Tony Stewart Racing
Hagan Drives Dodge Power Brokers Funny Car and Tony Stewart Racing to Semifinals at Winternationals to Kickstart 2022 NHRA Season
Pomona, CA — Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) Funny Car driver Matt Hagan hit the throttle on the 2022 National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) 
Camping World Drag Racing Series season by driving his Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat from his No. 3 qualifying position to the semifinals at the 62nd annual Lucas Oil Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com. Also driving to a semifinal appearance at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, California, was the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat piloted by Cruz Pedregon from a fourth place seeding.
Hagan launched his season with a strong qualifying performance to secure the No. 3 spot on the eliminations ladder. He earned the fledgling TSR team’s first Funny Car round win aboard the Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat with a 4.071 seconds pass at 260.31 mph that saw the three-time Winternationals winner have to peddle it at the 660-foot mark but still turn on the win light. The team regrouped quickly and came back strong in the second round against No. 6 seed Bob Tasca by posting their quickest run of the weekend with a 3.885-second elapsed time run at 328.94 mph to beat his opponent’s 3.984 sec./325.77 mph effort.
The semifinal match pitted Hagan against the No. 2 qualifier Robert Hight and saw the TSR Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat take the early lead with a 0.048-second reaction time to his opponent’s 0.059-second start. Unfortunately, a dropped cylinder hampered Hagan’s on track progress and brought the team’s first outing to a close.
Leah Pruett & Matt Hagan Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel & Funny Car Drivers 62nd NHRA Winternationals
Pomona, CA – Leah Pruett and Matt Hagan ready for the Winter Nationals as the new team comes together for Tony Stewart Racing’s first 
event.
Leah Pruett, Driver of the Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel Dragster
Being with a new team at TSR, does the start of this season feel different?
“I haven’t felt any two seasons feel the same at the start of the year, but this one is most definitely the largest difference. A new racecar, a new group of crew members, a new co-crew chief, Neal Strausbaugh’s first season as a crew chief – I’m used to change so all these things bring comfort in their newness. What I’m not used to, but have always had a desire for, was to race with my spouse. This one happens to be my team owner, but also the new feeling has been operating in the management structure of this organization and taking on and sharing new responsibilities. To say it’s business as usual would be far from correct and, until I put on the helmet for the first time during a race event, I can’t say exactly what will be different, but I already know it will be, and I expect to enjoy our successes even more than before.”
Dodge//SRT and Mopar Partner With Tony Stewart Racing to Compete in NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series
Auburn Hills, MI – Dodge//SRT and Mopar announce their support of the newest team in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) 
Camping World Drag Racing Series, Tony Stewart Racing (TSR). Dodge//SRT and Mopar will be primary sponsors for Top Fuel driver Leah Pruett and three-time Funny Car World Champion Matt Hagan in TSR’s inaugural 2022 NHRA season.
Today’s announcement opens the sixth “garage door” of the Dodge Never Lift campaign, a 24-month road map to the brand’s electrified performance future. The Dodge 24 Months of Muscle calendar can be viewed at Dodgegarage.com/never-lift.
“The Dodge brand has a long history of competing in and supporting motorsports.” says Tim Kuniskis, Dodge Brand Chief Executive Officer – Stellantis. “For nearly a decade, NHRA drag racing has been our primary motorsports focus, helping deliver products like the Dodge Demon, 1320 and Super Stock; cars that resonate with the Brotherhood of Muscle. These vehicles will hold a place in muscle-car history for years to come. The Dodge brand embodies the philosophy of the ‘last tenth,’ and we are not done pushing the performance envelope. So, we are extremely excited to partner with Tony Stewart and his drag racing team to help take Dodge to the next level. Tony is a racing legend with an attitude, personality and competitive drive that aligns perfectly with our goals.”
Tony Stewart Racing Names Crew Chiefs for NHRA Program
Neal Strausbaugh To Crew Chief Top Fuel’s Leah Pruett; Dickie Venables Continues with Funny Car Driver Matt Hagan
BROWNSBURG, IN – Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) has announced its crew chief lineup for the team’s 2022 debut in the NHRA Camping 
World Drag Racing Series with Top Fuel driver Leah Pruett and Funny Car pilot Matt Hagan.
Neal Strausbaugh will be the crew chief for nine-time Top Fuel event winner Pruett and Dickie Venables will continue his longtime role as the crew chief for 39-time Funny Car event winner Hagan. Both Strausbaugh and Venables come to TSR from Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), where the duo have spent a combined 25 years.
Strausbaugh has been an assistant crew chief since 2008 working across both Top Fuel and Funny Car, first with Cory McClenathan in Top Fuel (2008), Tony Schumacher in Top Fuel (2009-2016), Jack Beckman in Funny Car (2017-2018) and Pruett (2019-present). Venables has had two stints at DSR, spending 2010-2011 with Funny Car driver Johnny Gray before returning in 2013 to lead Hagan’s Funny Car effort.
“Joe Gibbs taught me a long time ago that you win with people, and Neal and Dickie are the right guys to help build this team and get it ready for next year,” said team owner Tony Stewart. “For the past year-and-a-half, I’ve gotten to know Neal and Dickie and have seen firsthand how they work and interact with everyone on the crew. Both have a strong work ethic and know what they’re doing, but they also know each other and their drivers really well. That kind of familiarity and continuity is massively important as we build this program from the ground up.”
Tony Stewart Racing To Join NHRA in 2022 with Two Fulltime Entries
Team Will Feature Leah Pruett in Top Fuel and Matt Hagan in Funny Car
CONCORD, NC – After more than four decades of racing around in circles, Tony Stewart has embarked on a straight and narrow path, albeit 
at more than 300 mph.
The championship-winning racecar driver who has successfully transitioned to being a championship-winning team owner is joining the NHRA in 2022. His eponymous team, Tony Stewart Racing (TSR), will field two fulltime entries – one in Top Fuel for nine-time event winner Leah Pruett and one in Funny Car for 39-time event winner Matt Hagan.
The manufacturer and the team’s technical alliance associate, along with corporate partners, will be announced at a later date.
“When I retired from fulltime driving I said it wasn’t the end, but the beginning of a new chapter. This is proof of that,” said Stewart, who also co-owns Stewart-Haas Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series with machine tool magnate Gene Haas.
“I appreciate all forms of racing and I’ve always been intrigued about drag racing and NHRA, in particular. Back in 2009 when Tony Schumacher and I were both representing the U.S. Army, I got to hang out with him and Don Schumacher at the U.S. Nationals. Tony ended up winning and after taking it all in, I was hooked. But it wasn’t until I met Leah and started going to races regularly, where I saw the strategy and the preparation firsthand, that I truly understood it.”
