For most of his life, Mitch Kalitta has watched the biggest moments in drag racing from behind the starting line. This weekend at Brainerd International Raceway, he’ll finally experience one from inside the cockpit.
The son of two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Doug Kalitta will make his Top Alcohol Dragster debut with Randy Meyer Racing at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, opening a rookie campaign that will continue through the remainder of the 2026 season.
While the Kalitta name has long been associated with Top Fuel success, the 25-year-old has spent years working toward this opportunity. He grew up at Kalitta Motorsports, helping assemble engines, wash parts and assist the team’s championship-winning operation before ever climbing into a race car.
“I have been involved in drag racing my entire life,” Kalitta said. “My dad has been driving Top Fuel since 1998, and I was born in 2001, so it is absolutely in my blood.”
His first competitive experience came last season in Shawn Langdon’s Super Comp dragster at the NHRA U.S. Nationals. Since then, Kalitta has raced at NHRA divisional events while adding a victory in the 2026 World Series of Pro Mod bracket race, experience he believes prepared him for the move into one of drag racing’s quickest sportsman classes.
“I really enjoyed learning how to compete in the index classes because they taught me a lot about how to drag race,” Kalitta said. “I’m excited for this new challenge because Top Alcohol Dragster is much more like the racing I grew up watching and being a part of.”
Before receiving his competition license, Kalitta tested extensively with Randy Meyer Racing, making progressive runs at Dragway 42 before completing the process at Norwalk.
“I was very fortunate that Randy allowed me to make several laps at Dragway 42 with pretty much nobody there so I could get all the dumb mistakes out of the way,” Kalitta said. “By the end of testing, I felt very comfortable making full runs and pulling the chutes on time. It was honestly a dream come true.”
Randy Meyer said Kalitta’s preparation stood out from the beginning.
“We’re excited to welcome Mitch to the team,” Meyer said. “He’s put in the work and was one of the most coachable drivers we’ve been able to license. We’re looking forward to helping him continue his development.”
Before receiving his competition license, Kalitta tested extensively with Randy Meyer Racing, making progressive runs at Dragway 42 before completing the process at Norwalk.
“I was very fortunate that Randy allowed me to make several laps at Dragway 42 with pretty much nobody there so I could get all the dumb mistakes out of the way,” Kalitta said. “By the end of testing, I felt very comfortable making full runs and pulling the chutes on time. It was honestly a dream come true.”
Randy Meyer said Kalitta’s preparation stood out from the beginning.
“We’re excited to welcome Mitch to the team,” Meyer said. “He’s put in the work and was one of the most coachable drivers we’ve been able to license. We’re looking forward to helping him continue his development.”
