Top Fuel’s Shawn Langdon has Hopes for Another All-Kalitta Final at Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals

NORWALK, OH – June 26, 2024 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Last weekend in Richmond represented an ideal scenario for Kalitta Motorsports in the Top Fuel ranks and standout driver Shawn Langdon would love to see that continue – with one minor change – at this weekend’s 18th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at world-class Summit Motorsports Park.

Langdon and points leader Doug Kalitta met in the final round on Sunday at Virginia Motorsports Park, with Kalitta getting the win and his third victory of the season. It was a great moment for the team and Langdon is hopeful for another opportunity this weekend in Norwalk, which serves as the home track for Kalitta Motorsports.

The only difference, of course, is Langdon would like to get the win in his 11,000-horsepower Kalitta Air Careers dragster, which also give him three victories in what has been a massive turnaround season for the former world champion.

Kalitta and Langdon are first and second in points approaching the halfway mark of the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season, rolling to five wins in the first nine events. It’s been an ideal start and Langdon is hoping it continues at “America’s Racetrack” to close out a stretch of four races in five weeks.

“You know Norwalk will pack the stands. The Bader family does a great job promoting their track,” Langdon said. “It’s definitely exciting to get back there every year to experience the great atmosphere. Hopefully we can make this ‘two Kalitta cars in the final’ thing a trend. It’s the home track for Kalitta so it’ll be an extremely busy weekend which is going to be awesome. I think everybody’s going to be riding the high from last week in Richmond of both cars being in the final. I think everyone’s eager to get out there. We’ll have a lot of Kalitta people there to enjoy it.”

Last year, Leah Pruett (Top Fuel), Blake Alexander (Funny Car), Matt Hartford (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana Jr. (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all took home wins at an event that will again be broadcast on FOX and FS1, including eliminations on FOX starting at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday. It is the 10th of 20 races during the 2024 season and it’s a loaded weekend that includes a spectacular fireworks show after Friday qualifying, the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge on Saturday and eliminations on Sunday.

Langdon will take part in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge on Saturday, facing off with Antron Brown, while the other…