Nothing mellow about Matt Hagan's yellow Funny Car

Matt Hagan's 330-plus mph Funny Car will race into this weekend's AAA Texas NHRA Fallnationals bearing the yellow-based livery of Pennzoil.

Since April of 2015, when Pennzoil first came aboard, there's been nothing mellow about Hagan's performances.

Hagan enters this weekend's event, the fourth of six playoff races, ranked fourth in the NHRA Funny Car championship standings on the strength of three wins in five final rounds. He's 110 points behind teammate Ron Capps, the equivalent of almost four rounds of competition with 12 remaining in the season.

This weekend represents a return to competition after a weekend off.

"We had three races in a row, and it feels like it's been awhile since I've been in my car, so I'm definitely ready to get to Dallas," Hagan said. "Our car is running strong, and we'll be back in the heat this weekend, opposite of what we saw in Reading, so we're ready for that. We've been running really well in the heat this year, got the win in Indy on a hot racetrack, so that gives us confidence going into this weekend."

Hagan, who has also qualified No. 1 five times this season, knows all too well the phrase, "Making hay while the sun is out."

"We're halfway through the Countdown, and all four DSR Funny Cars are at the top of the points standings," Hagan explained. "That says a lot about our organization. We have the best of the best, and it's going to be a fight to the finish. Del (Worsham) is right on our tail, and we've been battling those guys all year too. It's going to be an interesting last three races as we battle it out."

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Bobby Bennett is the Publisher/Editor of CompetitionPlus.com, a leading independent online drag racing magazine, since 1999. For the latest in dragster news worldwide, visit www.competitionplus.com or follow on Twitter @competitionplus