On a day that summed up just how incredible the competition is in the Top Fuel category, Antron Brown’s fourth world championship – and first as a team owner – came only after a remarkable run through a loaded field at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.
Eight years after he won his third title, Brown had to earn every bit of his fourth championship at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals, knocking off Justin Ashley, Shawn Langdon, Brittany Force and Doug Kalitta to cap off one of the biggest days in his spectacular career.
Ashley entered the weekend as the points leader, Langdon was third (one point behind Brown), and both Kalitta and Force were in championship contention. An early defeat would have ended Brown’s championship dreams, but the four-time champion embraced the moment and slipped past Ashley in a side-by-side thriller in his 11,000-horsepower Matco Tools/Toyota dragster.
He then got past Langdon and clinched the championship against Force, going 3.693-seconds to claim NHRA’s ultimate prize.
For good measure, Brown finished the weekend with his 80th career win, the final brushstroke on a championship that puts the amazing Brown in even more elite territory.
“This is what you have to do to win a championship,” Brown said. “If you look at the Top Fuel class right now, it’s incredible. You can keep going down the list. I’m telling you, pound-for-pound, Top Fuel is the toughest class out there. Just winning the first round now is like winning a final round.
“You’ve got to be at a top-notch level no matter who you’re racing. We’ve done our fair share of winning this year and once we got in a groove, it really helped our confidence. But no matter what, this is a team that stays humble and stays hungry, and we’re always learning to improve. That’s what we did Sunday in Pomona.”
By winning a fourth championship, Brown joins Tony Schumacher, Steve Torrence and Joe Amato as the only Top Fuel drivers to win four or more championships, while his 80 wins are good for sixth-most in NHRA history.
Brown won six races en route to the title, while defending champion Doug Kalitta won twice and wound up second in the standings.
Ashley, with four victories, was third in the final rundown.
Clay Millican captured the U.S. Nationals for the first time in his career, while three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart was named NHRA Rookie of the Year after finishing ninth in the standings.
The Points
- Antron Brown 2,600
- Doug Kalitta 2,538
- Justin Ashley 2,526
- Shawn Langdon 2,513
- Brittany Force 2,478
- Clay Millican 2,461
- Steve Torrence 2,447
- Tony Schumacher 2,399
- Tony Stewart 2,325
- Shawn Reed 2,270
Winners
Antron Brown 6
Justin Ashley 4
Doug Kalitta 3
Shawn Langdon 2
Tony Schumacher 2
Brittany Force 1
Clay Millican 1
Steve Torrence 1
