Shawn Langdon was the No. 3 qualifier at the NHRA Arizona Nationals. During the Friday evening qualifying session, Langdon’s 3.706-second effort at 331.85 mph was good enough to claim the No. 3 position.
Langdon defeated Scott Palmer, Justin Ashley and Brittany Force on the way to the all-Team Kalitta final round against his teammate, Doug Kalitta. It was the first all-Kalitta final round since the Richmond, Va., race last summer which Kalitta won. Langdon was off the starting line first and never trailed. His 3.724-second effort at 330.39 mph beat Kalitta’s 3.770-second pass at 325.43 mph. Langdon’s margin of victory was .0723 seconds. It was Langdon’s 20th win, his second-straight Phoenix win and his third-straight Phoenix final round. With Saturday’s Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge win, it was also a double-win.
When Langdon advanced to the semifinals, he earned a spot in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge next week in Pomona, Calif. During Saturday’s qualifying sessions, the drivers who reached the semifinals in Phoenix will re-run the semifinals and final earning additional purse and championship bonus points.
Langdon leaves Phoenix in first place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings. He leads second-place Antron Brown by 40 points after the season’s first two races.
“It was a great day for Team Kalitta– we accomplished our goal of getting both Top Fuel cars in the final, but obviously, there’s some pressure because you don’t want to be the weak link,” Langdon said. “Going to the final, Brian (Crew Chief Brian Husen) and I knew there was only one thing to do: put a tune-up in it and hope the track will hold it. We knew we had to go low 3.70s, and I knew I had to do my job on the tree – it was the only way to beat a team like Doug and AJ (Crew Chief Alan Johnson). Obviously, regardless of the outcome, it’s a good day for Kalitta Motorsports, Kalitta Air Careers, Dayco, Revchem, SealMaster and Connie Kalitta – he had a smile on his face, and at the end of the day, that’s something we always want to see.
“We appreciate everybody coming today – the sold-out crowd speaks volumes about all the great fans here in Arizona, we thank you guys very much. I do have to give a shout out to our clutch guy Jeff (Leister). He had a health scare coming back from Gainesville, so hopefully he’s watching and has a smile on his face. This Wally’s for you, Jeff. We miss you and can’t wait for you to come back.”
Doug Kalitta was the No. 1 qualifier at the NHRA Arizona Nationals. It was his first No. 1 qualifier of the season and the 60th of his career. During the Friday evening qualifying session, Kalitta’s SealMaster dragster was the only car to make a run in less than 3.70 seconds. Kalitta’s 3.688-second pass at 330.39 mph was good enough to take the top-qualifying position. It was Kalitta’s third Phoenix No. 1 qualifier in the last four years.
Kalitta defeated Travis Shumake in the first round. After a second-round bye, he defeated Jasmine Salinas to set up the all-Team Kalitta final round against his teammate, Shawn Langdon. It was the first all-Kalitta final round since the Richmond, Va., race last summer which Kalitta won. Kalitta made an excellent 3.770-second pass at 325.43 mph, but Langdon’s 3.724-second run at 330.39 mph won the race. Langdon’s margin of victory was .0723 seconds. It was the 65th runner-up finish of Kalitta’s career and his 119th final round.
When Kalitta advanced to the semifinals, he earned a spot in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge next week in Pomona, Calif. During Saturday’s qualifying sessions, the drivers who reached the semifinals in Phoenix will re-run the semifinals and final earning additional purse and championship bonus points.
Kalitta leaves Phoenix in third place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings. He trails second-place Antron Brown by 18 points and leads fourth-place Jasmine Salinas by 16 points.
“My guys did an awesome job – Alan, Mac (Crew Chief Alan Johnson and Assistant Crew Chief Mac Savage) and this whole SealMaster Toyota team were happy to have an all-Kalitta final,” Kalitta said. “Putting the SealMaster team in a position to win is what it’s all about out here, and it was really cool to have both Kalitta cars in the final. Shawn got us by a little bit, but it was really close racing out there. Really wish we could have gotten SealMaster a win, but we’ll drag it to Pomona and see if we can get it done next week. Pomona’s been a great track for me over the years, and my guys are hungry. Thanks to Mac Tools, Revchem, Mobil 1 and everyone else that supports us out here.”
J.R. Todd was the No. 9 qualifier at the NHRA Arizona Nationals. Todd’s DHL GR Supra made four quality qualifying attempts, and his Saturday afternoon attempt was the second-quickest of the session. Todd’s best qualifying attempt came during the Friday evening session when he reached the finish line in 3.939 seconds at 329.58 mph.
Todd and the DHL Toyota team defeated Daniel Wilkerson in the first round before losing to Bob Tasca in the second round. Todd’s first-round win was the 350th of his career.
Todd leaves Phoenix in 11th place in the NHRA Funny Car point standings. He trails the drivers tied for ninth place, Bob Bode and Cruz Pedregon, by one point and leads 12th-place Buddy Hull by three points.
“The DHL GR Supra team struggled getting down the track today – both rounds were pretty much the same run – we just struggled in that left lane,” Todd said. “Like I keep saying, it’s a work in progress. The more runs we make down the track, the more we’re learning; you can’t learn if you don’t go down the track. We’re taking it step-by-step (with new Crew Chief Dickie Venables), and that’s the way to go. We made some really good runs in the heat yesterday on new asphalt so that shows we’re making progress for everyone that helps make it happen – DHL, SealMaster, Revchem and Elliot’s Golf Carts. Everybody’s being patient – we all know it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
This story was originally published on March 24, 2025. 
