CONCORD, N.C. – Matt Hagan has spent his entire NHRA Funny Car career driving for Don Schumacher Racing, but next season that changes.
Hagan, the three-time and defending NHRA Funny Car champion, was part of the massive announcement Thursday that Tony Stewart Racing would be entering the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series next season.
The 38-year-old Virginia native will spearhead Tony Stewart Racing’s new Funny Car program, with Stewart’s fiancée Leah Pruett leading the team’s Top Fuel program.
Hagan said the opportunity to join Stewart’s fledgling NHRA program developed earlier this year and the more the opportunity was discussed, the more it made sense for him to take the leap.
“It just kind of came into play with Tony at, I guess it would be the beginning of the year then towards the middle when he decided he was going to do some stuff,” Hagan explained. “With me and Leah being teammates for so long, it just seemed like a real natural fit. We were able to talk about some stuff and work things out.”
Stewart added that Hagan was the ideal candidate to lead the team’s Funny Car program. The two get along famously, making the pairing even better.
“It was funny when Matt and I finally met,” Stewart said. “I’d been at some of the races for awhile, but kind of stayed with Leah and her group. When I finally met Matt we hit it off right away. When we talked about this project he got excited about it. I was excited about it from the get-go obviously.
“You know when you meet people how you kind of have that match,” Stewart added. “We have similar personalities, we have the same drive, we have that same sarcasm and sense of humor. When we’re around each other we spent more time laughing than we do anything else. I think he is a great fit.”
In a lot of ways, the move by Hagan to Tony Stewart Racing is the end of an era. He joined Don Schumacher Racing as a rookie in 2009 and won his first race the following season. He collected the first of his three NHRA Funny Car titles in 2011, which was followed by additional titles in ’14 and ’20.
In that time Hagan has earned 39 Funny Car victories, including the prestigious U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Clermont, Ind., during the 2016 season. His 39 victories ranks him fifth all-time in the NHRA Funny Car class and ahead of legends like Don Prudhomme and Kenny Bernstein.
Despite having made the decision to depart Don Schumacher Racing, Hagan says there are no bad feelings between either party and he’ll always cherish his time with the organization.
“What I’ve done with him (Don Schumacher), I felt like I built a legacy,” Hagan said. “To leave that is really tough. I have to look at my future and what we’re doing and what’s going to be best for my career. To leave Don Schumacher, I feel like I’m leaving on good terms and a good note.
“He’s been very gracious to me and allowed me the opportunities,” Hagan continued. “He put a great ream around me to be able to be successful. There are a lot of guys that put teams together and they’re great teams, but they’re not exceptional teams. I’ve always had exceptional people around me.
“Leaving DSR is tough. I’ve been there for 13 years now. We’ve done a lot of things together.”
Hagan currently finds himself atop the Funny Car standings by 30 points ahead of teammate Ron Capps with three races left in the season despite missing two races earlier this year due to COVID-19. However, thanks to an NHRA rule that allows substitute drivers to earn points for drivers that are sidelined due to COVID-19, Hagan was able to stay in the title hunt.
Tommy Johnson Jr., who was driving Hagan’s Funny Car in a substitute role, piloted the car to victory at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pa., in September. Without that win, Hagan may not be in the title race.
Now the goal for Hagan is simple, close out the season by securing the championship as a going away present for the entire Don Schumacher Racing team.
The battle for the Funny Car title continues this weekend, when the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series heads to Bristol (Tenn.) Dragway.
“I want to end on a high note, leaving DSR winning my fourth championship,” Hagan said. “It looks like it’s coming down to me and Ron. We put a big gap between everybody else at the last race. Ron is no joke, he’s a great driver. They’ve got our same chassis that we had last year when we won the championship and their guys are tuning the car great.
“We have Dickie Venables right now and he’s tuning the car exceptionally well. The car is running great. I have all the confidence in the world that we’re going to come out on top.”