Bartone Bros. Racing won Top Alcohol Funny Car at The Big Go, the 70th Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. The win is the third in a row for the New York-based team.
Sean Bellemeur and the Killer B’s made it through the long Indy weekend by laying down fast times every pass. In the final, with lane choice, the Californian lined up the “Pirate Ship” against Canadian Stan Sipos. Sipos red-lit but that didn’t stop Bellemeur from running a 5.43 and 267 MPH to take his fourth U.S. Nationals Top Alcohol Funny Car Wally, third in a row (2018, 2022, 2023, 2024).
“Three in a row,” exclaimed Bellemeur. “Indy brings the best in the world out. We have guys leaving before the tree, early mornings, late nights, hot, cold, and the Killer B’s shined again. I’m just the lucky one that gets to put the pedal down. I get the jitters every time, no matter how long I do this here at Indy.
“Indy is everything. A guy from the west coast dreams of coming here nevertheless winning it. It is a dream come true to line up under the arch and win it for legends Tony Bartone and Steve Boggs (tuner).
“Thanks to Tony Bartone for providing the resources and the team of Steve Boggs, Troy Green, Nick Stoms, Justin Taylor, Garret Bateman, Seth Shebester, and Matt Krebs. These guys make this Pirate Ship go!”
Car owner Tony Bartone has assembled a strong Top Alcohol Funny Car team.
“Unreal,” Bartone said. “We go out to win races. If you win enough by the end of the year you win a championship. This is the best most cohesive Top Alcohol Funny Car team I’ve ever been a part of in my life. We have great crew members, and everything is going well.”
Bartone Bros. Racing 2024 Top Alcohol Funny Car Wins:
WON NHRA 4-Wide Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (national)
WON NHRA 4-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway (national)
WON 18th Annual University Hospitals Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser at Summit Motorsports Park, set TAFC track record with a pass of 5.393 and 269 MPH (regional)
WON 18th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Motorsports Park (national)
WON JEGS SPEEDWeek NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series at National Trail Raceway (regional)
WON Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire at Summit Motorsports Park (regional)
WON 70th TOYOTA NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park (national)
The team will return to action in two weeks for the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals to run at Maplegrove Raceway, Sept. 12-15.
The team would like to thank team sponsors Red Line Synthetic Oil, Roger Dean Chevrolet, Talon Air, LLC, NGK Spark Plugs, and Mastercam along with product sponsors Simpson Performance Products and Taylor Motorsports Products.
This story was originally published on September 3, 2024. 
