Fri, 17 Jul 2026, 13:14 PM Kalitta Motorsports Preview

Courtesy of Rob Goodman, Kalitta Motorsports Photo Courtesy: Kalitta Motorsports

Kalitta Motorsports Pre-Race Notes & Quotes
Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Race 11 of 20
Sonoma Raceway; Sonoma, Calif.; July 17-19, 2026

Shawn Langdon, Kalitta Air Careers Top Fuel Dragster

Consistency the Key for Shawn Langdon at NHRA Sonoma

2025 NHRA Sonoma Nationals Recap: Qualified No. 10; defeated Brittany Force, Bye; lost to Antron Brown.

Shawn Langdon Career Stats: 379 events, 26 wins, 32 runners-up, 442 round wins, 27 No. 1 qualifiers.

Current Points Position: 1

Pre-Race Notes:
- Shawn Langdon enters the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals in first place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings; he leads his teammate, Doug Kalitta, by 150 points entering the event that starts the second half of the season and the final four races of the regular season. Team Kalitta has been one-two in points since the second race of the season.

- Langdon has four wins on the season including three-consecutive wins at Valdosta, Ga., Joliet, Ill., and Budds Creek, Md. With Kalitta's Charlotte win, the Team Kalitta dragsters won five of the season's 10 races and competed in 37 of the 39 rounds of racing. Langdon has four wins, three runners-up and two semifinal showings along with five No. 1 qualifiers this season.

- Langdon owns the two fastest runs in NHRA history. At the Southern Nationals in Georgia in May, he recorded speeds of 345.00 mph and 344.91 mph.

- Langdon has one win in two-career final round appearances at Sonoma Raceway.

- Langdon is the 2013 NHRA Top Fuel Champion and has 26 wins in his career.

Pre-Race Quotes:
"Our Kalitta Air Careers car has been strong all season, but the biggest thing now is to keep that consistency. Brian (Crew Chief Brian Husen) likes to throw down; he likes to make really good runs, but he's learned in the last couple of years. He's not necessarily just making a throw-down run, but sometimes just making a good run for the conditions. When you get a good handle on the car, you try to hold on to that, and you try to keep the momentum up - that's the biggest thing.

"It's just being part of a great team really; (Team Owner) Connie Kalitta sets the way for us and gives us all the resources - everything we feel like we need to be competitive. (General Manager) Chad Head navigates everything and keeps our great sponsors happy. Having great sponsors allows us to have all the equipment we need. (Crew Chief) Alan Johnson on Doug's team, (Crew Chief) Brian Husen on my team and (Crew Chief) Dickie Venables on J.R.'s team put great crews together. Across the board, we have, hands down, one of the best teams out there. These guys are flawless - they don't make mistakes. We have great team chemistry and a great group of guys. Winning and making good runs solves a lot of problems, but regardless, we have a great group and a great foundation at Kalitta Motorsports. "I always love going to Sonoma; I grew up racing Super Comp there. There's always good air so we can make some throw down runs - especially Friday night. We just pray for a couple clouds to stop by (on Sunday), and it'll be a great weekend. We have to keep making great runs; everybody's focused on doing their jobs perfectly."

For Shawn Langdon's 2026 race-by-race results, please click here

Doug Kalitta, Aflac Top Fuel Dragster

Doug Kalitta Seeks Two Straight at Sonoma

2025 NHRA Sonoma Nationals Recap:. Qualified No. 2; defeated Ron August, Josh Hart, Bye and Antron Brown.

Doug Kalitta Career Stats: 636 events, 60 wins, 70 runners-up, 861 round wins, 68 No. 1 qualifiers.

Current Points Position: 2

Pre-Race Notes:
- Doug Kalitta enters the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals in second place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings entering the first race of the second half of the season and the final four races of the regular season; he trails his teammate, Shawn Langdon, by 150 points and leads third-place Leah Pruett by 129 points. Team Kalitta has been one-two in points since the second race of the season.

- Kalitta is the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals defending champion. His win there last year was his sixth in seven final rounds so when he reaches the Sonoma finals, history suggests he'll win the race. He also has four No. 1 qualifiers at the wine country track.

- The two-time and defending NHRA Top Fuel champion has a win, four runners-up, three semifinals and two No. 1 qualifiers this season. With Kalitta's Charlotte win, and Langdon's four wins, the Team Kalitta dragsters won five of the season's first 10 races and competed in 37 of the 39 rounds of racing.

- Kalitta's 60 race wins place him fourth all-time in Top Fuel wins and 12th overall. His 68 career No. 1 qualifiers place him tied with Kenny Bernstein for seventh all-time. He is seventh all-time in round wins.

- Kalitta is a two-time NHRA Top Fuel Champion (2023, '25) and a member of the Michigan Motorsports Hall of Fame.

Pre-Race Quotes:
"I think performance wise, the start of the second half of the season is about the time we kind of stepped up our program last year, and I think that's kind of where we are again this year. Things have been kind of clicking along here lately. Going to Sonoma, probably one of my best tracks, I'm always geeked about going to Sonoma, and it's Alan's (Crew Chief Alan Johnson) hometown track, too so it's just a good place for us. We won the thing last year so hopefully, we can do it again this year.

"To catch Shawn and those guys, we just need to step up our consistency. Those guys have been a little more consistent than us so we need to step it up a little bit in all areas, and we should be good. We did it last year; going rounds is what we have to do. My guys are doing a great job like they did last year, and I'm comfortable with it.

"We all watch what everybody's doing with their reaction times, and somehow, you just have to man up and improve. For me, I have to work at it a little bit every day; you try not to go crazy with it because you don't want to get too focused on it. For me, I have to work at it a little harder these days. Fortunately, this year, it's been working out for me so it's one of those things that definitely drives you. Trying to keep up with Shawn (Langdon) over the years, for instance, it's just a constant process. Drag Racing has always been a humbling sport for everything we do.

"I've been real fortunate to have some good success in Sonoma over the years including last year. The conditions there are almost always really good. When the sun goes down, it really cools off so it's one of those places where, with our tune-up and everything we're doing, I think it'll be a good track for us."

For Doug Kalitta's 2026 race-by-race results, please click here

J.R. Todd, DHL GR Supra Funny Car

J.R. Todd Patient as DHL Team Evolves

2025 NHRA Sonoma Nationals Recap: Qualified No. 11; lost to Hunter Green.

J.R. Todd Career Stats: 347 events, 22 wins, 28 runners-up, 379 round wins, 16 No. 1 qualifiers.

Current Points Position: 3

Pre-Race Notes:
- J.R. Todd enters the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals in third place in the NHRA Funny Car point standings entering the first race of the second half of the season and the final four races of the regular season. He trails second place Matt Hagan by 12 points and leads fourth-place Jack Beckman by five points.

- Todd has a strong history at Sonoma Raceway. He captured his fourth-career win at the wine country racetrack in 2023, and he has one No. 1qualifier.

- Despite the quarterfinal loss, Todd had a consistent weekend in Norwalk, Ohio at the last race. The DHL GR Supra team made five excellent runs before missing the tuneup in the quarterfinals, and the team stayed in Norwalk to test on Monday, June 29.

- Todd advanced to at least the semifinals at five of the 10 races this season. He has one runner-up finish and four semifinal showings.

- Todd is the 2018 NHRA Funny Car Champion and has 22 race wins in his career.

Pre-Race Quotes:
"There's been some ups and downs for sure. For me, when I moved over to the Funny Car in 2017, I felt like that was my best opportunity to compete for a championship, just knowing what Del (Worsham) and those guys had done in 2015. It took me a little while to get the hang of the Funny Car thing; I'm still working on that, but it worked out pretty well for us in 2018.

"Then, the dragsters had some lean years, so they brought in AJ (Doug Kalitta's Crew Chief Alan Johnson), but it took a couple years to get Doug's car back up to speed. Then (Crew Chief) Brian Husen went over to Shawn's car. All these things took time, and I feel that's where our DHL Funny Car is now.

"We brought (Crew Chief) Dickie Venables in last season, and we thought we would hit the ground running and have success. For whatever reason, it didn't work out that way, but we made more changes this off season with different cars, different parts and bringing (Crew Chief) Todd Smith back to work with Dickie. I feel like we're definitely in that window where the dragsters were. They're making it look easy right now; where we are with the Funny Car, it's definitely not easy, but I feel like were on the right path to success like they were.

"Back in pre-season testing, we made some really fast runs like 336 and 337 (mph). Dickie and Todd said if we get to the right conditions later in the year, it could run 340 no problem so I'm thinking maybe we can creep up on that when we get to Sonoma. Either way, I'm just glad that we're in the position we are going to the later rounds most of the time. The consistency is coming around, and that's something we've been lacking. I think that reflects on our points position; we're within range of the points lead, and that's where you want to be at this time of the year. It would be great to make a move with a win this weekend to stay in the hunt for that regular season championship."

For J.R. Todd's 2026 race-by-race results, please click here.

TV Schedule (All times eastern):
- Qualifying Show: 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday, July 19 on FS1

- Finals: 10 p.m.-1 a.m. Sunday, July 19 on FS1