The following are excerpts from a teleconference featuring NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series guests Courtney Force (Funny Car), Jason Line (Pro Stock), Matt Hagan (Funny Car) and Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel).
THE MODERATOR: Courtney is the driver of the Traxxas Chevrolet Camaro Funny Car. She is the current Funny Car points leader on the strength of one win and three semifinal appearances. She got her first win of the season in Houston in which she defeated Tim Wilkerson in the finals. How important was it for your team to get that win so early in the season?
COURTNEY FORCE: It was huge for our team. I think everyone knows last year we struggled a little bit. We had an up-and-down season. We worked hard from the end of last season when we didn’t make the Countdown to the Championship and worked through the off-season. Obviously through test days in Vegas, to come out, I feel we definitely have a really strong team. I have Danny Hood and Ronnie Thompson. These guys, a lot of them have been with me from my rookie season. I feel like we’ve definitely all gelled together really great this year. It’s exciting for us. I think we definitely have this car under control. Feels like it’s been running really consistently. I’m really excited, just thrilled to be driving it. Getting that win in Houston, it felt like it was a really hard fight to get that win. It definitely took a lot longer to get to that winner’s circle than it did my first win in my rookie season. It definitely was a huge victory for our team. I think it was a lot more meaningful for us because we had to fight so much harder. I think we appreciated it a lot more. It definitely got us headed in the right direction. We definitely have a consistent car. I think that’s exciting for us starting out this year. Going to multiple semifinal rounds, kind of keeping in the groove of things, trying to stay in that top spot right now. We’re thrilled with where we’re headed. I definitely feel like we’re all going in the right direction, and I’ve got a great team behind me supporting me.
Q: You talked a little bit about 2015. Not the results you and your team had been accustomed to. When you left Houston, was there a sense of relief or was it more, Okay, we got that out of the way, let’s keep going to the next one?
COURTNEY FORCE: It was definitely a weight lifted off all our shoulders. It felt like a long time coming. I mean, I felt like we fought so hard to get back in the winner’s circle, it was a lot harder this time around. I think, like I said, we appreciated it a lot more, and it definitely helped us be stronger as a team coming off such a rough season. I think we kind of needed that. We had a great car the past few years as well. There’s nothing I can say about that. We had a good car. We just struggled a little bit last year. I just feel like we made a pretty good comeback this season. We’ve done well in the past. I finished in the points standings, you know, fourth, fifth, seventh. We were getting increasingly better actually since my rookie year. Like I said, just stumbled a little bit last year. I kind of feel like this season we’ve gotten back on our feet and definitely appreciating these wins because they’re a lot tougher to come by nowadays. If you’re not running in the 3s, your car is not driving well, these guys are hard to beat because they’re right there within inches at the finish line. It really is a team effort. I’m just very fortunate that I have great guys working for me. They all work hard and want to win as bad as I do.
Q: Courtney, was there a big difference from last year to this year internally with the team, or has everything just come together a little bit better this year?
COURTNEY FORCE: I mean, honestly, it’s definitely just come together a little bit better. I can’t really sit here and point to a certain thing that it was. It’s been a lot of fun having Ronnie Thompson onboard. He’s new to our team this year, coming over from Brittany Force’s Top Fuel dragster, and Danny Hood tuning this car with him. Honestly, we’ve all really gelled together nicely. We’re having a lot of fun. We’re enjoying it over here. I mean, honestly, I think just learning and kind of taking it slowly. Really over the off-season we kind of got this car back to basics. I think we kind of got a little bit too far off track, so we got this car kind of back to square one and took it testing, had an easier time going about it that way. Yeah, I mean, I think it’s just altogether been a better season for us. We’ve been trying a lot of different things. It seems to come along a lot easier this year so far. But like I said, there’s a lot of competition right now. If you’re not running in the 3s, now if you’re not running over 330 miles an hour, it’s insane, but it’s so cool to be a part of. It’s really amazing. It really shows how far our sport has come. Especially doing the consecutive wins, doing that with the women in our sport that was also a huge thing. I felt the pressure of that. To be able to get the first win, I think it was in 31 races, we had a dry spell, it was definitely a memorable win, and I think a huge kind of sigh of relief for our Traxxas team. I feel good that we all have our heads kind of right and are headed in the right direction. We’re all just really excited to be on this team, just trying to push this car to just go rounds and be consistent. That’s the number one thing, just consistency out there against all these other competitors.
Q. In listening to you, a thought came to my mind. What ignited you, was there a single moment in your life, into wanting to be where you are today, to be such a great driver, to be out there performing on a regular basis?
COURTNEY FORCE: Watching my dad as a kid. A lot of people are like, It’s cool being a female in the sport. But as a kid, when you have dreams, you don’t see any barriers or walls or anything. I had a dream of being a racecar driver, not just a female driver out here. So it’s really cool. Obviously Shirley (Muldowney) breaking down those walls for all the girls in our sport, maybe it wouldn’t have happened. But as a kid with a dream, I knew this is what I always wanted to do. Watching my sister Ashley (Force-Hood) compete in Funny Car, watching her successes, I was taking notes in my head. I’m looking at what all the other females are accomplishing, all the other just drivers in general are accomplishing. I think it’s going to be a little difficult to do 16 championships, but I’d be happy if we could get one. It’s definitely been my goal since I was a kid, just to be a little bit different. I shouldn’t say different. Erica won it twice. There’s a lot of goals I set for myself in driving the Funny Car. I love what I do. I push myself every weekend because I want to be the best out there, I don’t want to just be the best female out there. I want to be better than everyone. Obviously we have a long way to go. But I’m really enjoying that. I’m having fun. I’m part of a great team. I have my dad as my teacher. It’s very fun out there. I’m very fortunate that I get to race with my family and support my sister. I think I was bawling my eyes out when she won her first event. I was so proud of her. A lot of people want to compare my sister and my dad. We’re all very supportive of each other and proud. I think we kind of push each other to be better. You want to just continue to succeed. Even Ashley called me when I passed her in wins in Funny Cars. She joked, Now I have to get back in the car after you got that win. It’s always friendly competition. But I think we just kind of push each other to work harder and try and be better every time we get in a racecar. Like I’ve said, I’ve always had a dream in racing a Funny Car, pushing myself to be the best out there. Like I said, it’s a long way to go, but I enjoy testing myself and kind of setting the bar high for myself and expecting a lot out of myself in drag racing.
Q. You have four weeks in a row coming up. Of those four weeks, is there one that kind of really piques your eyes, or one that you could skip, it wouldn’t be so bad?
COURTNEY FORCE: No. Every race on the circuit is going to be huge. Obviously going to Epping and Englishtown. Epping I’ve won there before, the inaugural race. That’s going to be huge. Bristol. There’s nothing you can really sit there and say, we can throw that out. Norwalk is huge. Four in a row, it flies by so fast. You get to the end of the four weekends in a row, you kind of stand back and you’re like, Man, we were in this position before, can you believe how much has changed. You really have to make every weekend count. You can’t stumble. You kind of have to keep it consistent and you have to keep your head on straight for every race that you go out for. You only get a couple days to kind of regroup. I think it’s even more important when you have four in a row to really have your game up and to be ready for them as a team.
Q: Courtney, your dad has debuted a new Funny Car body this past week, unfortunately didn’t have the results he would have liked for John Force Racing. Can you give us an update on your dad and what your plans are for your new car?
COURTNEY FORCE: We’re all kind of dying to get behind the wheel and try it out. Like you said, it was an unfortunate weekend for my dad. He was pretty bummed about it, pretty upset. But he’s been in the shop working with the team to get that car back and ready. I don’t know the status of it exactly. But we’re all excited to get it back out to the track and start running on it. It’s definitely something new and exciting. For all the hard work that the guys, the engineers, at Chevrolet, everyone at John Force Racing that have had their hands in on this project, it was a little bit of a disappointing weekend to have it kind of end so quickly. I think in the long run, this is going to be huge. I think everyone will kind of forget about that weekend and once this car is rolled back out, I think it will be a great thing for our team. We’re all excited. I haven’t been told when I get to run the new body yet. I think it’s kind of one step at a time right now, getting dad’s body back out there and ready for the next race. I don’t know if it’s going to be ready for this upcoming race, but I definitely know they’re working hard to try and get that done.
Q: This is obviously a busy race weekend with your husband running in the Indianapolis 500. What are your plans for this weekend?
COURTNEY FORCE: Well, it’s going to be fun. I mean, it’s kind of weird being a spectator. I feel a little bit out of my element when I go to one of the IndyCar races. It’s fun for me. It’s cool. I’m glad I have the weekend out. We’re usually running at Topeka. We ran it last weekend. I saw in our schedule at the start of the year that we’d have this weekend off. I’m excited. I’m actually doing a couple of different appearances. I have one for Sunoco Saturday morning. Yeah, having fun, supporting him, cheering him on. I’m just excited to be there and be a part of it. He’s dragging me into the parade festivities and all that. I don’t know how everything works. I’m new to it. I’m excited. I tried to get out of the parade because I don’t know how to sit there and do a princess wave, but I’ll try. I’m just excited. I’m excited to be there this weekend. It’s the 100th running. It’s definitely a big deal for him and his team, just excited to be there and to watch and to cheer him on.
THE MODERATOR: Jason, we’ve talked to you and Greg a lot this year about the success. After every weekend, do you still kind of look back not in wonderment but think, Man, I can’t believe this just happened again?
JASON LINE: Well, to be honest, I hadn’t given it a whole lot of thought. After the last two races, I started to think about it a little bit more. Obviously it’s an incredible run for our team and for me personally. I’ve never had a start like this, obviously, which I guess not many folks have. It’s one of those things where I’m starting to think about it a little bit. But the truth is, you know, at this point it doesn’t matter. It’s what’s coming up next. So we’re working hard. I stopped making dyno pulls so we could have this conversation. We never stop burning Sunoco. We have to find more power. They’re getting closer. That’s kind of how we look at it.
Q: You mentioned not many people have done that. Looking ahead to Epping, if you were to make it to the final, you would tie Bob Glidden and the late Lee Shepherd for the most consecutive finals to start a season, which is nine. Could you put into words what it would mean to be put into such an elite group with those two drivers?
JASON LINE: No, not really. Actually, I’m quite sure my name doesn’t belong being mentioned with those two. It would be cool. I would be lying if I said it wasn’t. I don’t know. It takes a lot of good fortune. Just the fact to go up there and make that many runs and not shake or have a mechanical failure, just something go wrong, that in itself is kind of phenomenal. Whatever. If it happens, it happens. That’s great. If it doesn’t, that’s great, too. Been a heck of a good run. Either way, I won’t be upset.
Q. Jason, I’d have to take issue you on ‘good fortune’. I would say more like good preparation to be where you’re at.
JASON LINE: Well, there’s no doubt there’s been good preparation. But no matter what you do, sometimes there are still things you just can’t control. The fact that we haven’t had some sort of failure, some sort of issues, to me it’s phenomenal. Again, it just doesn’t happen. It’s very rare.
Q. Do you ever get done with the dyno pull and walk out in the shop and ask Greg (Anderson) to punch you to make sure you’re not asleep and dreaming all of this?
JASON LINE: No. He punches me anyway (laughter). I think he wanted to punch me last weekend after the final. No, you know, right now him and I are working on the dyno at the moment. He’s swapping parts out right now while I’m on the phone. It’s been a heck of a start. I chuckled a couple times because people have brought up the fact that we are the ones who complained the most about the new rules package and the rules changes, and it would appear that we’ve benefited the most. I don’t know. Like I say, we didn’t ask for this change, but we’ve tried to embrace it the best we could. Obviously we’ve been very fortunate to come out as successful as we have been. Anyway, we’re working hard and trying to make both Summit Chevy Camaros faster.
Q: Jason, talk about Bo Butner. What has it meant to you guys to be able to have his expertise? He was an accomplished racer coming in, but to be able to have his experience and gather data with the new rules changes that came into the season.
JASON LINE: Well, for me, Bo, he’s a breath of fresh air because he’s always happy. The guy’s always in a good mood. No matter how bad or good things are going, he’s able to smile. So for me, that’s been good. Greg and I, a lot of times we’re pretty serious. Of course, the rest of our guys are serious. Sometimes you forget this is really about having fun. Yes, it is what we do for a living so we’re obligated to be serious about it, but at the same time you still should be able to have fun. For me, he brings an entertainment value that you cannot buy. I enjoy the heck out of him. He’s a good fella. He’s fun to be around.
Q. The next four races take you to different levels of sea level. Which one do you think is going to be the most demanding in your effort to tie the record and possibly break the record?
JASON LINE: Well, obviously Epping first because unless you win there, nothing matters, or make it to the final there. Epping, I have not been very successful at Epping. It has not been a good track for me, much like Topeka, which is my new favorite track, by the way. First things first. I have to do a good job there. The starting line at Epping is not amongst the Pro Stock ranks, it’s not known to be the best starting line you’re ever going to see. Right now that’s probably a good thing for us. We seem to excel when we’re on, I guess, a starting line that doesn’t have quite as much grip. Epping is going to be a big challenge for sure. Obviously after that, it doesn’t matter. If we can make the final round there, that would be nothing short of phenomenal.
Q. Your teammate, Greg Anderson, has everything that you have. Is he your biggest challenge towards setting the goal?
JASON LINE: I’m going to say yes because he’s the only guy I’ve lost to so far. I mean, it sounds crazy saying that, but he is the only person I’ve lost to this year. I’m going to say yes, that’s true. But obviously other teams, they’re all getting better every week. I mean, just like us, if the shoe was on the other foot, we’d be working hard to get better. You don’t want to get beat up that many races in a row. Let me tell you, they’re working hard. There’s going to be other challenges besides Greg, there’s no doubt. But right now he’s tough. Plus, I mean, he’s one of the best that’s ever been. So you don’t look forward to racing him. But if we can qualify opposite sides, obviously not racing him till the final, that’s the best alternative.
Q. You made the statement, they’re working hard. Is this the hardest your teams have ever had to work, not only to gain the values they gained, but to stay on top at the same time?
JASON LINE: I think so, yes. At least for quite a while. Again, with the new rules package, everything is kind of reset. Obviously it’s a heck of an opportunity there to set yourself apart. It won’t last, there’s no question about it. It will not last. But, again, having the opportunity to do it for a while is a great thing. That’s why we’re on the phone right now. All you can do is keep digging. We worked very hard this winter, no question about it. I don’t know that we worked harder than anybody else, but we worked very hard. We were fortunate enough to apparently work on the right things. But to stay on top, which again, make no mistake about it, somebody will come along and be faster. But to stay where we’re at for as long as we can, it’s going to require more effort yet. So we’re doing that. We’re working as hard as we know how to.
Q. Can you look towards the championship run yet? Can you look towards the Countdown at all, or is it just one after the next?
JASON LINE: Yeah, I think right now it’s too far out for me. I try to think on a one-day basis, then a one week, then a month, and then six months. But right now that’s a ways out, and I think there’s so much to do yet that that’s too far out for me right now. Obviously no matter what, we’re going to get a good start in the Countdown. But we need to have something, something left for the time the Countdown starts, maybe a little extra shot in the arm so that we have an advantage at that time. But there’s no telling. We don’t know what other people are going to come up with between now and then. It’s way too far apart, and again I think it’s too fertile of a field yet to say that you’re going to go into the Countdown with an advantage because there’s still a lot of opportunity, a lot of things to learn yet about the fuel injection and how it runs the cars. So who knows, we could — by the time the Countdown comes along, there could be two or three cars that are as fast or faster than us. I just don’t know the answer to that. But that’s why you’ve just got to keep working.
Q. You obviously need a little time off, a little time away from the track to kind of regroup and let everybody refresh, but when you’re having such a great run like this, do you just want to keep going from event to event to event, which you will get the chance to do once you start Epping?
JASON LINE: No. No. I like some time. I’ve got other projects and other things going on, and we work on some super stock and stocker stuff here, as well, and those hold a special place in my heart. I’m still trying to work on some of that stuff. So I think working on the same thing all the time kind of — it can get mundane. So when you look at new things, there’s always something to learn from some other class. I enjoy working on other things, as well, and I’m doing that, you know, in my off time as you call it. I guess it doesn’t really make it off time, but it’s time looking at something different. I do like a little break in between.
Q. You obviously have a background in NASCAR, coming from Gibbs. Are you able to take — we talked with Courtney, obviously this is a big racing weekend, Indianapolis 500, the 600. Are you able to take in anything at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend?
JASON LINE: Well, my wife is trying to get me to it and I’m trying to get out of it. I don’t think I’m going to — I don’t think I’m going to partake. Again, I have a lot of stuff going on here at the shop that I need to get done while I can, because again, we’re going to be gone a lot in the next four weeks. I think right now that’s more important to help us stay on top here than it is going to watch some other venue. I’m going to stay — kind of keep my nose to the grindstone and stay here at work.
Q. Just real quick, what is it like with Greg being there in the shop with you guys? Are you guys just a good resource for each other to bounce ideas off of? You talk about being in the dyno room. Are you guys there 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., 16 hours a day? How much of a resource are you two with each other?
JASON LINE: Right now it’s more like 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and maybe a little later, so it depends. Well, he’s a very motivated guy, let me tell you. You’re going to have to find somebody — it would be hard to find somebody who works harder than him, I can tell you that. He’s definitely a go-getter, and he does not enjoy finishing second. He doesn’t like that at all, and he’s made several comments, today alone, that we have his engine apart that he raced last week and the one I raced, and he was looking for — his word, he’s looking for nine thousandths, because that’s what he lost by last week. He’s a very motivated guy, and again, I’ve said it before, I’ve never met anybody who wants to win as bad as him. He’s very motivated, and to beat him, let me tell you, it’s an accomplishment because he’s tough. He’s a tough racer.
Q. Jason, based on what you said, I can understand you don’t want to go to the Coca-Cola 600. I can understand maybe you don’t want to go to Indianapolis for the 100th Indy 500. What do you do to relax and to just blow off all your steam?
JASON LINE: That’s a good question. I’m not a good relaxer. I struggle with that. I’m actually — my weekend is planned already. I have a lot of work to do, but I am going to have dinner with some of the folks from Coca-Cola Company on Friday night. That’s going to be my relaxation for the weekend. Beyond that, the truth is I’ll be working on a little bit of Stock Eliminator stuff and then Pro Stock stuff. It’s really — it’s probably a sad thing to say, but I enjoy doing that as much or more than anything. I really like working on stuff. That’s my idea of relaxing, I guess.
Q. You touched upon the championship. Do you guys start getting into test mode for the Countdown, or how does that kind of play in like during qualifying sessions?
JASON LINE: Well, we are testing some things during qualifying for sure, but no, I would say we’re not in any sort of test mode. But again, I think the way we’re running the cars and the engines is still — there’s still a lot to learn about what we’re doing. I don’t feel like we’re living up to the potential of — as much power as the engine makes right now, I still know we’re going as fast as we can go. So we’re testing, but we’re definitely not in test mode, that’s for sure. We’re trying to win races, and that’s what keeps us in business.
Q. One of the races that we go to is in Norwalk, which is obviously a big one for you and Summit Racing. Is that always a busy kind of a week for you guys?
JASON LINE: It is. And that’s a fun week for us. For me it’s one of those races close enough I like to drive instead of fly, and we go up early and visit with the Summit folks, so it’s a fun race for us for sure, plus you get the ice cream, so it’s a great race. I love going up there. It’s certainly one of my — it’s one of my favorite races to go to.
Q. How much does the Bader family with what they can do for a facility and welcoming, as a racer what is that like when you pull into a facility and maybe even take Summit out of it, but with that Bader family and with their presence?
JASON LINE: Well, they definitely know how to put on a show. I think it’s cool. My kids love it, and there’s a little bit of something for everybody. They’re great promoters and great ambassadors for the sport of drag racing. They do unique things there, and that makes it memorable and fun to be a part of.
THE MODERATOR: We are joined by Matt Hagan, driver of the Mopar Express Lane Rocky Boots Dodge Charger. Matt, racing is such a sport of ups and downs. Compare the start of the season and how it probably wasn’t living up to your expectations to winning these past two weekends.
MATT HAGAN: Well, I mean, it’s going from the bottom to feeling like you’re on top of the world. I mean, it is huge changes in two weekends. But that’s drag racing. I’ve been through it in 2012 and 2011 where we won the championship, you come out and you think everything is going to be great, you set the world on fire, and you don’t win a race in 2012. So I get it. I understand the lows and the highs and everything, and the biggest thing that I’ve learned to be able to do is just get my pompons out and cheer my team on. Those guys look to me for leadership. They look to Dickie Venables for leadership, and they look to me like, hey, is everything going to be okay, tell me what you think. And that’s what I’ve learned as a driver coming in at some of those low points that you have to be a leader, you have to keep your team morale up, you have to keep the guys laughing. You have to take them out to dinner, because it’s going to turn around. The thing about DSR and Don Schumacher Racing and Dickie Venables and Mike Knudsen and all these boys that are around us, they’re too smart and they’re too driven and too hard a workers to just be on the bottom all the time, and we have too many parts and resources to be there. I mean, Don expects us to win. We’re going to win. It’s just a matter of when we put it all together and make it happen for ourselves.
Q. Talk about Dickie; he obviously has a great history within the sport, but how much of a calming influence is he to you and to the entire Mopar team there?
MATT HAGAN: Well, I mean, this is my fourth year with Dickie Venables, and I’ve seen nothing but great things from him. I’ve won 15 of the 20 races with him in four years, you know, I mean, and I was putting that in perspective the other day, that’s incredible. That’s a lot of races every year that he’s been here and a championship on top of it and runner up one year, as well. He got sick that year, and I really feel deep down in my heart if he hadn’t have been sick for the Countdown and had to go into surgery and different things like that that we might have had a really legitimate viable shot at winning the championship even though we finished second. But things happen in life and you move forward and you grow from it. I’m tickled to have him in my corner. I’m tickled to have him in my corner when we’re not running well because I just know the guy is capable. He’s driven. He takes his work home with him, and it’s just his life. He doesn’t have kids. This is it. Winning is everything to him, and I mean, winning is everything to me, but it’s like anything, you surround yourself with good people, and you know you’re going to win, it’s just a matter of when.
Q. The Funny Car category the past couple years, starting with your first three, there’s been some incredible numbers, and we saw some really spectacular racing in Topeka. Are we going to see these numbers continue out or are we going to kind of hit a stretch where we get in the hot summer and it kind of backs off? What do you see for the next handful of events?
MATT HAGAN: Well, when I see hot or cold, I see consistent racing, consistent cars running down the racetrack. It’s going to be fast. Like you said, when we were in Topeka, those were just record-setting conditions. The track was there, the air was there, the cars were ready to run. You know, so that’s kind of not going to be the case all the time, but I do definitely think that you’re going to see fast racing, and it’s going to be consistently good all the time. I mean, Funny Cars have gotten to where Pro Stock — you have to have caught a 50 light up there and still run a number. It’s crazy. The days of going out here and just having a good run and being able to turn a win light on are gone. The driver has to do their job and the crew chief and the crew guys have to do their job, and then on top of it what’s crazy is that it’s a 10,000-horsepower race car, so you do it all right and you still have an opportunity to go out here and it not work, a part break or something, so you’re still at the mercy of the parts even after you do it all right. To turn win lights on and get it done, it takes everything.
Q. Matt, as you went from a regular run being 4.03 or something like that to now where a regular run is in the 3.9s, and a fantastic run, which you have, is in the 3.8s, talk about that path that you went down to accept that that’s just great driving.
MATT HAGAN: Well, you know, I think a lot of that all started with Jimmy Prock and the Western Swing last year when they put those headers on the car and everybody was like, what is going on, how do we catch these guys, what are they doing, and how do we push our car to that limit; we can’t do that. We hadn’t had anything figured out to do that. And then we get looking around, and everybody is starting to bolt headers on, and it’s like everybody got a permission slip to run three seconds after that. Then after you kind of get that on the car, you start fine-tuning things and getting more aggressive with your tune-up, and you change one thing on one of these Funny Cars, and it changes everything. It’s not just like you bolt the headers on and here we go. It’s an evolution of one thing leads to another leads to another leads to this, and we’re here now to where these cars are consistently running fast. They’re a little bit harder to drive because of the headers, but you know, like my crew chief said, it’s my job to make them go fast and your job to drive them. But they are a handful nowadays, but that’s what we get paid to do. That’s what I love doing. That’s what gets my blood pumping. It is an adrenaline-filled deal, and I think in Topeka this past weekend, if the fans didn’t feel like they got what they paid for, they need to change sports because it was awesome to see two records set as far as in Funny Car, 18 miles an hour, and also in Top Fuel they set a national record. So it’s just awesome that these fans can come out here and experience something like that. It’s great that we have facilities that we can do that at, and it’s all-around good show. We’re showmen, and these guys, fans and girls and everybody else that are paying their hard-earned money to come out here, they want to see three-second runs. They want to see 360 runs. They want to see as fast as we can absolutely push this limit. I know we want to try to slow these cars down and make them safe, and that’s great, but we’re here to put on a show and make them go fast, and that’s what we’re doing.
Q. How strongly did you feel about just wanting to go faster? I want to go faster, I want to go faster, I want to go faster.
MATT HAGAN: Man, since I’ve been 13 that’s all I’ve wanted to do. That’s why I went from a four-wheeler to a truck or street car to a Pro Mod to a screw blower, Pro Mod to an alcohol Funny Car to a fuel Funny Car. Drag racing, speed, pure adrenaline, pure horsepower, pure — it’s just — it absolutely is the best thing that I’ve ever experienced, and I’ve been able to do circle track and boats and different things like that, but fuel Funny Car racing is it. For me it’s the top of the category, and it’s a handful to drive. They’re fast and they’re continuing to get fast. We have a great hotrod, and I was just — I’m just excited and very humbled and blessed to be here.
MATT HAGAN: Yeah, so it was just one of those things where this is it for me. I mean, this is my fix, man. I love it. I have a passion for it, and I have a passion for NHRA, and I’m just blessed that we have a place to go do this.
Q. When you look at the four tracks that are coming up, boom, boom, boom, boom, week after week, is there one that you’re absolutely hungrier than the others to go to to get a victory at?
MATT HAGAN: Well, you know, I think all these tracks are good. I haven’t won at them all. I’m not Tony Schumacher or John Force. I haven’t been out here that long. I haven’t been able to win at every racetrack. But everyone is special, and I want to win at them all. I think every year is different, so no matter — even if you win the same track, it’s a different situation, it’s different circumstances. You’re running different people. You’ve had to adapt to different situations. So every racetrack that we win at, whether it’s been before or never have before, they’re all very, very special to me and they all have their own individual unique memories.
Q. And how much would you put out if you had to to make sure that you had almost the same identical conditions at all the remaining tracks that you had at Topeka?
MATT HAGAN: Man, I’d give it all, you know. You know, I couldn’t ask for anything more than that to be able to come out Friday night and set a national record and then come back and win the race. I mean, when we won, it wasn’t pretty, but we got the job done, and it was a lot of fun. I mean, that got my blood pumping, head on the car, six times going down the racetrack, I felt like I contributed to my team at the end of the day to be able to turn that win light on. Sometimes what we do is so cookie-cutter in these fast races and runs, and that’s great, but what was cool was everybody came up to me, and they said, man, when you crossed the finish line the fans went wild. They said just the crowd erupted. That’s what they want to see. They want to see stuff like that. Like I said before, we’re putting on a show, so we’ll try to do the best job we can every weekend.
Q. Matt, you kind of touched upon it, but that Topeka final, are you just reacting to the what the car is giving you or can you process it and think it through as it’s happening, or is it just you get down to the end of it, you’re like, okay, now what just happened here?
MATT HAGAN: Yeah, no, I mean, you’re obviously processing information, now whether you’re making the best decision in the world, I don’t know. But your mind slows everything down for you in that race car and you’re starting to drive by the seat of your pants, and you’re feeling what the tires are doing, you’re hearing the cylinders fire, you feel the clutch come to it, but you’re also, you know, feeling those tires break loose or a fast battle in the smoke, and you’re trying to basically process that information and make a split-decision call on what to do, and hopefully it’s the right thing to do. Obviously I would like to have been able to pedal the car one time, get it hooked back up and run it down the finish line, but it just was never hooked back up. I probably should have waited a little bit longer for the car to settle, but that is extremely hard to do, and it takes a lot of discipline, which I guess I’m not very disciplined to really sit there and wait, especially when you’re not seeing the person beside you, to not get back on that pedal to try to get it down to the finish line.
THE MODERATOR: Next up we are joined by Doug Kalitta, driver of the Mac Tools Top Fuel dragster. Kalitta has won three consecutive Top Fuel races, Houston, Atlanta and Topeka, is the current Top Fuel points leader. It marks the first time in his storied career that he has won three consecutive events. Doug, when a team is on a streak like this, how hard is it to take a week off?
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah, you know, when you have four coming up, actually let the guys regroup a little bit after two in a row. I think the timing is good actually to take a weekend off, and with the holiday weekend and everything else. But we’ll definitely be ready for Epping and the remaining — and the other three races that we have in a row there. The guys are back at the shop now, and I’m a little bit behind. I was down at the office in Columbus and got in a little bit late there, guys.
Q. Congratulations on three in a row. That is pretty spectacular at that level to be able to do that, and then to have one of those three go down in the record books as one of the tightest races in the history of the NHRA, you’ve got to be feeling pretty good about yourself and the car.
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah, you know, there’s been a lot of drag racing over the years, and we’re pretty proud of — pretty lucky actually to end up having such a close race like that. But yeah, to have kind of a historical run like that or whatever you want to call it, to be that close with somebody was very cool in my book, and in my guys’, as well.
Q. The last two weeks Jimbo ( Jim Oberhofer, crew chief) has made no bones about how great of a fuel car driver you are. Does it tell you that to try to get you pumped up before the race, too, or does he just let the results speak for themselves?
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah, no, we’re — obviously we have meetings and whatnot, and we’re all trying to pump one another up. But Jim is doing an incredible job with the car along with Troy and all the guys that work on that Mac Tools car. As long as I’ve been out there doing this kind of stuff, I mean, I’m just real fortunate to have such a great team at the moment. And then obviously winning these things aren’t easy, so yeah, we’ve managed to pull off three in a row. It’s crazy circumstances with all three of them probably, but we did manage to get three in a row, so we’re hoping to definitely keep this momentum going.
Q. Is there anything extra special about when the tool trucks line up and you get the win light?
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah. You know, Antron and his team, they’ve obviously got the No. 1 on their car, so it looks like they’re running well. There’s obviously a lot of good running cars in our class there. But yeah, you can’t deny that, you’ve got two tool cars out there. That business is all about selling tools for both of our sponsors. Any time you can get by those guys, it’s definitely a good day.
Q. Doug, you mentioned Jim and obviously how important he is to your team. I don’t mean this negatively, but is he overlooked sometimes as one of the top tuners in the sport, or do you think he gets the recognition that he deserves?
DOUG KALITTA: I think he — I actually think he does. Jim has been doing this a long time, and obviously he’s very good at what he does. But yeah, we — we’re super proud of what he’s done with my car, and obviously we have a total — the four-car team with Kalitta Motorsports, and really building the team, his communication skills are very good. Building the team comes — it’s what he thrives to do is make Kalitta Motorsports obviously a competitive — four competitive cars, and he surrounds himself with good people, and obviously that’s what Connie (Kalitta) is doing with having him in charge and everybody that he’s agreed to put in place. Jim and Connie work real well together I personally feel, and yeah, just — he does a great job, and we’re just hoping to get some great results out of the mark tools car this year with what we’ve done so far. We’re pretty proud of that, and we want to be ready for those last six races and take a serious run at the championship. That’s definitely our end goal here.
Q. Doug, you’re a very quiet, very reserved individual. What was your heart and your mind telling you as you lined up at Topeka and you had to know deep inside, this could be my third in a row?
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah. You know, usually when you’re going rounds, you’re real focused on just getting the win. To be honest with you, I really wasn’t giving that a lot of thought. When you’ve got Antron Brown in the other lane and everybody’s car is running good, you’re just really trying to focus on the job at hand. Certainly when you get done with the run and you find out you won, then your mind starts shifting gears a little bit. But at the starting line it’s all business, and we’re just trying to get the win light. It was definitely an interesting race. Like with Matt, the round before us, they both smoked the tires, so you don’t give it a lot of thought, and you just hope obviously the thing is going to stay hooked up and get a good run in. But you kind of remind yourself that this thing could smoke the tires or whatever and to be ready. But that’s kind of the mindset that you’ve got sitting there getting ready to go.
Q. Did you ever in your career think, I can win three in a row?
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah, certainly. We go to all these races thinking that we’re going to win. That’s the beauty part about working with my — Jim and my group of guys there. They definitely see me as a car that can do it, it’s just a matter of making it happen. But certainly winning three in a row is a huge thing for me and all the Mac Tools distributors and Brett Shaw and all the guys there at Mac. And Tommy, obviously, too. We all know how hard these things are to win, and we certainly take pride in it.
Q. So you’ve probably kept this one off your mind, but it could be four in a row at Epping. How has your performance been at Epping, and do you feel like you have a real chance at four in a row?
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah, Epping is — actually it’s a beautiful area. I think the first year we went there I was runner-up. So I was feeling pretty good about winning that day. The last couple years I don’t think we’ve made it to the final there, but that’s one of the places I haven’t won at. It’s on my list, my things-to-do list. Coincidentally it would be four in a row if we can do it there, so we’ll go there — obviously my car has been qualifying good, we’ll take it one step at a time, get qualified good and go into race day and let it happen, see what happens.
Q. Doug, that final in Topeka, seeing the car go sideways, we talked to Matt a little bit about his final, but kind of walk us through that run. What goes through your mind? Were you looking almost straight at the guard wall, or do you think, well, I should just lift, or is it just do anything you can to get that car down the track?
DOUG KALITTA: Yeah, I mean, when you’re doing all that stuff to try to get your car down and you don’t see the other guy, I mean, you’re still very hopeful that you’re going to get the win. Certainly it’s not ideal, and you’re doing all you can do. But yeah, if you don’t see the other guy, you’ve still got a chance, and you’re doing all you can do to get it down there. With my car, it left and went straight in the smoke. I managed to gather the thing back up and was going again, and then it broke loose again, which usually once you get the car hooked up, it usually doesn’t blow the tires off two thirds of the way down the track, but it did. It was just one of those things, you’re sideways and I did what I had to do to get it straightened out. But it actually did get a little further sideways than I’ve had it in the past and tried to keep going. But it seemed pretty comfortable, and I pulled it off. Yeah, it worked out okay. And Antron, he seen what was going on, and obviously he had a head of steam, and it was a close race. But we were fortunate to get by those guys.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
