Matt Hagan wasted little time making a statement to kick off his 2020 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series campaign Friday night in Pomona.

Hagan drove his Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car to the provisional No. 1 qualifier with a 3.867-second pass at 331.20 mph to edge his Don Schumacher Racing teammate Jack Beckman by .001 at the 60th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

It was a continuation of the success the team found last weekend during preseason testing in Las Vegas, setting the Mopar team up for immediate rewards at the NHRA season opener.

“There’s a lot of confidence unloading off the trailer like that in Q1 and being able to run a good number,” Hagan said. “We had a great test session in Vegas and laid down some good numbers. The last day of testing, we went 88, 87, 86, and 83; really laid down some real numbers. The car’s working well, it’s driving really well and the guys are working well together. All in all, I think we have a really good car, everybody is confident.”

Hagan’s time actually came from Q1 on Friday and held during the cooler evening conditions as he and Beckman were able to withstand a barrage of improving times that saw 10 Funny Car drivers dip into the three-second zone.

Beckman finished the night with a 3.868 at 326.95 mph, while defending series champion Robert Hight qualified third with a 3.885 at 330.31 mph. Tommy Johnson Jr. (3.905) and Paul Lee (3.910) rounded out the top five.

Hagan smoked the tires in the second session but remained at the head of the field.

Hagan had two top qualifier awards in 2019, with his last coming just three months ago at this very same track during the NHRA Finals. If his time holds on Saturday it will mark his 37th career No. 1 qualifier.

“The whole Pomona facility is kind of majestic,” said Hagan, a six-time Auto Club Raceway at Pomona Funny Car winner. “There’s a lot of magic that happens here. Champions are crowned here. We start and finish (the season) here. We’ve always done really well here and have a lot of confidence rolling into the year, but this Mopar Funny Car is flying right now, and I’m just trying to hang on to it.”