TOP FUEL WINNER: Shawn Langdon, Kalitta Air Careers Dragster
Finals Broadcast Replay (eastern time): 8-11 p.m. Monday, June 1 on FS2
Qualifying: Shawn Langdon was the No. 1 qualifier at the NHRA Potomac Nationals. He set the Top Fuel track records for elapsed time and speed in the second qualifying session Friday afternoon when he reached the finish line in 3.758 seconds at 336.23 mph. It held until the final session Saturday afternoon when he ran a quicker elapsed time to reset his own track record with a 3.744-second effort at 334.90 mph. It was Langdon’s third No. 1 qualifier of the season, the 25th of his career and the fourth-straight Top Fuel No. 1 qualifier for Kalitta Motorsports.
Eliminations: Langdon had a first-round bye and then defeated Justin Ashley and Billy Torrence to advance to the second all Team Kalitta final round in the last three races against Doug Kalitta, and that final did not disappoint. The cars left the starting line almost together. Langdon’s 3.762-second run at 334.90 mph was just barely good enough to beat Kalitta’s 3.766-second effort at 334.24 mph to win the race by two ten thousandths of a second – approximately one inch at the finish line. It was Langdon’s third-straight win and his fourth of the season.
Unofficial Point Standings: Langdon leaves Maryland in first place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings. He leads second-place Kalitta by 76 points.
Langdon on Maryland: “That was a little too close for comfort, but when you race Doug Kalitta and (Crew Chief) Alan Johnson, you better be on your A game. Man, our Kalitta Air Careers team has been so good lately. They’ve given me a better race car than I deserve, but for all our partners, everybody at Kalitta Air, DHL, Mac Tools, Revchem and SealMaster, three in a row is bad ass – give it the hat trick!
“We had two Kalitta cars in the final round, and Connie (Team Owner Connie Kalitta) hasn’t been out the last couple of races. He’s been recuperating a little bit; we’re thinking about him. Can’t wait for him to come back. I never met a guy that loves drag racing more than me until I met Connie Kalitta. That guy is the epitome of drag racing. I’m very fortunate to be able to race his car and race against Doug. It’s been a tough week for a lot of us in the racing industry with (the death of) Kyle Busch; we’re definitely thinking about the Busch family. Hopefully, they know we love and support them.”
That’s three-straight wins for you and four-straight for the organization; why is this team clicking so well right now? “I think, a couple of years ago, bringing over Alan Johnson and (Crew Chief) Brian Husen and then (Mac Tools Crew Chief) Mac Savage on Doug’s car and (Assistant Crew Chiefs) Aaron Cave and Justin Groat on our car and all of our crew guys. It’s getting all the right guys together, and we really have, just across the board including the DHL (Funny Car) team, three great groups of guys. They all work so well together – everything’s clicking. We knew the potential of what we had three years ago – it was just a matter of time, getting the cars dialed in, getting the right parts and pieces, getting everybody on the same page. Alan and Brian won all those championships for a reason, and so for all of us, we just keep our mouths shut, keep our ears open, listen and learn.
“Winning cures about everything; this year’s been unbelievable. We had one little hiccup at the first race, but that’s just how good the team is – they bounced back, and now we’ve won three in a row. When this kind of thing happens, you just ride the wave because you never know how long it’ll last. A couple years ago, we didn’t finish in the top 10, and now we won three in a row. You ride the wave, enjoy it and soak it in, but you know what? The first thing we’re gonna do is get back, analyze it, and try to be better for the next race.”
Langdon Photo Courtesy: Kalitta Motorsports
Next Race: Team Kalitta will be back in action June 5-7, 2026 at the NHRA New England Nationals in Epping, N.H. For additional information, please visit www.nhra.com. For additional information on Kalitta Motorsports, please visit www.teamkalitta.com.
The post Shawn Langdon Wins Third Straight in All-Kalitta Final Round first appeared on Team Kalitta Motorsports.
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Finals Broadcast Replay (eastern time): 8-11 p.m. Monday, June 1 on FS2
Qualifying: Shawn Langdon was the No. 1 qualifier at the NHRA Potomac Nationals. He set the Top Fuel track records for elapsed time and speed in the second qualifying session Friday afternoon when he reached the finish line in 3.758 seconds at 336.23 mph. It held until the final session Saturday afternoon when he ran a quicker elapsed time to reset his own track record with a 3.744-second effort at 334.90 mph. It was Langdon’s third No. 1 qualifier of the season, the 25th of his career and the fourth-straight Top Fuel No. 1 qualifier for Kalitta Motorsports.
Eliminations: Langdon had a first-round bye and then defeated Justin Ashley and Billy Torrence to advance to the second all Team Kalitta final round in the last three races against Doug Kalitta, and that final did not disappoint. The cars left the starting line almost together. Langdon’s 3.762-second run at 334.90 mph was just barely good enough to beat Kalitta’s 3.766-second effort at 334.24 mph to win the race by two ten thousandths of a second – approximately one inch at the finish line. It was Langdon’s third-straight win and his fourth of the season.
Unofficial Point Standings: Langdon leaves Maryland in first place in the NHRA Top Fuel point standings. He leads second-place Kalitta by 76 points.
Langdon on Maryland: “That was a little too close for comfort, but when you race Doug Kalitta and (Crew Chief) Alan Johnson, you better be on your A game. Man, our Kalitta Air Careers team has been so good lately. They’ve given me a better race car than I deserve, but for all our partners, everybody at Kalitta Air, DHL, Mac Tools, Revchem and SealMaster, three in a row is bad ass – give it the hat trick!
“We had two Kalitta cars in the final round, and Connie (Team Owner Connie Kalitta) hasn’t been out the last couple of races. He’s been recuperating a little bit; we’re thinking about him. Can’t wait for him to come back. I never met a guy that loves drag racing more than me until I met Connie Kalitta. That guy is the epitome of drag racing. I’m very fortunate to be able to race his car and race against Doug. It’s been a tough week for a lot of us in the racing industry with (the death of) Kyle Busch; we’re definitely thinking about the Busch family. Hopefully, they know we love and support them.”
That’s three-straight wins for you and four-straight for the organization; why is this team clicking so well right now? “I think, a couple of years ago, bringing over Alan Johnson and (Crew Chief) Brian Husen and then (Mac Tools Crew Chief) Mac Savage on Doug’s car and (Assistant Crew Chiefs) Aaron Cave and Justin Groat on our car and all of our crew guys. It’s getting all the right guys together, and we really have, just across the board including the DHL (Funny Car) team, three great groups of guys. They all work so well together – everything’s clicking. We knew the potential of what we had three years ago – it was just a matter of time, getting the cars dialed in, getting the right parts and pieces, getting everybody on the same page. Alan and Brian won all those championships for a reason, and so for all of us, we just keep our mouths shut, keep our ears open, listen and learn.
“Winning cures about everything; this year’s been unbelievable. We had one little hiccup at the first race, but that’s just how good the team is – they bounced back, and now we’ve won three in a row. When this kind of thing happens, you just ride the wave because you never know how long it’ll last. A couple years ago, we didn’t finish in the top 10, and now we won three in a row. You ride the wave, enjoy it and soak it in, but you know what? The first thing we’re gonna do is get back, analyze it, and try to be better for the next race.”
Langdon Photo Courtesy: Kalitta Motorsports
Next Race: Team Kalitta will be back in action June 5-7, 2026 at the NHRA New England Nationals in Epping, N.H. For additional information, please visit www.nhra.com. For additional information on Kalitta Motorsports, please visit www.teamkalitta.com.
The post Shawn Langdon Wins Third Straight in All-Kalitta Final Round first appeared on Team Kalitta Motorsports.
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