Austin Prock: 'I felt pretty confident going that we were going to have the car to beat'
Paul Lee: 'It’s going to be great just to see our friends and the fans'
Jack Beckman: 'I don’t know if anyone wants to get back more than me'
Tim Wilkerson: 'I don’t think they’re ready for my attitude. It’s gonna be fun'
Kenny Delco: 'We were fast, we qualified fourth at Pomona and Phoenix'
Steve Torrence: 'You’ve got to come out and swing for every one of ’em'
Cristian Cuadra: 'I think I’m doing well, but I have a lot of room to improve'
Tommy Johnson Jr.: 'I’ve not wanted to win a championship more than this year'
Brittany Force: 'We’re ready for all this to be over so we get back to what we love'
Robert Hight: 'I can’t wait to get back and try to defend our championship'
Alex Laughlin: 'All we have to do is shove the car back in the trailer, and we are ready to go racing'
Shawn Langdon: 'I’m trying to stay as fresh as I can so we can be ready to go'
Chris McGaha: 'We’ve come up with some new ideas and we’ve beaten on some things'
J.R. Todd: 'I have all the confidence that we will be in contention when it counts'
Clay Millican: 'I can’t wait to stomp on that loud pedal ... it’s been way too long'
Bob Tasca III: 'Trust me, this Motorcraft car is going to have its day in the sun'
Antron Brown: 'I’ve been doing everything I can; I’m gonna come back hungry and ready'
Jason Line: 'It doesn’t matter what track we start with, the cars will all be ready to go when we get the call'
Fernando Cuadra Jr: 'We’re applying many of the things we learned from the first two races'
John Force: 'I’ll be ready. I know the car. I could drive it with my eyes closed'
Rahn Tobler maps out plans and goals for the NAPA Auto Parts Funny Car team
Leah Pruett: 'This is not the time to test or play; it’s time to run with what we know'
Ron Capps: 'It’s going to feel crazy the first time any of us steps on the gas for the first time'
Doug Kalitta: 'We’re all just really hungry and ready to make it happen'
Bo Butner: 'I feel like when we all come back racing we’ll be stronger than ever!'
Jeg Coughlin Jr: 'It’s time to go. Every round will be as important as the last'
Matt Hartford: 'We have a car that can run for the championship—bar none'
Alexis DeJoria: 'I just hope that everybody makes it back to the track safely'
Justin Ashley: 'Having a break like this really puts things in perspective'
Erica Enders: 'Our great start proves the organization’s hard work is paying off'
Antron Brown: 'I’ve been doing everything I can; I’m gonna come back hungry and ready'
ANTRON BROWN | Matco Tools dragster
Current points position: 7th | Best season e.t. to date: 3.721
Early-season report card: The Winternationals marked the return of crew chief Brian Corradi to the Matco Tools team and, after struggling in Pomona, where they qualified just ninth and shook hard and lost in round one, they looked like they were in trouble again in Phoenix, qualifying just 13th before finding some raceday magic and a semifinal finish.
Looking back: “All last year and even in Pomona this year, we couldn’t figure out why the car wasn’t 60-footing no matter what we did; we could give it a lot more power, give a lot more clutch, but it had a governor on it somewhere. Brian figured it out Saturday night in Phoenix and it hit us like a ton of bricks to find what was plaguing us all last year. We came out the first round and made a good lap (3.729) and the car made the same run next lap (3.721) and then we dropped cylinder against [Doug] Kalitta in the semi’s.”
Looking ahead: “I think everything is going good. I wish we had more races so we could keep with what we figured out. I know Brian and Mark [Oswald] and Brad [Mason] are all chomping at the bit to get back out there again because we know that we’re going to be highly competitive. We’re looking forward to getting back after it again so we can try to pop off some wins. What we found is going to be a help when the tracks get really nasty, which will help us a lot because we’ll be able to get down them; our car will go down a dirt road, so the next thing to do to run those mid-.60s.”
Shop talk: “We’re getting a whole bunch of parts and pieces together. On the DSM side that makes all the manufacturing pieces, those guys have enough cylinder heads lined up ready to go and our crew guys have been working on finishing them so when we run weeks in a row we can be ready, because that going to be a big toll. I’m gonna be ready. I’ve been doing everything I can, working out, and keeping my mind right. I have been working on a new reaction-time simulator where it catches my reaction time for letting the brake lever go and hitting the gas pedal. I’m gonna come back hungry and ready.”
The final word: “It’s been fun being with the family and getting a little home time with the kids. I’ve never taken racing for granted, but I know what we’ve been through is gonna put things in a lot different perspective for me. I’m really going to enjoy all the moments at the racetrack, knowing that nothing is guaranteed for you to actually race again. This definitely puts that in perspective.”