Top Fuel team owner Doug Foley will step out of the cockpit of his nitro dragster in 2026 and transition fully into a team owner role, naming Gary Pritchett as his replacement. The team plans to compete in a combination of NHRA and IHRA events next season.
Foley, a veteran of both NHRA and IHRA competition and a multi-time IHRA Top Fuel event winner with more than a dozen victories in that sanctioning body, said the move followed weeks of personal reflection. He confirmed the change in a straightforward announcement.
“Well, we are going to do a driver swap in 2026,” Foley said. “So, I am going to get out of the seat. And I just felt like we could be better all the way around and I kind of wanted to focus more on just taking the team to another level, and so I decided to get out of the seat.”
The decision comes after a 2025 season in which Foley’s team reached multiple NHRA final rounds but did not contend consistently for victories. He acknowledged the results fell short of his expectations.
“Not really,” Foley said when asked if a prior accident influenced his choice. “It was more of when I look at how I drove the last four races, I’m not saying the accident has nothing to do with it, but very little. It was more about I just was not at my best, plain and simple.”
He added that the level of competition in modern Top Fuel demands complete performance from driver and team. Foley said he ultimately chose to address what he viewed as the most direct path to improvement.
“And the cars you compete against are pretty good,” Foley said. “And for me, I kind of wanted to be in a situation where I was either proud of what I owned or get rid of the team.”
Foley described a period of internal debate before informing his family. The choice, he said, was not made lightly.
“So overall, it was one of those situations where I had to have a heart-to-heart with myself,” Foley said. “And I never even told my family. I spent probably two, three weeks kicking around in my head before I even said something to my family. And I approached them.”
Owning and operating a Top Fuel team, Foley said, carries demands that extend beyond driving duties. He believes his attention is better directed at strengthening the organization.
“But it was something that, this is a lot of work, a lot of effort,” Foley said. “There’s just a lot that goes into owning one of these teams.”
Foley said the team’s partial resurgence in NHRA competition showed promise but not sustained competitiveness. Funding remains a challenge, though he declined to use it as an excuse.
“And I look at the last year since we come back, we had a couple of final rounds in the NHRA, but we weren’t at the level that I really want to be,” Foley said. “A lot of that has to do with funding of course. But at the same time, you can look at funding to, you’re blue in the face.”
He framed the move as accountability. Foley said performance within available resources must be the benchmark.
“Overall, you have to look at, are you as good as you could be in the circumstances that you’re in?” Foley said. “And I just didn’t feel like our team was, and that’s my goal to fix that.”
Foley insisted he is not formally retiring from driving. He left open the possibility of future appearances in match races or other categories but said any immediate shift would dilute his focus.
“No, I’m not calling it quits,” Foley said. “I don’t know if I’ll come back. I don’t know if I’ll do match races. I don’t know what I’ll do.”
He said adding another car or learning a new class would serve as a distraction. His priority is building a stronger Top Fuel operation around Pritchett.
“And any move like that right now would be a distraction of what my goal is, which is to focus on the Fuel Team and focus on being better,” Foley said.
Foley also detailed personnel additions and his plan for the first half of 2026. He said the emphasis will be on continuity, resources and driver development.
“I really want to spend the first half of the year focusing on trying to get Gary comfortable, on trying to work on continuing finding more partners,” Foley said. “We added Ron Douglas to work with Doug Kuch, and so my goal is to make sure that they have what they need and my guys have what they need. And we can go out there and be more competitive than we’ve been.”
In selecting Pritchett, Foley said he was mindful of his own opportunity in 2004 when team owner Tim Lewis placed him in a Top Fuel car. Foley described the move as paying forward a similar act of faith.
“I am doing for Gary what Tim Lewis did for me in 2004,” Foley said. “He gave me an opportunity, a kid that probably didn’t deserve to drive a fuel car, and he gave me that opportunity and coming up on his one-year passing, I think he’d be proud of the fact that we gave another young kid an opportunity.”
Pritchett, a former Top Alcohol Dragster competitor and the godson of Hall of Fame drag racer Carol “Bunny” Burkett, called the chance a career milestone. He has worked around Top Fuel teams since 2006 and earned his Top Fuel license in 2015.
“It feels like I got the car I’ve been waiting,” Pritchett said. “It feels like I got the opportunity I’ve been waiting on my whole life.”
He noted that crew chief Doug Kuch played a role in his early Top Fuel credentials. The reunion, Pritchett said, carries personal significance.
“Doug Kuch actually got me my Top Fuel license back in 2015 in Charlotte and kind of coming full circle,” Pritchett said. “I feel like all the stars are kind of aligning and really excited for the opportunity.”
Pritchett’s résumé includes appearances in NHRA events, IHRA competition and a range of sportsman categories. He has competed in Super Street, Top Dragster, Super Comp and Alcohol Dragster while remaining active on Top Fuel teams in technical roles.
“I race everything from Super Street to Top Dragster to Super Comp and I still race all that and race Alcohol Dragster here and there,” Pritchett said. “And just kind of keeping my name out there and just, I don’t know, waiting for this call, and this call came.”
Pritchett said his experience has tempered nerves when looking at the magnitude of the opportunity. He credited years around Top Fuel cars for his comfort level.
“No, I’m not,” Pritchett said when asked if he was more nervous than during his first Top Fuel opportunity. “I’ve gotten a little bit older and gotten a little bit more acclimated with the car as far as driving the Top Fuel car and I’ve been around them since ’06 working on them.”
He emphasized familiarity with the mechanical and competitive demands of Top Fuel. That foundation, he said, has eased any apprehension.
“I know my way around the car very well and I feel like that helps a lot with the nervousness of it,” Pritchett said. “I’m not really nervous at all actually. I just feel comfortable and it kind of feel like going, coming home type deal.”
Pritchett also described Foley’s organization as aligned with his upbringing in drag racing. He cited Burkett’s influence and the appeal of a family-style team environment.
“Doug kind of runs this race team like a family race team, and that’s kind of what I’m after, and that’s kind of how I was raised with Bunny Burkett and stuff,” Pritchett said.
The team’s 2026 schedule will blend NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series events with select IHRA races. Foley said the hybrid approach provides competitive opportunities while balancing resources.
For Foley, the change marks a recalibration rather than a retreat. His goal, he said, is simple.
“And I just didn’t feel like our team was, and that’s my goal to fix that,” Foley said.
