NHRA Nationals
Event 12 of 24 (Norwalk)
Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park
Norwalk, Ohio
June 21-23, 2019
Noteworthy:
- Matt Hagan returns to Norwalk as the defending Funny Car event champion
- Jack Beckman leads the Funny Car class in number of victories (three) at the Norwalk track: 2009, 2015, 2017
- Leah Pritchett will pull double-duty, competing in both the Top Fuel and Factory Stock Showdown Series categories
- Mark Pawuk raced to his career-first Factory Stock Showdown final round at the 2018 event
- As a resident of Akron, Ohio, Pawuk considers Norwalk to be his home track
- Ron Capps celebrates a birthday on June 20
DSR-Owned Track Records:
Funny Car, E.T.: 3.865 seconds, Matt Hagan (2017)
(EXCERPT)
DSR Driver Information:
Funny Car:
TOMMY JOHNSON JR.
Driver of the Make-A-Wish Foundation Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
2018 Norwalk Recap:
Qualified 14th; First round exit (defeated by Matt Hagan in E1)
Last Event (Bristol):
Qualified eighth; Quarterfinal finish (defeated Matt Hagan in E1; defeated by John Force in E2)
2019 Season Statistics:
18 round wins; ranked third in points
Career Statistics:
457 races; 18 wins (two Top Fuel); 18 No. 1 qualifiers (one Top Fuel)
Quotable:
“Norwalk is such a fun race for everybody. It’s a great facility and a great family that owns it. The way you end this four-in-a-row is important; you can gain a lot of momentum. You can have a great four-in-a-row or a bad one, and I think we’ve had a really good one. We started off with a win and the car has been running spectacularly lately so I’d love nothing more than to finish it with a win and really solidify ourselves in the middle of the season as one of the major contenders.”
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.