2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season

The 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Season began on 24 February 2011 and concluded on 13 November. This race season marked the 60th anniversary of NHRA as an official motorsports sanctioning body.[1]

2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season
LeagueNHRA
SportDrag racing
ChampionsDel Worsham (Top Fuel)
Matt Hagan (Fuel Funny Car)
Jason Line (Pro Stock)
Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle)

There were 22 Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock car events, and 16 Pro Stock Motorcycle events.

Schedule
2011 NHRA Full Throttle Schedule
Date Race Site Winners
Top Fuel Dragster Top Fuel
Funny Car		 Pro Stock PS Motorcycle
24–27 February 51st Kragen O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals Pomona, California Morgan Lucas Robert Hight Jason Line N/A
10–13 March 42nd Annual Tire Kingdom Gatornationals Gainesville, Fla Del Worsham Mike Neff Jason Line Eddie Krawiec
1–3 April 12th Annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals Las Vegas, Nev. Antron Brown Robert Hight Mike Edwards N/A
14–17 April 2nd Annual VisitMyrtleBeach.com 4 Wide Nationals1 Concord, N.C. Del Worsham Jack Beckman Greg Anderson N/A
29 April – 1 May 24th annual O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals Houston, Texas Del Worsham Jeff Arend Vincent Nobile Andrew Hines
13–15 May Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals Atlanta, Ga. Antron Brown Jack Beckman Jason Line LE Tonglet
20–22 May NHRA Summer Nationals Topeka, Kansas Spencer Massey Robert Hight Shane Gray N/A
2–5 June NHRA SuperNationals Englishtown, N.J. Spencer Massey Mike Neff Allen Johnson Matt Smith
17–19 June Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals Bristol, Tenn. Larry Dixon Robert Hight Mike Edwards N/A
23–26 June Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals Norwalk, Ohio Del Worsham Mike Neff Vincent Nobile Eddie Krawiec
7–10 July O'Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals Chicago, Ill. Del Worsham Mike Neff Greg Anderson LE Tonglet
22–24 July Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals Denver, Colo. Spencer Massey John Force Mike Edwards Karen Stoffer
29–31 July Fram/Autolite NHRA Nationals Sonoma, Calif. Antron Brown Ron Capps Greg Anderson LE Tonglet
5–7 August O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Northwest Nationals Seattle, Wash. Del Worsham Tim Wilkerson Jason Line N/A
18–21 August Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals Brainerd, Minn. Antron Brown Johnny Gray Greg Anderson LE Tonglet
31 Aug – 5 Sept Mac Tools U.S. Nationals Indianapolis, Ind. Antron Brown Mike Neff Greg Anderson Hector Arana Jr.
2011 Countdown to One
15–18 September O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals Concord, N.C. Antron Brown Matt Hagan Kurt Johnson Eddie Krawiec
22–25 September AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals Dallas, Texas Bob Vandergriff Cruz Pedregon Jason Line Michael Phillips
29 Sept – 2 Oct Auto-Plus NHRA Nationals Reading, Pa. Spencer Massey Robert Hight Jason Line Hector Arana Jr.
14–16 October NHRA Arizona Nationals Phoenix, Ariz. Larry Dixon Jack Beckman Vincent Nobile Hector Arana Jr.
27–30 October Big O Tires NHRA Nationals Las Vegas, Nev. Del Worsham Ron Capps Mike Edwards Eddie Krawiec
10–13 November Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals Pomona, Calif. Del Worsham Matt Hagan Greg Stanfield Andrew Hines
  • NOTE: All races will be televised on ESPN or ESPN2.

1 The rules for the VisitMyrtleBeach.com 4 Wide Nationals differ from other races:

  • All cars will qualify on each lane as all four lanes will be used in qualifying.
  • Three rounds with cars using all four lanes.
  • In Rounds One and Two, the top two drivers (of four) will advance to the next round.
  • The pairings are set as follows:
    • Race One: 1, 8, 9, 16
    • Race Two: 4, 5, 12, 13
    • Race Three: 2, 7, 10, 15
    • Race Four: 3, 6, 11, 14
    • Semifinal One: Top two in Race One and Race Two
    • Semifinal Two: Top two in Race Three and Race Four
    • Finals: Top two in Semifinal One and Semifinal Two
  • Lane choice determined by times in previous round. In first round, lane choice determined by fastest times.
  • Drivers who advance in Rounds One and Two will receive 20 points for each round advancement.
  • In Round Three, the winner of the race will be declared the race winner and will collect 40 points. The runner-up will receive 20 points. Third and fourth place drivers will be credited as semifinal losers.

Notable events

Veteran Pro Stock driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. announced he is "stepping away" from the Pro Stock class for the 2011 season, electing to race instead in Sportsman classes. "We took most of 2006 off just to kind of have a break from it all," he said in his press release. "We did a lot of high-dollar bracket races and select Lucas Oil Sportsman Series events here and there with no particular schedule in mind. We kind of just raced when we wanted to and it was a lot of fun. That is the direction I am heading now." Coughlin expects to spend more time with his school-age son Jeg Coughlin III at golf tournaments.[2]

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kurt Busch (#22 Dodge Charger) obtained an NHRA Pro Stock license and debuted in competition at the Tire Kingdom Gatornationals in March, held during the NASCAR winter off-week.[3]

Ashley Force Hood sat out the 2011 season, as she and husband Dan Hood were expecting their first child. John Force Racing mechanic Mike Neff, who raced from late 2007 after replacing the late Eric Medlen after his fatal crash until 2009, returned to drive the Ford Mustang. Neff won the 2009 Auto Club Finals in his last start before returning to tuning John Force's car.[4]

At the Fram/Autolite NHRA Nationals in Sonoma, CA, John Force qualified at the top of the Funny Car ladder. This gave Force 139 No. 1 qualifications for major events, besting the previous record holder, Pro Stock driver Warren Johnson, who holds 138 No. 1 qualifications as of 31 June 2011.[5]

Two days after the 2011 season ended, six-time champion Kenny Bernstein announced his retirement from drag racing.[6] Just six days later, 2011 Top Fuel champion Del Worsham also retired, although he did win 8 races.[7]

References
  1. "NHRA announces Full Throttle Drag Racing Series 2011 schedule". 26 August 2010. Archived from the original on 28 August 2010. Retrieved 26 August 2010.
  2. "Coughlin to step away from Pro Stock class in 2011". 13 November 2010. Archived from the original on 18 November 2010. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  3. "(Kurt) Busch working with Allen Johnson for Potential Gator(nationals) Debut". 7 January 2011. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
  4. "(Ashley) Force Hood expecting first child, will sit out 2011; (Mike) Neff back behind wheel". 25 January 2011. Archived from the original on 11 September 2011. Retrieved 25 January 2011.
  5. "FORCE SETS ALL-TIME No.1 QUAL RECORD AT SONOMA". Retrieved 4 August 2011.
  6. "Kenny Bernstein retires from NHRA Drag Racing". 15 November 2011. Archived from the original on 16 November 2011. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
  7. "2011 NHRA Full Throttle Top Fuel Champion Del Worsham Retires". 21 November 2011. Archived from the original on 2 September 2012. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
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