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NHRA weekend ends with 6 Goodyear wins

      CONCORD, NC (Sept. 20, 2015) – Antron Brown captured his third victory at zMAX Dragway and grabbed the championship lead in the NHRA’s Top Fuel category in the Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway.      Brown was one of six drivers to win with Goodyear tires at the event, including three wins in sportsman categories where competition is open among tiremakers. All of the other competing tiremakers combined did not beat Goodyear’s win total.      The event was the first of the NHRA’s six-race Countdown to the Championship playoff system and Brown used his win to take the lead in the standings. In fact, every winner in the NHRA’s Mello Yello Drag Racing Series for professional teams left zMAX with the championship lead in their respective categories.      “You want to start off strong because it’s a sprint now,” Brown said. “There’s six races for the championship. Do the math. There’s 24 rounds of racing left.”      The other Goodyear-equipped winners included Del Worsham (Funny Car) and Erica Enders (Pro Stock) among the professional teams. Duane Shields (Top Alcohol Dragster), Frank Aragona Jr. (Super Comp) and Glen Treadwell (Competition Eliminator) won in the NHRA’s Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series for sportsmen.      Brown beat J.R. Todd in the Top Fuel final. He leads the standings with 2,199 points. Tony Schumacher is next with 2,190. Worsham defeated Tommy Johnson Jr. in the final round of Funny Car, picking an excellent time to grab his first win of the season. Worsham has 2,181 points and Johnson is next with 2,175.      Enders won her third straight, beating Vincent Nobile in the final.      The defending Pro Stock champ said her crew chief, Rickie Jones, told her as she sat in the car before the final to look at the number one on her windshield.      “It says number one and its there for a reason,” he told her. That confidence at a crucial moment helped her prepare for the final.      Enders leads Pro Stock with 2,231 points, the largest total among professional drivers. Greg Anderson is next with 2,148.     Goodyear employs about 69,000 people at manufacturing plants and facilities in 22 nations. Based in Akron, Ohio, Goodyear is among the largest tiremakers in the world and is the worldwide leader in race tire innovation.