Two minutes with Robert Hight

Robert Hight won the National Hot Rod Assn. funny car championship in 2009. It was the first of his career.
Hight made an improbable run to the funny car championship. He was the last driver to qualify for the Countdown to One playoffs and proceeded to win three of the five Countdown races.
Before the season-opening NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona on Valentines Day, Hight was asked how he plans on celebrating Valentine's Day with his wife, what's changed the most since winning the NHRA funny car championship and what is it going to take to repeat as champion.

Hight eliminated in NHRA funny cars at Pomona

Robert Hight, who won his first NHRA funny car championship on Saturday, was eliminated in the second round at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona on Sunday.
Tim Wilkerson beat Hight to advance to the semifinals. Wilkerson will face Mike Neff.
The other semifinal will pit Ashley Force Hood, the top qualifier, against Ron Capps.

Hight eliminated in NHRA funny cars at Pomona

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NHRA leaders post top qualifying times

It was a good day of qualifying Thursday for the leaders in the National Hot Rod Assn. top fuel, funny car and pro stock standings.
Tony Schumacher doubled his lead in the top fuel standings. Don’t get too excited. His lead went from one point to two. Schumacher was the top driver on the first day of qualifying for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona.
"Seriously, this is an intense deal going on right now,” Schumacher said. “Every lap we make this weekend carries so much importance. We want to leave nothing on the table."
Larry Dixon was the second fastest qualifier, followed by Doug Kalitta. Schumacher earned three points for being the top qualifier. Dixon, a Van Nuys High graduate, earned two points and Kalitta earned one.
Cory McClenathan, who is third in the top fuel standings and within striking distance, 51 points out of first, was the fourth fastest qualifier.
In funny car, Robert Hight added to his 105-point lead with the top qualifying run. He has a 108-point lead over John Force Racing teammate, Ashley Force Hood. Mike Neff, another John Force Racing driver, was the second fastest qualifier, followed by Jack Beckman of Norco and a driver for Don Schumacher Racing.
“We need to stay focused,” Hight said. “This is what we have worked for. We’ve earned it and we deserve it. It is not over yet. He wants us to get out there and work hard but have some fun. That is what we are doing now.”
Force Hood was the eighth fastest qualifier.
Mike Edwards, the leader in the pro stock standings, was the top qualifier. But he was only able to extend his lead by one point as Greg Anderson, the second place driver in the pro stock standings, was the second-fastest qualifier. Roger Brogdon was the third fastest qualifier.
The biggest surprise came in the pro stock motorcycle qualifying. Karen Stoffer, a graduate of St. Genevieve High School in Sun Valley, was the top qualifier in pro stock motorcycle. She is seventh in the pro stock motorcycle standings.
"Were looking for a win," Stoffer said. "There's no question about it. A victory would be the best way to go into the off-season."
Andrew Hines was the second fastest qualifier, followed by Hector Arana, the leader in the pro stock motorcycle standings.

Photo: Tony Schumacher doubled his lead in the NHRA top fuel standings after recording the top speed on the first day of qualifying on Thursday at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona.

Three out of four NHRA drivers ain't bad

National Hot Rod Assn. drivers Tony Schumacher, Cory McClenathan and Robert Hight spent Wednesday at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse in Pasadena talking about this weekend’s drag races at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona.
Larry Dixon, a Van Nuys High graduate and two-time NHRA top fuel champion, was supposed to be at the luncheon too, but his plane was delayed and he did not make it on time.
Schumacher, who holds a slim one-point lead over Dixon in the top fuel standings, was asked if he thought it was God’s plan to have Dixon’s plane to stay lost until Sunday.
“That’s my plan,” Schumacher said. “That’s not God’s plan. I don’t think he does that to anybody.”
The tightest NHRA championship race is in the top fuel division. Three drivers are still in contention. In addition to Schumacher and Dixon, McClenathan is in the hunt, in third place and 48 points out of the lead. McClenathan and Schumacher are teammates at Don Schumacher Racing.
“We’ve won two championships coming back that far,” Schumacher said. “It’s definitely not out of reach. It’s wide open. It’s going to be a stout battle. He’s got two good cars ahead of him. But he can be assured that these two cars ahead of him are going to be going for it on Sunday morning, and all kinds of things happen. If we can’t get it done, we sure hope he does.”
McClenathan has been the runner-up in the top fuel division four times in his NHRA career, but has never won a top fuel championship.
“But it is one of those things where you come back to a race, the final of the season, and it’s going to be the last race, and Tony has been here before, too, and won the whole thing, set a record to do it and went on to win the championship that day. So anything can happen,” McClenathan said. “I mean, I don’t wish anything bad for my teammate, but if something goes on, I’d sure like to know that he’s got my back, too, and I know he does.”
Hight has a comfortable 105-point lead in the funny car standings. His John Force Racing teammate, Ashley Force Hood, is in second place in the funny car standings.
“You know, Ashley Force, my teammate, she’s had a great race car all year long, and then they just stumbled last weekend, and it ended up being some parts problem,” Hight said. “That’s the kind of stuff that can keep us from winning this weekend. So we’ve got to stay focused and just worry about every run and do our best because it’s not that easy. These cars are tough. There’s a lot of tough competition, and just do our best to try to get qualified. That’s No. 1 for us right now.”

Photo: Tony Schumacher has a one-point lead over Larry Dixon in the NHRA top fuel standings entering the season-finale event at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona. (NHRA)

Little payoff for auto racing playoffs

Playoffs are not good for auto racing. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase has been dominated by Jimmie for four straight years. It probably cost Tony Stewart a championship this year. It cost Jeff Gordon at least two since the Chase started.
The National Hot Rod Assn. Countdown to One playoffs aren’t much better.
Sure, it’s created what can described as a winner-take-all weekend in the top fuel division at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona. Tony Schumacher leads Larry Dixon by one point with one race remaining.
The other three divisions, funny car, pro stock and pro stock motorcycle, lack that kind of suspense.
Robert Hight has a 105-point lead in the funny car standings over Ashley Force Hood. Mike Edwards is safely in the lead in the pro stock standings, 139 points head of Greg Anderson.
Hector Arana has some work to do in the pro stock motorcycle division, but still holds a 54-point lead over Ed Krawiec.
The one NHRA driver who should be the biggest critic of the Countdown format is funny car driver Ron Capps.
He won five funny car events, the most of any funny car driver, and had the lead in the funny car standings in the first 18 regular season races. But once the Countdown started, he dropped to fifth place with little chance of winning the funny car championship.
“Obviously, the opportunity to win a championship this year is pretty slim,” said Capps, a driver for Don Schumacher Racing. “But, I have to tell you, I am focused on ending the season like we did last year at this event. We went to the final round and had the quickest car. We also won here in the first race of this season, and now we have a very good chance of finishing No. 2 in the points.”
Hight has put together one of the best Countdown runs, winning three of the first five races, but he has little business leading the funny car standings at this point in the season.
“To have a 105 point lead going into Pomona it gives you a lot of confidence,” Hight said. “It is still not over. I think the only (teams) that really has a chance are Ashley along with Tony (Pedregon) and (Jack) Beckman.”
The chances of one of those three drivers, Force Hood, Pedregon or Beckman, catching Hight in Pomona are remote. In the history of the Countdown, no funny car driver has lost his lead heading into the finals at Pomona. It’s unlikely it will happen again.
Auto racing playoffs create paper champions. The winner of an auto racing championship should be rewarded for an entire season of success, not six or 10 races at the end of the year.
Johnson has done amazing things in the Chase.
Hight put together one of the best Countdown runs in the history of the NHRA.
But neither had stellar regular seasons. Hight’s was near disastrous and qualified for the Countdown by the skin of his teeth.
Yet, both are on the verge of winning auto racing championships. It doesn’t reflect well on the auto racing season when only a handful of races at the end are all that really matter.

Photo: Ron Capps won five NHRA funny car races, but is fifth in the Countdown to One standings with one race remaining. (NHRA)

Hight's one race away from unlikely NHRA championship

Robert Hight continued his run as the most unlikely of drivers to win the National Hot Rod Assn. funny car championship. He won at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday and increased his lead in the funny car standings to 105 points with one race remaining in the Countdown to One playoffs, at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona starting Nov. 12.
“That is what Cruz Pedregon did last year," HIght said. "To have a 105 point lead going into Pomona it gives you a lot of confidence. It is still not over.”
Hight’s NHRA postseason is akin to a 16-seed in the NCAA basketball tournament making it to the championship game. And not any old 16-seed team, but the winner of the play-in game. Hight was the last driver to qualify for the Countdown, posting a runner-up finish at Indianapolis in the U.S. Nationals to earn a berth in the playoffs and knocking out the reigning funny car champ, Cruz Pedregon.
“My Auto Club Mustang’s performance gives you a lot of confidence," Hight said. "You don’t have to go out there and do dumb things trying to pull wins out. I did that earlier in the year when we were struggling. I got lucky since I never red-lit. I was trying to do too much because I knew the car needed little help. It doesn’t work that way. You have to do what you know how to do. It is all about confidence.”
He has gone on to win three of the first five NHRA funny car Countdown events. He won at zMax Dragway in North Carolina, Texas Motorplex and Las Vegas.
In the Las Vegas race, he beat John Force Racing teammate Ashley Force Hood in the first round. Force Hood came into the Vegas races in second place and 13 points behind Hight in the standings. She left Vegas still in second place in the standings, but has a 105-point deficit.
“My goal going into this year was to finish fourth or better I would be pumped with that," Force Hood said. "To be fighting for first or second this year has gone better than I ever expected it to. When you are right in the middle of it you get greedy and you want everything. Really if you take a step back I never expected to be running for first. Now after this year we will be gunning for first. That is not to take away from my team we are only three years in. It is not something I expected to happen. The sky is the limit for us next year. If we can have a team like we did this year next year sometimes luck plays a part in it. We will just do the best we can.
"Either way if we can be celebrating in Pomona everything that builds up the stress and the anxiety doesn’t matter. In Pomona if one of our teams is on that stage in first place that is all that matters. That is what we have been working for all season.”
Hight beat Jack Beckman in the final in Vegas and is one race away from capping an unlikely and unexpected championship run.
“It’s a tough pill to lose one when you run that good,” said Beckman, a driver for Don Schumacher Racing and a North Hills resident. “But there’s nothing to do but take your hat off and congratulate the other team. I walked over and I congratulated Robert and, for all intents and purposes that run probably was and is going to be the championship. We’re going to win Pomona and race for second place unless a miracle happens.”
In top fuel, Larry Dixon advanced to the final at Las Vegas and lost to Spencer Massey. However, Dixon closed to a point behind Tony Schumacher in the top fuel standings.
Schumacher lost in the second round and almost saw his lead in the top fuel standings disappear.
Massey won for the second time this season.
Larry Morgan won the pro stock final at Las Vegas. He defeated Mike Edwards, the leader in the Pro Stock standings, in the second round. Edwards has an almost insurmountable 139-point lead with one race remaining.
Andrew Hines won the pro stock motorcycle final, but it will be Hector Arana and Eddie Krawiec battling for the pro stock motorcycle championship in Pomona.
Arana has a 54-point lead over Krawiec in the pro stock motorcycle standings.

Photo: Robert Hight won the NHRA funny car portion of the races at Las Vegas and extended his lead in the funny car standings to 105 points. (NHRA)

No one hotter than Hight in NHRA funny cars

National Hot Rod Assn. funny car driver Robert Hight was the last one invited to the drag racing playoff party, but he has been the beau of the ball since it started two weeks ago.
Hight won for the second week in a row and vaulted into the lead in the NHRA funny standings. After going winless through the regular season, Hight has won the first two races of the Countdown to One, the six-race playoff to determine champions in the four national drag racing divisions.
Hight won at zMax Dragway in North Carolina, the first race of the Countdown, and followed that up with a victory at Texas Motorplex on Sunday. It was also his third straight finals appearance. He lost to teammate Ashley Force Hood at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis over Labor Day weekend.
“This is probably the best race car I have ever had,” said Hight, a driver for John Force Racing. “We have won races and been close to winning the championship but to be this dominant and this consistent and steady. It is going down the track every single run. The only person to beat me was my teammate Ashley Force Hood in the final at Indy. We had a malfunction. It kind of blew up. It is not hurting itself. It is running fast we had top speed here. Jimmy Prock definitely has a handle on this Mustang. We still have to give it to Guido and Ron Douglas. Without them we would not be where we are now. They helped us and I thank God Jimmy listened to them and worked with them. That is what is great about our team we all listen and work together.”
Hight defeated Jack Beckman in the finals at Texas Motorplex. Hight beat Tim Wilkerson and Force Hood en route to the championship. But his win over Sweden’s Leif Helander in the first round had the biggest impact on Hight through the races at Texas.
“Something kind of hit me this morning actually last night,” Hight said Sunday after winning at Texas Motorplex. “My first round match up was with Leif Helander from Sweden. He came by after I came by the press room and he introduced himself. He told me his story. He reminded me of that movie, ‘The World’s Fastest Indian.’ We have had controversy here lately. We have had drivers arguing. Talking with a guy like that puts it in perspective what we are doing out here.”
Hight has a 13-point lead over Force Hood in the funny car standings. Beckman is in third place, 45 points behind Hight. Tony Pedregon, who held the lead in the funny car standings when the Countdown started, is in fourth place, 59 points out of first.
"I have to tell you, losing in the final round stinks," said Beckman, a driver from North Hills and a driver for Don Schumacher Racing, “but we recognize what we did here and everybody on this Valvoline/MTS Dodge crew has that look in their eye right now. We did what nobody could do all day, we got down that right lane. And our goal on that one -- what Johnny (West, crew chief) wanted to do -- was make them beat themselves.”
In other races, Tony Schumacher defeated Larry Dixon in the top fuel final to win at Texas Motorplex. Schumacher has a 33-point lead over Dixon, a Van Nuys High graduate, in the top fuel standings.
Greg Anderson defeated Johnny Gray in the pro stock final. Mike Edwards leads the pro stock standings by 65 points over Jeg Coughlin.
Hector Arana defeated Eddie Krawiec in the pro stock motorcycle final. Arana leads the pro stock motorcycle standings by 27 points over Krawiec. Karen Stoffer, a graduate of St. Geneveive High School in Sun Valley, is seventh in the pro stock motorcycle standings.

Photo: Robert Hight won the NHRA funny car portion of the races at Texas Motorplex on Sunday. It was his second win in a row and his third straight final appearance. With the win at Texas, Hight took over the lead in the funny car standings. (NHRA)