After qualifying with a season-best No. 6 spot (3.975 seconds, 300.80 mph) on the eliminations ladder, Kalitta defeated No. 11 qualifier Clay Millican in the opening round, 4.097 seconds, 295.79 mph to 4.183 sec. It was the third consecutive event that the two rail competitors met in the opening stanza with Kalitta getting his first victory of the three meetings in Denver.

In the quarterfinals, Kalitta and Tony Schumacher gave the huge crowd at Bandimere Speedway one of the best side-by-side races of the season. When the two drivers and their machines crossed the 1,000-ft. finish line with identical speeds, the margin of victory for Kalitta was a mere .007 seconds - 4.003 sec., 303.57 mph to 4.005 sec.

Kalitta then matched up with Cory McClenathan in the semifinals. McClenathan "two-stepped" the start of the race and that led to mechanical problems for his dragster later down track. Kalitta got the win light with his best lap of eliminations, 3.997 sec., 303.16 mph to 4.279 sec., 259.51 mph.

After an hour-long plus rain delay, Kalitta and his opponent Antron Brown lined up to race in the final round. Kalitta's No. 50 dragster went into severe tire shake soon after the start. The extra stress on the dragster's nitro-fueled motor caused the burst panels in the manifold to pop. Kalitta's engine went silent and Brown was able to get the win, 11.363 sec., 43.13 mph to 3.944 sec., 295.21 mph.

"It was a terrific weekend for our No. 50 team," Kalitta, a 12-year NHRA veteran and 44-year old resident of Ann Arbor, Mich., said. "We have absolutely nothing to hang our heads about. We qualified the best we have all year and our dragster was very consistent all weekend. We had been struggling with our tune-up going into Denver, so now we're really pleased to see our car back at the performance level it should be. I think we're going to start winning a lot more rounds from here on out."

Kalitta, now a 57-time Top Fuel finalist, has posted runner-up finishes in Denver four times in his career (1999, 2001, and 2003). He won the season-opening Winternationals event in Pomona, Calif., in February and also reached the final round this year in Bristol, Tenn. He remains in ninth place in Full Throttle championship points.

Kalitta's trip to the winner's circle in Pomona this year was his first win since the fall of 2007. Kalitta has finished in the top ten in Full Throttle Top Fuel championship points in every season of his drag racing career.

Kalitta's teammate Jeff Arend, driver of the DHL Toyota Solara Funny Car, lost a heartbreakingly close race in his first round duel with Cruz Pedregon, 4.320 sec., 286.80 mph to 4.309, 287.72 mph. The margin of victory at the finish line for Pedregon was a scant .01 seconds. Arend, like his Team Kalitta comrade, also had a season-best starting spot on the Funny Car eliminations ladder with a No. 9 effort, 4.196 sec., 296.63 mph.

The Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals was the 13th of 24 national events in the 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

ESPN2 TV Schedule
7/15 - Repeat Eliminations: 1:00 a.m. - 3:30 a.m.
Times and dates subject to change.

About Kalitta Motorsports
Based in Ypsilanti, Mich., Kalitta Motorsports is a Top Fuel and Funny Car drag racing team in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. In 2009, Kalitta Motorsports is celebrating 50 years of drag racing by team owner and drag racing legend Connie "the Bounty Hunter" Kalitta. Over the past 50 years, Connie, who has been involved in the sport as a driver, tuner, and as an owner, has dedicated unequalled amounts of time and resources to building one of the most successful teams in the history of auto racing. Kalitta Motorsports has won five world championships and over 50 national event titles in five different drag racing sanctioning bodies since it was established by Connie in 1959.

Jeff Arend drives the DHL Toyota Solara Funny Car for the team while Connie's nephew, Doug Kalitta, drives the No. 50 Top Fuel dragster entry. Connie serves as head tuner for both Team Kalitta entries. He is assisted by crew chief Jim Oberhofer and assistant crew chief Troy Fasching on Doug's Top Fueler and by co-crew chiefs Jon Oberhofer and Nick Boninfante on the DHL Funny Car.

Associate sponsors on Kalitta Motorsports' race cars include Red Line Oil, Summit Racing Equipment, Technicoat Companies, Rocky Boots, Toyota, and Mac Tools.

For more info about Kalitta Motorsports, please visit http://www.teamkalitta.com

Follow Team Kalitta on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/TeamKalitta

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kalitta

Courtesy of Todd Myers