Matt Hagan leads the Funny Car field after day one of qualifying at the Dodge//SRT Mile-High NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil. Aboard the Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye, Hagan roared through ‘thunder mountain’ in 3.966 seconds at 319.22-mph under the lights at Bandimere Speedway on Friday night.
The reigning Funny Car world champ lined up next to his DSR Dodge teammate, Ron Capps, during Q1 and the two champion drivers clocked side-by-side three-second passes resulting in Hagan being rewarded with three bonus points for his efforts, and Capps earning one bonus point for powering to the third-quickest run of the round.
“Okay, we’re back, baby, we’re back!” exclaimed an ecstatic Hagan after his Q1 performance. “Dickie Venables is putting the tune-up up here on the mountain, and the car felt great and ran great. It ran on all eight cylinders and I can’t ask for anything more than that.”
Hagan is a 41-time No. 1 qualifier, with his most recent pole occurring two events ago at the Epping, N.H. race. Hagan will have two qualifying sessions on Saturday to defend his position atop the Dodge//SRT Mile-High Nationals Funny Car leaderboard, and is hopeful that a 42nd No. 1 qualifier award could help propel him to his first Bandimere Speedway triumph. He’s come close, finishing as the runner-up in 2011, but has yet to seal the deal at the famed facility which sits a mile above sea level in suburban Denver.
“It’s the Dodge//SRT Mile-High Nationals, we’re running the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye, and it’s time we put this thing in the winner’s circle after more than a decade of trying,” added the 36-time Funny Car winner.
Provisional Qualifying Position: No. 1
The Results:
Q1: 3.966 E.T. at 319.22 MPH
Bonus Points: Three
DSR PR
