Hagan, Mopar Kick-Off NHRA “Countdown to the Championship” as Provisional No.1 Qualifier at Carolina Nationals
Don Schumacher Racing HEMI-Power Sweeps Top Three Funny Car Provisional Qualifying Spots

National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) kicks off the “Countdown to the Championship” six-race playoff series this weekend at the Carolina Nationals
Three Pro Stock and three Funny Car Mopar drivers will battle the field in their respective classes in the Countdown
Matt Hagan drives his Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) Dodge Charger R/T to Funny Car provisional No.1 qualifier position at zMAX Raceway
DSR Mopars sweep top three spots in Funny Car provisional qualifying
Jeg Coughlin Jr. paces the HEMI-powered Dodge Dart factory hot rods by earning the provisional No.2 qualifier spot

Concord, North Carolina (Sept. 12, 2014) –The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) kicked off the “Countdown to the Championship” six-race playoff series on Friday with qualifying at the seventh annual Pep Boys NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Raceway near Charlotte, North Carolina, with three Pro Stock and three Funny Car Mopar drivers battling the field in their respective classes for the coveted crown. Matt Hagan got things rolling for Mopar in qualifying at the first of four national events in as many weeks by driving his Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car to the provisional No.1 qualifier position, while defending Pro Stock title winner at the Carolina Nationals, Jeg Coughlin Jr. was the top Dodge Dart by earning the No.2 spot.

Last year’s NHRA Pro Stock Champion Coughlin Jr., along with his Mopar teammate 2012 Champion and 2013 runner-up Allen Johnson, as well as veteran racer V. Gaines will fight to earn the brand’s third consecutive factory hot rod NHRA crown and are looking to start things off with a title win this weekend. In the Funny Car competition, DSR’s Ron Capps, Tommy Johnson Jr., and 2011 Champ Hagan will work to drive their Mopars back to championship form after Jack Beckman’s NHRA win in 2012. Beckman will look to play spoiler in the playoffs while chasing his first national title of the season after missing the Countdown by just 10 points.

Qualifying at the Carolina Nationals saw DSR sweep the top three provisional spots with Hagan, Capps and Beckman. The Rocky Boots / Mopar Express Lane Dodge Charger R/T driven by Hagan went to the top of the timing sheets with his second lap elapsed time run of 4.114 seconds at 304.25 mph. That helped Hagan add three valuable bonus points to the single marker he earned in the first session by posting the third quickest pass with a 4.192/290.19.

Capps, who leads the DSR contingent in the championship standings with a third place spot to start the Countdown, posted a 4.123/297.35 on his second pass to take the provisional No.2 position in qualifying at zMAX Dragway, while Beckman ended the day by rounding out the top-three with his 4.124/305.22 run. Tommy Johnson Jr., who had posted the second quickest pass of the first qualifying session with a 4.185/292.77 to earn two bonus points, ended up ninth after smoking the tires on this second run.

In Pro Stock qualifying, defending title winner Coughlin Jr. posted the second quickest elapsed time run of the first session with a 6.602 second pass at 209.33 miles per hour. Coughlin remained second to provisional No.1 qualifier Erica Enders-Stevens (6.591/210.11) with that initial elapsed time run after he was sixth quick of the second session with a 6.613/208.84 pass.

Fellow Johnson & Johnson HEMI-powered teammate, Allen Johnson improved from an eighth place e.t. of 6.619 seconds (208.94 mph) with his first qualifying attempt of the weekend to the provisional fifth spot with the fourth quickest run (6.609/208.81) of the second session. V. Gaines posted a best lap of 6.649/208.91 in his Dodge Dart to find himself in the 12th provisional spot heading into Saturday’s qualifying sessions.

One hour of qualifying highlights from Friday’s sessions at the seventh annual Pep Boys NHRA Carolina Nationals, the 19th of 24 events on the NHRA Mello Yellow Drag Racing series schedule, will be broadcast on ESPN2 tonight, September 12, starting at 11 p.m. (ET). An hour and a half of complete qualifying highlights will be televised on ESPN2 on Sunday, Sept. 14, at 2:00 a.m. (ET) and then three hours of elimination round coverage will air Sunday evening starting at 8:30 p.m. (ET).