Larry Dixon beat defending series champion Tony Schumacher on Sunday night in the Top Fuel final at the rain-delayed Route 66 NHRA Nationals.
Dixon drove his dragster to a 3.823-second run at 323.12 mph to edge Schumacher for his fifth win of the season and 53rd of his career.
It also was the sixth time this season that Dixon and Schumacher have met during eliminations. Dixon has 969 points, 135 ahead of Schumacher, who moved into second. Tampabay.com
Matt Hagan, Mike Edwards and LE Tonglet also won their divisions in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event at Route 66 Raceway.
In Funny Car, Hagan not only stopped runner-up finisher Robert Hight’s winning streak, but set the national record for time in the process.
Hagan drove his Dodge Charger R/T to a 4.035 at 312.78, which was just enough to back up his semifinal time of 4.022 seconds to set the national record and pick up 20 extra points in the process. It was Hagan’s second career win.
While his three-race winning streak came to an end, Hight did take the points lead from team owner John Force with his final-round appearance. The Associated Press
“Obviously this is big,” said Dixon. “Any time you win it is huge. The last couple of times we ran in the final, he has got the best of us. It was a long day, at the same time, not as long as Friday, and it was definitely worth the wait. This track is the gold standard when sun is off of it. It is awesome. And a final round under the lights is so cool. This is what I grew up on. My dad raced a bunch of times at Orange Country and Lions at night. Our sport is so cool at night. I wish we raced through the summer on Saturday nights.”
“This was [crew chiefs] Tommy DeLago and John Medlen’s race,” said Hagan. “In the first race we won in Houston, I had to pedal the car but not here. This weekend, I had a great race car. We tested some stuff recently, but they put what they know back in the race car this weekend. I told Tommy, ‘That’s the race car I’m used to.’ It’s great to have that confidence and great to set the record and win the race. DieHard is based here in Chicago and [team owner] Don Schumacher lives here. How much better can it get?
“[The rain] was tough. In one round they started us up and shut us off. Our guys had to go get fuel, and we had to try to not get out of rhythm. We had to keep our composure when things go wrong. I’m real excited about this year. Hopefully, we’ll be in the winner’s circle a few more times.”
“That’s what Pro Stock is all about,” said Edwards, who trailed off the starting line .007 to .006. “The first thing Jason said to me was ‘Man, you were late.’ What a great way to finish the day. We weren’t at our best today, but we managed to pull off another win. It just feels great. To think that I’m having a better year than last is just incredible. I can’t believe what is taking place. It is all very humbling to me.”
Edwards has now won six of the season’s first 10 events, surpassing last year’s victory total of five. He also extended his points lead over second-place Allen Johnson in the Full Throttle standings. NHRA
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