NHRA Drag races at Infineon this weekend

Top Fuel driver Antron Brown’s dreams of sweeping the Western Swing are still alive after winning the Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways near Seattle on Sunday.
Brown, who posted his fourth win of the season and 22nd of his career, powered his Matco Tools/Lend America dragster to the win over Tony Schumacher, who had won the last three events at Pacific Raceways. Brown got a slight jump out of the starting gate and used a strong tune-up to run 3.985 seconds (301.07 mph) to score the narrow victory over the U.S. Army rail (3.990, 300.00).
Brown enters the FRAM Autolite NHRA Nationals this weekend at Infineon Raceway as the only driver remaining who can sweep the Western Swing, which includes successive stops in Denver, Seattle and Sonoma. He would become just the fifth Top Fuel driver in history to accomplish the feat (Joe Amato 1991; Cory McClenathan 1997; Larry Dixon 2003; and Schumacher 2008).
“Our team is on a really good roll right now and we really want to keep it going,” Brown said. “We don’t want to let up. Things have jelled so well and we really want to win the Sonoma race and sweep the Western Swing, but we don’t want to stop there. The goal is to win the championship, but as always, we’ll try and qualify well and take things one round at a time and try and run our best.”
Brown has never won in Sonoma but would be pleased to break out the broom in the Wine Country Winner’s Circle. He leads the Top Fuel standings by 137 points over second-place Schumacher and by 170 points over third-place Larry Dixon (Al-Anabi Racing).
Brown sat on the pole last year in Sonoma and reached the semifinals before losing to Eureka’s Hillary Will. It was his first year behind the wheel in a Top Fuel dragster in Sonoma. He also is a two-time Pro Stock Motorcycle finalist in Sonoma, most recently in 2006.
Ron Capps (NAPA Auto Parts), who is from San Luis Obispo on the Central California coast, enters Sonoma atop the Funny Car standings by 21 points over Ashley Force Hood (1,039-1018). Force Hood (Ronald McDonald House Charities/Castrol GTX ) was the top qualifier at Infineon Raceway in 2008, while Capps won in Sonoma in Funny Car in 1997.
Jeg Coughlin (Jegs.com), Mike Edwards (ART/Young Life) and Jason Line (Summit Racing Equipment) are locked in a tight three-way battle in Pro Stock. Coughlin leads at 1,199, with Edwards second (1,179) and Line third (1,086). Coughlin won in Sonoma in 2003, while Line won in 2006. Edwards is seeking his first-ever Pro Stock win at Infineon Raceway.
“It’s such a beautiful track and the location there tucked away in the wine country makes it special,” said Coughlin, a five-time world champion with 59 national event wins. “We come straight down from Seattle and spend the week enjoying the area and it’s always one of my favorite times of the year.”
Ed Krawiec (Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines), a Pro Stock Motorcycle finalist in Sonoma in 2007, tops the category with 739 points. He is followed by teammate Andrew Hines (651) and 2007 Sonoma winner Matt Smith (Nitro Fish, 559). 2008 Sonoma winner Matt Guidera (Mohegan Sun/Rocklin Motorsports Buell), from Folsom, is seventh (446).
For more information or to purchase tickets for the FRAM Autolite NHRA Nationals, please call 800-870-RACE or visit www.infineonraceway.com or www.ticketmaster.com.