In the season’s first six races, J.R. Todd and his DHL GR Supra team have seen signs that their efforts to return to form are paying off, and the last race near Chicago was an excellent step. The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series continues May 30-June 1 at the NHRA New England Nationals in Epping, N.H.
Todd was the No. 4 qualifier on Route 66 Raceway, equaling his best qualifying effort of the season, but he was the provisional No. 1 qualifier after Friday’s qualifying sessions for the first time in 2025. On Saturday, although he slipped to fourth, he set the track speed record,d reaching 336.40 mph in his final qualifying attempt. It was also his career-best speed, but that was qualifying. Race day was unkind to Todd and team when the DHL GR Supra smoked the tires in the opening round.
“We showed that we’re capable of running well, but we just have to put it all together on Sunday now,” Todd said. “We’re definitely going the right direction, but we have to work on our consistency on race day. So far, we’ve struggled to put runs together on Sunday when it matters, but we’re definitely trending in the right direction.”
The next step in performance could very well come this weekend when the Mission Foods series makes it annual visit to New Hampshire and New England Dragway. It’s a facility at which the need for speed can be satisfied if conditions allow, and it’s a facility at which Todd would love to have a consistent race car on Sunday.
“New England Dragway is a place where I haven’t won so definitely want to check it off the list,” Todd said. “If it’s cool on Friday, we should be able to throw down and hopefully run fast again like we did in Chicago on Saturday. The way the conditions present themselves in Epping, you’re close to sea level with cool temperatures so it’s usually quick and fast there on Friday night.”
And pulling for the DHL team will be the rabid New England fan base which seems not only starved for live drag racing but also genuinely appreciative of the opportunity to watch the best and brightest of NHRA Drag Racing.
“The fans are definitely passionate,” Todd added. “They wanted that race there for a long time, and they definitely show why. That place is packed every year so that’s always encouraging. It’s one of the few places we go where the fans actually come up and thank you for being there.”
And Saturday night, Todd and the entire DHL GR Supra team will join the rest of Kalitta Motorsports for Eddie’s Lobsterfest in memory of Team Owner Connie Kalitta’s son, Scott, who passed away in a 2008 racing accident in Englishtown, N.J.; the team debuted this event in 2009 in memory of Scott naming it after one of his nicknames.
“We’ve been doing it for a long time now,” Todd added. “It started in Englishtown (NJ) and it’s all to honor Scott Kalitta. It’s a good time. A lot of the teams are invited to come out, toast Scott and have some lobster and cocktails in his memory.”
This story was originally published on May 28, 2025. 
