Matt Hagan, driver of the Haas Automation Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car:
“It was nice to be able to come out here and debut Haas Automation and Gene Haas. I’m very proud to represent such a prominent name in motorsports. It’s great to have Tony (Stewart) come over to drag racing and bring these new sponsors. I feel like it’s going to help our sport grow. Not just with our team, but with other teams also. It’s been a wonderful weekend. The right lane was giving us a tough time all weekend and it was a handful. For Dickie Venable (crew chief), Mike Knudsen (co-crew chief), Alex Conaway (car chief) and all of the guys wrenching on my car, I’m so thankful for them. They always find a way to put a great race car underneath me. I try to rise to the occasion when I can and turn on the win lights. It’s a great day when you can move up from being the No. 10 qualifier and win the race. I woke up this morning feeling like we had a bit of a hill to climb. As the car continues to go down the racetrack, you get more confident. I’m always glad to have Dickie in our corner. I’ve already told him that I hope I can retire my career with him as my crew chief one day. At the end of the day, I’m really proud of our guys. Thank you to Gene Haas for putting his business on our car and allowing us to pull it into winner’s circle.”
- Earned No. 6 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (3.962 ET at 302.46 mph)
- Fell to the No. 8 provisional qualifying position in Q2 on Saturday (4.555 ET at 184.85 mph).
- Secured No. 10 qualifying position based off Friday’s Q1 run. In Q3 on Saturday, Hagan ran a 3.985 ET at 323.89 mph.
- Advanced to Finals on Sunday:
- Round 1: 3.929 ET at 330.07 mph, defeated Blake Alexander (3.941 ET at 324.36 mph).
- Round 2: 3.950 ET at 324.67 mph, defeated Alexis DeJoria (4.060 ET at 269.62 mph).
- Semifinals: 3.955 ET at 326.40 mph, defeated Terry Haddock (4.110 ET at 299.60 mph).
- Finals: 3.967 ET at 328.06 mph, defeated Ron Capps (4.303 ET at 211.13 mph.
- Currently leads the Funny Car championship standings with a 26-point advantage over Ron Capps
- Hagan’s win marks his seventh overall at Pomona and his fourth in the Winternationals. He’s now second-all time in wins at Pomona Dragstrip to John Force, who has 16 wins overall.
- By advancing to the Semifinals, Hagan has secured his position in the NHRA’s #2Fast2Tasty Mission NHRA Challenge, where he will face off against Terry Haddock at Chicago. The semifinalists from Pomona will rematch during qualifying on Saturday, with bonus money and points on the line. The #2Fast2Tasty Challenge will not take place at the next two NHRA Four-Wide events.
- Hagan earned Haas Automation their first win in the NHRA as primary sponsor of the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car. Haas Automation was founded by Gene Haas, the co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series.