back in the winner's circle and very special as it was my dad's first race since his accident. Being able to celebrate with him in the winner’s circle and a double-up is definitely one of the biggest victories in our camp.”

Force's 3.703-second pass at 332.59 mph went straight into the lane as reigning champion Doug Kalitta smoked the tires off the line and retired the race early. The win was the 17th of her career and moved her team from eighth to seventh place in the standings.

The Chevy Dragster is now 118 points behind leader Justin Ashley heading into the NHRA World Finals. When qualifying for the In-N-Out Burger Finals begins in Pomona, California on November 15, she will be just 34 points shy of fourth place in an event that pays 30 points for each round win instead of the usual 20.

Jack Beckman, who represented failed team owner and driver John Force in the PEAK Chevrolet Funny Car, proved to be one of the fastest in his class.

Beckman and his team, who qualified second overall, had planned to face teammate Austin Prock in the final round, but ultimately settled for a semifinal. Lee picked up a holeshot victory over Beckman with a career-best pass of 3.834 seconds at 330.23 mph, outpacing the PEAK Chevy on the track by just 0.0024 seconds.

“Overall, it was a fantastic weekend for me and my PEAK Chevy team,” said the 2024 Midwest Nationals winner. “It was really frustrating to lose. Paul Lee's car could have achieved an average of 81 against us, but we still achieved a value of .82 with the cylinder removed. Even though our car isn't perfect, it's still one of the best hot rods out here and it gives me pure excitement as I head to Pomona for the final race. Our goal at the moment is to end the season with a win, 1-2 for John Force.”

Beckman sits second in the Funny Car Championship standings behind teammate Austin Prock, 188 points behind with 191 points to go. To secure the title, Beckman will need a standout performance and a few missteps from Prock to deliver an all-John Force Racing showdown in the season's final sprint.