Racing Car - Friday

 

John Force Racing and Lionel NASCAR Collectables to Honor Elvis With 35th Anniversary Race Cars

May 16, 2012

Legendary Funny Car driver John Force and teammate Robert Hight will honor the legacy of the King of Rock 'n' Roll during the 12th annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway on June 15 - 17. In conjunction with Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc. and Lionel NASCAR Collectables, John Force Racing will once again feature Elvis on their one-of-a-kind 8,000 horsepower Ford Mustang Funny Cars. Each driver will be competing in a specially-designed Elvis 35th Anniversary Ford Mustang Funny Car for this one-time special weekend.

"I love Elvis and I am honored to be racing with him on the hood of my hound dog in Bristol. I always say I saw Elvis at 1,000 feet in Memphis and I really believe that. Elvis was such an amazing performer and an icon. I remember listening to his music growing up and heading to the race track. I still make sure my girls all know his songs," said Force, one of the most recent inductees into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame.

Lionel NASCAR Collectables will offer 1:24 and 1:64 scale die-cast cars of both John Force's Castrol GTX High Mileage/Elvis 35th Ford Mustang Funny Car and Robert Hight's Auto Club/Elvis 35th Ford Mustang Funny Car. Each die-cast is currently available for pre-order at www.nhradiecast.com – home of the officially licensed die-cast of the NHRA.

This will be the first time Hight has driven an Elvis-themed Funny Car. The importance of representing a legendary figure is not lost on the 2009 NHRA Funny Car champion and current Full Throttle points leader.

"Elvis has fans all over the world and to be associated with a person of that stature is amazing. Music has always been an important part of my life and when you think of rock 'n' roll, the first name that pops into your head is Elvis. I won at Bristol last year and it would be amazing to get my Auto Club/Elvis 35th Ford Mustang back into the winner's circle this year," said Hight.

For more information on how to purchase the Lionel NASCAR collectable Elvis race cars, visit www.nhradiecast.com.