Leah Pruett and the Dodge Top Fuel team won their first Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge of the season Saturday while qualifying for the NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.
Pruett, who has one previous win in the specialty race from 2023, picked up the victory along with bonus qualifying points and a cash prize, when she defeated points leader and Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge season champion Doug Kalitta in the finals. Pruett’s 3.873-second pass at 319.98 mph was enough to take down Kalitta’s 4.502 at 187.16 after he smoked the tires down track.
“When you look at the importance of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge – whether it’s the first race of the season or all the way up to now – I think you feel like they weigh more, or the points weigh more right now than they do earlier on, even though they don’t,” Pruett said. “I just love the #2Fast2Tasty Challenge. It makes you feel race-ready. But to get any sort of win here at ‘The Big Go,’ in front of this crowd, with the changing variables, the history, the pageantry – everything about it is fulfilling. I’m so blessed to be in a race car with a team that never, ever gives up. It shows that yes, points-wise, we’re miles away from those Kalitta cars in the top but races like the one we just had, in these conditions at the biggest race of the entire year, that proves they gave it everything they got, we gave it everything we got, and what we had was better.
“I could have been better on the starting line. I barely even hit the light, and I was like, ‘That sucked. I am not happy at all,’” Pruett explained. “I was just waiting for Doug to scream on by at 340mph. And he didn’t. Our Dodge car saved that round. It all comes back to unity and team. This win is personal; this is sentimental to us. Ryan McGilvry, our car chief hadn’t won a #2Fast2Tasty Challenge with us. Our win in 2023 Ryan was gone for his kid’s graduation. Plus, Sledge on our team, it’s his birthday today. It’s just a lot of emotions, a lot of feels. And I’m embracing it because all this is emotional warfare in preparation for the biggest, baddest ‘Big Go’ that there could ever be. That’s where I’m at, and that’s how I feel.”
En route to the final, Pruett and the Dodge team redeemed themselves against Brainerd Nationals semi-final opponent Maddi Gordon. Pruett and Gordon’s machines both started to haze the tires but, Pruett was able to pilot her dragster to a 4.083-second pass at 263.20 mph to defeat Gordon’s 4.242 at 210.97.
Pruett is currently qualified third for the NHRA U.S. Nationals while teammate Matt Hagan is eighth with just two qualifying sessions and the PlayNHRA Funny Car Callout left on Sunday at noon and 2:45 p.m. before eliminations begin on Monday at 10 a.m.
Television coverage of the event at Indianapolis Raceway Park will start with two qualifying shows Sunday at 3:00 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. ET. A special PlayNHRA Funny Car All Star Callout show will air Sunday at 7:00 p.m. ET. Eliminations will begin to air Monday at noon on FS1 before switching to FOX at 2 p.m. ET.
