U.S. Army Trio Heads to Houston on Cusp of Season’s First Event Title

BAYTOWN, TX – It’s been 12 seasons since the U.S. Army arrived at Royal Purple Raceway outside Houston for the annual NHRA Spring Nationals winless on the year – and it’s only been the case just three times in the Army’s previous 17 full seasons of NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series competition.

But, Houston, we certainly do not have a problem as the U.S. Army trio of Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher, Antron Brown and Leah Pritchett hit town for this weekend’s 31st annual Spring Nationals each seemingly on the cusp of his or her maiden victory of 2018.

Momentum abounds in the U.S. Army camp as Schumacher and Brown hold down the second and third positions in the Top Fuel standings having exhibited flashes of brilliance in their opening four events this season, and Pritchett holds the distinction of being the most recent Spring Nationals event titlist.

Schumacher, the record eight-time world champion and driver of the U.S. Army Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), has reached the final round of eliminations twice in four events this year in search of his record 84th career win, and he’s already recorded his record 85th and 86th career No. 1 qualifying efforts this season. Only a pair of uncharacteristic mechanical malfunctions have kept him from hoisting Wally trophies at the season-opening event at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, California and the most recent tour stop racing four-wide for the first time at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway two weekends ago.

A two-time Spring Nationals event titlist with wins in 2005 and 2009, “The Sarge” last showed up for the Houston round without the U.S. Army already having a win that season was in 2006, when he was the lone U.S. Army Top Fuel driver. But, every year since, either he or Brown or both had scored event titles prior to arriving in Houston. Schumacher also was winless prior to Houston events in 2001 and 2003, although he is a five-time runner-up at the track, most recently in 2015, and twice was No. 1 qualifier, most recently in 2011.

Brown and his Matco Tools/U.S. Army Dragster for DSR also is a two-time Houston event titlist with wins in 2008 and 2014. He also was Top Fuel runner-up in 2010 and 2012 and No. 1 qualifier in 2009. Brown’s 2008 Houston event title was the first of his career in Top Fuel after 16 in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class. His next event title will be his 50th in Top Fuel, and his next No. 1 qualifying effort will be his 50th overall, including 11 in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class.

Pritchett and her Mopar/U.S. Army Dragster team for DSR feel poised to regain the magic with which they blazed through the start of the 2017 season. She arrived at Houston a year ago with a pair of event titles already in her pocket – back-to-back efforts at Pomona and Phoenix – and she methodically made it three for the season by outracing Scott Palmer, Doug Kalitta, Brown and Steve Torrence in Sunday eliminations at Royal Purple Raceway. A highly productive Monday test at Las Vegas two weeks ago has Pritchett and her team highly confident as they look to successfully defend their Houston title this weekend.

Qualifying for the 31st annual NHRA Spring Nationals begins Friday with FS1 providing a pair of delayed, one-hour qualifying highlight shows at 9:30 p.m. EDT Friday and 1 p.m. Sunday. FS1’s three-hour live broadcast of Sunday’s elimination rounds is set for 2 p.m.

TONY “THE SARGE” SCHUMACHER, driver of the U.S. Army Top Fuel Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing

You’ve reached the final at two of the first four events thus far. Do you feel like you’re inching closer to your first win of the season?

“I thought it’d been behind me by now, to be honest. We missed it by eight-thousandths of a second at Las Vegas. Actually, the car shut off after a failure, all the burst panels were out and it was coasting across the finish line and I lost by eight-thousandths of a second. But the Army car is doing great. Mike (Neff, crew chief) and Phil (Shuler, assistant crew chief) are working well together and the guys on the team are jelling. The car’s doing well, just little issues. Getting beat at Pomona, we were pulling away from (Doug) Kalitta and the rear end broke. That doesn’t happen, it was just a fluke deal, but we’re getting these little flukes out of the way and we’ll be good in the end. We usually are really good at the end. The last couple of years, we suffered, but we made some pretty drastic changes and it’s going to be good.”

What grade would you give thus far to your new crew chief Mike Neff?

“I’d give him an A. I think he’s loving it. We’re just having fun again. He worked with (Gary) Scelzi before with our team, he didn’t work with me, but he was always in the camp and I enjoyed being around him. What I like is he goes out and talks with each one of the guys after a run and, every run, he asks them what was right and what was wrong and what can we do. He asks questions and the input the guys give not only helps him, but it makes the guys feel like they’re important members of the team. Those guys have been with me for a long, long time and they’ve always done a great job, but I think Zippy’s (Mike Neff) just bringing them to another level that we haven’t seen. With him having driven before, he’s fantastic and I love to chat with him. He actually is the first person in a long, long time who has found things that I’ve done that I can improve on. He’ll say, ‘Look, I can see this, that’s something I did,’ and that’s awesome. Two ears, one mouth, listen to people who have done it and evaluate what they’re telling you and, if it makes sense, use it. He’s changed a few things – and I’ve been doing this for a long, long time – and for him to give me some really good advice, I’m always pleased by it.”

How did your test go the day after race day at Las Vegas?

“Depending on the race, when you get beat, you want to get right to the next race and, when you win, you’re hoping for a couple of weeks off if you can get it. I’m actually having fun right now. I’m going to the racetrack with the attitude that we can win on any given Sunday. It’s rewarding when you do well and get through the difficult times and stay the course. At Las Vegas, we stayed after to test on Monday even though the car did well during the weekend – we ran as well as anyone else out there but we stayed and tested anyway. We tested other cars. We tested parts and pieces. We had a list of things we were going through and we learned every time we went down the racetrack.”

Your thoughts about racing at Houston this weekend?

“Both Houston and Dallas are my newest home races. A lot of my friends and family will be there and I’m looking forward to it. I live in Austin, but lots of people from there, from the gym I work out at and the people I associate with, will come down to see us race. Houston, it’s been good to me over the years. We’ve won some races there at important times. It’s now only a three-and-a-half-hour drive from home. When I think of Houston, I think of winning with (then-new crew chief) Mike Green for the first time in 2009. We had a lot of pressure. So many people were out there saying we wouldn’t be able to win without Alan Johnson. It took us four races, and getting that first win was huge. Maybe we can recreate that magic with our new crew chief this year. We seem to be running on all cylinders and have come close to winning twice, already, this season. That (2009 win) was the last time we won there, so hopefully we can add another one there this weekend.”

ANTRON BROWN, driver of the Matco Tools/U.S. Army Top Fuel Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing

Your thoughts about racing at Houston this weekend?

“Houston has always been a great place to race. It’s an old-school, big-time racetrack. It’s a great time of the year to race there. It can be hot, but usually we get really good weather. The Houston area is a hotbed for our sport. The fans love it. You get people from Houston, San Antonio, northern Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. It’s just got a vibe and so much history to it.”

You won for the first time in Top Fuel at Houston in 2008. What are your memories of that?

“For me, I remember 2008 like it was yesterday. It was David Powers’ (Brown’s first Top Fuel team owner) hometown track and we were driving our original Matco Tools/Toyota Dragster and we got our first Top Fuel win there in just our fourth race. It was a phenomenal deal. We had a great team. That was the start of the legacy for our Matco/U.S. Army/Toyota team. It’s a combination that’s been together a long time. Now we’ve won three championships and competed for a championship every year in the Top Fuel ranks. We have an incredible team at DSR. Houston always sticks out to me because it’s where I was able to live out my dream and win in a Top Fuel car. I never imagined all of this back in 2008. It’s far more than I ever dreamed. I’ve been very fortunate, very blessed.”

Houston is also special for you because of your family ties. Talk about that.

“My in-laws are all from down there in Louisiana and Houston is their hometown national event. It’s pretty awesome getting to see all my in-laws. Drag racing is in their blood. They’re a drag-racing family and that’s how I met my wife. They’re a lot of fun. They love to party and they always bring all that great Cajun food with them.”

LEAH PRITCHETT, driver of the Mopar/U.S. Army Top Fuel Dragster for Don Schumacher Racing

Your thoughts as your head to Houston this weekend, where you are the defending event winner?

“Returning to Houston, sea level, at this particular moment in the season is huge for us. There have been a number of changes set-up-wise to the car since we last visited, and won, and most importantly, since our last race in Vegas. We are not just coming off of the four-wide Vegas race, we are entering Houston with some substantial changes to our Mopar/U.S. Army racecar. We tested in Vegas and are eager to place what we learned on the Baytown track. We have developed immensely as a team since claiming a victory at Houston and believe we are more hungry and determined than ever to get our mojo back and believe we’re on the right path. I am looking forward to Houston. Although only four races in, we have not been stagnant. Crew chiefs are focusing on making power earlier. My focus is on not overthinking the tree, which I have been, and just racing.”

What did you learn during that Monday test day at Las Vegas?

“What has impressed me the most this season was the test session we had at Las Vegas the day after our last event there. We were able to really implement a lot of things we’ve been working on for the last two months that we haven’t been able to put on the track, to that point. The last time I felt that amount of confidence in myself and the team and the car about really having a hot rod that is going to be more than just thousandths of a second faster but one that will really make a difference against the other cars once we get to the heat of the season. That’s a testament to what the teams and the crew chiefs at DSR do. The goal is to keep on climbing and I finally feel like we have some good momentum.”