YORBA LINDA, Calif. — John Force, 16-time Funny Car champion and face of NHRA drag racing for nearly four decades, officially retired Thursday evening.
The announcement by Force, 76, comes 17 months after he suffered head trauma in a burning wreck at Virginia Motorsports Park. A catastrophic engine failure sent him crashing into a concrete wall at around 300 mph. The bounce sent him crossing the halfway line and hitting another wall.
He suffered a broken sternum, among other injuries, but it was the head trauma that forced him out of racing for good after an NHRA record 157 victories. Force spent months working with specialized outpatient therapists in California.
“I don’t want to keep going forever, but I’m officially done with driving,” Force said in a video posted to social media. “I hate saying that word. I’ve said many times in the media, ‘Until this race car kills me, they’re going to have to pull me out of the seat.’ But the truth is I was pulled out of my seat in Richmond, and then they thought it killed me. So I’m lucky to be able to walk again, still under doctor’s orders.
Force will continue to oversee John Force Racing, although his youngest daughter, Brittany, will retire from Top Fuel competition at the end of this season to start a family. Another daughter, Courtney Force, retired years ago to start a family. Force has six grandchildren, some of whom are already racing.
“I have a next generation that will follow me, just like my daughters,” Force said.
