{"id":57080,"date":"2021-10-26T11:17:35","date_gmt":"2021-10-26T15:17:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dodgegarage.com\/news-api\/?p=57080"},"modified":"2024-03-25T11:21:01","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T15:21:01","slug":"mopar-and-dodge-racers-are-las-vegas-bound-for-penultimate-countdown-to-the-championship-playoff-showdown-at-dodge-srt-nhra-nationals-presented-by-pennzoil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/racing\/2021\/10\/mopar-and-dodge-racers-are-las-vegas-bound-for-penultimate-countdown-to-the-championship-playoff-showdown-at-dodge-srt-nhra-nationals-presented-by-pennzoil.html","title":{"rendered":"Mopar\u00ae<\/sub> and Dodge Racers Are Las Vegas-bound for Penultimate \u2018Countdown to the Championship\u2019 Playoff Showdown at Dodge\/\/SRT\u00ae<\/sup> NHRA Nationals Presented by Pennzoil"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Drag\nracers are ready to head to the staging lanes at the 21st annual Dodge\/\/SRT\u00ae<\/sup>\nNationals Presented by Pennzoil for the penultimate National Hot Rod\nAssociation (NHRA) ”Countdown to the Championship” playoff event of the\nseason at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Oct. 29-31. Three Dodge Charger\nSRT Hellcat Funny Cars are among the top five contenders vying for a Camping\nWorld series championship title. Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) pilots Ron Capps\nand Matt Hagan sit 1-2 atop the leaderboard, separated by just one point, while\nCruz Pedregon Racing owner and wheelman Cruz Pedregon joins the fray in fourth\nplace as the championship battle intensifies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re\neager to return to Las Vegas for the Dodge\/\/SRT Nationals and watch another\nexciting Funny Car championship play out with three of our brand\u2019s drag-racing\nstars in the hunt,\u201d said Tim Kuniskis, Dodge Brand CEO – Stellantis. “Our\nultra-passionate Dodge drag-racing enthusiasts can expect to be treated to a\ngreat showcase of pure Dodge performance this weekend in both nitro and\nsportsman categories.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kuniskis\nadded that fans should watch for special paint schemes on Pruett\u2019s and Hagan\u2019s\ncars, previewing a major upcoming Dodge brand announcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This\nweekend\u2019s competition marks the fifth national event with Dodge\/\/SRT and Mopar\u00ae<\/sub>\ntitle sponsorship support during the NHRA\u2019s 70th anniversary season and the\nsecond of the \u201cCountdown to the Championship\u201d series, which kicked off with the\nMopar Express Lane Nationals Presented by Pennzoil at Maple Grove Raceway near\nReading, Pennsylvania, in September. The three competing Dodge Charger SRT\nHellcat Funny Cars have amassed a total of six victories this year and have won\nor finished runner-up at each of the previous four Dodge\/\/SRT- or Mopar Express\nLane-sponsored events in Houston, Denver, Indianapolis and Reading,\nPennsylvania.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Veteran racers Capps and Hagan are focused on continuing that trend aboard their respective HEMI\u00ae<\/sup>-powered machines at the Dodge\/\/SRT Nationals while jostling for the points lead as each works to deliver Dodge\/\/SRT and Mopar brands a seventh Funny Car world championship title with the DSR team in 19 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After\ncollecting a Wally trophy at the Texas FallNationals that put him within\nstriking distance of his stablemate and then points-leader Hagan, 2016 Funny\nCar champ Capps is ready to wheel his NAPA AUTO Parts Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat\nto a second playoff victory. That performance, combined with the following\nThunder Valley Nationals semifinal appearance, moved Capps into the\nchampionship lead by one point ahead of this weekend\u2019s Dodge\/\/SRT Nationals at\nthe venue where he has claimed five wins. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\nbelieve this type of scenario is what NHRA envisioned when they came up with\nthe Countdown to the Championship format,\u201d says Capps. \u201cObviously, we\u2019ve talked\nall year about how 2021 has been one of the tightest Funny Car battles we\u2019ve\nseen in a long time, and here we are, two races to go and we\u2019ve got a pretty\nbunched-up field. Consistency has really been the key for our NAPA AUTO PARTS\nteam. Qualifying high in the field and earning qualifying bonus points has helped\nput us in the points lead going into the Dodge\/\/SRT Nationals presented by\nPennzoil, and we\u2019d love nothing more than to be able to shine for Dodge and\nPennzoil at their event. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve\ngot a great battle going on with our teammate Matt Hagan, and the other Funny\nCars are nipping at our heels,\u201d he added. \u201cIt definitely seems that this will\nbe a pivotal race; it always seems that way when the points are tight, but our\nNAPA AutoCare team has given me a great car every weekend, and we\u2019ve won some\nvery big rounds in the Countdown, and I have a feeling there will be more of\nthat this weekend in Vegas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defending\nFunny Car world champion Hagan and his Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye\nare second in points with three wins this season; two wins came in the playoffs\nwith the help of Tommy Johnson Jr., who subbed for Hagan and won the Mopar\nExpress Lane Nationals to kick off the Countdown. As Hagan aims for a fourth\nFunny Car title (2011, 2014 and 2020) he understands the importance of a strong\nperformance at the Dodge\/\/SRT Nationals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\ndon’t really approach this event any differently,\u201d says Hagan, who has three\nVegas victories and will be defending his back-to-back wins in 2019 and 2020 at\nthe facility. \u201cI approach every round as if it’s the most important round ever.\nI’ve done that all year long but unfortunately I can count six or seven races\nwhere we lost by just two- or three-thousandths of a second. It’s nothing that\nwe haven’t dealt with before. I think every championship that I’ve won has come\ndown to the last race in the semi-finals or finals. So why should this year be\nany different, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\nfeel like (crew chief) Dickie Venables is going to be aggressive moving into\nthese next two races,\u201d he added. \u201cWe’re going to run hard and let the cards fall\nwhere they may but I’m excited about it. It’s going to be fun. It’s business as\nusual. We\u2019re staying focused and will do the best job we can for our sponsors\nand our fans.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pedregon\nis chasing a third Funny Car World Championship after earning his first as a\nrookie in 1992 and then hoisting a championship trophy again in 2008. The\nSnap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat collected a Wally Trophy at Norwalk in\nJune and has advanced to the semifinals or better at five of the last seven\nevents, including runner-up finishes at Brainerd and Charlotte to put him in\nchampionship contention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\nexpect the Dodge\/\/SRT Las Vegas Nationals to be a great race for competitors\nand fans alike,\u201d says Pedregon, who is tied with fellow contender John Force in\nfourth place and five rounds behind heading into Vegas. \u201cThere are more cars in\nthe hunt now, so I think that’ll make for closer racing and then Pomona is a\npoints-and-a-half race. It’ll make the champion really earn it before they\nclose the deal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\nTop Fuel action, driver Leah Pruett and her Mopar Dodge\/\/SRT dragster might be\nout of championship contention but she is still aiming for a top-three finish\nto improve on her current three-year streak of finishing a career-best fourth\nfor the season. To help that cause, Pruett has her sights set firmly on taking\nher Mopar Dodge\/\/SRT dragster to the winner\u2019s circle for a second time this\nyear, after an energizing playoff victory in Pomona. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy\nentire career has been about proving something and this weekend is about\nproving that this Dodge\/\/SRT team can be consistent and win races,\u201d says\nPruett. \u201cAll we can do is race to the best of our ability and that mindset\nserves us well as we set our sights on getting a win at this Dodge-sponsored\ntrack. To play spoiler can seem like fun but really it\u2019s because we are\nadvancing and not because we’re putting any particular opponent on the trailer.\nWe want this win for us and for Dodge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nfinal Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown of 2021 will be contested this\nweekend at The Strip at Las Vegas with Pruett, Mark Pawuk and David Davies\ncompeting in the hyper-competitive class aboard their DSR-prepared Dodge\nChallenger Mopar Drag Paks and racing for manufacturer bragging rights and\nchasing a final win to close out their season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The\nFactory Stock Showdown finale feels like the ultimate homecoming for me because\nof how far Dodge and the Mopar Drag Pak program have come these past four\nyears,\u201d says Pruett, who won the 2018 FSS championship as a rookie and has been\ninstrumental in developing the 2021 Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak, the\nquickest, fastest, most powerful drag pak ever built. \u201cBeing a part of the\nprogram and its progression, then seeing the growing number of new Mopar Drag\nPak entries and their own performance journey, has been truly enjoyable. To see\na new generation of drivers choose Mopar Drag Paks as their weekend warrior or\nfierce piece of weaponry is outstanding.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pruett\nis doubling down this weekend in Vegas, hoping to accomplish something that has\neluded her the last four years \u2014 drive both her HEMI-powered dragster and her\nMopar Drag Pak to wins in the same weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“A\nfinal FSS Wally in my final race of the season; I couldn\u2019t ask for much more,\nexcept maybe a double-up,\u201d says Pruett, who will pull double duty by competing\nin both categories for an eighth time this season. \u201cIt\u2019s my last shot at it\nthis year. That’s what drives me this weekend and why I feel more determined\nthan ever.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\naddition to all the on track action, Dodge\/\/SRT and Mopar will have their\n4,800-square-foot exhibit in the NHRA\u2019s Manufacturers Midway for NHRA fans to\nexplore a number of interactive displays, including a pair of Dodge Challenger\nSRT Demon simulators to test their skills in a virtual race, as well as the\npopular Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Funny Car simulator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Television\ncoverage of Top Fuel and Funny Car qualifying at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor\nSpeedway will air on FS1 on Friday, Oct. 29, 7-8 p.m. (ET), and Saturday, Oct.\n30, 4-5 p.m.(ET) Eliminations, including live coverage of the final round of\nthe Dodge\/\/SRT Nationals Presented by Pennzoil, will air on FS1 on Sunday, Oct.\n31, 5-8 p.m. (ET).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NHRA Championship Points Standings:<\/strong> (Ahead\nof the Dodge\/\/SRT NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Ron Capps (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) \u2013 2,490 (2) <\/strong>
2. Matt Hagan (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) \u2013 2,489 (3\/1-Tommy Johnson Jr.)<\/strong>
3. J.R. Todd \u2013 2,407 (1)
4. Cruz Pedregon (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat) \u2013 2,389 (1)<\/strong>
5. John Force \u2013 2,389 (3)
6. Bob Tasca III \u2013 2,343 (2)
7. Robert Hight \u2013 2,337 (2)
8. Alexis DeJoria \u2013 2,319 (1)
9. Tim Wilkerson\u2013 2,249 (1)
10. Blake Alexander\u2013 2,184 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

TOP FUEL (season wins in parentheses)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Steve Torrance \u2013 2,575 (9)
2. Brittany Force \u2013 2,503 (1)
3. Justin Ashley \u2013 2,428 (2)
4. Mike Salinas \u2013 2,425 (1)
5. Billy Torrence \u2013 2,357 (2)
6. Leah Pruett (Mopar Dodge\/\/SRT) \u2013 2,291 (1)<\/em><\/strong>
7. Clay Millican \u2013 2,265 
8. Antron Brown \u2013 2,252 (1)
9. Shawn Langdon \u2013 2,228 10. Doug Kalitta \u2013 2,180 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Drag racers are ready to head to the staging lanes at the 21st annual Dodge\/\/SRT\u00ae Nationals Presented by Pennzoil for the penultimate National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) ”Countdown to the Championship” playoff event of the season at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Oct. 29-31. Three Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Cars are among the top five contenders vying for a Camping World series championship title. Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) pilots Ron Capps and Matt Hagan sit 1-2 atop the leaderboard, separated by just one point, while Cruz Pedregon […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":57084,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[575],"tags":[528,849,615],"class_list":["post-57080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-racing","tag-drag-racing","tag-dsr","tag-nhra"],"acf":[],"custom_fields":{"post_thumbnail_image":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/NHRAVegas_Feature.png","icon_selection":"article","external_link":"","featured_article":[],"upload_background_image":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57080"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57080"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57080\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57087,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57080\/revisions\/57087"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57080"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57080"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57080"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}