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ENGLISHTOWN, N.J., June 19 - U.S. Army NHRA pilots, Tony "The Sarge" Schumacher, Angelle Sampey and Antron Brown, will start a six-race, six-week grind here this weekend when they take to historic Raceway Park for the ProCare Rx SuperNationals.
Having enjoyed a weekend off following the race in Joliet, Ill., Schumacher, Sampey and Brown will now "tour" the likes of Englishtown, N.J., Norwalk, Ohio, Bristol, Tenn., Denver, Seattle and Sonoma, Calif. over the coming six weeks before the next off weekend pops up on the schedule.
Brown, who handles the controls of one of the U.S. Army Suzukis, is eager to arrive at Raceway Park since he grew up less than an hour's drive away in Chesterfield, N.J.
Pro Stock Motorcycles
A two-time Englishtown event winner, Brown can't wait to see the large contingent of family and friends who will congregate at Raceway Park in a few short days.
"I always enjoy returning home," said Brown, who now resides in Indianapolis. "It's really an opportunity to connect with a bunch of people in one big shot. Of course, beyond all of the visiting, we still have important business to attend to and that's winning the race."
Brown could definitely use a shot in the arm in the form of a victory. He
heads for the Garden State holding 11th-place in the standings, 35 points removed from the all-important eighth spot, which is the cut off for the NHRA's new Countdown to the Championship.
"A win would be huge for a lot of reasons," he said. "We would gain plenty of confidence and no doubt rise up significantly in the points."
While Brown is engaged in a fight for survival, Sampey, who is his U.S. Army Suzuki teammate, is comfortably perched near the top of the order in second-place.
"We're okay right now, but you don't want to settle for that," said the three-time world champion. "We're in a constant state of trying to improve. Like Antron, I want to win races. By the time the Countdown arrives (at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend), I want to be seriously in the hunt for the title."
Top Fuel
At Raceway Park, Schumacher will be attempting to place his U.S. Army dragster in victory lane for the first time since the ACDelco Gatornationals in March.
"I certainly hope we can do just that," said the four-time world champion. "But, it probably won't be an easy task given my career results at Englishtown."
Since turning pro full-time in 1999, the Chicago native has never won at Raceway Park or even advanced to a final round.
"It clearly has not been one of my favorite tracks over the years, but a win this time around can change my opinion pretty quickly," he added. "Of greater importance, is winning another race for our soldiers. We need to take care of our brave men and women."
Going into the ProCare Rx Supernationals, Schumacher sits in fifth-place in the standings, 125 points behind leader Rod Fuller.
"The competition is so fierce in Top Fuel this year," he said. "The pack is really tightly bunched in the points and I think it's fair to say that right now any number of drivers can win the championship. With six straight races coming up, I'm sure we'll start separating the contenders from the pretenders."
U.S. ARMY TEAM TO BEGIN HECTIC STRETCH
BROWN EXCITED ABOUT HEADING HOME
ENGLISHTOWN, N.J., June 19 - U.S. Army NHRA pilots, Tony "The Sarge" Schumacher, Angelle Sampey and Antron Brown, will start a six-race, six-week grind here this weekend when they take to historic Raceway Park for the ProCare Rx SuperNationals.
Having enjoyed a weekend off following the race in Joliet, Ill., Schumacher, Sampey and Brown will now "tour" the likes of Englishtown, N.J., Norwalk, Ohio, Bristol, Tenn., Denver, Seattle and Sonoma, Calif. over the coming six weeks before the next off weekend pops up on the schedule.
Brown, who handles the controls of one of the U.S. Army Suzukis, is eager to arrive at Raceway Park since he grew up less than an hour's drive away in Chesterfield, N.J.
Pro Stock Motorcycles
A two-time Englishtown event winner, Brown can't wait to see the large contingent of family and friends who will congregate at Raceway Park in a few short days.
"I always enjoy returning home," said Brown, who now resides in Indianapolis. "It's really an opportunity to connect with a bunch of people in one big shot. Of course, beyond all of the visiting, we still have important business to attend to and that's winning the race."
Brown could definitely use a shot in the arm in the form of a victory. He
heads for the Garden State holding 11th-place in the standings, 35 points removed from the all-important eighth spot, which is the cut off for the NHRA's new Countdown to the Championship.
"A win would be huge for a lot of reasons," he said. "We would gain plenty of confidence and no doubt rise up significantly in the points."
While Brown is engaged in a fight for survival, Sampey, who is his U.S. Army Suzuki teammate, is comfortably perched near the top of the order in second-place.
"We're okay right now, but you don't want to settle for that," said the three-time world champion. "We're in a constant state of trying to improve. Like Antron, I want to win races. By the time the Countdown arrives (at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend), I want to be seriously in the hunt for the title."
Top Fuel
At Raceway Park, Schumacher will be attempting to place his U.S. Army dragster in victory lane for the first time since the ACDelco Gatornationals in March.
"I certainly hope we can do just that," said the four-time world champion. "But, it probably won't be an easy task given my career results at Englishtown."
Since turning pro full-time in 1999, the Chicago native has never won at Raceway Park or even advanced to a final round.
"It clearly has not been one of my favorite tracks over the years, but a win this time around can change my opinion pretty quickly," he added. "Of greater importance, is winning another race for our soldiers. We need to take care of our brave men and women."
Going into the ProCare Rx Supernationals, Schumacher sits in fifth-place in the standings, 125 points behind leader Rod Fuller.
"The competition is so fierce in Top Fuel this year," he said. "The pack is really tightly bunched in the points and I think it's fair to say that right now any number of drivers can win the championship. With six straight races coming up, I'm sure we'll start separating the contenders from the pretenders."
