Commerce: Antron Brown preview

Antron Brown on Atlanta

"I look forward to going back to the East Coast at Atlanta Dragway. Right now, our team is rolling along and I just want to keep this Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster going rounds. The competition is tough, so it's always a challenge. We feel fortunate enough to have a pole and two final rounds thus far."

Lee Beard (crew chief) on Atlanta

"I like the track and the people. We love staying in Athens, Georgia. We'd like nothing more than to go in there and get our fourth win with our third different driver at Atlanta Dragway. Our goal is to continue to race steady and hope to have a top five placing going into the Countdown."

Brown Atlanta NHRA Notebook

Two weeks ago in Las Vegas, Brown qualified his Matco Tools dragster sixth with an elapsed time of 4.600 seconds. He advanced to his 35th career final round and second consecutive Top Fuel final where Brown raced to a runner-up finish to 30-time winner Cory McClenathan. It was the first time that Brown advanced to consecutive final rounds since the Brainerd, Minn. and Memphis, Tenn. races in 2006.

Brown enters the sixth race on the 2008 NHRA schedule ranked third in the Top Fuel standings, just seven points behind two-time champion Larry Dixon for second place. Brown earned the pole at the '08 season-opener in Pomona, Calif. with a run of 4.495 seconds and became the first driver in NHRA history to earn wins in both Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle when he won in just his fourth career Top Fuel start (Houston).

Brown is a two-time winner at Atlanta Dragway in three career final round appearances. He defeated three-time series champ Matt Hines in 2001 and younger brother, Andrew, in 2006. Brown won from the pole at the Commerce track in '06. Brown has won multiple races at five tracks.

Brown has qualified for 150 consecutive NHRA events. He hasn't missed the cut since the Gainesville race in 1998 after being disqualified for bad fuel at his first career race. It is the second longest qualifying streak in the professional ranks (Angelle Sampey--168).

Brown became the eighth different driver that crew chief Lee Beard has tuned to the No. 1 qualifying award and 10th different racer Beard has tuned to a win in Top Fuel or Funny Car. Beard has three victories (Cory McClenathan, Whit Bazemore) and two poles (McClenathan, Gary Ormsby) as a crew chief at Atlanta Dragway.

-credit: dpm