AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals
Event 20 of 24 (St. Louis)
Countdown Event 2 of 6
World Wide Technology Raceway
Madison, Ill.
Sept. 27-29, 2019
Highlights:
- Jack Beckman enters the weekend as the Funny Car points leader after racing to victory at the previous event (Reading)
- Antron Brown leads the pro classes as the winningest driver in St. Louis history having captured the crown five times: 2009, 2012 – 2015
- Ron Capps leads the Funny Car class in most wins (four) at World Wide Technology Raceway: 1997, 2005, 2007, 2017
- Capps’ first Funny Car event win occurred at the 1997 race
- Tommy Johnson Jr. secured his first Funny Car No. 1 qualifier at St. Louis in 1999
- Leah Pritchett and Mark Pawuk return to Factory Stock Showdown Series competition
- Pritchett returns as the defending FS/XX event champion; Pawuk was the 2018 FS/XX No. 1 qualifierDSR-Owned Track Records:
Top Fuel, speed: 332.75 mph, Leah Pritchett (2017)
DSR Driver Information:
Funny Car
JACK BECKMAN
Driver of the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
Countdown to the Championship standing: No. 1
St. Louis Event Highlights:
- Two-time event champion (2012, 2016)
- Two-time runner-up (2010, 2013)
- 2012 No. 1 qualifier
2018 St. Louis Recap:
Qualified eighth; First round exit (defeated by John Force in E1)
Last Event (Reading):
Qualified third; Event champion (defeated Jim Campbell in E1, Robert Hight in E2, J.R. Todd in E3, John Force in E4)
2019 Season Statistics:
32 round wins; ranked No. 1 in points
Career Statistics:
319 races; 29 wins; 25 No. 1 qualifiers
Noteworthy:
Beckman enters the second race of the Countdown as the points leader after winning the previous event
Seeking his third consecutive final round of 2019
Quotable:
“After our Infinite Hero team finally got our first win of the season at Maple Grove, I almost didn’t want the week off, but the schedule is what it is. I was glad to get home, spend time with my family, and celebrate the win with many of our friends. I think we made an absolute statement at Maple Grove – we are a championship-contending team. I’ve said that all year; it’s one thing to believe you have a shot at the championship, but it’s an entirely different thing to stand there with your team holding the trophy at the end of the day. Doing that at the first race of the Countdown was exactly the shot in the arm our Infinite Hero team needed, and getting vaulted into first place in points was the icing on the cake. Now our job is to stay there for the rest of the year.”
About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) is the winningest team in NHRA Drag Racing history, having claimed more than 335 NHRA national event titles and 17 world championships since opening its doors in 1998.
Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana, DSR fields seven professional teams competing in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing series. In Top Fuel, the Matco Tools dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown, the MOPAR/Pennzoil/Sparkling Ice dragster driven by Leah Pritchett and eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher’s machine. 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 Matt Hagan, and in Terry and 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 Make-A-Wish Dodge.
DSR also campaigns two Factory Stock Showdown entries. The duo is piloted by Pritchett, 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.