Fans of the championship-winning Ron Capps Motorsports team might feel like they’re seeing double when Ron Capps and Maddi Gordon hit the track Friday night at this weekend’s NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis. Both Capps and Gordon’s 12,000-horsepower machines will sport the signature Carlyle Tools venom green at the 72nd running of the Big Go with Capps’ Funny Car decked out to match his Top Fuel teammate’s livery.
“We always like to do something a little extra special for Indy and with Maddi in the Carlyle car this year, and this being an event that’s sponsored by one of Carlyle’s competitors, we really wanted to play into that,” said Capps, a two-time U.S. Nationals champion, who will make his 31st appearance at the historic event this weekend. “It’s great that so many tool companies want to be involved with NHRA teams and invest their marketing dollars in our sport, and we really wanted to lean into that and have a little fun with the ‘tool wars.’”
In addition to driving a Carlyle Tools-branded Funny Car, Capps will swap his usual blue and yellow NAPA Auto Care firesuit for one that matches Gordon’s, while the team will wear Carlyle crew shirts.
Headquartered in nearby Brownsburg, Ron Capps Motorsports will be looking to sweep the nitro categories at its hometown event, a feat the fifth-year organization accomplished earlier this summer in Norwalk, Ohio when Capps scored his 80th Wally trophy and Gordon won her first Top Fuel race. Capps enters the weekend from the No. 3 position and within striking distance of reclaiming the No. 1 spot, a ranking he previously occupied through nine of the first 13 races thanks to his three wins in four final round appearances, while Gordon starts the weekend in fifth after advancing to her second Top Fuel final at the NHRA Brainerd Nationals. Just like her boss, Gordon has also previously visited the Indianapolis Raceway Park winner’s circle, having powered to victory at the 2024 Cleetus & Cars event during her two-year tenure driving a Top Alcohol Funny Car, but this weekend marks the Rookie of the Year contender’s professional U.S. Nationals debut.
“Obviously, we go into every event with our sights set on the winner’s circle, but I’d be lying if I said we weren’t gunning for it a little harder this weekend because let’s be honest, how sweet would it be for the Carlyle cars to get the W at Cornwell’s race,” added Capps. “Maddi and her team were so close in Brainerd. They’re just out there making lap after consistent lap, and there’s no one that doesn’t look at that team as a bonafide threat in the Countdown. As for our Funny Car team, we’re less than one round-win out of first. We stayed behind after Brainerd to test and feel really good about our chances of picking up a fourth diamond Wally trophy and reclaiming that No. 1 ranking to win the regular season championship.”
A limited-edition commemorative Carlyle Tools t-shirts featuring Capps and Gordon’s venom green machines will be available for purchase throughout the weekend at the Carlyle Tools Outlaw trailer in the Nitro Alley midway. Fans can get their shirts signed by Capps and Gordon during their multiple 30-minute Outlaw trailer appearances, scheduled for 5 p.m. ET on Friday, 10:30 a.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. Sunday. Qualifying for the NHRA U.S. Nationals gets underway on Friday, Sept. 4 at 7:30 p.m. ET. Broadcast coverage is scheduled for Sept. 6 – 7 on FS1 and FOX.
This story was originally published on September 1, 2026. 
The post Ron Capps Motorsports Goes All-In with Carlyle Tools at U.S. Nationals first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
