GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 19, 2016) – Morning rain delayed the start of Saturday’s qualifying for the 47th annual NHRA Gatornationals, and it paid off for Jack Beckman and Don Schumacher Racing’s Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car team.
Beckman began the fourth and final session with the provisional pole and was in the last pair of Funny Cars to go down the track Saturday evening and improved on his previous best time with an NHRA national record run of 3.879 seconds at a track-record speed of 329.26 mph.
The No. 1 qualifying position is the second in three Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events for Beckman and the team led by crew chief Jimmy Prock and assistants John Medlen and Chris Cunningham.
“I’m proud of the guys. That’s two of four runs on this car since our (fabrication) shop front-halved the chassis,” said Beckman, the 2012 NHRA Funny Car world championship.
“I knew our (3.913) last night could have been quicker and we showed that tonight.”
Championship eliminations begin at 11 a.m. (ET) Sunday with a three-hour live telecast on Fox Sports 1 (FS1) starting at 1 p.m. (ET).
FUNNY CAR
No. 1 qualifier: Jack Beckman (Don Schumacher Racing) 3.879 sec. (national record), 329.26 mph (track record)
JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T
Qualified: No.
SUNDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP ELIMINATIONS
First round: BECKMAN vs. Jeff Diehl
QUALIFYING
SATURDAY: 7.633 sec., 76.84 mph, (Session 3); 3.879 (national record), 329.26 (track record), (Session 4)
FRIDAY: 5.806, 115.79, (Session 1); 3.913, 323.74, (Session 2)
FULL ARTICLE
