Championship Drag Racing

CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals
Pomona, Calif.
(February 7-10)

EVENT HOME
   Event Info
   Tickets
   Event schedule
   Results
   Team Reports
   Audio Broadcast
   Photo Galleries
   Video highlights
   Entry List

Driver Profile

Hillary Will KB Racing dragster

Pomona, Sunday: Yesterday at the season-opening event of the 2008 POWERade Drag Racing Series, the CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Hillary Will, driver of the KB Racing, LLC Top Fuel dragster, started her quest for the 2008 POWERade points championship with a quarter-final appearance in final eliminations.

In the opening round Sunday, Will, the No. 5 qualifier (4.521 at 334.65 mph) rolled to the starting line to race against No. 12 qualifier J.R. Todd. Both 8,000-horspower race cars had problems with maintaining traction on the famed Pomona drag strip, but Will was able to get her rail to recover before Todd to get her first round-win of the new season, 5.992 at 168.89 mph to 7.014 at 175.73 mph.

Will then had to race Morgan Lucas in the quarterfinals. Both race cars made almost flawless trips down the race track, but Lucas’ 4.564 at 322.73 mph was just enough to turn back Will’s 4.594 at 325.85 mph to get the win.

In a qualifying run Saturday, Will became the fastest female driver in the history of NHRA drag racing with the fifth fastest (tie) lap down the quarter-mile for any gender with an amazing speed of 334.65 mph. The booming speed was also the fastest of the event at the Winternationals.

“That’s a great accomplishment, but all the credit goes to my KB Racing, LLC team,” Will, a 27-year old native of Fortuna, Calif., said. “I hope that the record will inspire other young women who want to race to work hard and pursue their dreams and try to take that record away from me.”

E-mail this article   Print this article