Matt Hagan notes and quotes: NHRA Mid-South Nats postponed to Monday

DON SCHUMACHER RACING
2009 NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 3 of six in Countdown to 1 Playoffs
Round 21 of 24 for season
NHRA MID-SOUTH NATIONALS
Memphis Motorsports Park
Oct. 2-4, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Judy Stropus, 203-438-0501; cell 203-243-2438;
jstropus@earthlink.net

RAIN POSTPONES MEMPHIS ELIMINATIONS TO MONDAY
MATT HAGAN NOTES AND QUOTES

MEMPHIS (Oct. 4, 2009) - The NHRA Mid-South Nationals at Memphis Motorsports
Park have been postponed until Monday, Oct. 5, at 10 a.m., because of rain.

Matt Hagan, driver of the Valvoline Engine Guarantee/shelor.com Dodge Funny
Car, who is qualified 12th and will face Cruz Pedregon in the first round of
eliminations, commented on the rain delay.

"I'm excited to be here racing,² he said, ³but I'm also excited to get back
home to see my wife, Rachel, and our new daughter, Penny Louise (born last
Monday). I'm kind of torn. I love racing, I love my family. It's a tough
situation to be in.

"I think it's definitely going to make the lanes a lot more equal. The track
surface probably has a lot of peeled rubber on it and a lot of water coming
up. I think it's anybody's ball game. We just have to go down there and go
down the race track and have a good race."

As for what he did all day in the rain, "I've been playing chess up in the
lounge on the Internet," he said. "There's nothing to do right now. You kill
time, you meet fans, you sign some autographs, you say hi, you try to make
these fans have as an enjoyable day as they can and you try to have some fun
yourself."

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