Capps, NAPA AUTO PARTS Funny Car rebound at Arizona Nationals from October disappointment

February 18

CHANDLER, Ariz. (Feb. 18, 2012) - One trait of top racecar drivers and other world-class athletes is their ability to remember past performances.

Some, however, would best be forgotten.

For Ron Capps, one NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series weekend it would seem the driver of the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T Funny would like to hit the erase button on would be his October visit to Firebird International Raceway.

It was the only NHRA national event he failed to qualify for all year and it could have cost his team a shot at winning the first NHRA world championship of his Funny Car career that started in 1997.

"Racecar drivers have to have great memories, but to be honest, I didn't think about October until someone asked me today," Capps said Saturday.

"This team is so good that there have been too many great things to remember."

But like any championship team has done, the Don Schumacher Racing team rebounded to win the event after the disappointing result last fall.

And Capps started this season last Sunday by advancing to the semifinals of the NHRA Winternationals at Pomona, Calif.

The NAPA AUTO PARTS team shrugged off what happened the last time it came to the track near Phoenix by getting solidly in Sunday's championship eliminations on Friday's opening day. Capps with crew chief Tim Richards are qualified 10th and will race former NHRA Funny Car world champion Cruz Pedregon in the first round.

"It helps a lot to go down the track like we did Friday and get qualified right off the bat," Capps said. "You really appreciate that you can show up and run good very time. That's going to help us Sunday."

Capps also said he's feeling much better than he did at Pomona when he woke up Sunday with a 102-degree fever.

FUNNY CAR

Ron Capps, NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T
Provisional qualifying position: No. 10
Sunday's first-round opponent: Cruz Pedregon
Friday
Session 1: 4.169 sec., 296.05 mph
Session 2: 7.316, 86.51 (lost traction)
Saturday
Session 3: 4.302, 227.46
Session 4: 4.134, 292.39

SCHEDULE:
Sunday: Pro eliminations, 11 a.m.

WEATHER.COM FORECAST:
Sunday: High of 69, partly cloudy, 0 percent chance of rain

ON ESPN2
Saturday qualifying
8-10 p.m. (ET), 5-7 p.m. (PT)
Sunday eliminations
7 p.m.-midnight (ET), 6-9 p.m. (PT)

About NAPA AUTO PARTS
NAPA was founded in 1925 to meet America's growing need for a world-class auto parts distribution system. By providing excellent customer service for more than 80 years, NAPA has become the industry leader.
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About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing, headquartered in Brownsburg, Ind., consists of seven professional NHRA teams: in Top Fuel, the U.S. Army dragster driven by seven-time world champion Tony Schumacher, the FRAM/Prestone dragster of Spencer Massey and the Matco Tools dragster of Antron Brown; and in Funny Car, 2011 NHRA Funny Car champion Matt Hagan in the Aaron's Dream Machine/Mopar Dodge Charger R/T, Valvoline NextGen Dodge piloted by Jack Beckman, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge of Ron Capps and the Service Central Dodge of Johnny Gray. DSR has won 174 NHRA national event titles and nine world championships.