E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals
Event 3 of 18
Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis
July 11-12, 2020
Highlights:
- After a four-month hiatus due to COVID-19, drag racing’s winningest team is focused on picking up right where they left off. Don Schumacher Racing closed out the last event (NHRA Arizona Nationals, Feb. 2020) with 347 race wins and looks forward to becoming one of the first organizations in the motorsports industry to reach the ‘350 wins’ milestone
- Top Fuel veterans and fan-favorites Cory McClenathan and Tony Schumacher recently announced their returns for the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals (Indy 1) and the Lucas Oil NHRA Summernationals (Indy 2), bringing DSR’s car count up to eight at the first Indy event
- Schumacher is the winningest NHRA driver in Indianapolis history having won the U.S. Nationals an unprecedented 10 times
- With his February NHRA Arizona Nationals victory, Tommy Johnson Jr. enters the race weekend as the most recent Funny Car winner on tour; he currently sits second in the point standings
- Funny Car point leader Jack Beckman won the 2019 season-closer, the 2020 season-opener, and raced to a runner-up finish in Phoenix. Beckman is seeking his fourth consecutive final round appearance, and third in 2020
- Beckman secured the Funny Car No. 1 qualifier and a runner-up finish during the 2019 NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis
- A DSR Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car has finished in the winner’s circle at the past five consecutive events dating back to Dallas in October of 2019
- After having earned the Funny Car pole at the first two races in 2020, Matt Hagan is seeking his third consecutive No. 1 qualifier
- Hometown event for DSR which is headquartered two miles away from the famed Indy dragstrip
- Home track for Brown and Johnson, who both reside in the greater Indianapolis area
DSR-Owned Track Records:
Funny Car, E.T.: 3.799 seconds, Matt Hagan (2017)
Funny Car, speed: 338.77 mph, Matt Hagan (2017)
Note:
Prior to the race weekend, DSR will host a mini press conference and driver availability session with all eight Mello Yello drivers on DSR’s current roster. The event, taking place from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. on Friday, July 10, is open to media only, and RSVP is required. To request to attend, please contact Allison McCormick at mccormicka@shoeracing.com
DSR Driver Information:
Funny Car:
JACK BECKMAN
Driver of the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
Indianapolis Highlights:
- 2015 event champion
- Two-time No. 1 qualifier (2015, 2019)
- Three-time runner-up (2008, 2013, 2019)
2019 U.S. Nationals Recap:
Qualified No. 1; Event runner-up (defeated Justin Schriefer in E1, Bob Tasca III in E2, J.R. Todd in E3; defeated by John Force in E4)
Last Event (Phoenix):
Qualified sixth; Event runner-up (defeated Cruz Pedregon in E1, Jim Campbell in E2, John Force in E3; defeated by Tommy Johnson Jr. in E4)
2020 Season Statistics:
One event win; seven round wins; ranked first in points
Career Statistics:
326 races; 31 wins; 27 No. 1 qualifiers
Noteworthy:
- Won the season-opener in Pomona and finished as the runner-up in Phoenix; seeking his third consecutive final round in 2020
- Secured the Funny Car No. 1 qualifier and a runner-up finish during the 2019 NHRA U.S. Nationals
Quotable:
“Everybody is talking about getting back to business as usual, and in racing, we’re going to be getting back to business, but there’s nothing usual about it. This is completely unprecedented. We’re going to lose Friday qualifying at every race from here on out, and that could drastically change your approach as a crew chief and as a driver just in qualifying. And then none of us have been in a race car for probably the longest period in our drag racing careers, so we’re going to get to make shakedown runs the day before a race weekend. I don’t think that’s been allowed for nearly 50 years in drag racing. So, the scenario is what it is, and we’re all going to do our best to make things get back to whatever ‘normal’ is as quick as possible, but I’ve got to tell you, I’ve had driving withdrawals and now I feel like it’s so sudden. After waiting for so many months, I’m looking at the calendar and it’s like when you’re a kid getting ready to go back to school. I just can’t wait to get my bag packed and get on that airplane.”
About Don Schumacher Racing:
Established in 1998 as a single-car Top Fuel team, Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) has grown to become the winningest organization in NHRA Drag Racing history. Including team owner Don Schumacher’s five NHRA Funny Car titles from the 1970s, DSR’s current win count stands at 347, and DSR is looking forward to reaching the ‘350 milestone’ early in the 2020 season. DSR owns 17 world championships in three different NHRA categories.
Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana, DSR currently fields eight professional teams competing in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. In Top Fuel, the Matco Tools/Global Electronic Technology/Toyota dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown, the Nordic Boats/Revchem Composites/Hawkeye Industries dragster driven by Cory McClenathan, the Mopar/Pennzoil/Okuma dragster driven by Leah Pruett, and the Global Electronic Technology machine driven by eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher. In Funny Car, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat driven by 2016 world champion Ron Capps, the Mopar Express Lane/Pennzoil/Sandvik Coromant Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat piloted by two-time series title-holder Matt Hagan, and in Doug Chandler’s ‘giving cars,’ 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, and Tommy Johnson Jr. behind the wheel of the MD Anderson Dodge.
DSR also campaigns two Factory Stock Showdown entries. The duo is piloted by Pruett, the 2018 Factory Stock Showdown Series champion, and former Pro Stock racer Mark Pawuk.
Follow Don Schumacher Racing at Shoeracing.com, on Twitter and Instagram at @shoeracing and Facebook.com/shoeracing.
