When drag racing legend “Big Daddy” Don Garlits calls you “old man,” it’s an assessment intended to make you chuckle. However, when he tells you that you are doing a good job and to keep it up forever. Then the pressure is one. 

With 16 NHRA Funny Car championships and 156 national event wins to his credit, Force has learned to make pressure his long-lost friend. 

Force turned 75 on May 4, and by the time his birthday rolled around, he’d already won one race in three final-round appearances. He’s also won a #2Fast2Tasty Challenge. 

Force returns to Route 66 Raceway, where he’s won three times in his illustrious career. But racing just outside Chicago is nothing new for Force, who raced in his formative years at the defunct U.3. 30 Drag Strip.

“This is a very important race for us,” Force said. “It’s our home office, but Route 66 (Raceway), where NHRA puts on that national event, is unbelievable. It’s fun to race there, the access to it is great, and the stands wrap around so that the fans can see everything. It’s just a great place to be. This is exciting. I love this race and the track, and we’ve run well at it. We’re going in there with guns blazing.”

Force finds himself in the midst of a fierce championship battle, with five different winners emerging this season. Notable contenders include J.R. Todd, Austin Prock, Bob Tasca III, and Matt Hagan. Force’s victory at the NHRFA Winternational in Pomona, CA, has only added to the intensity of the competition.

Force also gets a chance to double-up in Chicago, participating in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge on Saturday against a Funny Car field that includes Hagan, Daniel Wilkerson, and Todd. It adds up to a weekend filled with possibilities, and Force will look to take advantage of a facility that means a great deal to him. He was thrilled to see it return to the NHRA schedule last year and in 2024.

“I love the concept of Route 66, from the old days of the highway (Route 66) that went from Chicago and across the country, all the way to California,” said Force, who has 156 career victories and 267 final-round appearances. “You never want to lose a race. But you especially don’t want to lose one that’s in a market that’s as huge as Chicago. We’re excited that we’re back in Chicago because that’s where my major sponsor is. That’s where we need to be.”