YPSILANTI, Mich. (Oct. 7, 2025) – Doug Kalitta is in an excellent position at the moment, but if years of experience driving Top Fuel dragsters taught him anything, it’s that things can change in an instant. The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs continue with the fourth of six playoff races Oct. 10-12 at the Texas NHRA FallNationals in Ennis, Texas.
Kalitta and his Mobil DELVAC 100th Anniversary Toyota team feel good about what they accomplished in the first half of the playoffs. Kalitta has one win in three final rounds in the first three of six playoff races, yet he and his team completely understand that much more work lies between themselves and their ultimate goal. Kalitta leads the Top Fuel class by 86 points with three races remaining. It’s an excellent position, but complacency is not an option.
“The points can swing out here; it’s all about getting as many as you can,” Kalitta said. “For me, staying ahead would be nice. We’re very fortunate right now, but we’ll see how it shakes out; being ahead is definitely where we want to stay, but it’s gonna take every point you can possibly get with the Top Fuel group; everybody’s running strong.
“The mood is good; really, you just do the best you can each round, and on Sunday, it’s all about going rounds, trying to get to the final and trying to get that win. We try not to get too caught up in the points thing; it’ll catch up to itself at the end of the day, so we just have to focus on getting the job done.”
Kalitta leads second-place Justin Ashley by 86 points and his teammate, third-place Shawn Langdon, by 127 with fourth-place Tony Stewart just 26 points behind Langdon. While several teams remain very much in the hunt for the 2025 Top Fuel title, Kalitta has one advantage nobody else can claim: his crew chief, Top Fuel tuning guru Alan Johnson, who has 13 Top Fuel championships, including Kalitta’s 2023 title, with seven different drivers.
“I’m so fortunate to have (Crew Chief) Alan Johnson and all the guys that work on my car,” Kalitta added. “They’re doing one heck of a job; it’s hell of a team effort. With Alan, Mac (Assistant Crew Chief Mac Savage) and my whole Mobil DELVAC group, it’s amazing to me they’re able to go down the track and put up good runs in all the different conditions. I feel very fortunate with my team. Alan has a hell of a reputation for being able to get the most out of a car at any track temperature and day so I’m in a good spot. We just have to do the best we can and see how it comes out.
“Just knowing the confidence I’ve got with the group behind me – we’re qualifying well, so we really just need to keep doing what we’re doing. It’s just going there, do your thing, hit the tree well and try to accumulate as many points as possible. It’s really all about winning these races. You have to take them one by one as seriously as you can. Each round between now and the end of the year is going to be super important.”
Kalitta’s car will carry special Mobil DELVAC 100th Anniversary livery this week in celebration of the brand’s historic milestone. Team Kalitta is visiting the ExxonMobil headquarters with both of its Top Fuel dragsters on its way to the Texas FallNationals, and both cars will do a pre-run warmup onsite. Should Kalitta and team pull off a win this weekend, it will be with Mobil DELVAC guests in attendance.
“Mobil 1 always has our backs with everything they do on the track and off the track,” Kalitta added. “We are fortunate to have Mobil 1 behind us, and Texas is a perfect area for them – I think that’s where they have the most activity with some of their customers and vendors. We look forward to having them in our hospitality and definitely hoping to win the race for them.”
Race Information: Texas NHRA FallNationals Texas Motorplex; Ennis, Texas
TV Schedule (All times eastern):
(NFL adjacent broadcast before or after NFL game; check local listings.)
2024 NHRA Texas NHRA FallNationals Recap: Qualified No. 10; lost to Clay Millican.
Doug Kalitta Career Stats: 624 events, 58 wins, 67 runners-up, 833 round wins, 66 No. 1 qualifiers.
2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Results to Date (Wins in Italics):
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Kalitta and his Mobil DELVAC 100th Anniversary Toyota team feel good about what they accomplished in the first half of the playoffs. Kalitta has one win in three final rounds in the first three of six playoff races, yet he and his team completely understand that much more work lies between themselves and their ultimate goal. Kalitta leads the Top Fuel class by 86 points with three races remaining. It’s an excellent position, but complacency is not an option.
“The points can swing out here; it’s all about getting as many as you can,” Kalitta said. “For me, staying ahead would be nice. We’re very fortunate right now, but we’ll see how it shakes out; being ahead is definitely where we want to stay, but it’s gonna take every point you can possibly get with the Top Fuel group; everybody’s running strong.
“The mood is good; really, you just do the best you can each round, and on Sunday, it’s all about going rounds, trying to get to the final and trying to get that win. We try not to get too caught up in the points thing; it’ll catch up to itself at the end of the day, so we just have to focus on getting the job done.”
Kalitta leads second-place Justin Ashley by 86 points and his teammate, third-place Shawn Langdon, by 127 with fourth-place Tony Stewart just 26 points behind Langdon. While several teams remain very much in the hunt for the 2025 Top Fuel title, Kalitta has one advantage nobody else can claim: his crew chief, Top Fuel tuning guru Alan Johnson, who has 13 Top Fuel championships, including Kalitta’s 2023 title, with seven different drivers.
“I’m so fortunate to have (Crew Chief) Alan Johnson and all the guys that work on my car,” Kalitta added. “They’re doing one heck of a job; it’s hell of a team effort. With Alan, Mac (Assistant Crew Chief Mac Savage) and my whole Mobil DELVAC group, it’s amazing to me they’re able to go down the track and put up good runs in all the different conditions. I feel very fortunate with my team. Alan has a hell of a reputation for being able to get the most out of a car at any track temperature and day so I’m in a good spot. We just have to do the best we can and see how it comes out.
“Just knowing the confidence I’ve got with the group behind me – we’re qualifying well, so we really just need to keep doing what we’re doing. It’s just going there, do your thing, hit the tree well and try to accumulate as many points as possible. It’s really all about winning these races. You have to take them one by one as seriously as you can. Each round between now and the end of the year is going to be super important.”
Kalitta’s car will carry special Mobil DELVAC 100th Anniversary livery this week in celebration of the brand’s historic milestone. Team Kalitta is visiting the ExxonMobil headquarters with both of its Top Fuel dragsters on its way to the Texas FallNationals, and both cars will do a pre-run warmup onsite. Should Kalitta and team pull off a win this weekend, it will be with Mobil DELVAC guests in attendance.
“Mobil 1 always has our backs with everything they do on the track and off the track,” Kalitta added. “We are fortunate to have Mobil 1 behind us, and Texas is a perfect area for them – I think that’s where they have the most activity with some of their customers and vendors. We look forward to having them in our hospitality and definitely hoping to win the race for them.”
Race Information: Texas NHRA FallNationals Texas Motorplex; Ennis, Texas
TV Schedule (All times eastern):
- Qualifying Show: 10 a.m.-Noon Sunday, Oct. 12 on FS1
- Finals: 2-4 or 4:30-6:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12 on FOX
(NFL adjacent broadcast before or after NFL game; check local listings.)
2024 NHRA Texas NHRA FallNationals Recap: Qualified No. 10; lost to Clay Millican.
Doug Kalitta Career Stats: 624 events, 58 wins, 67 runners-up, 833 round wins, 66 No. 1 qualifiers.
2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Results to Date (Wins in Italics):
- Gainesville: Qualified No. 4; defeated Ida Zetterstrom; lost to Steve Torence.
- Phoenix: Qualified No. 1; defeated Travis Shumake, Bye and Jasmine Salinas; lost to Shawn Langdon.
- Pomona: Qualified No. 2: defeated Scott Palmer before losing to Tony Stewart.
- Las Vegas: Qualified No. 1: defeated Clay Millican, Bye, lost to Tony Stewart and Justin Ashley.
- Charlotte: Qualified No. 1; Lost to Tony Stewart, Clay Millican and Lex Joon.
- Chicago: Qualified No. 1; defeated Lex Joon and Josh Hart, lost to Justin Ashley.
- Epping: Qualified No. 1; defeated Bye and Ida Zetterstrom; lost to Brittany Force.
- Bristol: Qualified No. 9; lost to Josh Hart.
- Richmond: Qualified No. 7; defeated Antron Brown and Clay Millican; lost to Justin Ashley
- Norwalk: Qualified No. 15; defeated Antron Brown; lost to Clay Millican.
- Seattle: Qualified No. 1; defeated Bye and Justin Ashley; lost to Brittany Force.
- Sonoma: Qualified No. 2; defeated Ron August, Jr., Josh Hart, Bye and Antron Brown.
- Brainerd: Qualified No. 1; defeated Terry Totten, Bye, Billy Torrence and Clay Millican.
- Indianapolis: Qualified No. 4; Defeated Tony Schumacher, lost to Justin Ashley.
- Reading: Qualified No. 3; defeated Antron Brown, Tony Stewart and Steve Torrence; lost to Shawn Reed.
- Charlotte: Qualified No. 2; defeated Josh Hart & Bye, Antron Brown & Steve Torrence; lost to Justin Ashley.
- St. Louis: Qualified No. 1; defeated Will Smith, Steve Torrence, Justin Ashley and Ida Zetterstrom.
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