Matt Hagan made a little personal history Saturday with his 3.859-second pass at 331.61 mph in the Mopar Dodge Charger Hellcat Funny Car.

It was more than just his third straight top-qualifying position – a first in his career – and his second at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park. It also was his 38th No. 1 spot, which pushed him past Tony Pedregon on the class list and ties him with legend Kenny Bernstein for fifth.

Hagan, last year’s race winner here, said, “I passed Tony Pedregon on the list, and I’ve got so much respect for him. He’s a real wheelman, and I’ve always looked up to him.”

But as he prepared to meet No. 16 Jeff Diehl in the opening round of eliminations Sunday in his bid for a fourth Arizona Nationals trophy and 34th overall victory, Hagan credited his Don Schumacher Racing-owned car and crew chief Dickie Venables.

“We’ve got a really great race car,” said Hagan, whose Funny Car pole streak dates back to last November and the Finals at Pomona, Calif., where he repeated the feat at the Winternationals 14 days ago. “This Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat is driving well. It’s handling well. It gets up on the tire easily. It’s really been performing.”

And Hagan said he’s confident he can go back-to-back at Chandler, Ariz.: “Dickie won a championship with Tony Pedregon. He won a championship with me. He’s just one of those guys that will rise to the occasion. I know when I’m strapped in the car, and the conditions are right, he can really throw down. Having Dickie in your corner is like an ace up your sleeve, and my guys are doing such a great job wrenching on the car. All in all, just really excited about tomorrow. Supposed to have great weather. It should be a great race day, and I’m ready to get after it.”