NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Alex Laughlin isn't very good at sitting idle, but the multiclass racer won't have to worry about much downtime this weekend at the NHRA SpringNationals at Houston Raceway Park. He'll be pulling double duty in both Top Fuel and Top Alcohol Dragster for the first time in his relatively young yet surprisingly diverse career.

Laughlin will return to the class in Scott Palmer's Top Fuel dragster bearing bold Havoline branding. In Top Alcohol Dragster, the driver whose first four wins all came in Pro Stock will be piloting Doug Doucette's A/Fuel rail. Doucette asked if Laughlin would consider racing both entries in Houston, and the 33-year-old was immediately on board, stating that he relished any opportunity to hit the gas, work on reaction times, and further master the fundamentals of driving a race car.

Although Top Fuel sophomore Laughlin hasn't yet had the opportunity to wheel a dragster in both the Professional nitro category and an alcohol class on the same weekend, it won't be the first time the Texas native has driven two cars at one event. Laughlin has often gone the two-for-one route with entries in both Pro Stock and Pro Mod or Pro Stock and Top Alcohol Dragster.

"I've done double duty tons – almost as many times as I've raced a single car at an event," said Laughlin, who made his Top Fuel debut in Denver last season. "I like it because in this sport, a lot of times you're your own worst enemy. You can start overthinking things, and that can cost you runs and rounds. The busier I am, the better. That way I don't think about all the stuff that really doesn't matter anyway." 

Laughlin cites this year's rain-plagued Gatornationals as an example. He was among the fortunate in even making the 16-car field based on just a single qualifying run, but before that pass, the driver who'd made just a fraction of Top Fuel passes in a category packed with decorated veterans was sitting in the staging lanes considering his fate.

"I was strapped in the car convincing myself that I was good, adding up the full pulls I had," he recalled. "I was really giving myself a pep talk before that first run of the season. The reality of it is, driving a Top Fuel car is insane. I can't believe there aren't more drivers talking about that. I've driven basically everything except a bike and a boat, and the Top Fuel car is a world of its own. I was happy to get that first run out of the way for this season, and it went perfect – right down the center of the track, 319 mph."

Laughlin qualified in the No. 12 position and forfeited his first-round match with Doug Kalitta as he smoked the tires soon after leaving the starting line, but he knows he has something on which to build. In 2021, his debut season, Laughlin scored a round-win at the U.S. Nationals and then another at the fall race in Las Vegas. 

"Our goal this season is also going to be our biggest challenge, and that's winning a race," said Laughlin, who is slated to run a total of 10 events in Palmer's Top Fuel entry with Havoline as the primary sponsor. 

"Last year, we got a few round-wins under our belt; now the goal is to win four rounds on Sunday. We aren't running enough races this year to be in contention for a championship, but if I could just bring home a single Wally with the Top Fuel stamp on it this year, it would be all I could ever ask for."