ENNIS, Texas – NHRA Top Fuel drag racer Antron Brown has quickly become a dominate force on the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series circuit this season. The 40-year old racer from Chesterfield, N.J., who drives the Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster for Don Schumacher Racing, is on a roll and is aiming for his third victory in four Countdown to the Championship on Sunday at the AAA Texas Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex. “We’ve been racing good in the Countdown but we haven’t been getting those qualifying points like we need to,” Brown said. “A lot of these teams…
Author: Mike Haag
Mike Haag
Mike Haag has covered motorsports in San Antonio and South Texas for more than 39 years. In addition to covering motorsports for the San Antonio Express-News for nearly 28 years, Mike also has co-hosted TrackSmack with Dawn Murphy for 19 race seasons. In addition to being a writer, Mike taught high school English and Journalism for 30 years before retiring in May, 2020.
DALLAS – Kalitta Motorsports is pleased to announce the expansion to a third Top Fuel dragster team driven by Troy Coughlin, Jr. beginning in the 2017 season. This announcement aligns two of the legendary names in the sport, Kalitta and Coughlin, for the first time. “I am very excited to be competing in the Top Fuel class with Kalitta Motorsports,” said Coughlin, Jr. “Kalitta Motorsports has a lot of history and legacy in NHRA similar to my family. The first time I came to Team Kalitta I noticed the family-type atmosphere and the extreme desire to win and I knew…
ENNIS, Texas – Photographer Mark Broughton provides a photographic look of the on and off track racing action of the AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals on Saturday at the Texas Motorplex. Saturday’s action included two rounds of Pro qualifying for the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle classes. Note: Click on the slide show photo below to see and advance through all of the pictures.
ENNIS, Texas – Robert Hight sprinted to the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Funny Car on Friday at the 31st annual AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals. Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were also qualifying leaders in their respective categories at the 22nd event of 24 on the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule. The AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals is the fourth race of the six-race NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship playoffs. Hight posted a 3.839-second pass at 332.02 mph in his AAA Texas Chevy Camaro SS to take…
ENNIS – With three races remaining in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship, Robert Hight, Courtney Force and John Force are fighting to stay alive in the NHRA Funny Car championship hunt. The three John Force Racing drivers clearly realize that time is running out and winning is crucial at this weekend’s 31st annual AAA Texas Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex. The event is Round 4 of the six-race Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship. “We are in a make or break position right now,” said Courtney Force, daughter of team owner and 16-time world Funny Car…
ENNIS, Texas – Starting the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship with a first-round loss is usually not an ideal recipe to winning a world championship. It’s the exact scenario Pro Stock Motorcycle standout Eddie Krawiec was faced with, but the three-time world champion has recovered in impressive fashion. He won the most recent race at Maple Grove Raceway, surging to just 38 points behind teammate and points leader Andrew Hines, and will look to keep that momentum going at this weekend’s 31st annual AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex. “We had that bad…
ENNIS, Texas – Five years ago, Chris McGaha recorded his first Pro Stock round win at the Texas Motorplex, the site of this weekend’s 31st annual AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex. As big as that was for the Texas native, McGaha has since made much bigger strides, getting his first Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals win a month ago. Yet, getting that first victory in his Harlow Sammons of Odessa Chevrolet Camaro at a track that means so much to McGaha remains a high priority for the Odessa, Texas standout. “Dallas is one of the races we’ve always…
ENNIS, Texas – As he chases his first career NHRA Mello Drag Racing Series Funny Car world championship, Ron Capps has been a model of consistency throughout the 2016 regular season. That consistency has stretched into the six-race NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship, where Capps has continued to be in top form. Capps, who leads teammate Tommy Johnson Jr. by 24 points, has advanced to the semifinals or better in the first three playoff races in his 10,000-horsepower NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T, a stretch that now goes back to 12 of his past 13 races. It’s…
ENNIS, Texas – The 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season has not gone as planned for Alexis DeJoria. But while her first world championship may not happen this season, DeJoria still has big hopes to finish out her year. DeJoria fractured her pelvis during a crash at Sonoma Raceway in late July, forcing her to miss a pair of races. She narrowly made the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship but has struggled as of late, falling in the first round at the past three races. It’s kept her 10th in points but the chance for a big…
ENNIS, Texas – It is easy for Steve Torrence to reminisce when he is in the staging lanes at the Texas Motorplex, the site of the 31st annual AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals, Oct. 13-16. The Top Fuel standout and Kilgore, Texas native grew up racing at the track just two hours from his house and every time he returns it is an opportunity to look back on his rise through the drag racing ranks at the famed facility. After advancing to the final round at the race last year, Torrence’s next step is his first Top Fuel win at the…