The Brown Bulletin The pre-race release of 22-time NHRA winner Antron Brown and the Matco Tools Top Fuel team 22nd annual FRAM-Autolite Nationals July 24-27, 2009 Infineon Raceway Sonoma, Calif. Antron Brown on Sonoma “What an awesome wave we’ve been riding all season long. We just want to keep things going this weekend at Sonoma. Infineon (Raceway) is an awesome track and we hope to go some rounds with the MAR Matco Tools dragster. Brian (Corradi) and Mark (Oswald) are doing great calling the shots and we’ve got a great group of guys. It would be awesome to sweep the swing, but we’re just going to take it one round at a time.” Brian Corradi (crew chief) on Sonoma “Our team is on a really good roll right now and we really want to keep it going. 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 take things one round at a time and try and run our best.” Antron Brown Sonoma NHRA Notebook Brown enters the Sonoma race riding a hot streak. The six-time Top Fuel winner has won the first two legs of the Western Swing at Denver and Seattle as he looks to become just the fifth Top Fuel driver to sweep the grueling three-race set. Last weekend in Seattle, Brown edged six-time series champion Tony Schumacher in the final round 3.985 to 3.990 to earn his fourth win of the season. Brown has advanced to the final round at seven of 14 races this year. He also has earned five No. 1 qualifying awards, a category best, along with low E.T. of the meet honors six times and top speed of the meet seven times. Brown made his Top Fuel debut at Infineon Raceway last July by racing the Matco Tools dragster to the pole at 3.805 seconds at 316.45 mph. It was Brown’s third Top Fuel No. 1 qualifying award. On race day, Brown drove the Matco-backed rail to a semifinal finish before falling to Hillary Will in the semifinals, 4.011 to 4.042. Brown is a two-time Pro Stock Motorcycle finalist at the scenic Sonoma track. Brown enters the final race of the Western Swing with his largest lead of the season, 137 points. The 22-time winner leads Schumacher by 137 and two-time title winner Larry Dixon by 170 points with 10 races remaining on the 2009 NHRA schedule Brown, Schumacher and Dixon are the only three Top Fuel drivers to earn a coveted spot in the Countdown to 1. Brown has been atop the standings following the last five races and nine of 14 races this season. Antron Brown... Did You Know? -Brown was a track star at Mercer College in New Jersey competing in the 100 and 200-meters, long jump, and 55-meter indoor. He ran quick enough to qualify for the U.S. Olympic trails in the 100-meters. -Brown’s first race team owner was former NFL star cornerback Troy Vincent. -Brown is the only driver in NHRA history to hold the points lead and win races in both Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle (4 TF/16 PSM). -Ashley will return to competition at the final four races on the 2009 NHRA schedule in Top Fuel as he attempts to become just the 15th driver in NHRA history to win races in both Top Fuel and Funny Car. -Brown’s co-crew chief, Mark Oswald, won the 1984 NHRA Winston Funny Car championship. Oswald is one of 14 drivers in NHRA history to have won races in both Top Fuel and Funny Car. Oswald won the Sonoma race in Funny Car in 1988. 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Top Fuel Standings (14 of 24 races) 1. ANTRON BROWN (4) 1,168 - - - 2. Tony Schumacher (3) 1,031 -137 3. Larry Dixon (4) 998 -170 4. Brandon Bernstein 913 -255 5. Spencer Massey (1) 819 -349 6. Cory McClenathan 814 -354 7. Morgan Lucas (1) 773 -395 Shawn Langdon 773 -395 9. Doug Kalitta (1) 666 -502 10. Clay Millican 567 -601 11. Joe Hartley 523 -645 Antron Brown’s Career Results at Infineon Raceway Year Qualified Finish/Winning Driver 2002 No. 5 Second round—Shawn Gann 2003 No. 13 Second round—Geno Scali 2004 No. 2 Runner-up—Angelle Sampey 2005 No. 5 Semifinals—Andrew Hines 2006 No. 3 Runner-up—Chip Ellis 2007 No. 10 First round—Eddie Krawiec 2008 No. 1—3.805 ET Semifinals—Hillary Will Brown’s Sonoma NHRA Schedule Date/Time Event/Location Thur., July 23, 7-9 p.m. Matco Tools Customer Appreciation Dinner Iron Eagle Club at Infineon Raceway Fri., July 24, 4:45/7:15 p.m. TF Qualifying 1/2, Infineon Raceway Sat., July 25, 12:30/3 p.m. TF Qualifying 3/4, Infineon Raceway Sun., July 26, 11 a.m. Final Eliminations, Infineon Raceway Brown’s Career-Best Performances E.T./Speed Location Date E.T.—4.495 seconds Pomona, Calif. Feb. 2008 MPH—331.94 mph Madison, Ill. May 2008 E.T.—3.778 seconds* Pomona, Calif. Feb. 2009 MPH—319.75 mph* Bristol, Tenn. May 2009 *1,000-foot FRAM-Autolite Nationals TV Schedule (ESPN2) Date/Time (ET) Coverage Sat., July 25, 6-8 p.m. Qualifying Highlights Sun., July 26, 11-11:30 a.m. NHRA Race Day Sun., July 26, 9 p.m.-Midnight Final Eliminations Coverage www.matcotools.com www.mikeashleyracing.com www.antronbrown.com www.twitter.com/MARnews