posted by TopFuelPhotos on Dec 29

 By: Rob Geiger, NHRA.com

Photo by Thomas Gaines

I was exchanging holiday greetings with Lee Beard, the crew chief of David Powers’ Matco Tools Top Fuel dragster, when the subject turned to his new driver, Antron Brown. Most Geiger Counter readers know Brown has competed in Pro Stock Motorcycle to much success over the past decade but is now making the switch to Top Fuel.

Beard, Brown, and the Matco team recently completed an extensive test at Gainesville Raceway where Beard tells me Brown made several “perfect passes,” including some to the 1,000-foot mark that would have translated to low 4.5-second runs if Brown had been allowed to leg them out. His reaction times were impressive — all between .041 and .052 seconds — and he did everything asked of him by the meticulous Beard. But his on-track acumen isn’t why the former world championship tuner is excited about his new shoe.

“Did you watch Dancing with the Stars,” Beard asked. “No way,” I quickly responded in the manliest voice I could muster. “Well, Helio Castroneves won the deal, right?” Beard continued. “Now, I don’t know if Helio was the best dancer at the end, although he certainly got a lot better as the show went along, but the guy won because his personality was just the best. He won the judges and the crowd over. I’ve met him a few times before and that’s how the guy is in real life. He lifts the mood of a room when he walks in the door.

“We have the exact same thing with Antron. The guy has this personality that just picks you up. I watch the team and how these guys interact with him every day and it’s just incredible. He hasn’t even been here that long but already he’s become such a part of the team. He jumps in and helps wherever he can and his enthusiasm to learn more about Top Fuel is second-to-none. We’re all ready to do whatever we can to make his rookie year a success. He’s special, and he’s going to be one of the great ones.”