Qatar Al-Anabi racing team battling to improve

Agencies/Commerce, Georgia

Dubai rookie driver Khalid alBalooshi, near lane, races Terry McMillen in the first round of eliminations during the NHRA Summit Racing Equipment Nationals in Commerce, Georgia. PICTURE: Ron Lewis

The Qatar Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel Team, the two-time, defending NHRA Full Throttle Top Fuel World Championship team owned by HE Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad al- Thani, continued the learning process that will eventually return the team to the NHRA winner’s circle during the NHRA Summit Racing Equipment Nationals just north of Atlanta, Georgia. It was the seventh of 23 races making up the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.Al-Anabi silver driver Shawn Langdon was the No. 3 qualifier at the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals; it was his second-best qualifying effort of the season. However, Langdon lost to Clay Millican in the first round of eliminations. He dropped into a tie with Doug Kalitta for sixth place in the NHRA Full Throttle Top Fuel point standings.They trail fifth-place Steve Torrence by 82 points.“Every person on the Al-Anabi team is trying really hard, but we don’t have the results we want yet,” Langdon said. “We are working on some things to make the race cars better in the long run. It’s just going to take a little bit more time to get it figured out, but we’re testing with both cars tomorrow so we can hopefully speed up the process a little bit. We’ll be ready to go when we get to Topeka in two weeks.” (Note: Testing is when the team stays at the track on which the NHRA national event has just been completed to make several practice runs during a day to work on things that will help the race team improve).Dubai rookie driver Khalid alBalooshi made four solid qualifying passes for the second time in as many races, and he had high hopes for his first round win of the season on Sunday. AlBalooshi raced the No. 9 qualifier, Terry McMillen. Both cars lost traction during the run creating a tire-smoking battle between two drivers fighting for a win.When the tires lose traction, the driver lifts his foot off the throttle and quickly puts it back on. With more experience than the rookie driver, McMillen defeated alBalooshi in the first round.AlBalooshi remains 13th in the NHRA Full Throttle Top Fuel point standings. He trails 12th-place McMillen by 20 points and leads 14th-place Troy Buff by 138 points. “We still have not found our luck yet,” alBalooshi said. “We are all working hard to get better and win. It hasn’t happened yet, but I know our Al-Anabi team is getting better and better. Tomorrow we are testing both cars so I am happy to get more seat time while the Al-Anabi crew works on the cars to make us better.”The Al-Anabi Racing team will be back in action May 18-20, 2012 at the NHRA Dollar General Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka in Topeka, Kan.