It's hard to imagine the Funny Car driver, who looks like he could bend a steel beam in two, being concerned about being weak at anything. 

Matt Hagan didn't want to be the weak link on the Dickie Venables-tuned Funny Car. 

As it turned out, Hagan proved to be a brute at the start and finish of four rounds of competition at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minn. Hagan picked up his second win in the last five events, stopping a surging Cruz Pedregon, 3.923, 327.98 to 3.935, 324.83. 

"We're trying to get to where we need to be, where we should be coming off of a championship run last year," Hagan said. "You kind of expected us to come out here and just set the world on fire. We just haven't been able to do that. 

"But Dickie Venables, you give that guy enough shots at the racetrack, he's a bad man. I just want to do my job up there. I'm really proud of myself in leaving the start line really well. I think most of my competitors understand that it's just going to take these tough packages. You're gonna have to leave good, You're gonna have to race good and right now, we're doing that with this Mopar car."

Hagan wasn't the only Mopar driver up on the steering wheel.

Pedregon was flexing his muscles with the Snap-on Tools team finding its groove with the leadership of John Collins in full effect. Hagan didn't dare take him lightly.

"I knew Cruz was going to be tough over there," Hagan said. "He's a good leaver, but I was just so confident in my guys and the car they've been putting under me all weekend."

Hagan was first off the starting line in three of his four races, leaving second to first-round opponent Dale Creasy Jr. by .008. He was deadly consistent, running between 3.911 to 3.932. 

For Hagan, he's learned to take a win whatever way you can get one. 
 
"This is one of the most humbling sports I've ever been involved with," Hagan said. "You can do it all right and still get it wrong and pack all your stuff up and head to the next race. I'm just really proud of my guys. They're really gelling well. We added three or four new guys this year and for them to come in and make these 30, 40-minute turns like this and get the car fired up and back up here and put a great race car underneath me says a lot."

And just like his Pomona nemesis John Force, Hagan jumped on the bandstand of fan appreciation. Packed grandstands were the norm all weekend after a one-year hiatus from Brainerd International Raceway. So was a good racing surface. 

"How about this racetrack?" Hagan asked. "I mean, it was a great show for our fans. The Brainerd track is amazing to be able to lay down those numbers out here with the sun out like that. Hats off the NHRA for gluing the hell out of this thing so we could put on a show. 

"But I just love seeing all these fans out here. Biggest thing for me was doing a burnout every run and just being able to look up and see all these fans in the stands. It really does give me chill bumps. I love it. It's awesome to see all of the fans out here supporting what we do and supporting our sponsors, and just coming out having a good time and living life again. 

"Kind of reminded me of Denver a little bit. They packed the house out there when we were out there a couple weeks ago and it's unreal. We need your guy's support. You wouldn't believe how much in the back of my pit. We had a pile of people back there as I was warming up, and they're cheering you on. And you look back like, 'damn, I don't want to let them down either."

"It pumps you up to have fans back there to root you on, to support what you do and to come out here and spend their hard-earned money to kind of come out and see a show. That's what we are; we're showmen. We're here to put on a great show for these fans and I think we did that today."