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Epping Pre-Race Report
NHRA New England Nationals
Event No. 6 of 21
New England Dragway
Epping, N.H.
June 11-13, 2021
Noteworthy:
- Reigning Funny Car world champion Matt Hagan returns to New England Dragway as the defending event champ, and seeks his fourth consecutive Epping triumph after racing to victory in 2017, 2018, and 2019, as he looks to break through for his first win of the season
- Hagan’s three Epping wins are the most amongst any Camping World Series competitor at the facility
- Antron Brown has been to the final round three out of the past four times the NHRA his visited New England Dragway, winning in 2016 and finishing as the runner-up in 2017 and 2018
- Brown, who won the Atlanta event, is currently ranked second in the Top Fuel point standings
- Leah Pruett will celebrate her ‘silver anniversary’ as an NHRA competitor during the New England Nationals, and will run a silver ribbon on her dragster’s roll cage to signify 25 years in the sport
- No. 4 ranked Ron Capps raced to his first final round of the season at the previous event, and is looking to pick up his third Epping victory
- Both Hagan and Pruett will feature special paint schemes during the event:
- Hagan will campaign the DSR Performance Dodge Funny Car
- DSR Performance is the retail arm of Don Schumacher Racing, offering performance race parts and lifestyle gear
- Pruett will wheel the DSM Precision Manufacturing dragster
- DSM is Don Schumacher Racing’s manufacturing arm, and is a leader in complex machining for the aerospace, defense, and motorsports industries
- Brown will debut his new 2021 Matco Tools paint scheme, which he will run at the remainder of the events, with the exception of his pink Breast Cancer Awareness livery in October
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DSR Driver Information:
Top Fuel:
ANTRON BROWN
Driver of the Matco Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster |
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Epping Event Highlights:
- 2016 event champion
- Two-time runner-up (2017, 2018)
- 2014 No. 1 qualifier
2020 Epping Recap:
N/A (canceled due to COVID-19)
2019 Epping Recap:
Qualified fourth; Quarterfinal finish (defeated Cameron Ferre in E1; defeated by Scott Palmer in E2)
Last Event (Houston):
Qualified third; Quarterfinal finish (defeated Lee Callaway in E1; defeated by Doug Kalitta in E2)
Career Statistics:
446 races; 68 wins (16 Pro Stock Motorcycle); 49 No. 1 Qualifiers (11 PSM)
Noteworthy:
- Brown has been to the final round in Epping three out of the past four times the NHRA his visited New England Dragway, winning in 2016 and finishing as the runner-up in 2017 and 2018
- Brown, who won the Atlanta event, is currently ranked second in the Top Fuel point standings
- Brown will debut his new 2021 Matco Tools paint scheme, which he will run at the remainder of the events, with the exception of his pink Breast Cancer Awareness livery in October
Quotable:
“I’m looking forward to going back up to the Northeast and seeing some familiar faces from my old stomping grounds not too far away in New Jersey. New England Dragway has always been good to our Matco Tools/Toyota team. The weather is looking really good this weekend, mid-to-high 70s and the track surface is always super smooth there. We want to make sure we qualify well on Friday night, and get our ‘summer swing’ as I’m calling it, off to a good start. We have so many races coming up over the next few months, and I’m really excited to get back out there and do what we do.”
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LEAH PRUETT
Driver of the DSM Precision Manufacturing Top Fuel Dragster |
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Epping Event Highlights:
- Two-time No. 1 qualifier (2017, 2018)
2020 Epping Recap:
N/A (canceled due to COVID-19)
2018 Epping Recap:
Qualified No. 1; Semifinal finish (defeated Audrey Worm in E1, Doug Kalitta in E2; defeated by Antron Brown in E3)
*did not compete in 2019
Last Event (Houston):
Qualified second; First round exit (defeated by Justin Ashley in E1)
Career Statistics:
157 races; eight wins; 12 No. 1 Qualifiers
Noteworthy:
- Pruett will be celebrating her ‘silver anniversary’ as an NHRA competitor during the New England Nationals, and will run a silver ribbon on her dragster’s roll cage to signify 25 years in the sport
- Pruett will wheel the DSM Precision Manufacturing dragster during the event
- DSM is Don Schumacher Racing’s manufacturing arm, and is a leader in complex machining for the aerospace, defense, and motorsports industries
- DSM’s range of advanced equipment and highly-skilled engineers offer customers endless solutions and value. Visit www.DSMPM.com for a complete list of DSM’s capabilities
Quotable:
“It always excites me when I get the opportunity to fly the flagship banner for products and brands that I believe in, especially ones that carry such high relevancy in our performance, like DSM Precision Manufacturing. From mass-produced blocks, heads, and rods, to brackets, and custom-developed parts, our dragster is the perfect vehicle to showcase DSM Precision Manufacturing and its capabilities in aerospace and defense. I look forward to all of our parts, pieces, and people excelling at their job this weekend in Epping, which should deliver a finished product of Wally gold on Sunday.” |
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Funny Car:
RON CAPPS
Driver of the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat |
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Epping Event Highlights:
- Two-time event champion (2014, 2016)
- 2016 No. 1 qualifier
2020 Epping Recap:
N/A (canceled due to COVID-19)
2019 Epping Recap:
Qualified third; Quarterfinal finish (defeated Mike Smith in E1; defeated by Matt Hagan in E2)
Last Event (Houston):
Qualified third; Event runner-up (defeated Paul Lee in E1, Matt Hagan in E2, Tim Wilkerson in E3; defeated by Robert Hight in E4)
Career Statistics:
571 races; 66 wins (one Top Fuel); 26 No. 1 qualifiers
Noteworthy:
- No. 4 ranked Ron Capps raced to his first final round of the season at the previous event (Houston), and is looking to pick up his third Epping victory
Quotable:
“We’re heading into a stretch of races that probably a lot of us took for granted up until COVID when so many stops on our schedule got canceled, including this weekend’s race in New England, and the upcoming races in Norwalk, Denver, and Sonoma. The fans that come out to New England Dragway are like no other. When we first started racing there again back in 2013, it was so eye-opening to see how loyal and rabid the NHRA fans in that area are. And, New England Dragway has got such an old-school feel to it, so being able to win there in 2014 and 2016 was awesome. Last year made me really, really miss that area, and it taught me not to take any of our races for granted. Plus, it’ll be great to get to reunite with our NAPA AUTO PARTS family up there. The night before the race we’re going to a Boston Red Sox game with a lot of our NAPA customers.
“We’re hoping Epping will be where we get our first win of 2021, and the first win with our new team. ‘Guido’ (Dean Antonelli), John Medlen, and our entire NAPA AutoCare team has been consistent, we’ve qualified well, and have had a great race car every weekend this year, and that’s really all you can do. We’re a win waiting to happen, and I’d love nothing more than to do it this weekend in front of our New England NAPA friends at New England Dragway.” |
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MATT HAGAN
Driver of the DSR Performance Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye |
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Epping Event Highlights:
- Three-time event champion (2017, 2018, 2019)
- 2018 No. 1 qualifier
2020 Epping Recap:
N/A (canceled due to COVID-19)
2019 Epping Recap:
Qualified sixth; Event champion (defeated Jack Beckman in E1, Ron Capps in E2, Bob Tasca III in E3, Shawn Langdon in E4)
Last Event (Houston):
Qualified sixth; Quarterfinal finish (defeated Chad Green in E1; defeated by Ron Capps in E2)
Career Statistics:
280 races; 36 wins; 40 No. 1 qualifiers
Noteworthy:
- Reigning Funny Car world champion Matt Hagan returns to New England Dragway as the defending event champ, and seeks his fourth consecutive Epping triumph after racing to victory in 2017, 2018, and 2019, as he looks to break through for his first win of the season
- Hagan’s three Epping wins are the most amongst any Camping World Series competitor at the facility
- Hagan will campaign the DSR Performance Dodge Funny Car as he defends his three-year Epping win streak
- DSR Performance is the retail arm of Don Schumacher Racing, offering performance race parts and lifestyle gear
- DSR Performance features both new and used parts for racing and street vehicles with the objective of providing premium, championship-winning design and performance direct-to-consumers via www.DSR.parts. In addition to a catalog that features products for both nitro and sportsman racers, DSR Performance also boasts service-based offerings, including parts and tuning consultations with DSR’s brain trust of crew chiefs.
Quotable:
“We’ve won there three years in a row at Epping, and to make it four-in-a-row would be amazing. Obviously, that’s quite hard to do, but I feel like we’re definitely due for a win. We keep making adjustments, the car is responding, and we’re starting to get some of our mojo and momentum back. This Hellcat Charger hasn’t been in the winner’s circle yet this year, but I feel like we’re very capable. We have the people, and the parts and pieces to do it. My lights have been really good, and the car has been responding to the driving. Hopefully, Epping will bring us the same success we’ve had the last three times we’ve visited and we’ll get that first win of the season. I’m glad we’re going back up there since we missed it last year, and I can’t wait to see all of our New England fans; they always turn out in full force. There’s nothing better than rolling out and doing a burnout when you see full grandstands. It still gives me chill bumps just to think about it even after 15 years of doing this. I’ve got nothing but confidence in Dickie Venables and Mike Knudsen, and I’m certain we’ll turn a corner this weekend and hopefully bring home that fourth New England Dragway Wally in our DSR Performance Dodge Hellcat.” |
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About Don Schumacher Racing:
Established in 1998 as a single-car Top Fuel team, 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 18 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 359 national event victories overall.
Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana, DSR fields four professional teams competing in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. Three-time world champion Antron Brown, and double-duty driver Leah Pruett headline DSR’s Top Fuel dragster team. DSR’s two Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Cars are driven by 2016 Funny Car world champion Ron Capps, and Matt Hagan, who earned his third NHRA series title in 2020.
DSR also campaigns two entries in the Factory Stock Showdown Series. The duo of DSR Dodge Drag Paks is piloted by Pruett, the 2018 series champion, and former Pro Stock racer Mark Pawuk.
For more information, visit shoeracing.com, or Follow Us @shoeracing on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. |
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Media Contact:
Allison McCormick
Public Relations Manager
Don Schumacher Racing
[email protected]
(305) 764-5377 |
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