DSR Ready for Victory at Two races this Weekend, Charlotte and Ennis
Disappointing Countdown opener won’t slow Brown’s charge in Texas with Matco Tools team when Mello Yello playoff resumes this weekend
Ennis, TX – Antron Brown and the Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster team at Don Schumacher Racing, unfortunately, will only have one NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event title to worry about when the series arrives at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas this week.
Antron entered the six-race Countdown to the Championship ranked second a week ago when the playoff opened near Charlotte but lost in the opening round of the NHRA Carolina Nationals to DSR teammate Spencer Massey.
The only round completed was the opener before NHRA officials postponed the event due to rain and ordered it be completed during qualifying on Saturday at the Motorplex.
“We’d like to get to Dallas and have two chances to win a Wally (trophy), but we’re just going to focus on what we need to do to get our Matco dragster back to running the way we expect it to,” said Antron, who won five of this year’s first 18 event titles to lead Top Fuel but has lost in the first round of the past two events and fallen to at least fourth in the playoff standings.
As disappointing as Antron’s result was at Charlotte, it still is a better start to the Countdown than a year ago when he arrived in Texas on the heels of not qualifying for the playoff opener.
“We definitely can say we’re off to a better start in the Countdown than we were last year when we got to the Motorplex,” Antron said. “We’re going to Dallas with five races left in the Countdown and we’ll be ready.”
The Matco Tools team led by crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald made five passes during the Carolina Nationals and improved on each run. In its first-round loss to Massey, Antron recorded his best time of the weekend with a run of 3.808 seconds at 318.62 mph to Massey’s stellar 3.786 (322.88).
“We’ll look back at the whole weekend and see how we progressed,” Antron said. “We got quicker with every run. We didn’t qualify where we wanted and we sure didn’t expect to lose in first round. Our Matco team always strives to be better and we got better.
“We’re motivated and hungry right now – we’re starving right now. Trust me, it will be game-on when we get to Dallas.”
Capps, NAPA get second chance at Texas for double-up weekend
– Ron Capps hopes to improve on the performance of his NAPA AUTO PARTS Funny Car team a little more than a few weeks ago when the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series confronted drivers with an unplanned doubleheader.
The final round of eliminations for the Mello Yello event that started on Aug. 17 at Brainerd, Minn., was completed two weeks later during the U.S. Nationals over Labor Day Weekend near Indianapolis. That result paid off for Ron, who defeated John Force in the rain-delayed championship round to win his second title of the season, but fell a little short when he didn’t advance past the semifinals of the U.S. Nationals.
The NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte was postponed by NHRA officials due to rain Sunday afternoon and it rescheduled the final three rounds of championship eliminations to this Saturday during qualifying at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas.
The winner of 43 NHRA Wally trophies would like to improve on that performance by winning Charlotte and Texas trophies this weekend.
“That would be a great way to start the Countdown by winning the first two trophies and doing it on the same weekend might be something no else ever does,” he said. “But it’s like Don (Schumacher) says: You have to qualify first and then take it one round at a time.”
The first two qualifying sessions at the Motorplex will be like any other Friday, but that changes Saturday when the third and fourth qualifying sessions also will be the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, for rain-delayed eliminations rounds from Charlotte. The Charlotte finalists will compete in a third run to determine the winners of the opening event of the NHRA Countdown to the Championship but will not count toward Texas qualifying.
The NAPA AUTO PARTS team will be joined by Don Schumacher Racing teammate Matt Hagan’s Dodge Charger R/T in the Charlotte quarterfinals. Capps eliminated teammate Tommy Johnson Jr. (Make-A-Wish) in the first round Sunday and faces Bob Tasca III in the quarterfinals.
Hagan to celebrate National Truck Driver Appreciation week with Freightliner Trucks Funny Car in this weekend’s NHRA FallNationals
– Matt Hagan has many different roles in his life. He’s a husband, father, farmer, businessman and a racer. This weekend during the NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas, Matt will use his role as a racer to thank truck drivers during the National Truck Driver Appreciation week.
The American Trucking Association notes that National Truck Driver Appreciation Week, September 14-20, is when America takes the time to honor all professional truck drivers for their hard work and commitment in tackling one of our economy’s most demanding and important jobs.
Matt will pilot the Freightliner Trucks Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car this weekend with the names of more than 100 truck drivers adorning the matte-black body.
“Freightliner Trucks saw its existing partnership with Don Schumacher Racing and Matt Hagan as a way to thank truck drivers during National Truck Driver Appreciation Week,” said Stacey Premo, motorsports marketing manager for Freightliner Trucks. “By adding the names of more than 100 truck drivers to Matt’s Funny Car this week, we are recognizing these hard-working professionals in a whole new way.”
Matt, who owns a cattle ranch in Virginia, has a special appreciation for the more than three million men and women who drive trucks.
“Personally, having Freightliner on board especially during Trucker Appreciation week is huge. I’m a farmer and rely on truck drivers to transport the cattle I buy and sell, the feed, the supplies, everything.
“I truly appreciate the men and women who make their lives out on the road and I hope to put this Freightliner Funny Car in the winner’s circle for all of them. There isn’t a better banner to fly than Freightliner when it comes to trucking.
“I rely on Freightliner to get my guys and this race car to each NHRA event. Freightliner Trucks is North America’s leading manufacturer of medium-duty, heavy-duty and specialized trucks.”
The NHRA FallNationals has an added importance this weekend after Sunday’s NHRA Carolina Nationals were postponed until Saturday at the Ennis facility. Matt and the team led by Dickie Venables enjoyed an opening round win over Tony Pedregon before the event was postponed by NHRA officials due to rain.
The second round of the event will be completed on Saturday during the third qualifying session which begins at noon (CT). Hagan and team will sport the Rocky Boots colors on Saturday for the completion of the fall Charlotte race before returning to the Freightliner body on Sunday’s Dallas eliminations.
“It was really unfortunate that we couldn’t get the Charlotte event in on Sunday but now we move on to Dallas and we’ll race on Saturday for the Charlotte win and go after the Dallas win on Sunday.
“The Dallas event is essentially a double-header now and we’re fighting for that championship. Now we not only need to do well on Sunday but we need to get those win lights on Saturday too.”
The Freightliner Trucks Funny Car has qualified in the top-five positions in six of the last seven NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events.
“We have had a good car in qualifying lately and that gives us confidence heading into this weekend. It’s supposed to be hot but I know Dickie and the boys will have a game plan and we’ll be ready to go after two Wally’s in one weekend.”
Hometown race gets double the excitement for Texas-based Massey this weekend during NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex
– Going home is always exciting for Red Fuel Powered by Schumacher driver Spencer Massey. But the excitement is now doubled for the Fort Worth native.
Spencer, a two-time runner-up at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas, will have two opportunities to win at his home track where he first witnessed the excitement of NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing.
After NHRA officials postponed the Charlotte event Sunday after one round of nitro competition, Spencer and the Red Fuel team will be competing on Saturday for the Charlotte event win before racing for a Texas trophy on Sunday.
“I’ve never won a Top Fuel race at home in Dallas, but now I have two chances,” Spencer said. “It’s unfortunate we couldn’t get the event in at Charlotte. Now we have double the pressure at the Motorplex.
“It’s the Countdown. Every run counts. It’s tough. We’ve been struggling but our performance in Charlotte gives us confidence. We qualified well, made a good lap in the first round and now we have to try to continue that this weekend. We’ll be ready.”
A year ago at the Texas facility, Spencer was ousted in the semifinals but has two runner-up finishes (2011-12).
“We’ve had some success at Dallas, but we’ve never won it. It’s a big race for everyone because it’s a Countdown trace. But it’s extra special for me. In my mind, it’s the biggest race of the year.”
“Hopefully on Sunday we’ll have a chance to celebrate with everyone.”
Beckman ready extend solid performances for Infinite Hero/Valvoline team from qualifying to eliminations beginning at Texas Motorplex
– Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero Foundation/Valvoline team have a pretty good handle on qualifying for NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events but are still trying to master championship eliminations.
And no time would be better than this weekend in the NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas where his father and avid fan, Bob Beckman, resides.
Jack knows he won’t be celebrating in the winner’s circle until his team led by Don Schumacher Racing director of racing Todd Okuhara with assistance from Chris Cunningham and Terry Snyder are able to take his Dodge Charger R/T a couple steps further on the day of championship eliminations.
Last weekend the team qualified sixth but lost in the opening round on Sunday when their Funny Car lost traction off the starting line. At the previous event, Jack qualified second for the U.S. Nationals near Indianapolis with a time of 4.004 seconds – his best run of the year – but also lost traction early in the first round and lost its chance to compete in the ongoing NHRA Countdown to the Championship.
“It’s easy to get frustrated but it won’t help us perform any better,” said Jack, the 2012 Funny Car world champion. “These cars are really tough to tune and there were significant changes to the (weather and track) conditions between qualifying and race day. We qualified solidly but we didn’t put it to the track efficiently on race day.”
Jack is hoping to enjoy his first title at Texas where he was runner-up in 2009.
“There’s a lot of reasons to be optimistic,” he said. “We’re not racing for points, but I’m disappointed that we haven’t gotten a trophy yet. Our only objective the rest of the year is to get four win lights on a race day.”
