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Matt Hagan, Driver of the Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car to Battle in Seattle

Kent, WA – The Flav-R-Pac NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways in Kent, Washington, marks the culmination of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series’ three-week long Western Swing and the series’ return to the Seattle area after a two-year absence. The two previous events of the Western Swing were the Dodge Power Brokers NHRA Mile-High Nationals July 15-17 at Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado, and the DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals last weekend at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway. The Flav-R-Pac NHRA Northwest Nationals is the 13th event on the NHRA’s 22-race calendar.

Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) will be represented in Funny Car by three-time champion Matt Hagan. Hagan enter Seattle representing Dodge Power Brokers.

The Dodge Power Brokers program serves as the exclusive source for Direct Connection, Dodge’s factory-backed performance parts program, which is equipped with staff trained to deliver a performance-focused customer service experience. Dodge//SRT and Mopar have supported Hagan since his rookie season in 2009.

Hagan talks about Seattle and the western swing.

Seattle marks the culmination of the NHRA’s Western Swing. How do you maintain focus and mental strength during this stretch of races?

“The Western Swing is a lot of travel, but it’s what we signed up for. We have to stay focused and stay hydrated. I plan on getting some workouts in this week, which will get me focused for raceday. I know we’re struggling a little bit right now, but in all fairness, this car will be running how we want it to right around the corner. There is not a doubt in my mind that we’ll be right back where we need to be within a race or two. We have four races left before we start this all over in the Countdown, so I’m excited about that. We’re always in the hunt and digging deep. We’re always pushing hard. I believe in my team and in my crew and I think Seattle will be our turning point for getting back on top.”

What similarities are there between racing at Sonoma and Seattle?

“Both tracks are fairly close to sea level, which means we’ll be able to carry information over from this weekend as far as horsepower, tune-up and the way the motor responds. That’ll be nice, but there’s always more to push on and more to be learned. I know we were a little behind the eight-ball in Sonoma, but I feel like we’re going to come out swinging in Seattle.”

Explain your crew’s process of preparing for the final race of the Western Swing.

“The team stays out West throughout all three events, so we’ve been really fortunate that we haven’t had any big explosions the last two races. We don’t have parts that have gotten too beat up. Sometimes you leave Denver with the body blown apart, so it makes it a really hard push for the next two races. My crew chiefs and crew guys have done a great job keeping the parts and pieces together, so I think that takes a lot of stress off the crew and allows them to get caught up pretty quickly and get some rest moving into the last race of the Western Swing.”

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