• Four-time NHRA world champion Matt Hagan drove his Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) Direct Connection Dodge//SRT Hellcat Funny Car to a runner-up on Sunday at Charlotte
  • Hagan, winner at zMAX Dragway in 2024, survived a semifinals engine explosion to battle back for second in the current NHRA Mission Funny Car point standings
  • The TSR Dodge//SRT Funny Car crew replaced the SRT Hellcat body of Hagan’s racecar after an engine explosion wounded the red-and-blue body as he advanced to the final
  • Quick pit work by his crew helped prepare Hagan’s machine for the four-driver final round in the Carolina Four-Wide Nationals but he was nipped at the finish line by Austin Prock
  • Despite the final-round loss, Hagan jumped from fifth to second in the current NHRA Mission points as the series heads to the Midwest Nationals this weekend (Sept. 26-28)
  • Hagan’s teammate, Tony Stewart, piloted his TSR Direct Connection Dodge//SRT Top Fuel dragster to a semifinals finish as he was edged out by race winner Justin Ashley
  • Stewart, the legendary Hall of Fame driver, won his opening round matchup over Brittany Force and Shawn Reed before exiting against Ashley, Force and Shawn Langdon
  • Stewart, the former NASCAR, IndyCar and USAC champion who won the Top Fuel regular season points title, now ranks fourth in points after two events of the six-race “Countdown”
  • Follow Dodge in NHRA action at DodgeGarage.com

September 22, 2025 Auburn Hills, Mich. – Four-time NHRA world champion Matt Hagan was close to his second 2025 NHRA Mission Funny Car win on Sunday at the NHRA Four-Wide Carolina Nationals with a runner-up placing in his Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) Direct Connection Dodge//SRT Hellcat, while TSR teammate Tony Stewart took his Dodge//SRT Top Fuel dragster to the semifinals.

Hagan, a Four-Wide winner at zMAX Dragway last year, was seeking his 54th career NHRA victory as he matched up in the final round against reigning world champion Austin Prock, Gatornationals winner Chad Green and Arizona Nationals winner Daniel Wilkerson. An engine explosion in the semifinal forced the TSR Direct Connection Dodge//SRT crew to prepare a backup SRT Hellcat body for the final round competition.

Hagan, who also won at the NHRA Northwest Nationals in July, came back to record a 3.952 to Prock’s 3.912 to take second in the four-car finale, and the runner-up finish moved the Virginia driver to second in the current Funny Car points standings as the NHRA Mission campaign travels to St. Louis this weekend (Sept. 26-28) for the NHRA Midwest Nationals.

In the semifinals, Hagan defeated former world champion Jack Beckman, Spencer Hyde and Green, while, in round one, Hagan took top honors over Beckman, J.R. Todd and John Smith. In the four-wide format, the top-two finishers in the opening rounds and semifinals advance, with four cars racing for the win in the final round.

“What a wild final,” said Hagan. “Usually, when someone (Chad Green) goes red (light) next to you, I was surprised, and I almost double stepped the throttle at the start. And if I had gone red too, I would have been out, and the other two automatically win. It’s not like a usual two-wide race, and it throws you off your game. You just aren’t ready for the guy next to you to go red. My crew guys have been great. We have gone through some adversity the last few weeks and the guys are getting blisters on their feet from working so hard on the racecar. They had 15 hours at the track on Thursday and then the whole weekend too.

“It was a good weekend overall with the No. 1 qualifier and seven for seven strong runs down the track. We have a good racecar now after our troubles last week. We have to keep grinding and we have more parts on order. The three-race swing (Reading-Charlotte-St. Louis) is a grind for everyone on the tour. It’s like the Western Swing back in the days. It’s tough. I think the crew chiefs (Mike Knudsen and Phil Shuler) have discovered those problems and we are ready for the final four races of the ‘Countdown.’”

Hagan’s TSR Dodge//SRT teammate, Tony Stewart, the NHRA Top Fuel regular season champion, opened the Four-Wide competition Sunday with an impressive “holeshot” victory over the No. 1 qualifier Brittany Force and the recent Reading Nationals winner Shawn Reed.

Stewart drove the TSR Direct Connection Dodge//SRT dragster to a 3.766-second pass against Force’s 3.758 and Reed’s 3.787. In the semifinals, Stewart lost a close race against the eventual race winner Justin Ashley, Shawn Langdon and Force with a 3.784 to Ashley’s 3.788.

After two races in the six-event “Countdown,” Stewart, the former NASCAR, IndyCar and USAC champion, now ranks fourth in the NHRA Mission Top Fuel points as the national tour goes to St. Louis (Sept. 26-28), Dallas (Oct. 10-12), Las Vegas (Oct. 31-Nov. 2) and Pomona (Nov. 14-16).

“We had an issue on Friday in round one of qualifying,” said Stewart. “I heard it while I was backing up (from the burnout) and Neal (Strausbaugh – crew chief) heard it, so we shut the car off and didn’t hurt any parts. It backed us into a corner a bit for the Friday night qualifying session, not having a run under our belt. But we still put ourselves in a good quad (four cars) for round one today and won that on a ‘holeshot.’

“We had a tough second round matchup with three strong teams to go against. The guy that beat us (Ashley) won the race, so that’s just part of the sport. We have four more races to go dig and try to gain ground back. We’re not out of this thing by any means. We have the bit in our teeth, so we’ll go bust our butts next week (at St. Louis) and see what we can do to keep gaining some of these points back.”

Hagan and Stewart will return to action for the third straight weekend at World Wide Technology Raceway for the annual NHRA Midwest Nationals. Qualifying action begins Friday, Sept. 26, with rounds at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. CDT. On Saturday, Sept. 27, the nitro sessions are scheduled for 12:15 p.m. and 3 p.m. CDT with final eliminations set for Sunday, Sept. 28, at 11 a.m. CDT. The Fox Sports 1 telecast will get underway at 3 p.m. EDT.

Direct Connection
The Direct Connection portfolio, available online and through the Dodge Power Brokers dealer network, includes modern performance, crate engine, race and vintage muscle high-performance products for Dodge performance vehicles, offering factory street, strip and track performance parts developed by SRT engineers and backed by a Mopar® warranty for peace of mind.

Performance enthusiasts and racers can access the Direct Connection hotline at (800) 998-1110 for technical and race support. More information on Direct Connection and Dodge Power Brokers is available at DCPerformance.com.

@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram
The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel continues to share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers on the track. Fans can see action from the NHRA Mission Drag Racing Series and NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers, competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

Dodge

For 111 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Their influence continues today as Dodge, America’s performance brand, shifts into high gear with a lineup that delivers unrivaled performance in each of its segments.

The new, next-generation Dodge Charger multi-energy lineup is led by the 670-horsepower Dodge Charger Daytona Scat Pack – the world’s quickest and most powerful muscle car. For 2026, the all-new 550-horsepower Dodge Charger Scat Pack, powered by the 3.0L Twin Turbo SIXPACK H.O. engine, expands the Charger lineup, powered by the most powerful Hurricane engine in production.

Dodge also keeps its foot on the pedal as a pure performance brand with the 710-horsepower Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, the most powerful gas engine SUV ever, and best-in-class standard performance in the compact-utility vehicle segment with the Dodge Hornet.

Dodge is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Mopar
Mopar is the global name for Stellantis genuine parts and authentic accessories.

A simple combination of the words Motor and PARts, Mopar offers exceptional service, parts and customer-care. Born in 1937 as the name of a line of antifreeze products, Mopar has evolved over more than 85 years to represent both complete vehicle care and authentic performance for owners and enthusiasts worldwide.

Mopar made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era with performance parts to enhance speed and handling for both on-road and racing use. Later, Mopar expanded to include technical service and customer support, and today integrates service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance customer and dealer support worldwide.

Complete information on Mopar is available at www.mopar.com and the newly redesigned Mopar blog at blog.mopar.com.

Follow Dodge, Mopar and Stellantis news and video on:

Company blog: blog.stellantisnorthamerica.com
Media website: media.stellantisnorthamerica.com
Dodge brand: www.dodge.com
DodgeGarage: www.dodgegarage.com
Mopar brand: www.mopar.com
Mopar blog: blog.mopar.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/dodge and www.facebook.com/mopar
Instagram: @DodgeMoparMotorsports, @DodgeOfficial and @OfficialMopar
Twitter: @Dodge, @OfficialMopar and @StellantisNA
YouTube: www.youtube.com/dodge, www.youtube.com/c/mopar and www.youtube.com/StellantisNA

The post Hagan Takes Runner-up in TSR Dodge//SRT Funny Car, Moves to Second in Points as Stewart Loses Close Top Fuel Semifinal at Charlotte appeared first on Matt Hagan Racing.

Continue reading...