SHAWN LANGDON

right . He joined the team four races into the 2017 season , finishing in the Top 10 in Top Fuel before being approached about driving a Funny Car in 2018 with Alexis DeJoria retiring . Langdon didn ’ t decide immediately , but the opportunity to diversity his portfolio and continue racing with Global Electronic Technology as the primary sponsor was too good to pass up .

“ It ’ s good to expand your resume as a driver ,” Langdon says . “ I was very content running a dragster , but I felt like ( Funny Car ) would be a good fit and a good opportunity to drive a different car . I just want to race , and I ’ m really excited for the challenge .”

Langdon saw the transition firsthand as close friend J . R . Todd made the switch from Top Fuel to Funny Car in 2017 , giving him added confidence he could do the same . Langdon also recognized the wealth of talent he ’ ll be working with when it comes to the likes of crew chiefs Tommy DeLago and Nicky Boninfante , and car chief Matt Bynum , which has made the process much more manageable .

“ It ’ s a team with a really good foundation ,” Langdon confirms . “ This year we ’ re working closely with J . R .’ s team getting these cars set up as identical as we can . It ’ s a great team and a fun group of guys , and that really plays into it .”

Langdon remains a diligent student , going over runs long after he ’ s left the track . Being his own harshest critic , there are still plenty of areas where he wants to improve . It will only come with time , but Langdon is doing everything he can to speed up the process .

“ I demand perfection all the time and I want to be as good as I possibly can ,” Langdon reveals . “ I struggled with how the car drives , how it steers and a lot of runs I was overdriving them . It took a little bit of time to really adapt to how the car steers . I ’ m still learning how to drive it .”

But that journey and that challenge is what drives Langdon in the first place . He ’ ll continue to be dynamite on the starting line , and he ’ ll continue to remain as competitive as ever . Where that leaves him by the end of the season remains to be seen , but expectations haven ’ t changed even if the class has .

“ It ’ s going to take time to where we need to be ,” he says , “ but I ’ m confident after 18 races we will have a car that ’ s a championship contender .” DI

By TrueSpeed Communications

. S . Army Racing has bolstered its 11-time championship-winning Top Fuel driver lineup of Tony “ The Sarge ” Schumacher and Antron Brown with the addition of fellow Don Schumacher Racing ( DSR ) driver Leah Pritchett and her team for the 2018 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season . The news was announced in preparation for the annual NHRA preseason test session near Phoenix .

Pritchett and the DSR Mopar / U . S . Army Dragster team will join eight-time champion Schumacher and three-time champion Brown when the Army Racing heritage marches into its 18th full season of NHRA competition since “ The Sarge ” debuted the U . S . Army colors on his DSR Dragster at the prestigious U . S . Nationals just outside Indianapolis in September 2000 .

“ Throughout the U . S . Army ’ s 17-year partnership with DSR , the Army colors have exhibited dominance and resilience with one of the most elite organizations in all of motorsports ,” said Elizabeth Wilson , deputy assistant secretary of the Army for Marketing and Director of the Army Marketing Research Group . “ Tony Schumacher , Antron Brown and their respective teams have been the ultimate representatives of our more than 1 million U . S . Army Soldiers around the world . And today , we are extremely proud to welcome Leah Pritchett to the Army Racing family and look forward to the addition of a third championship-contending driver and team to the lineup .”

In addition to representing the U . S . Army on the racetrack during the 24-event NHRA

PHOTO : DON SCHUMACHER RACING

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