J . R . TODD

litta ended Todd ’ s season

“ He definitely reminds you why he ’ s one of the best Top Fuel drivers in history ,” Todd says of his team owner ’ s nephew and driver of the Mac Tools dragster . “ As the years go on , he ’ s shown no signs of slowing down . He ’ s one of the best all-around drivers out there , and he ’ s always on his game on the starting line . The final round in Pomona , that was one where I knew I had the car to beat . You can ’ t make any excuses for what happened on the starting line ; just didn ’ t get the job done . Then again , we had both cars in the finals and performing really well .”

Though his season didn ’ t end with a visit to the winner ’ s circle at Pomona , Todd has been doing this long enough to know that smaller accomplishments , like career-best ETs and consistent late-round finishes , can lead to bigger accomplishments , or even the ultimate accomplishment : a NHRA Mello Yello Series world

championship .

“ The way we finished the season has everyone primed and looking forward to next season . It definitely gives you the confidence going into

2017 that you can go out there and compete with anybody in the category . We have some changes coming up that are going to be good for Kalitta

Motorsports . Hopefully we can bring one , if not two , championships back to Ypsilanti [ Michigan ] in 2017 ,” Todd predicted , hinting at his latest career move .

Ten seasons after his Top Fuel rookie year , Todd will become a rookie again as he takes over the seat of the DHL Toyota Camry Funny Car previously driven by 2015 Funny Car world champion Del Worsham , who will focus on his family ’ s Funny Car operation in 2017 . The surprising post-season shake-up has Todd preparing to live out his dream of racing Funny Cars . He knows the flip-top fuel cars well after working on Bob Gilbertson ’ s flopper for three seasons with Kalitta Motorsports crew chiefs Tommy DeLago and Nicky Boninfante before starting his Top Fuel driving career .

“ Ever since I worked with Nicky and Tommy D on a Funny Car , driving one has been in the back of my mind and most people have known that ,” Todd said . “ The DHL Toyota has quite the legacy and it is a huge honor to be picked to drive it .” DI

PHOTOS : GARY NASTASE , NHRA / NATIONAL DRAGSTER