DSR: Infinite Hero Foundation runner-up in Four-Wide Nationals, best finish of year for Beckman heading to Atlanta race

 

CONCORD, N.C. (April 30, 2017) - The Infinite Hero Foundation Funny Car, sponsored by Terry Chandler and piloted by Jack Beckman, advanced to the final round at the eighth annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals near Charlotte Motor Speedway before finishing as the runner-up. 

"To follow our best outing so far was Houston, where we made it to the semis," Beckman said. "I know there's one less round here at Charlotte but we were in the final round and we'll go down in the history books as a runner-up."

The final round was made up of three of the four Don Schumacher Racing Funny Cars. Beckman faced his teammates Matt Hagan and Ron Capps as well as J.R. Todd of Kalitta Motorsports.

Beckman clocked a time of 3.959 seconds at 320.05 mph but Capps got to the finish line first with a 3.933 (322.65) to earn the title.

"We dug ourselves a hole in qualifying, we only made it down track one run but nobody hung their heads," Beckman said of their No. 10 qualifying position.

"[We] had a little bit of luck first round when it dropped a cylinder but the guys went and looked at data, they plugged away at it. And here we are with the runner up.

"We got a lot of points. The big deal right now for us, let's get back near the top of the point standings, let's get ourselves a couple of trophies and we'll go fight it out in the countdown."

After today's runner-up finish, the Infinite Hero Foundation team sits No.7 in points.

Next weekend the NHRA circuit travels to Atlanta Dragway for the Southern Nationals for the third of a three-race swing.

FUNNY CAR
Event winner: Ron Capps (Don Schumacher Racing)
No. 1 qualifier: Courtney Force (John Force Racing) 3.851 sec.-track record, 323.27 mph

(The two drivers advancing to next round are underlined.)

JACK BECKMAN, Terry Chandler's Infinite Hero  Dodge Charger R/T
Qualified: No. 10
SUNDAY
First round: Robert Hight (3.884 sec., 327.66 mph), BECKMAN (4.025, 316.23), Tommy Johnson Jr. (4.288, 314.31), Jim Campbell (6.712, 98.34)
Second round: Ron Capps (3.920, 318.39), BECKMAN (3.959, 310.05), John Force (5.618, 128.54), Robert Hight (4.012, 318.39)
Final: Winner-Capps (3.933, 322.65), Runner-up-BECKMAN (3.959, 320.05), Third-J.R. Todd (4.103, 307.72), Fourth-Matt Hagan (8.820, 93.67)
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY:  3.970 sec., 323.12 mph, (Session 1); 4.379, 203.28, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 4.725, 173.01, (Session 3); 4.384, 205.04, (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 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 303 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, team not dismayed by disappointing qualifying effort on day that $20,000 is raised for Chandler's Infinite Hero campaign

 

CONCORD, N.C. (April 29, 2017) - Jack Beckman and Terry Chandler's Infinite Hero Funny Car team was expecting a better qualifying position in the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals near Charlotte, but the foundation created to help veterans who gave more than anyone could have asked was still a winner.
Beckman, the 2012 Funny Car world champion, qualified 10th that was his worst starting position through six events in this year's NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.

It was a little disappointing after the team advanced to its first semifinals last Sunday near Houston.

"This is one of those examples where if you look at Houston, we had a car that went down the track every single run," he said. "Then we come here, we unload with a nice lap (on Friday) and got some qualifying bonus points. Then we smoked the tires on the next three runs. You think, OK, we've lost the handle on it but the reality is we made it far enough down track and have good data for tomorrow."

The Four-Wide Nationals is contested on the world's only four-lane dragstrip that pits up to four nitro cars abreast. Each team receive one chance to run in each lane during qualifying. In Sunday's championship eliminations, which are scheduled to start at noon (EDT), the first two to the finish line advance to the next round. The event winner will only need to be the first to the finish line in the last of three rounds to earn the Wally Trophy.

While Beckman and his team were focused on qualifying, DSR teammate Leah Pritchett and Papa John's Pizza founder and CEO John Schnatter competed in the second round of the Charity Challenge "grudge race."

While Pritchett drove to the victory, the big winner was the Infinite Hero Foundation that received a $20,000 donation with $10,000 each coming from Schnatter and DSR owner Don Schumacher.

The Charity Challenge has raised $40,000 this year to help Infinite Hero. The next Challenge will be July 8 at Route 66 Raceway near Chicago.

"This is all because of Terry Chandler who funds the Infinite Hero and Make-A-Wish teams for DSR," Schumacher said. "She's a wonderful woman who makes these things happen."

FUNNY CAR
No. 1 qualifier: Courtney Force (John Force Racing) 3.851 sec.-track record, 323.27 mph

JACK BECKMAN, Terry Chandler's Infinite Hero  Dodge Charger R/T
Qualified: No. 10
SUNDAY
First round: BECKMAN, Tommy Johnson Jr., Robert Hight, Jim Campbell
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY:  3.970 sec., 323.12 mph, (Session 1); 4.379, 203.28, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 4.725, 173.01, (Session 3); 4.384, 205.04, (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 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 302 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 looks for more fun this weekend in Four-Wide after year's best event for Chandler's Infinite Hero Dodge

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (April 26, 2017) - Jack Beckman has had a few different crew chief combinations at Don Schumacher Racing along with a couple crew changes so he is accustomed to being patient at the start of an NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.

With a trio of crew chiefs - John Medlen, Dean Antonelli and Neal Strausbaugh - working together for the first time along with nearly all new crewmen Beckman, the 2012 NHRA Funny Car world champion, has talked about Terry Chandler's Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car gaining consistency after each of this year's first four events.

Consistency became a byproduct of patience last weekend in the NHRA SpringNationals near Houston when Beckman and crew advanced to their first semifinals after three of four exemplary runs between 3.907 and 3.931 seconds to qualify sixth before a weekend best of 3.897 at 329.18 mph in the quarterfinals.

 "Without a doubt, Houston was our best outing of the year," he said. "We put together several consecutive quick runs and that's been our target.

"Winning races is a function of running better than the car in the other lane; winning championships is a matter of having a great handle on the car and consistently getting to the finish line under full power a majority of the time."

The resident of Southern California is ready for a cross-country flight that will take him to the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway next to Charlotte Motor Speedway. The sixth race of the year is the most unique as four nitro cars fill each of four lanes for qualifying then on Sunday the top-two finishers in each quad advance to the next rounds. Instead of four rounds of two-lane racing in eliminations, there are only three rounds.

"The Four-Wide is great because you only have to be the quickest in the last of three (quads) on race day to take home the trophy," he said. "I like the Four-Wide because it takes us out of our comfort zone but it only gives crew chiefs one run of data for each lane in qualifying."

Beckman has been successful at zMAX, especially the Four-Wide where he has won twice (2011, 2015) while winning the fall race at the track in 2008 and was runner-up in 2010.

Best Time, Speed: 3.825 sec.-second quickest ever, (2016 Pomona 2); 334.15 mph (Seattle 2016)
Best Time, Speed: 3.658 sec.-world record ((Phoenix 2017); 329.75 (2016, Indy)
Last event (April 21-23, Houston): Qualified No. 6, lost in semifinals to DSR teammate and event winner Jack Beckman
2016 at Four-Wide: Qualified No. 6, lost in first quad
2016 Fall at Charlotte: Qualified No. 5, lost in first round to Del Worsham
Career at Four-Wide: Wins 2 (2011, 2015); Runner-ups 0; Poles 0
Career at zMAX: Wins 3 (2008, 2011, 2015); Runner-ups 1 (2010): 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 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 302 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

FULL ARTICLE

DSR: Infinite Hero Funny Car with Beckman take another step with semifinals finish in NHRA SpringNationals near Houston

HOUSTON (April 23, 2017) - Jack Beckman and Terry Chandler's Infinite Hero Foundation Funny Car team took a big step Sunday when it advanced to the semifinal for the first time this season in the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals at Baytown, Texas.

Although Beckman lost to Don Schumacher Racing teammate and eventual event winner Ron Capps, Beckman appreciates strides taken by his team led by crew chiefs John Medlen, Dean Antonelli and Neal Strausbaugh.

"Today was our first semi of the year so it's a nice feeling to start going deep into Sunday," Beckman said. "It's no fun to go out second round and start loading up.

"But you know, they give us 24 shots at winner a trophy each year. It's going to be more important during the Countdown that is the last six races, but boy you don't want to just keep burning Sundays and leaving without a trophy.

"The light at the end of the tunnel is we made several good runs in a row here. We made three solid runs in qualifying."

The Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car was consistent throughout qualifying with its last three runs ranging between 3.907 and 3.931 seconds with speeds at 327 mph on each. The 3.907 earned Beckman the No. 6 qualifying spot that will pair him in the first round with Don Schumacher Racing teammate and NHRA Mello Yello Series points leader Matt Hagan.

In round one Sunday, Beckman went into tire smoke down the track but his 4.224 (222.62) was enough to get passed Hagan's 5.142 who also lost traction.

Then during the second round, Beckman clocked a 3.897 (329.18) that was low of the round and eliminated John Force.

In the semifinals, Beckman lined up against Ron Capps but dropped a cylinder right at the hit of the throttle allowing Capps got the round win and later the event title.

"We stumbled first round but we didn't miss it by much," said Beckman, the 2012 Funny Car world champion. "We came back and ran low ET of second round. And then on our last run something bit us that doesn't normally happen. It put a cylinder out right at the step of the throttle.

"We've just got to figure out what's enough fuel to make it move fast and not too much that it floods out a spark plug. So at least we won't have long to hold our heads down.

"We'll drag this thing out to Charlotte for the Four-Wide Nationals, try to remember how to stage with three cars next to you but it only takes three rounds there to leave with the trophy."

The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing series travels next weekend to the unique Four-Wide Nationals where four cars race at once for a sensory overload of 44,000 horsepower. 

"That place has been pretty good to me in the past. I'm pretty comfortable there. I think now we're starting to get more and more data. We got several more (laps) this weekend so there's a silver lining. We're going to be in good shape."

FUNNY CAR
Event winner: Ron Capps (Don Schumacher Racing)
No. 1 qualifier: Courtney Force (John Force Racing), 3.851 sec., 330.23 mph - track records

JACK BECKMAN, Terry Chandler's Infinite Hero 2017 Dodge Charger R/T
Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh
QUALIFIED: No. 6
SUNDAY ELIMINATIONS
First round: BECKMAN (4.224 sec., 222.62 mph) def. Matt Hagan (5.142, 162.12)
Second round: BECKMAN (3.897, 329.18) def. John Force (4.134, 273.39)
Semifinals: Ron Capps (3.926, 325.37) def. BECKMAN (6.126, 114.85)
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY: 4.871 sec., 161.07 mph, (Session 1); 3.931, 327.11, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 3.921, 327.03, (Session 3); 3.907, 327.90 (Session 4)
Career at Houston: Wins 0; Runner-ups 3 (2015, 2014, 2009); Poles 1 (2015)

2017 NHRA MELLO YELLO DRAG RACING SERIES STANDINGS
(Official after Houston; 5th of 24 events; wins in parenthesis; DSR drivers in CAPS)
         Funny Car                                                        
  1.     MATT HAGAN (2)                  400       -----
  2.     RON CAPPS (1)                     398         -2
  3.     John Force (1)                        371        -29
  4.     TOMMY JOHNSON JR. (1)   357        -43
  5.     Robert Hight                           301        -99
  5.     Courtney Force                      301        -99
  7.     JACK BECKMAN                  282      -118
  8.     Jonnie Lindberg                      235     -165
  9.     J.R. Todd                                222     -178
10.     Jim Campbell                          211     -189


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 300 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: Chandler's Infinite Hero Dodge qualifies No. 6 near Houston, faces DSR teammate, points leader Hagan in first round Sunday

HOUSTON (April 22, 2017) - Jack Beckman believes the Infinite Hero Foundation Dodge Charge R/T Funny Car is on its way to predictability.

"The whole thing is that we have to get our car predictable," Beckman said. "Once it becomes predictable it becomes consistent, once it becomes consistent you step on it and it becomes a quick car.

"We don't want to be a Russian-roulette car that goes up there and makes one hero run and then smokes the tires on the next. I love what we've done so far this weekend."

Beckman and the team funded by Terry Chandler with crew chiefs Neal Strausbaugh, Dean Antonelli and John Medlen were consistent in qualifying with its last three runs ranging between 3.907 and 3.931 seconds with speeds at 327 mph on each. The 3.907 earned Beckman the No. 6 qualifying spot that will pair him in the first round with Don Schumacher Racing teammate and NHRA Mello Yello Series points leader Matt Hagan.

"We were a little aggressive on Q1 and sensible on Q2 and we got quicker," Beckman said. "We went 3.93, 3.92 and 3.90, so right now we feel like we have a good tune-up for a warmer track.

"(Sunday) will be a different story. We'll be racing in cooler conditions, almost like Maple Grove (in Pennsylvania) when we race there in the fall. If it's like that, we'll lock up our notes from this weekend at Houston and turn everything up tomorrow."

Beckman and the team have extra incentive. They want to bring home a win for Chandler, who is currently at home recovering from surgery.

"We love Terry and want to do well for her."

FUNNY CAR
No. 1 qualifier: Courtney Force (John Force Racing), 3.851 sec., 330.23 mph - track records

JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero 2017 Dodge Charger R/T
Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh
QUALIFIED: No. 6
SUNDAY ELIMINATIONS
First round: Matt Hagan
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY: 4.871 sec., 161.07 mph, (Session 1); 3.931, 327.11, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 3.921, 327.03, (Session 3); 3.907, 327.90 (Session 4)
Last event at Las Vegas (March 31-April 2): Qualified No. 5, lost in quarterfinals to event finalist Jonnie Lindberg
A year ago at Houston: Qualified No. 12, lost in semifinals Tim Wilkerson
Career at Houston: Wins 0; Runner-ups 3 (2015, 2014, 2009); Poles 1 (2015)

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 300 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, Infinite Hero team travel to Houston with added incentive to get team leader Terry Chandler their first trophy of the season

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (April 19, 2017) - The Infinite Hero Foundation Funny Car piloted by Jack Beckman and sponsored by Terry Chandler want a long day on Sunday when they compete in the NHRA SpringNationals near Houston in the fifth race of the 2017 season.

"I wouldn't bet against our Infinite Hero Foundation team," Beckman said. "I wouldn't be surprised if we were able to take our first trophy from Houston. But I'm looking at this as a long process that's going to culminate at the Finals in Pomona. We're just going to keep picking away at this thing until we're satisfied by the predictability of the car."

Beckman, the 2012 NHRA Funny Car world champion with Don Schumacher Racing, has advanced to the championship round three times and most recently in 2015.

So far this season, the Infinite Hero Foundation team has been traveling on a learning curve with a newly assembled team led by crew chiefs Dean Antonelli, John Medlen and Neal Strausbaugh. After the national event in Las Vegas two weeks ago, the team stayed on Monday for a test sessions to get a better understanding of their hot rod.

"It's going to take us 30 more runs to truly get a good understanding on the clutch package and the tune-up changes that our car needs relevant to what we ran last year," Beckman said. "Now keep in mind, last year we won two races and were in contention for the championship and we still weren't as good as we were in 2015, when we won seven races.

"Sometimes it's just that little one-tenth of 1 percent that makes all the difference. I think that's what keeps fuel racing interesting from the driver and crew standpoint; it's that pursuit of perfect. You're never going to be perfect in a fuel car but our goal is to be close to that."

Beckman said the Infinite Hero Foundation team looks for a win in Houston as not only their first win of the season but also a win for their sponsor Terry Chandler.

"It's not like you ever need any extra motivation or incentive to win a race. It's not like you don't try your hardest every single time you go out there. But for our team, it's a bit bittersweet."

Chandler, who also funds DSR's Make-A-Wish Funny Car, is recuperating at home after surgery two weeks.

"This is going to be the second race in a row where Terry isn't going to be standing on the starting line. I know it must be tearing her apart to not be up there with her teams when her cars run. There's nothing that can make that better until the day when she's back out here on the starting line than to send her a trophy."

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 300 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



FULL ARTICLE

DSR: Beckman advances to quarterfinals at NHRA Nationals at the Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

LAS VEGAS, (April 2, 2017) - The Infinite Hero Foundation team, funded by Terry Chandler, wanted to capitalize on the consistent racecar it had in qualifying but fell short of that goal in the quarterfinals of the 18 th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals at the Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"Wow, tough day for us," Beckman said. "You have no control over the ladder and your opponents. We've won some races where we just had four killer cars in the other lane against us. Today it looked like we had a favorable side of the ladder if there was one and we just didn't capitalize on it."

In the opening round of Sunday's eliminations, Beckman faced Cruz Pedregon. Beckman's Funny Car went into tire smoke and he slowed to a 7.322-second lap at 90.06 mph. But, Pedregon left early and was disqualified with a redlight start.

Beckman then faced the nitro rookie, Jonnie Lindberg. Beckman got off the starting line first but his car dropped a cylinder and Lindberg, who advanced to a final round for the second straight race, drove around him when Beckman slowed to a 4.096 (312.42).

"Second round it dropped a cylinder the instant I stepped on the throttle. The thing still ran OK, but it's down 1,200 horsepower at that point. Tough deal, we'll have to figure it out.

"We're going to stay and test tomorrow. We're going to test some clutch stuff, we're going to test our backup race car and we're going to figure out why it did what it did and do our best to make sure it doesn't happen again."

Las Vegas marks the fourth race of the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing series season. In two weeks, the NHRA teams will travel to Baytown, Texas, near Houston for the SpringNationals.

JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero 2017 Dodge Charger R/T

Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh

Qualified: No. 5

SUNDAY ELIMINATIONS

First round: BECKMAN (7.322 sec., 90.06 mph) def. Cruz Pedregon (redlight)

Second round: Jonnie Lindberg (4.017, 325.32) def. BECKMAN (4.096, 312.42)

QUALIFYING

FRIDAY: 8.661 sec., 71.92 mph, (Session 1); 4.351, 223.28, (Session 2)

SATURDAY: 3.921, 327.03, (Session 3); 3.886, 329.18, (Session 4)

2016 Las Vegas 1: Qualified No.1, lost in second round to Chad Head

2016 Las Vegas 2: Qualified No. 1, lost second round to Courtney Force

Career at Las Vegas 1: Wins 0; Runner-ups 0, Poles 1( 2016)

Career at Las Vegas: Wins 1 (2006); Runner-ups 2 (2012, 2009); Poles 2 (both in 2016)



      Funny Car                                              

1. MATT HAGAN (2)                368      -----

2. TOMMY JOHNSON JR. (1) 324       -44

3. John Force (1)                       314       -54

4. RON CAPPS                        275       -93

5. Courtney Force                     218     -150

6. JACK BECKMAN                205     -163

7. Robert Hight                         201     -167

8. Jonnie Lindberg                   183     -185

9. Jim Campbell                       180     -188

10. J.R. Todd                             170     -198

DSR: Chandler's Infinite Hero Dodge team continues to improve, will start Las Vegas eliminations with best starting spot

LAS VEGAS (April 1, 2017) - Despite a tricky racetrack, Jack Beckman and Terry Chandler's Infinite Hero Dodge Charger R/T team overcame challenges to earn the No. 5 seed for eliminations in Sunday's 18th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals at the Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"The thing with this car, is we're trying to make it predictable," Beckman said.

"If you have a predictable car, you have a consistent car. Then you start leaning on it and you have a fast car, right now I think our predictability is coming to where we need it to be."

The racetrack gave crew chiefs headaches on Friday under unexpected cool conditions. In the second session, Beckman pedaled his way to a 4.351-second time at 223.28 mph, which usually would be near the bottom of the field. But the pass was second best and earned Beckman two bonus points.

On Saturday, the Infinite Hero team, led by crew chiefs Neal Strausbaugh, Dean Antonelli and John Medlen, returned to the track to see sunny skies and feel warmer weather.

Beckman ran a 3.921 (327.03) to open the day then improved to 3.886 (329.18) during the final session to earn the No. 5 position. He will race former world champion Cruz Pedregon on Sunday in the first round.

"We've had to phase in some new clutch disks," Beckman said. "Your inventory gets depleted and you have to work in new ones. We're going to face the same thing three races down the road but if we keep making good decisions like we've done with these two new disks, it should be a pretty seamless transition.

"The better thing is, I think we've got a car we can race with on Sunday."

JACK BECKMAN, Infinite Hero 2017 Dodge Charger R/T
Crew chiefs: John Medlen, Dean Antonelli, Neal Strausbaugh
Qualified: No. 5
SUNDAY ELIMINATIONS
First round: Cruz Pedregon
QUALIFYING
FRIDAY: 8.661 sec., 71.92 mph, (Session 1); 4.351, 223.28, (Session 2)
SATURDAY: 3.921, 327.03, (Session 3); 3.886, 329.18, (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 298 NHRA national event titles and 16 world championships.

Follow Don Schumacher Racing at ShoeRacing.com, on Twitter at @shoeracing and Facebook.com/shoeracing.