capps, napa start celebration for 50 years of funny cars ......k nhra winternationals at pomona. dsr...

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Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars with win at Winternationals, start Mello Yello season on Fox Last Sunday was Valentine’s Day but the season-opening NHRA Circle K Winternationals in Pomona, Calif., didn’t show much love to Don Schumacher Racing. That is, unless you are Ron Capps and the NAPA AUTO PARTS team led by crew chief Rahn Tobler and assistant Eric Lane who opened the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season by winning the Funny Car title to begin a special year that commemorates the 50 th anniversary of the Funny Car. Their 2016 Dodge Charger R/T was the only one of seven DSR entries to advance past the second round of Mello Yello eliminations and they went all the way. Capps and the NAPA team were dominant all weekend during the first of 24 national events with seven of their eight runs in the 3- second range including all four in qualifying that helped the team earn the No. 2 spot. “I have the best team in the business, and they gave me a great racecar,” he said. “All four runs in the 3s in qualifying, I don’t think anyone else did that. I knew we had a good racecar. Tobler and I have grown so much together. It’s like a marriage. He really keeps me in line on race day. We had a heckuva day.” And it was a banner weekend for NAPA Racing. Chase Elliott, who is Jeff Gordon’s replacement in the No. 24 NASCAR Cup stock car with major NAPA AUTO PARTS sponsorship, won the pole for this weekend’s Daytona 500. Ron Capps celebrates his Winternationals victory with his NAPA team and family: from left, dad John, wife Shelley, son Caden and mom Betty.

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Page 1: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars with win at Winternationals, start Mello Yello season on Fox Last Sunday was Valentine’s Day but the season-opening NHRA Circle K Winternationals in Pomona, Calif., didn’t show much love to Don Schumacher Racing. That is, unless you are Ron Capps and the NAPA AUTO PARTS team led by crew chief Rahn Tobler and assistant Eric Lane who

opened the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season by winning the Funny Car title to begin a special year that commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Funny Car. Their 2016 Dodge Charger R/T was the

only one of seven DSR entries to advance past the second round of Mello Yello eliminations and they went all the way. Capps and the NAPA team were dominant all weekend during the first of 24 national events with seven of their eight runs in the 3-second range including all four in qualifying that helped the team earn the No. 2 spot. “I have the best team in the business, and they gave me a great racecar,” he said. “All four runs in the 3s in qualifying, I don’t think anyone else did that. I knew we had a good racecar. Tobler and I have grown so much together. It’s like a marriage. He really keeps me in line on race day. We had a heckuva day.” And it was a banner weekend for NAPA Racing. Chase Elliott, who is Jeff Gordon’s replacement in the No. 24 NASCAR Cup stock car with major NAPA AUTO PARTS sponsorship, won the pole for this weekend’s Daytona 500.

Ron Capps celebrates his Winternationals victory with his NAPA team and family: from left, dad John, wife Shelley, son Caden and mom Betty.

Page 2: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

Capps is the second all-time winningest Funny Car driver and increased his win total to 45 (46 including another in Top Fuel), and improved on last year’s performance at Pomona when he was runner-up to DSR teammate Matt Hagan. The win is Capps’ third at Pomona with all coming in the Winternationals.

DSR Funny Cars swept the Winternationals with Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero team led by crew chief Jimmy Prock earning the No. 1 qualifying position on Saturday night with a time of 3.888 seconds. “We tested great in Phoenix, but bent the frame of our primary race car,” Beckman said preseason testing when his Dodge clocked three runs in the 3.8 range. “The car we ran at Pomona only made it to the finish line twice in

qualifying and both of those runs were low E.T. of the sessions. It’s clear that my crew chiefs Jimmy Prock, John Medlen and Chris Cunningham are getting a handle on this car.” The driver of the Terry Chandler-sponsored Infinite Hero Funny Car did feel some pressure coming into the event. It wasn’t because of last year’s Winternationals DNQ or coming so close to the championship by finishing second at the end of the season. “As we get more runs on this brand new car, my guys will zero in on what it wants under different track conditions. I’m so optimistic,” Beckman said. “We’ll do a lot of Monday testing early in the season, so that when it gets to summertime we know how to run on cool and hot tracks.” Beckman went on to add, “Last year we left this event in 18th place and we’re 5th right now. That is a pretty good improvement.” Capps, Beckman and reigning Top Fuel champ Antron Brown were the only drivers to advance to the second round and Capps was the only one to get any further. It was especially surprising that Tommy Johnson Jr. and the Make-A-Wish Funny Car struggled in qualifying and then lost in the first round despite one week earlier running what is the unofficial quickest run ever in a Funny Car when their Dodge Charger R/T clocked a 3.874-second pass during testing at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix. And Tony Schumacher’s U.S. Army Top Fuel team also made an early exit at Pomona although its time of 3.683 at the Wild Horse test session was the quickest of the week and the best ever for the team.

Fox scores big numbers with first Mello Yello telecast NHRA’s new broadcast partner, Fox and FS1, showed how good this year can be with innovation, live coverage and other major changes including new analyst Tony Pedregon by reaching more viewers than a year ago especially in the strong 18- to 49-year-old audience. Sunday’s three-hour championship eliminations reached 640,000 viewers, which is a 5 percent gain over the previous Winternationals despite being on a new network. The increase in the 18-49 demographic grew by an astounding 25 percent.

And for the first time, the show was re-aired twice and accounted for another 500,000 viewers for a weekend total of over 1 million, based on information from SportsTVRatings.com. DSR’s Ron Capps will go down in NHRA history as the first Funny Car driver to be interviewed on live TV for winning the Winternationals, which is the first of 13 races that will air live on FS1 with four more being shown on the main Fox network.

Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T earn the pole Saturday with a time of 3.888 seconds.

Page 3: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

“It’s just so much excitement,” he said of NHRA’s new media partner. “If you talk to anyone, no matter what racing class it was, if you talk to anybody, there is just so much excitement about a change

like this in our sport. It’s big, and (Fox) lived up to it. It’s great.” Follow Fox Sports on Twitter at #NHRAonFOX and @FS1, and Facebook at facebook.com/foxsports

Legendary American WWII, Tuskegee Airmen pilot visits DSR Tony Schumacher and DSR’s U.S. Army team had an extraordinary guest Saturday when they were host to Lt. Col. (ret.) Robert J. Friend, one of the few remaining pilots in the groundbreaking WWII fighting squadron known as the Tuskegee Airmen – nicknamed the Red Tails. Friend was one of the first African-American military aviators in the United States Armed Forces when the American military was racially segregated, as was much of the federal government and country. The 95-year-old Southern California resident flew 142 missions and retired in 1972 after 30 years of service.

Top Fuel legend Jeb Allen joins Chandler, DSR to make wishes Top Fuel drag racing legend Jeb Allen and Funny Car pioneer Don Schumacher were reunited Saturday when they joined Terry Chandler to announce a unique program to grant wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses. Allen, the 1981 NHRA Top Fuel world champion, is committing $100,000 to grant 10 wishes through Terry Chandler’s Make-A-Wish Funny Car program with Don Schumacher Racing around 10 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events this year. “Don Schumacher said to me one day if there’s ever anything you can do for one of Terry’s ‘charity cars’ you should do something,” said Allen, 62, whose Palomar Builders has funded 20 wishes for a total of $200,000 to Make-A-Wish of Northern California. Since retiring from professional drag racing, Allen, the youngest ever to win an NHRA national event Wally trophy at 18, began working in construction where he learned to build homes, and with his wife, Sue Tsai, have built their Palomar Builders into one of the largest in Northern California and biggest in Redding, Calif.

Ron Capps is interviewed by Jamie Little on FS1 during the Supercross season-opener on Jan. 6 at Anaheim, Calif.

Tony Schumacher, left, and Antron Brown, right, visit Saturday with Lt. Col. (ret.) Robert J. Friend, a pilot in WWII with the Tuskegee Airmen Red Tails squadron.

Bob Frey speaks with former Top Fuel world champion Jeb Allen who committed Saturday to contribute $100,000 to help Make-A-Wish provide 10 ‘wishes’ at NHRA events through Terry Chandler's Funny Car program with DSR. From left: Frey, Allen, Make-A-Wish Northern California CEO Jennifer Stolo, Don Schumacher, Chandler and Tommy Johnson Jr.

Page 4: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

When Allen won his first title in the Summernationals at Englishtown, N.J., Schumacher joined him in the winner’s circle after winning his third of five NHRA Funny Car titles.

Medal of Honor recipient unveils 2016 Infinite Hero challenge coin The Infinite Hero Foundation “challenge coin” fund-raising program with the Terry Chandler-sponsored NHRA Funny Car team and Don Schumacher Racing driver Jack Beckman unveiled its 2016 coin Friday at Pomona with a special guest in attendance. Donald Everett "Doc" Ballard, 70, a former member of the United States Navy, was a hospital corpsman during the Vietnam War and received the Medal of Honor for “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life and beyond the call of duty” in May 1970. The retired American colonel in the Kansas National Guard received the first 2016 Infinite Hero coin that was designed by Beckman and his wife, Jenna. Beckman, who led NHRA Funny Cars with seven event titles last year, carries coins on each run then autographs them for NHRA fans who donate $100 to Infinite Hero (InfiniteHero.org). On his first qualifying run of the season Friday, he carried one in each pocket of his firesuit and presented one to Ballard and the other to NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series announcer Alan Reinhart, who has played a key role in the success of the Infinite Hero challenge coin program that has raised more than $300,000 through NHRA over the past two years. Chandler was honored during the Nov. 16 NHRA Awards Banquet in Hollywood as the first recipient in 11 years of the Blaine Johnson Award for her outstanding commitment and dedication to the sport of NHRA Drag Racing.

Medal of Honor recipient Donald Everett 'Doc' Ballard, right, joins Terry Chandler and Jack Beckman to unveil the 2016 Infinite Hero Challenge Coin.

Page 5: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

New look for Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster

DSR firing on all cylinders with marketing partner E3 spark plugs E3 Spark Plugs and Don Schumacher Racing are excited to announce a multi-year sponsorship beginning with the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season. The 14-time championship winning DSR organization began using E3’s 100R racing plug in their stable of seven cars this season including the season-opening 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark plugs play such an integral part in powering these machines and after our crew chiefs tested E3 spark plugs last month in Florida they agreed we should start using them,” said DSR owner Don Schumacher, a pioneering Funny Car driver/owner beginning in the mid-1960s who won the first five NHRA Wally Trophies in DSR’s collection of 267. “We only use the best products in our four Funny Cars and three Top Fuel dragsters, and these E3

100R spark plugs are helping us make more horsepower. I’ve been very impressed with the new E3

100R and the commitment the company has made to our sport.” E3 Spark Plugs has been the Official Spark Plug of NHRA since 2012. The new program with Schumacher’s teams is not only an extension of this association but yet another indication of E3’s commitment to NHRA drag racing. Backed by a five-year, 100,000-mile warranty, E3 spark plugs, with their DiamondFIRE side-wire electrode, project the combustion spark in a way that more quickly ignites the air/fuel mixture, thereby creating a significantly faster and larger flame kernel. In effect, this burns more of the available fuel,

Antron Brown’s Matco Tools/U.S. Army has a new look for 2016. The new design by DSR art director Aaron Holland was unveiled Sunday evening during Matco’s National Business Conference. It carries the names of more than 1,600 Matco distributors.

Page 6: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

resulting in increased combustion efficiency for improved power and fuel economy with reduced emissions. E3 spark plugs are available for most automotive, small-engine, and power-sports applications at automotive and home-improvement retail stores nationwide. For more information on E3 log on to www.e3sparkplugs.com.

Brown, Matco champs again; Beckman, Infinite Hero Dodge get oh so close; Langdon, Red Fuel close ’15 with Finals event title Don Schumacher Racing achievements in 2015: OVERALL A DSR record 27 event titles including 15 in Funny Car and 12 in Top Fuel; In the final Mello Yello standings, DSR drivers Ranked 1-2-6 in Top Fuel and 2-3-4-5 in Funny Car; Each of the seven DSR teams earned No. 1 qualifying positions for a total of 25; Swept both nitro event titles at 7 races; Drivers Antron Brown, Jack Beckman, Matt Hagan and Ron Capps held an NHRA national record at some point; DSR swept the Traxxas Nitro Shootouts with the Matco Tools team winning Top Fuel and Infinite Hero winning Funny Car over Labor Day Weekend at Indy. TOP FUEL Antron and the Matco Tools/U.S. Army team led by crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald clinched their second Top Fuel world championship in four years and DSR’s 14th before arriving at Pomona

for the finale; Antron won a career-best 7 titles to pad his nitro-leading total of 36 over the past seven seasons; Won 12 of possible 24 Mello Yello event titles; Antron and the Matco team became the first in Top Fuel to crack into the 3.6-second range with a time of 3.680 seconds in August at Brainerd, Minn., that remains the national record.

FUNNY CAR Jack had career-bests of seven Mello Yello event titles and five No. 1 qualifying positions with the Infinite Hero Dodge and reset the national time record five times this year including on Nov. 13 at Pomona with a run in 3.884 seconds; DSR won 15 Funny Car titles with the all-new 2015 Dodge Charger R/T body; The four DSR Dodge Charger R/T Funny Cars advanced to the championship round at 23 of 24 Mello Yello events; Matt and the Mopar Express Lane/Rocky Boots Dodge Charger R/T team led by crew chief Dickie Venables became the first Funny Car into the 3.8-second range with a time of 3.879 seconds at Brainerd that remains the quickest ever; Matt became the first to reach 330 mph in a Funny Car (Brainerd 2015); DSR has 15 of the 20 quickest Funny Car times.

Don Schumacher Racing achievements at 2015 NHRA Finals in Pomona: OVERALL

Reset both NHRA Funny Car world records: Jack (3.884) and Matt (331.45); Ron and the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge with crew chief Rahn Tobler produced a time of 3.885 that is his quickest ever and briefly held the NHRA time record.

TOP FUEL

Antron wrapped up a record year advancing to the finals for the 10th time. Shawn Langdon completed his six-race stay with DSR by winning the Pomona title and produced the top speed of the meet for Top Fuel was by Langdon at a track-record 332.43 mph on his championship run; FUNNY CAR Matt had the event’s only Funny Car 330-mph runs (331.45 and 330.15); Ron earned his first No. 1 qualifier spot with a career-best time of 3.885, the fourth quickest ever; T.J. also posted his best lap at 3.891, the seventh quickest ever.

Page 7: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

DSR SPOTLIGHT Jr. Drag racer graduates to DSR intern at Pomona By DALLAS HOLLINS I grew up five minutes from Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. The sound of stock cars going around the oval and dragsters headed down the drag strip was always an open window away on the weekends. Despite coming from a family of athletes, no one was involved in motorsports as a participant or even as a fan. Given that we lived so close to the track that was once known as California Speedway, my mother took me to my first race when I was 4 for the NASCAR NAPA AUTO PARTS 500 in 2001. Even though I didn’t have a grasp on how the sport truly worked, I liked seeing the cars go around the track, hearing the noise and the overall excitement the race brought. But like most typical 4-year-old girls I spent my days going to kindergarten and taking ballet classes. Racing had not crossed my mind. As fate would have it in March 2003, the Disney Channel premiered a movie that would change my life. “Right On Track” told the story of real-life sisters, Erica and Courtney Enders, two young girls who started racing NHRA Jr. dragsters when they were about 8. What fascinated me was, not only were they girls, but they were close to my age. I knew right then and there that I wanted to drive racecars. I watched that movie so much that my parents started to get sick of it. My father soon realized that racing wasn’t just a passing fancy. At my first drag race, the 2007 NHRA Finals at nearby Pomona, I learned that drag racing was much faster and much louder than Disney had portrayed. The sights, sounds, getting to view the cars up close, meeting the drivers; I had been bitten by the racing bug. My parents and I continued to enjoy the NHRA circuit the following years going to both Pomona NHRA events, the Las Vegas events and watching the rest on TV. But to no avail, I still wasn’t racing myself. Shortly before the 2009 SummitRacing.com Nationals in Las Vegas, I came up with the idea of interviewing some of my favorite racecar drivers as a way to find out more about the sport and the drivers. I started my own website, InsidePitRow.com, got my interview questions prepared and headed to Vegas. I interviewed all of the drivers from Don Schumacher Racing but my first interview that weekend was none other than my hero, Erica Enders. Not only did she grant me the opportunity to do the interview, she treated me like a friend. At the time of that race, I had been begging and pleading with my parents to buy me a jr. dragster for six years. Over the course of the race weekend Erica somehow managed to convince my dad to finally buy me one. I started my first season in the NHRA Jr. Drag Racing League in April of 2010 and raced all over California with my dad as my crew chief and my mom as my cheerleader. I spent most of my weekends at racetracks. If I wasn't racing, I was there interviewing professional drivers. I never felt as though I was missing out on what normal kids my age were up to because I was doing what I loved. I spent five amazing years racing and over my career that spanned 19 races, I accumulated three wins (one of which provided me with a Wally trophy), a runner-up and three semifinal appearances. Shortly after graduating from high school, I turned 18 and was too old. After publishing over 20 video interviews with NHRA, IndyCar, and Sports Car drivers on my website, I started writing for nationally published magazines like Variety and Goracing. I started college this week and will major in communications with hopes of racing in the NHRA Division 7 Sportsman ranks. Last month I reached out to my good friend and Don Schumacher Racing Senior Vice President, Mike Lewis, to see if I could get my first real-world experience in public relations during the Winternationals weekend. Fortunately, he granted me the opportunity to intern for DSR social media manager, Leah Vaughn. I learned 10-times more than I imagined. The incredible people I was able to work with and the knowledge I gained about public relations and the inner-workings of a race team is incredibly valuable.

Page 8: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

I will be able to carry all that I learned over the weekend into college and hopefully into my future career in the NHRA. Whether it's in PR or in the cockpit of a dragster, I know I've found my home, racing.

Addition of Langdon to Red Fuel/Sandvik Coromant team for 2016 gives DSR world champs in three Top Fuel dragsters BROWNSBURG, Ind. (Dec. 8, 2015) – Shawn Langdon has been hired to drive full time in 2016 for Don Schumacher Racing in the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, and that puts a world champion in the cockpit of all three DSR dragsters. Langdon joins teammates Tony Schumacher and Antron Brown in the DSR lineup, a trio that has combined to win the last four NHRA Top Fuel world championships; Brown (2012 and 2015), Langdon (2013) and Schumacher (2014). Langdon, 33, competed for DSR during the six-race 2015 Countdown to the Championship playoff on loan from Alan Johnson Racing after that team suspended its operation at the end of the 16-race regular season due to a lack of sponsorship. Langdon joined DSR’s Sandvik Coromant/Red Fuel Powered by Schumacher team with crew chiefs Todd Okuhara and Phil Shuler and closed the season by winning the NHRA Finals title at Pomona, Calif., for his first win with DSR and the second of the year for the Red Fuel team that ended the year ranked sixth and just one point out of fifth. “After Pomona (last November), Alan and I sat down and discussed 2016 and beyond,” said Langdon, a native of Mira Loma, Calif., who lives in Avon near Indianapolis. “Alan and I decided it was in both of our best interests to go our separate ways. That was tough. I had a great three years with Alan, Alan Johnson Racing and being part of the Johnson family. I’ll have special memories for the rest of my life.” A new chapter opens at DSR as Langdon will become the seventh driver to compete in Top Fuel for the seven-team organization since its inception in 1998.

AutoImagery.com photos of the race

Page 9: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

For DSR photos, Contact AutoImagery.com

DSR drivers 2016: career statistics, standings (post Pomona 1)

ANTRON BROWN: Matco Tools/U.S. Army *2015 WORLD CHAMPION Pts Events Wins Rup Semi Qtr 1st rd Poles DNQ W/L 2016 7th 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1-1 2015 1st 24 7 3 6 3 5 7 0 51-17 CAREER 335 54 (38 TF/16 PSB) 43 69 87 78 44 3 569-278

Best Time, Speed: 3.680 sec.-national record, first 3.6 (2015, Brainerd); 331.12 mph (2015, Brainerd)

TONY SCHUMACHER: U.S. Army Pts Events Wins Rup Semi Qtr 1st rd Poles DNQ W/L 2016 9th 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0-1 2015 2nd 24 3 4 4 7 6 3 0 39-21 CAREER 433 80 58 68 114 105 79 8 742-345

Best Time, Speed: 3.719 sec. (2015, Topeka); 330.55 mph (2014, Las Vegas 2)

Page 10: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

SHAWN LANGDON: Red Fuel Powered by Schumacher/Sandvik Coromant Pts Events Wins Rup Semi Qtr 1st rd Poles DNQ W/L 2016 13th 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0-1 2015 6th 24 (first 18 with AJR) 2 1 4 8 9 2 27-22 CAREER 165 12 14 32 51 60 18 3 200-151

Langdon’s Best Time, Speed: 3.662 Sec. (quickest ever, 2015, Brainerd); 334.15 mph (both with Alan Johnson

Racing)

2015/TEAM --- 24 2 0 4 7 12 1 0 22-22 Team’s best Time, Speed: 3.715 sec. (2015, Pomona 2); 332.75 mph (2015, Brainerd, Minn.)

DSR FUNNY CAR

JACK BECKMAN: Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T Pts Events Wins Rup Semi Qtr 1st rd Poles DNQ W/L 2016 5th 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1-1 2015 2nd 24 7 2 4 5 5 5 1 46-16 CAREER 229 22 22 41 64 73 16 7 298-200 Best Time, Speed: 3.884 sec.-national record (2015, Pomona 2); 328.38 (2015, Pomona 2)

TOMMY JOHNSON JR.: Make-A-Wish Dodge Charger R/T Pts Events Wins Rup Semi Qtr 1st rd Poles DNQ W/L 2016 15th 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0-1 2015 3rd 24 2 6 4 7 5 3 0 42-22 CAREER 371 12 (10 FC/2 TF) 21 49 87 158 13 47 297-315

Best Time, Speed: 3.891 sec. (2015, Pomona 2); 326.08 mph (2015, Pomona 2)

RON CAPPS: NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T Pts Events Wins Rup Semi Qtr 1st rd Poles DNQ W/L 2016 1st 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4-0 2015 4th 24 2 3 6 5 8 1 0 34-22 CAREER 459 46 (45 FC/1 TF) 45 82 93 176 17 18 576-396

Best Time, Speed: 3.885 sec., (2015, Pomona 2); 327.19 mph (2015, St. Louis)

MATT HAGAN: Mopar Express Lane/Rocky Boots Dodge Charger R/T Pts Events Wins Rup Semi Qtr 1st rd Poles DNQ W/L 2016 10th 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0-1 2015 5th 24 4 2 2 10 6 4 0 36-20 CAREER 169 18 18 23 54 52 21 4 225-147

Best Time, Speed: 3.879 sec.-quickest ever (2015, Brainerd); 331.45 mph-nat’l record (’15, Pomona 2)

2016 NHRA MELLO YELLO STANDINGS – (through Pomona 1) TOP FUEL PTS FUNNY CAR PTS 1. Steve Torrence 126 1. RON CAPPS 119

2. Doug Kalitta 94 2. Del Worsham 97 3. Richie Crampton 77 3. Robert Hight 80 4. JR Todd 72 4. John Force 69 5. Clay Millican 57 5. JACK BECKMAN 65

6. Morgan Lucas 52 6. Courtney Force 59 7. ANTRON BROWN 48 7. Alexis DeJoria 55

8. Terry McMillen 46 8. Chad Head 54 9. TONY SCHUMACHER 42 9. Tim Wilkerson 33 10. Brittany Force 37 10. MATT HAGAN 32 12. SHAWN LANGDON 32 13. TOMMY JOHNSON JR. 31

NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series (NOTE: order of events only correct for 2016) REGULAR SEASON 2013 WINNNERS 2014 WINNERS 2015 WINNERS 2016 WINNERS 1. 2/12-14 Pom 1 TF Langdon FC C.Force TF alBalooshi FC J.Force TF Langdon FC MATT TF Torrence FC RON 2. 2/26-28 Phoenix TF TONY FC RON TF ANTRON FC DeJoria TF TONY FC MATT TF FC 3. 3/18-20 G’ville TF ANTRON* FC GRAY TF Kalitta FC Hight TF SPENCER FC RON TF FC

*DSR’s 200th

4. 4/22-24 LV 1 TF TONY FC C.PedregonTF TONY FC DeJoria TF Crampton FC J.Force TF FC 5. 4/1-3 CLT TF SPENCER FC MATT TF ANTRON FC Hight TF ANTRON FC JACK* TF FC *DSR’s 100th FC 6. 4/29-5/1 Houston TF Vandergriff FC C.Pedregon TF ANTRON FC Hight TF Kalitta FC RON TF FC 7. 5/13-15 Atlanta TF ANTRON FC GRAY TF SPENCER FC Hight TF ANTRON FC Wilkerson TF FC 8. 5/20-22 Topeka TF Langdon FC GRAY TF SPENCER FC C.Force TF Crampton FC JACK* TF FC *DSR’s 250th 9. 6/3-5 Epping TF SPENCER FC C.Force TF TONY FC RON TF TONY FC J.Force TF FC 10. 6/10-12 E’town TF Langdon FC MATT TF Crampton FC C.Pedregon TF ANTRON* FC MATT TF FC

*AB’s 50th 11. 6/17-19 Bristol TF S.Torrence FC J.Force TF Langdon FC TOMMY TF Crampton FC MATT TF FC 12. 6/24-26 Norwalk TF alBalloshi FC GRAY TF ANTRON FC J. Force TF Kalitta FC JACK TF FC 13. 7/8-10 Chicago TF TONY FC MATT TF ANTRON FC MATT TF TONY FC TOMMY TF FC 14. 7/2-24 Denver TF SPENCER FC C.Pedregon TF Todd FC Hight TF Torrence FC JACK TF FC 15. 7/29-30 Sonoma TF Langdon FC RON TF alBalooshi FC C.Force TF ANTRON* FC JACK* TF FC

*DSR’S 50th Dble-up

Page 11: Capps, NAPA start celebration for 50 years of Funny Cars ......K NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. DSR tested the plug extensively before signing with the Florida-based company. “Spark

16. 8/5-7 Seattle TF Lucas FC MATT TF Kalitta FC J.Force TF Todd FC TOMMY TF FC 17. 8/19-21 Brainerd TF SPENCER FC RON TF Lucas FC RON (Indy) TF Crampton FC Hight TF FC 18. 9/2-5 Indy TF Langdon FC Hight TF Crampton FC DeJoria TF Lucas FC JACK TF FC Indy Traxxas Traxxas FC/JACK Traxxas TF/Antron Traxxas/FC JACK COUNTDOWN 2013 DSR WINNERS 2014 WINNERS 2015 WINNERS 19. 9/16-18 CLT 2 TF Lucas FC Hight TF TONY FC MATT TF ANTRON FC Worsham TF FC 20. 9/25-27 St. Louis TF ANTRON FC J.Force TF ANTRON FC C.Force TF ANTRON FC Worsham TF FC 21. 9/31-10/2 Reading TF Langdon FC J.Force TF TONY FC MATT TF ANTRON FC JACK TF FC 22. 10/14-16 Dallas TF Kalitta FC C.Pedregon TF TONY FC C. Force TF Crampton FC Worsham TF FC 23. 10/28-30 LV 2 TF ANTRON FC J.Force TF SPENCER FC Worsham TF Kalitta FC Hight TF FC 24. 11/11-13 Pom 2 TF Langdon FC MATT TF Lucas FC MATT TF SHAWN FC Worsham TF FC DSR TOTALS: TF = 11 FC = 12 TF = 14 FC = 7 TF = 12 FC = 15 TF = 0 FC = 1

DSR 2016 SEASON TOTALS 1 - Funny Car event titles (Ron 1)

DSR 2015 SEASON TOTALS 1 – World champion (Antron’s 2nd in Top Fuel)

12 - Top Fuel event titles (Antron 7, Tony 3, Shawn 1, Spencer 1) 15 - Funny Car event titles (Jack 7, Matt 4, Ron 2, Tommy 2)

DSR 2014 SEASON TOTALS 2 - World championships (Tony’s 8th in Top Fuel, Matt’s 2nd in Funny Car)

14 - Top Fuel event titles (Antron 6, Tony 5, Spencer 3) 7 - Funny Car event titles (Matt 4, Ron 2, Tommy 1, Jack 0)

DSR ALL-TIME TOTALS 14 - World championships (Tony 8, Matt 2, Antron 2, Jack Beckman 1, Gary Scelzi 1)

268 - NHRA Mello Yello event titles (Top Fuel 135, Funny Car 112, Pro Stock 3, Pro Stock Motorcycle 18)

And don’t forget to follow us: Facebook.com/shoeracing = Twitter (@shoeracing) = ShoeRacing.com

ABOUT DON SCHUMACHER RACING Don Schumacher Racing, headquartered near Indianapolis in Brownsburg, Ind., fields seven professional NHRA teams in the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. In Top Fuel, the U.S. Army dragster driven by eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher, the 2012 and 2015 NHRA Top Fuel world champion Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster driven by Antron Brown and the Red Fuel/Sandvik Coromant dragster driven by 2013 world champion Shawn Langdon; and in Funny Car, two-time world champion Matt Hagan in the Mopar Express Lane/Rocky Boots 2016 Dodge Charger R/T, 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge of Ron Capps and the Make-A-Wish Dodge driven by Tommy Johnson Jr. DSR has won 268 NHRA national event titles and 14 world championships. Follow Don Schumacher Racing at ShoeRacing.com, on Twitter at @shoeracing and Facebook.com/shoeracing

Jeff Wolf

[email protected] Leah Vaughn

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