Schumacher, Capps lead DSR at Four-Wide Nationals, both look to move up one spot to take points leads Sunday

CONCORD, NC – Don Schumacher Racing teammates Tony Schumacher and Ron Capps arrived at zMAX Dragway this weekend wanting to not only win unique NHRA Four-Wide Nationals trophies but also to move up from second in their respective categories and leave the Charlotte area with points leads in the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.

And both got off to good starts on Saturday by leading DSR to No. 3 qualifying spots: Schumacher and the U.S. Army team in Top Fuel and Capps and the NAPA AUTO PARTS 2015 Dodge Charger R/T in Funny Car.

Schumacher was the most consistent car of the day when his team led by crew chief Mike Green produced a time of 3.729 seconds at 323.58 mph in the first session and improved to 3.726 at the event’s top speed of 328.94 before a standing-room-only crowd estimated at over 30,000 on a sunny day when temperatures reached an afternoon high in the mid-50s.

In Funny Car, the NAPA team overpowered the cold track and recorded a time of 4.74 (231.32) on its first try then vastly improved to 4.051 (308.78).

Friday’s opening two sessions were washed out by rain on Friday that compounded challenges that teams faced Saturday and will continue to confront on Sunday during championship eliminations, which are scheduled to start at 1 p.m. (EDT).

First-round qualifying was bittersweet for Tommy Johnson Jr. and the Make-A-Wish team when moments after completing his run in 4.132 second at a slowing 251.20 mph that qualified him sixth after the first session, a broken part led to the engine detonating and the ensuing fire did major damage to the 2015 Dodge Charger R/T carbon-fiber body and chassis. The team led by crew chief John Collins returned for the last session with a new DSR car but was unable to hook up with the track and quickly lost traction to settle for the No. 11 seed.

The NHRA Four-Wide Nationals is the only event of its kind on the 24-race Mello Yello schedule. Each race features heats of four drivers on the world’s only four-lane dragstrip that is comprised of a pair of lanes with a concrete center dividing wall separating the other two.

On Sunday, the first two crossing the finish line in each heat move on to the next round making it the only event where you don’t have to be first in a round to advance. There also will only be three rounds of eliminations instead of four held other Mello Yello events.

The biggest variable on Sunday for crew chiefs will be the loss of having qualifying runs in two of the lanes before eliminations. That is compounded by this being the first time the zMAX track has hosted a major event after the four lanes were completely reconstructed this year.

NOTE: In Top Alcohol Dragster, DSR senior vice president and part-time driver, qualified 16th and lost in the first round.