Round One goes to Matt Hagan.

With three drivers locked in a dogfight for the NHRA Funny Car world championship, Hagan landed the first blow with the provisional pole Friday night at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.

Hagan was among the quickest drivers in both sessions on Friday, posting the second-quickest time in round one before jumping to the top of the class during session two. His 3.869-second pass at 328.46 mph in the Dodge Power Brokers Chargers was good enough to unseat Bob Tasca, the first-session pacesetter, and place himself in a prime position entering day two of qualifying.

“Two good runs, but very provisional,” Hagan said. “We have tomorrow evening, which we run after the dragsters, so I think you kind of toss it up to two good runs and move on. Not to discard it, because it’s great data for us going down both lanes, so obviously we have a lot to work off of there. At the end of the day, there’s a lot of heavy hitters out there and it’s still going to be a dogfight.”

Non-title contender Paul Lee sits second after two of four qualifying sessions at NHRA’s season finale with a 3.875 at 322.88 mph, while Tasca slipped to third with a 3.880 at 336.99 mph. Robert Hight, the third wheel of the championship showdown, was fourth with a 3.898 at 332.02 mph, while J.R. Todd (3.904) rounded out the top five.

Only 17 points separated the top three drivers in the championship picture entering the weekend, with Hagan narrowly extending that lead with Friday’s results.

“We had two opportunities to go out there and swing, and we connected,” Hagan said. “I think that builds confidence in our crew chief, our assistant crew chief, and all the guys that are working on the car to have some good data to work off of. You just have to turn that into momentum and you have to rise to the occasion.

“There are a lot of heavy hitters out here. And not just the three cars between Tasca, Robert and myself. You’ve got Ron (Capps), you’ve got J.R., just on and on. There are no easy rounds out here in Funny Car, but that’s why we do it. I truly love putting the helmet on and being able to have an opponent beside me that just makes me rise to the occasion.”

Hagan, a three-time Funny Car champion and the most recent race winner at Pomona, talked about what it means to have an opportunity to race for such a big prize on the biggest stage of them all against the best drivers in the world.

“I think that people, a lot of times, they think, ‘Oh, gosh, I’m in this pressure situation and if I mess up, it’s going to be on me,'" Hagan said. " I don’t care if it’s going to be on me. For me, it’s turning it into excited energy instead of nervous energy. It’s taken me a long time to learn how to do that as a competitor, but now I’m that guy that pulls up there, turns the corner, does a burnout and says, ‘This is my moment.’ That’s what excites me. That’s what keeps me coming back every year.”

While Hagan has the early advantage, it is far from a done deal with two more rounds of qualifying in similar conditions Saturday. Because of that, Hagan and crew chief Dickie Venables are prepared to continue to push the envelope until they find the breaking point -- or continue to exceed expectations.

“When we sat down and had our conversation to start the weekend, I said (to Dickie), ‘I believe in you and whatever you decide to do,’” Hagan said. “He said we’re going to press until we find that other side. We’re going to rack up (points) and then we’re going to race hard. So I really feel like he’s going to keep pressing until we find that other side.

“We’ll see how that goes, but at the end of the day we got two great runs to work off of. We got one in the day and one at night, and you kind of throw that night run out until the finals. We are in a good mindset. It is weird, but I don’t feel any pressure. This is one of the first times I’ve ever rolled in here and not kind of (felt that pressure). I know what I’ve got to do and I know that I am capable of doing it. We just have to go out there and believe in our guys and do what we’ve got to do.”

If his time holds Saturday it will be Hagan’s second pole position of the year and the 51st top qualifier award of his career.