POMONA, Calif. (Feb. 12, 2012) – Matt Hagan and his Aaron’s Dream Machine team knew nothing would be handed to them when they started the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season as the reigning Funny Car world champion.

But they didn’t expect such a rude awakening.

Hagan and crew chief Tommy DeLago were paired with Don Schumacher Racing teammate Ron Capps in Sunday’s first round of the NHRA Winternationals. That matchup might not have happened had the last qualifying session not been rained out the day before.

The Aaron’s crew needed that fourth and final session Saturday that could have given it a last chance to move up the eliminations ladder to earn lane choice and get away from their teammate.

The higher qualified Capps took the preferred lane and it might have figured in Capps’ first-round win over Hagan at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Calif.

“It’s always tough getting paired up from ninth position where you don’t have lane choice,” Hagan said. “We were looking to the fourth qualifying session to get higher up there where we needed to be to have lane choice.”

Capps, who advanced to the semifinals, used a run of 4.093 seconds at 312.06 mph to sideline Hagan’s 4.298 (269.73).

“I don’t know if it got out of the groove a little or what. It just broke loose and slightly hazed the tires,” Hagan said.

“I knew it was going to be a tight race and we both had to run hard. It just didn’t turn out in our favor.”

Hagan’s disappointment, however, was tempered by another opportunity.

“When you go out early like we did you get to spend some more time with fans that we wouldn’t have been able to do if we were still racing,” he said.

While Hagan was signing autographs and posing with fans for pictures, his Aaron’s crew already was working on his Dodge Charger R/T and preparing for the trip to Phoenix for next weekend’s NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway.

“We have to put our Aaron’s Dream Machine Mopar Dodge back together and move on to Phoenix. We have to put this one behind us, learn from it and move on.”

Hagan will not head back to his family and their home in Christiansburg, Va., next week. Instead he’ll be in Scottsdale, Ariz., to meet with members of his new Aaron’s Inc. family.

“I’m looking forward to meeting more Aaron’s folks and spending time with them. I want to get to learn more about Aaron’s from the corporate side. I’m sure we’ll have some fun while we do it.”

MATT’S RACE SUMMARY

Qualified: No. 9

Round 1: Ron Capps (4.093 seconds, 312.06 mph) def. HAGAN (4.298, 269.73)

NEXT RACE

Feb. 17-19, Firebird International Raceway, Chandler, Ariz.

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More information can be found at NHRA.com.