By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The 2022 NHRA season for Antron Brown and his Matco ToolsTop Fuel team has been all about taking steps in Brown's first season as an owner-driver.
And AB Motorsports took a huge step Sunday at Heartland Motorsports Park, recording its first race win as organization with a win over four-time defending Top Fuel world champ and close friend Steve Torrence in the finals of the Menards NHRA Nationals.
Three-time Top Fuel world champ Antron Brown picked up his first win as a team owner Sunday at Heartland Motorsports Park. {Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
With the win, the 53rd of his NHRA career, Brown moved inside the top 10 in the point standings.
“This has been a lifelong dream, and I never imagined we were going to struggle like we did, but we all got through it together,'' Brown said. "It’s one of those deals where it doesn’t feel real because it’s a dream when you think about it from where we came from. I worked on motorcycles, Brian (Corradi, crew chief) worked on cars and never in a million years did we think we’d ever be able to go out on our own as a team. We talked about it for years, my wife, my family and you never think it’s a possibility but here we are.
"We’ve been working our tails off and we have such incredible support. When it all comes together and you look at where you started to where we are now, the struggle is real, but this makes it all worthwhile.”
Brown, who won for the second time in Topeka, started his day with a win over points leader Brittany Force in the first round and then topped Josh Hart and Justin Ashley to reach the finals before winning the title with a pass of 3.902 secons at 309.49 miles per hour.
"All that sweat and hard work, it was all worth it,'' Brown said. "From here on out, we’re only going forward. We put that one on the map today for AB Motorsports. It’s our first, but it’s not going to be our last. We’re right where we want to be, and we’re just going to keep getting better.”
Torrence, who is still looking for his first win of 2022, had a run of 4.442 at 201.49 mph.
“It has been frustrating,'' Torrence said about his victory drought. "When you’re used to winning 10, 11 races a year, to be shut out for this long, you know, is agonizing but we knew we needed to take a big step to stay competitive.
"It’s just taken a little longer than we wanted to get a handle on things and to get the driver and the race car both doing what they’re supposed to at the same time. Today was a big step forward and I can’t feel too bad since my brother (Antron) won his first race as a team owner. I still have all the faith in the world in these Capco Boys.”
Bob Tasca III (Funny Car), Troy Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock) and Joey Gladstone (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won championships in the 14th of 22 races of the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.
Bob Tasca III continued his hot streak in the Funny Car class, winning Sunday at Heartland Motorsports Park. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Tasca put together another incredible performance, staying red hot in his BG Products Ford Mustang and edging out the legendary John Force in the final round with a run of 3.999 at 316.82.
It gave Tasca his second victory in the past three races, his fourth final round in the past five events and the 11th win in his career. It was Tasca's first Topeka win.
He put together round victories against Jack Wyatt and Matt Hagan to reach the final round before improving to 4-0 in championship rounds against Force, the 16-time world champion. It also wrapped up yet another dominant weekend for Tasca, who continued to strengthen his championship hopes.
“The guys worked so hard, and we’ve been working a long time for this,” said Tasca, who is fifth in points. “It was challenging conditions for our team, but these guys are awesome, and we got it done.
"Getting ready for the Countdown is what it’s all about right now. To get four finals in the last five races and win two races in the last three races, I think we’ve got things in gear. These were really tough conditions and to see this Mustang go up and down the track like it did, it was great.”
Force reached the final round for the second straight year in Topeka, knocking off Cruz Pedregon, defending world champion Ron Capps and teammate Robert Hight to get there. Sunday was Force’s third final this year and 264th in his career. Hight maintained the points lead, which now stands at 237 points over Hagan.
Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Joey Gladstone (left) and Pro Stock driver Troy Coughlin Jr. have won back-to-back NHRA events, including titles in Sunday's Menards NHRA Nationals. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Coughlin Jr. didn’t have to wait long for his second career Pro Stock win, making it two victories in a row with a phenomenal weekend in Topeka, including a final-round run of 6.680 at 206.54 in his JEGS.com/Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro to knock off defending world champion Greg Anderson.
Not only did Coughlin win his second straight race, but he also denied Anderson, the No. 1 qualifier, of his 100th career win. He reached the finals with victories against Chris McGaha and Fernando Cuadra Jr., and then knocked off points leader and teammate Erica Enders for a second straight race.
“It’s extremely meaningful,” said Coughlin, whose father, Troy Sr., won in Topeka in 2002 in Pro Stock. “Anytime you can win at the same track as your father, it’s extremely memorable. I remember when I was in sixth grade, and he’s in the final round, and I’ll just never forget this elation.''
Anderson reached his 169th career final round – and second this season – by knocking off Bo Butner and teammate Kyle Koretsky. Enders keeps a 126-point advantage over teammate Aaron Stanfield in the Pro Stock standings.
Gladstone wrapped up a perfect weekend in Pro Stock Motorcycle, going 6.876 at 195.59 on his J&A Service Suzuki Hayabusa to knock off Eddie Krawiec in the championship round.
It gave Gladstone his second straight – and second career – victory in the class as he made the quickest run of every single session in both qualifying and eliminations.
After a dominant performance in qualifying, Gladstone didn’t let up on race day, knocking off David Barron and Angie Smith to set up the final with Krawiec. He denied Krawiec his 50th career win, making his seventh straight run in the 6.80s to finish off a remarkable weekend.
Gladstone also took over the points lead on Saturday and pushed it to a 64-point lead over Angelle Sampey with his stellar showing in eliminations as Pro Stock Motorcycle appeared in Topeka for the first time since 1997.
“This is what dreams are made of,” Gladstone said. “I’m just so thankful and so proud of this team. They’re so awesome and this is unbelievable right now. Our guys gave me a perfect bike this weekend and we kind of lucked into a tuneup. We put something that we thought would be close and we nailed it. We just had to make small adjustments to it, and I just had to keep doing my thing.
"It’s taken quite some time to do this, and these are extremely difficult to ride correctly. My tuner is doing a terrific job and to be doing it in this style, it's so cool.”
Krawiec came up short against Gladstone in the final round for the second straight race, but he did move to third in points by defeating Ryan Oehler, defending world champ Matt Smith and Jerry Savoie. It’s also his 91st career final round.
MENARDS NHRA NATIONALS
At Heartland Motorsports Park
Sunday's fnal results
Final finishing order
Top Fuel -- 1. Antron Brown; 2. Steve Torrence; 3. Mike Salinas; 4. Justin Ashley; 5. Josh Hart; 6. Tony Schumacher; 7. Shawn Langdon; 8. Leah Pruett; 9. Doug Kalitta; 10. Clay Millican; 11. Austin Prock; 12. Brittany Force; 13. Kyle Wurtzel; 14. Doug Foley; 15. Buddy Hull; 16. Terry Totten.
Funny Car -- 1. Bob Tasca III; 2. John Force; 3. Robert Hight; 4. Matt Hagan; 5. Ron Capps; 6. Alexis DeJoria; 7. Paul Lee; 8. Jim Campbell; 9. Chad Green; 10. Jack Wyatt; 11. Blake Alexander; 12. Cruz Pedregon; 13. Tim Wilkerson; 14. J.R. Todd.
Pro Stock -- 1. Troy Coughlin Jr.; 2. Greg Anderson; 3. Erica Enders; 4. Kyle Koretsky; 5. Bo Butner; 6.Dallas Glenn; 7. Aaron Stanfield; 8. Fernando Cuadra Jr.; 9. Cristian Cuadra; 10. Deric Kramer; 11. Camrie Caruso; 12. Matt Hartford; 13. Chris McGaha; 14. Mason McGaha; 15. Fernando Cuadra.
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- 1. Joey Gladstone; 2. Eddie Krawiec; 3. Jerry Savoie; 4. Angie Smith; 5. Matt Smith; 6. LE Tonglet; 7. Angelle Sampey; 8. Karen Stoffer; 9. Marc Ingwersen; 10. Steve Johnson; 11. Ryan Oehler; 12. David Barron; 13. Chris Bostick; 14. Jianna Evaristo.
Final-round resullts
Top Fuel -- Antron Brown, 3.902 seconds, 309.49 mph def. Steve Torrence, 4.443 seconds, 201.49 mph.
Funny Car -- Bob Tasca III, Ford Mustang, 3.999, 316.82 def. John Force, Chevy Camaro, 4.131, 311.27.
Pro Stock -- Troy Coughlin Jr., Chevy Camaro, 6.680, 206.54 def. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.701, 204.85.
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- Joey Gladstone, Suzuki, 6.876, 195.59 def. Eddie Krawiec, Suzuki, 6.935, 195.36.
Top Alcohol Dragster -- Julie Nataas, 5.343, 274.61 def. Mike Coughlin, 5.326, 268.76.
Top Alcohol Funny Car -- Shane Westerfield, Chevy Camaro, 5.600, 261.47 def. Sean Bellemeur, Camaro, 5.857, 258.22.
Competition Eliminator -- Doug Engels, Dragster, 7.428, 178.73 def. Bruno Massel, Chevy Cobalt, 7.104, 193.29.
Super Stock -- Tyler Cassil, Chevy Camaro, 9.608, 139.47 def. Greg Stanfield, Camaro, Foul - Red Light.
Stock Eliminator -- Tyler Cassil, Chevy Camaro, 10.080, 131.14 def. Tyler Bohannon, Chevy Corvette, 10.529, 124.22.
Super Comp -- Austin Williams, Dragster, 8.889, 176.63 def. Jessica Bogacki, Dragster, 8.875, 174.73.
Super Gas -- Don Nichols, Chevy Camaro, 10.170, 133.25 def. Bo Butner, Chevy Corvette, Foul - Red Light.
Super Street -- Jordan Pratt, Chevy Camaro, 10.908, 142.01 def. Dell Hall, Pontiac Grand Prix, 10.928, 142.04.
Top Sportsman presented by Vortech Superchargers -- Todd Stallbaumer, Chevy Camaro, 7.212, 193.85 def. Greg Lair, Camaro, Foul - Red Light.
Top Dragster presented by Vortech Superchargers -- Anthony Bertozzi, Dragster, 7.284, 174.66 def. Paul Nero, Dragster, 7.352, 183.10.
Pro Modified -- Justin Bond, Chevy Camaro, 5.862, 243.90 def. Rickie Smith, Ford Mustang, 8.832, 101.51.
Round-by-round results
Top Fuel
ROUND ONE -- Josh Hart, 3.823, 315.56 def. Austin Prock, 3.895, 258.86; Tony Schumacher, 3.779, 316.23 def. Doug Kalitta, 3.774, 320.81; Antron Brown, 3.816, 310.70 def. Brittany Force, 4.123, 219.40; Mike Salinas, 3.811, 323.89 def. Terry Totten, Broke; Justin Ashley, 3.842, 320.81 def. Buddy Hull, 12.432, 31.96; Steve Torrence, 3.771, 325.69 def. Kyle Wurtzel, 4.489, 179.54; Leah Pruett, 4.161, 264.70 def. Doug Foley, 5.149, 139.75; Shawn Langdon, 3.814, 318.09 def. Clay Millican, 3.819, 314.68;
QUARTERFINALS -- Ashley, 3.843, 317.57 def. Pruett, 4.810, 225.26; Brown, 3.812, 312.42 def. Hart, 3.940, 279.15; Salinas, 3.802, 324.83 def. Langdon, 4.544, 171.51; Torrence, 3.833, 320.13 def. Schumacher, 3.969, 298.73;
SEMIFINALS -- Brown, 4.757, 174.77 def. Ashley, 5.399, 208.39; Torrence, 4.105, 242.36 def. Salinas, 4.717, 179.52;
FINAL -- Brown, 3.902, 309.49 def. Torrence, 4.443, 201.49.
Funny Car
ROUND ONE -- Bob Tasca III, Ford Mustang, 3.973, 322.19 def. Jack Wyatt, Dodge Charger, 4.323, 220.22; John Force, Chevy Camaro, 23.671, 53.29 def. Cruz Pedregon, Charger, Foul - Red Light; Robert Hight, Camaro, 4.003, 273.05 def. Jim Campbell, Charger, 4.062, 310.13; Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.944, 316.52 def. Chad Green, Mustang, 4.155, 306.26; Paul Lee, Charger, 4.250, 234.04 def. Blake Alexander, Mustang, 5.309, 143.87; Ron Capps, Toyota Supra, 4.401, 245.49 def. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 8.729, 97.17; Alexis DeJoria, Supra, 4.416, 200.74 def. J.R. Todd, Supra, DQ - Tech;
QUARTERFINALS -- Hight, 3.987, 320.05 def. DeJoria, 4.580, 184.45; Tasca III, 3.983, 318.32 was unopposed; Hagan, 3.999, 312.71 def. Lee, 7.341, 86.41; Force, 4.033, 318.77 def. Capps, 4.047, 312.21;
SEMIFINALS -- Force, 4.000, 321.27 def. Hight, 4.052, 309.70; Tasca III, 4.011, 316.30 def. Hagan, 4.406, 223.06;
FINAL -- Tasca III, 3.999, 316.82 def. Force, 4.131, 311.27.
Pro Stock
ROUND ONE -- Bo Butner, Chevy Camaro, 6.701, 204.91 def. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.711, 204.57; Fernando Cuadra Jr., Ford Mustang, 6.687, 205.04 def. Cristian Cuadra, Mustang, 6.661, 205.13; Dallas Glenn, Camaro, 6.669, 205.04 def. Deric Kramer, Camaro, 6.679, 205.07; Kyle Koretsky, Camaro, 6.685, 205.57 def. Mason McGaha, Camaro, Foul - Red Light; Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.662, 206.76 def. Camrie Caruso, Camaro, Foul - Red Light; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 13.718, 62.38 was unopposed; Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.662, 206.35 def. Fernando Cuadra, Mustang, Foul - Red Light; Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.659, 207.02 def. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.753, 203.43;
QUARTERFINALS -- Anderson, 6.691, 204.63 def. Butner, Foul - Red Light; Enders, 6.673, 206.45 def. Glenn, 6.693, 204.91; Koretsky, 6.706, 205.66 def. Stanfield, 6.703, 206.16; Coughlin Jr., 6.676, 207.15 def. Cuadra Jr., 6.707, 205.07;
SEMIFINALS -- Anderson, 6.693, 204.98 def. Koretsky, 6.719, 205.44; Coughlin Jr., 6.692, 206.70 def. Enders, 6.711, 206.13;
FINAL -- Coughlin Jr., 6.680, 206.54 def. Anderson, 6.701, 204.85.
Pro Stock Motorcycle
ROUND ONE -- Angie Smith, 6.908, 197.86 def. Chris Bostick, Suzuki, Broke - No Show; Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 6.933, 194.21 def. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, Foul - Red Light; Matt Smith, Suzuki, 6.915, 196.87 def. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.946, 192.99; LE Tonglet, Suzuki, 6.911, 195.45 def. Marc Ingwersen, 6.943, 194.66; Angelle Sampey, Suzuki, 6.970, 196.02 def. Jianna Evaristo, Suzuki, Broke; Joey Gladstone, Suzuki, 6.834, 197.48 def. David Barron, 7.512, 154.71; Eddie Krawiec, Suzuki, 6.908, 196.16 def. Ryan Oehler, 7.081, 192.36;
QUARTERFINALS -- Gladstone, 6.859, 196.82 was unopposed; A. Smith, 6.945, 197.10 def. Tonglet, 6.939, 194.69; Krawiec, 6.874, 196.36 def. M. Smith, 6.896, 198.52; Savoie, 6.964, 193.32 def. Sampey, 9.020, 85.32;
SEMIFINALS -- Krawiec, 6.913, 195.25 def. Savoie, 6.992, 193.54; Gladstone, 6.872, 196.87 def. A. Smith, 7.080, 195.11;
FINAL -- Gladstone, 6.876, 195.59 def. Krawiec, 6.935, 195.36.
NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series point standings
Top Fuel
1. Brittany Force, 1,122; 2. Mike Salinas, 1,091; 3. Justin Ashley, 989; 4. Steve Torrence, 960; 5. Josh Hart, 736; 6. Leah Pruett, 726; 7. Shawn Langdon, 709; 8. Doug Kalitta, 659; 9. Tony Schumacher, 625; 10. Antron Brown, 613.
Funny Car
1. Robert Hight, 1,334; 2. Matt Hagan, 1,097; 3. Ron Capps, 1,008; 4. John Force, 1,002; 5. Bob Tasca III, 921; 6. J.R. Todd, 741; 7. Cruz Pedregon, 718; 8. Alexis DeJoria, 712; 9. Tim Wilkerson, 611; 10. Jim Campbell, 488.
Pro Stock
1. Erica Enders, 1,156; 2. Aaron Stanfield, 1,030; 3. Kyle Koretsky, 798; 4. Greg Anderson, 781; 5. Troy Coughlin Jr., 696; 6. Dallas Glenn, 668; 7. Mason McGaha, 604; 8. Camrie Caruso, 570; 9. Matt Hartford, 553; 10. Bo Butner, 528.
Pro Stock Motorcycle
1. Joey Gladstone, 724; 2. Angelle Sampey, 660; 3. Eddie Krawiec, 628; 4. Steve Johnson, 621; 5. Matt Smith, 615; 6. Angie Smith, 577; 7. Jerry Savoie, 541; 8. Karen Stoffer, 534; 9. Marc Ingwersen, 378; 10. Ryan Oehler, 298.
