The NHRA Reading Nationals provided a wild start to the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship. All of the Kalitta Motorsports teams faced their own challenges, but they each still have a chance to win an NHRA championship. The NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway will be the first four-wide Countdown race, and each Kalitta Motorsports driver is ready for action.

Doug Kalitta Needs To Keep The Momentum Train Rolling

Doug Kalitta didn’t hoist the Wally at Maple Grove, but the 2023 Top Fuel champ walked away with something almost as valuable, the points lead. For the first time this season, Kalitta sits on top of the heap, and he’ll roll into the NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway.

Reading gave us one of those chaotic playoff Sundays where just surviving was half the battle. Kalitta muscled past Antron Brown, then met points leader Tony Stewart in a second-round clash that turned ugly when both cars got tangled up past the finish line. Kalitta’s team rolled out the backup car, and, with help from every corner of Kalitta Motorsports, got it ready for battle. Tire smoke in the final round opened the door for Shawn Reed’s first win, but Kalitta left Maple Grove with the bigger prize, the top spot in the points chase.

“It’s definitely good (to lead the points), and it would be really good to stay there,” Kalitta added. “There’s a lot of rounds left so I just hope we can keep going rounds and be there at the end. We have a great group of guys and great people behind us like Mac Tools, SealMaster, Fifth Third Bank, Superior, and Revchem. Hopefully, we can all just settle in, keep doing our jobs and give ourselves another shot at it this weekend.”

This weekend adds another wrinkle since it will be the first-ever four-wide race in the Countdown. It’s a format Kalitta’s comfortable with, having already scored a four-wide win last season.

“Four-Wide will be good in the Playoffs as long as your car is running well, and you can just keep going rounds. Two cars moving on will be kind of an interesting concept. I’ve always liked the four-wide races. It’s just something different, and you have to just sort of see different things from what you’re used to; it’s just more of a challenge. I know it’ll be good. For me, I just try to keep doing the same thing and hope that you can have everything come together. Charlotte’s a great track; I think the conditions will be similar to Reading, and we’ll be ready.”

Kalitta’s consistency has him in control, but with five races left, the Top Fuel championship picture is wide open. Concord will tell us if the veteran can hold his ground — or if the chase is about to get even crazier.

Shawn Langdon Wants Another zMax Wally

When the NHRA Countdown to the Championship rolls into zMAX Dragway this weekend, everyone in Top Fuel wants to park in the winner’s circle. But only Shawn Langdon has a shot at pulling off a clean sweep in Charlotte.

Langdon already grabbed one zMAX win this year when he took the spring Four-Wide Nationals. It was a historic moment marking the 1,000th Top Fuel race in NHRA history. If he can back it up with another Wally this weekend, the 2013 Top Fuel world champ will claim his fourth Charlotte victory and his first sweep at the facility.

“I’ve always enjoyed going to Charlotte, dating back to 2012 – that’s where I got my first Top Fuel victory, so I always have good memories there,” Langdon said. “I was able to get the win earlier this year for the 1,000th Top Fuel event. It’ll be a little bit unique this year with the Four-Wides in the countdown, but I think it’s good. I think trying something different is good for the sport, not just going status quo every year. I’m very interested and very excited to run that four-wide event for the Countdown.”

Langdon came into the playoffs sitting second in points, but a tough second-round exit in Reading bumped him down to third. He’s far from out of it, just 33 points separate him from his Kalitta Motorsports teammate and current points leader Doug Kalitta. He’s also only 18 points behind Tony Stewart in second, while keeping a slim cushion over Justin Ashley and Clay Millican. In other words, the Top Fuel standings are stacked tight, and every round matters.

“It’s really anybody’s game at this point,” Langdon said. “Right now, with the cars that are out there, it’s competitive all the way through. There’s really no ‘qualify in the first couple spots and kinda get an easy round.’ No matter where you qualify, it’s gonna be a tough draw, and you’re gonna have to do your job. If you do your job on Sunday, hopefully everything falls your way.”

With a Charlotte sweep on the line and the points race razor close, Langdon enters this weekend with momentum, history, and experience on his side.

J.R. Todd Is Planning For A North Carolina Comeback

The Countdown to the Championship is all about survival and momentum, and J.R. Todd knows both can shift in a hurry. The 2018 NHRA Funny Car champ didn’t get the start he wanted at Maple Grove, but heading into this weekend’s Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway, he’s still right in the fight for the 2025 Funny Car title.

Todd came into the playoffs as the number six seed, and the DHL GR Supra looked strong through qualifying in Reading, stacking up four solid runs. Race day was another story. The car went up in smoke almost instantly in the first round, handing Ron Capps a free ride. The early exit dropped Todd one spot to seventh in points, but the math is still in his favor. He’s only 26 points behind Cruz Pedregon, 36 back from Matt Hagan, and just 91 points away from the top spot with five races left.

“It would have been nice to have made up some ground on those that went out early last weekend, but that’s the way it goes,” Todd said. “We can’t dwell on that, so we put it behind us and just go to Charlotte and try to win the race. From here on out, we need to make our best runs possible and race as hard as we can. All things considered, we’re in pretty good shape, but you still don’t want to put yourself in a little bit of a hole. We need to race as hard as we can, go to the later rounds, and probably get a little help along the way.”

Todd has a total of three runner-up finishes at zMax. Snagging his first Charlotte Wally this weekend in the first-ever Four-Wide race during the Countdown would be the perfect way to reset the tone for the rest of the season.

“Any win in the countdown is definitely a big win,” Todd said. “It would be a good momentum boost going into the remaining races because if we’re gonna win a championship, we need to start making it happen. We’ve shown this year we have a team capable of making consistently strong runs. The Friday night qualifying run is the key everywhere we go. We have to make that run count like we did last weekend. Hats off to my DHL guys – they work hard and don’t give up.”

With the standings stacked tight and the pressure mounting, Todd knows the path forward: go rounds, go deep, and get that first zMAX win.