GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 10, 2024) – Alexis DeJoria and the Bandero Premium Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car team made four strong runs out of five during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season-opener at Gainesville Raceway. The team’s solid outing at the 55th annual Gatornationals has them feeling confident in their car and looking forward to continued success throughout the season as DeJoria attempts to become NHRA’s first female Funny Car world champion.
DeJoria began her 11th season driving a nitromethane-powered Funny Car by unloading with a 3.953-second E.T. during the weekend’s opening qualifying round to place her in the provisional No. 6 spot. On Friday night, crew chief Del Worsham took advantage of the conditions and sent DeJoria’s machine down the track in 3.900 seconds at 327.74 MPH. Feeling good about their performance so far, DeJoria was eager to have two more shots at the track before fields were set for Sunday’s elimination show. After waiting out the rain on Saturday, DeJoria, now occupying the seventh position, returned to the starting line for Q3 but lost traction early into the run. Just as teams were pulling up for the final qualifying run of the weekend, the skies opened up again, and racing was canceled for the remainder of the evening.
Starting from the No. 7 position on Sunday morning, DeJoria had the advantage of lane choice versus her first opponent of the year, No. 10 qualifier Paul Lee. Against Lee, DeJoria clocked a winning 3.955 E.T. to easily defeat his tire-shaking attempt. In round two, DeJoria staged the Bandero GR Supra opposite Bob Tasca III where she posted another respectable 3.9-second pass but Tasca’s 3.886-second run allowed him to carry the lead from start to finish, ending DeJoria’s day after the quarterfinals.
“It feels great to be back out here and start a new season,” said DeJoria, a six-time Funny Car event champion. “Qualifying went well, we made two clean passes out of three before we got rained out on Saturday night for the fourth session. We qualified our Bandero GR Supra seventh and made a good run first round against Paul Lee. Unfortunately, we got beat second round, but we ran a good number; Tasca just ran better.
“We feel like we’re starting our season off strong, and we’ve got some momentum building. You definitely want to get past first-round at the first race of the season, so we’re very happy we got that under our belt. We’re trying not to go over center. The team made some big adjustments over the winter in the clutch area so we’re just trying to creep up on those 3.80s. We’ve done a lot of testing prior to this race and I feel really good about our chances this year.”
Alexis DeJoria and the DC Motorsports Bandero Premium Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car team compete next at the NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, California, March 22 – 24.
Qualified: No. 7 (3.900 E.T. at 327.74 MPH)
Elimination Round Results:
E1: 3.955 E.T. at 327.19 MPH defeated Paul Lee 7.681 E.T. at 89.54 MPH
E2: 3.963 E.T. at 329.42 MPH defeated by Bob Tasca 3.886 E.T. at 337.41 MPH
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car Point Standings (Unofficial):
1 J.R. Todd 114
2 Austin Prock 106
3 Bob Tasca III 84
4 Chad Green 74
5 Ron Capps 59
6 Matt Hagan 55
7 John Force 52
8 Alexis DeJoria 43
9 Cruz Pedregon 33
10 Terry Haddock 32
10 Paul Lee 32
10 Blake Alexander 32
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About DC Motorsports
DC Motorsports is an NHRA Funny Car team competing on the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series circuit thanks to the support of Bandero Premium Tequila, ROKiT, Toyota, and Mobil 1. Established in 2020, the team is co-owned by crew chief and two-time NHRA world champion Del Worsham and driver Alexis DeJoria.
About Alexis DeJoria
Alexis DeJoria is a professional race car driver competing in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series’ Funny Car category. Including her prestigious 2014 U.S. Nationals triumph, DeJoria is a six-time NHRA national event Funny Car champion.
Prior to making her professional debut in 2011, DeJoria found success competing in the NHRA’s Super Comp and Top Alcohol Funny Car categories where she notched wins in both, making her an eight-time race winner overall. DeJoria is the only driver to own the trifecta of Super Comp, Top Alcohol Funny Car, and Funny Car victories.
In 2020, DeJoria partnered with Del Worsham to form DC Motorsports as co-owner and driver of the Bandero Premium Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car. The Austin, Texas resident became the first woman to clock a sub-four second Funny Car pass in 2014 and is in pursuit of becoming the series’ first female Funny Car world champion.
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