Funny Car driver John Force always talks about how splendid it is just to be at the dragstrip. But that's not enough, not right now.
 
He wants to win, and he's not afraid to scramble his crew chiefs and teams to make that happen. He has given them three races, starting with this weekend's Lucas Oil Nationals at Northern Minnesota's Brainerd International Raceway.
 
This is a dragstrip at which he has won 11 times himself -- by far more than any other pro driver in any class -- and taken home three other victories as a team owner (twice with Eric Medlen and once with Gary Densham). Force has won 126 times in NHRA competition -- but not since last June 1 at Topeka. Funny Car driver John Force always talks about how splendid it is just to be at the dragstrip. But that's not enough, not right now.
 
He wants to win, and he's not afraid to scramble his crew chiefs and teams to make that happen. He has given them three races, starting with this weekend's Lucas Oil Nationals at Northern Minnesota's Brainerd International Raceway.
 
This is a dragstrip at which he has won 11 times himself -- by far more than any other pro driver in any class -- and taken home three other victories as a team owner (twice with Eric Medlen and once with Gary Densham). Force has won 126 times in NHRA competition -- but not since last June 1 at Topeka.
 
And despite a victory in the NHRA idle week at Bill Bader's "Night Under Fire" independent race at Norwalk, Ohio, Force wants to regain his championship form. He is qualified so far for the Countdown at No. 8, but mediocrity is not a state he can live with.
 
His Castrol-AAA-Ford Drive One foursome that includes Ashley Force Hood, Robert Hight, and Mike Neff, were  a not-terribly-impressive12-12 on the recent Western Swing. After that, Force had an organization meeting.
 
"After hours of meetings and listening to the sincerity of my guys, I asked for options," Force said in a press release. "I considered moving drivers around, moving crew chiefs and changing combinations. In the end, I listened to my brain trust, and their vote was to stick with what we have. They convinced me (that) we are about to turn the (competitive) corner with these Ford Mustangs.
 
"I told them they have three races left (and) if we don't turn it around, then change has to come," he said. "I challenged my crew chiefs to show me improvement."
 
Of the four John Force Racing drivers, only Force Hood has enjoyed success this year. She has a victory at Houston among her six final rounds, has led the standings, and is third to Tony Pedregon and Ron Capps with a serious chance to win her first series title.
 
But Force and Neff, though in the top 10 with this Brainerd race and the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals Labor Day classic to go before the playoff fields are set, have struggled all season. And Hight, largely because of adjusting to offseason changes to the car, has dropped from the top 10. He's in a fight with reigning champion Cruz Pedreon and rookie Matt Hagan to grab at least that No. 10 position.
 
Maybe history is in the Force camp's favor. JFR had its best qualifying effort at Brainerd last season, with the top three spots and a No. 5.
 
Maybe sentiment will be on JFR's side. Eric Medlen's birthday -- he would have been 36 -- is Aug. 13, kicking off the weekend's racing.
 
Maybe Ashley Force's cheerleading experience from high school will be an inspiration.
 
"If you look at all the drivers in our category, there's not one dominant person," she said. "It could be anybody's championship (and) that's exciting for us because we are a newer team. You wouldn't think that, going up against teams that have been racing longer than I have been alive, including my father, that we would be thinking about a championship, but in our sport, anything can happen. It's not impossible. We definitely have the car to do it if we can just not make mistakes.
 
"I think we have a great chance at it," Force Hood said, "but, on the other hand, we want Dad and Robert and Mike to have a shot, too. There's still time (for her teammates to make the Countdown)."
 
The difference between this year and last is that Force Hood's team has settled into the kind of consistency that was the trademark of her father's team during its run of 10 straight championships (1993-2002).
 
"My crew chiefs, ‘Guido' (Dean Antonelli) and Ron (Douglas), decided (that) if it ain't broke, don't fix it," Force Hood said.
 
But her father knows that something's broken and he's ready to fix it.
 
"Actions speak louder than words," Force said. "Right now, we need action."

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