Brown Clinches Top Fuel Championship At Las Vegas

Antron Brown secured his third NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Top Fuel world championship Sunday at the NHRA Toyota Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

After defeating Wayne Newby in the quarterfinals, Antron outlasted his two closest chasers, Doug Kalitta, who lost in the quarterfinal round to Steve Torrence, and Shawn Langdon, who fell in the first round to J.R. Todd, to secure the season crown.

Other winners on the day included John Force (Funny Car), Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Shane Gray (Pro Stock) and Jerry Savoie (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

It is Brown’s second consecutive world championship. His first championship came in 2012 and his second in 2015. It is the first time in seven years that a Top Fuel champion has won back-to-back titles.

“Brian (Corradi) and Mark (Oswald) and our entire team has worked so hard and I’m just privileged to drive that racecar for Don Schumacher Racing because Don makes it all happen,” Brown said. “When you come to a sport with all this access it makes dreams like mine, a kid from New Jersey, come true. My dad, uncle, everybody, they instilled it in me at a young age, work hard and you can make great things happen.”

John Force powered to a 3.884 second pass at 327.19 mph to defeat daughter, Courtney Force, who raced a 3.906 at 325.85. It is John’s 147th career victory, fourth of the season and sixth at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speed.

“I’m really excited,” said Force. “I mean I never like beating my daughter. We got two wins in the Countdown just a little bit late. It’s pretty exciting when I see the stands packed. The way NHRA and the way our TV deal has really been hopping, sold out crowds, and so many things going on. To be a part of it still at my age is really awesome.”

It was the fifth time father and daughter had faced each other in a race finals, the most recent was in Denver, where John also won. John defeated John Bojec, Chad Head, and Matt Hagan in the earlier round for the win. With the semifinal finish, Hagan moves to second in the points standings, 86 behind Ron Capps, who fell to Courtney in the semifinals.

Torrence piloted his dragster to a 3.734 pass at 323.81 to defeat J.R. Todd’s 3.762 at 321.96 in the Top Fuel final.

“It’s been a good weekend all together,” Torrence said. “We kind of struggled the first few races of the countdown and dropped the ball. I mean heck we had to turn it on and come up here and try to do some good. The Capco guys have really stayed focus and stayed driven and done what it took to overcome just some bad luck and a couple screw ups on my part. We have a really good team, we have a championship caliber team, I believe.”

Torrence defeated Richie Crampton, Doug Kalitta and Leah Pritchett to get to the finals while Todd faced Shawn Langdon, No. 1 qualifier Clay Millican and Brown in the earlier rounds.

In Pro Stock, Shane Gray raced to a 6.719 pass at 204.76 to defeat teammate Drew Skillman for his first win of the season.

“It was a great weekend,” Gray said. “It was a really good weekend for me. We were talking out there I think I’ve been in nine semis this year and I haven’t won since U.S. Nationals in 2014. It was a great day. I’ve got one more race to run and then my son is getting in the car so I can’t think of a better time to win. Awesome day.”

Gray had victories against Deric Kramer, Bo Butner and Greg Anderson. His win moves him into third in points.

Jerry Savoie rode his to a 6.915 at 194.13 to defeat Andrew Hines in the Pro Stock Motorcycle final round for his second win of the season.

“To do what we did here, we been working hard,” Savoie said. “Tim (Kulungian) went back to the shop and looked at a bunch of notes, and got on a dyno and an engine we had back home and did some work. It’s like football and anything else, the harder you work, the better you get. It all came together this weekend. No. 1 qualifier every round, and we got a fast motorcycle. It’s going to be very, very interesting when we get to Pomona.”

Savoie defeated Scott Pollacheck, LE Tonglet, and Matt Smith in the early rounds and is now three points behind Hines and Eddie Krawiec who are tied for the points lead.

The final race of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series 2016 season, The Auto Club NHRA Finals, will be Nov. 10-13 in Pomona, California.

NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series
The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Las Vegas, NV
NHRA Toyota Nationals – October 30, 2016

Final Finish Order (1-16)

TOP FUEL
1. Steve Torrence; 2. J.R. Todd; 3. Leah Pritchett; 4. Antron Brown; 5. Clay Millican; 6. Doug Kalitta; 7. Wayne Newby; 8. Brittany Force; 9. Richie Crampton; 10. Shawn Reed; 11. Tripp Tatum; 12. Terry Haddock; 13. Terry McMillen; 14. Tony Schumacher; 15. Shawn Langdon; 16. Scott Palmer.

FUNNY CAR
1. John Force; 2. Courtney Force; 3. Ron Capps; 4. Matt Hagan; 5. Del Worsham; 6. Chad Head; 7. Jack Beckman; 8. Cruz Pedregon; 9. Tommy Johnson Jr.; 10. Paul Lee; 11. John Hale; 12. John Bojec; 13. Jeff Arend; 14. Robert Hight; 15. Tim Wilkerson; 16. Alexis DeJoria.

PRO STOCK
1. Shane Gray; 2. Drew Skillman; 3. Greg Anderson; 4. Jason Line; 5. Bo Butner; 6. Chris McGaha; 7. Alex Laughlin; 8. Vincent Nobile; 9. Erica Enders; 10. Allen Johnson; 11. Deric Kramer; 12. Jeg Coughlin; 13. Matt Hartford; 14. Shane Tucker; 15. Kenny Delco; 16. Aaron Strong.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE
1. Jerry Savoie; 2. Andrew Hines; 3. Eddie Krawiec; 4. Matt Smith; 5. Hector Arana Jr; 6. LE Tonglet; 7. Angie Smith; 8. Cory Reed; 9. Hector Arana; 10. Angelle Sampey; 11. Melissa Surber; 12. Joey Gladstone; 13. Karen Stoffer; 14. Steve Johnson; 15. Scotty Pollacheck; 16. Chip Ellis.

Sunday’s Final Results

Top Fuel — Steve Torrence, 3.734 seconds, 323.81 mph def. J.R. Todd, 3.762 seconds, 321.96 mph.

Funny Car — John Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.884, 327.19 def. Courtney Force, Camaro, 3.906, 325.85.

Pro Stock — Shane Gray, Chevy Camaro, 6.719, 204.76 def. Drew Skillman, Camaro, 19.793, 27.72.
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Pro Stock Motorcycle — Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 6.915, 194.13 def. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, Foul – Red Light.

Final Round-By-Round Results

TOP FUEL

ROUND ONE — J.R. Todd, 3.752, 324.12 def. Shawn Langdon, 10.405, 82.67; Wayne Newby, 3.836, 313.88 def. Tony Schumacher, 9.603, 74.72; Clay Millican, 3.751, 319.45 def. Terry Haddock, 4.086, 287.66; Leah Pritchett, 3.742, 320.20 def. Shawn Reed, 3.931, 310.41; Doug Kalitta, 3.976, 251.77 def. Scott Palmer, Broke; Antron Brown, 3.765, 323.89 def. Terry McMillen, 6.274, 108.62; Steve Torrence, 3.730, 327.74 def. Richie Crampton, 3.766, 317.19; Brittany Force, 3.772, 321.58 def. Tripp Tatum, 4.005, 238.85;

QUARTERFINALS — Brown, 3.771, 322.11 def. Newby, 3.896, 273.11; Todd, 3.709, 328.94 def. Millican, 3.727, 328.38; Pritchett, 3.816, 279.21 def. Force, 4.303, 223.65; Torrence, 3.732, 324.83 def. Kalitta, 3.739, 324.75;

SEMIFINALS — Torrence, 3.742, 327.59 def. Pritchett, 3.768, 322.96; Todd, 3.719, 329.02 def. Brown, 7.720, 92.29;

FINAL — Torrence, 3.734, 323.81 def. Todd, 3.762, 321.96.

FUNNY CAR

ROUND ONE — John Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.906, 326.95 def. John Bojec, Toyota Camry, 5.118, 163.41; Jack Beckman, Dodge Charger, 3.890, 326.95 def. Jeff Arend, Charger, 5.805, 98.91; Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.911, 328.14 def. John Hale, Charger, 4.389, 201.82; Ron Capps, Charger, 3.916, 323.66 def. Paul Lee, Camry, 3.965, 329.34; Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 4.244, 218.55 def. Robert Hight, Camaro, 6.649, 105.01; Chad Head, Camry, 4.757, 264.55 def. Tim Wilkerson, Ford Mustang, 7.027, 125.26; Del Worsham, Camry, 3.923, 327.35 def. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 3.949, 321.65; Courtney Force, Camaro, 3.888, 327.82 def. Alexis DeJoria, Camry, Broke – No Show;

QUARTERFINALS — J. Force, 3.917, 325.92 def. Head, 4.032, 280.66; Hagan, 3.887, 329.02 def. Worsham, 3.935, 326.71; C. Force, 3.886, 321.73 def. Beckman, 7.852, 78.74; R. Capps, 3.921, 323.43 def. Pedregon, Broke – No Show;

SEMIFINALS — J. Force, 3.928, 330.39 def. Hagan, 6.561, 122.13; C. Force, 3.880, 326.48 def. R. Capps, 3.937, 317.49;

FINAL — J. Force, 3.884, 327.19 def. C. Force, 3.906, 325.85.

PRO STOCK

ROUND ONE — Chris McGaha, Chevy Camaro, 6.714, 205.01 def. Erica Enders, Dodge Dart, 6.737, 204.54; Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 7.408, 138.24 def. Matt Hartford, Camaro, Foul – Red Light; Jason Line, Camaro, 6.676, 206.07 def. Allen Johnson, Dart, 6.739, 204.76; Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.698, 205.32 def. Deric Kramer, Dart, 6.739, 203.25; Alex Laughlin, Camaro, 6.707, 205.66 def. Jeg Coughlin, Dart, 6.744, 203.28; Drew Skillman, Camaro, 6.702, 206.01 def. Shane Tucker, Camaro, 6.750, 204.70; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.679, 206.01 def. Aaron Strong, Camaro, 6.783, 202.48; Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.682, 205.82 def. Kenny Delco, Camaro, 6.757, 203.68;

QUARTERFINALS — Skillman, 6.708, 205.76 def. Nobile, 6.735, 205.19; Gray, 6.702, 205.19 def. Butner, 6.721, 205.26; Anderson, 6.692, 205.60 def. McGaha, 6.725, 205.22; Line, 6.698, 205.76 def. Laughlin, 6.729, 205.29;

SEMIFINALS — Skillman, 6.716, 205.98 def. Line, 14.554, 58.27; Gray, 6.717, 205.22 def. Anderson, 6.730, 206.10;

FINAL — Gray, 6.719, 204.76 def. Skillman, 19.793, 27.72.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

ROUND ONE — Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 6.908, 194.24 def. Scotty Pollacheck, Buell, 7.116, 185.49; Angie Smith, 7.052, 187.86 def. Hector Arana, Buell, 6.968, 192.77; LE Tonglet, Suzuki, 6.982, 191.10 def. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light; Cory Reed, Buell, 6.993, 190.32 def. Angelle Sampey, Buell, 6.978, 191.59; Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 6.966, 190.94 def. Joey Gladstone, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light; Hector Arana Jr, Buell, 6.995, 192.36 def. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 7.035, 191.65; Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 6.937, 193.65 def. Melissa Surber, Buell, 7.019, 189.10; Matt Smith, 6.961, 191.67 def. Chip Ellis, Buell, 7.205, 160.23;

QUARTERFINALS — Savoie, 6.951, 192.58 def. Tonglet, 7.028, 191.81; Hines, 6.985, 190.38 def. A. Smith, 7.057, 189.28; M. Smith, 6.992, 190.81 def. Reed, 7.141, 186.56; Krawiec, 6.948, 193.18 def. Arana Jr, 7.027, 191.16;

SEMIFINALS — Savoie, 6.919, 194.10 def. M. Smith, Foul – Red Light; Hines, 6.968, 193.13 def. Krawiec, 7.014, 191.32;

FINAL — Savoie, 6.915, 194.13 def. Hines, Foul – Red Light.

Point Standings (Top 10)

Top Fuel
1. Antron Brown, 2,581*; 2. Steve Torrence, 2,424; 3. Doug Kalitta, 2,413; 4. Brittany Force, 2,366; 5. Shawn Langdon, 2,365; 6. J.R. Todd, 2,352; 7. Leah Pritchett, 2,334; 8. Tony Schumacher, 2,332; 9. Clay Millican, 2,232; 10. Richie Crampton, 2,227.

Funny Car
1. Ron Capps, 2,546; 2. Matt Hagan, 2,460; 3. Tommy Johnson Jr., 2,433; 4. Jack Beckman, 2,395; 5. John Force, 2,387; 6. Del Worsham, 2,373; 7. Courtney Force, 2,334; 8. Robert Hight, 2,313; 9. Tim Wilkerson, 2,262; 10. Alexis DeJoria, 2,184.

Pro Stock
1. Jason Line, 2,532; 2. Greg Anderson, 2,513; 3. Shane Gray, 2,438; 4. Vincent Nobile, 2,394; 5. Drew Skillman, 2,371; 6. Bo Butner, 2,369; 7. Chris McGaha, 2,275; 8. Allen Johnson, 2,245; 9. Jeg Coughlin, 2,177; 10. Erica Enders, 2,167.

Pro Stock Motorcycle
1. (tie) Andrew Hines, 2,509; Eddie Krawiec, 2,509; 3. Jerry Savoie, 2,506; 4. Angelle Sampey, 2,399; 5. Chip Ellis, 2,359; 6. LE Tonglet, 2,340; 7. Cory Reed, 2,281; 8. Matt Smith, 2,277; 9. Hector Arana, 2,245; 10. Hector Arana Jr, 2,236.

* Clinched Top Fuel Championship