Qualified: No. 5 (3.805 E.T. at 323.27 MPH)
The Results:
E1: 3.808 E.T. at 326.71 MPH defeated by Blake Alexander 3.802 E.T. at 319.75 MPH
Race Recap:
After a qualifying performance which positioned him in the top half of the field, Antron Brown drew Blake Alexander in the first round. The 2014 Norwalk event champion had a one-to-one record against Alexander prior to lining up on Sunday morning at the 12th annual NHRA Nationals. Both drivers were quick on the tree, with Brown earning a slight advantage (0.065 vs Alexander’s 0.068-second reaction time). Alexander took the lead almost immediately and raced down the track in 3.802-seconds, narrowly defeating Brown’s 3.808-second pass.
Quotable:
“We came out this weekend and had a couple good qualifying runs – top five in each session. Then my Matco Tools/U.S. Army/Toyota boys gave me a good car today and we went out and made a solid run with a 3.80, only to lose by three one-thousandths of a second. It’s just been that kind of season. Blake (Alexander) and the Vandergriff team have run really well – that’s definitely not a team you expect to be qualifying 12th. The good thing is we keep improving and, eventually, things are going to even out.”