Brown prepared for Indianapolis

ANTRON BROWN HUNTS FOR TOP FUEL WIN AT 57TH-ANNUAL U.S. NATIONALS

Antron Brown

Photo by: Ted Rossino

INDIANAPOLIS, August 29, 2011 – When Antron Brown wheels his Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster to the starting line this weekend here at the 57th-annual U.S. Nationals presented by Lucas Oil he wants to duplicate his past successes on a Pro Stock Motorcycle, which include two victories.

The 35-year-old Don Schumacher Racing driver, whose win at the last race in Brainerd (Minn.) catapulted him into second place of the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Top Fuel standings, agrees this is an important race.

“For every driver, you first want to win the championship, but if you can’t this is the one you want to win,” explained the New Jersey native, who know makes his home in an Indianapolis suburb. “You want to win in front of friends and family, and the friends and family of the entire team (DSR is headquartered in neighboring Brownsburg) and you want to win every race, regardless of where it is, but our goal is the championship.”

This race marks the end of the 16-race regular season with the top-10 drivers in the standings at its conclusion competing during the six-race Countdown to the Championship (with their points reset to tighten up the competition).

According to Brown, the Matco Tools team’s overwhelming responsibility, while working to win this weekend’s “Big Go” (where Brown has seven semifinal-round finishes in addition to the two PSM victories), is preparing for the upcoming Countdown.

“Our car is running really well right now, the way we want it to,” Brown, who has two wins and three semifinal-round finishes in his last five races and was, with a 3.810-second lap at 321.50 miles per hour, the quickest in pre-race testing, explained. “I think we’re peaking at just the right time.

“That’s what we’ve been working toward all season and it seems to be happening. We’re preparing stuff and getting ready for the final six races when it really counts. The most important thing is that championship!”

Brown’s approach to the U.S. Nationals will be the same one he has utilized throughout the season.

“Our deal is racing ourselves; we’re not worried about who is in the other lane,” he said. Racing our lane and getting after it, that’s how we do it.”