DSR: Beckman takes fifth Funny Car pole of Mello Yello season; Brown can clinch Top Fuel title Sunday while Capps extends lead

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 29, 2016) – Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car barely ran fast enough Friday to get a speeding ticket on the Interstate 15 and were ranked 22nd in qualifying for the NHRA Toyota Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

But the pace quickened Saturday night when the Beckman’s Dodge tuned by crew chief Jimmy Prock with assistants John Medlen and Chris Cunningham produced a track-record time of 3.871 seconds at a speed of 327.43 mph to edge Don Schumacher Racing teammate Matt Hagan (Mopar Express Lane/Rocky Boots) for the pole by one-thousandth of a second.

“We got our act together and went the 3.871. That was a sigh of relief, and I thought that would keep us in the top-four but no way I thought it would keep us on the pole,” said Beckman, who earned his fifth No. 1 qualifying spot and set his fourth elapsed time track record.

“The conditions were phenomenal and about as good as you're going to see, but we're still fighting altitude here. It's tough, even with a nitro car, to make that sort of horsepower. I didn't think it was going to stay.

Ron Capps and the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge with crew chief Rahn Tobler and assistant Eric Lane qualified fourth and were the most consistent team with four runs between 3.881 and 3.910 seconds.

More importantly for the NAPA team heading into Sunday, Capps was able to extend his lead over DSR teammate Tommy Johnson Jr. (Make-A-Wish) by nine points to 73. But Hagan, ranked third, was able to pull within 83 of Capps and 10 of Johnson.

It’s been a challenge for Capps not to think about his pursuit his first world championship after being the runner-up a record four times, but nothing could have been further from his mind when his brother, Jon Capps, slammed his Funny Car into the guardwall moments before he was to make his last run.

“I feel so safe in my own car when I have control of it. Watching him from the outside was very hard,” he said.

Photo Credit: Auto Imagery

“I did the burnout I could see the marks from where he came down from his wheelstand and it kind of played in my head a little bit. I can’t thank Tobler enough for giving me such a confidence boost all weekend. It’s so much fun right now. We just need a big day tomorrow. We’re treating it like it’s the last race of the season. We’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing and if Tobler gives me a great race car and makes me look good like he has all year we’ll be alright.”

In Top Fuel, Leah Pritchett and the Pennzoil team led by crew chief Todd Okuhara and assistant Joe Barlam started the last session as the No. 1 qualifier and despite running its quickest time of the weekend at 3.700, Clay Millican of Stringer Performance posted a 3.689 to take the pole and prevent the Pennzoil team from earning its second pole in three events.

"This girl cannot complain at all," said Pritchett, who earned her third top-two qualifying spot in three races.

"We were planning to throw down out there, thinking we were either going to be up and smoke or .68 or better – but I can't complain at all. We're just going to keep rolling and do what we do."

DSR’s Antron Brown, the reigning and two-time Top Fuel champ, will start Sunday with a 148-point lead over Doug Kalitta, who outscored Brown in qualifying points 3-2 and qualified one spot higher in third to narrow the gap from 150.

“We made some great, quality laps today and that sets us up really good for tomorrow,” said Brown, who can clinch his third world championship in five years if he leaves Las Vegas with a 130-point lead over Kalitta.

“We would’ve love to have gained some more points. We were shooting to go up there and be No. 1 qualifier, of course. The track’s just really, really tight. But, with that being said, we had some great laps this weekend. We literally ran four, great, quality laps. We’re just going to keep working like normal.”

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