Mopar Looking to Repeat or Make New History at Summernationals
· Mopar competes in the 44th annual NHRA SummerNationals in Englishtown, N.J., the 9th of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Series season
· Gray is defending Funny Car winner at Englishtown and has a two event win streak going into this weekend
· Past Mopar winners at Englishtown: Coughlin (3) and Johnson (1) in Pro Stock, and Gray (1) and Capps (1) in Funny Car
· DSR’s Capps set the track’s quickest Funny Car run in his Dodge Charger R/T with a 3.96 sec pass last year
· Old Bridge Township Raceway Park is Nobile’s home track
Englishtown, N.J. (Friday, May 31, 2013) – This weekend the Mopar contingency competes at the 44th annual NHRA Summernationals taking place at the historic Old Bridge Township Raceway Park affectionately known to drag racing aficionados as “Englishtown”. It seems that each Dodge driver is either looking to either repeat past history of success at the track, extend a streak, start a new one, or replace a missed opportunity with a new memory.
The current Funny Car points leader, Johnny Gray of Don Schumacher Racing, is the defending winner of this event and is looking to continue a hot streak that saw him drive his Dodge Charger R/T to the winner’s circle in the last two NHRA National events in Atlanta and Topeka for a total of three victories so far this season that has doubled his career totals. Last year’s action at the New Jersey track also saw DSR teammate Ron Capps, won here in 2006, set a track record with a 3.96-second pass to set the quickest run in Funny Car history.
With his own strong start this season, and looking to add a second win to build up his points total at the Summernationals, Matt Hagan currently has his “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” entry third in the standings.
“The points right now are so tight between me, Johnny (Gray) and Cruz (Pedregon), and Ron (Capps) isn’t that far back in fourth so it’s shaping up to be a great points battle,” Hagan said. “I think we are about a round and a half out of first and we need a really good race to remain there in the top three and I don’t want to let Capps get around us.”
Coming away from the previous event at the Kansas Nationals with his own win, Mopar’s Pro Stock driver Jeg Coughlin Jr. would love to start a win streak similar to Gray’s after advancing to three final round appearances so far this season and build on the efforts that have him second in the standings.
“We’re excited,” says Coughlin who has three Pro Stock wins at Englishtown earned in 1998, 2000, and 2009. “Coming off our best effort of the year, where we not only got the trophy but passed the 500 round-win mark at the same time, has us all feeling pretty good.”
His teammate Allen Johnson, defending 2012 NHRA champion, won at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in 2011 and sits third in the standings. Johnson faced Coughlin in the final elimination round at Topeka and is looking forward to a few more all-Mopar showdowns this season.
“Getting to that final round is what we’re trying to do at every event and it’s especially fun to battle against your own Mopar teammates because that makes you better,” said Johnson who has two wins to date this season and is just 45 points behind Coughlin.
As a resident of Melville, N.Y. just a few miles down the road from one of NHRA’s original seven national events, Vincent Nobile for his part is looking to do well in his HEMI-powered Dodge Avenger at the track he considers home. Nobile won his very first race here aboard a Junior Dragster and has also had class wins, including a King of the Hill victory when he was just eight years old. However, his first Pro Stock appearance at Englishtown in 2011 was certainly memorable as he worked his way to a final elimination round face off against Johnson only to set off the red-light on the start.
“That would have meant the world to win that race in front of my whole family because that would be one pretty good winner’s circle picture to have my whole family in it,” said Nobile of the missed opportunity but quickly adds that he hopes to get the chance again this year. “To win here would mean a lot for me and my dad because we have always wanted to win Englishtown.”
ESPN2 and ESPN2HD will provide coverage of this weekend’s 44th annual NHRA Summernationals from Englishtown, N.J., the eighth of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, with one hour of qualifying highlights on Saturday, June 1 at 5 p.m. (ET) and rebroadcast on Sunday June 2 at 1 a.m. (ET). Coverage of the elimination rounds will air on Sunday, June 2, starting at 4:30 p.m. (ET).