Jack Beckman continued his strong 2011 campaign aboard his Mopar-powered Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car for Don Schumacher Racing (DSR), reaching the finals of the 11th Annual NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway in Bristol, Tenn. on Sunday, June 19.
Beckman, the No. 4 qualifier, edged Jim Head in the first round, with a pass of 4.157-seconds at 308.57 mph, along with a reaction time of 0.067 to his opponent’s 4.137/305.77 with a reaction time of 0.124. In the quarterfinals, Beckman used 0.048 reaction time to jump ahead of Melanie Troxel, who got off the line just 0.01 second behind him. Beckman never looked back using a 4.144/ 311.85 to pick up the win to Troxel’s 4.150/306.46.
Beckman made his way to the finals uncontested as Cruz Pedregon was unable to answer the bell in the semifinals. Beckman turned a solo run of 4.116/308.78 to earn a match up with Robert Hight. The two-time 2011 event winner got off the line nearly even with Hight in the finals, but smoked the tires and was not able to get the car to hook back up.
Matt Hagan aboard his Mopar-powered Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car for DSR scored a first round win over Paul Lee before falling to Jeff Arend in the quarterfinals. Fellow DSR drivers Ron Capps and Johnny Gray each bowed out in the first round.
Beckman is currently second in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Funny Car standings, with fellow Mopar-powered DSR drivers Hagan fifth, Capps ninth and Gray 10th. Next up for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series is the 5th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, June 23–26, in Norwalk, Ohio. For more information on the NHRA visit NHRA.com.
Beckman, the No. 4 qualifier, edged Jim Head in the first round, with a pass of 4.157-seconds at 308.57 mph, along with a reaction time of 0.067 to his opponent’s 4.137/305.77 with a reaction time of 0.124. In the quarterfinals, Beckman used 0.048 reaction time to jump ahead of Melanie Troxel, who got off the line just 0.01 second behind him. Beckman never looked back using a 4.144/ 311.85 to pick up the win to Troxel’s 4.150/306.46.
Beckman made his way to the finals uncontested as Cruz Pedregon was unable to answer the bell in the semifinals. Beckman turned a solo run of 4.116/308.78 to earn a match up with Robert Hight. The two-time 2011 event winner got off the line nearly even with Hight in the finals, but smoked the tires and was not able to get the car to hook back up.
Matt Hagan aboard his Mopar-powered Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car for DSR scored a first round win over Paul Lee before falling to Jeff Arend in the quarterfinals. Fellow DSR drivers Ron Capps and Johnny Gray each bowed out in the first round.
Beckman is currently second in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Funny Car standings, with fellow Mopar-powered DSR drivers Hagan fifth, Capps ninth and Gray 10th. Next up for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series is the 5th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, June 23–26, in Norwalk, Ohio. For more information on the NHRA visit NHRA.com.
