Brittany Force Becomes First Female Top Fuel Champion Since 1982

On Sunday, drag racer Brittany Force won her first race at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. But her first win didn’t come at just any race. It won her the National Hot Rod Association’s Top Fuel championship.

“It still doesn’t seem real,” Brittany Force told the Los Angeles Times. “And the only reason it is real is because of all the support I have around me. Today is huge. We made history. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.”

It might not have felt real in the moment, but it definitely happened. And to make Force’s win even more important, she’s now the first woman to win a Top Fuel championship in 35 years. Between 1977 and 1982, Shirley Muldowney won the championship three times, but since her last win in 1982, no woman has taken home the NHRA’s top title.

“We’ve had an incredible day,” Force said. “This is something that I’ll never forget. And something that I’m so proud of.”

It may only be her fifth season racing, but over the last two months, Force won three of the last five events of the season, bringing her within 20 points of first place. Then, during qualifying, she set a Pomona track record, laying down a 3.667-second pass at 330.31 mph.

“She struggled this year as a driver. And she’s really kind of a rookie at this,” said John Force, Brittany’s father and owner of John Force Racing. “But to jump up here and get the win, I couldn’t be more proud. I can’t even imagine all this happened.”

Source: NHRA, Los Angeles Times

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