Doug Kalitta and the Mac Tools Top Fuel team did everything they could to secure their first NHRA Mello Yello Top Fuel world championship. They raced to their third final round of the Countdown and won for the second time this year at Auto Club Raceway. At the end of the day winning the race was nearly enough for the veteran driver but he came up three points short and will end the season in the No. 2 position in Top Fuel. Kalitta defeated Terry McMillen, Justin Ashley, Leah Pritchett and teammate Richie Crampton in the final on the way to his 47th career Top Fuel win.
“I was real proud of the effort put in by this whole Mac Tools Toyota team today,” said Kalitta in the press room after his win. “Our goal today was to get to the final and we did that. In qualifying, with Steve Torrence getting above us in Q4 to take a 63-point lead it put us down three rounds and that was tough to make up. We ended up short, but we gave it all we could. Winning a championship is still on our bucket list. I love running here at Pomona and to come out of here with a win in the 60th year with Connie. He’s out here tuning Richie in the final and we knew he’d have it all tuned up. Connie’s an inspiration to me and everyone on our teams. He’s had a pretty impressive run and he still loves it. To have someone like that who’s so passionate is infectious to everyone involved.”
As the No. 6 qualifier Kalitta knew he would need to win the race and also get some help from competitors on the other side of the ladder. He entered race day in the No. 3 point position trailing the point leader by 63 points. Kalitta needed Steve Torrence to falter before the semifinals in order to have a shot at the title. Kalitta took out Terry McMillen in the first round as the second pair of cars down the track. In the opening session he was not taking his opponent lightly laying down as 3.740 second run for the win.
“That was a real good run for us,” said Kalitta after the first round. “I am just real happy to get down there. Today is the day when the rubber hits the road. I am happy Richie was able to get the win behind us and we will just keep digging here.”
In the second round Kalitta faced off against newcomer Justin Ashley. In a wild race Ashley took a minor starting line advantage and as Kalitta was catching up to him Ashley’s parachutes shook loose. The deployed chutes powered his dragster into tire smoke and dramatically slowed Ashley. Kalitta drove past him but the win was costly as he suffered a huge explosion just before the finish line destroying a motor in the process.
“The most excitement was in the second round when we just completely blew that thing up,” said Kalitta. “We just broke traction and legged it down. It was a hell of an explosion, then everybody chipped in and we got it together for the semis. Everyone just ran so hard and we ran a 3.73. I was so impressed with my guys.”
The semifinal race was a tough match-up with Leah Pritchett but Kalitta was up to the task racing to his fourth final round at the Auto Club Finals and 101st final round of his career. The race was never in doubt as Kalitta posted a winning elapsed time of 3.73 seconds as Pritchett was mixing up cylinders in the lane beside him posting a time of 3.908 seconds.
“It was definitely an interesting day,” said Kalitta from the top end after his 47th win. “We had hopes for the championship. Getting the win here with Mac Tools, Toyota, Red Line Oil and everybody that supports this team was special. I just couldn’t be happier with how it turned out today. Obviously Connie was throwing everything he had into Richie’s car. It was great having two Kalitta cars in the final. It was a good day and a good way to end the season.”
“We went in the right lane and I think both lanes were really good,” added Kalitta. “We figured Connie would have that thing tuned up. Rob (Flynn) and Troy (Fasching) tuned my car up to make sure we were going to stay ahead of them. It was a good run 3.71 but the conditions were getting good. This facility has gotten better as the weekend has gone on. The numbers were coming up towards the end of the day. I am just really glad we got by Richie since the last time we ran him in the final we got beat. I was thinking about that when I went out there but I have to say the Toyota guys are out there helping with everything about the track and all the information. They have been a big help.”
This was Kalitta’s fifth runner-up finish for the Top Fuel championship. The veteran driver finished second in 2016, 2006, 2004 and 2003.
Quotable:
Doug Kalitta on the fan and media reaction to his championship quest: “I’ve got a heck of a following. There are a lot of people who tell me how much they’d love to see me win a championship. I’d love nothing more than to get it done one of these years. So yeah, it’s one of those things that I’d love to be able to accomplish. We were only three points behind this year, so it’s good that we’re so competitive. We’re coming to these races and we’re running good. We came into the last day of the event with a chance to run for the championship.”
Statistics:
Qualified: No. 6 (3.717 sec., 326.24 mph)
Bonus points: 0
Race Details:
First Round
Driver Qual R/T ET MPH
Doug Kalitta 6 .052 3.740 328.38 (W)
Terry McMillen 11 .081 5.811 112.50
Second Round
Driver Qual R/T ET MPH
Doug Kalitta 6 .056 4.068 245.49 (W)
Justin Ashley 14 .051 4.705 157.74
Semifinal Round
Driver Qual R/T ET MPH
Doug Kalitta 6 .057 3.730 331.85 (W)
Leah Pritchett 2 .077 3.908 302.08
Final Round
Driver Qual R/T ET MPH
Doug Kalitta 6 .037 3.716 322.67 (W)
Richie Crampton 13 .077 4.884 154.28
Kalitta Motorsports PR