{"id":12842,"date":"2017-09-21T19:36:05","date_gmt":"2017-09-22T00:36:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=12842"},"modified":"2017-09-21T19:36:05","modified_gmt":"2017-09-22T00:36:05","slug":"after-slow-countdown-start-funny-car-veteran-jack-beckman-faces-pivotal-weekend-at-dodge-nhra-nationals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2017\/09\/21\/after-slow-countdown-start-funny-car-veteran-jack-beckman-faces-pivotal-weekend-at-dodge-nhra-nationals\/","title":{"rendered":"After slow Countdown start Funny Car veteran Jack Beckman faces pivotal weekend at Dodge NHRA Nationals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Courtesy of the NHRA<\/em><\/p>\n

MOHNTON, Pa. \u2013 A first-round loss to open the NHRA<\/a> Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship hasn\u2019t changed Jack Beckman\u2019s<\/strong> mindset heading into this weekend\u2019s 33rd annual Dodge NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Jack Beckman. NHRA photo<\/p><\/div>\n

The sense of urgency and goal of winning is always the same for the former Funny Car world champion. But the veteran also knows he can\u2019t have a repeat of what happened in Charlotte if he wants to remain in contention for another NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series world title in his 10,000-horsepower Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge Charger R\/T.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were on our first drive and we fumbled the ball,\u201d said Beckman, who fell to seventh in Funny Car points. \u201cWe can\u2019t do what we just did (in Charlotte). We can\u2019t afford to do that anymore. We have to be realistic about this. It takes 12-15 round wins (in the Countdown) to be a bonafide championship contender. For us, that means on average we have to make the finals every race. It\u2019s a pretty tall order, however, if we go win at Maple Grove, and (Robert) Hight and (Ron) Capps go out early, we\u2019re back in it. We just can\u2019t have them put any more daylight on us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Tommy Johnson Jr. (Funny Car), Vincent Nobile (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were last year\u2019s winners of the event that will be televised on FOX Sports 1, including live final eliminations coverage starting at 2 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, Sept. 24. It is the second of three straight races to open the Countdown to the Championship and Beckman called the stop at Maple Grove Raceway a pivotal one for his talented team.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Jack Beckman. NHRA photo<\/p><\/div>\n

Despite strong runs in qualifying and ending up fourth, things in Charlotte went awry in the first round eliminations against Jim Campbell. It wasn\u2019t the opener Beckman wanted, especially after a season that included two wins, four final rounds and a semifinal showing in Indy that put him fourth heading into the NHRA\u2019s six-race playoffs. The good news is Beckman doesn\u2019t have to wait long to rectify matters, and he\u2019s confident his team can perform well at the Dodge NHRA Nationals.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I want is to go out there right off the trailer, get down the track and start getting those bonus points,\u201d said Beckman, who has 26 career wins. \u201cFrom a mental standpoint, that would be a big deal. It\u2019s very fair to say the wind was sucked out of 11 guys after Charlotte. It\u2019s demoralizing to go out and not come out with the win light. We need a strong start for our own psyche and for our own points. It\u2019s pivotal for the Infinite Hero team to do well (this weekend).\u201d<\/p>\n

Hight took over the points lead with his Charlotte win and he currently has a 102-point advantage on Beckman. Capps is 44 points back of Hight, while Courtney Force, Johnson, J.R. Todd and Matt Hagan all sit ahead of Beckman entering this weekend. That makes for a daunting task, but Beckman, a two-time winner at Maple Grove Raceway, is looking forward to the challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you approach things with a clear mind and a calm mindset, it usually yields the best results,\u201d Beckman said. \u201cTheoretically these races are more important, but if you tell yourself they\u2019re more important, it adds more undue pressure. If the current forecast holds, it could be a fairly warm race so I don\u2019t know if you get traditional Maple Grove Raceway conditions, which is unbelievably quick. I think we do fairly well on warm racetracks and this could be a different Maple Grove.\u201d<\/p>\n

Back-to-back Top Fuel world champ Brown looks to rebound after an early Charlotte loss, chasing seven-time 2017 winner Steve Torrence and Doug Kalitta, the Charlotte winner and points leader.<\/p>\n

Nobile is after his first Pro Stock win of 2017, while everyone is chasing red-hot rookie Tanner Gray, who took the points lead with his Charlotte win to open the Countdown to the Championship.<\/p>\n

Reigning Pro Stock Motorcycle winner Krawiec has all the momentum after back-to-back wins, including the playoff opener to take the points lead from LE Tonglet, who has five wins in 2017.<\/p>\n

The event features thrilling competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. After Nitro qualifying, fans can watch the spectacular Hanna Motorsports First Strike and Top Secret Eastern Raider Jet Funny Cars. They are thrust driven propelled by jet engines with pre-run flame shows.<\/p>\n

As always, fans can interact with their favorite drivers as they\u2019re granted an exclusive pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction on the planet. This unique opportunity in motorsports gives fans direct access to the teams, allowing them to see firsthand the highly-skilled mechanics service their hot rods between rounds, and get autographs from their favorite NHRA drivers. Fans also will want to visit NHRA\u2019s popular Nitro Alley and Manufacturers Midway, where sponsors and race vendors create a carnival atmosphere, with interactive displays, simulated competitions, merchandise, food and fun for the entire family.<\/p>\n

Before the race, the Mopar Mega Block Party will jump start the Dodge NHRA Nationals for the second consecutive year, with a full slate of free, fan-friendly activities from 4-10 p.m. on Thursday at FirstEnergy Stadium in Reading. The event includes a home run derby with Mopar drivers and NHRA personalities, the unveiling of Top Fuel driver Leah Pritchett\u2019s dragster with a wrap celebrating the Mopar brand\u2019s 80th anniversary, and special recognition for retiring Mopar Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson. Dodge Challenger SRT Demon simulators, an NHRA driver autograph session, live bands, an all-Mopar car show, fireworks and more will also be part of the festivities.<\/p>\n

Mello Yello Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 1:45 and 4:15 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 22, and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, Sept. 23, at 12:45 and 3:15 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 12 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 24.<\/p>\n

To purchase general-admission or reserved seats, call 610-856-9200. Tickets also are available online at www.maplegroveraceway.com. Kids<\/a> 12 and under are free in general admission areas with a paid adult. To honor the Salute to First Responders, military and first responders can save 20 percent on general admission tickets at the gate. For more info, visit www.NHRA.com. <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Courtesy of the NHRA MOHNTON, Pa. \u2013 A first-round loss to open the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship hasn\u2019t changed Jack Beckman\u2019s mindset heading into this weekend\u2019s 33rd annual Dodge NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway. The sense of urgency and goal of winning is always the same for the former Funny Car […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12850,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4],"tags":[493,100,492,6],"class_list":["post-12842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nhra","tag-dodge-nhra-nationals","tag-jack-beckman","tag-maple-grove-raceway","tag-nhra"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Beckman_Jack_Action_2017.jpg?fit=2250%2C1500","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-3l8","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12842"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12842\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12851,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12842\/revisions\/12851"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}