All DSR Teams in at AAA Fall Nationals, Final Team Reports from Texas Qualifying
Massey qualifies No. 6 for hometown race at Texas Motorplex, Battery Extender dragster looks to extend points lead in Countdown
– In front of family and friends, Forth Worth native Spencer Massey qualified No. 6 for Sunday’s AAA Texas Fall Nationals at Massey’s home track, the Texas Motorplex.
Friday’s two qualifying sessions were washed out by persistent heavy rains leaving NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series competitors with only two chances at the Texas track.
“It’s always tough when you only have two qualifying sessions,” Massey said. “It’s important that you go out on your first lap and get down the track. You have to be a little bit more conservative to make sure you get a good number on the board and we did that.”
The Battery Extender Powered by Schumacher dragster clocked a 3.880-second pass in Saturday’s first session and improved to a 3.839-second pass in the final session to qualify No. 6 for Sunday’s eliminations which begin at 11 a.m. CT.
“For the second lap we could go out there and really get data for tomorrow. Tomorrow’s conditions will be similar to what we saw today in qualifying so the goal was to first get qualified and then just see what we could learn about this Texas Motorplex track. Todd (Okuhara) and Phil (Shuler) knew exactly what to do out here and that showed.”
But Massey is already focused on Sunday’s eliminations and has high hopes of ending the day in the winner’s circle surrounded by family and friends.
“It’s fun racing at home,” Massey said. “My family is here, my friends are here and there’s always someone at the ropes that I know or that has seen me before. It’s cool. But I really want to see them all in winner’s circle.
“I can’t tell you how much I want to win here. We’ve come so close the past two years and I just want to turn on four win lights here tomorrow, get that cowboy hat and most importantly, extend our points lead in this Countdown to the Championship. We have to keep our focus on the big picture and going rounds in this Countdown.”
Brown, Matco Tools team rally late to slide into No. 14 spot of AAA Texas Fall Nationals at Texas Motorplex near Dallas
– Reigning NHRA Top Fuel world champion Antron Brown knew he didn’t want his Matco Tools team to take a Sunday off for the second consecutive week on the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series tour.
Brown, who did not qualify last Sunday for championship eliminations near Charlotte, was able to produce a time quick enough (3.895 second at 311.05 mph) with crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald to earn the 14th spot in the field of 16 for eliminations, which begin at 11 a.m. (CT) in the AAA Texas Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas.
Adding pressure to Brown and the other Mello Yello series teams was that only two qualifying sessions were left after rain wiped out Friday’s two attempts.
“Our boys just stuck to their guns and kept their heads down,” Brown said. “Our Matco car went down the track from A to B. We slid it down there. That’s what you have to do when you only have two qualifying sessions. That made it even more challenging than Charlotte when we had four chances.
“Charlotte just got away from us. We’re regrouped and are back in action here. All I can say is that tomorrow we’ll be in the race and if you’re in the race you have a chance to win.
We’ll be back at work; another day at the office. We’re ready. We’re hungry.”
Brown has fallen to ninth in the 10-driver Countdown to the Championship and trails Don Schumacher Racing teammate and points leader Spencer Massey by 128 points.
The Fall Nationals is the second of six events in the Countdown playoff.
Beckman, MTS/Valvoline team close Fall Nationals qualifying with happy ending, will start sixth Sunday in eliminations
– Jack Beckman really isn’t a drama queen but it sure looks like it sometimes. The last thing that Beckman’s MTS Mail for Wounded Warriors/Valvoline Funny Car team and others in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series want is to lose Friday’s two qualifying sessions, but that’s what happened to start this weekend’s AAA Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas.
And making matters worse was when Beckman went out on Saturday’s first run and struggled to a time of 4.471 seconds at a slowing 196.10 mph. That left the reigning world champions ranked 11th for Sunday’s 16-car championship eliminations.
But by the time Beckman and his Dodge Charger R/T went to the starting line for his last try at qualifying, he was ranked 20th among 20 teams.
But crew chief Todd Smith and assistant Terry Snyder were able to produce a solid race car that ran a time of 4.122 seconds (306.12) that will have them seeded sixth for the opening round, which begins at 11 a.m. (CT).
“You have to do everything the right way. It’s so much pressure and potential stress when you go up there on the last run and aren’t qualified,” Beckman said. “That’s why when it rains out qualifying on Friday it’s nail-biting time for everybody. The crew chief bites his nails until the car leaves the starting line, and the driver starts biting his nails after it leaves the starting line.
“By the time we get back to the pits, Todd, Terry and I don’t have any fingernails or hair.”
Fortunately, Beckman could only bite his fire-retardant gloves and all three will return Sunday with full heads of hair.
“When I was in the staging lanes all I did was think about everything that could happen on that last run and how I’d react to it,” said Beckman, who is looking for his first title of the season and first at the Texas Motorplex.
“The bump spot (No. 16) was like a 4.40 and you know if the car starts to lose traction you can pedal (the throttle) and try to get it to recover. If that time was like a 4.10 there’s nothing you can do if it starts to smoke the tires.
“Fortunately I didn’t have to worry about it. Todd and Terry put a great tune-up in our Dodge and the guys were flawless in getting it ready.”
Beckman will start Sunday ranked fourth in the second of six events in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoff, and trails Don Schumacher Racing teammate and points leader Matt Hagan by 96 points.
Consistent Capps, NAPA AUTO PARTS team qualify fourth for Sunday’s eliminations near Dallas in NHRA Fall Nationals
– It isn’t trite when Ron Capps talks about “NAPA Know How.” Capps’ NAPA AUTO PARTS crew chief Rahn Tobler, assistant John Collins and crew displayed on Saturday why he is so appreciative of being on a team that strives for excellence.
After rain washed out Friday’s two qualifying sessions of the AAA Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas, the NAPA team had two runs to earn a slot to race on Sunday and hang onto to his second-place standing in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship six-event playoff.
Capps started out with a time of 4.096 seconds at 306.88 mph to move into the No. 2 spot and came back late in the afternoon under sunny skies to post a time of 4.102 (305.22). Although the team dropped two spots to fourth for championship eliminations, it produced the two most consistent runs of the day.
“As we saw in Seattle you never know what’s going to happen with two qualifying runs after you lose a Friday to rain,” he said of when the team didn’t qualify for the only time this season.
“We know we’re one of the best teams out here and we know what happened in Seattle. We really worked hard on trying to get down the track at the Motorplex on the first lap, and that’s what we always try to do. That’s what we succeeded at doing last year and at the beginning of this year.
“It takes so much pressure off when you can do that and it sets the tone for the weekend. To do that and run the 4.09 really took a lot pressure off and it allowed us to try a few things on the second run that will help us on Sunday when we expect (weather) conditions to be similar to today’s.
“Tobler is real happy. He felt like he left a little on the table but we learned from it. I believe we were in the tougher lane on the last run.
“It’s the second race of the Countdown and there’s a little more pressure. But Tobler, Collins and all the NAPA guys came through today with flying colors. It sets the tone for how we’ll approach first round. This is a racetrack that when the weather is good and it’s a little cool it will take anything we have.”
Capps will start Sunday trailing points leader and DSR teammate Matt Hagan by 82 points.
The Fall Nationals is the second of six events in the Countdown.
Points leader Hagan running smart with crew chief Venables as Freightliner team to start third at Fall Nationals at Texas Motorplex
– It’s only fitting that Matt Hagan is carrying the Freightliner colors on his 10,000-horsepower Dodge R/T Funny Car this weekend for the AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals.
His Funny Car car features Freightliner’s slogan “Run Smart” and that’s what Hagan’s crew chief Dickie Venables does.
Venables tuned Hagan to a 4.093-second pass at 312.78 mph, which is the top speed for Funny Cars at the event near Dallas, in the second and final qualifying session on Saturday at Texas Motorplex to earn the No. 3 spot for Sunday’s 16-car eliminations. Friday’s two qualifying sessions were rained out.
“We are absolutely running smart with Freightliner here this weekend,” Hagan said. “Dickie (Venables) had two shots at this track and two opportunities to mess it up and he didn’t. We went down the race track both times and got better.
“We were second best of that (final) session. It was awesome. We went out there and got in the show like we were supposed to on the first lap. Then we were able to lean on it a little bit. We are just running smart like this Freightliner car says.”
Hagan and the Freightliner/Mopar/Rocky Boots Funny Car will race Jeff Arend in the opening round of Sunday’s eliminations which begin at 11 a.m. (CT). Hagan and Arend have met in the first round in the two previous events and are 1-1 against each other.
“We can’t take him lightly,” Hagan said. “We just have to do what we know how to do. Dickie and (assistant) Mike Knudsen have put together a great package, a great race car and a great group of guys working on this race car.
“I have all the confidence in the world that we’re going to go rounds tomorrow and have some fun doing it.”
