All things considered, things aren’t that bad for Jack Beckman. The Funny Car standout sits fifth in the point standings, and is just 22 points out of third. He has only one first-round loss and just went a season-best 3.844 at the most recent race in Topeka.

But the one missing item – a victory in 2017 – tends to become a little more glaring when your Funny Car teammate has won four straight races, as Beckman’s counterpart Ron Capps has done. It also sticks out a little more when every other Don Schumacher Racing driver – a number that totals six more drivers both in Top Fuel and Funny Car – has at least one victory.

It’s not meant as a slight to Beckman, but rather just another indication of how much the Funny Car world champ wants to join the party and get in the win column at this weekend’s NHRA New England Nationals in Epping.

“It’s definitely frustrating, there’s no question about that,” Beckman said. “In drag racing you can’t help but compare yourself to your competition. We haven’t had a bad year so far. I’ve been in a position like this before, but there’s something to be said for that first win, especially with a group that hasn’t won before.” That’s the major point in Beckman not stringing together four wins on any Sunday through the first third of the 2017 season.

Throughout Beckman’s standout career – one that includes 24 victories – the one constant has been change. It has been true this year when Beckman welcomed the likes of Dean Antonelli and Neal Strasbaugh, who joined as crew chiefs with John Medlen, one of only three carryovers from 2016.

Factor in a new bellhousing and a transition to the six-disc clutch system and the learning curve has been big and not without its hiccups.

“I’m a big believer in the harder you run and the better you drive, the better chance you have of other teams messing up,” Beckman said. “You make your own luck. We have to get better with what the car wants and have it do the same thing three times in a row, and then four and then five. If you put strong runs together, you kind of make your own luck.”

Part of stringing those extended runs together is having a wealth of data from which to choose. While Capps and crew chief Rahn Tobler have that, it remains a work in progress for Beckman and his team at the moment.

Antonelli, Strasbaugh and Medlen continue to collab to take the team to the next level, but with an infinite amount of possibilities, it’s an arduous process. Losing a test session in Atlanta and then again in Topeka, this time due to rain, didn’t help matters, but Beckman knows his team is plenty capable of stringing together strong runs. It’s happened in bursts this year, including a finals appearance in Charlotte, but not for an extended period.

“We just don’t have anything to fall back on right now,” Beckman said. “That’s something we’re trying to compile. You need a lot of good timeslips in the conditions you’re running. Once you start to do that, the crew gets into more of a groove. Their confidence improves and then you have to continue to perform better as a driver.”

The good news is Beckman has been in similar situations before in his career, and he has always responded in impressive fashion. Even with his DSR teammates combining for 13 wins this season, Beckman said he doesn’t feel any extra pressure and insists there’s no cause for concern.

He is pleased with the strides the team has made and with the chance to run fast all weekend in Epping, Beckman likes his chances. But he will also gladly throw out any eye-popping run if it means four win lights on Sunday.

“All of the good timeslips won’t mean anything next to a win,” Beckman said. “That trophy will take the crew to the next level, but you have to win the race first. That confidence and belief is only reinforced when you get that win. That photo in the winner’s circle with 11 guys and the trophy sitting on top of the car, that will put it over the top, and I want (that feeling) sooner rather than later.”