MECHANICSVILLE, MD. (May 29, 2026) – Three of John Force Racing’s four teams used the second of Friday’s two qualifying sessions to post their best performances in Day 1 of the inaugural NHRA Potomac Nationals presented by JEGS at Maryland International Raceway.
The Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car team of Jordan Vandergriff provided the best showing, running 3.970 seconds at 321.88 mph to earn the No. 3 spot while Josh Hart wheeled the Speedmaster Top Fuel Dragster to a sixth place showing with a run of 3.811 seconds at 333.91 mph. Jack Beckman and the PEAK Chevrolet SS Funny Car team posted the eighth-quickest time of the afternoon with a run of 4.018 seconds at 316.30 mph and Alexis DeJoria used her Q1 run of 4.036 seconds at 318.32 mph to put the Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car in the ninth position.
Saturday’s qualifying sessions are scheduled for 12:30 and 3 p.m. ET. DeJoria and Hart will participate in the Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, earned from her final-round appearance and his semifinal finish in the May 17 Gerber’s Collision & Glass Route 66 Nationals presented by PEAK in Joliet, Ill. Sunday’s first round of eliminations is scheduled for 11 a.m. ET.
Quote from Jordan Vandergriff, Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car:
“I think this Cornwell Quality Tools team is extremely happy with that. Coming off what was a rough weekend in Chicago to have a good Friday here shows that we can bounce back from adversity. It was really important for us to hit the ground running here in Maryland and I’m feeling great about the weekend so far.”
Quote from Josh Hart, Speedmaster Top Fuel Dragster:
“We’re never really happy over here. The 3.81 was what we needed in the first run so a 3.75 in the second round would have been a good run. Grubnic (crew chief Dave Grubnic) is hard on himself. I’m hard on myself. The team’s doing a good job but we just need to do better. A good job isn’t good enough. We all know that going into tomorrow, so we’ll see what our chances look like with the conditions in the morning.”
Quote from Jack Beckman, PEAK Chevrolet SS Funny Car:
“Tim and Dan (Fabrisi and Hood, crew chiefs) are a little bit frustrated that we didn’t push harder and run faster. We always want to get points and qualify near the top. It’s a brand new racetrack. We have no data. I am completely satisfied with our Friday performance. We went to the finish line on both runs. In the first run, it put a cylinder out early, which was a byproduct of the fact that we backed everything off on the clutch. We took load away from it, which tends to drop cylinders. We got closer in the second run. We’re going take another shot at it in Q3 tomorrow. I think we can go to the top of the slot with tomorrow’s conditions and then we can start playing with spare parts for Q4 if we get in solid. So, I think it was a great Friday for the PEAK team.”
Quote from Alexis DeJoria, Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car:
“I think the return of John Force (to the track) has been a huge confidence builder for all of us. He’s the glue of this team and, without him, it doesn’t feel right so we’re happy to have him back. I love my crew chiefs. They’re badass. We finally got a hit on this Bandero Chevy. We had some great consistency last weekend. I’m just so proud. Now we can start stepping on it. We’re confident as hell.
TV Schedule
Television coverage on FS1 includes a qualifying show Sat., May 30, from 7 – 8 p.m. ET, and the eliminations broadcast Sunday, May 31, from 3 – 6 p.m. ET.
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The Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car team of Jordan Vandergriff provided the best showing, running 3.970 seconds at 321.88 mph to earn the No. 3 spot while Josh Hart wheeled the Speedmaster Top Fuel Dragster to a sixth place showing with a run of 3.811 seconds at 333.91 mph. Jack Beckman and the PEAK Chevrolet SS Funny Car team posted the eighth-quickest time of the afternoon with a run of 4.018 seconds at 316.30 mph and Alexis DeJoria used her Q1 run of 4.036 seconds at 318.32 mph to put the Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car in the ninth position.
Saturday’s qualifying sessions are scheduled for 12:30 and 3 p.m. ET. DeJoria and Hart will participate in the Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, earned from her final-round appearance and his semifinal finish in the May 17 Gerber’s Collision & Glass Route 66 Nationals presented by PEAK in Joliet, Ill. Sunday’s first round of eliminations is scheduled for 11 a.m. ET.
Quote from Jordan Vandergriff, Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car:
“I think this Cornwell Quality Tools team is extremely happy with that. Coming off what was a rough weekend in Chicago to have a good Friday here shows that we can bounce back from adversity. It was really important for us to hit the ground running here in Maryland and I’m feeling great about the weekend so far.”
Quote from Josh Hart, Speedmaster Top Fuel Dragster:
“We’re never really happy over here. The 3.81 was what we needed in the first run so a 3.75 in the second round would have been a good run. Grubnic (crew chief Dave Grubnic) is hard on himself. I’m hard on myself. The team’s doing a good job but we just need to do better. A good job isn’t good enough. We all know that going into tomorrow, so we’ll see what our chances look like with the conditions in the morning.”
Quote from Jack Beckman, PEAK Chevrolet SS Funny Car:
“Tim and Dan (Fabrisi and Hood, crew chiefs) are a little bit frustrated that we didn’t push harder and run faster. We always want to get points and qualify near the top. It’s a brand new racetrack. We have no data. I am completely satisfied with our Friday performance. We went to the finish line on both runs. In the first run, it put a cylinder out early, which was a byproduct of the fact that we backed everything off on the clutch. We took load away from it, which tends to drop cylinders. We got closer in the second run. We’re going take another shot at it in Q3 tomorrow. I think we can go to the top of the slot with tomorrow’s conditions and then we can start playing with spare parts for Q4 if we get in solid. So, I think it was a great Friday for the PEAK team.”
Quote from Alexis DeJoria, Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car:
“I think the return of John Force (to the track) has been a huge confidence builder for all of us. He’s the glue of this team and, without him, it doesn’t feel right so we’re happy to have him back. I love my crew chiefs. They’re badass. We finally got a hit on this Bandero Chevy. We had some great consistency last weekend. I’m just so proud. Now we can start stepping on it. We’re confident as hell.
TV Schedule
Television coverage on FS1 includes a qualifying show Sat., May 30, from 7 – 8 p.m. ET, and the eliminations broadcast Sunday, May 31, from 3 – 6 p.m. ET.
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