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May 7th, 2006 - CHRISTIANSBURG, VA--"The buck stops with me on this one," said a serious Matt Hagan as he and his crew returned from last weekend's O'Reilly Midwest Nationals in Madison, IL. "We had a great car, my crew worked hard, and everything was going our way. I just didn't get the job done in the driver's seat."
Hagan is of course referring to his quarterfinal loss to Josh Hernandez after qualifying fourth in the AMS Pro Modified field last weekend.
By Saturday night Hagan had piloted his 1968 TORCO Accelerator Camaro into
4th spot, posting a 6.183/233.88 pass and positioning himself for an exciting day of competition on Sunday. He came out strong in the first round, beating Doug Palmer, and lined up in the quarters against Joshua Hernandez. "I was just happy to be in the spot we were in," remembers Hagan. "I really felt like we had something for Josh, and that was a good feeling considering he'd won three in a row at that point."
Unfortunately for Hagan, the race was over almost before it began. Hernandez
cut an 0.010 light as Hagan struggled off the line with a 0.128 light. Despite Hagan's faster ET (6.213/236.80 mph to Hernandez's 6.273/217.35 mph)
he was unable to make up for the starting deficit.
"It's frustrating," says Hagan. "We're running this same car in IHRA and with their new rule, I'm not using a 2-step. That is a whole new way of driving for me. I grabbed too much brake at the starting line and that was that."
"I want to congratulate Josh on number 4," said Hagan. "Numbers like that
don't lie. He's at the absolute top of his game and I'm just glad we had a chance to give him a good race this weekend."
Although not quite the successful weekend Hagan was hoping for, his positive
attitude remains. "The crew is really clicking right now, the car is settling in, and I know as long as we continue to qualify well our time in the winner's circle will eventually come."
Hagan and crew will enjoy a well-deserved weekend off from competition as
they continue to test the 1968 TORCO Accelerator Camaro. "We're also going
to try and get some graphics on this car," said Hagan. "I'm tired of it being mostly white. Hopefully when we show up in Bristol we'll have a better looking ride and we'll be able to break into the top of the field again and continue to fight our way to the top."
Photo: Jason Sharp
Hagan Takes Blame For Early Exit
May 7th, 2006 - CHRISTIANSBURG, VA--"The buck stops with me on this one," said a serious Matt Hagan as he and his crew returned from last weekend's O'Reilly Midwest Nationals in Madison, IL. "We had a great car, my crew worked hard, and everything was going our way. I just didn't get the job done in the driver's seat."
Hagan is of course referring to his quarterfinal loss to Josh Hernandez after qualifying fourth in the AMS Pro Modified field last weekend.
By Saturday night Hagan had piloted his 1968 TORCO Accelerator Camaro into
4th spot, posting a 6.183/233.88 pass and positioning himself for an exciting day of competition on Sunday. He came out strong in the first round, beating Doug Palmer, and lined up in the quarters against Joshua Hernandez. "I was just happy to be in the spot we were in," remembers Hagan. "I really felt like we had something for Josh, and that was a good feeling considering he'd won three in a row at that point."
Unfortunately for Hagan, the race was over almost before it began. Hernandez
cut an 0.010 light as Hagan struggled off the line with a 0.128 light. Despite Hagan's faster ET (6.213/236.80 mph to Hernandez's 6.273/217.35 mph)
he was unable to make up for the starting deficit.
"It's frustrating," says Hagan. "We're running this same car in IHRA and with their new rule, I'm not using a 2-step. That is a whole new way of driving for me. I grabbed too much brake at the starting line and that was that."
"I want to congratulate Josh on number 4," said Hagan. "Numbers like that
don't lie. He's at the absolute top of his game and I'm just glad we had a chance to give him a good race this weekend."
Although not quite the successful weekend Hagan was hoping for, his positive
attitude remains. "The crew is really clicking right now, the car is settling in, and I know as long as we continue to qualify well our time in the winner's circle will eventually come."
Hagan and crew will enjoy a well-deserved weekend off from competition as
they continue to test the 1968 TORCO Accelerator Camaro. "We're also going
to try and get some graphics on this car," said Hagan. "I'm tired of it being mostly white. Hopefully when we show up in Bristol we'll have a better looking ride and we'll be able to break into the top of the field again and continue to fight our way to the top."
Photo: Jason Sharp
