NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
Event 11 of 24 (Bristol)
Bristol Dragway
Bristol, Tenn.
June 14-16, 2019
Noteworthy:
- Ron Capps returns as the two-time defending event champion, having raced to Thunder Valley Funny Car victory in 2017 and 2018
- With five Bristol Dragway triumphs, Capps is the winningest Funny Car driver in the track’s history
- Jack Beckman enters the weekend following a runner-up finish from the previous event (Topeka)
- Tommy Johnson Jr. has raced to a semifinal finish or better – including a Chicago victory – at the last four races
- DSR has placed a Funny Car in the final round at the past four consecutive events
- Bristol Dragway is a hometown track for lifelong Virginia resident Matt Hagan
DSR-Owned Track Records:
Funny Car, E.T.: 3.884 seconds, Ron Capps (2016)
(EXCERPT)
TOMMY JOHNSON JR.
Driver of the Make-A-Wish Foundation Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
Bristol Event Highlights:
Two-time event champion (2014, 2016)
2018 Bristol Recap:
Qualified eighth; Quarterfinal finish (defeated Matt Hagan in E1; defeated by Courtney Force in E2)
Last Event (Topeka):
Qualified fourth; Semifinal finish (defeated Terry Haddock in E1, Ron Capps in E2; defeated by Robert Hight in E3)
2019 Season Statistics:
17 round wins; ranked second in points
Career Statistics:
456 races; 18 wins (two Top Fuel); 18 No. 1 qualifiers (one Top Fuel)
Noteworthy:
In the past four events, Johnson has raced to victory once and three semifinal finishes
Quotable:
“I’m really looking forward to Bristol. I’ve won that race a few times, and we just always seem to do well there. I seem to do well on Father’s Day weekend, in particular. It’s one of those races I look forward to every year and coming off the way the cars been running, I like our chances. It would be nice to get back to the final round again. We’ve been to the semis the last four races in a row, so we want to keep that going.”
About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) is the winningest team in NHRA Drag Racing history, having claimed more than 325 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.