Dubai native Khalid alBalooshi deploys his parachutes to slow the Qatar Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel car following a 300 mph pass earlier this month in Brainerd, Minnesota. PICTURE: Gary Nastase
The U.S. Nationals is widely considered the biggest and most prestigious race of the American drag racing season, and the Qatar Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel team, the three-time and defending World Championship team owned by HE Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad al-Thani enters this weekend’s race as confident defending champions looking to win the prestigious event for the second-straight year.
Both Khalid alBalooshi’s gold team and Shawn Langdon’s silver team are confident in their cars and teams entering this weekend’s 60th annual Chevrolet Performance NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, Indiana, the 18th of 24 races making up the United States’ 2014 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.
Qualifying is set for today, Saturday and Sunday with eliminations scheduled for Monday.
Langdon is the defending champion of the U.S. Nationals and the Traxxas Nitro Shootout, a special event for the first seven 2014 race winners and an eighth driver voted into the race by the fans. Langdon’s Indianapolis double win last year was a dream-come-true weekend – it was a monumental success.
This year, the team is third in points entering the U.S. Nationals, the final race of the regular season, and last year’s brilliant U.S. Nationals performance gives Langdon and his silver Al-Anabi team a goal for 2014.
“Winning the U.S. Nationals last year ranked right up there next to winning the Mello Yello World Championship and the last race of the season the same weekend in Pomona (California) last November,” Langdon said.
“In this day and age, with the competition so intense in Top Fuel, being able to double up and put on a performance like the Al-Anabi team did last year, it’s tough to do. Everything has to fall into place just right for that to happen. We’re just excited to get back out there this week and give it a shot again.”
“It definitely gives us something to shoot for; that Traxxas Shootout is a tough race against the best cars of the season. It’s only race winners and the most popular driver that hasn’t won this year getting the last spot. You know you have the best of the best competing in the Traxxas Shootout, and then you have to do it all over again to win the U.S. Nationals in the same weekend. Those races just aren’t easy to win, but we’re going to do our best to repeat in both of them.”
AlBalooshi enters this weekend’s U.S. Nationals, following a fantastic performance in last weekend’s pre-U.S. Nationals test session. AlBalooshi’s gold Al-Anabi car was the quickest Top Fuel car of the two-day test session, and alBalooshi, who enters the race in a tie for seventh place in the season standings, knows his team is capable of equaling the success his teammate enjoyed at this event one year ago. “This year, I really feel way different about the U.S. Nationals,” alBalooshi said.
“I think we have a car that can compete with everybody. Our car is close to all of the fast cars, and especially with the good runs we made at the Indy test. We used some of our new stuff; Jason (crew chief Jason McCulloch) is using some of the new stuff with some things we have already been doing, and we feel good about the Indy race. Our gold Al-Anabi car was one of the fastest in testing, and we tried some new things. Everything was working in the test, and it was the same conditions like we are going to race so I feel good about the race this week.”
“We have our place in the Countdown (Countdown to the Championship NHRA Playoffs). I was not worried about that; our crew chief and all of our crew guys do their best, and we all know we have a car to race now. I think we can win the U.S. Nationals - if our car is working exactly how we want it to, and we catch a little luck, why not? I have to try my best on race day to catch a good light and put the car in the groove. I have to do my best on everything I can do. I am excited about this race because I know our car is good enough to win it.”