Schumacher (TF), Hagan (FC), Line (PS), Krawiec (PSM) ones to beat in Monday’s NHRA U.S. Nationals finals

By Aug 31, 2014, 9:08 PM EDT
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Following Sunday’s final round of qualifying, Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel), Matt Hagan (Funny Car), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) will lead their respective classes as No. 1 qualifiers for Monday’s final eliminations of the 60th annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals.

There’s plenty at stake Monday at Lucas Oil Raceway in Brownsburg, Ind. The U.S. Nationals are the most prestigious race in drag racing, essentially to the NHRA what the Daytona 500 is to NASCAR.

Not only is there the prestige of going for the win, how Monday’s finals play out will set the final top-10 fields in each of the four pro categories for the six-race Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship playoffs (begins Sept. 12-14 at zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C.).

Sunday was definitely a much more different than usual at the U.S. Nationals.

Not only did it feature the Traxxas Nitro Shootout – an all-star race within a race and a $100,000 top prize, both won by 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force – the afternoon also included the conclusion of the Pro Stock category that was suspended due to weather two weeks ago at Brainerd, Minn.

Line wound up winning that suspended race, essentially doubling up by also claiming the No. 1 qualifying spot for Monday’s finals, which begin at 11 am ET at Lucas Oil Raceway in Brownsburg, Ind.

The delayed win was Line’s third consecutive win in Pro Stock, the first time he’s achieved that feat in his career. It was also his 35th career win, moving him to the top of the Pro Stock points standings.

“Our car ran very good,” Line said. “Our Camaro was very fast this weekend. It was a little bit weird to win Brainerd at Indy. But it’s the first thing I’ve ever done well at in Indy.”

In the Traxxas race, Force earned his second win the history of that event, defeating teammate Robert Hight in the final round, covering the 1,000-foot track in 4.061 seconds at 317.19 mph.

Force defeated fan vote/lottery winner Tim Wilkerson and two-time season winner Alexis DeJoria to reach the final vs. Hight, who is also president of John Force Racing.

“It was a win-win situation,” Force said of racing Hight, per a NHRA media release. “We couldn’t lose. All of the sponsors were on all of the cars. We just couldn’t lose it.”

Force is going for his sixth career U.S. Nationals win on Monday, while Hight will be both seeking revenge for the Traxxas loss as well as his fourth U.S. Nationals title.

In other classes:

* Schumacher set a track record speed of 328.54 mph (at 3.748 seconds) as he won the Top Fuel portion of the Traxxas Nitro Shootout, as well. Like Force, Schumacher also earned $100,000.

By doing so, Schumacher also earned the top qualifying position for Monday’s finals, the third of this season and 75th of his career.

Schumacher is seeking a record-breaking 10th Top Fuel win at Indy. He’ll start the first round Monday against Don Schumacher Racing teammate Antron Brown.

“You think you’re going to run an easier car when you’re No. 1,” Tony Schumacher said. “Before he even ran, the (elimination) bump was .84. You were running a bad to the bone car no matter what. As a teammate, I’m happier (Brown) got in and I have to race him than had he gotten bumped.”

* Matt Hagan also set a track record time of 3.998 seconds (at 316.01 mph), the first time a Funny Car has ever gone under four seconds at Lucas Oil Raceway, just outside Indianapolis.

“It was just a phenomenal run,” Hagan said of his 16th career No. 1 qualifying spot. “Especially after those guys (The Mopar Express Lane crew) having such a late last night when we banged the blower off of it and they had to pull another body out and another motor out.”

* In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Krawiec took the top qualifying spot – the 20th of his career – with a run of 6.829 seconds at 196.56 mph. He hopes it’s the first step towards his first career U.S. Nationals win on Monday.

“That’s definitely one I’d look to put a check next to,” Krawiec said. “We learned some stuff today. That was the key to moving onto Monday here. It’s not often you get five qualifying sessions, but when you do you need to take advantage of it.”

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

STATISTICS

* Monday’s first-round pairings for eliminations for the 60th annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals

Top Fuel — 1. Tony Schumacher, 3.748 seconds, 328.54 mph vs. 16. Antron Brown, 3.845, 320.20; 2. Steve Torrence, 3.753, 326.16 vs. 15. J.R. Todd, 3.814, 323.89; 3. Morgan Lucas, 3.757, 322.81 vs. 14. Khalid alBalooshi, 3.810, 321.96; 4. Richie Crampton, 3.772, 324.20 vs. 13. Billy Torrence, 3.806, 323.66; 5. Shawn Langdon, 3.779, 321.81 vs. 12. Spencer Massey, 3.799, 324.12; 6. Bob Vandergriff, 3.782, 325.06 vs. 11. T.J. Zizzo, 3.795, 321.58; 7. Brittany Force, 3.786, 328.30 vs. 10. Larry Dixon, 3.791, 322.42; 8. Dom Lagana, 3.786, 319.90 vs. 9. Doug Kalitta, 3.787, 324.98.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Leah Pritchett, 3.846, 320.58; 18. Pat Dakin, 3.956, 312.64; 19. Chris Karamesines, 3.963, 307.86; 20. Clay Millican, 4.171, 306.95; 21. Terry McMillen, 4.756, 320.89; 22. Cory McClenathan, 5.354, 169.83; 23. Luigi Novelli, 9.595, 268.54.

Funny Car — 1. Matt Hagan, Dodge Charger, 3.998, 318.99 vs. 16. Bob Bode, Toyota Camry, 4.436, 304.87; 2. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.004, 319.07 vs. 15. Blake Alexander, Charger, 4.144, 299.46; 3. Courtney Force, Ford Mustang, 4.005, 322.73 vs. 14. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.103, 309.84; 4. Del Worsham, Camry, 4.016, 317.12 vs. 13. Jeff Arend, Charger, 4.082, 314.02; 5. Ron Capps, Charger, 4.026, 320.36 vs. 12. Chad Head, Camry, 4.073, 313.88; 6. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.026, 317.49 vs. 11. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 4.053, 316.67; 7. Alexis DeJoria, Camry, 4.033, 316.52 vs. 10. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 4.046, 311.70; 8. John Force, Mustang, 4.042, 319.75 vs. 9. Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.042, 318.24.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Tony Pedregon, 4.798, 288.52.

Pro Stock — 1. Jason Line, Chevy Camaro, 6.589, 210.01 vs. 16. Rodger Brogdon, Camaro, 6.675, 207.94; 2. Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 6.601, 208.55 vs. 15. Matt Hartford, Dodge Avenger, 6.661, 208.49; 3. Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.603, 209.39 vs. 14. Shane Tucker, Camaro, 6.637, 208.94; 4. Dave Connolly, Camaro, 6.605, 209.10 vs. 13. V. Gaines, Dodge Dart, 6.629, 208.71; 5. Erica Enders-Stevens, Camaro, 6.607, 208.59 vs. 12. Richie Stevens, Camaro, 6.627, 208.59; 6. Allen Johnson, Dart, 6.610, 208.81 vs. 11. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.624, 208.10; 7. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.611, 209.14 vs. 10. Jonathan Gray, Camaro, 6.623, 208.84; 8. Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.621, 208.33 vs. 9. Jeg Coughlin, Dart, 6.623, 208.07.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Larry Morgan, 6.676, 206.95; 18. John Gaydosh Jr, 6.728, 207.24; 19. Kenny Delco, 6.742, 205.88; 20. Steve Schmidt, 6.783, 203.89; 21. Dave River, 6.883, 204.94.

Pro Stock Motorcycle — 1. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 6.829, 196.56 vs. 16. Shawn Gann, Buell, 7.011, 192.03; 2. Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 6.878, 194.18 vs. 15. Chaz Kennedy, Buell, 7.001, 191.40; 3. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.888, 193.63 vs. 14. Adam Arana, Buell, 6.951, 193.35; 4. Michael Ray, Buell, 6.890, 194.21 vs. 13. Jim Underdahl, Suzuki, 6.944, 192.63; 5. Hector Arana Jr, Buell, 6.906, 195.11 vs. 12. Scotty Pollacheck, Buell, 6.944, 192.55; 6. Angie Smith, Buell, 6.915, 192.55 vs. 11. Hector Arana, Buell, 6.939, 195.19; 7. John Hall, Buell, 6.919, 194.63 vs. 10. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.935, 193.10; 8. LE Tonglet, Suzuki, 6.921, 192.36 vs. 9. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 6.926, 193.65.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Elvira Karlsson, 7.050, 189.92; 18. Freddie Camarena, 7.081, 191.08; 19. Mike Berry, 7.099, 190.92; 20. Joe DeSantis, 7.109, 187.91; 21. Redell Harris, 7.129, 188.10; 22. Craig Treble, 7.515, 188.60.

 

* Round-by-round results from the Third annual Traxxas Funny Car Shootout at Lucas Oil Raceway Park at Indianapolis.

ROUND ONE — Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Camry, 4.072, 275.67 def. Tommy Johnson Jr., Dodge Charger, 4.313, 265.17; Courtney Force, Ford Mustang, 4.005, 322.73 def. Ron Capps, Charger, 4.043, 319.37; Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.042, 318.24 def. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 4.052, 310.98; John Force, Mustang, 4.042, 319.75 def. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.073, 311.34;

SEMIFINALS — J. Force, 4.967, 169.08 def. DeJoria, broke; Hight, 4.768, 264.08 def. C. Force, 5.374, 162.31;

FINAL — J. Force, 4.061, 317.19 def. Hight, 4.178, 304.32.

* Finishing order of Pro Stock eliminations from postponed finals two weeks ago at Brainerd, Minn.: 1. Jason Line; 2. Jeg Coughlin; 3. Vincent Nobile; 4. Dave River; 5. Shane Gray; 6. Allen Johnson; 7. Deric Kramer; 8. Dave Connolly; 9. Greg Anderson; 10. V. Gaines; 11. Larry Morgan; 12. Chris McGaha; 13. Mark Hogan; 14. Erica Enders-Stevens; 15. Jonathan Gray.

Final round of postponed Pro Stock finals at Brainerd, Minn.: Jason Line, Chevy Camaro, 6.596, 207.40 def. Jeg Coughlin, Dodge Dart, 6.635, 207.72.

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‘It’s gnarly, bro’: IndyCar drivers face new challenge on streets of downtown Detroit

By Jun 2, 2023, 7:32 PM EDT
IndyCar Detroit downtown
James Black/Penske Entertainment
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DETROIT – It was the 1968 motion picture, “Winning” when actress Joanne Woodward asked Paul Newman if he were going to Milwaukee in the days after he won the Indianapolis 500 as driver Frank Capua.

“Everybody goes to Milwaukee after Indianapolis,” Newman responded near the end of the film.

Milwaukee was a mainstay as the race on the weekend after the Indianapolis 500 for decades, but since 2012, the first race after the Indy 500 has been Detroit at Belle Isle Park.

This year, there is a twist.

Instead of IndyCar racing at the Belle Isle State Park, it’s the streets of downtown Detroit on a race course that is quite reminiscent of the old Formula One and CART race course that was used from 1982 to 1991.

Formula One competed in the United States Grand Prix from 1982 to 1988. Beginning in 1989, CART took over the famed street race through 1991. In 1992, the race was moved to Belle Isle, where it was held through last year (with a 2009-2011 hiatus after the Great Recession).

The Penske Corp. is the promoter of this race, and they did a lot of good at Belle Isle, including saving the Scott Fountain, modernizing the Belle Isle Casino, and basically cleaning up the park for Detroit citizens to enjoy.

The race, however, had outgrown the venue. Roger Penske had big ideas to create an even bigger event and moving it back to downtown Detroit benefitted race sponsor Chevrolet. The footprint of the race course goes around General Motors world headquarters in the GM Renaissance Center – the centerpiece building of Detroit’s modernized skyline.

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Motor City is about to roar with the sound of Chevrolet and Honda engines this weekend as the NTT IndyCar Series is the featured race on the nine-turn, 1.7-mile temporary street course.

It’s perhaps the most unique street course on the IndyCar schedule because of the bumps on the streets and the only split pit lane in the series.

The pit lanes has stalls on opposing sides and four lanes across an unusual rectangular pit area (but still only one entry and exit).

Combine that, with the bumps and the NTT IndyCar Series drivers look forward to a wild ride in Motor City.

“It’s gnarly, bro,” Arrow McLaren driver Pato O’Ward said before posting the fastest time in Friday’s first practice. “It will be very interesting because the closest thing that I can see it being like is Toronto-like surfaces with more of a Long Beach-esque layout.

“There’s less room for error than Long Beach. There’s no curbs. You’ve got walls. I think very unique to this place.

PRACTICE RESULTS: Speeds from the first session

“Then it’s a bit of Nashville built into it. The braking zones look really very bumpy. Certain pavements don’t look bumpy but with how the asphalt and concrete is laid out, there’s undulation with it. So, you can imagine the cars are going to be smashing on every single undulation because we’re going to go through those sections fairly fast, and obviously the cars are pretty low. I don’t know.

“It looks fun, man. It’s definitely going to be a challenge. It’s going to be learning through every single session, not just for drivers and teams but for race control. For everyone.

“Everybody has to go into it knowing not every call is going to be smooth. It’s a tall task to ask from such a demanding racetrack. I think it’ll ask a lot from the race cars as well.”

The track is bumpy, but O’Ward indicated he would be surprised if it is bumper than Nashville. By comparison to Toronto, driving at slow speed is quite smooth, but fast speed is very bumpy.

“This is a mix of Nashville high-speed characteristics and Toronto slow speed in significant areas,” O’Ward said. “I think it’ll be a mix of a lot of street courses we go to, and the layout looks like more space than Nashville, which is really tight from Turn 4 to 8. It looks to be a bit more spacious as a whole track, but it’ll get tight in multiple areas.”

The concept of having four-wide pit stops is something that excites the 24-year-old driver from Monterey, Mexico.

“I think it’s innovation, bro,” O’Ward said. “If it works out, we’ll look like heroes.

“If it doesn’t, we tried.”

Because of the four lanes on pit road, there is a blend line the drivers will have to adhere to. Otherwise, it would be chaos leaving the pits compared to a normal two-lane pit road.

“If it wasn’t there, there’d be guys fighting for real estate where there’s one car that fits, and there’d be cars crashing in pit lane,” O’Ward said. “I get why they did that. It’s the same for everybody. I don’t think there’s a lot of room to play with. That’s the problem.

“But it looks freaking gnarly for sure. Oh my God, that’s going to be crazy.”

Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing believes the best passing areas will be on the long straights because of the bumps in the turns. That is where much of the action will be in terms of gaining or losing a position in the race.

“It will also be really easy to defend in my opinion,” Palou said. “Being a 180-degree corner, you just have to go on the inside and that’s it. There’s going to be passes for sure but its’ going to be risky.

“Turn 1, if someone dives in, you end up in the wall. They’re not going to be able to pass you on the exit, so maybe with the straight being so long you can actually pass before you end up on the braking zone.”

Palou’s teammate, Marcus Ericsson, was at the Honda simulator in Brownsburg, Indiana, before coming to Detroit and said he was shocked by the amount of bumps on the simulator.

Race promoter Bud Denker, the President of Penske Corporation, and Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix President Michael Montri, sent the track crews onto the streets with grinders to smooth out the bumps on the race course several weeks ago.

“They’ve done a decent amount of work, and even doing the track walk, it looked a lot better than what we expected,” Ericsson said. “I don’t think it’ll be too bad. I hope not. That’ll be something to take into account.

“I think the track layout doesn’t look like the most fun. Maybe not the most challenging. But I love these types of tracks with rules everywhere. It’s a big challenge, and you have to build up to it. That’s the types of tracks that I love to drive. It’s a very much Marcus Ericsson type of track. I like it.”

Scott Dixon, who was second fastest in the opening session, has competed on many new street circuits throughout his legendary racing career. The six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion for Chip Ganassi Racing likes the track layout, even with the unusual pit lane.

“I don’t think that’s going to be something that catches on where every track becomes a double barrel,” Dixon said. “It’s new and interesting.

“As far as pit exit, I think Toronto exit is worse with how the wall sticks out. I think in both lanes, you’ve got enough lead time to make it and most guys will make a good decision.”

It wasn’t until shortly after 3 p.m. ET on Friday that the IndyCar drivers began the extended 90-minute practice session to try out the race course for the first time in real life.

As expected, there were several sketchy moments, but no major crashes during the first session despite 19 local yellow flags for incidents and two red flags.

Rookie Agustin Canapino had to cut his practice short after some damage to his No. 78 Dallara-Chevrolet, but he was among many who emerged mostly unscathed from scrapes with the wall.

“It was honestly less carnage than I expected,” said Andretti Autosport’s Kyle Kirkwood, who was third fastest in the practice after coming off his first career IndyCar victory in the most recent street race at Long Beach in April. “I think a lot of people went off in the runoffs, but no one actually hit the wall (too hard), which actually surprised me. Hats off to them for keeping it clean, including myself.

“It was quite a bit less grip than I think everyone expected. Maybe a little bit more bumpy down into Turn 3 than everyone expected. But overall they did a good job between the two manufacturers. I’m sure everyone had pretty much the same we were able to base everything off of. We felt pretty close to maximum right away.”

Most of the preparation for this event was done either on the General Motors Simulator in Huntersville, North Carolina, or the Honda Performance Development simulator in Brownsburg, Indiana.

“Now, we have simulators that can scan the track, so we have done plenty of laps already,” Power told NBC Sports. “They have ground and resurfaced a lot of the track, so it should be smoother.

“But nothing beats real-world experience. It’s going to be a learning experience in the first session.”

As a Team Penske driver, Power and his teammates were consulted about the progress and layout of the Detroit street course. They were shown what was possible with the streets that were available.

“We gave some input back after we were on the similar what might be ground and things like that,” Power said.

Racing on the streets of Belle Isle was a fairly pleasant experience for the fans and corporate sponsor that compete in the race.

But the vibe at the new location gives this a “big event” feel.

“The atmosphere is a lot better,” Power said. “The location, the accessibility for the fans, the crowd that will be here, it’s much easier. I think it will be a much better event.

“It feels like a Long Beach, only in a much bigger city. That is what street course racing is all about.”

Because the track promoter is also the team owner, Power and teammates Scott McLaughlin and Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden will have a very busy weekend on the track, and with sponsor and personal appearances.

“That’s what pays the bills and allows us to do this,” Power said.

Follow Bruce Martin on Twitter at @BruceMartin_500