CONCORD, N.C. – Picking up his second victory of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season, Shawn Langdon was already riding high on Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway.
Things could be about to get even better for the former Top Fuel world champ and current Funny Car standout as he heads to the location of his first victory in the Funny Car class.
Langdon broke through in Charlotte earlier this year, winning the four-wide race in his 11,000-horsepower Global Electronic Technology Toyota Camry to grab his first victory in the new class. Langdon earned his first Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship Funny Car win on Sunday in St. Louis, which only adds to the confidence Langdon is feeling as he returns to state-of-the-art zMAX Dragway for a second time this year for the NTK NHRA Carolina Nationals, Oct. 11-13. Coming off the victory, Langdon’s mindset is simple heading to the halfway point of the playoffs.
“My thoughts are let’s try to win (in Charlotte) and get into the top five,” Langdon said. “It’s just following (team owner) Connie Kalitta’s vision. He’s just got so much passion and it just flows through the organization. I love racing for the guy. He’s a great motivator and leader, and we just follow his vision. It’s just really one joint effort. We’ve got four great cars and teams, and it’s a great feeling to be a part of it.”
Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Ron Capps (Funny Car), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were last year’s winners of the event. It is the third of six races in the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship, and the 21st of 24 races during the NHRA season, and Langdon may have turned things around at the perfect time.
Competing in his second year in Funny Car, Langdon and his team, led by co-crew chiefs Del Worsham and Nick Boninfante, got off to slow playoff start, opening the playoffs in ninth and falling in the opening round in Reading. That put the onus on performing well in St. Louis if the team wanted to salvage a strong year, and Langdon came through in impressive fashion. He had a memorable come-from-behind win in the second round, slipped past Bob Tasca III to move into the final and then beat Kalitta Motorsports teammate and defending world champ J.R. Todd in the final round, keeping visions alive of a big finish.
“It was a great morale booster for the whole team,” said Langdon, who moved to seventh in points. “We felt like we’ve had a car that’s been capable of winning for a while now, we just seemed to be running into the buzz saw and the low ETs of every round. We felt like we just needed that one round to turn it around. I felt like we had a big day (Sunday). The car was flawless for me to drive.”
Langdon still needs more wins if he wants to compete for a title, which makes returning to Charlotte a good thing. He impressed in the spring and will look to do so this fall, but it won’t be easy in a loaded class. Points leader Robert Hight leads Langdon by 80 points, while he will also have to get past the likes of 16-time world champ John Force, Jack Beckman, Tasca and defending event winner Capps. But Langdon was thrilled with how the team responded under duress in St. Louis, and he’s hopeful it’s a sign of what’s to come to finish the season.
“Any time you can get a win in the Funny Car class it builds momentum, especially early (in the Countdown),” said Langdon, who has 16 career wins. “From the situation we were in, starting the Countdown in ninth place, there’s not a lot of room for error. Then just having a bad race in Reading and dropping to tenth, we had to make some big changes for St. Louis. If we didn’t make the finals (on Sunday), we weren’t going to have a shot (at a title).”