Mopar-powered Dodge//SRT Drivers Hagan, Pritchett Look to Make History in Season-opening NHRA Winternationals

Mopar-powered Dodge//SRT Drivers Hagan, Pritchett Look to Make History in Season-opening NHRA Winternationals

· Two-time NHRA World Champion Matt Hagan looks to become only fourth Funny Car driver to win three consecutive NHRA Winternationals events
· Four Don Schumacher Racing drivers among those seeking first win in Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car
· NHRA Top Fuel star Leah Pritchett coming off career-best season and eyeing second Winternationals triumph in Pomona, California, in last three years
· Two-time NHRA World Champion Cruz Pedregon to make debut in Mopar-powered Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car
· Jim Campbell also set to drive Hellcat Funny Car for Jim Dunn Racing, mark third year in a Mopar-powered Dodge
· Brands continue NHRA Sportsman racer support in 2019 with long-running Mopar Contingency Program, third year of Dodge Top Finisher Award
· For information on Dodge//SRT and Mopar in NHRA, visit www.DodgeGarage.com

Auburn Hills, Michigan (February 6, 2019) – Dodge//SRT and Mopar look to begin the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) 2019 season at the NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, California, February 7-10, with a fifth consecutive Funny Car victory with one of Don Schumacher Racing’s (DSR) stable of Mopar/Dodge drivers and a second triumph in three years of Top Fuel competition in the Mopar-powered 330-plus mph machine of Leah Pritchett.

Matt Hagan, two-time NHRA Funny Car World Champion and driver of the Mopar Express Lane Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car, begins his second decade of carrying the Mopar brand seeking to join three other drivers that have won three consecutive Winternationals. He’ll also be seeking to make history and score the first NHRA National event win utilizing the Hellcat body, which debuted in July of last year.

“We are so excited to make that first hit of the year and knowing that we are starting in Pomona is something special,” said Hagan, winner of the 2015 and 2017–18 Winternationals. “The odds of winning any race out here are extremely high with the competition we have, but it feels good knowing we are the only ones heading there with a chance to win three straight. I hope I didn’t jinx myself (laughs) talking about winning three in a row. Seriously though, we are gunning for it. We want to be the first one to turn on four win lights with the Hellcat. I feel like we are going to come out strong and have a real opportunity to do it.”

Pritchett is coming off a career-best 2018 campaign, which included her domination of the Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals Presented By Pennzoil and winning the 2018 Factory Stock Showdown championship. She’ll have primary placement of the Mopar and Dodge brands on the DSR Top Fuel Dragster in nine of the 24 events on the 2019 schedule. The impact of representing the iconic brands following an incredible season continues to resonate with the Redlands, California, native.

“The foundation has been laid over the last 15-plus years between Mopar/Dodge and DSR,” said Pritchett, winner of two 2018 Top Fuel national events and a career-best fourth place ranking in the final championship standings. “It’s difficult for me to put actual words out there to describe my place in it all. The groundwork for the success we’ve had is done and I can just tell you that being part of the Dodge/Mopar/DSR legacy is amazing. I am so stoked. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever been more excited to start a season than I am right now.

“We are coming off an incredible season. One with such high emotions and career pinnacle achievements. Winning the Factory Stock Showdown was pure joy and the result of hard work, determination and being able to deliver. That followed the biggest win of my career last year at the Dodge Mile-High Nationals. It was a weekend filled with gratitude and miracles for me. Like I said, we have raised the bar and we’re ready to come back in 2019 and achieve even more.”

Hagan, who scored three wins and the eighth position in the 2018 standings, is focused on a better performance behind the wheel of a Mopar-powered DSR Dodge Funny Car in 2019 as he seeks his third career NHRA Funny Car title.

“Teamwork is everything,” said Hagan, who will have Dodge/Mopar as primary sponsor in 12 events in 2019. “I’ve won two World Championships. Finished runner-up twice. Won a bunch of races and it’s because of the people I’ve surrounded myself with. I’ve been around good people and we are all motivated and driven. That starts at the top with Don (Schumacher) and the last decade with Mopar. We are all goal oriented and driven. It’s a new season ahead of us and we’re all ready to get after it.”

Hagan’s DSR teammates, Ron Capps, Jack Beckman and Tommy Johnson Jr., will also battle for the crown in Mopar HEMI®-engine-fueled Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car machines. Capps, winner of the 2016 Winternationals and 2017 Funny Car champ, won three times last season and finished fourth in the standings. Beckman, the 2012 Funny Car champ, raced to two victories and finished seventh in points, while Johnson finished 2018 strong reaching the final in the season-ending NHRA Finals and finishing third in points.

Mopar and Dodge//SRT add Cruz Pedregon to driver lineup

A two-time NHRA World Champion will field a new Mopar-powered entry in the battle to bring home the 2019 Funny Car championship for Dodge//SRT and Mopar. Cruz Pedregon will debut a Mopar-powered Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car for the 2019 season at Pomona, and will give the brand another championship contender in the division.

“The timing was right and it’s a great opportunity with the new body style and all the other components to the relationship,” said Pedregon. “We will utilize the Dodge SRT Durango for support vehicles and it just enhances our entire program. And from an historical perspective, I think back to my dad racing in the early ‘60s with a 392 HEMI engine, and that’s what we have (HEMI engines) in these cars today. So there’s sentimental value in this too. We are really excited about this opportunity.”

Jim Dunn Racing’s Jim Campbell will also carry the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat graphics on his Funny Car this year. Campbell enters his third season behind the wheel of a Mopar-powered Dodge machine for Jim Dunn Racing, which has a long history of fielding Dodge Funny Cars. The team’s entry will bring to six the number of Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat drivers fighting for the 2019 Funny Car crown.

Mopar Contingency Program, Dodge Top Finisher Award Deliver Continued Support for NHRA Sportsman Racers

In the 2019 season, the Mopar and Dodge//SRT brands will continue to recognize and reward NHRA Sportsman racers who compete and win.

As it has for decades, the long-running Mopar Contingency Program will provide monetary awards for drivers who win or finish runner-up while running a Mopar contingency decal and utilizing specified parts, including the brand’s valve covers, intake manifolds and cylinder heads.

In addition, the Dodge Top Finisher award, first introduced in 2017, awards $500 to the Stock and Super Stock competitors behind the wheel of a Mopar-powered vehicle who advance the furthest at all 24 national events