Dixon in the NHRA Countdown

Larry Dixon was knocked out in the second round of the National Hot Rod Assn. top fuel races at Pacific Raceways near Seattle on Sunday. But he left as one of three top fuel drivers who have clinched a spot in the Countdown to One playoffs.
Dixon, a Van Nuys High graduate, Tony Schumacher and Antron Brown, the leader in the top fuel standings are in the Countdown. The top-10 drivers in the top fuel standings will qualify for the playoffs.
“The consolation prize that came out of Seattle is that we clinched a spot on the playoffs,” said Dixon, who drives for Al-Anabi Racing. “We all thought we’d be there, but knowing you have a spot is much nicer. Now it’s all about getting in the best position we can for the playoffs to help our championship effort. First place is not out of the question, but right now, it’s pretty far out of sight. Antron’s team really opened up a big lead on us in the last couple of races so we just have to go out there, do our best, try to win some races and see where we end up.”
Brown won the top fuel races at Seattle and at Bandimere Speedway in Colorado and can complete the Western Swing sweep if he wins the races at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma.
He has a 137-point lead over Shumacher. Dixon is in third in the top fuel standings.
Last year, Dixon lost to Brown in the second round of the races at Sonoma. Dixon won the Sonoma race in 2003.
“The best way to make up points is win races, so we’ll be trying to do that this week,” Dixon said. “Antron will be trying to complete the sweep, but there will be 15 other cars trying to prevent the sweep; we’re one of them.”

Photo: Larry Dixon earned a spot in the NHRA Countdown to One playoffs at Pacific Raceways near Seattle on Sunday.

NHRA's Larry Dixon shoots for third straight win

Larry Dixon is riding a couple impressive streaks in the National Hot Rod Assn. top fuel division. He was won two events in a row and has made it to the semifinals in four straight events.
The Van Nuys High graduate enters this weekend’s races at Bandimere Speedway in Colorado as the second place driver in the top fuel standings and as the hottest driver in the division.
“From where we were when we left Bristol in May, these last four events have been really nice; a very stark contrast,” said Dixon, who drives for Al-Anabi racing. “I am not too caught up on streaks or anything like that; I’m just enjoying the moment.”
Dixon can pinpoint the moment, or at least the day, when his team started its incredible streak. It was right after the races at Bristol Dragway in Tennessee in May. Crew chief Jason McCulloch decided to make some drastic changes during a test in Atlanta and Dixon and his team have been nearly unbeatable since.
“What we’re doing right now is what exactly what Jason talked about after we left Bristol to go to Atlanta and test for two days,” Dixon said. “He said we would make a bunch of runs and we’d ‘get our groove on. You’re gonna start driving the car well, and we’re gonna start making the right calls. We’re gonna make a bunch of runs and go from there.’ The more information they get, the more chances they have to make better calls and be better. Collectively, that’s exactly what has happened, and Jason made the call back in May.”
Dixon is a two-time winner at Bandimere. He won in 2001 and 2003. Last year, he was the No. 3 qualifier and lost to Tony Schumacher in the semifinals.
“With the elevation at Denver, it’s hard to make good power and have good downforce because the air is so thin,” Dixon said. “We’ve raced there before when the air is corrected to what you’d find at 10,000 feet, so that makes it tough to make power and build downforce. It’s challenging to win in Denver, but that’s what makes it cool to win there.

NHRA's Larry Dixon on the rise

National Hot Rod Assn. top fuel driver Larry Dixon has won two of the past three events and has moved within shouting distance of Antron Brown, the leader in the top fuel standings.
With Dixon obviously on the rise, and reigning top fuel champion Tony Schumacher slipping a bit, it might be the end of the line for one of the more impressive runs in motor sports. Schumacher has been almost unbeatable for at least the past two seasons. Now it looks like Dixon and Brown will give Schumacher a challenge for the top fuel crown.
Dixon has been the hottest of the three drivers in recent weeks. He is coming off a win at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in New Jersey, his third of the season. He has advanced to the semifinals in three straight events. He has been to the semifinals in six of the 11 events so far this year.
His past three races have been the most impressive of the season.
“That three-race swing, I think we out-pointed everybody with two wins and a semifinal,” Dixon a Van Nuys High graduate and driver for Al-Anabi Racing. “We went from sixth to third, and it was a great run.”
Dixon is third in the top fuel standings, 97 points behind Brown. Schumacher is second, 34 points out of first.
Dixon said his team tested the car after the races at Bristol Dragway in Tennessee. After that, Dixon won at Heartland Park Topeka in Kansas and made it to the semifinals at Route 66 Raceway in Illinois before winning again in New Jersey.
“For me, it feels like we have less pressure on us now,” Dixon said. “Everybody on our team wants and expects to do well. We all have a past now; we’ve gone to 11 races together, and it’s more enjoyable going rounds and knowing the car is running well and I’m driving well. All of that takes pressure off of us; now you just have to go out there and do your thing.”
The next race for Dixon and the NHRA top fuel drivers is at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio. Dixon’s string of semifinal appearances will be put to the test this weekend. He has never won at Norwalk in the top fuel division.

Photo: Larry Dixon is in search of his fourth NHRA top fuel win of the season this weekend at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio. He has won two of the past three top fuel events, including the most recent at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in New Jersey.

Dixon 3-for-3 in NHRA top fuel finals

Larry Dixon, a National Hot Rod Assn. top fuel driver and a Van Nuys High graduate, made it a perfect 3-for-3 in finals after winning at Old Bridge Township Raceway in New Jersey on Sunday.
Dixon won his third top fuel final of the season and his fifth career NHRA top fuel event in Englishtown, N.J. Joe Amato has the most wins of any NHRA driver at Englishtown with six.
“We’ve had a lot of success at this race,” said Dixon, a driver from Al-Anabi Racing. “The race used to be Father’s Day at Columbus, and we won out until they moved the Father’s Day to here. I was like, ‘Wow, I haven’t won Englishtown in a long time. It would be cool to do that,’ nonchalantly saying that at the beginning of the season. And then all of a sudden, you get to go to a bunch of finals and win here. This is a great track, and there’s so much history here. Racing on the same track as ‘Jungle’ and Garlits and Shirley and all my heroes that I grew up watching race is a great deal.”
Dixon was referring to NHRA legends “Jungle” Jim Libeman, “Big Daddy” Don Garlits and Shirley Muldowney.
With the win, Dixon moved up to third place in the NHRA top fuel standings. Antron Brown, who Dixon defeated in the finals at Englishtown, leads the top fuel standings. He has a 34-point lead over reigning top fuel champion Tony Schumacher.
“Even though we didn’t get the win here, we still managed to make a lot of progress relative to performance,” said Schumacher, who lost to Brown in the semifinals. “I believe we’ve got a solid combination right now. I’m looking for that to translate into some wins real soon.”

Photo: Larry Dixon won his third NHRA top fuel race and his fifth career NHRA race at Old Bridge Township Raceway in New Hersey on Sunday. Only Joe Amato with six wins has won more NHRA races at Englishtown, N.J.

Worsham looks to for third straight NHRA funny car win

Del Worsham, a funny car driver from Chino Hills, will be looking to make it three wins in a row at Heartland Park Topeka, site of this weekend's NHRA races. He won the race at Bristol despite blowing an engine in the semifinals.
“I saw both sides of a team come together, the top fuel and the funny car guys, to put this car back together and basically change every part on it for the final round,” said Worsham, who drives for Al-Anabi Racing. “That shows you what kind of team this is; they all work together. Aaron Brooks leading this team, it’s basically his first full season working as a crew chief and he’s really stepped it up. This whole team has, and I just can’t say enough about all of them.”
Worsham has closed the gap on Ron Capps, the leader in the funny car standings. Worsham trails Capps by 57 points after posting back-to-back wins.

Photo: Del Worsham won the funny car portion of the NHRA races at Bristol Dragway. It was his second win in a row. (NHRA)