Ron Capps, Maddi Gordon Begin 2026 NHRA Countdown Championship Push

Ron Capps Motorsports heads into the six-race 2026 NHRA Countdown to the Championship with both of its nitro cars firmly in the playoff picture. Ron Capps begins the title chase second in the Funny Car standings, only 17 points out of first, while rookie Maddi Gordon opens her first Top Fuel Countdown from the No. 6 seed.

Both teams, however, arrive at the first Countdown event believing the performance they spent the first 14 races building toward is beginning to show up at exactly the right time.

Capps enters the playoffs second in Funny Car points, only 17 markers behind the championship leader.

That gap is less than one full competition round, putting the three-time world champion squarely in the fight from the moment qualifying begins. Capps is chasing his fourth NHRA Funny Car world championship and his second as a team owner. His previous championships came in 2016, 2021, and 2022.

The 2026 regular season already produced three special 75th anniversary Diamond Wallys for Capps, but he believes one of the most encouraging developments has been what crew chief Dean “Guido” Antonelli has found in the tune-up.

“To bounce back in qualifying at the U.S. Nationals and get ahead in the points, where we were in a good position to try and win the regular-season championship, that was not only difficult to do, but not something we’ve seen many teams be able to pull off. All four of us fighting to win the regular-season championship came into Indy with the same goal in mind – try and get those little points, and to do what we did, in those conditions, is still so impressive to me. Obviously, we’re disappointed that we’re not starting from first, but I feel it’s only motivating us more. I know I’ve said it a few times before, but I was shocked we had three diamond Wallys and the season we’d had so far, knowing that whole time Guido still didn’t feel comfortable with the tune-up yet. So, as he continues to get more and more comfortable, obviously we’re just going to keep running better and better, and it’s clear he’s comfortable now, and that couldn’t have come at a better time than the start to the Countdown.”

Maddi Gordon enters the weekend facing a completely different situation. This will be her first NHRA Countdown to the Championship. The Rookie of the Year contender begins the six-race Top Fuel playoff from sixth in the standings, 79 points behind the leader.

That’s roughly four rounds of competition, meaning Gordon has ground to make up but still has plenty of racing available to do it.

“It is officially that time of the season – we are starting the Countdown to the Championship, race one of six. These are the most important races of the year, and we’ve spent the first 14 preparing for this moment. Collecting data, researching, practicing; all for these six races, and I’m very excited for that.

“It’ll be not only my first Countdown to the Championship, but also the first for a couple of our Carlyle Tools guys, and we’re all going into this together as a team. I truly believe we have the best group of guys, and there’s nobody else I’d rather go into battle with on a Sunday morning than our Carlyle Tools boys. We’re going to a brand-new racetrack for everybody. So, we’re going in with the same amount of data as everyone else, and that’s zero. It’s going to be cool, it’s going to be fast, it’s going to be exciting. The pressure’s on, but we’re going to keep our heads down, go to work, and focus on taking it one round at a time.”

The opening Countdown race comes at a facility that is new to the NHRA Mission Foods tour. That creates an interesting challenge for every team, but it can also help level the playing field. Nobody arrives with years of national-event notes, and nobody has a huge historical advantage.

Ron Capps Motorsports has grown quickly in 2026. The organization expanded into Top Fuel with Gordon and immediately put both cars into the championship conversation. One driver is chasing a fourth world championship, and the other is making her first playoff appearance. Both teams believe the regular season prepared them for what comes next, and they’re ready for a big Countdown run.