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Kalitta Motorsports

Racing Passion has J.R. Todd and DHL Toyota Camry Team Focused on Gatornationals Victory

Gainesville, FL – DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car driver J.R. Todd has a passion for NHRA Camping World Drag Racing as well as a wide variety of other forms of motorsports. He grew up in the Junior Dragster League and throughout his career he has taken a keen interest in learning from other forms of racing to give himself an edge on the drag strip. His experience and at-track education have afforded him the chance to be successful in the Top Fuel and Funny Car ranks tallying nine national event victories in each class. This weekend at the 52nd annual Gatornationals Todd will be looking for his tenth Funny Car win and first at the historic event on the east coast.

“For me, Gainesville is right up there at the top with winning Indy,” said Todd, a two-time U.S. Nationals Funny Car winner. “It’s one of the biggest races in our sport along with the U.S. Nationals and the Pomona races. It’s one that I’ve always wanted to check off the list, but haven’t been able to. Hopefully, we can do that here in 2021. The Gatornationals is one of the most historic and prestigious races on the tour. It’s like the east coast version of the Winternationals and it brings out a lot of the legends of our sport and some great memories. We’d like to add our name to that list of winners.”

Todd enters the 2021 campaign looking for his second Funny Car world championship in the last four years after winning the title in 2018. Last year Todd and his DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car team battled through a tough season that did not allow the team to establish a rhythm. They raced to a number of final rounds but could not run the table on race day.

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Shawn Langdon and DHL Top Fuel Team Racing for Grand Slam at Gatornationals

Gainesville, FL – Last year Shawn Langdon and his DHL/Kalitta Air Top Fuel team took home the title at the biggest race of the season, the prestigious U.S. Nationals and finished sixth in the Top Fuel point standings. After two years in a Funny Car where he became just the 17th driver ever to win in both Funny Car and Top Fuel, the return to the dragster ranks was an easy transition. This year after multiple days of testing in West Palm Beach Langdon is ready to make a run at one more historic win. Already the owner to championship trophies from the U.S. Nationals, the Winternationals and the NHRA Finals, a Gatornationals victory would give him the “Grand Slam” of historic wins.

“For me, it’s just about winning races,” said Langdon. “That’s the biggest thing. The Gatornationals is a big race and it’s a track that I haven’t won at.  Regardless of where it is, I’d like to win at every track and Gainesville is one of them. Gainesville is a track that I haven’t won at yet. So, I definitely have a lot of motivation there to do well. This year it’s the season kick-off and I’m looking forward to going there and, hopefully, we can have some success. It’s eluded me for a number of years and I’d like to get that checked off the list.”

As a 15-time Top Fuel winner Langdon knows what it takes on race day to get a win. The biggest hurdle all the NHRA competitors will have to overcome is a longer than usual off-season. It has been almost five months since Langdon has filled the seat of his DHL/Kalitta Air Top Fuel dragster in competition conditions.

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Doug Kalitta Starts 20th Season with Mac Tools Looking for Fourth Gatornationals Win

Gainesville, FL – The past three seasons Doug Kalitta has started the season off with four straight win lights on race day and a trip to the winner’s circle behind the wheel of his Mac Tools Top Fuel dragster. For the perennial championship contender the traditional season opening NHRA Winternationals has been his playground. This year if Kalitta wants to extend his win streak to four, he will have to make it happen on the opposite coast. The start of the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series will kick off at the historic Gatornationals for the first time ever this weekend.

“I love running Gainesville,” said Kalitta, a three-time Gatornationals Top Fuel champion. “I’ve always been a big Don Garlits fan and that’s his home. To be able to go there and start the season with a win would be huge for us.”

With his next victory Kalitta will become just the fifth driver in NHRA history to win 50 Top Fuel events. Last year he won his 700th round of racing continuing to add his Hall of Fame career stats. The history of successful season starts has Kalitta confident in his chances of winning his fourth consecutive season-opener.

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Revchem Composites Extends Partnership with Kalitta Motorsports

YPSILANTI, MI – Revchem Composites is extending its relationship with Kalitta Motorsports  into the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season starting at the 52nd annual NHRA Gatornationals. The multi-time world championship drag racing team will once again be working with Revchem Composites, one of the leading composite distribution companies in the United States, throughout the course of the season on technical opportunities as well as strategic partnerships with their many corporate partners. Additionally, Revchem will be featured on all three Kalitta Motorsports race cars in 2021.

“Even with a shortened season last year we made some great strides working with Revchem Composites and we are looking forward to enhancing that relationship this season even more,” said Chad Head, General Manager Kalitta Motorsports. “Their expertise was invaluable last season and we also made strides in the off-season. They have so many ideas and possibilities for our race teams. We are focusing on connecting them with our existing sponsors as the season progresses. As I said last year when this relationship started, the biggest advantage we see is how well our core values align. Both our organizations are built on increased productivity and excellence.”

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FATHEADZ EYEWEAR NAMED OFFICIAL EYEWEAR OF KALITTA MOTORSPORTS

YPSILANTI, MI – Moving into the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, the entire Kalitta Motorsports operation will be outfitted with Fatheadz Eyewear for both sunglasses and prescription frames. Fatheadz Eyewear will be recognized as the Official Eyewear of Kalitta Motorsports beginning with the 52nd NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Florida.  Through the relationship, every member of all three of the Kalitta Motorsports race teams will have Fatheadz Eyewear products, all three race cars will feature Fatheadz Eyewear logos and driver and consumer co-promotions will be conducted throughout the season.

“This is a great partnership and we are excited to show off our new look with Fatheadz Eyewear starting at the Gatornationals,” said Chad Head, Kalitta Motorsports general manager. “Being able to clearly see what is happening on the track is critical when you are at the races. The wide variety of Fatheadz Eyewear products combined with the fact they can also provide us with prescription frames means everyone on our team will not just look good, but will visually be in great shape.”

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Kalitta Motorsports to Host A Kid Again Families At Select Races throughout 2021 NHRA Season

YPSILANTI, MI – During the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, Kalitta Motorsports will be partnering with A Kid Again, a nonprofit organization fostering hope, happiness and healing for children facing life-threatening conditions and their families. Kalitta’s support will help A Kid Again further their mission of giving families the opportunity to take a time out from illness by attending ongoing Adventures together at NHRA races while they work through significant medical situations. The multi-time world championship team will also be supporting A Kid Again through social media promotions, branding on all three race cars and hosting familiesa the races during the race season.

“We were introduced to the folks at A Kid Again and immediately knew we should get involved with this organization,” said Kalitta Motorsports General Manager Chad Head. “NHRA is a family sport that is all about making memories and having an amazing experience. One of the things that drew us to A Kid Again was their mission of having entire families participate in events and experiences. This is a great organization and we are thrilled to partner with them.”

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KALITTA MOTORSPORTS SET FOR SUCCESS IN 2021 NHRA SEASON

YPSILANTI, MI – In less than a month Kalitta Motorsports and the rest of the professional teams competing in the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series will be pulling into Gainesville Raceway in advance of the 52nd NHRA Gatornationals. For the multi-time world championship winning organization, the 2021 NHRA season will once again be focused on winning and representing a host of international and national businesses through on-track success and business to business activation. Three teams will race under the Kalitta Motorsports banner including the Top Fuel dragsters driven by Doug Kalitta and Shawn Langdon, along with J.R. Todd behind the wheel of a Toyota Camry Funny Car.

“We feel like we have three of the best drivers on the tour representing Kalitta Motorsports and our sponsors,” said Kalitta Motorsports General Manager Chad Head. “They are all proven winners at the highest levels. We have world champions and winners of the most prestigious races on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series schedule. We are confident we will once again be in the championship hunt in both Top Fuel and Funny Car. Connie Kalitta has built these teams with the goal of being the best in their categories and we have the right people leading each of them.”

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KALITTA MOTORSPORTS ENTERS 2021 NHRA SEASON WITH HOST OF RETURNING SPONSORS

YPSILANTI, MI – With attention turning to the return to racing in just over 30 days for the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, Kalitta Motorsports is proud to announce they will once again be representing a full complement of national and global corporations on their three race cars. Over a dozen companies will be utilizing the multi-time world championship organization to promote their products, host their guests in VIP at-track accommodations and garner media attention through FOX national broadcasts, public relations and social media exposure.

“Last season was one of the toughest for everyone involved in business or sponsorship fulfillment,” said Chad Head, Kalitta Motorsports general manager. “Thankfully we had Connie Kalitta and the support of Kalitta Air. Connie is an amazing leader who kept our teams together and working all season. I am very proud of our Kalitta Motorsports marketing team and how they pivoted to create opportunities for our drivers and crew chiefs to interact with our sponsors’ employees and their customers.”

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Kalitta Motorsports Welcomes ThorSport Racing Back To Toyota Racing Family

YPSILANTI, MI – Earlier this week 2018 NHRA Funny Car champion J.R. Todd visited the ThorSport Racing headquarters in Sandusky, Ohio, to welcome the team back to the Toyota Racing family. Todd was joined by Kalitta Motorsports team executives as well as his 11,000 horsepower DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car for the event. During the visit Todd and the Kalitta Motorsports team met with ThorSport team owners Duke and Rhonda Thorson to discuss opportunities for the two Toyota-backed organizations to collaborate on more events during 2021.

“It was really cool to bring our DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car to the ThorSport headquarters and welcome them back to the Toyota Racing family,” said J.R. Todd, winner of 18 NHRA national events. “We talked about how we have three big time sponsors in common with Toyota, Mobil 1 and Camping World and we should be doing more things together. We got some great photos of all the race cars and I can’t wait to come back the HQ or see them at the track.”

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Kalitta Motorsports Extends Partnership with SealMaster®

YPSILANTI, MI – As the beginning of the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series draws closer, Kalitta Motorsports, the multi-time, world-championship drag racing organization, led by racing legend Connie Kalitta, announced today the extension of its marketing partnership with SealMaster®.  SealMaster has been a major player in the NHRA at a variety of levels, and Kalitta Motorsports has enjoyed a direct, longstanding partnership with the Sandusky, Ohio, based company since 2014.

“We are excited to be extending our relationship with SealMaster,” said Chad Head, Kalitta Motorsports general manager. “Over the years we have worked together to host franchisees and entertain their guests. Our goal has always been to use NHRA and our teams as assets to help SealMaster continue to grow business across the country. They have been great supporters of the sport and everyone at Kalitta Motorsports is proud to have them on our team.”

With locations throughout the United States, SealMaster utilizes the Kalitta Motorsports VIP hospitality experience as both an incentive and engagement tool, capitalizing on NHRA’s corresponding national footprint. Through its partnership with Kalitta Motorsports, SealMaster branding will be displayed on the Top Fuel dragsters driven by Doug Kalitta and Shawn Langdon throughout the 2021 NHRA season.

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