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2013 NHRA: Matt Hagan NHRA Arizona Nationals Event Report: Runner-Up
For Matt Hagan, Sunday's eliminations at the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway were like a preview of a blockbuster movie.
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In only the second event in the 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season, Hagan's team with new crew chief Dickie Venables, assistant Mike Knudsen and several new crew members earned a runner-up finish to teammate Ron Capps on Sunday afternoon.
And Hagan couldn't be happier with each member of his team.
"I am extremely, extremely, extremely proud of this new, young, race team," Hagan said. "For our second race together to come out here and go to the final, that's huge. We have a lot still to learn but I think it's just a taste of what you're going to see this year out of this team."
The Mopar/Rocky Boots Funny Car team had a little help from their friends and Don Schumacher Racing teammate Johnny Gray's crew to get ready for the final round.
"We really pushed to make that new 50-minute turnaround between the semifinals and final," Hagan said. "But we fired up right on time with Ron's NAPA car.
"I just want to say thank you to Johnny Gray's guys for their help. Without them we couldn't have gotten it done. They were over here just hustling and busting their butts as hard as my guys were."
Hagan credits Venables and Knudsen for the early season boost.
"Dickie is a leader over here," he said. "We needed someone that was going to pull the guys together, keep the guys going and lift up the morale. The guys have a lot of direction. Dickie is very hands on. He's out here working with the guys.
"Our assistant crew chief Mike is doing a great job. He's up and coming. He's a clutch guy and he had the opportunity to step up and he's made some really good calls."
But there's a small part inside Hagan's competitive heart that was disappointed.
"It's not fun to lose," he said. "It feels like someone just stepped on your heart but that's just part of racing. There's just one winner at the end of the day. We take what we learned here and we move toward Gainesville.
"I'm feeling good about driving the car. It's just a matter of getting everything together and making four good runs on Sunday. This team is showing a lot of promise early, so I think that's just around the corner. We'll just keep growing this young team and see what happens, but I'm very, very excited about it."
The final round appearance moved Hagan up to third in Mello Yello points standings.
The following are Hagan's results and other event notes from the NHRA Arizona Nationals.
FUNNY CAR
Event winner: Ron Capps (DSR)
Matt Hagan, Mopar/Rocky Boots Dodge Charger R/T
Qualified: No. 2
SUNDAY CHAMPIONSHIP ELIMINATIONS
First round: HAGAN (4.078 sec., 310.27 mph) def. Phil Burkart (4.389, 285.47) Second round: HAGAN (4.259, 254.76) def. Bob Tasca III (6.845, 97.60)
Semifinals: HAGAN (4.049, 4.105) def. John Force (4.105, 315.56) Final round: Ron Capps (4.064, 314.90) def. HAGAN (4.158, 300.33)
NHRA MELLO YELLO DRAG RACING SERIES
(Unofficial standings after 2 of 24 events; DSR drivers in CAPS)
FUNNY CAR
1. RON CAPPS, 210
2. Courtney Force, 165
3. MATT HAGAN, 151
4. Bob Tasca III, 124
5. JOHNNY GRAY, 122
6. Cruz Pedregon, 117
7t. John Force, 106
7t. Tim Wilkerson, 106
9. Todd Lesenko, 102
10. Robert Hight, 83
11. JACK BECKMAN, 77
NEXT EVENT: March 14-17, Gainesville, Fla.
PaddockTalk Perspective
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