American Racing News Vol 1, Issue 2 Issue 3 | Page 18

Matt Hagan Sets Funny Car E.T.
and Speed Records
Heartland Park Topeka is lauded as having one of the best
racing surfaces in the country, which helps set the stage
for record-setting conditions when the right ambient air
conditions present themselves. Its history is full of milestone performance achievements, such as the first foursecond and 300-mph Funny Car marks in NHRA history.
This year’s NHRA Kansas Nationals will go down as another thrilling performancefest, where three of the four national records in the nitro categories were broken.
The Funny Car class as a whole put on one of the best
qualifying sessions in recent memory. Eleven drivers recorded three-second elapsed times, five of whom ran
quicker than the previous national e.t. record. Matt Hagan
stood out with an incredible 3.862 at 335.57 mph to set
the national e.t. and speed records.
Hagan parlayed his incredible performance into his second consecutive victory in the Mopar Express Lane Dodge
Charger. He ran in the mid-3.90s on a warmer racing surface Sunday until the final round, where he and teammate
Jack Beckman engaged in a wild pedal-fest. Hagan smoked
the tires later in the run but fought hard to keep it off the
centerline for a winning e.t. of 5.72 seconds, which was a
half-tenth slower than the pass made by the winning
driver in Top Alcohol Funny Car.
Hagan moved all the way from No. 9 to No. 4 in the Mello
Yello standings. His struggles during the early season
started in testing, and crew chief Dickie Venables began to
turn the corner with changes made after the Las Vegas
event.

18 | American Racing News | Drag Racing