Josh Hart has never relied on luck throughout his racing or business career. The fifth-year professional Top Fuel driver of the R+L Carriers dragster has been meticulous in his planning and building of his team going back to his rookie season in 2021. The owner of Burnyzz Speed Shop in Ocala, Florida, has used the same mindset that grew that company into a horsepower powerhouse to build his Top Fuel team heading into the Las Vegas Four-Wide Nationals, April 11-13 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
“You can’t rely on luck getting you win lights,” said Hart, a multi-time Top Fuel national event winner. “You have to work hard and put in the time to get results. Sometimes things will go your way, but out here you have to be at your best, every run. We have been making strides this season that I feel will pay off during this four-wide race.”
Over the off-season, Hart added Jason McCulloch and Joe Barlam to his crew chief line-up alongside veteran tuner Ron Douglas. The trio of crew chiefs that Hart refers to as his “Three Musketeers” set about building a sustainable tune-up that could carry the R+L Carriers Top Fuel team to the NHRA Mission Foods world championship. Two weeks ago, at the historic NHRA Winternationals, Hart posted some of his quickest elapsed times in over a year and raced to the quarterfinals. At the conclusion of the race Hart could see progress and was looking forward to the first four-wide nationals of the season.
“We showed that we have a tune-up now that can run low numbers and that is great to see,” said Hart. “I think we will be able to step it up even more in Las Vegas and really get some momentum going. This team has been working very hard, and we are seeing the results. I never lost faith in any of my guys. We are one team, and we will be ready to go this weekend.”
Hart will be competing in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge thanks to his quarterfinal efforts at the Winternationals. During the first qualifying session on Saturday, he will be running against fellow quarterfinalists Shawn Langdon, Tony Stewart and Doug Kalitta. With additional cash and championship points on the line Hart will be looking to start turning on win lights on Saturday.
Hart has had success in the four-wide racing format, racing to the final quad at the Las Vegas Four-Wide Nationals in 2023 and advancing to the second quad last season. The flurry of activity does not bother the calm and collected Hart.
“I just do my usual routine when we are racing four-wide,” said Hart. “The key is to be patient and just not worry about what other drivers are doing. It will be a lot of fun and the fans in Las Vegas are great.”
Hart and the R+L Carriers team will be in action for two qualifying runs on Friday and two on Saturday. Final eliminations for the 16 quickest Top Fuel dragsters will begin at noon PST on Sunday, April 13. The race will be broadcast nationally on FS1 and fans can get more information on the race and tickets at www.nhra.com.
This story was originally published on April 8, 2025. 
