One subpar qualifying run leaves Beckman with tough match-up against DSR teammate and early exit at Norwalk

July 08

NORWALK, Ohio (July 8, 2012) – Jack Beckman and his Schumacher Electric/Valvoline NextGen Funny Car had very good qualifying runs in three of the four sessions, but its worst couldn’t have come at a worse time.

Most Funny Cars in the NHRA Summit Racing Equipment Nationals at Summit Motorsports Park at Norwalk, Ohio, produced their quickest runs on Friday night under the weekend’s coolest temperatures. But not Beckman.

A subpar performance was only good for the No. 13 qualifying position that dropped them into a position where they would race the No. 4 qualifier, which happened to be Don Schumacher Racing teammate Ron Capps who had choice of lanes for Sunday’s championship eliminations.

Beckman and crew chief Todd Smith produced a time of 4.158 seconds at 298.21 mph Sunday that would have been quick enough to win three other first-round match-ups, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Capps’ 4.102 (308.00) that was the quickest of the opening round.

“Our getting beat first round has a lot to do with qualifying in the bottom half of the field and not having lane choice,” Beckman said. “It’s not that we didn’t do a good job in qualifying because we were the quickest in two of the four sessions and fifth quickest in another.

“We just missed the tune-up on Friday night when almost everyone ran their quickest,” he said of Friday night. “That put us in the bottom half and gave us a tough first-round opponent without lane choice.

“Our time would have won several other races, but it wasn’t good enough against Ron and that NAPA team. We can’t hang our heads because we’re still running well, and we know if we continue to we’ll be back in the winner’s circle soon.

“It’s just frustrating to have a team that you know is capable of winning races and then not even get a round win on Sunday. We hope to do a better job in qualifying sessions to get better first-round match-ups.

“I’ve always said I’d rather win ugly then win pretty. We lost pretty; we made a good run and lost. If you continue to cut good lights and make good runs down the track on balance that will pay off.”

The early loss dropped Beckman from third to fourth in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series standings.

NORWALK RESULTS

Jack Beckman, Schumacher Electric/Valvoline NextGen Dodge Charger R/T
Qualified: No. 13
SUNDAY ELIMINATIONS
First round: Ron Capps (4.102 sec., 308.00 mph) def. BECKMAN (4.158, 298.21)

QUALIFYING
FRIDAY
Session 1: 3.984 sec., 301.20 mph
Session 2: 9.103, 70.10
SATURDAY
Session 3: 3.923, 310.05
Session 4: 4.030, 297.09

FULL THROTTLE FUNNY CAR STANDINGS
(DSR drivers in capital letters)
1. Robert Hight
2. RON CAPPS
3. Mike Neff
4. JACK BECKMAN
5. JOHNNY GRAY

NEXT FULL THROTTLE EVENT:
July 20-25, Mopar Mile High Nationals, Denver
About Valvoline
Valvoline, a brand of Ashland Inc, has been serving American motorists longer than any other motor oil. The Valvoline family of products includes Eagle One™ appearance products, Car Brite™ car restoration products, Zerex™ antifreeze, SynPower™ performance products, MaxLife™ products created for higher-mileage engines and NextGen™ motor oil, created with 50 percent recycled oil.
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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 arrived in Norwalk, Ohio, with 184 NHRA national event titles and nine world championships.
Follow Don Schumacher Racing at ShoeRacing.com, on Twitter at @shoeracing and Facebook.com/shoeracing.

- DSR -