Courtesy NHRA Communications
TEMECULA, Calif. (Nov. 13, 2022) – Multi-time world champions Brittany Force, Ron Capps, Erica Enders and Matt Smith were crowned Monday evening during the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series awards ceremony at the Pechanga Resort Casino in scenic Southern California Wine Country.
The four standout drivers were honored for their season-long achievements and presented with their trophies for winning 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series championships during a memorable Countdown to the Championship playoffs.
Force picked up her second Top Fuel championship and earned the top prize from NHRA and Camping World following a banner season in the loaded category. She clinched the championship with her first-round victory in Pomona, as the record-breaking driver of the 11,000-horsepower Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac dragster picked up five wins and 10 No. 1 qualifiers – along with a plethora of track records and the fastest run in Top Fuel history – during her banner 2022 campaign.
In his first year as a team owner, Capps became the first repeat Funny Car champion in 20 years, outlasting Robert Hight on the final day in Pomona to claim his third career world championship. His semifinal win, coupled with Hight’s second-round loss at the NHRA Finals, secured the championship for Capps in his 11,000-horsepower NAPA Auto Parts Toyota GR Supra. In all, Capps picked up five wins this season, earning his second straight NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series championship.
Enders was recognized for her Pro Stock dominance on Monday as well, as the star driver rolled to her fifth career championship and third in the past four years. She clinched the title in Las Vegas, winning four of the first five races in the Countdown to the Championship in her Melling Performance/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro. Enders also enjoyed her best season to date, picking up 10 wins and advancing to 13 final rounds, with her Vegas win capping off a spectacular season.
Pro Stock Motorcycle’s Matt Smith laid claim to his third straight world championship on his Denso Auto Parts Buell, also earning his sixth career title. That ties him with Andrew Hines and Dave Schultz for the most in class history, with Smith winning four of those crowns in the past five years. This season, Smith picked up four wins and advanced to six finals, winning on both a Suzuki and Buell over the course of the season.
Pro Stock’s Camrie Caruso won the NHRA Rookie of the Year award after a standout debut season in her Powerbuilt Tools Chevrolet Camaro. Caruso qualified at all 19 races and advanced to the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, earning her first No. 1 qualifier in Houston. She also advanced to the final round there, where she joined points leader Enders as part of the first all-female final round in Pro Stock history. Top Fuel’s Scott Farley and Funny Car’s Jason Rupert were also nominated.
The NHRA Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to legendary driver and team owner Don Schumacher. Heralded as one of drag racing’s pioneers, Schumacher has claimed more than 365 wins, as well as 19 world championships, as a team owner. As a driver, the fierce competitor won five races from 1970 to 1973, including the 1970 U.S. Nationals in Indy.
For the sixth straight season and an NHRA-record 27th time, Chevrolet was named the winner of the NHRA’s Manufacturers Cup. The award is given to the automaker whose current model year vehicles accumulate the most points during the NHRA season. Among those who enjoyed banner seasons for Chevrolet were Hight, Funny Car legend John Force, Enders, Aaron Stanfield, Greg Anderson and Troy Coughlin Jr.
Drivers in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series were also recognized as 2022 world champions, including Jeremy Hancock (Top Dragster), Lance Abbot (Top Sportsman), Bob Locke (Super Gas), James Glenn (Super Comp), Jimmy Hidalgo Jr. (Stock), Pete D’Agnolo (Super Stock), Ryan Priddy (Comp), Top Alcohol Funny Car (Doug Gordon) and Joey Severance (Top Alcohol Dragster).
The 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series awards ceremony will be available to fans worldwide this week on www.NHRA.com and on the NHRA YouTube page.
The 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season begins March 9-12 with the 54th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at historic Gainesville Raceway.
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About Camping World Holdings, Inc.
Camping World Holdings, Inc., headquartered in Lincolnshire, IL, (together with its subsidiaries) is America’s largest retailer of RVs and related products and services. Our vision is to build a long-term legacy business that makes RVing fun and easy, and our Camping World and Good Sam brands have been serving RV consumers since 1966. We strive to build long-term value for our customers, employees, and shareholders by combining a unique and comprehensive assortment of RV products and services with a national network of RV dealerships, service centers and customer support centers along with the industry’s most extensive online presence and a highly trained and knowledgeable team of associates serving our customers, the RV lifestyle, and the communities in which we operate. We also believe that our Good Sam organization and family of programs and services uniquely enable us to connect with our customers as stewards of the RV enthusiast community and the RV lifestyle. With RV sales and service locations in 42 states, Camping World has grown to become the prime destinations for everything RV. For more information, visit www.CampingWorld.com
About NHRA
Headquartered in San Dimas, Calif., NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 22 national events featuring the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by D-Wagon, Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown™ and Top Fuel Harley Series. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street® program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for youth ages 5 to 17. With 120 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services® (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
