DeJoria, Kalitta and Coughlin Jr. Win Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge at Sold Out NHRA Arizona Nationals

Kalitta, Tasca and C. Cuadra also claim No. 1 spots in front of huge crowd at
Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park

CHANDLER, AZ – March 26, 2023 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Alexis DeJoria claimed the victory in the first Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge as part of the NHRA Arizona Nationals, defeating J.R. Todd in the Funny Car final round of the bonus event on Saturday in front of a sold-out crowd at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park.

In the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel) and Troy Coughlin (Jr.) also picked up wins in the bonus event in Phoenix. Kalitta (Top Fuel), Bob Tasca III (Funny Car) and Cristian Cuadra (Pro Stock) all qualified No. 1 at the second of 21 races during the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.

DeJoria went 3.914-seconds at 324.51 mph in her 11,000-horsepower Bandero Premium Tequila Toyota GR Supra to knock off Todd, claiming the bonus purse and bonus points for the Countdown to the Championship playoffs. The win also took place at the site of her first Funny Car victory, which came in 2014 at Phoenix. She knocked off Matt Hagan to reach the final round of the Challenge and then easily drove past Todd when he went up in smoke to start the celebration.

“It’s really incredible to be able to do this here at this track. It really just makes even better memories of this track,” DeJoria said. “They just keep coming here. The track was a little tricky this weekend, so to make it down the track was a big deal. It feels really good to get that redemption and give that (bonus) check to my team. We’ll see what happens tomorrow, but today we’re going home with a win.”

Tasca claimed the No. 1 spot with a stout run of 3.898 at 329.50 in his 11,000-horsepower Ford Motorcraft/Quick Lane Mustang, giving the veteran his 10th career top spot. He was the only driver to make a run in the 3.80s in qualifying, giving Tasca plenty of confidence heading into eliminations. He’ll open raceday against Jim Campbell, racing for his first win of the year.

“Hats off to (crew chiefs) Todd (Okuhara) and Aaron (Brooks) and the whole team. They’re very different than anyone I’ve ever raced with,” Tasca said. “You saw all of the cars struggling, but they don’t care what anyone else runs. They just focus on what they believe we can run. I love racing here and it’s great to see a sellout crowd. It’s an iconic place and I’ve had so many great memories here.”

DeJoria finished second in…