Four-time NHRA Top Fuel world champion Antron Brown and the AB Motorsports team continued to build momentum on the opening stop of the NHRA Western Swing, racing from the No. 10 qualifying position to a semifinal finish Sunday at the DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge at Sonoma Raceway.
The semifinal appearance proves that persistence pays off and that the Matco Tools AB Motorsports team has found its footing over the past several races and is heating up at the right time as the regular season winds down and the Countdown to the Championship approaches.
Brown opened qualifying Friday with a solid 3.784-second pass at 324.59 mph in the Matco Tools Eagle Experience Top Fuel dragster to secure the provisional No. 8 position. The second qualifying session was canceled after an extended track cleanup pushed racing beyond Sonoma Raceway’s curfew.
Saturday’s first qualifying opportunity included the opening round of the Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge. Brown left first against Clay Millican but lost traction near half-track. Although Millican also encountered problems, he coasted to the finish line first while Brown recorded a 4.796 at 177.60 mph, dropping to the No. 10 position.
Brown was unable to improve during the final qualifying session, running a 4.160 at 221.09 mph to lock in the No. 10 spot for eliminations.
In the opening round on Sunday, Brown left first and never trailed against eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher, powering to a 3.739-second pass at 332.67 mph to edge Schumacher’s 3.746 at 336.99 mph.
The second round presented another challenge as Brown encountered tire smoke near the finish line. Despite the issue, he advanced when Tony Stewart’s dragster shut off early in the run. Brown crossed the finish line in 4.175 seconds at 265.96 mph while Stewart coasted to a 6.499 at 94.90 mph.
Brown’s day ended in the semifinals against Doug Kalitta. Brown hazed the tires near half-track and was unable to recover, posting a 4.917 at 164.77 mph. Kalitta also lost traction late in the run but held on for the win with a 4.105 at 251.77 mph.
“The last three races, we’ve definitely been finding our way,” Brown said. “We’re still learning a lot, and believe it or not, we’ve been testing every lap. We had a couple of mishaps here and there, but that first round of eliminations was huge.
“All in all, it was a great weekend for the Matco Tools, World Wide Technology, Scouting America, Hangsterfer’s and FVP Parts dragster. We’re just going to keep on pushing, doing what we do, and we’re gaining places. We’re fourth in the points, and we’ve got to keep on pushing toward third place. This one’s in front of us – we’ve got to keep going on.”
Brown and the Matco Tools AB Motorsports team will continue the Western Swing next weekend at Pacific Raceways in Kent, Washington, for the Muckleshoot Casino Resort NHRA Northwest Nationals, July 24-26.
