YPSILANTI, MI – Doug Kalitta is almost there. When the 2023 NHRA Top Fuel champion makes a qualifying attempt this weekend, he will become a two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion. The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs concludes Nov. 14-16 at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals in Pomona, Calif.

Kalitta’s second championship won’t be “official” until the end of qualifying on Saturday, but once he makes that first attempt, the title will be his. His 2023 championship went down to a winner-take-all final round against Leah Pruett at the season’s final race. Last year, he entered the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals in fourth place in points and emerged with his seventh runner-up finish in the final season standings. This weekend will be just a touch less dramatic.

“It’s hard to believe that we managed to not drag it into the last round of the last race,” the presumptive 2025 Top Fuel champ said. “It feels really good; I’m definitely proud of my guys for making it all happen for sure. We just have to qualify this weekend so we can definitely manage that. It’s a huge relief. It means a lot to Connie (Team Owner Connie Kalitta), me and everybody at Kalitta Motorsports, and we’re very grateful. Continue reading →

VEGAS – Qualifying: J.R. Todd was the No. 8 qualifier at Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals. Like his teammates, he made his best qualifying attempt in the second session Friday afternoon when he reached the finish line in 3.930 seconds at 329.10 mph.

Eliminations: Todd defeated Alexis DeJoria before losing to Austin Prock by .0428 seconds in the second round. Despite the quarterfinal loss, Todd and the DHL GR Supra team made two consistent race day runs showing the kind of consistency on which they’ve been working. Todd’s first-round run was a 3.926-second effort at 328.14 mph, and his losing second-round effort was a 3.944-second pass at 329.10 mph.

Unofficial Point Standings: Todd leaves Las Vegas in 11th place in the NHRA Funny Car point standings. He trails 10th-place Bob Tasca by 29 points and leads 12th-place Alexis DeJoria by six points with one race remaining in the season. Continue reading →

VEGAS – Qualifying: Doug Kalitta was the No. 2 qualifier at the Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals. In Friday’s second qualifying round, Kalitta reached the finish line in 3.711 seconds at 337.24 mph. It was his 16th top-four qualifying effort, including eight No. 1 qualifiers, in the season’s 19 races to date.

Eliminations: Kalitta defeated Rob Passey, had a bye in the second round with fewer than 16 cars in the field and raced his teammate, Shawn Langdon, in the semifinals. It was a monumental matchup, and it did not disappoint. Kalitta was off the starting line first and led the early part of the round, but Langdon’s Kalitta Air 25th Anniversary car was stronger, and Langdon drove around his teammate to take the round win. Langdon’s 3.721-second pass at 334.24 mph was good enough to beat Kalitta’s 3.757-second run at 336.15 mph by .0214 seconds. With Kalitta’s wins in the last two races, his semifinal loss ended a 10-round win streak and his streak of four-straight final rounds.

Had Kalitta won today’s race, he could have clinched the 2025 NHRA Top Fuel championship, but with the semifinal loss, he will have to wait two weeks to hopefully wrap up his second-career championship at the season’s final race. Continue reading →

VEGAS – Qualifying: Shawn Langdon was the No. 3 qualifier at the Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals. His best attempt came during the second Friday qualifying session when he made a 3.715-second pass at 336.57 mph.

Eliminations: Langdon, who entered the race third in points, defeated Kelly Harper in the first round to set up a quarterfinal matchup with second-place Justin Ashley, but that first-round win was intense. Both cars smoked the tires, and the race turned into a battle of which driver could pedal his car most efficiently. Both drivers pedaled multiple times, but it was Langdon who reached the finish line first in a stunning opening round.

In the quarterfinals, Ashley was off the starting line first, but Langdon’s 3.738-second effort at 333.33 mph allowed the 2013 Top Fuel champion to drive around Ashley and get the win setting up a semifinal matchup with the points leader, his teammate Doug Kalitta. Continue reading →

YPSILANTI, MI – Even without a shot at the championship this year, J.R. Todd and his DHL GR Supra team remain focused on the tasks at hand: enhancing performance and finishing the season on a positive note. The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs continue with the fifth of six playoff races Oct. 31-Nov. 2 at the Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals in Las Vegas.

Todd entered the 2025 season with great optimism with four-time championship Crew Chief Dickie Venables joining the team in the off season. From the beginning, the 2018 Funny Car champion said implementing a new program for the car would take time although no one could know how long. Flashes of brilliance, including a win in New Hampshire and a final round in Minnesota, showed the team was progressing, but progress can be fleeting. Now out of championship contention, the DHL team strives for victory in the season’s final two races.

“I show up to every race with the attitude that I’m there to win,” Todd said. “Otherwise, there’s no sense in going out there and competing. Nobody shows up to the track with the mentality that they’re gonna lose first round or else so they would just stay home and find something else to do. We never give up on the car performing like we all know it can. It’ll come to life – it always does.” Continue reading →

YPSILANTI, MI – Shawn Langdon knows exactly what he needs to do to have a shot at the Top Fuel title, and it’s a tall task. The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs continue with the fifth of six playoff races Oct. 31-Nov. 2 at the Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals in Las Vegas.

Langdon enters Las Vegas in third place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings. He trails second-place Justin Ashley by 18 points but trails the points leader, his teammate Doug Kalitta, by 159 points with two races remaining in the season. He needs to win the last two races and get some help from Kalitta.

“For us to have a shot, Doug will have to kind of fall pretty badly at the last couple of races, but at the end of the day, we’re definitely not wishing anything bad on Doug,” the 2013 Top Fuel champion said. “We’re just gonna go to Las Vegas to do the best we can and try to have an opportunity in Pomona. Continue reading →

YPSILANTI, MI – Doug Kalitta and his Mac Tools Toyota team completely understand an applicable cliché: it’s not over ‘til it’s over. The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs continue with the fifth of six playoff races Oct. 31-Nov. 2 at the Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals in Las Vegas.

After two-straight wins in four-consecutive Playoff final rounds, Kalitta enters the season’s penultimate race with a commanding lead in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings. He leads second-place Justin Ashley by 141 points and leads the third-place driver, his teammate Shawn Langdon, by 159 points. Yet in this sport, anything can happen, and Kalitta is well aware.

“I’ve finished second seven times so for me, you never count your chickens until they’re hatched; I’ve stayed pretty low-key about the situation,” the 2023 Top Fuel champion said. “We still have two races to go. It’s great to have a lead, but would certainly be better if we could get far enough ahead so nobody can catch us – that’s the goal. Continue reading →

Ennis, TX – Qualifying: J.R. Todd was the No. 10 qualifier at Texas NHRA FallNationals. He made his best qualifying attempt Friday night when he posted a 3.954-second effort at 323.74 mph.

Eliminations: Todd left the starting line before Cruz Pedregon, but the DHL GR Supra suffered a parts failure and an engine explosion immediately after Todd left the starting line, and Pedregon cruised to the victory.

Unofficial Point Standings: Todd leaves Texas in 12th place in the NHRA Funny Car point standings. He trails 11th-place Bob Tasca by six points and leads 13th-place Dave Richards by 88 points.

Todd on Texas: “Definitely not how we wanted this day to go; we broke a rod and blew up. Thanks to DHL, Superior, SealMaster and Revchem for supporting us. We’ll keep working on it and do our best to be ready at the next one.” Continue reading →

Ennis, TX – Qualifying: Shawn Langdon was the No. 1 qualifier at the Texas NHRA FallNationals; it was his first No. 1 qualifier of the season and the 22nd of his career. After not making his best run in the first qualifying session, Langdon was among the first cars in the second session, and he posted a 3.684-second effort at 338.88 mph to take the No. 1 position. The remaining cars tried to knock him off, but nobody was able to make a better run.

Eliminations: Langdon defeated Mitch King and Clay Millican to set up a semifinal race with his teammate, Doug Kalitta. Langdon’s Kalitta Air 25th Anniversary Dragster appeared to be on a good run when it smoked the tires. Langdon tried to pedal, but Kalitta was on his way to the round win with a 3.805-second effort at 332.59 mph.

Unofficial Point Standings: Langdon remains third in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings leaving Texas. He now trails second-place Justin Ashley by just 18 points and leads fourth place Steve Torrence by 69 points. He trails the points leader, Kalitta, by 159 points with two races remaining in the season. Continue reading →

Ennis, TX – Qualifying: Doug Kalitta was the No. 5 qualifier at the Texas NHRA FallNationals. He made his best qualifying attempt during the Friday-night session when he reached the finish line in 3.701 seconds at 338.71 mph.

Eliminations: Kalitta defeated Jasmine Salinas, Ida Zetterstrom and his teammate, Shawn Langdon, on the way to his fourth-straight final round in the Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs. It was also his sixth final round in the last seven races. In the final against Steve Torrence, Kalitta made a brilliant 3.777-second pass at 333.04 mph to take his 59th-career victory. It was Kalitta’s second-straight race win, his second win in the Countdown and his fourth win in the last seven races. The elapsed times in Kalitta’s four rounds of eliminations were all within .054 seconds.

Unofficial Point Standings: Kalitta leaves Texas in first place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings. He leads second-place Justin Ashley by 141 points with two races remaining in the season. Continue reading →