Well, this isn't the start Paul Lee had in mind. 

However, the successful businessman understands that while one can never discount the importance of a first impression, it's the final impression that determines a win or loss. 

Laying down big numbers was never the plan for Lee's McLeod Racing team as they worked their way through several challenges.

Top Fuel driver Doug Kalitta added another line to his storied career.

Kalitta clocked a career-best 3.657-second run elapsed time at 329.58 mph to take the provisional No. 1 spot Friday at the Arizona Nationals, Friday at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix.

Veteran Top Fuel driver Rob Passey is back at it for another season.

The Salt Lake City, Utah, resident will make his 2022 debut at the Arizona Nationals, Friday through Sunday at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix.

“(We’re going to) drag our stuff out there and see if we can have a little bit of fun,” Passey told CompetitionPlus.com. “We're there to race.”
 
The last race Passey competed at was the fall race in 2021 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Stop us if you've heard this one before.

Mo Hall, a leading Pro 275 drag radial racer, has dominated the competition at South Georgia Motorsports Park.

In his first run of the weekend in Thursday's lone Pro 275 session, Hall drove his Fulton Competition-powered Corvette to the top spot with a 3.740 elapsed time at 198.88 miles per hour. 

There was a time when Erica Enders wondered if she would ever make her way into veteran status. 

"As an eight-year-old kid driving junior dragsters, I couldn't fathom what was to come," Enders said. "If I could dream up a career and put it on paper, I feel like we've exceeded those expectations by far, with almost 40 wins, four world championships and K&N Challenge wins. I mean, you go down the list, world records in every door class there is. 

"I feel like it's surreal, almost, because I still feel like a totally normal kid. Although I'm getting older, yes, I'm still young at heart and young at mind, and I'm ready to battle it out."

The look on J.R. Todd's face spoke volumes about the new Toyota Supra Funny Car he's driving this season.

It's not that the Toyota Camry was a bad car; it's just the new Toyota Supra is that good.

"I've been dying, like a kid on Christmas Eve, to get it," Todd said. "Making some laps there in West Palm a month ago with it, that was nice just to get the feel for it, then go to Phoenix and Pomona to put it to the test."

Chemistry. In drag racing, chemistry plays an important role in pretty much everything that happens on the track. Racers mix fuel with expert precision; the slightest change in humidity may send crew members scurrying to make necessary adjustments; fluids are carefully weighed and measured. However, most teams will agree, it takes a different kind of chemistry, on and off the track, to be successful in this sport. Chemistry among the crew is vitally important. The formula has to be just right. After all, combining personalities, egos, temperaments and competitive drives, can be a recipe for disaster in normal, day-to-day functions. Throw in the intensity of NHRA Championship Drag Racing and the chances for combustion multiply. 

This year at the Camping World Drag Racing Series races, fans will see signage all over for “Toyota Gazoo” or “Toyota Gazoo Racing.” 

Just exactly what does that mean, “Gazoo?” 

Toyota Racing representative Lisa Hughes Kennedy had the answer. 

While we reported some time ago Rickie Smith's return to a Mustang for Pro Modified, we were able to snap a few pics of the new horse rolling out of Jerry Bickel's shop.