US Army Racing
U.S. Army NHRA Racing NHRA Route 66 Nationals at Chicago Friday Qualifying Report
The U.S. Army Racing trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett are third, ninth and 
eighth on the provisional ladder, respectively, after the opening two rounds of qualifying Friday for this weekend’s NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series 20th annual JEGS Route 66 NHRA Nationals at Route 66 Raceway near Chicago, Illinois.
Schumacher and his U.S. Army Dragster team for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) lost traction just about 400 feet into his first run and posted a lap of 4.532 seconds at 166.23 mph, but he opened the evening session with a lightning-fast run of 3.749 seconds at 329.99 mph. The five-time Route 66 winner climbed from 14th after the first session up to third on the provisional ladder with two sessions remaining tomorrow.
“We knew coming into tonight that this U.S. Army car had to go down the track,” Schumacher said. “We needed to make a good run and that one was impressive. Up in the lounge before the run, (crew chief) Mike (Neff) and (assistant crew chief) Phil (Shuler) said we were aiming to run a 3.74. And that’s what we were setting the car up for. In today’s first run, we were on an incredible pass trying to run a 3.77 and just missed it.
U.S. Army Racing Trio Seeking Chicago Victory in NHRA Route 66 Nationals
JOLIET, IL – It would be difficult to find a more competitive person than iconic NHRA team owner Don 
Schumacher. And all three of his Top Fuel drivers, U.S. Army Racing’s Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett, know how important winning is to the Mt. Prospect, Illinois native and why they are all vying to be standing next to him at the conclusion of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series’ only Chicago stop of the season, this weekend’s 20th annual Fallen Patriots NHRA Route 66 Nationals.
“The Sarge,” who also called Chicago home for most of his life, leads the U.S. Army brigade back to Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois, where he is the all-time winningest driver in the Top Fuel class with five event titles. He and his U.S. Army team have been working hard to break through with a win this season. The eight-time Top Fuel world champion would like nothing more than to score his initial triumph of 2018 behind the wheel of the U.S. Army Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) and increase his series-record career win total to 84 in front of a capacity, hometown crowd.
There’s certainly added pressure to have success with family and friends in attendance, but Schumacher has succeeded throughout his decorated career when he and his U.S. Army team have been put in the biggest of moments. The 2018 Top Fuel world champion won’t be crowned until later this year, but Schumacher, who reached the semifinals for the third time this season two weeks ago in Topeka, knows if the U.S. Army team wants to be in the mix for the title at season’s end, it must put some wins on the board. Starting with one in Chicago would be a big boost to the team’s championship mission.
Mopar-powered Schumacher Runs to Semis at Rain-delayed NHRA Heartland Nationals
Auburn Hills, MI – U.S. Army Top Fuel driver Tony Schumacher wrapped up the rain-delayed NHRA Heartland 
Nationals with a semifinals finish for Mopar and Dodge//SRT on Monday, May 21, at Heartland Motorsports Park in Topeka, Kansas.
Mopar Dodge//SRT racers finished the one-third mark of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season with two drivers near the top of the ranks in Funny Car — Jack Beckman (second) and Matt Hagan (third). In Top Fuel, two drivers are also listed in the top five, with Schumacher in third and Leah Pritchett fifth.
Just following the conclusion of opening ceremonies on Sunday morning, a sprinkle of rain popped up and soon turned into persistent showers, leading to an extended eight-hour delay. Once racing finally began at 7 p.m. CT, Schumacher had his chance to exact revenge against Bill Litton, who knocked out the eight-time Top Fuel World Champion in the first-round at the previous event in Atlanta. “The Sarge” sent Litton home with a straight-down-the-groove 3.781-second elapsed time (ET) at 326.24 mph.
It’s a Game of Take-Out for U.S. Army at Topeka
This weekend’s weather-delayed NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Heartland Nationals at Heartland 
Motorsports Park in Topeka, Kansas bore a strong resemblance to an intramural contest for the U.S. Army Top Fuel driver trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett.
After waiting out an eight-hour rain delay, the event officially started at 7 p.m. local time Sunday, and the first pair of competitors on track was No. 12 qualifier Brown and his Matco Tools/U.S. Army Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) pitted against No. 5 qualifier Pritchett and her Schumacher Electric/U.S. Army Dragster for DSR. Not surprisingly after the soaking rains, it was a tire-smoking pedalfest with Pritchett prevailing. She crossed the finish line in 4.254 seconds at 301.07 mph to Brown’s 4.060 seconds at 304.39 mph.
That set up a second-round matchup pitting Pritchett against No. 4 qualifier Schumacher and his U.S. Army Dragster for DSR, who avenged his first-round loss against No. 13 qualifier Bill Litton two weekends ago at Atlanta with a solid run of 3.781 seconds at 326.24 mph. Litton got down the track somewhat cleanly but only in 3.950 seconds at 270.48 mph.
U.S. Army NHRA Racing Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals at Topeka Final Qualifying Report
The U.S. Army driver trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Leah Pritchett and Antron Brown are fourth, fifth and 
12th on the elimination ladder, respectively, after the final two rounds of qualifying Saturday for this weekend’s NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series 30th annual Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals at Heartland Motorsports Park in Topeka, Kansas. All three U.S. Army drivers closed with their best runs of the weekend after unsuccessful attempts to make it down the track cleanly during their opening runs of the day.
Schumacher and his U.S. Army Dragster team for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), who won this event in 2010 and was No. 1 qualifier here last year in track-record time, closed with a run of 3.771 seconds at 331.12 mph that earned a first-round rematch Sunday with No. 13 qualifier Bill Litton, who ended his day early at Atlanta two weekends ago.
“If race day conditions are like this, that last run really bodes well for us,” said Schumacher, who is second in the Top Fuel standings after the season’s first seven events. “We made three great runs. The one earlier today wasn’t a very successful run. But we’re just trying to learn how to deal with this new track prep with not enough runs under our belt with those conditions. But, otherwise, this Topeka track is a smooth racetrack and it’s a beautiful place. We’re looking forward to tomorrow. I think we’re going to see some really fast runs.”
U.S. Army NHRA Racing Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals at Topeka Friday Qualifying Report
The U.S. Army driver trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett are fifth, sixth and 
seventh on the provisional ladder, respectively, after the opening two rounds of qualifying Friday for this weekend’s NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series 30th annual Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals at Heartland Motorsports Park in Topeka, Kansas.
Schumacher and his U.S. Army Dragster team for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), who won this event in 2010 and was No. 1 qualifier here last year in track-record time, solidly got down the track on both of his qualifying runs today, opening with an effort of 3.888 seconds at 319.75 mph that was second-best for the session, then finishing with a run of 3.826 seconds at 324.51 mph that was topped by four other drivers in the second session.
“We went down the track twice on all eight cylinders,” said Schumacher, who is second in the Top Fuel standings after the season’s first seven events. “Like I keep saying, lately, we’re not trying to go fast, we’re trying to figure out how to go slow. The new track prep is different than we’re used to and we have to figure it out, and we’re doing it the right way. That was an important run.
Heartland of America Awaits U.S. Army Trio Focused on Another Victory
TOPEKA, KS – Win No. 1 of the year for the U.S. Army Top Fuel driver trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett is finally in the books as Pritchett successfully powered her way through four elimination rounds at Atlanta Dragway two weekends ago and hoisted her sixth career Wally trophy.
This weekend, they head to Heartland Park Topeka in Eastern Kansas, where Brown brought the U.S. Army its first victory since Schumacher won there in 2010. All three drivers are determined to make it two wins in a row on the year and at Topeka for the U.S. Army.
Schumacher, the eight-time Top Fuel world champion in his U.S. Army Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), hits town second in the championship through the season’s first seven events but is coming off back-to-back first-round defeats at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte, North Carolina, and at Atlanta. A year ago at Topeka, he blazed to a track-record qualifying run of 3.660 seconds at 327.90 mph but could not get past second-round opponent Clay Millican in Sunday eliminations. In addition to his lone Topeka victory in 2010, he reached the final round in 2013, where he came up just short against that year’s Top Fuel champion Shawn Langdon. The No. 1 qualifying effort at Topeka, was the record 83rd of his career for Schumacher, and he’s since added top qualifying efforts at Las Vegas last fall and this spring, and at Phoenix this spring to be bring his record career total to 86. His qualifying run of 3.649 seconds at Phoenix set the track record there and also became his career-best elapsed time.
Pritchett Races to Victory in NHRA Southern Nationals
Schumacher, Brown Suffer Mechanical Failures Early in Atlanta
While mechanical failures knocked U.S. Army Racing’s Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher and Antron Brown out in the 
first round of the 38th annual NHRA Southern Nationals, their teammate Leah Pritchett carried the U.S. Army Racing torch by racing to her first victory of the season on Sunday at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Georgia.
After qualifying for an NHRA record 350th consecutive Top Fuel event, Schumacher was looking to conquer the Southern Nationals for the first time in his illustrious career and by doing so, end a pair of winless streaks. Atlanta Dragway is the only track currently on the NHRA schedule where the eight-time Top Fuel world champion has yet to win, and he has been stuck on 83 career wins, spanning 27 events, since his 2017 Gatornationals triumph.
Schumacher qualified the U.S. Army Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) fifth and faced Bill Litton, who he defeated two weeks ago in the first round of the Spring Nationals at Royal Purple Raceway. Unfortunately, Schumacher’s machine lost a cylinder as soon as he launched off the starting line. His lap of 3.925 seconds at 311.27 mph wasn’t enough to defeat Litton, who made a run of 3.915 seconds at 315.56 mph, and both streaks will continue.
U.S. Army NHRA Racing NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Final Qualifying Report
The first six races of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season have been anything but smooth sailing for the 
U.S. Army Racing trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett. The waves have continued through qualifying for this weekend’s 38th annual Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Georgia. Despite each having issues Friday and Saturday, all three landed in the top half of the field for Sunday’s elimination rounds.
Schumacher and the U.S. Army Racing team for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) locked themselves into the fifth slot with their best pass of the weekend on Saturday in qualifying session three. His run of 3.794 seconds at 327.82 mph came early in the session and was topped only by No. 1 qualifier Clay Millican and reigning Top Fuel world champion Brittany Force. “The Sarge” was looking for improvement in the final qualifying session, but after firing up his U.S. Army Dragster for DSR at the starting line, NHRA determined the track needed clean up and his crew was forced to shut off his machine. Following a five-minute delay, Schumacher made his run, but lost a cylinder just past the 330-foot marker resulting in a run of 3.848 seconds at 313.44 mph.
U.S. Army NHRA Racing NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Final Qualifying Report
The U.S. Army Racing trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett are 10th, 11th and 
second on the provisional ladder, respectively, after the opening two rounds of qualifying Friday for this weekend’s NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Georgia.
Schumacher and his U.S. Army Dragster team for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), seeking their first triumph of 2018 this weekend, were not able to make clean passes in either session Friday. The eight-time Top Fuel world champion posted a lap of 4.219 seconds at 212.26 mph Friday afternoon, slowing near the end of the pass. “The Sarge” followed that with a run of 4.994 seconds at 141.08 mph after losing traction just pass the midway point of the run. He’ll look to improve his position on the ladder Saturday and chase his illusive first win at the track in 21 attempts.
“This U.S. Army car is an amazing machine,” Schumacher said. “We should be winning races. We are just having situations with parts breaking and we’re working hard to keep that from happening. That Q2 pass was on a good run and got a little fast. I could feel it get fast and saved it, but once it does it, it heats the tires up and wants to use a little more clutch application and smokes the tires. We’ll go back and look at it. There was something we said a few days ago in Charlotte. Someone asked if we were going to try and run a 3.80? And (assistant crew chief) Phil (Shuler) said if we try to run a 3.80, we should just go home. These cars and teams in Top Fuel are extremely tough so we are all trying to run in the 3.70s. The track is just not taking it. We should all be putting up those numbers. We have to work on our problem and we have to get these tracks where we can run fast again.”
