GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The eight spots in the Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout are now set, but the fun is only just beginning for the specialty race set to take place on March 12 at the upcoming Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at historic Gainesville Raceway.
After Steve Torrence, the four-time defending Top Fuel world champ who automatically earned a spot in the field, the drivers seeded second through eighth are former world champ Brittany Force, Phoenix winner Mike Salinas, Pomona winner and 2020 Rookie of the Year Justin Ashley, three-time champ Antron Brown, nine-time race winner Leah Pruett, 49-time event winner Doug Kalitta and former world champ Shawn Langdon.
But the unique twist for this specialty race is the callout aspect that will take place before the first round of qualifying in Gainesville at 5 p.m. on Friday, March 11. Torrence will make the first selection to call out his opening-round opponent, getting his choice of the seven other star drivers. Force would get the next pick if she were not called out by Torrence, followed by Salinas until the first-round matchups are set.
The first round of the Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout will take place at 11:45 a.m. on Saturday, March 12, with the semifinals set to follow at 1:30 p.m. The final round is slated for 3:15 p.m. and will be shown live on the FOX broadcast network. FOX will have coverage of the entire Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout starting at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 12. For his part, Torrence, driver of the 11,000-horsepower Capco Contractors dragster isn’t giving any hints on his choice for the first round.
“I’m going to let everyone think about it for a week or two, and then I’m going to tell you who it’s going to be (in Gainesville),” Torrence said last weekend on stage in Phoenix. “There’s no weak competition, so it’s going to be pretty stout. It’s going to be pretty cool to watch. We’re going to try to do our jobs, (but) we’ve got our work cut out for us.”
The callout aspect doesn’t stop after the first round, either. After the first round of action, the driver who makes the quickest winning run in the opening round will get the chance to select their semifinal opponent, automatically locking in the other matchup as well.
The Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout is the first time that unique twist has taken place in an NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series specialty race.
Torrence will get first selection for the opening round, followed by the next-highest seeded driver until matchups are set.