Mac Tools U.S. Nationals
Indianapolis, Ind.
(Sept. 1-6)
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Angelle Savoie U.S. Army Suzuki Pro Stock Bike |
Reports: Monday Sunday Saturday Friday Pre-race |
Indianapolis, Monday: For the first time since partnering with Schumacher Racing in both the Top Fuel and Pro Stock Bike classes, the U.S. Army claimed two victories Monday in the 50th annual Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
U.S. Army Top Fuel dragster pilot, Tony Schumacher, captured the Top Fuel class in the NHRA's most prestigious race for the fourth time in five years, while U.S. Army Pro Stock Bike driver, Antron Brown, won his second U.S. Nationals title.
Angelle Savoie, on the other U.S. Army Suzuki, lost in the second round of eliminations.
Schumacher impressively marched to round wins over Mike Strasburg, Morgan Lucas and Scott Kalitta, before taking out his nearest competitor in the Top Fuel point standings, Doug Kalitta, in the finals with a 4.597-second pass at 323.66 mph.
The victory moved the Chicago native into sole possession of second-place on the U.S. Nationals Top Fuel win list behind "Big Daddy" Don Garlits, who has eight wins to his credit.
"This is incredible," said an elated Schumacher. "To win this race once is something, but to win it four times is beyond belief. This U.S. Army team just won't be denied, that's all there is to it. We just seem to have a handle on this track. I really can't explain it."
The 1999 Top Fuel world champion won't be taking home the first-place trophy, however. He dedicated the win and trophy to the widow of the late Darrell Russell - Julie Russell.
"This trophy is for Julie and my good friend, Darrell," Schumacher said. "I know Darrell was looking down on us today. We all miss him so much."
Schumacher next heads for the Lucas Oil Nationals in Reading, Pa. in two weeks holding a 160-point lead over Doug Kalitta in the championship standings.
"We can't let up for one minute," said Schumacher. "We have to keep adding round wins and putting distance between us and them."
Brown, aboard his U.S. Army Suzuki, took care of Karen Stoffer, Craig Treble and Chris Bostick in the opening three rounds, before disposing of Shawn Gann in the finals with a 7.213-second dash at 185.77 mph.
"I feel just like Tony does - ecstatic," said Brown. "I've now won the U.S. Nationals twice in my career and that's an unbelievable feeling, trust me. My U.S. Army team knows how to take care of business."
The Indy win also marked the second victory in as many races for the New Jersey native.
"We've been real consistent," he said. "That's the way we won Memphis two weeks ago and that's how we won here today. I'm so proud of everyone on this team."
Savoie got through her opening round match up with Josh Helvie, but fell victim to an ill-handling bike in her second round loss to Bostick.
"My bike bogged a bunch at the start against Bostick and that cost us big time," said the three-time Pro Stock Bike world champion. "I just couldn't run him down. It's very disappointing because I thought we had a real decent chance to win today."
Brown and Savoie leave Indianapolis in second and fourth, respectively, in the Pro Stock Bike standings. They will join Schumacher for the Lucas Oil Nationals, at Maple Grove Raceway.
Indianapolis, Sunday: Antron Brown and Angelle Savoie secured top five starting spots for Monday's running of the 50th Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
Both Brown and Savoie posted their best qualifying times on Sunday - 7.165-seconds at 186.90 mph and 7.175-seconds at 184.70 mph, respectively. "I'm happy with the way things turned out today," offered Brown.
"Tomorrow is another day, though. We'll have to be on our game." "We improved, but we'll need to be better on race day," added Savoie. "Everyone is going to step up, you can count on that."
Brown will square off with 15th-place qualifier, Karen Stoffer, in the first round of eliminations, while Savoie takes on 14th-place qualifier, Josh Helvie. Brown and Savoie will be looking to maintain a streak of sorts on Labor Day. The U.S. Army Pro Stock Bike team has been in the finals the last three races.
Indianapolis, Saturday: While teammates Tony Schumacher and Antron Brown solidified their positions in the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals starting order here Saturday, U.S. Army driver Angelle Savoie moved into the Pro Stock Bike field with an impressive qualifying performance at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
Savoie rose from 30th on the charts to third with a 7.191-second pass at 184.02 mph. Meanwhile, Schumacher, in his U.S. Army Top Fuel dragster, ended up fourth after the second day of action, while Brown, on his U.S. Army Suzuki, held on to the second position in Pro Stock Bikes.
Schumacher advanced from fifth to fourth in the qualifying standings following a 4.593-second pass at 317.79 mph in the evening session.
"We actually had a couple of good laps today, one earlier in the heat of the afternoon," said the 1999 Top Fuel world champion. "We're getting this U.S. Army Top Fuel dragster lined up for eliminations day on Monday. We've got two more qualifying shots tomorrow, so we'll get her dialed in even more."
Schumacher is hoping to claim his fourth U.S. Nationals title in the last five years while also widening his lead in the Top Fuel point standings.
"We're still two days away from even thinking about that," he said. "We've got some more business to take care of Sunday, and then we'll get our game face on."
After both Savoie and Brown lost in the semifinals of the race within a race - the K&N Filters Pro Stock Bike Klash - Savoie went out and left little doubt she would be around on Labor Day.
"We all knew my U.S. Army Suzuki had that kind of run in it," said Savoie, a two-time U.S. Nationals champion. "I'm happy that we're all the way up in the top three. This team works so hard, we didn't need to be coming out of the bottom half of the order."
Brown put up his best pass of the weekend in the first round of the Pro Stock Bike Klash which counted towards qualifying - 7.175-seconds at 185.15 mph.
"My bike feels real nice right now," said Brown, who is coming off a win at Memphis two weeks ago. "We'll try to get it even better in our last two sessions tomorrow so we're ready to rock on Monday."
Indianapolis, Friday: U.S. Army NHRA Racing drivers Tony Schumacher and Antron Brown secured provisional starting spots in the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals field here Friday after the first day of qualifying at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
While Schumacher and Brown found success, teammate Angelle Savoie suffered engine woes in her only qualifying pass and was out of the Pro Stock Bike order heading into Saturday's qualifying action.
Schumacher, in his U.S. Army Top Fuel dragster, posted a 4.616-second pass at 316.75 mph to grab the fifth starting position with four more qualifying sessions remaining before race day on Monday.
"It was an okay run," said the defending Mac Tools U.S. Nationals champion. "For some reason, we appeared a bit underpowered. We'll get it straightened out for Saturday."
The Chicago native, who is leading the Top Fuel points, has won the NHRA's most prestigious event three out of the last four years.
Both Brown and Savoie had engine issues in their lone qualifying passes, but Savoie's was far more serious.
The three-time Pro Stock Bike world champion had to shut her Suzuki off at mid-track after losing power.
"It was disappointing because we had a real good 60-foot time that probably would have translated into a terrific quarter-mile run," said Savoie, who ended up 30th out of 31 bikes. "We'll go get them tomorrow."
Brown overcame his engine problems to record a 7.237-second trip at 180.74 mph. The effort was good enough for seventh-place on the charts.
"Like Angelle, it would have been nice to see what we could have done if the engine stayed healthy the whole way down," said Brown. "The Army team will be ready Saturday, I can assure you."
Indianapolis, pre-race: Tony Schumacher, Angelle Savoie, and Antron Brown are not unlike any other NHRA competitor when speaking of drag racing's oldest, richest and most prestigious event, the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals, which is set for this weekend at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
"This is the race, bar none," said Schumacher, who drives the U.S. Army Top Fuel dragster. "There's no bigger event that drag racers want to win."
"In some ways, it can define your career," said Savoie, who pilots one of the U.S. Army Pro Stock Bikes. "The history surrounding the race is unbelievable."
"We all point to this event every year," said Brown, who is Savoie's U.S. Army Pro Stock Bike teammate. "This year will be especially significant given the fact it's the 50th anniversary of the race."
All three U.S. Army drivers have won the U.S. Nationals at least once. Schumacher, who is the defending Top Fuel champion, captured Indy titles in 2000, 2002, and 2003, while Savoie secured wins in 2001 and 2002 and Brown in 2000.
While Schumacher heads for Indy looking to take his fourth victory in five years, he's got even bigger fish to fry when it comes to the Top Fuel world championship picture.
"No doubt, I want to win Indy again, but right now we're in a dogfight for the world championship and that has to be our priority," said the Chicago native. "Of course, winning Indy would definitely help our cause. With only six races left in the season, we have to make every one of them count."
The 1999 Top Fuel world champion currently leads second-place Doug Kalitta by 141 points in the Top Fuel standings and third-place Brandon Bernstein by 177 points.
"We need to keep building a cushion when it comes to the points," said Schumacher. "We don't have a comfortable enough lead to allow for mistakes. There are way too many rounds left. Each one is just as important as the next."
While winning the U.S. Nationals holds just as much value for Savoie and Brown as it does Schumacher, each is also focused on rounds and points.
Savoie, who is a three-time Pro Stock Bike world champion, and Brown are third and second, respectively, in the Pro Stock Bike standings heading into Indianapolis.
"The performance level for both of us has gone up big time the last few races," said Savoie. "We don't want to lose that momentum."
"It's critical that we keep advancing rounds and gaining points," offered Brown. "It's unbelievable how this team has improved since St. Louis in June. We want to keep challenging for wins. That's the goal."
Over the last five races, Brown has two poles and a win to his credit, while Savoie has a number one qualifying effort and a victory to her credit.
In addition to the competition surrounding the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals, Savoie and Brown will also take part in the K&N Filters Pro Stock Bike Klash on Saturday at Indianapolis Raceway Park.
The race within a race is reserved for the top eight bike competitors as determined by qualifying points totaled between the 2003 Mac Tools U.S. Nationals and the O'Reilly Mid-South Nationals in Memphis two weeks ago.
"With the money that's on the line, it's a very special event," said Savoie. "We'd like to be the greedy ones who take the Klash and the U.S. Nationals."
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