DSR: Bad break for Beckman, Infinite Hero team might have been blessing despite first-round loss in NHRA Arizona Nationals at Wild Horse Pass

CHANDLER, Ariz. (Feb. 26, 2017) - A bad break on Sunday afternoon for Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero 2017 Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car funded by Terry Chandler might have been one of the best breaks of his career.

Beckman qualified sixth for Sunday's eliminations in the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix but barely got past the starting line in the first round of eliminations after his pre-race burnout when he felt something wrong with his Don Schumacher Racing racecar.

Beckman sensed something was wrong moments after he hit the throttle to warm his tires.

"In the middle of the burnout the motor tugged a down for a split second," he said. "At the end of the burnout, I heard a scraping sound, a metallic sound. I didn't know if some of the metal under the body was rubbing on something and thought maybe if we lifted the body we could bend it back so we could run. Then I felt a big vibration and knew it wasn't going to get better so I pulled over and shut it off.

"When we got back to the pit and saw all the carnage inside the bellhousing it was obvious this car wasn't going anywhere. It's a long season and there's no point in tearing your stuff up this early in the year.

"It threw the clutch out at 6,000 rpm without any load on the engine and put a chunk in the bellhousing. If that happened at 8,000 rpm at the top end of the racetrack the damage could have been devastating.

"And by the way, I have a leg on either side of that bellhousing."

The breakage likely kept Beckman from advancing to the second round. His opponent Gary Densham smoked the tires early and slowed to a time of 5.715 seconds at 106.55 mph.

"I'm not a 'shoulda, woulda, coulda' guy," Beckman said. "It was the right decision and you live with it. Losing sucks when you have a car as good as ours."

Photo Credit: Auto Imagery

FUNNY CAR
EVENT WINNER: Matt Hagan/Ron Capps (Don Schumacher Racing)
No. 1 QUALIFIER: Tommy Johnson Jr. (Don Schumacher Racing), 3.837 sec.-career best, 329.10 mph

JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T
Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh
Qualified: No. 5
First round: Gary Densham (6.715 sec., 206.55 mph) def. BECKMAN (broke on burnout)
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY: 3.873 sec., 329.18 mph, (Session 1); 5.187, 140.52, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 3.869, 328.46, (Session 3); 3.881, 322.11, (Session 4)

About Infinite Hero Foundation
A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Infinite Hero Foundation combats the most difficult front line issues - mental and physical - facing returning military heroes and their families.  The Foundation funds programs that drive innovation and the accessibility of effective treatments for military heroes and their families dealing with service-related mental and physical injuries.  For more information, visit: www.infinitehero.org. 

About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing, headquartered in Brownsburg, Ind., fields eight professional NHRA teams. In Top Fuel, the U.S. Army dragster driven by eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher, the Matco Tools dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown; the Papa John's Top Fuel dragster driven by Leah Pritchett and 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon and in Funny Car, 2011 and 2014 world champion Matt Hagan in the Mopar Express Lane 2015 Dodge Charger R/T, 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge of Ron Capps and the Make-A-Wish Dodge driven by Tommy Johnson Jr.

DSR has won 295 NHRA national event titles and 16 world championships.     

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Jeff Wolf (wolfj@shoeracing.com), 702.524.1368
Leah Vaughn (vaughnl@shoeracing.com), 618.516.1988

DSR: Beckman enters race day as No. 6 qualifier in Infinite Hero Dodge as consistency continues to build in DSR Dodge Charger R/T

CHANDLER, Ariz. (Feb. 25, 2017) - Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero Foundation team, sponsored by Terry Chandler, had a consistent race car throughout qualifying and they hope to carry that momentum into Sunday's eliminations.

"On half of our runs we got bonus points that means we were one of the three best in two sessions. That's a great feeling," Beckman said. "The nice thing is, the one run we didn't make it, I love what happened.

"The car responded to every change and we were slightly too aggressive. But without knowing where the edge is you don't really know how far to push it."

His best pass of the weekend was on Saturday with a 3.869-second run at 328.46 mph.

"Those are always runs that on the racetrack to the fans it might look like you missed it, but back here in the trailer when you download the data you say okay that's the one that will help us win the race on Sunday.

"The car responded to every change and we were slightly too aggressive. But without knowing where the edge is you don't really know how far to push it."

On Friday, Beckman opened qualifying with a pass of 3.873 at 329.18 mph. Then during the second session, he went into tire shake and coasted to a 5.187 lap at 140.52 mph.

Then on Saturday, he ran a 3.869 pass at 328.46 mph, his best lap of the weekend. Finally, he made a pass of 3.881-seconds at 322.11. He will enter race day as No. 6 qualifier and will face Gary Densham for the opening round of competition on Sunday.

"Those are always runs that on the racetrack to the fans it might look like you missed it, but back here in the trailer when you download the data you say okay that's the one that will help us win the race on Sunday."

JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T
Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh
First round opponent: Gary Densham
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY: 3.873 sec., 329.18 mph, (Session 1); 5.187, 140.52, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 3.869, 328.46, (Session 3); 3.881, 322.11, (Session 4)

About Infinite Hero Foundation
A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Infinite Hero Foundation combats the most difficult front line issues - mental and physical - facing returning military heroes and their families.  The Foundation funds programs that drive innovation and the accessibility of effective treatments for military heroes and their families dealing with service-related mental and physical injuries.  For more information, visit: www.infinitehero.org.

About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing, headquartered in Brownsburg, Ind., fields eight professional NHRA teams. In Top Fuel, the U.S. Army dragster driven by eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher, the Matco Tools dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown; the Papa John's Top Fuel dragster driven by Leah Pritchett and 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon and in Funny Car, 2011 and 2014 world champion Matt Hagan in the Mopar Express Lane 2015 Dodge Charger R/T, 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge of Ron Capps and the Make-A-Wish Dodge driven by Tommy Johnson Jr.

DSR has won 295 NHRA national event titles and 16 world championships.


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DSR: Beckman wants past success at Wild Horse Pass near Phoenix to continue in desert when Infinite Hero Dodge races this weekend

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (Feb. 22, 2017) - Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero Foundation Funny Car team didn't have time to waste on Super Bowl Sunday by watching all the pre-game hoopla.

They extended their preseason testing to that Sunday as Super Bowl parties weren't in their plans until work was done at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix.

Beckman expects that effort to translate into good results this weekend when the Don Schumacher Racing 2017 Dodge Charger R/T funded by Terry Chandler returns to the track for this weekend's NHRA Arizona Nationals in the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.

"This will be the first time our new tuning trio get to go back to a track where they have worked together on our Infinite Hero Dodge," said Beckman, the 2012 NHRA Funny Car champion. "They'll have a lot of data from testing. We have a lot of new things this season and we want to get back to our winning ways."

Joining returning co-crew chief John Medlen to make up the triumvirate are veteran Dean Antonelli and Neal Strausbaugh, formerly the assistant crew chief on DSR's U.S. Army championship team. Additionally, the crew is new except for returning car chief Matt Archer.

"Three weeks ago at Phoenix we made 12 test runs and that gives us a comfort zone going back," Beckman said. "We even stayed over on Super Bowl Sunday to make a couple more laps just because of all the personnel and clutch changes that have been made. They wanted a greater level of confidence after testing.

"Phoenix has been very good to me. I've won there three times (2008, 2010, 2011) and that's as many times that I've won at any track. For whatever reason, I'm prolific at some tracks and can't win at others. But that's completely random."

Ten days ago at the opener in Pomona, Calif., Beckman qualified fifth before losing in the second round to teammate and eventual event winner Matt Hagan in what was one of the best races of the weekend. Beckman's impressive 3.893-second run at 328.30 mph was edged by Hagan's 3.882 (329.18).

"That level of performance will continue with our new team," Beckman said. "We had a successful maiden voyage at Pomona and our Infinite Hero team will hit its stride soon."

Photo Credit: Auto Imagery

JACK BECKMAN: Infinite Hero 2017 Dodge Charger R/T
Last event (Feb. 9-12 at Pomona): Qualified No. 8, lost in second round to event winner Matt Hagan of DSR
2016 Phoenix: Qualified No. 6, lost in second round to John Force
Career at Phoenix: Wins 3 (2010-11, 2008); Runner-ups 0; Poles 0


About Infinite Hero Foundation
A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Infinite Hero Foundation combats the most difficult front line issues - mental and physical - facing returning military heroes and their families.  The Foundation funds programs that drive innovation and the accessibility of effective treatments for military heroes and their families dealing with service-related mental and physical injuries.  For more information, visit: www.infinitehero.org.

About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing, headquartered in Brownsburg, Ind., fields eight professional NHRA teams. In Top Fuel, the U.S. Army dragster driven by eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher, the Matco Tools dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown; the Papa John's Top Fuel dragster driven by Leah Pritchett and 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon and in Funny Car, 2011 and 2014 world champion Matt Hagan in the Mopar Express Lane 2015 Dodge Charger R/T, 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge of Ron Capps and the Make-A-Wish Dodge driven by Tommy Johnson Jr.

DSR has won 295 NHRA national event titles and 16 world championships.



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DSR: Beckman, Infinite Hero team remain confident in their Dodge Funny Car as they head to second race

POMONA, Calif. (Feb. 12, 2017) - Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero Foundation team, sponsored by Terry Chandler, came to the Winternationals as a newly assembled group ready to bring home their first victory as a team.

Unfortunately, they will have to try again for their first win in Phoenix.

"I'm not the first one of the DSR Funny Car squad to say the cars we fear the most in the other lane are the other Dodges," Beckman said. "We know what parts and aerodynamics they have. I tell you what's very satisfying out here, this is a team sport."

Beckman was referring to his second round lost against Don Schumacher Racing teammate, Matt Hagan who later won the event.

"You've got 11 guys on a team, all working for a singular goal. But we can also go next door. When I needed another parachute, I went over to our Mopar teammate's car and they helped us out. And we had to race them the next round. You always say, 'from burnout to turnout there are no teammates,' it's every team for themselves."

In the first round of competition, Beckman ran a 3.867-second lap at 330.63 mph to give him the win over Cruz Pedregon. Then in round two, Beckman lined up against Hagan. Beckman ran a 3.893-second lap (323.30 mph) but Hagan was quicker with his 3.885.

"It's nice to know that when the fans are making betting odds on who they think will win a Mopar is always going to be near the top of the heap."

Beckman and the Infinite Hero team will have a weekend off before heading to the NHRA Arizona Nationals for the second event of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing season.

Photo Credit: Auto Imagery

Event winner:
No. 1 qualifier: Matt Hagan (Don Schumacher Racing), 3.822 sec., 335.57 mph (both match Hagan's national records set in 2016)

JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T
Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh
First round: BECKMAN (3.867 sec., 330.63 mph) def. Cruz Pedregon (13.004, 67.39)
Second round: Matt Hagan (3.882, 329.18) def. BECKMAN (3.893, 328.30)
Qualified: No. 8
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY: 4.153 sec., 295.14 mph, (Session 1); rained out, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 5.937, 123.42, (Session 3); 3.853, 327.43, (Session 4)


About Infinite Hero Foundation
A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Infinite Hero Foundation combats the most difficult front line issues - mental and physical - facing returning military heroes and their families.  The Foundation funds programs that drive innovation and the accessibility of effective treatments for military heroes and their families dealing with service-related mental and physical injuries.  For more information, visit: www.infinitehero.org.

About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing, headquartered in Brownsburg, Ind., fields eight professional NHRA teams. In Top Fuel, the U.S. Army dragster driven by eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher, the Matco Tools dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown; the Papa John's Top Fuel dragster driven by Leah Pritchett and 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon and in Funny Car, 2011 and 2014 world champion Matt Hagan in the Mopar Express Lane 2015 Dodge Charger R/T, 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge of Ron Capps and the Make-A-Wish Dodge driven by Tommy Johnson Jr.

DSR has won 295 NHRA national event titles and 16 world championships.
Follow Don Schumacher Racing at ShoeRacing.com, on Twitter at @shoeracing and Facebook.com/shoeracing.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Jeff Wolf (wolfj@shoeracing.com), 702.524.1368
Leah Vaughn (vaughnl@shoeracing.com), 618.516.1988

DSR: Beckman, new Infinite Hero Foundation crew chiefs, team start 2017 with confidence, patience at NHRA Winternationals

POMONA, Calif. (Feb. 11, 2017) - Jack Beckman and the Infinite Hero Foundation team, funded by Terry Chandler, enter the first race of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing series with a new team but the same goal.

"I'm confident - and I truly am - and I'm not just saying that!" said Beckman, the 2012 Funny Car champion. "I think every driver should think that, but I have every reason to believe that.

"There's a lot of fire power on this team. Nobody is a newbie on the team, it's just the first time we've worked together as a group."

The team is definitely new, starting with the crew chiefs. Don Schumacher Racing veteran assistant Neal Strausbaugh joined the team after serving on the U.S. Army Top Fuel team for several years. Strausbaugh is joined by DSR newcomer Dean Antonelli. John Medlen is one of only two holdovers from last year's team.

Aside from the trio of crew chiefs, there are several new faces on the crew as well, the majority of which came onboard from within DSR from varies teams.

"Remember, this is a bunch of dragster guys. We shortened the car up, put the motor on the other side of the driver and slapped a body on it and I think they're doing a fantastic job of getting up to speed with the adjustment," Beckman said.

During the first round of qualifying, Beckman had to pedal his Funny Car and coasted to a 4.1.53-second lap at 295.14 mph. Later Friday night, rain cancelled the second session for most teams.

On Saturday, Beckman ran into problems again and his car quit before the finish line, resulting in a 5.937 (123.42). Finally, during the final qualifying session, Beckman clocked a 3.894 at 333.99 mph to earn the No. 8 seed and will race former world champion Cruz Pedregon in the opening round of eliminations.

"That 3.89 was far from a perfect run," Beckman said. "The speed showed some potential. We actually softened (the tune-up) up but it was a little weak on ET (elapsed time).

"We tested well a week ago, we had a lot of good time slips from that. But they don't count. They're not for points, they're not for a trophy, they're not during a race."

Photo Credit: Auto Imagery

JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T
Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh
First round opponent: Cruz Pedregon
Qualified: No. 8
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY: 4.153 sec., 295.14 mph, (Session 1); rained out, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 5.937, 123.42, (Session 3); 3.853, 327.43, (Session 4)

About Infinite Hero Foundation
A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Infinite Hero Foundation combats the most difficult front line issues - mental and physical - facing returning military heroes and their families.  The Foundation funds programs that drive innovation and the accessibility of effective treatments for military heroes and their families dealing with service-related mental and physical injuries.  For more information, visit: www.infinitehero.org.
 
About Don Schumacher Racing
Don Schumacher Racing, headquartered in Brownsburg, Ind., fields eight professional NHRA teams. In Top Fuel, the U.S. Army dragster driven by eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher, the Matco Tools dragster driven by three-time world champion Antron Brown; the Papa John's Top Fuel dragster driven by Leah Pritchett and 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon and in Funny Car, 2011 and 2014 world champion Matt Hagan in the Mopar Express Lane 2015 Dodge Charger R/T, 2012 NHRA world champion Jack Beckman in the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge, the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge of Ron Capps and the Make-A-Wish Dodge driven by Tommy Johnson Jr.

DSR has won 293 NHRA national event titles and 16 world championships.
Follow Don Schumacher Racing at ShoeRacing.com, on Twitter at @shoeracing and Facebook.com/shoeracing.


FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Jeff Wolf (wolfj@shoeracing.com), 702.524.1368
Leah Vaughn (vaughnl@shoeracing.com), 618.516.1988

New crew chiefs, crew doesn't slow Beckman during testing, expectations high for Chandler's Infinite Hero Dodge at DSR

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (Feb. 7, 2017) - Jack Beckman walked into his pit area to start testing last week and had a lot to learn, mainly the names of his Don Schumacher Racing crew.

He knew he was in the right place when he saw that Terry Chandler's purple Infinite Hero Foundation 2017 Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car was still the center of attention but the only returning crewmen working on it from last year's team in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season were John Medlen and Matt Archer.

Once he began wheeling the sleek Charger funded by Chandler down the track he also realized his new group led by crew chiefs Medlen, Dean Antonelli and Neal Strausbaugh had provided the 2012 Funny Car world champion with something he has become very familiar with at DSR: high performance.

"We had a fantastic test session last weekend," Beckman said of three runs in the 3.8-second range along with four in the 3.90s and a 4.03 that he shut off at halftrack at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix.

"It exceeded all of our expectations. I'm pleased as punch. Honest to goodness I can't wait for the season to get started."

The resident of Norco, Calif., knows when he makes the short drive from his home to Pomona Friday to open the 2017 Mello Yello season with the NHRA Winternationals that his team is still growing together.

"What impressed me at testing was how well our three crew chiefs bounce things off each other, how the crew continually got more efficient after each run and how, overall, we had one of the best test sessions of any team there."

Change isn't new to Beckman. He lost his entire team after the fourth race of the 2012 season and that worked out well as he went on to win the championship that year.

Beckman is coming off a season that featured two event titles in five final rounds along with six poles and holding NHRA track records for elapsed time (four tracks) and speed (six). The best run of his career was three months ago at Pomona in the season-finale when he recorded a time of 3.825 seconds, which is the second quickest Funny Car run ever. His best speed of 334.15 mph was set last summer near Seattle.

He's seeking his first win at Pomona but has been the No. 1 qualifier at the last two races at the legendary track near Los Angeles.

"The best development in the off-season is that Terry Chandler and the Infinite Hero Foundation has stayed with us," said Beckman, a former U.S. Air Force sergeant. "They recognize the importance of our campaign with Infinite Hero on the side of our car. We're making a difference for injured vets."

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