Torrence Back in Action at Pomona

After bypassing last week’s Arizona Nationals, four-time World Champion Steve Torrence returns to the cockpit of the CAPCO Contractors Top Fuel Toyota this week to pursue a rare double victory at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, the track on which, in 2018, he completed an unprecedented sweep of the six races in the NHRA’s Countdown to the Championship.

The 41-year-old Texas cattle rancher and businessman will race in the Right Trailers All-Star Callout on Friday before sending his 12,000-horsepower hot rod after the bigger prize, a Sunday victory in the 65th annual Lucas Oil Winternationals, the second oldest event in the Mission Foods Series.

Scheduled to be contested in Gainesville, Fla., in conjunction with the season-opening NHRA Gatornationals, the Callout was postponed by weather and moved to the California venue.

That postponement actually bodes well for Torrence and his CAPCO Boys whose previous win in the Top Fuel bonus race came in 2022 when it was moved from Gainesville to Indianapolis under similar weather-related circumstances.

As the No. 1 qualifier for the third time in the four-year history of the Callout, Torrence was afforded the opportunity to pick his first round opponent from among the other seven qualifiers.

He used that option to call out Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee Tony Stewart, whom he will oppose in round one beginning at 4 p.m., Texas time, on Friday.  Television coverage of the Callout will air on FS1 at 8:30 p.m., Texas time.

Coming off a trip to the semifinals at the Gatornationals, the 54-time pro tour winner is chasing his second victory in the Winternationals after winning for the first time in 2016.  He won the season-ending In-N-Out Finals on the same track in 2018 and 2021. 

“These CAPCO boys are still the best,” Torrence said of a crew led by Richard Hogan and Bobby Lagana Jr.  “They’ve sent me down this racetrack a lot of times and I still think we’ve got a few wins left in us.  This would be a good place to start.”

Round one of the Callout will count as a qualifying run for the Winternationals, as will the final at 6:55 p.m, Texas time.  Saturday qualifying sessions are at 2:30 and 5 p.m., Texas time, with final eliminations starting Sunday at 1 p.m., Texas time.