Maddi Gordon, the driver of the Carlyle Tools Top Fuel dragster, continued gaining positive momentum in her rookie season at the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals today in Pomona, Calif. The talented Ron Capps Motorsports standout recorded a new career-best speed and elapsed time attempting to defeat Justin Ashley in the opening round of NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series competition. Although Gordon didn’t get the win light, it was a milestone event in front of a hometown crowd for the California native.
In addition to recording new personal bests and winning the first round of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, Gordon, the 100th woman in NHRA history to win a national event, had the honor of hosting NHRA Drag Racing legend Shirley Shahan, who captured victory No. 1 for women.
“I met Shirley at the Winternationals last year and she’s such a wonderful lady,” said Gordon. “I’ve been reading her book and learning more about her. It’s funny because she seems like this sweet lady who would be baking cookies for her grandkids but in reality, she’s bad to the bone! It was really cool to have her out here. She’s like drag racing royalty so the fact that she was hanging out with us, wearing green, was a big honor.”
While Gordon lost traction and had to shut off early in the first Friday session, the Carlyle team quickly found their groove and came back with a stellar pass of 3.819 seconds at 326.56 mph.
On Saturday, Gordon pulled double duty in qualifying, competing in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, wherein the semifinalists from the previous race get a chance at redemption. In the first round of competition for the race-within-a-race, Gordon got the starting line advantage over former world champion Shawn Langdon. She held on to that lead, crossing the finish line in 3.831 seconds at 317.34 mph. In the process, Gordon earned one bonus point for making the third-quickest pass of the session.
“We’re two to one against Shawn Langdon now,” remarked Gordon. “That’s really exciting. He’s mentored me a lot, so it’s a big deal to run against him. He’s one of the best out there. That was really cool.”
In her first Mission #2Fast2Tasty final, which also served as the last qualifying opportunity for drivers, Gordon faced Doug Kalitta. As the two rolled up to the starting line, a real-time fan poll showed that approximately 75% of fans expected Gordon to defeat the Top Fuel veteran. The pair put on a show as they both made their quickest passes of the weekend, but ultimately, Kalitta turned on the win light. Gordon’s 3.798 at 327.98 landed her in the No. 8 spot on the competition ladder.
After morning showers delayed the start of eliminations Sunday, Gordon and Ashley were the first pair on the track. In the Top Fuel Marquee Matchup, Ashley got the starting line advantage, and while Gordon made a blistering pass of 3.744 at 334.15, it was not enough for Ashley’s 3.714 at 332.43.
“We all hate to lose,” said Gordon. “But Rob (Flynn, crew chief) said we can’t hang our heads about how we did today. I had my career-best E.T. and mile per hour, but not my career-best reaction time. As a driver, that’s what I look at because that’s what I want to provide for the team. It was really cool going down the track after all the rain. Rob and Troy (Fasching, crew chief) got it right down Broadway. We made our best run yet in conditions we’ve never had. It shows just how good this team is and how well we can adapt to different conditions. Losing sucks, but running a career-best mile per hour and E.T. definitely does NOT suck!”
The weekend ended on a high note for Gordon and her family when her father, Doug Gordon, raced to victory in the Top Alcohol Funny Car category.
Gordon will continue her Rookie of the Year campaign in two weeks when the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series travels to Charlotte for the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMax Raceway.
Qualified: No. 8 (3.798 E.T. at 327.98 MPH)
Elimination Round Results:
E1: 3.744 E.T. at 334.15 MPH defeated by Justin Ashley 3.714 E.T. at 332.43 MPH
Continue reading...
In addition to recording new personal bests and winning the first round of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, Gordon, the 100th woman in NHRA history to win a national event, had the honor of hosting NHRA Drag Racing legend Shirley Shahan, who captured victory No. 1 for women.
“I met Shirley at the Winternationals last year and she’s such a wonderful lady,” said Gordon. “I’ve been reading her book and learning more about her. It’s funny because she seems like this sweet lady who would be baking cookies for her grandkids but in reality, she’s bad to the bone! It was really cool to have her out here. She’s like drag racing royalty so the fact that she was hanging out with us, wearing green, was a big honor.”
While Gordon lost traction and had to shut off early in the first Friday session, the Carlyle team quickly found their groove and came back with a stellar pass of 3.819 seconds at 326.56 mph.
On Saturday, Gordon pulled double duty in qualifying, competing in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, wherein the semifinalists from the previous race get a chance at redemption. In the first round of competition for the race-within-a-race, Gordon got the starting line advantage over former world champion Shawn Langdon. She held on to that lead, crossing the finish line in 3.831 seconds at 317.34 mph. In the process, Gordon earned one bonus point for making the third-quickest pass of the session.
“We’re two to one against Shawn Langdon now,” remarked Gordon. “That’s really exciting. He’s mentored me a lot, so it’s a big deal to run against him. He’s one of the best out there. That was really cool.”
In her first Mission #2Fast2Tasty final, which also served as the last qualifying opportunity for drivers, Gordon faced Doug Kalitta. As the two rolled up to the starting line, a real-time fan poll showed that approximately 75% of fans expected Gordon to defeat the Top Fuel veteran. The pair put on a show as they both made their quickest passes of the weekend, but ultimately, Kalitta turned on the win light. Gordon’s 3.798 at 327.98 landed her in the No. 8 spot on the competition ladder.
After morning showers delayed the start of eliminations Sunday, Gordon and Ashley were the first pair on the track. In the Top Fuel Marquee Matchup, Ashley got the starting line advantage, and while Gordon made a blistering pass of 3.744 at 334.15, it was not enough for Ashley’s 3.714 at 332.43.
“We all hate to lose,” said Gordon. “But Rob (Flynn, crew chief) said we can’t hang our heads about how we did today. I had my career-best E.T. and mile per hour, but not my career-best reaction time. As a driver, that’s what I look at because that’s what I want to provide for the team. It was really cool going down the track after all the rain. Rob and Troy (Fasching, crew chief) got it right down Broadway. We made our best run yet in conditions we’ve never had. It shows just how good this team is and how well we can adapt to different conditions. Losing sucks, but running a career-best mile per hour and E.T. definitely does NOT suck!”
The weekend ended on a high note for Gordon and her family when her father, Doug Gordon, raced to victory in the Top Alcohol Funny Car category.
Gordon will continue her Rookie of the Year campaign in two weeks when the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series travels to Charlotte for the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMax Raceway.
Qualified: No. 8 (3.798 E.T. at 327.98 MPH)
Elimination Round Results:
E1: 3.744 E.T. at 334.15 MPH defeated by Justin Ashley 3.714 E.T. at 332.43 MPH
Continue reading...
