Pre-Race Team Kalitta Notes
Event: 2022 Thunder Valley Nationals
Race 9 of 22
Thunder Valley Dragway
Bristol, Tenn.
June 17-19, 2022
Race 9 of 22
Thunder Valley Dragway
Bristol, Tenn.
June 17-19, 2022
“This will be a busy and exciting weekend with the CMR Construction and Roofing team in Bristol,” said Langdon. “They always bring a ton of guests and love to be at the races. CMR CEO Steve and Chandra Soule have been amazing to work with since this relationship started in 2021. Bristol is a track with a lot of history and I would love to add to that with some win lights in this CMR Top Fuel dragster.”
Langdon has two previous wins at the Thunder Valley Nationals collecting Wally’s in 2014 and 2016. The CMR team is hoping to capitalize on the success from the New England Nationals two weeks ago when they raced to the semifinals in Epping, New Hampshire, from the No. 12 spot.
“We had a good race a couple of weeks ago and I feel like things are really coming together,” said Langdon, who has fifteen Top Fuel wins and two Funny Car national event wins. “We added (crew chief) Jason McCulloch over the off-season to work with Kurt Elliott and Connie Kalitta and he has been a great addition. This Top Fuel class is tough and we are battling every race.”
Langdon’s driving skills have been a huge asset for the 2013 Top Fuel champion with his starting line reaction times on race day contributing to the team’s success. Langdon is consistently at or near the top of the race-by-race reaction time averages. Including Langdon there are five current or former Top Fuel world champions filling up the top eleven spots in the point standings. With eight races left in the regular season the driver of the CMR Toyota Top Fuel dragster knows this is the time to start making a move to lock in a Top Ten position for the Countdown.
“You want to get as high as possible in the Top Ten heading into Indy since that is the last race before the cut-off for the Countdown,” said Langdon. “Everyone on this CMR Construction and Roofing team is focused on that. You can’t win a championship if you aren’t in the Countdown. This weekend will be a great opportunity for us to make a move headed into June and July.”
While Langdon will be keeping his focus on the track, he will also be spending time with guests and executives from CMR Construction & Roofing which has built a reputation for excellence over 20 years in business, ranking among the Top 100 Roofing Contractors every year since 2007. Their team is dedicated to delivering superior products, craftsmanship, and customer service to our commercial, government, and residential clients throughout the country. CMR has found a natural partnership with Kalitta Motorsports who fits perfectly with their motto, "When Speed Matters."
Langdon will get a chance to hit the track on Friday night with the rest of the Top Fuel field. Saturday will feature two qualifying sessions with the final eliminations getting started at noon ET on Sunday. The race will be broadcast nationally by Fox beginning at 3 p.m. ET.
“Last fall at Bristol I feel like we had a car that should have won that race,” said Todd. “We were running great all day and then in the final we did everything right, but it just wasn’t our day. I have a lot of confidence heading back there and I definitely feel like we have some unfinished business for sure.”
Todd has been racing a brand-new DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car all season and the veteran driver would like to be the first of the three Toyota Funny Car drivers to get into the winner’s circle. Two weeks ago Todd raced to the semifinals before losing to eventual New England Nationals winner Matt Hagan. The DHL team has been working on building consistency while figuring out the new dynamics of the Supra body, which by all accounts is a huge step forward for the team.
“I am excited about driving this DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car every race,” said Todd. “Everything about it is cool. It looks fast just sitting in our DHL pit area. When I get strapped in, I can see a lot better and I am getting more comfortable every race. Epping was a big step forward and now we just need to keep rolling in Bristol. I know (crew chiefs) Todd (Smith) and Jon O (Oberhofer) will be ready to go and so will all the Yella Fellas.”
Todd is solidly in the Funny Car Top Ten sitting sixth just over two rounds out of fifth place. With eight races left in the regular season Todd feels confident he can make an aggressive move up in the standings and be in a good spot for the playoff push at the end of the season.
“You can’t look too far ahead but these next two weeks and the Western Swing will be a great opportunity for our DHL Toyota team to make a move,” said Todd. “We have had good success at a lot of those tracks and this DHL team is hungry for another win.”
This weekend’s Thunder Valley Nationals will be broadcast nationally on the Fox network on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET. Three rounds of qualifying will precede race day with Todd and the DHL Toyota GR Supra getting qualifying underway on Friday night.
“We have had a lot of success in Bristol for sure,” said Kalitta. “I love that track and it is a Bruton Smith track so you know it will be nice. There is a lot of history in Bristol and the fans really turn out.”
Kalitta has raced to six final rounds at Thunder Valley Dragway collecting Top Fuel wins in 2001, 2005 and 2006. His runner-up finishes have been tallied in 2009, 2012 and most recently 2014 when he lost to now teammate Shawn Langdon. Kalitta is the second winningest Top Fuel driver in the history of the Thunder Valley Nationals
“It is great to go to a track where you have won some races, but we really want to get another win this weekend,” said Kalitta. “Everyone over here on this Mac Tools team has been busting their tails all season and we would love to see four win lights on Sunday.”
Throughout the season Kalitta has had one of the most dominant race cars in qualifying never starting a race lower than sixth on the ladder. He ran to his 51st career No. 1 qualifier at the Arizona Nationals. In three of the last four races he has been either the No. 3 or No. 4 qualifier. Two weeks ago Kalitta and the Mac Tools team jumped to No. 4 on the last qualifying run and raced to the quarterfinals where they were ousted by teammate Shawn Langdon.
“Our race car has been great in qualifying for sure and last week we had to race Shawn early which is tough,” said Kalitta. “The good news on those deals is you know someone from Kalitta Motorsports is going to the next round. This weekend I think we’ll be in good shape and I am looking forward to an exciting weekend.”
Three years ago in Bristol Kalitta started the race from the No. 1 qualifier spot and the veteran driver from Michigan raced to the semifinals. Qualifying for the Thunder Valley Nationals will begin Friday night with one session followed by two more qualifying runs on Saturday. Final eliminations will begin at noon. The Fox network will nationally broadcast the race beginning at 3 p.m. ET.
About Kalitta Motorsports
Based in Ypsilanti, Mich., Kalitta Motorsports is a Top Fuel and Funny Car drag racing team in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Camping World Drag Racing Series. The team was founded and is owned by drag racing icon Connie “the Bounty Hunter” Kalitta. For more than 60 years, Connie has been involved in the sport as a driver, tuner, and an owner. Kalitta Motorsports is one of the most successful teams in the history of auto racing with seven world championships and over 100 national event titles in five different professional drag racing sanctioning bodies since it was established by Connie in 1959.Kalitta Motorsports fields three full-time entries in the NHRA Camping World nitro classes. Connie Kalitta’s nephew, Doug Kalitta, pilots the Mac Tools Top Fuel dragster while 2013 NHRA Top Fuel world champion Shawn Langdon drives the DHL/Kalitta Air Top Fuel dragster. In Funny Car, 2018 NHRA Funny Car world champion J.R. Todd is the driver of the DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car. Connie Kalitta serves as head tuner for all Kalitta Motorsports entries. He is assisted by crew chiefs Todd Smith and Jon Oberhofer on the DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car, Kurt Elliott and Jason McCulloch on the DHL Top Fuel dragster and Alan Johnson and Brian Husen with Ronnie Thompson lead the efforts on the Mac Tools Top Fuel dragster.
