Al-Anabi Top Fuel Teams head to Brainerd
Shawn Langdon, Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel Dragster (silver):
Reigning NHRA Mello Yello Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon enters the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in third place in the NHRA Mello Yello Top Fuel point standings. He trails second-place Antron Brown by 123 points and leads fourth-place Tony Schumacher by 147 points. Langdon has qualified for the Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs.
Langdon has advanced to at least the semifinals at eight of the last 12 races. He won his first race of the season and the ninth of his career in June in Bristol, Tenn. He has one win (Bristol), four final rounds (Charlotte, Topeka, Norwalk and Sonoma) and three semifinal appearances (Houston, Englishtown and Seattle) in the last 12 races.
The Al-Anabi Team won at Brainerd International Raceway in 2010 with driver Larry Dixon. One year ago in Brainerd, Langdon was the No. 4 qualifier; he defeated Bob Vandergriff and David Grubnic before losing to Clay Millican in the semifinals.
On Tuesday, Aug. 5, Langdon was in St. Louis to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before the game between the Boston Red Sox and the St. Louis Cardinals. Langdon was an accomplished baseball player in high school and turned down a chance to play college baseball when he decided to pursue a Motorsports career. Throwing out the first pitch at a Major League Baseball game is a life-long dream for Langdon.
Langdon prior to Brainerd:
“The Al-Anabi team had a pretty good weekend in Seattle, and we’re looking forward to Brainerd this weekend. Our car is getting pretty consistent – we made a lot of strong runs in Seattle. We’ve put together a pretty solid tune-up now, but we just need to fine-tune a couple of things. We’ve addressed a lot of the issues and changed a lot in the last couple of races and really feel like the last couple of races, we’ve come across something really good that we’re able to work with. We feel confident with our race car as we wind down the regular season.
“With the way the Al-Anabi car ran in Sonoma and Seattle, we don’t just have a car that’s good, we have a car that has potential to be great. A couple of our runs we made down the track in Seattle, like when we set low ET (elapsed time) of the weekend in the first round of eliminations, the car was so good, and we saw after it that we could have made it a little bit better. The car is manageable; it wants to run. We just need to build up a little more confidence in making the right calls and adjustments with it. We’re making huge strides with our tune-up. We don’t just have a car that’s capable of going down the race track, we have a car that’s capable of setting low ET (elapsed time).
“I think the Al-Anabi team may be starting to peak at the perfect time. Looking at our numbers, we have a good hold on getting the car to 60 feet and then to 330 feet pretty well. From there, it’s a matter of making the right final calls with the clutch. As Alan (team manager Alan Johnson) and Brian (crew chief Brian Husen) get a couple more runs under their belt, it’s just a matter of building their confidence. Our team has a bounce in its step again; once the team gets its full confidence back, I think we’ll have a great Countdown (Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs)..
Khalid alBalooshi, Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel Dragster (gold):
Third-year Top Fuel driver Khalid alBalooshi enters the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in eighth place in the NHRA Mello Yello Top Fuel point standings. He trails seventh-place Brittany Force by one point and leads ninth-place Richie Crampton by 47 points. With two races to go on the regular season, he leads 10th place J.R. Todd by 81 points and leads 11th-place Bob Vandergriff by 209 points. The top-10 drivers in points qualify for the Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs.
AlBalooshi won the 27th annual NHRA Sonoma Nationals three weeks ago in Sonoma, Calif. It was his second win of the season and the fourth of his career. The win was extra special because it happened on his 35th birthday. The 2014 season marks the first time that alBalooshi has recorded multiple Top Fuel wins in the same season. Two weeks ago in Seattle, alBalooshi was the No. 6 qualifier. He defeated Brittany Force before losing to his teammate, Shawn Langdon, in the quarterfinals.
AlBalooshi has swept the NHRA races in California this season. He won the season-opening NHRA Circle K Winternationals in Pomona, Calif., in February and the NHRA Sonoma Nationals in July. Last season, alBalooshi’s teammate, Shawn Langdon, swept all three California races winning the Circle K Winternationals, the Sonoma Nationals and the season ending NHRA Auto Club Finals in Pomona, Calif. So the Al-Anabi Racing Team has won the last five NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events in the state of California
The Al-Anabi Team won at Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minn., in 2010 with driver Larry Dixon. One year ago at Brainerd, alBalooshi was the No. 3 qualifier; he T.J. Zizzo and Doug Kalitta before losing to Spencer Massey in the semifinals.
AlBalooshi prior to Brainerd:
“The gold Al-Anabi team had a good weekend two weeks ago in Seattle. I have been saying since Norwalk that we had our car back, and two weeks ago in Seattle, it showed. The car was consistent, and I think now it is a good time to get the car to be perfect. Now we can get the car how we need it to be for the rest of the (regular) season and then the playoffs (Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs).
“After the last two races, we are looking good for the playoffs now. In Brainerd this weekend, we need to try our best to keep winning rounds. We are one point from seventh and two rounds from sixth. If we can catch two good weeks, maybe we can start the Countdown No. 6 in the points. We have a good chance to start the Countdown in sixth or seventh. Our goal is to get to No. 6. I think we can catch two good weeks – why not?”
