POMONA, Calif. (Feb. 14, 2016) – If the NHRA Winternationals season-opener at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona is any indicator, the 2016 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season is going to be filled with close races and some of the toughest Top Fuel competition in history.
Reigning and two-time Top Fuel world champ Antron Brown and the Matco Tools/U.S. Army team eliminated teammate and 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon in the first round of competition before losing to eventual event runner-up Doug Kalitta in the second round.
“It was a good drag race,” Brown said. “We were pushing hard but they just got the best of us. We learned a lot and we gained a lot with some of the new stuff we’ve been bringing to the table. The bad part of our last run was that we were out in front of him down the whole racetrack before we dropped a hole (cylinder) at 800 feet. That would’ve been enough to get him because we were ahead by almost two-hundredths at half-track.”
Brown, who qualified seventh, has been to the past two final rounds at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.
“Our package was strong enough to run a high (3.78) or .79, good enough to get the win,” Brown said. “But we’re just going to bring it all together and build from here at our next race at Phoenix. We’ll get our game faces on and hit it hard. You know, this class is ridiculously competitive right now, but this is the way we want it.”
A few hours after the race, Brown headed to Las Vegas to participate in the annual Matco Tools EXPO business conference where he will unveil the 2016 paint scheme for his Matco dragster.
“EXPO is where everyone from Matco gets together and it’s just a really great experience,” he said. “We’re going to unveil our special 2016 scheme with everyone from Matco and there’s no better way to do that than with them. This racing program is for them and I couldn’t be happier about our partnership.”
The Mello Yello series resumes in two weeks at Wild Horse Motorsports Park near Phoenix.
TOP FUEL
Event winner: Steve Torrence
No. 1 qualifier: Torrence (Torrence Racing), 3.703 sec., 328.06 mph
ANTRON BROWN, Matco Tools Top Fuel Dragster
Qualified: No. 7
SUNDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP ELIMINATIONS
First round opponent: BROWN (3.768 sec., 320.97) def. Shawn Langdon (5.478, 132.78)
Second round: Doug Kalitta (3.785, 323.97) def. BROWN (3.803, 317.72)
QUALIFYING
SATURDAY: 3.901 sec., 307.79 mph, (Session 3); 3.754 322.73, (Session 4)
FRIDAY: 4.491, 173.34, (Session 1); 3.782, 315.05, (Session 2)
NHRA MELLO YELLO DRAGT RACING SERIES STANDINGS
(After 1st of 24 events; DSR drivers in CAPS)
Top Fuel Points
1. Steve Torrence 126
2. Doug Kalitta 94
3. Richie Crampton 77
4. JR Todd 72
5. Clay Millican 57
6. Morgan Lucas 52
7. ANTRON BROWN 48
8. Terry McMillen 46
9. TONY SCHUMACHER 42
10. Dave Connolly 33
11. SHAWN LANGDON 32