"We kind of run them to their life expectancy": NHRA champ Antron Brown compares car rebuilds to NASCAR retirements

NHRA: Finals - Source: Imagn — NHRA top fuel driver Antron Brown - Source: Imagn

The National Hot Rod Association champion Antron Brown opened up about how the NHRA teams rebuild their cars even after winning the championship, while drawing a stark comparison with NASCAR. In an interview with Bob Pockrass of Fox Sports, Brown stated that teams run the cars until their life expectancy.

Antron sat down with Pockrass to discuss the similarities and differences between NHRA and other stock car racing series. While discussing the difference in car rebuilding, the four-time Top Fuel Dragster champion mentioned that the NHRA does not follow NASCAR's practice of retiring a car after it wins a championship.

During the interview, Pockrass mentioned how NASCAR teams retire the championship-winning car. It either goes to the museum or 'someone gets to keep it,' but it does not return to the track. Bringing in the difference, Brown told Pockrass:

"Our drivers, you know, is a little different scenario to rebuild our cars, where those cars, they don't put new front half or back half on them, and we kind of run them to their life expectancy," Brown said. "And our life expectancy is we usually put about what we try to do. We usually try to put about six, 700 laps on a car before we retire it.

"You know what I mean? Because that's the length of the back half, or you could sell that car to somebody. So trust me, when it's with a car that we have upstairs get to that point we won't sell nobody. It'll go up in the rafters with a body and everything on it as being a championship car," he added.

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Antron Brown is a 49-year-old racing driver who drives the Matco Tools Top Fuel Dragster for AB Motorsports. He is the first African American champion in racing history and has four winner's titles to his name.

Brown won the championships in 2012, 2015, 2016, and 2024. As of the end of the 2022 season, he has 71 NHRA wins to his name. Prior to his Top Fuel Dragster switch in 2008, he raced in the NHRA's Pro Stock Motorcycle division.

Antron Brown is optimistic about NHRA's future despite Toyota's exit

Toyota is all set to pull out from the National Hot Rod Association racing series at the end of the 2025 season. Despite this, Antron Brown believes their exit could be an opportunity for other manufacturers to come abroad.

NHRA top fuel driver Antron Brown during qualifying for the Ford Performance Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Naming the potential manufacturers, he mentioned fellow South East Asian giants Nissan, Honda, and Kia. Speaking about this, he said as per AutoWeek:

"There's a lot of auto manufacturers, I think, that could benefit from drag racing that fits their demographic and we could benefit from them on their technological side."

Toyota operates with six teams in the NHRA, DC Motorsports, Kalitta Motorsports, Ron Capps Motorsports, SCAG Racing, Torrence Racing, and Brown's AB Motorsports.

About the author

Sabyasachi Biswas is a passionate motorsport journalist for Sportskeeda, with a Master's degree in Mass Communication and Journalism. He has over eight years of experience in the field and has over 10000 published articles on the internet.

As a dedicated follower of motorsport, Sabyasachi watches events closely, ensuring his reports are thorough and supported by reputable sources. He is inspired by Max Verstappen’s fearless attitude and dreams of attending the Indian GP if it returns to the calendar. An ardent F1 fan over the years, he enjoyed watching Felipe Massa and Sebastian Vettel and is now following Verstappen's dominant journey on the track.

Apart from F1, he is a big-time NASCAR and football (also soccer) fan. Sabyasachi supports Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports and Spanish club, Real Madrid.

He was a sub-junior level footballer and won inter-district quizzes and debate competitions back in school. A travel freak by nature, Sabyasachi likes to try different cuisines and learn about new cultures. When away from his keyboard, he enjoys soccer, geopolitics, and playing with Khushi & Ubbu - his adorable beagles.

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Edited by Hitesh Nigam