Global Electronic Technology Toyota Camry Funny Car Quotes

Shawn Langdon, Global Electronic Technology Toyota Camry:

How different does it feel for you than it did a year ago when you made your first real runs in the Funny Car?

It feels quite a bit different. Obviously, having a year under my belt gives me a better understanding of how these cars react.  We’re taking baby steps early and adjusting to some of the changes we made in the off-season.  I feel great. I’m ready to go and I’m really excited about this season.

What was it like moving from a Top Fuel car to a Funny Car in 2018 after winning a championship in Top Fuel, as well as in the Junior Dragster and Super Comp classes?

I tried to prepare myself for the transition. I talked to a number of other drivers who made the move and I expected it to be a big learning curve. Yet, at the end of the year, it had been an even bigger adjustment than I had ever thought it was going to be.  It was a MAJOR learning curve. Even with a year under my belt, I’m still learning.

Continue reading →

PLANO, TX – J.R. Todd’srun to the Funny Car world championship highlighted a year that saw Toyota-supported drivers win 10 races during the 2018 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.

Todd dominated throughout the six-race Countdown to the Championship playoffs, earning three victories in five final round appearances, culminating with his sixth victory of the season at the Auto Club NHRA Finals in Pomona to capture the title. The playoff wins were just part of a brilliant campaign that saw the DHL Toyota Camry driver lead the series in victories, as well as win-loss record in elimination rounds (44-18, 71%) in just his second season in Funny Car. The championship was the second in four years for a Toyota Camry Funny Car driver and the third since 2008. Overall, Toyota-supported drivers have now won nine NHRA world championships.

“I never imagined a run like this, but the DHL Toyota guys are great at what they do,” said Todd. “I saw these guys do this with Del Worsham in 2015, so I knew that the opportunity was there. I just didn’t want to be the reason for it not to happen. It’s pretty special. It was really a complete team effort. I feel like we have a huge advantage from the input we get from having TRD involved. Those guys working with the track conditions takes weight off the crew chiefs shoulders, so they don’t have to worry about it. TRD relays the information back to them and it’s a huge asset. I feel like it’s only going to get better.”

Continue reading →

POMONA, CA  –Camry driver J.R. Todd defeated Tommy Johnson in the Funny Car final in winning the Auto Club NHRA Finals Sunday to culminate a championship-winning performance at the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Sunday. He had clinched his first Funny Car championship in the opening round today.

Todd defeated Jim Campbell and Bob Tasca in the first two rounds before dispatching Ron Capps in the semifinals to set up his final round match-up with Johnson.  In the final, he had a .006 advantage at the tree and never trailed as he registered the quickest time of the day with a 3.872-scond pass with a final margin of victory of .023 seconds or approximately 11 feet.

“The DHL Toyota guys are great at what they do,” said Todd, who became the first African-American driver to win a Funny Car championship and just the second African-American driver ever to win a major U.S. auto racing title. “Todd Smith and Jon Oberhofer really have a handle on the tune-up. They were almost calling their shots today. When we ran the .889 in the semis, they said they were shooting for a .90, so they overachieved a little there. In the finals, I had it way out of the groove, driving like an idiot. I thought for sure I was going to smoke the tires. Then the win light came on and I thought to myself, ‘you’ve got to be kidding me’ and then to see that we ran a .87. That was a big-time run. They just have a really good handle on the car, racing smart. The Yella Fellas just do a great job of preparing our Camry. They definitely stayed focused with a lot of distractions around our pit area.”

Continue reading →

POMONA, CA – Five years ago, J.R. Todd’s future in the NHRA was uncertain. Today, he is the Funny Car world champion after clinching the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series title in the first round of Sunday’s Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona.

Todd becomes the first African-American Funny Car champion and just the second African-American driver to win a major U.S. auto racing championship, joining fellow Toyota NHRA driver Antron Brown.

“This is what you live your whole life for when you start racing Junior Dragsters at ten years old,” said Todd, who went without a full-time NHRA ride from 2009-2013 after earning Rookie of the Year honors in 2006. “You hope that you can get to this point in your life and your career, but you never really think it’s going to happen. There were definitely some tough times when I got my start in Top Fuel and I didn’t know if I’d ever be back at this point. I have so many people to thank, especially the Kalitta group as a whole.”

The newly crowned champion has stormed through the first five races of the Countdown to the Championship playoffs earning two wins and advancing to four final rounds.

Continue reading →

POMONA, CA – J.R. Todd qualified fourth in Funny Car, while Antron Brown was sixth in Top Fuel to lead Toyota in preparation for Sunday’s Auto Club NHRA Finals at the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

Todd extended his championship lead back to 74 points heading into tomorrow’s eliminations, the equivalent of over two rounds. He can clinch the 2018 Funny Car championship by advancing to the semi-finals or beyond on Sunday.

“Nothing’s changed for our DHL Toyota,” said Todd, who registered a 3.897-second pass in his final qualifying run on Saturday. “We’re going to go out there and run hard. We’re not going to let up. Our goal for tomorrow is to win the race.”

Todd will open eliminations against Jim Campbell on Sunday.

Shawn Langdon qualified ninth and will open up Sunday’s action with Matt Hagan, while Cruz Pedregon placed 14th and will square off against Tommy Johnson in the opening round.

Continue reading →

Pomona, CA – Todd Looks For First Title…J.R. Toddwill be looking to secure his first NHRA Funny Car World Championship this weekend in Pomona. After winning the most recent event at the Toyota Nationals, he enters the weekend with a 74-point lead, the equivalent of just over two rounds. If Todd captures the title, he would become the first African-American driver to win a Funny Car title and just the second to win a major U.S. auto racing championship, joining fellow Toyota driver Antron Brown. He also would be the second DHL Camry driver to win a Funny Car title in the last four years, joining Del Worsham who won the title for Kalitta Motorsports in 2015.

Todd By The Numbers…Todd has earned two victories and advanced to four final rounds in the first five Countdown to the Championship events. He also has compiled a 16-3 round win-loss record during the playoffs. For the season, Todd leads all Funny Car drivers in wins (five) and round wins (40) and has advanced to the semi-finals or beyond 12 times – also a series high.

Continue reading →

LAS VEGAS – J.R. Todd defeated Matt Hagan in the final to win the NHRA Toyota Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Sunday and take over the Funny Car point lead in the process. The victory is a series-high fifth of the season for Todd and his third in the last six races.

Todd turned in a dominating performance on Sunday, defeating Richard Townsend in the first round and followed up with victories over Kalitta Motorsports teammate Shawn Langdon and then Jack Beckman in the semifinals. That set up his final round battle with Hagan. Hagan had a slight advantage off the line, but Todd pulled almost even by the 60’ mark. He took the lead by 660’ and then pulled away for the victory, winning by .145 seconds or approximately 56 feet.

“It really started on Friday when we didn’t have a good day at all,” said Todd, who now has a 74-point lead over second place Robert Hight. “We qualified 16th and then we were bumped from the field before we ran in Q3 on Saturday. We were really aggressive in Q3 and ran a 3.91 and ended up second. That just goes to show how hard these DHL Toyota guys work. We had some issues on Friday and they stayed late and changed the entire fuel system. We came out and made two really good runs on Saturday.”

Continue reading →

CHARLOTTE, NC – J.R. Todd drove his DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car to the final round for the third time in four playoff races before falling to Ron Capps at the NHRA Carolina Nationals at the zMAX Dragway in Charlotte Sunday.

With the strong showing, Todd has closed to within 11 points of the championship lead with two races remaining in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs. In addition, he’s registered a 16-3 round record over the last five races. Overall, his 36 round wins this season more than doubles the total of his rookie Funny Car season (17) in 2017.

On Sunday, Todd stormed through the first three rounds, defeating Jonnie Linderg, Cruz Pedregon and John Force all by a margin of victory of .040 or more. After securing lane choice over Capps in the final, he jumped out to the lead with a .026 advantage at the light. Todd stayed out front through the 330-foot mark, but lost traction at approximately 400 feet, giving Capps the victory. He had run six consecutive passes of 3.929 or better, including four in the 3.8s before the finals.

Continue reading →

MOHNTON, PA – J.R. Todd drove his DHL Toyota Camry to victory over Tim Wilkerson in final round to win the NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway and take over the Funny Car championship point lead after the first round of the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

Todd opened the day with a victory over Bob Tasca, then knocked off Mike Smith in the second round. That advanced him to a semifinal match-up with Ron Capps where Todd had an .013 advantage at the light and never trailed on the way to running a 3.975 to set up a final round match-up with Wilkerson.

In the finals, Todd again took the lead at the light with a .029 advantage and never led by less than .045 seconds after the 60-foot mark, registering a 3.972-second pass at 319.90 mph in winning his second consecutive race and his fourth of the season.

“It’s awesome to keep the momentum going, but we still have a long road ahead of us,” said Todd, who becomes the first African-American driver to top the Funny Car playoff standings since the inception of the Countdown. “These DHL/Wix Filter Toyota guys know how to win. A lot of them were here when Del Worsham won the title in 2015. We got some gifts early on today with some of the cars in front of us going out early. It was nice to be able to come out of here with a win.

Continue reading →

Toyota Racing – Shawn Langdon

Countdown Position: 8th

After qualifying for the playoffs in his debut season in a Toyota Funny Car, 2013 Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon talks about the upcoming six-race NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoffs, which kicks off this weekend at Maple Grove Raceway.

Shawn Langdon, Global Electronic Technology Toyota Camry Funny Car

How do you feel going into the Countdown?

“I feel good in the car. We’ve been making adjustments to try to make the car react better and I think we’ve accomplished that. I think we’re in a good position heading into the playoffs. This is the best car we’ve had and I feel I’m driving my best. This is our time to shine.”

Continue reading →