Long-time John Force Racing sponsor Automobile Club of Southern California has reached new heights in their support for the 16-time Funny Car championship team. At the season opening 50th annual Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals the Auto Club flew a commemorative banner celebrating Robert Hight’s first NHRA Full Throttle Funny Car championship. A surprised Hight enjoyed the moment with team owner John Force. Later Hight, the event’s No. 1 qualifier, shared this memory with the media in the Shav Glick Media Center on Saturday night.

Long-time John Force Racing sponsor Automobile Club of Southern California has reached new heights in their support for the 16-time Funny Car championship team. At the season opening 50th annual Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals the Auto Club flew a commemorative banner celebrating Robert Hight’s first NHRA Full Throttle Funny Car championship. A surprised Hight enjoyed the moment with team owner John Force. Later Hight, the event’s No. 1 qualifier, shared this memory with the media in the Shav Glick Media Center on Saturday night.

“The Auto Club has done so much to promote this championship. They are flying banners around and (they ran) USA Today, LA Times and Dallas Morning News ads on Thanksgiving weekend. It just shows how involved they are in NHRA Drag Racing and John Force Racing,” said Hight. “It was pretty funny today. They had two banners flying over the race track offering lower rates for Auto Club at www.aaa.com and one with a picture of me winning the championship. (John) Force said he got in his car and drove down the street to see the other side of the banner to see if his picture was on the other side of the banner.”

“It really means a lot and it was a big surprise. Auto Club has done so much for us. They are as excited about this championship as we are. What is cool about the Auto Club is they are not putting any more pressure on us to go out and repeat. Tom McKernan (Auto Club of Southern California president) has said that is why the Auto Club has been so successful. They just keep going out and doing what they do every day. They don’t ever back down or give up a little. They keep their guard up and just keep working hard and the success will come. That is what my team is going to do this year,” added the 14-time national event winner.

After John Force won the 50th annual NHRA Winternationals, his 127th career win and first in over a year, he quipped to the assembled media that maybe the Auto Club would get a banner for him. The next weekend in Phoenix at the NHRA Arizona Nationals Force was rewarded for his strong start to the 2010 season with his own congratulatory banner compliments of Auto Club and its president Tom McKernan. Force was overwhelmed by the show of support. After his second round win on Sunday Force let his emotions flow as he addressed the crowd from his top end interview.

“You see that banner flying overhead?  ‘John Force Congrats. Way to Go.’ That is Tom McKernan. That is Auto Club. They are great. I have to perform or I am going to be out of here. For my sponsors, especially Castrol for our 25th year and Auto Club. John Force is OK.”

As the team heads to Gainesville, Florida for the 41st annual Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals, March 11-14 the drivers of John Force Racing will be keeping one eye on the competition and one eye on the sky thanks to the great support from the Auto Club.