NHRA Nationals
Event 17 of 24 (Brainerd)
Brainerd International Raceway
Brainerd, Minn.
Aug. 16-18, 2019
Highlights:
- Jack Beckman returns as the defending Funny Car event champion
- The 2018 Brainerd Funny Car final marked the first time the Chandler family’s ‘giving cars,’ piloted by Beckman and Tommy Johnson Jr., went head-to-head in the finals
- Antron Brown has been to the Brainerd final round the past three years, earning a runner-up finish in 2016, 2017 and 2018
- Johnson has competed in the final round three out of the last four years, finishing as the runner-up in 2015, 2017, 2018
- Brown has been victorious in both the Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle categories in Brainerd
- Matt Hagan recorded the first 3.8 second Funny Car pass during the 2015 Brainerd event (3.879 seconds)
Note: Ron Capps will be on-site at the Baxter Walmart store (7295 Glory Rd. S.) today, August 14, from 5:30 – 7:00 p.m. CT. The Mello Yello Meet & Greet is free and open to the public.
DSR-Owned Track Records:
Top Fuel E.T.: 3.640 seconds, Leah Pritchett (2017)
(EXCERPT)
DSR Driver Information:
Funny Car:
TOMMY JOHNSON JR.
Driver of the Make-A-Wish Foundation Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
Brainerd Event Highlights:
- 2006 event champion
- Five-time runner up
Funny Car (2015, 2017, 2018)
Top Fuel (1993, 2995)
2018 Brainerd Recap:
Qualified fifth; Event runner-up (defeated Del Worsham in E1, Tim Wilkerson in E2, J.R. Todd in E3; defeated by Jack Beckman in E4)
Last Event (Seattle):
Qualified ninth; First round exit (defeated by Jack Beckman in E1)
2019 Season Statistics:
26 round wins; ranked third in points
Career Statistics:
462 races; 19 wins (two Top Fuel); 18 No. 1 qualifiers (one Top Fuel)
Noteworthy:
The 2018 Funny Car final marked the first time the Chandler family’s ‘giving cars,’ piloted by Beckman and Johnson, went head-to-head in the finals
Has competed in the final round three out of the last four years, finishing as the runner-up in 2015, 2017, 2018
Quotable:
“Brainerd is always a fun race. It’s right before Indy, and everyone’s in the mode where they’re gearing up for Indy so you may try some things at Brainerd to see if you can better your team, and the past few years we’ve had some success doing that. I’ve won a divisional, a Sportsman and a Funny Car trophy there, and I’m hoping to go one step further than last year and leave with my second Brainerd Wally this weekend.”
About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) is the winningest team in NHRA Drag Racing history, having claimed more than 330 NHRA national event titles and 17 world championships since opening its doors in 1998.
Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana, DSR fields seven professional teams competing in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing series. In Top Fuel, the Matco Tools dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown, the MOPAR/Pennzoil/Sparkling Ice dragster driven by Leah Pritchett and eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher’s machine. In Funny Car, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat driven by 2016 world champion Ron Capps, the Mopar Express Lane/Pennzoil/Sandvik Coromant Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat piloted by Matt Hagan, and in Terry and Doug Chandler’s ‘giving cars,’ 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, and Tommy Johnson Jr. behind the wheel of the Make-A-Wish Dodge.
DSR also campaigns two Factory Stock Showdown entries. The duo is piloted by Pritchett, the 2018 Factory Stock Showdown Series champion, and former Pro Stock racer Mark Pawuk.
Follow Don Schumacher Racing at Shoeracing.com, on Twitter and Instagram at @shoeracing and Facebook.com/shoeracing.