Wed, 23 Sep 2009, 01:10 AM News from Mike Ashley Racing - Antron Brown Dallas NHRA Advance Release

Courtesy of Ted Yerzyk

ENNIS, Tex. -- 24th annual O'Reilly Super Start Fall Nationals Sept. 24-27, 2009 Texas Motorplex Ennis, Texas

Antron Brown on Dallas
"I'm thrilled to get to Dallas. It's time to get the MAR Matco Tools dragster back on track. We're going to have a big cheering section from all our Matco Tools distributors and customers in Dallas and we need to get it rolling again. Our Matco Tools car is running strong, but we've just hit a few bumps in the first round at Indy and Charlotte. That's behind us and we're positive and we're ready to get back to another final round. We had the quickest time in the four-lane race at Charlotte and tested Monday after the race. I know our team will bounce back and have a good race at the (Texas) Motorplex."

Brian Corradi (crew chief) on Dallas
"We had a malfunction that bit us in the first round at Charlotte. The way things played out, we didn't get hurt too bad. Our Matco team does a great job and the car has been running well. I don't see any reason why we can't get back on track this weekend at Dallas. We just need to go out and race and have fun and start going some rounds again. There's no reason we can't win this championship and we need to take it one round at a time just like we have all season long."

Antron Brown Dallas NHRA Notebook
Last week at the second running of the Charlotte NHRA race, Brown qualified the Matco Tools car second at 3.847 seconds at 317.87 mph. It was the second time he qualified in the No. 2 position this season (Las Vegas 1). Brown's Matco Tools car smoked the tires in the opening round as the 23-time NHRA winner fell to Terry McMillen, 5.223 to 6.849. It was just Brown's second first round loss of the season. The Matco Tools team earned top speed of the meet honors for the 11th time in 19 races this season.

Last year at the O'Reilly Fall Nationals, Brown raced his Matco Tools dragster to the No. 10 qualifying position with a lap of 3.897 seconds at 309.06 mph on his first qualifying pass. It was just the third time that he qualified in the bottom half of the 16-car field last year. He raced to a second-round finish before falling to Brandon Bernstein, 3.965 to 4.015. Brown won his first career NHRA race at Texas Motorplex in 1999, his second season on the NHRA circuit. He defeated cousin-in-law and three-time Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Angelle Sampey in the final round to score his first career victory. Brown won three races in four final rounds in 1999 and has 16 career Pro Stock Motorcycle wins.

This season, Brown has five wins in eight final round appearances, along with seven poles, all category-bests. In July, Brown made NHRA history becoming just the seventh professional driver to sweep the grueling Western Swing (Denver, Seattle and Sonoma, Calif.). Brown also has clocked the two fastest runs in 1,000-foot racing at 319.75 (Bristol) and 319.22 mph (Indianapolis). He is the only driver to surpass 319 mph at 1,000-feet. He has an average qualifying position of 6.5 in four races at Texas Motorplex and an average qualifying position of 3.37 in 19 races this season. Brown has not ranked lower than second in the standings all season long. He trails Cory McClenathan by 10 points entering the O'Reilly Super Start Fall Nationals.

Antron Brown... Did You Know?
-Brown was a track star at Mercer Community College in New Jersey competing in the 100 and 200-meters, long jump, and 55-meter indoor. He ran quick enough to qualify for the U.S. Olympic trails in the 100-meters.
-Brown's first race team owner was former NFL star cornerback Troy Vincent.
-Brown is the only driver in NHRA history to hold the points lead and win races in both Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle (7 TF/16 PSM).
-Brown's team owner, Mike Ashley, is a three-time NHRA Funny Car winner, including the prestigious U.S. Nationals in 2007 -Brown's co-crew chief, Mark Oswald, won the 1984 NHRA Winston Funny Car championship. Oswald is one of 14 drivers in NHRA history to have won races in both Top Fuel and Funny Car.

Brown's Dallas NHRA Schedule
Date/Time Event/Location
Wed., Sept. 23, Noon-3 p.m. Matco Tools TechEd Visit, TSTC Waco
3801 Campus Drive, Waco, TX 76705
Thur., Sept. 24, 7-9 p.m. Matco Tools Customer Dinner, Fat Daddy's
781 W. Debbie Lane, Mansfield, TX 76063 Fri.,
Sept. 25, 2:45/5:30 p.m. TF Qualifying 1/2, Texas Motorplex Sat.,
Sept. 26, Noon/3:15 p.m. TF Qualifying 3/4, Texas Motorplex Sun.,
Sept. 27, 11 a.m. Final Eliminations, Texas Motorplex

O'Reilly Fall Nationals TV Schedule (ESPN2)
Date/Time (ET) Coverage
Sun. Sept. 27, 12:15-2:15 a.m. Qualifying Highlights Sun.,
Sept. 27, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.. Qualifying Highlights Sun.,
Sept. 27, 11-11:30 a.m. NHRA Race Day Sun.,
Sept. 27, 7-10 p.m. Final Eliminations

http://www.matcotools.com

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