NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
Event 9 of 22
Bristol Dragway
Bristol, Tenn.
June 17 – 19, 2022
Early Exit for Tony Schumacher in Bristol; David Davies Advances to Factory Stock Semifinals
BRISTOL, Tenn. (June 19, 2022) – Tony Schumacher last competed at Bristol Dragway in 2018 where he brought home the Thunder Valley Nationals trophy for the sixth time in his illustrious career, making him the winningest Top Fuel driver in the facility’s history. He was hoping his first trip back to Bristol would result in a repeat performance, but his chances at earning another Father’s Day win went up in smoke during the first round of eliminations on Sunday.
As the No. 13 qualifier, Schumacher faced fellow multi-time Top Fuel champion Antron Brown in round one. Schumacher and his Maynard Family/Scag Power Equipment dragster were nearly even with Brown as they passed the 60-foot marker, but a loss of traction near the 330 cone caused Schumacher to slow to a 4.401 while Brown posted a 3.863 E.T. for the win in the opposite lane.
“It’s so anticlimactic to come to a race that you’ve won six times and go out the way we did,” said Schumacher. “We just don’t quite have our combination figured out yet but once we do, we’ll have a great car. I’m not the kind of guy that throws fits and whips helmets. We’ll figure it out, work hard, dig deep, test, and just do what we need to do. I’ve been in this position before; it’s frustrating. I know it’s frustrating for the whole team, they work so darn hard.
“Next up is Norwalk in a few days, and I’m glad we have four qualifying runs on the schedule there,” said Schumacher, who departs Bristol Dragway ranked eleventh. “Having only three qualifying runs a weekend just doesn’t allow new teams to collect enough data. I’ve missed Bristol; I love this place, and I really wanted to win it on Father’s Day, but we got beat. Happy Father’s Day to all the dads, and thank you to all the fans that came out this weekend.”
In the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown Series, both David Davies and Mark Pawuk secured ‘top five’ qualifying positions out of 22 entries to earn a spot on the eliminations ladder. Despite posting the top speed of the meet (175.21-mph) during round one, Pawuk’s Drag Pak couldn’t keep pace with his first opponent, causing him to bow out early. After defeating Lee Hartman in the quarterfinals, Davies drew David Barton to advance to the first semifinal appearance of his Factory Stock career. Unfortunately for Davies, he was a bit over-eager to snag the round win and stood on the gas early, setting off the red light.
The NHRA Camping World Series and Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown Series compete next at the NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio, June 24 – 26.
TONY SCHUMACHER: Driver of the Maynard Family Racing/Scag Power Equipment Top Fuel Dragster
Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown Series:
DAVID DAVIES: Driver of the D H Davies Racing® /Save our Allies Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak
DAVID DAVIES: Driver of the D H Davies Racing® /Save our Allies Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak
MARK PAWUK: Driver of the Empaco Equipment Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak
WARREN WALCHER: Driver of the Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak
Qualified: DNQ
Qualified: DNQ
About Don Schumacher Racing
Established in 1998, Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) has grown to become the winningest organization in NHRA Drag Racing history, and further cemented its position as one of motorsports’ elite teams when it surpassed the ‘350 wins’ milestone during the 2020 season. DSR owns 19 world championships in three different NHRA categories, and including hall-of-fame team owner Don Schumacher’s five NHRA Funny Car triumphs from the 1970s, DSR has been successful in capturing 366 national event victories overall.Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana, DSR campaigns the Maynard Family/Scag Power Equipment Top Fuel dragster in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series with fan-favorite Tony Schumacher at the helm. As an eight-time world champion and 85-time NHRA national event winner, Schumacher is the most decorated Top Fuel driver of all time.
DSR also campaigns three entries in the Factory Stock Showdown Series. The trio of DSR Dodge Drag Paks is piloted by former Pro Stock racer Mark Pawuk, David Davies, who made his NHRA debut with DSR in 2021, and Warren Walcher, who is set to compete in his first full FSS season in 2022.
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