ENGLISHTOWN, New Jersey: It was a magical moment for the Qatar Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel Team, the two-time World Championship team owned by Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Thani.
For the first time with the current drivers, both Al-Anabi cars lined up against each other with the winner taking the champion’s trophy for the just completed 44th annual Toyota NHRA Summernationals, the ninth of 24 races that make up America’s 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing season.
Khalid alBalooshi was the No. 2 qualifier equaling his career-best qualifying effort. Langdon was the No. 8 qualifier placing the Al-Anabi drivers on opposite sides of the eliminations ladder – if they raced each other on this day, it could only be in the final round of eliminations.
Both cars moved brilliantly through the eliminations rounds and seemed destined to meet in the finals.
AlBalooshi defeated Larry Dixon, Dom Lagana and seven-time world champion Tony Schumacher on his way to the finals.
Langdon defeated TJ Zizzo, No. 1 qualifier Clay Millican and Spencer Massey to set up the all-Al-Anabi final round. The final-round performance was simply breathtaking as the silver and gold Al-Anabi cars raced a tight battle to the finish line. In the end, Langdon’s 3.853-second run edged alBalooshi’s 3.869-second effort.
Langdon won his second-consecutive race, his third of the season and the fourth of his career.
With the dazzling Al-Anabi display, Langdon now leads the NHRA Mello Yello Top Fuel point standings by four points over Schumacher. AlBalooshi is now a career-best fifth place in the point standings. It was a wonderful weekend for the Qatar Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel team.
“It was a great day for the Al-Anabi team,” Langdon said.
“Great job by Khalid and the gold team. We had great calls all day long by (crew chief) Brian Husen and (team manager) Alan Johnson tuning the car. From the first round all the way through the final, we made really strong runs. That’s how we’ve been running lately, and we’re just riding a wave right now. We had the first all-Al-Anabi final round between alBalooshi and me so that was a great way to end the weekend.”
“It was just a great weekend for our entire Al-Anabi team,” alBalooshi said.
“Congratulations to Shawn and the silver team. Our Al-Anabi car was very good today, and I’m just so happy with what this team has been able to do. It just didn’t matter how hot it was or what the track temperatures reached because my crew chief, Jason McCullough, just gave me the magical set-up every time we went down the race track. We’re fifth in points now, so that’s good. I wish Sheikh Khalid could be here today, but I know he would have been very happy.”
“Before the final, alBalooshi said he was going to beat me,’ Langdon added.
The Peninsula
