Force addresses Coil’s departure

Drag racing icon John Force will deal with mixed emotions this weekend when he attends the Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, final event in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, as a guest of Ford Motor Company.

Coming off a scintillating victory last week in the Auto Cub NHRA Finals at Pomona, Calif., that delivered his 15th Funny Car championship and his team’s 17th in the last 21 seasons, Force is having to deal with the unexpected departure of friend and crew chief Austin Coil, who submitted his resignation on Tuesday.

“There are highs and lows in life," said the driver of the Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang. “Winning my 15th Funny Car championship was a high and I received a letter from Austin Coil two days later that was a low in my life. It hurt me. I tried to call him, but he didn’t want to talk. I told him I would respect that. We had 26 great seasons together and that is what I will remember."

“I also got a letter of congratulations this week from Don Garlits that I am carrying with me," Force said. “It means a lot because it recognizes what my team, my sponsors and I accomplished this season. Life goes on. All I can do is thank Austin Coil for his contributions to JFR and get my team ready to chase another championship in 2011."