The Sonoma NHRA Nationals and Doug Kalitta have a strong history of success together. The championship contending Top Fuel racer is the winningest Top Fuel competitor in the history of the track. From 1998 to 2005 Kalitta picked up five victories at Sonoma Raceway and solidified his position as one of the greatest drivers to every take a win light. For Kalitta and the Mac Tools team the wins in the past are nice but a victory this weekend at the Sonoma NHRA Nationals would be a welcome addition to his resume.
“I have had a lot of success at Sonoma Raceway and I would love to get more wins there,” said Kalitta. “This weekend will be a good starting point to get some momentum heading to Indy for the U.S. Nationals and then the Countdown. We didn’t have great results in Denver but getting down to sea level we are hoping to get back in a winning groove.”
The five wins at the Sonoma Nationals have been bracketed around an additional runner-up finish in 2002. From 2000-2005 Kalitta raced to four final rounds and won three times. That kind of year to year
dominance is something Kalitta and the Mac Tools team is proud of for a variety of reasons.
“That stretch of wins in the early 2000s was great,” said Kalitta. “You just have a high level of confidence when you come back to a track year after year and have a lot of success. I know we can capture that success again. These guys working on this Mac Tools dragster are too good. I am really concentrating on doing my job as a driver.”
In addition to the five wins Kalitta also posted four No. 1 qualifiers at the Sonoma NHRA Nationals starting from the top of the field in 2012, 2004, 2003 and 1998. The cooler night time conditions contribute to low elapsed times and Kalitta is looking forward to Friday nights second session.
“You know the Friday night session will be the best chance to run a low number,” said Kalitta. “You want to get a solid run in the first qualifying session so you can be at the back of the pack. You can see what everyone else is running and set your tune-up from there. The track will be in great shape so I am excited about the possibilities to see some really quick times. We just want to be in the mix so we can get a favorable first round match-up on Sunday.”
2018 Sonoma NHRA Nationals Highlights: Qual. No. 9; Beat Steve Torrence, Clay Millican; Lost to Tony Schumacher
Last Event Recap (2019 Mile High NHRA Nationals): Qual. No. 10; Lost to Clay Millican
Quotable: Kalitta on heading to Sonoma: “We didn’t get a win in Denver so we will have to wait another year to try to sweep the Western Swing. Getting a win in Sonoma and then Seattle is our new goal. I am looking forward to getting off the mountain and back to sea level.”
Career Stats: 503 events, 496 starts, 669 round wins, 45 wins, 97 finals, 50 No. 1 qualifiers
2019 Season:
Winternationals: Qual. No. 7, WINNER; Beat Scott Palmer, Billy Torrence, Terry McMillen and Steve Torrence
Arizona Nationals: Qual. No. 5; Beat Jim Maroney; Lost to Jordan Vandergriff
Gatornationals: Qual. No. 11; Beat Terry McMillen, Steve Torrence; Lost to Clay Millican
Las Vegas1: Qual. No. 7; Beat Terry McMillen and Steve Chrisman; Beat Steve Torrent and Richie Crampton; Lost to Mike Salinas and Brittany Force
Houston: Qual. No. 8; Beat Terry McMillen; Lost to Brittany Force
Charlotte1: Qual. No. 4; Beat Richie Crampton and Lex Joon; Lost to Clay Millican and Leah Pritchett
Atlanta: Qual. No. 3; Lost to Shawn Reed
Richmond: Qual. No. 5; Lost to Scott Palmer
Chicago: Qual. No. 5; Beat Shawn Reed, Pat Dakin; Lost to Mike Salinas
Topeka: Qual. No. 5; Beat Leah Pritchett; Lost to Antron Brown
Bristol: Qual. No. 1; Beat Cameron Ferre, Terry McMillen; Lost to Mike Salinas
Norwalk: Qual. No. 13; Beat Clay Millican; Lost to Steve Torrence
Epping: Qual. No. 3; Lost to Terry McMillen
Denver: Qual. No. 10; Lost to Clay Millican
Kalitta Motorsports PR
