Dubai driver Khalid alBalooshi begins a run with Goodyear Tires gripping the race track in Seattle, Washington, earlier this month.
INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana: It is the world’s most prestigious drag race, and the Qatar Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel team, the two-time World Championship team owned by Sheikh Khalid Hamad Al Thani, is poised for excellence at this weekend’s 59th annual Chevrolet performance NHRA US Nationals, the 18th of 24 races making up the United States’ NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.
Qualifying is set for tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday with eliminations scheduled for Monday, the Labor Day holiday in the United States.
Nearly 1,000 competitors in 12 different racing categories will perform in front of the standing room-only crowd during the much-anticipated Labour Day weekend classic.
Qatar Al-Anabi Racing Top Fuel drivers Khalid alBalooshi and Shawn Langdon will be among the favourites to win the Top Fuel division of US Nationals.
The 59th annual running of the marquee event takes place at revered Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis just a few miles from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
AlBalooshi enters the US Nationals in fifth place in the NHRA Mello Yello Top Fuel point standings with a win in two final-rounds and having made three semi-final appearances. AlBalooshi has won 20 rounds of racing this season – six more than his win total during last year’s rookie campaign. The US Nationals is the biggest drag race in the world, and alBalooshi is ready navigate a busy weekend in the United States heartland.
“The US Nationals is very special,” alBalooshi said. “For the fans, it is the biggest race of the year, and it is always special. But if you are talking about the drivers and the crews, it has to be just another race. Everybody on our Al-Anabi team does his best every time the car runs, and it doesn’t matter what the race is. The driver, the crew chief and the crew must treat the US. Nationals like any other race. The Al-Anabi team has been very good this year. We are first in points, and we are fifth in points. Everyone on our team does his best every time the car goes down the track whether it’s testing, qualifying or racing, we do our best every time.”
With his win in Ohio earlier this summer, alBalooshi is the No. 4 seed in this weekend’s Traxxas Nitro Shootout, a special event with $100,000 going to the winner of the event, and the Dubai driver will face defending World Champion Antron Brown in the first round.
“I am excited to race in the Traxxas Shootout. Both Al-Anabi cars are in it, and I think we have a good chance to win it. So far this year, the Al-Anabi cars are two of the best cars in the show, and this time of the year, especially for the Indy race, I think we’ll have the best car and the best time. It doesn’t matter who we race – I think we have a good chance to win. I have had good luck against Antron (Brown) this season, but I know how good he is. I know how good his team is. When those guys catch it, they catch it good. No doubt about Antron – he won the championship last year; he is a very good racer, and I think it will be a very good race with him in the first round. Any car in the Traxxas Shootout can win it – I just hope it is Al-Anabi.”
Silver Al-Anabi driver Shawn Langdon enters the US Nationals with a 121-point lead over the rest of the Top Fuel field.
Should Langdon win his first-round match-up in Monday’s eliminations, he will clinch the top seed in the Countdown to the Championship NHRA play-offs – a season-long goal for Langdon and the silver Al-Anabi team.
“Since we clinched our spot in the Countdown in Denver, our goal has been to enter the play-offs as the top seed, and the Al-Anabi team is in position to do it,” Langdon said.
“It’s there; we just have to continue doing what we’ve been doing, and the rest will take care of itself. Obviously, if we were lucky enough to win Indy, it would be a huge accomplishment for our team. To be able to win Indy heading into the Countdown would get our momentum built up. I think we’ve been to 11 of the last 13 semi-finals so we’re right there.”
Langdon is the top seed in Saturday’s Traxxas Shootout; he will race the driver seeded eighth. That driver will be determined by a random drawing among Top Fuel drivers who have not yet won a race this season.
“The Traxxas Shootout is going to be tough because really, you pretty much have the best cars in the class,” Langdon said.
“You have eight of the best cars in a shootout for $100,000 – it’s basically the biggest payout of the year. It’s gonna be a battle. It’s a big race for the drivers, it’s a big race for the crew guys and it’s a big race for everybody involved. There’s a lot of bragging rights when you go into a shootout for the season’s biggest payday and have a chance to beat the best drivers in the class. Two of the eight drivers in this event are Al-Anabi drivers, and I hope one of us can win take the trophy Saturday night. Then we can focus on winning the US Nationals on Monday.” Al-Anabi Racing operates out of multiple locations in both the United States and Qatar.
In the US, the Brownsburg, Ind-based operation is a two-car NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series team that is managed by Alan Johnson Racing.
Sheikh Khalid’s initiative has created increased international awareness of the nation of Qatar while highlighting the nation’s international sports outreach.
Alan Johnson is a 14-time NHRA champion in various capacities including crew chief, team owner and team manager. THE PENINSULA
