DSR Pre Race Reports for Carolina Nationals
Mello Yello event titles, trophies remain motivation for Beckman, Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge team
BROWNSBURG, IN- Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero/Valvoline Funny Car team at Don Schumacher Racing came about as close as they could to earning a chance to win their second NHRA Funny Car world championship in three years.
But Jack and his team won’t be getting that opportunity when they arrive this weekend near Charlotte to start the last six NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events of the 2014 season.
“The demoralizing part is we recognize that no matter how good we do the rest of the year the best we can finish is 11th,” said Jack, whose previous low position at the end of a season was No. 5 since turning pro with DSR in 2007.
While 10 other Funny Car drivers, including three from DSR, will be competing for points in the separate Countdown to the Championship standings Jack will be racing concurrently to maintain his hold on the 11th spot in the final standings and much more importantly to win NHRA event titles and add some NHRA Wally trophies to his collection that currently includes 15.
A couple more trophies will sure make everyone on the Infinite Hero Foundation team feel a lot better.
“In some aspects you can say we’re more motivated than ever,” he said.
“The interesting thing about drag racing is that it’s not like football or baseball where they whittle down the number of teams. We still get to go to every race and if we’re good enough we can compete in every round and we can beat the cars that are still contending for a world championship.
“There’s no lack of motivation because they’re still giving a trophy away at the end of the day for the next six races.”
Jack and his team have had two weeks to digest the disappointment of the U.S. Nationals near Indianapolis over Labor Day Weekend when they were upset in the first round after qualifying second with a stellar time of 4.004 seconds, which is the best they ran all year.
When eliminations began on Labor Day at Indy, Jack was only 10 points out of the top-10. He had to advance one round farther than 10th-ranked Tim Wilkerson to move around him for the coveted last Countdown spot.
But Jack’s Dodge Charger R/T lost traction almost immediately after leaving the starting line and that kept him out of the Countdown for the first time since the playoff system was instituted in 2007. Compounding that disappointment came a few minutes later when Wilkerson was upset in the opening round by Jack’s DSR teammate Tommy Johnson Jr.
Matco Tools team cures U.S. Nationals malady in time to start Countdown to the Championship ranked No. 2
– One of the last developments Antron Brown and the Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster team wanted two weeks ago at the biggest drag race of the season was its worst qualifying effort through 18 events and a first-round loss within 10 miles of where Antron and nearly all of his crew live.
Matco crew chiefs Brian Corradi, Mark Oswald, assistant Brad Mason and the crew didn’t waste time making certain the problem was quickly corrected by heading back to Lucas Oil Raceway near Indianapolis for testing a couple days later.
“We found out what was plaguing us,” said Antron, the 2012 NHRA Top Fuel world champion. “The problem hasn’t been our ability to make power but we weren’t able to keep all of our holes (engine cylinders) lit. Brian, Mark, Brad and all of our Matco crew worked really hard. We made one run Wednesday night and three on Thursday after the U.S. Nationals just to make sure we found the culprit.
“We’re going to Charlotte with a really good feeling now, and we’re definitely going to be back to where we need to be. We’re ready to get after it.”
The surprisingly subpar performance for the team that has won a Top Fuel-best five event titles this season and ranks second in championship points see it as positive in that it didn’t happen this weekend near Charlotte in the first of six events of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship playoff.
A year ago at zMAX Dragway next to Charlotte Motor Speedway, Antron and his team did not qualify for the Countdown opener. It was only the second time in the past six years that they did not race on championship eliminations day.
“We didn’t have a mechanical problem at Charlotte a year ago,” he said. “We went out too aggressive for the track and then when we backed off the track got aggressive. It just bit us.
That dug a deep hole that prevented the Matco Tools team from defending its world championship despite winning two of last year’s final four Mello Yello event titles that helped rally the team to finish second in points for the third time since Antron turned pro in 1998.
“We’re going zMAX trying to put down a good solid qualifying lap the first time out and then keep improving.
“We’re sitting in a good spot for our plan of attack.”
Massey hopes to repeat past zMAX Dragway success with a new look featuring Red Fuel Powered by Schumacher
– When Spencer Massey and his team roll into zMAX Dragway near Charlotte for this weekend’s NHRA Carolinas Nationals they will have a new look and a fresh perspective for the six-race Countdown to the Championship playoff.
Spencer will debut a new, sleek look featuring the red and white colors of Red Fuel Powered by Schumacher on his 10,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragster. Red Fuel is a new product line by Schumacher Electric that features innovative fuel packs for cell phones and personal devices, a compact back-up power jump starter and an LED cordless work light magnetic torch.
Spencer and the team led by crew chiefs Phil Shuler and Todd Okuhara are looking to create momentum at the facility near Charlotte where they have a history of success with two event titles and two runner-up finishes.
“We couldn’t start the Countdown off at a better track for this team,” Spencer said. “We need to build some confidence, get some momentum going and that means we need to qualify well and go rounds on Sunday.”
The Red Fuel team has been in a summer slump but Spencer expects to run strong in the final six races of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.
“We kind of struggled here lately but I really feel confident going into this Countdown,” he said. “We have worked some stuff out and we are going to Charlotte where we always run strong.
“We have to put our struggles behind us and focus on these last six races. We just have to take it one round at a time, make good decisions and I just need to focus on doing my job as a driver.
“I want to put this Red Fuel dragster in the winner’s circle for Don (Schumacher). It’s his new line of products and I know that he wants to see us succeed with it on track. We are excited to help with the launch of this new line for him.”
Rocky Boots Funny Car team ready to kick off NHRA Countdown with strong performance near Charlotte to open six-race playoff
– The quest for a second NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series championship for Matt Hagan and the Rocky Boots team couldn’t start at a better venue than zMAX Dragway near Charlotte.
Not only is it close to Matt’s home in Christiansburg, Va., zMAX Dragway and Matt have quite the history. In addition to his two event titles and two runner-up finishes there, Matt recorded the first sub-four second pass in Funny Car history at zMAX in 2011. There now have been 33 three-second Funny Cars passes recorded.
“That track is special to me, there’s no doubt about that,” Matt said. “It’s close to home and I usually have a whole pile of family and friends out there supporting me. But it’s a track that we’ve done well at and that’s huge for our confidence.”
With the NHRA Funny Car points standings reset for the six-race Countdown to the Championship, Matt and the team are ranked seventh and only 80 points (four elimination round wins) out of first.
The Rocky Boots/Mopar team has seen their performance get stronger in recent NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events, including two weeks ago near Indianapolis where they set a track record and earned the No. 1 qualifier position with the venue’s first sub-four second pass.
Their past six NHRA starts have all been in the top half of the 16-car fields and the team led by crew chief Dickie Venables has picked up at least one round win at each of those events.
“We had a weekend off and that was great for our team but I’m so ready to get back in this race car,” Matt said. “I really felt like we had the car to beat in Indy and I’m just ready to race again. It’s kind of like we have a fresh start with how the points are reset. We just need to start out strong in Charlotte and take it one race at a time.
“Each time we pull the car out, no matter where we are, it just feels stronger. We had a great test before Indy and learned a lot and really had a strong car all weekend. We have some good data from last fall at Charlotte and I know Dickie and the team will be ready to roll come Friday.”
Qualifying for this weekend’s NHRA Nationals at zMAX Dragway kicks off at 1:30 and 3 p.m. on Friday, with the same schedule slated for Saturday before the noon eliminations on Sunday.
Capps, NAPA start Countdown ranked third at Charlotte
– Ron Capps has won nearly everything in his NHRA drag racing career, but two “bucket list” items remained when the 2014 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series opened nine months ago.
He was intent on taking them off his list but now both remain unchecked.
Despite falling short of the final round in the U.S. Nationals, Ron and the NAPA AUTO PARTS team arrive at Charlotte with momentum after winning their second event title of the season when they defeated John Force at Indy in the rain-delayed championship round of the event that began at Brainerd, Minn., two weeks before arriving at Indy.
“That’s huge to get momentum and the confidence for the team,” Ron said. “Winning the Brainerd trophy Saturday night (Aug. 30), to be in the Traxxas Shootout when we lost a close to race to Courtney’s great 4.00 and then we got to the semifinals Monday with a shot of getting to the final round. It takes a few days for the whole Indy experience to wear off. It’s almost like a whole season in one long weekend.
“We had the best car for the weekend based on consistency. You can’t ask for anything better than a great race car to drive when you start the Countdown.”
Ron and the NAPA team can’t do anything about not getting past the semifinals of the prestigious NHRA U.S. Nationals two weeks ago marking the 20th year in his career that he has not advanced to the championship round in the biggest race of the year. It’s the only event where the winner of 43 NHRA event titles has not accomplished that.
But Ron and Don Schumacher Racing’s NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T team led by crew chief Rahn Tobler and assistant Eric Lane can do something about that last item on his list.
The six-race NHRA Countdown to the Championship opens with this weekend’s Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway near the Charlotte Motor Speedway and the ultimate prize awaits: Ron’s first NHRA world championship.
“A couple years ago (2012) we won the first Countdown race and battled for the championship right down to the wire,” he said of losing the championship by a record two points to teammate Jack Beckman.
“That was the season when we got (crew chief) Rahn Tobler. He’s a big picture crew chief who makes sure everything like clutch discs and all of our parts are in order to start the Countdown. He’s already thought out what parts and pieces he wants for different conditions all the way through to Pomona.”
After points were reset after Indy for the Countdown combatants, Ron’s deficit was cut from 232 points to 40.
“We’ve seen other teams that barely got into the Countdown win the championship and other teams that dominated the regular season struggle in the Countdown. History has shown it doesn’t matter where you start.
“You can have all the confidence in what your team has done all year, what it did at the last race or on the last run. In drag racing it doesn’t mean you’re going to get a win the next time out.
“We’ve seen it all.”
