\n| \u00a0<\/p>\n TOP FUEL\u2019S DOUG KALITTA LOOKS TO STAY AT THE TOP STARTING AT AMALIE MOTOR OIL NHRA GATORNATIONALS<\/strong><\/p>\nGAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 3, 2026) \u2013 For the second time in three years, Top Fuel veteran Doug Kalitta will start the season as the reigning world champion heading into this weekend\u2019s Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway, an impressive feat considering Kalitta\u2019s longtime quest to win a world title in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.<\/p>\n Kalitta will open NHRA\u2019s special 75th anniversary season as the driver everyone is chasing after a brilliant run in the second half of the 2025 campaign. He remained poised and consistent in the Countdown to the Championship, winning twice in the playoffs to capture a second world championship in his 12,000-horsepower Mac Tools dragster.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a moment Kalitta continues to treasure as he heads to Gainesville to open NHRA\u2019s milestone year. He\u2019ll have a chance to defend his title in the Right Trailers Top Fuel All-Star Callout specialty race as well. The bonus race takes place on Saturday and Kalitta enters as the No. 1 seed with the opportunity to have a magical weekend in Gainesville.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s really nice to go to the first race and have the No. 1 on your car, for sure,\u201d Kalitta said. \u201cThe first race kind of resets everything and it\u2019s off we go again. I\u2019m really proud of what our Mac Tools team accomplished last year. It\u2019s nice to have that number one back on the car for the year and seeing it there on the car never gets old. It\u2019s taken a while \u2013 we had a long time of trying to accomplish this goal, and it looks good on there, I think.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/files.constantcontact.com\/1c71db19601\/1e6324b8-0d90-4279-a156-661cdd634298.jpg?w=560&ssl=1\") <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n| Last year, Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Chad Green (Funny Car), Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all won on the hallowed grounds of Gainesville Raceway to open the year. This year\u2019s race will again be broadcast on FS1, including eliminations at 12 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 8.<\/p>\n It\u2019s the first of 20 races during the 2026 season and along with a full slate of racing, fans can expect a multitude of events to celebrate the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals and NHRA\u2019s 75th anniversary, including:<\/p>\n \n- Appearances from a host of NHRA legends during the event, including Kenny Bernstein, Don Garlits, Joe Amato, Don Prudhomme, Shirley Muldowney, Darrell Gwynn and Bob Frey.<\/li>\n
- A celebration of Bernstein\u2019s historic 300-mph run from 1992.<\/li>\n
- A free, limited-edition NHRA 2026 season poster to the first 6,500 fans in attendance on Sunday.<\/li>\n
- A new-look Nitro Mall, special displays and 75th anniversary stage in Nitro Alley.<\/li>\n
- Race winners will get the special NHRA 75th anniversary Diamond Wally, along with the Gatornationals traditional Golden Gator trophy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Kalitta would love to be the first to win the 75th anniversary Diamond Wally and he\u2019ll certainly be among the favorites in the loaded Top Fuel ranks. After riding high thanks to a season that included four victories and seven trips to the final round \u2013 along with eight No. 1 qualifiers \u2013 Kalitta enjoyed strong results at the test session in Gainesville two weeks ago.<\/p>\n That added to his confidence level and Kalitta has high hopes for what should be one of the biggest Gatornationals in recent memory.<\/p>\n \u201cTesting went very well,\u201d Kalitta said. \u201cThe car performed well. All the things you hope to find at a test session \u2013 we were able to work through a lot of issues, and I think we\u2019re hopefully in good shape. The car ran really well, but we always win testing. It\u2019s good to get everybody working again and doing our thing. We\u2019ll be ready to hit the ground running.\u201d<\/p>\n Joining Kalitta in the eight-car Callout will be teammate Shawn Langdon, Brown, racing legend Tony Stewart, Justin Ashley, Clay Millican, Shawn Reed and 2023 Callout winner Josh Hart.<\/p>\n Chad Green won his second career Funny Car race last season, beating three-time world champ Ron Capps. Austin Prock earned his second straight title and after a move to Tasca Racing, he\u2019ll look to keep rolling against four-time champ Matt Hagan, class newcomer Jordan Vandergriff, Jack Beckman and Daniel Wilkerson.<\/p>\n The 2025 Pro Stock season was dominated by KB Titan Racing, with standout star Dallas Glenn earning his first world title. Glenn will take on teammate Greg Anderson, six-time world champ Erica Enders, Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Aaron Stanfield.<\/p>\n Pro Stock Motorcycle\u2019s Gaige Herrera has never lost in Gainesville. Last year, he won his third straight, defeating rival Matt Smith. He\u2019ll look for four in a row against reigning world champ Richard Gadson, Angie Smith, Steve Johnson and Jianna Evaristo.<\/p>\n The weekend will also feature thrilling competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, Flexjet Factory Showdown and the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.<\/p>\n Before the race, fans are invited to the \u201cGatornationals Kickoff Party and Fanfest\u201d at Josh Hart\u2019s Burnyzz Speedshop in Ocala. In what\u2019s become an exciting pre-event tradition, the event will take place from 6-9 p.m. on Wednesday. The fun-filled kickoff event will include driver appearances and autographs at the facility and more.<\/p>\n Fans will also be invited all weekend long to the Nitro Alley Stage, which hosts Nitro School, meet and greets, music and more. Race fans in Gainesville can enjoy the special pre-race ceremonies that introduce and celebrate each of the drivers racing for the prestigious Wally on Sunday and includes the fan-favorite SealMaster Track Walk.<\/p>\n As always, fans get a pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction. Fans have a chance to see teams in action and service their cars between rounds, get autographs from their favorite NHRA drivers and more. Fans can visit NHRA\u2019s Nitro Alley, where sponsors and vendors create an exciting atmosphere that includes interactive displays, merchandise, and food and fun for the entire family.<\/p>\n NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying features two rounds at 1:30 and 4 p.m. ET on Friday, March 6, and the final two qualifying rounds on Saturday, March 7 at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 10 a.m. ET on Sunday, March 8.<\/p>\n The first round of the Right Trailers Top Fuel All-Star Callout takes place at 12:15 p.m. on Saturday, with the semifinals slated for 2:15 p.m. and the final round at 3:30 p.m. A special Callout broadcast will also air at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday on FS1.<\/p>\n To purchase tickets to the 2026 NHRA Gatornationals, fans can visit www.NHRA.com\/tickets<\/a>. Children 12 and under are free in general admission areas with the purchase of an adult ticket. For more information about the NHRA, visit www.nhra.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n <\/span><\/p>\nThe post DOUG KALITTA LOOKS TO STAY ON TOP AT NHRA GATORNATIONALS<\/a> appeared first on Drag Racing List<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u00a0 TOP FUEL\u2019S DOUG KALITTA LOOKS TO STAY AT THE TOP STARTING AT AMALIE MOTOR OIL NHRA GATORNATIONALS GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 3, 2026) \u2013 For the second time in three years, Top Fuel veteran Doug Kalitta will start the season as the reigning world champion heading into this weekend\u2019s Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-103144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=103144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103144\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=103144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=103144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=103144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}} | | | | | | |
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