2015 NHRA CARQUEST NATIONALS - PHOENIX NOTEBOOK
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SUNDAY NOTEBOOK
SCHUMACHER CREDITS TEAM FOR HARDER-THAN-IT-LOOKED TOP FUEL VICTORY - U.S. Army Dragster crew chief Mike Green just got himself a 12-pound, 18-inch-tall, brass-plated paperweight for his desk in Brownsburg, Ind.
It's a gift from driver Tony Schumacher.
It's the Wally statue he – they – earned Sunday for winning the Top Fuel final at the Carquest Auto Parts NHRA Nationals at Chandler, Ariz., with a low-elapsed-time-of-the-meet 3.720 seconds (at 326.56 mph).
And it's for making his decisive 78th overall triumph from his track-record-setting No. 1 qualifying performance look much easier than it really was.
Schumacher defeated Doug Kalitta on the 1,000-foot Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park course near Phoenix after eliminating Jenna Haddock and two of his own teammates, Spencer Massey and Antron Brown. Kalitta launched first in the final but finished with a 3.758, 325.14 in the Mac Tools Dragster.
That was Schumacher's 10th straight final-round victory over Kalitta, and it gave him a 44-30 career record against the veteran Top Fuel racer and former national USAC sprint-car champion.
"We've had so many good races with Doug over the years. It's hard to beat anyone three times in a row, let alone 10," Schumacher said.
Schumacher and Funny Car winner Matt Hagan gave the Brownsburg-headquartered Don Schumacher Racing organization its 43rd double-up nitro triumph 2003 as they shared the winners circle with Pro Stock's Rodger Brogdon. The two nitro racers denied Kalitta Motorsports its chance to boast of the double achievement, beating Kalitta and his Funny Car mate Del Worsham.
"Today, it was a matter of the team behind me. They were incredible, and I just didn’t want to have to get out a car that was that good and explain why I didn’t get the job done. Fortunately, I didn't have to," Schumacher said.
"I have to give the trophy, the credit, every bit of it to my U.S. Army team this weekend," he said following his fifth victory at this venue. "I was off. I just was off. My lights were slower than they’ve been. And everything I tried to do, I couldn’t fix it. Mike [Green] and Neal [assistant crew chief Strausbaugh] and all the U.S. Army guys dug deep and said, 'We'll get the win. Let's just fight through this.' They told me to just do my best. They gave me so much confidence by giving me an incredibly fast car that we can go out and win this thing.
"It was a great run through the ladder. We started with Jenna, who has one of my old cars that she beat me with last year in Denver. It was fun," he said. "After that, we face my DSR teammates in consecutive rounds and then Kalitta, a monster match-up in the final. What can I say? Outstanding day for this team, and that’s why this trophy is going on Mike Green’s desk. I'm not going to go home and put it on my shelf and be fulfilled. It's going to go on Mike's. He should be fulfilled. I didn't do my job as well as I've done it in the past. And he deserves that trophy."
He said, "We're having the luck. At Pomona we didn’t have it."
Schumacher almost was late to the starting line for his semifinal meeting with Brown.
But he had plenty of motivation to overcome that mechanical gremlin and his own admitted shortcomings. He carried all weekend a Purple Heart that had been awarded to a member of Hagan crew chief Dickie Venables' family. And just before that semifinal appearance, a soldier who had served in Afghanistan presented Schumacher with a chain that he said had "gotten me home safe twice."
Schumacher declined to keep it but said he would be happy to take it with him in his dragster for the rest of his runs Sunday. So when the issue developed that caused the Army team to hustle at the last second, Schumacher said he prayed, "Please, God, I've got this thing in my pocket. We've got to go!" Then everything fell into place.
Done with radiation treatment Friday, team owner Don Schumacher had to rejoice in some extra-sweet news Sunday with both this Top Fuel accomplishment and Hagan's in Funny Car.
"I think it’s great," Tony Schumacher said. "It's a terrible thing to have to go through. For someone who’s so on top of the world and so great at what he does. To see him suffer, it’s terrible. And I feel for every family that's ever gone through it. Praying for him and it's great to double up. He's got three of the first four trophies [in the nitro ranks this season]. He can't be mad about that part of life."
No one at DSR is mad at all. They just are eager to get to the March 12-15 Amalie Oil Gatornationals at Gainesville, Fla. - Susan Wade
HAGAN STEAMROLLS WAY TO VICTORY - Funny Car dominator Matt Hagan is undefeated in 2105 – and unbeaten in 21 of his past 23 elimination rounds, dating back to last September's Countdown race at St. Louis.
The Rocky Boots / Mopar Dodge Charger crushed Jeff Diehl, fellow two-time series champion Cruz Pedregon, last year's event winner Alexis DeJoria, and finally Del Worsham Sunday in record style to win the Carquest Auto Parts NHRA Nationals at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix.
Less than 24 hours after recording his personal-best elapsed time at 3.978 seconds, Hagan trumped that by three-thousandths of a second and rewrote Courtney Force's track speed record at 324.83 mph for the coup de grace. Worsham, with a certainly respectable 4.010, 318.17 that was his quickest and fastest of race day, was no match in the Kalitta Motorsports' DHL Toyota Camry on the Chandler, Ariz., 1,000-foot course.
Hagan and Top Fuel teammate Tony Schumacher combined to give Don Schumacher Racing its 43rd double-nitro showing since 2003 and its first this year. They joined Pro Stock's Rodger Brogdon in the winners circle.
It is the third time in DSR history that nitro teams won both No. 1 qualifying slots and Wally trophies at the same event. The other DSR double-doubles were in 2012 with Antron Brown in Top Fuel and Jack Beckman in Funny Car, and in 2009 with Brown and Funny Car's Ron Capps. What distinguishes this weekend's feat is that the drivers earned their respective No. 1 positions with their career-quickest performances.
With team owner Don Schumacher slogging through cancer treatments and absent from the racing scene for now, points leader Hagan said he hopes his Funny Car victory and Tony Schumacher's in Top Fuel will lift the boss' spirits.
"We hope so. All we can do is do our jobs and give the glory and praise to God and thank Don for putting the parts and pieces under us to go out there and win," Hagan said.
"My dad has it, prostate cancer. My grandmother's got terminal lung cancer. And my grandfather's got a brain tumor. You think, man, we can put people on the moon, but we can't find a cure for cancer. It's a tough situation. But anything we can do to keep Don strong," he said. "He's such a driving [force] out here. He has such a huge [impact] on the sport. He owns seven teams and helps probably 12 or 13 teams with parts and pieces. He's a huge part of this sport. We need him out here. If Don decides, 'Hey, I'm done. I just want to go fishing and focus on my health,' our sport's going to be hurting. We want him to get better, not only for himself but for the sport."
Hagan, clearly excited about – in his words – "just a lot of win lights coming on here lately," is doing his part to entertain the boss.
"Right now it’s been really good. It comes down to my core group of guys," he said, adding that his main task is making sure "I don’t mess it up out there." Said Hagan, who won at Phoenix for the first time and for the 16th time overall, "I'd love to tell you I'm the best driver in the world, but I just have a great race car under me. It's because we have such a great team. The biggest thing is continue to do what we do. We don’t change anything.
He said crew chief Dickie Venables "continues to prove why he's one of the baddest crew chiefs out there. And Dickie took a huge lesson from last year. [After trying something new] it took us half a season to get back to baseline. He decided we're going to stay with what we know, do what we know how to do. And it’s been great."
Hagan said the team will stay at Phoenix and test some of Venables' hunches Monday, "but we're not going to go to it until Dickie is 100-percent comfortable with it."
Worsham said, "The DHL Toyota Camry had a great day today, just not quite enough in the finals."
Hagan expressed his appreciation for Worsham after the victory.
"Del's just awesome." Hagan said. "Those guys have really gotten it figured out. They're running that six-disc [clutch]. That's the direction we're trying to go. We've still got the five-disc in. But those guys are very, very competitive. And Del's a great driver. He's one of the most natural drivers I've ever seen out here. You don’t want to get in a pedalfest with him, because he's probably going to beat you. Lots of respect for him as a driver and for his team."
And Hagan said he knows this year won’t go perfectly smoothly for him.
"It's good to turn the win lights on. But there's still going to be some valleys. We're still going to have some low times," he said. "You can't be on top forever."
But as he conceded, "Right now it’s been really good."
Make that "excellent." - Susan Wade
BROGDON CASHES IN ON HIS LUCKY FEELING - Rodger Brogdon, after driving his self-branded Pro Stock Camaro entry to the No. 2 starting spot at the Carquest Auto Parts NHRA Nationals near Phoenix, had said Saturday, "I want to show everyone what we're working with."
He showed everybody at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park, all right.
The Tomball, Texas, racer said beforehand, "We have the car to get it done, that's for sure. We just have to make the right calls on setup, and I have to turn the pedal loose a few times to make the other guys miserable."
He did that Sunday to Deric Kramer, Shane Gray, hot-starting class rookie Drew Skillman, and finally the current series champion and No. 1 qualifier, Erica Enders-Stevens.
Brogdon raced to a winning 6.560-second elapsed time at 211.49 mph on the Chandler, Ariz., quarter-mile.
Enders-Stevens countered with a 6.640, 205.51 in the Elite Motorsports Camaro in this showdown of the top two qualifiers.
It marked the eight time at Phoenix that the two best qualifiers have met in the money round but only the first time since 1998.
For Brogdon, this was his third victory and second in four races, dating back to the October 2014 event at Reading, Pa.
"We started off this year with Elite [and Elite power]. That makes it a lot easier. This is the earliest [in any season] I've ever won any race, even in sportsman days," Brogdon said.
He said he told his wife, Cheryl, "You ought to come to Phoenix." He said he never had brought the whole family to this event because son Logan couldn’t get home in time to make it to school on Monday. "I said, 'I think I'm going to win this race. I've always done good there. I ran fast here in testing. We came here and tested a few days before Pomona, and I only made it to the stripe twice – and there were 12 good cars here, running for three days, and I was the fastest guy who went down the track. I said this is something special coming to this place.' See how it’s worked out?
"It's great to win early. Somebody told me I was the points leader. I've never been a points leader," Brogdon said.
What's more, he's the 30th different person to lead the Pro Stock standings since the class was established.
"That's cool," Brogdon said upon learning that statistic. "We have a great team. We're making a lot of horsepower. Between Rick and Rickie Jones, Mark Ingersoll, and Pete Smallwood, those guys are working good together. Guys are going to have to go to work to catch us, I'm telling you, because we've still got a lot of things we haven't hit on yet. It's going to be good."
Brogdon has won a race in each season since 2013 (at Bristol, then at Reading and now Phoenix).
"Anybody who follows this sport knows how hard it is to win a race," he said, sharing that a lack of funding for his racing operation weighed heavily on his mind.
"It's fantastic. It's got to set in a little bit, you know? I'll have trouble sleeping tonight, I can promise you. I went into this year – we only decided to do this three weeks before Pomona – hoping that I'd do good at the first few races. It doesn’t get much better than that – I go to the semis the first race and I win this one," the roofing contractor from the Houston area said. "If I told you how many shingles I had to put on to race NHRA Pro Stock, you'd have a hard time believing it. It's about 800,000 squares just to cover a $1.5 million budget – 400 truckloads, 400 18-wheeler loads. That’s what it takes to do this. So I really want to do this, don’t I?!"
His plain-white Camaro body looks stark on the outside, but he knows what counts is on the inside. His new engine partnership with Elite Motorsports is paying dividends. He, Skillman, and Enders-Stevens produced the top three qualifying E.T.s, and two of them advanced to the final round.
"Heading into Saturday's sessions we thought we were having an engine issue and swapped motors," Brogdon said. "Thankfully the issue wasn't as big of a problem as we originally thought and we got it fixed in time. The good thing about having Elite Performance power this year is that no matter what engine we put in, they're all just as fast as each other. It takes a lot of the worry out of it."
He's not worried about his car being capable of outrunning the opponent right now – just like he felt in his Competition Eliminator days.
"I used to run Comp, and every time I left my office, I was one of the guys to beat," Brogdon said. "We had a fast car. And I've kind of got that feeling now. I'm ready to go. I wish we were racing next week."
He'll have to wait until March 13, when the Pro Stock class runs next, at the Amalie Oil Gatornationals at Gainesville, Fla. - Susan Wade
RANDOM SUNDAY RACEDAY NOTES
LANGDON’S STREAK ENDS, SEASON TOO? – Doug Kalitta delivered a knuckle sandwich to Shawn Langdon in the semis, scoring the victory with a 4.303.With uncertainty in the sponsorship department the jury is still out on whether this will be the last race without major sponsorship.
“It was another great weekend for the Knuckle Sandwich/AJPE team; we didn’t quite have the performance we had in Pomona, but we had a very competitive race car in qualifying and in eliminations,” said Langdon. “I really thought we were on our way to making another final round, but we just missed something. I’m not sure what happened, but we smoked the tires right off the starting line. I pedaled it and got it to recover, but we ran out of room to run down Doug Kalitta.
“We still leave Phoenix with the points lead, and we have a great race car. We just hope we can find some sponsorship so we can go to Gainesville in two weeks and try to maintain that points lead.”
As of today, the team has not yet entered the season’s third race, the Amalie Motor Oil Gatornationals set for March 13-15 in Gainesville, Fla. The team hopes to race the entire 2015 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season and compete for the 2015 Top Fuel championship, but subsequent races in which the team competes will be determined by sponsor acquisition.
CLASS OF 2011 MATCH – When Matt Hagan and Del Worsham won their semifinal rounds, they ensured a final round match between the NHRA’s 2011 champions. Worsham was a driver for the Al-Anabi team and scored the crown for the Top Fuel division, while Hagan won the Funny Cars.
YOU AGAIN? – Rookie Top Fuel race Jenna Haddock faced Tony Schumacher yet again in the first round.
“It will seem strange the first time I face up against someone else,” Haddock said with a laugh. “It’s becoming routine having Tony in the next lane. I knew he was going to run a 70 and I knew I wasn’t. But I knew with how consistent my car was that if he messed up I would be right there and so I wasn’t even nervous. For every pair ahead of us, my 4.04 would have won, but not against him. Tony is a good driver and his team is amazing. Gosh, they won the race, so how can I feel bad. You can tell why he’s the champion.
“I had an amazing weekend and I’m thankful for our team. They’re a great group of guys; all volunteers and I really appreciate how hard they work. I also want to thank my husband, Terry. He had his Funny Car here and he only made one pass with it. He wanted to do more but he put it aside to concentrate on me.”
TRIAL AND ERROR - Trying to test one engine-and-clutch setup while racing with another one proved to be more of a challenge than Steve
Torrence could overcome.
After qualifying a solid seventh at 3.760 seconds using an experimental setup, Torrence reverted to a more familiar combination on Sunday
because crew chief Richard Hogan felt that it would give the team its best shot at negotiating the 1,000 foot course in first round
conditions.
Unfortunately, that strategy failed to deliver.
“Richard just didn’t feel comfortable running the new stuff (on race day),” said Torrence. “The car ran really good Saturday night, but
that was in cool weather. He felt like (the new setup) would be too aggressive Sunday morning.
“We’re trying to make some changes on the fly,” Torrence said, “and that doesn’t always work out. We’ll just haul everything back to the
shop and get ready for Gainesville.
GETTING AHEAD - Losing in the first round enabled Tim Wilkerson to get a step ahead on changes ahead for his team. Wilkerson plans to debut a new body with an altered paint scheme in Florida, while also aiming to bring out a new fully-independent pitside hospitality center. For the last six years, the structure of the team's LRS hospitality center has been mounted on the left side of another team's transporter.
"We have a lot to do in the next couple of weeks, and we're going to have to actually practice setting up the new hospitality deal,"
Wilkerson said. "We're going to build it off our own support trailer, which is much smaller than a transporter, so the structure of it will
be mounted onto the side of that trailer to give it a full-size footprint. The first time we do it is going to be a steep learning
curve, so we'll take our time and figure it out. This is all the stuff the public doesn't see, but we do a lot of this sort of thing, before
and after every race."
BRIDGING THE GAP - Larry Morgan, who is racing a Camaro after years of campaigning a Ford, lost in the first round. However, in defeat, Morgan saw positives in his first round match against Greg Anderson.
"I could tell right away," Morgan said. "When it started to tremble in low gear, I knew I was in trouble. We didn't have enough clutch to move the car. When it does that, you can't seem to do anything right and the clutch gets hot. It is what it is though, and we'll look forward to the next race in Gainesville (Fla.)."
Morgan put down a solid 6.599-second pass at 211.20 mph, compared to Anderson's 6.606 at 210.64 mph. Unfortunately, Anderson's .033 reaction time beat Morgan's .042, giving Anderson the holeshot win and ending Morgan's day early by .002-second.
"Last year it was car lengths between us and the other guy; now it's just by a little bit," Morgan said. "If I can control that clutch more, I'll be alright. We have enough power this year to go rounds, so there's no excuse. I just hate that we have everything going our way and didn't get the result we should.
GOT YOUR NUMBER –Antron Brown continued his mastery of JR Todd and remaining undefeated in head to head competition. Brown beat Todd, 3.742 to 3.776, in a race where he ran 294 to the eighth-mile.
MCGAHA’S NEW CAR – Chris McGaha, the Pro Stock driver who gained heaps of publicity when he purchased past NHRA champion Mike Edwards' entire operation.
McGaha lost in the semis to Erica Enders-Stevens in a race where his car drifted dangerously close to the centerline and made a major move. He wisely lifted. McGaha believes he broke an air line.
“I probably drove it too far trying to win,” admitted McGaha.
OH CHUTE – Alexis DeJoria’s bid for a repeat Funny Car victory were dashed when her engine dropped cylinders causing the parachutes to deploy early in her second round loss to Matt Hagan.
“The semis did not go the way we planned, obviously. Right at the step we dropped two cylinders and the ignition system turned off, which set off the safety system causing my parachutes to deploy. I had to get out of it early so it wouldn’t blow up. Not to mention, the two cylinders out at the step affected my reaction time. All of that combined meant it just wasn’t going to happen for us here again this year, unfortunately. But at the end of the day, we picked up some good bonus points this weekend [Q2], went to the semis, and moved up from tenth to seventh in points. Now it’s off to Gainesville, which I’m really looking forward to.”
CLOSE, BUT NO CIGAR – Dave Connolly still seeks a win in Top Fuel in his inaugural nitro season. Connolly ran a 3.782, coming up short against Antron Brown’s 3.760. Adding insult to injury, Connolly’s elapsed time was quicker than six of the eight first round winners.
BECKMAN’S FRUSTRATIONS – Jack Beckman, who missed the cut in Pomona two weeks ago, made the field at Phoenix, only to lose to teammate Tommy Johnson Jr. Beckman jumped out to a considerably lead but Johnson reeled him in at the finish line, in effect picking him off.
“It’s like that movie Sniper, we pick ‘em off one at a time,” Johnson quipped.
BROTHER VS. BROTHER – After ending up on the losing end of their series last year, Shane Gray started out the 2015 season in the win column over younger brother Jonathan. Jonathan won four of their six meetings.
WINLESS IN BOWTIE – John Force smoked the tires in a double pedal-fest against teammate Robert Hight. He is winless in the first two races, an unenviable stat he hasn’t seen since 2009. During that season, Force got his first round win of the year the next event in Gainesville, Fla.
I AM THE BOSS – Hight, in the first two rounds, took out both teammates John and then Courtney Force. His magic didn’t extend beyond the pit area as Del Worsham ended his day.
“There was a little bobble early in the run,” said Hight of his semifinal run. “There was just a little bit of shake and I almost lifted. I moved over just a little and I think that movement was just enough to keep us from getting around Del’s run. We will be ready for Gainesville in two weeks. We are going to test tomorrow and I am ready to get back on the track,” said Hight.
Hight did move up to No. 3 in the Mello Yello Funny Car point standings after two races. He will be the defending event champion at the Gatornationals.
SATURDAY NOTEBOOK – FIELDS ARE SET FOR A FAST-PACED SUNDAY
TOP FUEL
YOU AGAIN? – Tony Schumacher had a feeling in his plane flight over to Phoenix, he’d be seeing rookie Top Fuel driver Jenna Haddock again.
What were her first words?
“I hope I don’t have to race you,” recalled Schumacher.
Sunday her fears will come true. Haddock, who landed No. 16 in the show, races Schumacher in the first round.
Schumacher can relate to Haddock, 20 years ago he was a rookie upstart driver with more aspirations than a chance to win.
Let the record reflect Haddock’s first career round win came against a heavily favored Schumacher at the Mopar Mile High Nationals last July.
“I loved it when I was first starting and had to go race the big guys like Gary Scelzi,” said Schumacher. “It was awesome. That's why you come out here to go up against the best. Tomorrow, we'll just go out there and be a machine, try to do our job and not smoke the tires like we did in Denver last year. We're looking to get down the track and gain more data with every pass. We are going to test Monday no matter what happens, because we've got a lot of races right after Gainesville. We'll go out and try to earn the U.S. Army guys a win tomorrow, starting with Jenna Haddock.”
Haddock, who is making a bid for 2015 Rookie of the Year, has yet to run a three second pass and recorded a career best 4.015.
By Saturday, she had changed her tune.
“Let’s have him,” Haddock said.
CRAMPTON COMES ALIVE – Richie Crampton ran a 3.739, 324.51 during the final session and jumped to third spot. He races Troy Buff in the first round.
“We were hoping to get up a little higher,” admitted Crampton.
AS CLOSE AS IT GETS - J.R. Todd is running the Red Line Oil scheme this weekend and after Friday’s qualifying, a thin red line was all that separated him from teammate Doug Kalitta. Both recorded 3.735 elapsed times, but Kalitta’s faster 323.12 speed made the difference between No. 2 and No. 3 positions following Q-3.
“We struggled today. We tried a few things, but I think we got rid of all our Pomona gremlins on Friday. We know what we cannot do for tomorrow, and now we are going to prepare and get ready for the matchup against Terry McMillen.”
GETTING OFF TO A GOOD START – Brittany Force made unofficial history here back in January when her 3.69 elapsed time marked the quickest any driver had been to the finish line at this point in the 1,000-foot era.
Friday night, Force running in much different conditions, was the eighth quickest with a 3.792.
“It definitely helps knowing that we were here a few weeks ago and we had some success,” Force said. “It makes me feel more comfortable when I am sitting on the starting line looking down track. Knowing that we put a 3.69 on the scoreboard, that makes this whole team have the attitude that we want to do that again.
“We get pumped up for that and we went rounds last year. It does work in and help me as a driver but at the same time I always try and go into every track with a clean slate. I just want to focus on getting my car down the track.”
MILLI-CAN – Clay Millican landed in the No. 15 spot on the strength of a Q-4 3.924.
SOLID SHOWINGS – Leah Pritchett isn’t leading the point standings but the Gumout-sponsored driver is having a good season thus far.
After five solid runs in the NHRA Mello Yello Series season opener at Pomona, Pritchett landed a solid spot in the field with a 3.808-second run at 317.49 miles per hour.
Pritchett and her team, led by team manager Doug Kuch and tuner Rob Flynn, followed up his qualifying effort with a 3.810 at 317.72 miles per hour.
“I’m very proud of our Dote Racing team and car setup,” said Pritchett. “We have had a very consistent, healthy car with no major issues this year. Knock on wood right now. But that can change anytime in this sport. We just need to find a little more power.”
Pritchett and her husband Gary Pritchett could have an interesting breakfast conversation. Gary is a crewman for Steve Torrence, her first round opponent.
PRO STOCK ALUMNI – At one time both Antron Brown and Dave Connolly raced Pro Stock. Brown on two wheels, and Connolly on four. The two meet in first round tomorrow.
SNAKE RACING ALUMNI - Spencer Massey started Saturday's qualifying with a respectable 3.846-second lap at 321 mph in the heat before posting a 3.791 at only 298 mph in the fourth and final qualifying session to place them ninth for Sunday's eliminations near Phoenix.
"The last run was a 3.79 and it would've gone quicker but we had a little engine problem. The head gasket blew and then the blower belt came off of it so there wasn't much I could do after that. It's a nitro car, it happens."
Massey will race former world champion Larry Dixon in the opening round of Sunday's NHRA eliminations at Wild Horse. He was Dixon’s Prudhomme replacement.
FUNNY CAR
HOT HAGAN RUNS HISTORIC '3' TO BECOME NO. 1 - Early Friday Funny Car leader Matt Hagan made it clear he was at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix to dominate. After Courtney Force cooled his heels on the opening day of qualifying for the Carquest Auto Parts NHRA Nationals with a three-second pass to take charge, Hagan used the final session Saturday to make some NHRA history.
Hagan blazed back with a track-record 3.978-second pass at 320.28 mph – his career-best elapsed time and the fifth-quickest in the NHRA Funny Car books – to reclaim that No. 1 starting position. It gave Don Schumacher Racing the qualifying leaders in both nitro classes on the 1,000-foot course at Chandler, Ariz. Hagan followed the lead of Top Fuel teammate Tony Schumacher for another milestone moment for the two reigning champions.
So Hagan won the season-opening Pomona race, earned his first top-qualifying position at Phoenix with a monster blast, and is taking direct aim at his first event title here. He’ll race Jeff Diehl, the No. 16 qualifier, in the first round of eliminations Sunday. Diehl wrestled with his own car and secured the No. 15 slot in the third overall session, but he bypassed his last chance to improve and rode out the drama to end up on the bump as Shane Westerfield leapfrogged him and knocked out Terry Haddock.
Hagan gave most of the credit for this 18th career No. 1 position to crew chief Dickie Venables, assistant crew chief Mike Knudsen, and car chief Jason Davis, saying, "It speaks volumes for why we are a championship team. Our guys have just been phenomenal These guys are putting one hell of a race car underneath me, and I'm very blessed to be able to drive the wheels off of it. That thing's just diggin'."
As he was zipping down the track, Hagan said, he told himself, "Man, this thing's runnin' good. Just keep it in the groove and stay together." And he would know how a three-second pass feels. He recorded the class' first sub-four-second run (3.995 in 2011 at Concord, N.C.). With this run, Hagan owns three of the top 10 Funny Car E.T.s of all-time, all three-second efforts.
"Dickie and I talked up in the lounge before the run. We were qualified well, and at the worst we thought we would maybe lose a spot or two if we smoked the tires," Hagan said. "But Dickie just decided we were going after it. It got late enough where it cooled down, and it held the power out there."
Venables said, "We're obviously happy with that. We've got a really good race car here at Phoenix. We don't usually try to run those kind of numbers."
Hagan said Friday, "We're working with the same combo that we had in Pomona, so obviously the car is running good." Even after he slipped to No. 4 Friday night, he said of his performance, "We made two great laps out there in the new Dodge Charger with an .02 and an .03 [4.02 and 4.03 seconds in elapsed time]. You can't ask for much more. We've got a good race car, and we're going cleanly down the racetrack and that is half the battle.
"We just have a great race car and I feel really good about tomorrow," he said Saturday. "It's always tough to win from the No. 1 spot. Obviously there's going to be some struggles along the way this year, but this team just continues to grow and continues to impress me and continues to awe me.
"We are just really coming together and working well together. Everybody gets along great and we have some great chemistry. I'm very, very excited about what the future holds for us this year. I think we are going to win a lot of races and have a lot of fun doing it." - Susan Wade
THE OTHER DEFENDING CHAMPION - Last year's winner here, Alexis DeJoria, qualified fourth in her Patron Cafe XO Incendio Toyota Camry and will pair up with Tony Pedregon in the first round.
"Well, we didn’t do that great today but we’re still in the top half of the field in the No. 4 spot," said DeJoria. "We have two good runs under our belt from Friday, which gives us lane choice over Tony Pedregon in the first round tomorrow. It’s exciting; we go into race day as the Phoenix defending Funny Car champs, and hopefully we can take that title again this year."
THREE-FEAT – Del Worsham proved Friday’s 4.00 run was just a precursor of what was to come on Saturday. Worsham nailed down a 3.997 at 319.98 during the final session.
“Wow, what a great way to finish qualifying,” said Worsham. “My guys told me the DHL Toyota Camry was set up to run a three-second run, and it went out there and did just that,” Worsham said. “We have a tough match-up tomorrow morning against (John) Hale and the Jim Dunn team, but we are going to go out there and do the best we can.”
HOBBY AND OCCUPATION MIX - Robert Hight doesn’t hide his love for Los Angeles Dodgers baseball. On Thursday, he and boss John Force visited the training facility in nearby Tempe, Arizona.
Friday it was their turn to play host to major leaguers Justin Turner and Joc Pederson. The stick and ball athletes truly received their Baptism of Nitro.
Turner took the experience even further by climbing into the cockpit of Hight’s Funny Car.
“I can’t believe how tight Robert gets strapped into that Funny Car,” said Turner. “I see why you have to be strapped in like that when you see then go over 300 mph. It was great to show Joc this sport and he was amazed by the power.”
On Sunday Hight will partake in an intramural game with Force and the boss has lane choice.
DESERT STORM - Sixteen-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force, during an eight-year stretch, won in Phoenix an impressive seven times. Only Ron Capps and Jack Beckman are close with three wins apiece.
“I love this place," Force said. “I love racing out here. We used to match race here and we tested here for years. This is a great market for NHRA drag racing, and I know we love seeing the fans every year,” said Force.
Last season Force set the track elapsed time record posting the first three second run in track history. His 3.990 seconds placed him atop qualifying headed into Sunday eliminations. Force also left the desert with the track mph record 317.79 mph after reaching the semis.
Force spent much of qualifying under the radar with a 4.025 best.
CRUZ SOLID IN FIELD – Cruz Pedregon was the final qualifier in the top half of the field with a 4.032. He races Tim Wilkerson in the first round.
BACK TOGETHER AGAIN - Chad Head and his Toyota Funny Car left such a good impression on WSM Auctioneers, last year's Phoenix sponsor, they were inspired for another run this season.
“We’re very excited to partner with WSM Auctioneers for a second year at Phoenix and they’re a family business and so are we and I think it’s a great fit for us,” said Head, Inc. Funny Car driver, Chad Head. “We welcome WSM back to our organization and glad it was a big success for them last year and our goal is to continue to make it grow each year.”
WSM Auctioneers specializes in the sales of construction equipment, utility trucks, light trucks, equipment trailers and recreational vehicles. They also sell building material, structural steel, shop equipment and power and hand tools.
“It was such a great success for our customers and clients last year that WSM wanted to again sponsor the Head Racing team,” said owner/president of WSM Auctioneers, John Cadzow. “I’ve always loved the sport and I drive my own Top Fuel sand dragster. We’re hoping to gain exposure for our company and since we have our regular auction on every second Saturday of every month here in Phoenix, it would be a great way to get our company’s message across to those people in the construction and utility business.
“There are a lot of fans at every race who are connected one way or another with the construction business either with their own company or work for one. The partnership with Head Inc. Toyota Racing team is to let people know Western Sales Management is out there and have services we can offer them in the heavy equipment market. “
Head races on Sunday from the No. 11 spot with a 4.043 best where he will face Ron Capps.
OH WHAT A FEELING - Four of the five Toyota Camry Funny Car drivers have reached the winner’s circle in Phoenix. Del Worsham leads the way with two victories (2002 and 2004), while Cruz Pedregon (1993), Tony Pedregon (2007) and Alexis DeJoria (2014) each have won once.
T-PED RUNS STRONG – Two weeks ago, Tony Pedregon ran a career best 4.03 in Pomona. He wasn’t quite as quick this weekend in Phoenix but a 4.06 put him in the No. 13 spot. He races defending event champion Alexis DeJoria in the first round.
Todd Westerfield exits his flaming Funny Car. He eventually earned a spot in the field but not before incurring a $1000 oil down fine. (Photo by Will Lester)ROLLER COASTER RIDE – Lower budgeted racer Shane Westerfield took a huge rollercoaster ride during Saturday’s qualifying. During today’s Q-3 session, Westerfield lit up his Funny Car in the shutdown area and was fined $1,000 and docked five points for oiling the race track.
Westerfield, driving the Worsham Family Funny Car, only made one pass on Friday [4.12] and despite the fire, returned for a final session where he earned a berth in the show with a 4.558.
“It’s definitely been up and down said Westerfield, this whole fuel operations been up and down as far as every run I’ve made. The first run was really well, it ran 4.12 and I shut it off a little early, next run we had a big fire for no reason at all, we don’t know what happened.”
Westerfield said it was a team effort which made the mission impossible come to pass.
“The crew all jumped in and regrouped explained Westerfield, put a motor in it we weren’t really sure about it because we didn’t have time to go through it, warmed it up had no leaks. We went out there on a planned shutoff it was on a 4.09/4.10 elapsed time run. We should be good for tomorrow now, I’m excited.”
Westerfield races Courtney Force in the first round, one of three drivers in the threes over the course of the weekend.
ON THE LOSING END – In order for Westerfield to get in the field, he bumped out No. 16 Terry Haddock. Haddock was busy back in the pits trying to help wife Jenna earn a spot in the Top Fuel show and couldn’t make the call.
“This whole weekend was planned that her car gets the attention,” explained Haddock. “When you’re short on finances and people, it’s not worth taking a chance and doing something stupid. Had the Funny Car ran like we thought it would on the first run, we would’ve been in the field. At the end of the day we are just trying to make more laps and teach Jenna how to drive.”
HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO – Winning races has been a challenge for Jack Beckman since capturing the 2012 championship. One thing Beckman has learned to have a chance to win, one must first qualify. Beckman missed the cut in Pomona and after struggling through the first day made his way into the field with a 4.047 elapsed time.
What a difference two weeks can make. Two weeks ago, Beckman and the team headed here for testing after the Pomona debacle and in the private test yielded half-track shutoff runs that ranged from 4.05 to 4.12 seconds.
Friday was a mess.
"We fixed what was ailing us with four test runs at the track after Pomona and then Friday we had two bad runs," said Beckman. "You almost have to chuckle to yourself because it is so frustrating. We can't work any harder. We had a bad run and then we broke a wheelie bar on the second attempt.”
Saturday was a different story.
"We thought our car was allergic to crowds but maybe it's just allergic to Fridays,” Beckman said. “Getting in the first run Saturday, it wasn't that it was do or die, it was just critical to get this car to the finish line. We know we've got the ability to run quick everywhere, we just had a lot of gremlins jump up and bite us. On the last qualifying run we had the luxury to push it a little bit and now we have to go into race mode. Unfortunately we're not going to have lane choice and we are racing a team car that has been exceptionally quick out here. I gotta tell you, if I'm a bettor I'm betting on this team. Terry Chandler will have a car in the second round, guaranteed."
In the interest of fair reporting, Chandler sponsors both Beckman and his first round opponent Tommy Johnson Jr.
SURF’S UP DUDE – Surfer Jeff Diehl starts tomorrow from the bump spot thanks to his 4.86 elapsed time, which edged out Terry Haddock. Diehl races Matt Hagan in the first round.
TWO IN A ROW – John Hale, driving Jim Dunn’s Funny Car, now has a two-race qualifying streak working in his favor. Hale recorded a 4.194 to land in the No. 14 spot.
PRO STOCK
ELITE BUT NOT EASY SAILING - Erica Enders-Stevens ' Chevy Camaro says "Elite" on both sides in bold white letters.
And who could argue with that? The label fits.
The reigning series NHRA Pro Stock champion claimed her second straight No. 1 qualifying position this season in as many chances as the fields were setSaturdayfor theCarquest Auto Parts Nationalsat Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Parknear Phoenix.
The fascinating part is that to hear Enders-Stevens describe her weekend after she earned her career 14thtop spot, it's clear none of her 2015 accomplishments have come easy at all.
"We were dropping cylinders like a fuel car. The cylinders were going completely dead. The sparkplugs were drowning," the Elite Motorsports driver saidSaturdayevening. "But we were able to work at it and figure it out."
What's throwing her savvy Rick- and Rickie Jones-led team is the new fuel, which she said is heavier and slower-burning.
"We spend a lot of money with carburetors and intake manifold development. All those things that we had spent lots of money on were out the window until we can figure out how to manage this new fuel," Enders-Stevens said, stressing that she isn't critical of either the new fuel or new tire compound the class has to deal with this season.
"It's a challenge but that's kind of what makes it fun," she said. "If you went out there and did great every time, it wouldn't be as pleasing when you did well. I'm just proud of my guys for not giving up. It's frustrating."
She has to be pleased that herFridayperformance held up as quickest among the 17 entrants.
Enders-Stevens and No. 2 Rodger Brogdon, a longtime friend from her Houston home area and an engine-client partner through Elite, clocked identical 6.545-second elapsed times on the Chandler, Ariz., quarter-mile. But she will lead the field because her 211.20-mph speed topped his 210.90. That's how the opening day of time trials endedFriday, and that's how it remained through two sessionsSaturday.
Enders-Stevens, Brogdon, and No. 3 Drew Skillman made it a sweep of the best spots in the order forSunday'seliminations for Elite Motorsports' engine shop. All three qualified within three-thousandths of a second of each other.
She will meet No. 16 Joey Grose, a Camaro driver from Lodi, Calif., in the first round of eliminationsSunday. Grose was No. 15 qualifier at Pomona, and he came within eight-thousandths of a second of having to face her in the first round of the year two weeks ago.
Brogdon collected the most qualifying bonus points this weekend with eight, and Enders-Stevens followed with five. Skillman, who qualified fourth in his Pro Stock debut at Pomona, will start third in just his second race and has four bonus points to his credit. Shane Gray picked up three points, Larry Morgan two, and Chris McGaha one.
Salt Lake City businessman Jeff Isbell was the lone Pro Stock entrant to miss the field. - Susan Wade
MORGAN'S CAMARO IS KILLER - Larry Morgan continued to turn heads by posting the top speed of the weekend during Q3. His 211.89-mph run was enough to snag that honor, a feat that would have seemed almost impossible last year.
"I felt like I was behind all last year because I didn't have the support that I needed from the manufacturer or the engine program but now I do," Morgan said. "I've got everything going for me. It's really a dream come true.
"Things keep getting better and better for me every time I strap in," Morgan said. "I'm getting used to the car, fixing it the way I like, and liking the way I feel in it. I'm just excited to be here and in the whole program I have behind me now. I'm going to win one of these races pretty soon; I can feel it. Hopefully, that starts tomorrow."
ALUND IN THE FIELD - Swedish Pro Stock racer Jimmy Alund, a nine-time European FIA Pro Stock champion, will start Sunday from the No. 13 spot with a best time of 6.626-seconds at 209.14 mph.
"We have some new things we are trying with the car this weekend, and we knew it was going to take us a few runs to get used to," said Alund. "That being said, we went out there and were very conservative for the first round of qualifying. We went A to B, and we were really happy with that because we had something to work with."
Alund made a name for himself in the United States as part of the KB Racing group following a successful five-race stint early last season behind the wheel of a Summit Racing Camaro. He has qualified for each race he has attempted over the past two seasons and has reset his career best numbers and brought home a trophy earned at the Four-Wide Nationals in 2014.
THE TOP HEMI – Allen Johnson raced to the victory here last year in his last final round with the Dodge Avenger. He was the quickest of the Dodge Darts with a 6.551 recorded on Friday. Johnson ran a pair of 6.57s on Saturday.
“We’re sneaking up on it little by little as the crew is working conservatively, and that’s something we decided to do as a team from the start of the year,” said Johnson. “We are getting a handle on the car and on the new fuel.”
ANDERSON STEPS UP – Greg Anderson moved around Jonathan Gray in the final session to climb into the head of the second-half of the ladder. His 6.578 loses lane choice against Larry Morgan.
Anderson’s leap-frog ensured the Gray Brothers; Jonathan and Shane will meet in the first round.
SCHOOL IS STILL IN SESSION – V. Gaines has continued his relationship with the fourth-grade students of Taylorsville Elementary in Salt Lake City, Utah. Thanks to the efforts of teacher Mary-Jane Forbyn, Gaines’ toothy Pro Stock Dart is still a focus of her science and math class.
“We have some really good scores on the most recent math tests,” said Gaines. “The goal is to challenge the students and so far this has been a win-win situation. This is the time of the year they begin to excelerate.
“This is an incredible experience and we want to do what it takes to show we support them. It’s great to see these kids excel.”
VINCENT HOLDS HIS OWN – Vincent Nobile headed into Saturday’s final qualifying solidly into the field on his Friday 6.586 elapsed time. He dropped a spot in the field on Saturday when he failed to improve. Nobile races teammate and Pomona winner Jason Line in the first round.
ANCHOR MAN – Joey Grose claimed the final spot in the sixteen-car field with a 6.689 elapsed time.
HOMETOWNER FARES WELL – Former Sport Compact and Comp Eliminator standout Matt Hartford made the field with a 6.632 elapsed time on Friday. He tied his best run during Saturday’s final session. Hartford ran Warren Johnson horsepower in Pomona when parts shortages at Elite Performance left him on the outside for the season-opener. He returned to Elite for his hometown race.
WISE DRIVING - Jeff Isbell needed a 6.688 second pass in his final session to make the field, but shook the tires and drifted towards the centerline before lifting and failing to make the cut with a 6.718 bump.
SAVING HIS BEST FOR LAST – Deric Kramer saved his best run for the Q-4 session as he pushed his Dodge Dart to a 6.643 to improve by a hundredth. He will meet Rodger Brogdon in Sunday’s first round.
FRIDAY NOTEBOOK – NHRA RACERS STORM THE DESERT IN FAST FRIDAY
TOP FUEL
LOSING IS TOUGH - Tony Schumacher wasn't the quickest driver in preseason testing and lost in the first round at the season-opener. Friday night those performances were history.
Schumacher went to the top of Top Fuel during Friday’s Q-2 session with a personal and track record 3.722 at 325.61.
"We weren’t happy about losing to Antron in the first round at Pomona, but we didn’t get beat because we weren’t prepared," Schumacher said. "It took his best run of the weekend to take us out and that happens a lot. The U.S. Army team has a way of bringing out the best in the competition. It’s something we take pride in and it drives us to continue to prepare harder."
Schumacher has a fear of getting beat and isn't ashamed to admit it.
“That’s probably the reason we all work so hard to be the best we possibly can and we do that with preparation," Schumacher said. "I heard this a long time ago: ‘Over-prepare and go with the flow.’
“I enjoy winning and I enjoy what it takes to win. It’s more difficult now than it has ever been. The teams are better. The drivers are better. The cars are all faster. The unity is better. The Top Fuel class from top to bottom is great. You know every Sunday morning when you wake up that you’re going to be in for a battle and that makes it more fun.
"We all have those dreams of it being the bottom of the ninth with the bases loaded and you are standing there with a three-two count. Nobody dreams about blowout victories. And it seems like we get those bottom-of-the-ninth moments at every race. The NHRA is the best sanctioning body and best place for fans to come out and see incredible racing. There is no longer just one team that can win. It’s a monster battle at every race.”
CO-PILOTS GALORE - Antron Brown has 1,450 co-pilots racing with him at the CARQUEST NHRA Nationals.
Brown, the 2012 Top Fuel world champion, unveiled the 2015 design for his Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster Sunday at the annual Matco Tools Expo's National Business Conference at Gaylord Palms in Orlando where many attending were surprised to see their names on the Don Schumacher Racing dragster.
The featured names belong to active Matco Tools distributors and Brown is proud to take them racing this weekend.
"I just love this concept," Brown said. "The 'I Drive For' campaign was such a hit last October for Breast Cancer Awareness that Matco decided to continue the theme and recognize its distributors the same way. This is for the hard working men and women who hit the streets and sell Matco Tools all across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. I couldn't be more proud to have them riding along with me this year. We're going to dig deep to try and bring home another championship for our Matco family."
The concept of incorporating the names of Matco Tool's distributors follows last year's annual "Tools for the Cause" campaign when Matco raised funds and awareness for Susan G. Komen®, an organization that funds breast cancer research and lifesaving community programs. The names of more than 1,300 people whose lives have been affected by breast cancer were featured on Brown's "I Drive For" special edition pink Matco Tools dragster last October.
FOND MEMORIES - Phoenix is where it all started for three-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon.
“I have a lot of good memories racing in Phoenix and I love racing there,” Dixon said. “It can be a challenging track but having good memories at a track where you’ve done well gives you a good mindset going in.”
Dixon has returned to full-time Top Fuel racing as a driver for the two-car team owned by Bob Vandergriff Jr. He reached the semifinal round two weeks ago in Pomona.
“Overall, with it being a brand new team I thought we did well,” Dixon said. “We qualified well, went some rounds and are sitting in a good spot in the points. It’s not a right to be driving one of these Top Fuel cars; it’s a privilege. I’ve been given that opportunity and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Dixon was sixth quickest with a 3.784, 321.42 best Friday.
UNDETERMINED FUTURE - Alan Johnson Racing opened the 2015 NHRA season Feb. 6 while exploring sponsorship options for 2015 and beyond. Driver Shawn Langdon responded with a clean-sweep victory from the No. 1 qualifying position.
Additionally, Langdon made the quickest pass in NHRA history during the Winternationals on Feb. 7. During the third and final qualifying session Saturday afternoon, Langdon’s 3.700-second pass was the best of the nitro dragsters.
The team is solid to compete this weekend, but what happens in the subsequent races remains undetermined.
"We have to keep the momentum going and keep plugging away with what we’re doing," said Langdon. "The car is responding well. We’re still working on sponsorship to fund the car through the 2015 season. We’re hard at work trying to get the race car running well and running consistently, but we’re also hard at work trying to get sponsorship lined up for the season."
Langdon was fifth quickest with a 3.755.
ROOKIE-SPEAK - This weekend's event marks race No. 26 in the Richie Crampton's career. The 2014 NHRA Rookie of the Year feels he's hitting his stride in the challenging world of Top Fuel racing.
"Having a full season under my belt, I'm obviously a lot more comfortable and confident inside the race car," Crampton said. "I feel like I belong out here, too. Getting two national event wins in my rookie year helped me feel like I belong racing with these guys and girls, who are the best drag racers in the world.
"It's pretty exciting for me to be confident and to be driving such good equipment. We know we have the capability to win rounds and definitely have what it takes to win races.
"I'll continue to learn more and more and get better and better, I hope."
Crampton anchored the Friday’s top twelve with a 4.016.
NEW COLORS - Don Schumacher Racing's Spencer Massey is in the first of eight races representing Sandvik Coromant this weekend.
"Sandvik Coromant has played a prominent role in helping DSR win so many trophies and championships," said Don Schumacher, team owner. "We make more than 400 parts in our machine shop for DSR and other NHRA teams. The world class quality we produce is possible because of the advanced machining solutions and cutting tools provided by Sandvik Coromant."
Massey, who is in his eighth year of Top Fuel racing and fifth with DSR, has won 17 titles and advanced to the championship round 31 times in 120 events. He entered this weekend ranked third in Mello Yello points following a semifinal finish two weeks ago in Pomona.
"It's awesome that Sandvik stepped up and will be on our dragster for eight races this year," Spencer said. "They have been a huge part of DSR for many seasons now but to have them prominently displayed on our car for these races will be great. We have a fast hot rod that I know will be visiting a winner's circle soon."
Massey’s hot rod wasn’t up to its full potential on Friday, carding a 4.638 best.
FUNNY CAR
BABY GIRL TO THE TOP - Courtney Force shattered her dad's year-old Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park 1,000-foot Funny Car records Friday with a 3.996-second elapsed time at a 321.58-mph speed to seize the provisional No. 1 qualifying position for the Carquest Auto Parts NHRA Nationals.
"It's only Friday, but it definitely makes you feel good as a driver, knowing that you've got a car that can run that number . . . [and] not just once," the Traxxas Chevy Camaro racer said at Chandler, Ariz., after posting her second sub-four-second pass in as many races.
She missed by one-thousandth of a second her chance to equal her career-best E.T. (3.995 seconds), which made her the No. 1 qualifier two weeks ago at Pomona, Calif. If no one knocks her down in the order, she'll have lead the field for the ninth time.
"Who knows if it will hold? Tomorrow I think conditions will cool down again for the second session," Force said. "But it feels great for tonight. It's a lot of fun for our team. We've come out here to Phoenix and haven't had the best luck in the past. Hopefully we can turn it around this weekend."
She's just 16 elimination-round wins shy of 100 and 21 behind sister Ashley Force Hood for the all-time round-win record for a female Funny Car racer (105). Force Hood's husband, Dan Hood, is Courtney Force's crew chief, along with Ron Douglas.
Force was seventh after the first session but had slipped to No. 11 when she lined up alongside Tim Wilkerson midway through the late afternoon session. She held off last year's event winner, Alexis DeJoria, who was No. 2 overnight with a 4.000-second blast (at 313.58 mph) as she drove her Patron XO Café Incendio Toyota Camry from 10th place in the following pairing.
"I thought she was going to run it, too," Force said, referring to a three-second pass. (DeJoria has several.) "It's exciting that we could be 1 and 2 right now. It's not very often that we get to say two girls get to be 1 and 2 out of a full field of men. Whether it’s me or her, I hope we can stay up top." - Susan Wade
NUMBERS – Ms. Force is only 16 round wins away from 100 round wins and a mere 21 round wins behind sister Ashley Force Hood (105 career round wins) for the all-time round win record for a female Funny Car racer. Last season Courtney set the record for most race wins by a female Funny Car racer with her fifth win during the Sonoma race. She went on to win two more times in the Countdown to extend her win record.
NO REST FOR THE CHAMP - Matt Hagan isn't one to rest on his laurels. And for him Pomona was a hard-fought win worthy of bragging about.
"Pomona was a good test for us," Hagan said. "I say test because we went through a lot that weekend and came out on top. I couldn't be more proud of our team for all of their hard work and man they did a lot of it. It was definitely a nice little reward for them to turn on the four win lights on Sunday."
Traditionally the first quarter of any NHRA season has been tough for Hagan to find his groove.
"The first part of the season is kind of tough because it's hard to get in a groove," Hagan explained. "You race one week, then you're off and you crawl back into the car after a week off. In the summer, when you're racing, every weekend that's when you get into the rhythm but it's important not to get behind early in the season and so far, we're ahead."
Hagan was runner-up here last season. On Friday he was fourth quickest with a 4.025, 316.60.
OH MAN, WHAT A PARTY - Alexis DeJoria claimed her first career victory at this event year, becoming the fourth female driver to win a Funny Car event. She claimed two more victories during the season, but nothing compared to the party after the race.
As great as the party might have been, it wasn't the most memorable moment of the victory - not that many can remember much of what happened Sunday night afterward.
“My favorite memory would have to be after my final run when I won, all the guys were so excited and they jumped into our van and raced down the return road to come meet me,” DeJoria said. “Well, they forgot Jesse was standing in the doorway of the van hanging on to the outside. They took a corner really fast, and as soon as they turned the corner, he tumbled right out of the van as they were driving! He got cut up pretty good, but he put some duct tape on it and was good to go.”
DeJoria believes the 2014 season was a knowledge-building experience.
“I learned a lot of things last year, especially in the Countdown,” DeJoria said. “With that knowledge and my first Countdown under my belt, I should do a much better job this year. All the wins, the losses, being in the hunt; all of that combined made for a really big year for us. We want to continue that momentum.”
The defending champion was second quickest with a 4.000 elapsed time.
UNDETERRED - Running with a lesser budget than most of his well-financed competition, Tim Wilkerson loves the challenge of "holding his own."
"I think some people might look at us and think we're outnumbered here, and in terms of multi-car teams we are, but we're not really outgunned by that much," Wilkerson said. "One of key things is budget, because I couldn't afford to run my stuff on the ragged edge and blow it up all the time last year, much less now with the new oildown penalties. So, I've always tried to run in that window where you're going to be competitive, you're going to be fast, and you're going to keep the other guys honest, but you've hopefully also got the dial turned to a safer zone, in terms of hurting the motor. It's worked for us in the past, and it will in the future."
For the present, Wilkerson has a lot of new bodies in his pit area.
"Right now, the key is to keep getting these new guys in shape, and while we do that we'll be extra sure to work with them to make sure everything is bolted together right, and bolted together the way we want it," said Wilkerson. "I don't want to outrun my own guys' abilities right now, so we're focused on doing the job right and the rest of it will follow. This isn't like being a football coach, where you can push your guys beyond what they thought they could do. They're strapping me into a bomb, so I want it done right. Doing it fast will come with time."
Wilkerson was in Friday’s top twelve at No. 11 with a 4.076.
"Good, and okay, but we left some on the table for sure," Wilkerson said. "On Q1, you really want to get to the other end under power, just to get the weekend started right. Some really good teams overpowered the track, and I didn't want to do that. When you're a little too safe, though, you have a bigger hunk to bite off in Q2 if you want to improve.
“We ran a pair of 4.04s here just a few weeks ago, in testing, so we had that baseline to tune from. Unfortunately, we only put a 4.07 on the board, and when you so you 'only' ran a 4.07, and you're 11th on the sheet, you know the competition is tough. We'll get after it again tomorrow, and I know we can run quicker than that if the weather contributes and it doesn't get too hot."
COMMERCIAL SUCCESS - The NAPA Auto Parts drag racing poster boy Ron Capps said he plans to be a part of a new advertising campaign soon to hit the airwaves.
"We have a new NAPA TV commercial coming out this month and drag racing fans will love it," Capps said. "As a guy who represents NAPA it is fun for me to know NAPA is one of the only sponsors that pushes our sport with great commercials you see on TV. It will be a lot of fun for the fans."
Capps represented NAPA well in another fashion in Pomona -- on the track via a semifinal finish.
"It's a great start and that's what we wanted to get out of Pomona," Capps said. "There is so much happening with us this month. It started at Pomona and we plan on it continuing at another one of my West Coast tracks.
Capps was No. 10 in the field with a 4.06.
JUST A BAD WEEKEND - Pomona's DNQ was something the Jack Beckman-driven Infinite Hero team just couldn't stomach.
"Not qualifying is something that just isn't in the vocabulary of any of the Don Schumacher Racing nitro teams, a group that has amassed 241 race wins and 13 world championships including mine in 2012," Beckman said. "Throw in the fact that this was the opening race of the year, and at my home track, and you start to understand how devastating this could be."
Crew chief Jimmy Prock told CompetitionPlus.com earlier in the week the team had a problem with the ignition and later a rare oiling system issue. Then there was the loss of Q-4 due to rain.
The team left Pomona and headed here to Phoenix for a test session in the days following.
“We came here and it ran fine,” Prock said. “We made four good runs here. We never really ran it past 800 feet, but that was by design. We are a little behind, and we don’t have that many runs on it and I’m adapting to these parts. The performance when it goes down the track is there. We just have been bit by other things, dropping the cylinder and all that crazy stuff that went on at Pomona. We drug it to Phoenix, and none of that happened, it ran fine.”
But during Friday’s action Beckman’s Charger ran anything but fine. He was No. 16 on the list with a 10.594.
PRO STOCK
HEADING THE ELITE CROWD - In Pro Stock, reigning world champion Enders-Stevens took the qualifying lead with a 6.545 at 211.20 in her Elite motorsports Chevy Camaro. “We’re still learning, trying to acquire some data, and having some team cars out there really helps,” Enders-Stevens said.
“We’ve got four guys in Pro Stock, including myself, that are running Elite Performance power, and three of us are 1-2-3, so I’m very proud of my team. I’m happy to be on top here after Friday, but we’ve got our work cut out for us tomorrow.”
Rodger Brogdon was second with a 6.545 at 210.90 in his RoofTec Camaro. Rookie sensation Drew Skillman, who was runner-up at Pomona in his first career start, qualified third with a 6.548 at 211.03 in his Camaro. Allen Johnson won Phoenix in 2014 and sits fourth in the qualifying order with a 6.551 at 211.36 in his Magnetti Marelli Dodge Dart.
MAKING IT LOOK EASY - The standard of being a champion is in making difficult tasks appear easy. Enders-Stevens pulled off the feat in Pomona, at a race where she was a last day qualifier and jumped to the top of the field, and lasted on Sunday until the semi-finals.
"Not to be negative but Pomona was a huge struggle for me and my team," Enders-Stevens said. "I struggled driving, we struggled with car setup, and we had two new rules implemented this year with a new tire and a new fuel that we're still getting acquainted with. We're really trying to gather as much data as we possibly can. To do as well as we did says a lot about this team overall. I don't feel like we showed our cards at all in Pomona."
Enders-Stevens has enjoyed success here in Phoenix, capturing the win in 2013 over Mike Edwards.
BEEN HERE, DONE THAT - Rodger Brogdon drove his way to an impressive semifinal finish two weeks ago in Pomona. This weekend he's racing at a facility where he's had previous good fortunes.
"I got my first Sportsman win at this track, and we ran good there in preseason testing, so we're ready," Brogdon said. "I like everything about Phoenix. Plus, there's a casino real close by and that's always fun."
Brogdon is gambling a bit this weekend at the track on past testing success.
"It was just good to go down that track a little since they re-did it," Brogdon said. "We only made it down in testing three times, so I don't know if that was a huge advantage, but one of the times we made we were the fastest down the track, so I'm confident we'll be fast again."
And Brogdon was both quick and fast, nailing down the second quickest run in Friday qualifying with a 6.545, 210.90 run.
NO REST WHEN TITLE ON THE LINE - Jason Line won the season-opener two weeks ago. Shortly after winning the race, he went to work with the same intensity as a competitor who would have lost in the first round.
New mandated tires and fuel made him rush back to the office.
"After Pomona, we went back to the KB Racing shop in Mooresville and got right back to work on engine stuff," said Line. "We're dealing with new fuel and new tires this season, and I'm still not 100% convinced we had a good handle on it leaving Pomona, but the products are good – we just need to work on getting the perfect tune-up for it. We have a couple of new things we're working on, as usual, so it's been a busy time for us."
Line qualified third here last year and lasted until the second round. He made a stop at Wild Horse prior to the season-opener where he made many test passes.
"We had a pretty good test session here the first week of February," said Line. "I don't know for sure that it will give us any kind of advantage over our fellow competitors, but I'm glad we came here before Pomona, and I'm excited to be back."
Line was sixth quickest with a 6.562, 211.16.
NO FIRST TIMER HERE - Sophomore Pro Stock driver Jonathan Gray is making his first Phoenix NHRA national start this weekend. However, this weekend isn't Gray's first runs at the facility.
Jonathan loaded his logbook earlier this season with an extensive preseason test. Gray is driving the same Jerry Haas Camaro previously piloted by former teammate Dave Connolly.
"I think it helps that we tested here, although we have made some changes to the car since then that could play into it," said Gray, who launched his Pro Stock career at the third race of the 2014 season, in Gainesville. "The racetrack is different because it is prepared by NHRA, but hopefully we got a good feel for it and that will work to our advantage. Even if the time on the racetrack didn't prepare us, it prepared me as a driver to have tested there. There are always different things about every track, and it gave me the opportunity to get a feel for what those things where. Each track has its own character.
"The bottom line is that I think we hit on something at Pomona in the first round, and with any luck, we'll be able to pick back up and go from there. It should be interesting."
Gray was ninth with a 6.578, 210.34.
FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING - European Pro Stock driver Jimmy Alund ran his best run during the first session with a 6.654 elapsed time at 207.91 mile per hour. His second qualifying attempt Friday evening did not go as planned. After completing his burnout, both parachutes deployed on his Pontiac GXP, forcing him to shut his car off.
“When I started to back up the chutes deployed," said Alund. “With this Liberty trans you have to have your right hand pulling the reverse lever and you have to hold it there while steering with your left hand on the left side of the steering wheel and the button (parachutes deploy button) is on the right side of the steering wheel, so I don’t know why they came out.”
Alund believes the issue is electrical and is determined to figure out what caused the problem.
“It’s electricity,” said Alund. “We need to find the problem, cause I don’t wanna go out there again and the same thing happens.”
For Alund, this was a first time problem.
“It’s the first time that’s happened to me in eleven years of Pro Stock racing, there’s always a first time for something, but it was a long way to travel for me to have that happen over here.” – Michael Dennis.
THE GUEST LIST - Joining Larry Morgan this weekend is a group from the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, located inside Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park. Last fall, Morgan's new title sponsor, FireAde, became the Official Fire Safety Products of the driving school.
"It'll be fun to have those guys over to see how we do things," Morgan said. "I'm so excited to be representing Ron (Thames, FireAde founder) and all the other people at FireAde. I've been blessed, for sure. I want to get the job done, not only for myself but for my team, my sponsor, and everyone else involved.
"FireAde really works at putting fires out in a fraction of the time than other methods, and in auto racing that's huge. I'm sure the folks from the Bondurant School will tell you the same thing. They're already tuned into how great a product FireAde is in practice."
Morgan was eighth quickest with a 6.569, 211.89 pass.
