Monster Energy has joined NHRA Rookie of the Year candidate Maddi Gordon and the championship-winning Ron Capps Motorsports team in a multi-year partnership beginning with the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season. Announced today at Gainesville Raceway ahead of qualifying for the season-opening NHRA Gatornationals, the partnership will see Monster Energy support Gordon’s rookie campaign competing in the sport’s premier Top Fuel class as a major associate-level partner.
“This is a huge weekend for us,” said RCM team owner and NAPA Auto Care Funny Car driver Ron Capps. “We’re debuting as a two-car team with Carlyle Tools, it’s Maddi’s first-ever Top Fuel race, the start of NHRA’s 75th anniversary season, and now the cherry on top – we get to announce a partnership with Monster Energy. It’s a brand that carries a lot of weight and has always backed some of the coolest, most extreme athletes in the world, and there’s not much more extreme than what we do, driving these nitromethane-burning beasts at 330 miles per hour. It’s an incredible brand to be aligned with, and I’m beyond proud that Ron Capps Motorsports gets to make this announcement today.”
The collaboration with Gordon and the fifth-year RCM organization will feature Monster Energy branding across both team entries, with a larger presence on Gordon’s Top Fuel dragster. The signature Monster Energy M-claw logo will be on full display Friday afternoon when Gordon stages her 12,000-horsepower Carlyle Tools machine in NHRA national event competition for the first time during the opening round of qualifying.
Gordon arrives in Top Fuel after years spent both behind the wheel and working on race cars alongside her family where she developed a reputation for her hands-on approach and deep mechanical understanding. That work ethic and dedication reflect the kind of driven, high-performance athletes Monster Energy has long been associated with across the world of motorsports.
“It’s really exciting to have a brand like Monster Energy supporting me as I begin my professional career,” said Gordon, who spent the past two seasons piloting her family’s Top Alcohol Funny Car where she picked up three national event wins and a regional championship. “They’ve been involved with some of the most incredible athletes in motorsports, so to now be a part of that Monster family is truly an honor, and honestly, somewhat surreal. If someone would’ve told me a few years ago that in 2026 I’d be driving for Ron Capps, in a fuel car, and with huge, well-known brands such as Carlyle Tools and now Monster Energy, I would’ve told them they were crazy! I’m just so incredibly grateful for the opportunity and proud to represent Monster Energy with this Ron Capps Motorsports team.”
Gordon’s Monster Energy-backed Carlyle Tools Top Fuel dragster will make its competition debut this weekend, March 6-8, at Gainesville Raceway during the season-opening NHRA Gatornationals. Qualifying kicks off at 2:30 p.m. ET on Friday.
This story was originally published on March 6, 2026. 
