NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

No one who saw it, experienced it, or heard about it will ever forget "The Run" in 2006. For one man, though, that final round, national record-setting run on the final pass of the last race was more than just a shocking turn of events. For one man, "The Run" was a devastating blow that resulted in a gut-wrenching loss of a championship that nearly everyone who follows drag racing believed would be his. 

Sixteen years later, Doug Kalitta entered the 2022 season of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series with Alan Johnson as his tuner – the very gentleman that tuned Tony Schumacher to that stunning Hail Mary pass that ripped the championship from Kalitta's grasp in the final 4.42 seconds of the 2006 season.

"I've spent my whole career trying to beat that guy," said Kalitta. "It's good to finally have Alan Johnson and [crew chief] Brian Husen on my side of the fence."

Kalitta is leaning into this new year as a fresh start after a troubling 2021 that left him winless and with the No. 10 on the wing of his Mac Tools Top Fuel dragster – a position in the final standings that he hasn't occupied since 2007. The Ann Arbor, Mich., resident has never finished outside of the Top 10, and, in fact, he has occupied the No. 10 spot only twice. Kalitta has finished No. 5 or better 15 times, and on six occasions, he's closed out the season just one position short of the championship. 

The veteran driver who made his first start at the Pomona Winternationals in 1998 is off to a fairly good start in his 25th season, and he's more than willing to do his part to get the Mac Tools dragster to the winner's circle sooner rather than later.

"I'm pretty excited to have a car that's running like mine is. In Pomona and Gainesville, those were two real close races I got beat on," he said. "As a driver, you always wish you could have had a little better reaction time and won the round; I absolutely hate losing on close races. I've just got to stay focused on the job at hand, know I have a great group behind me, and relax. That's one of the things I'm realizing I need to do a little more of this year: have faith in the process."

Kalitta's history – he's just one win away from 50 national event trophies – is complemented nicely by Johnson's extraordinary scorecard. Johnson's name has been associated with some of the most recognized and decorated drivers in the sport, and over the past three decades, he's been at the helm for multiple world championships – he and Husen led Brittany Force to the 2017 Top Fuel title and, for three seasons prior to this one, kept Mike Salinas in championship contention.

For Kalitta, the partnership has been a long time coming. 

"When I first started in 1998, Gary Scelzi had just won [the first of three championships] with Alan," Kalitta recalled. "Back then, I remember thinking, 'Oh, man. If I could get an opportunity to drive for this guy.' It's taken a while, but it's finally here. 

"There are a lot of races yet to go this year, but I'm really excited to see how it ends up for us. There are a lot of good-running dragsters, but we're hoping to contend for the championship. We just have to settle in, have faith in the process, start going rounds, and have fun while we're doing it."