There’s a buzzsaw cutting through the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Top Fuel class in 2026, and it hails from Ypsilanti, Michigan.
The Team Kalitta dragsters driven by Shawn Langdon and reigning NHRA Top Fuel champion Doug Kalitta have been mowing down the competition all season long. Just how dominant have they been? Josh Hart picked up the victory at the season-opening Gatornationals in Gainesville, and Tony Stewart won the Winternationals. Every other Top Fuel event so far this season has been won by either Kalitta or Langdon.
Doug Kalitta Continues His Championship Form
A deeper look at the numbers shows just how impressive Team Kalitta’s season has been.
Crew chiefs Alan Johnson and Mac Savage have tuned the Mac Tools dragster driven by Kalitta to three final-round appearances in 2026. The team also earned number one qualifying positions at both Valdosta and Chicago.
Kalitta’s victory list includes the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals in Charlotte, along with Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge wins in Phoenix and Pomona.
For most drivers, those statistics would be enough to lead the headlines. However, Shawn Langdon has taken Team Kalitta’s performance to another level this season.
Shawn Langdon Leads the Top Fuel Points Standings
The tuning trio of Brian Husen, Justin Groat, and Aaron Cave has the Kalitta Air Careers dragster performing on what seems like a different dimension plane from the rest of the Top Fuel field.
Their combination has helped Langdon secure number one qualifying positions at Phoenix, Charlotte, and Maryland. The team also reset the NHRA Top Fuel national speed record when Langdon blasted to a 345-mph run at South Georgia Motorsports Park.
On race day, Langdon has been nearly unstoppable.
The current Top Fuel points leader has collected 75th Anniversary Diamond Wally trophies at Phoenix, Valdosta, Chicago, and Maryland. His success hasn’t been limited to Sundays, either. Langdon also captured Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge victories in both Chicago and Maryland.
The Johnson-Husen Effect
When Alan Johnson and Brian Husen joined the Kalitta Motorsports organization in 2022, expectations were sky-high.
Those expectations quickly became reality when Doug Kalitta captured his first NHRA Top Fuel world championship. Now, the Johnson-Husen brain trust appears to be operating at full strength, and the results speak for themselves.
The combination of Johnson’s and Husen’s tuning expertise, paired with the driving talents of Kalitta and Langdon, has created two of the most formidable teams in modern Top Fuel competition.
The Team Everyone Is Chasing
The level of dominance displayed by Team Kalitta through the opening portion of the 2026 NHRA season has been remarkable. With multiple event wins, number one qualifiers, Mission #2Fast2Tasty victories, a national speed record, and the Top Fuel points lead, Team Kalitta has established itself as the benchmark in the category.
One thing has become crystal clear in 2026: if you want a shot at the NHRA Top Fuel championship, you’d better be prepared to take on Team Kalitta.
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