NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

This season doesn't look a whole lot like the last for Shawn Langdon and his Kalitta Air Careers Top Fuel team. Rebounding from one of the toughest years in his nitro-fueled career, the 41-year-old entered his 15th season in the Pro ranks with a momentous win and got busy building on the fresh start. 

"There were a lot of changes in the offseason, so we had a lot of unknowns going into this year. We knew the potential we had, it was just a matter of everything falling into place," said Langdon, whose team is led by newly appointed crew chief Brian Husen this year. 

To the Kalitta team's collective relief, the season began with a momentous win — Langdon's Top Fuel victory at the season-opening Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals was his first since sweeping the 2020 NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, and it also marked the first double-up in the history of Kalitta Motorsports as J.R. Todd also drove the DHL Toyota Supra Funny Car to victory.

"That was a very special moment," said Langdon, a former Jr. Dragster competitor — and still an avid Sportsman and bracket racer — who made his nitro debut in 2009. "It was a little bit surprising to me that it hadn't been done before, having had so many successful drivers in the Kalitta organization for so long. 

"There was a neat moment for me in the winner's circle when we were taking pictures with J.R., I was sitting next to Connie and set the Wally on his knee. He looked at me and said, 'It doesn't get any better than this, does it?' I said, 'Nope, boss, it sure doesn't.' To be able to share a moment like that with Connie Kalitta was definitely something I will never forget." 

The celebratory glow had barely faded when he scored again, locking down his 17th Top Fuel win, 19th in a nitro class, and 27th of his diverse career behind the wheel at the NHRA Arizona Nationals in Phoenix.

After the brutal beating Langdon and company took at the end of the previous season that left him on the outside of the top 10 for the first time in his career, the second victory was validation that the Gainesville triumph wasn't a one-off. 

The trying period that preceded this year wasn't for naught, however, at least from Langdon's perspective. It gave him the opportunity to strengthen his fortitude. 

"We did have a terrible year in 2023, but we had a great team, and for whatever reason, the car just didn't respond to what they did. It's like being in a bad relationship; sometimes, things don't work out," he said. "Most times, you get away from the track, and it's like 'out of sight, out of mind.' But then you read people's opinions on social media, and you really have to learn to take things with a grain of salt. You learn how to not let those things hurt your feelings. It's funny to see the [change] of opinion this year.

"It's definitely been a nice breath of fresh air to have the turnaround we had in such an early fashion this year after struggling so bad last year, but the sport goes in big waves and circles. I've been fortunate to have a really good career for a long time, and I was bound to have one of those years. It sucks, no doubt, and it tests every ounce of you in every way — your patience, what you're doing, your love for the sport. It's hard losing every single week, but at the end of the day, this is what we do. You learn to take the bad with the good, and it just makes you better in the long run." 

For the first three races, the three-time world champion (2007 and 2008 Super Comp, 2013 Top Fuel) led the points for the first time since a strong 2015 start, and although a pair of early losses in the four-wide events tarnished his scorecard a bit, Langdon is preparing to shine as the remainder of this season unfolds.

The Southern California native and Indianapolis transplant has claimed a national event win at 14 different racetracks on the tour, but Route 66 Raceway is not one of them. He'll have a chance to change that at the upcoming Gerber Collision and Glass NHRA Route 66 Nationals on May 16-19. 

"We know what the team is capable of," said Langdon. "Brian has done an absolute fantastic job of not only getting the car set up for me but also getting the team to unite together. The guys have done a great job preparing the car, no mistakes, and all that being said — I know Brian is still going to have a learning curve. This is his first year as the crew chief making the final call, and he's going to have to test his instinct and learn where his boundaries are. But the mistakes we learn from now are just going to make us better and stronger at the end of the year.

"At the end of the day, I get to race for a legend: Connie Kalitta. There are days I have questioned a lot of things, but this is what I want to do. I love racing — it's just who I am. I had a lot of learning curves myself last year, both inside and outside the race car, but I kept my head down, kept working and trying to get better, and fortunately, things are starting to pay off. Hopefully, we can continue that trend."