Hagan's championship hopes high heading into Reading

DON SCHUMACHER RACING
2010 NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 21 of 23
Round 4 of 6 in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs
26th annual NHRA Nationals
Maple Grove Raceway
Mohnton, Pa.
Oct. 8-10, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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

HAGAN'S CHAMPIONSHIP HOPES HIGH HEADING INTO READING

CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. (Oct. 5, 2010) - For a 27-year-old second-year racer in
the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, Matt Hagan is unusually calm
and cool as he faces a tight battle for his first Funny Car championship
this season. The series travels to Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pa., this
weekend, just outside of Reading, Pa., for the fourth of six final events in
the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

Racing the DieHard Dodge Charger Funny Car for Don Schumacher Racing, Hagan
is fresh off his third victory of the season in as many final rounds in
Dallas two weeks ago and is second in the rankings, just 25 points short of
first place. While one would expect him to be fidgety, nervous and anxious
as his first non-rookie season winds down with a chance to earn the crown,
he is in fact so busy around his Angus Cattle farm in Virginia "that I
haven't even had time to think about racing a nitro Funny Car," he said.

The fight for the crown has tightened up among four drivers/teams, including
two from John Force Racing (J. Force in first, A. Force Hood in fourth) and
Don Schumacher Racing (Hagan in second and Jack Beckman in third). Only 68
points separate the four. It's anyone's championship at this stage,
including the rest of the top 10, who could move into contention with a
strong result in Reading.

"We're within striking distance right now," said Hagan, who took time off
from his chores to give it some thought. "We have a great race car and a
great team. The DieHard crew guys have done exactly what they needed to do
to put us in this position to win.

"A lot of it has to do with luck. You have to be little lucky and we just
have to do everything right. You can't put any extra pressure on yourselves.
Laying in bed at night thinking about it doesn't make it any better. You
just have to play the cards that you're dealt and hope you get a lucky hand.
We're going to do our jobs the best we can and have some fun doing it.

"Right now all I'm doing is just farming. There's so much to do around the
house and farm that I don't even think about racing when I'm at home. So,
between these cows calving and my working to keep them alive, I've got my
hands full right now.

"But, once I get to Maple Grove, I will focus on the job at hand there."

MATT HAGAN QUICK FACTS:
* Born Nov. 11, 1982 in Salem, Va., lives in Christiansburg, Va.
* Married to Rachel; one son, Colby (10/27/06), one daughter Penny Louise
(9/28/09)
* Manages family 500-acre Angus Cattle farm in Virginia
* No. 2 in 2010 Funny Car standings after three events in the Countdown to
the championship (one semifinal, one quarterfinal, one win)
* His "regular" 2010 season produced two victories in two final rounds (five
career final rounds), six quarterfinal finishes, five semifinal and four
first rounds
* Is 25 points behind leader John Force, 20 ahead of DSR teammate Jack
Beckman in third
* Qualified No. 9 at 2009 Reading race; lost first round to John Force
* Low qualifier three times so far in 2010, in Gainesville, Denver and Indy
* Set national top-speed record (to 1000 feet) of 316.15 mph in Gainesville
2010. It has since been eclipsed by Ashley Force Hood with a 316.38 mph
* Set national elapsed-time record in Chicago 2010: 4.022 seconds
* Has a career round-win record of 47-42 (31-17 in 2010)
* No. 11 in 2009 Funny Car point standings, as a Rookie-of-the-Year
frontrunner. Was first finisher outside the Countdown to 1 contenders
* Had two runner-up finishes, 13 first-round, eight quarterfinal, and one
semifinal in 2009
* Qualified on pole twice in 2009: in Sonoma, Calif., and Las Vegas 2
* Entered NHRA Funny Car class four times in 2008, qualifying once at the
U.S. Nationals
* 2006 NHRA AMS Pro Mod Challenge Rookie of the Year
* 2010 is second season with Don Schumacher Racing
* Won class-best three Funny Car events in 2008 IHRA series, ending season
third in point standings
* Quickest elapsed time to 1000 feet so far: 4.022 seconds (Chicago 2010)
* Fastest speed to 1000 feet so far: 316.15 mph (Gainesville 2010)

SCHEDULE:
FRIDAY, Oct. 8 - FULL THROTTLE SERIES qualifying at 1:45 p.m. and 4:45 p.m.
SATURDAY, Oct. 9 - FULL THROTTLE SERIES qualifying at 11:15 a.m. and 2:15
p.m.
SUNDAY, Oct. 10 - Pre-race ceremonies, 10 a.m. FULL THROTTLE SERIES
eliminations begin at 11 a.m.

TELEVISION:    
Saturday, Oct. 9, ESPN2 and ESPN2HD will televise two hours of qualifying
highlights at 10:30 p.m. (ET).
Sunday, Oct. 10, ESPN2 and ESPN2HD will televise NHRA Race Day, a 30-minute
news magazine show, at 10 a.m. (ET).
Sunday, Oct. 10ESPN3.com will televise of coverage of eliminations starting
at 11 a.m. (ET).
Sunday, Oct. 10, ESPN and ESPNHD will televise two and half hours of
coverage starting at 9 p.m. (ET).
    
SATELLITE (Digital SD feed):
Friday, Oct. 8, 8:30 - 9 p.m. (ET), AMC 3 / Transponder 21K
Saturday, Oct. 9, 6:30 - 7 p.m. (ET), AMC 3 / Transponder 21K
Sunday, Oct. 10, 6:30 - 7 p.m. (ET), AMC 3 / Transponder 21K
(12111 MHz, horizontal; Data Rate: 18.295441161 Mbp; Symbol Rate: 13.235 Ms;
FEC: ¾; Bandwidth: 18 Mhz)

Video news release contains race action highlights each day and winners'
interviews on Sunday.

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