TORRENCE DEFENDS TITLE AT RICHMOND (1 Viewer)

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TORRENCE DEFENDS TITLE AT RICHMOND
Four-Time NHRA Top Fuel Champ Back in Virginia After Two-Year Absence​

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RICHMOND, Va. – For Steve Torrence, the four-time reigning NHRA Top Fuel World Champion, Virginia Motorsports Park, site of this week’s NHRA Virginia Nationals, must look like an oasis in the desert.
Winless through six Camping World tour events for the first time since 2019 and for just the third time in the last six seasons, the 39-year-old Texan will roll to the line for the start of qualifying on Friday secure in the knowledge that he hasn’t lost a round of racing at VMP since Oct. 15, 2006.

Steve at Virgnia Motorsports Park
Total appearances: 3
Final rounds: 2
Tour victories: 2 (2018, 2019)
No. 1 qualifier: 0
Won-Lost record: 8-1
Quickest time: 3.799 seconds on June 10, 2018
Fastest speed: 325.85 mph on June 10, 2018
Track records – 3.749 seconds by Clay Millican, May 17, 2019; 327.51 mph by Tony Schumacher, June 8, 2018.​

Moreover, when he did lose, he did so at the hands of three-time former world champ Larry Dixon.
Of course, that resume loses a bit of its luster when one considers that he didn’t compete in 2007, 2008 or 2009, that the race wasn’t contested the last two seasons because of the COVID-19 pandemic and that it was off the NHRA schedule entirely from 2010-2017.
Still, since putting together his own team in 2012, the 51-time tour winner hasn’t lost a single round of racing at VMP, a fact that automatically gives him an edge, especially when one considers that the crew on his Capco Contractors Top Fuel Toyota, a unit led by Richard Hogan and Bobby Lagana Jr., is virtually the same one that sent him to the winners’ circle in back-to-back seasons.
“We’ve definitely had success,” Torrence said of his history at VMP, “but we’ve had success everywhere at one time or another. We’re just going through some stuff right now with a new setup and we’re not quite on top of it. But I wouldn’t go and start counting these Capco Boys out. There’s a lot of racing before we even get to the Countdown.
“There’s no real advantage (derived from the earlier wins),” Torrence said. “That was three and four years ago. I’m sure the track changed in that time and so have the cars. It’ll probably be kind of a crapshoot on Friday.”
The only pro driver ever to have swept the races in the Countdown (2018), Torrence this year is trying to become just the fourth driver in NHRA pro drag racing history (after Bob Glidden, John Force and Tony Schumacher) to win as many as five consecutive series titles.
In addition to the understandable level of comfort he feels at Richmond, Torrence will get another big boost with the competitive return of his dad, Billy, to the cockpit of the second Capco Contractors Top Fuel Toyota.
The elder Torrence, an eight-time Top Fuel winner who finished fifth in the driver standings each of the last two seasons, has raced in only a third of the events contested so far this year. In his only Richmond start (2019), he lost an all-Capco semifinal to his son who then beat Antron Brown for the trophy.
Qualifying begins with a single nitro session at 7:10 p.m., Texas time, Friday followed by sessions at 12:30 and 4:30 p.m., Texas time, Saturday. Sunday eliminations begin at 11 a.m., Texas time. Texas times for Fox Sports television coverage are 9:30-11 p.m. Saturday, 11:30-1 p.m. and 5:30-8:30 p.m. Sunday.

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About Toyota ​

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
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Looking Back
Steve Torrence at the Virginia Nationals
2006 Richmond 11. Lost to Larry Dixon
2018 Richmond 6. Beat Scott Palmer, Terry McMillen, Antron Brown and Doug Kalitta
2019 Richmond 4. Beat Todd Paton, Scott Palmer, Billy Torrence and Antron Brown
More Looking Back
Steve Torrence’s 2022 results
Event Qualifying Position/Racing Result
Pomona1 6. Beat Doug Foley, Mike Salinas; lost to Justin Ashley
Phoenix 3. Beat Doug Foley, Brittany Force; lost to Mike Salinas
2022 Gainesville 3. Beat Tony Schumacher; lost to Justin Ashley
2022 Vegas 4Wide 7. Runner-Up to Brittany Force (Tony Schumacher, Antron Brown)
2022 Houston 1. Beat Buddy Hull, Mike Salinas; lost to Justin Ashley
2022 Charlotte 4Wide 3. Lost in 1st Quad (Clay Millican, Josh Hart, Shawn Langdon)

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About Capco Contractors Inc.:
Capco Contractors, Inc. is a family owned-and-operated construction company specializing in the oil and gas industries. A proud American company based in Texas with clients around the world, Capco was founded in 1995 by Billy Torrence and initially operated from a small office and one job-site trailer with a staff of only 12 employees. From those humble beginnings, Capco Contactors, Inc. has developed into a full-service pipeline company, capable of all aspects of pipeline work including site work, creation of compressor stations, mainline pipeline construction and pipeline integrity projects. It employs more than 200 people with main offices in Henderson, Texas.

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