Gordon, Carlyle Tools Team Work through Challenges at Bristol
NHRA Rookie of the Year contender Maddi Gordon’s first trip to Bristol Dragway came to an end in the second round of the Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals as she lost to 2025 regular-season champion Tony Stewart. It was another learning experience for Gordon and the upstart Carlyle Tools Top Fuel team out of the Ron Capps Motorsports organization as they dealt with a brand-new racing surface and atmospheric conditions unlike any other track on the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series tour. Gordon leaves the ninth of 20 races ranked No. 7 in the Top Fuel points standings.
Like many other teams racing on the new Bristol surface for the first time, Gordon lost traction early in her first qualifying attempt on Friday. Crew chiefs Rob Flynn and Troy Fasching reviewed the data and tuned Gordon to a much-improved 3.965-second pass at 311.77 mph in Q2 to close out Friday in the No. 10 position. Gordon lowered her weekend best again with a 3.922 E.T. at 313.29 mph in the third session on Saturday, then smoked the tires in the final qualifying session.
Racing from the No. 12 spot on the ladder, Gordon squared off against Billy Torrence in the opening round of eliminations. Despite a dropped cylinder, Gordon powered to her quickest pass of the event, a 3.817 E.T. at 329.26 mph, to upset the No. 5 qualifier, who ran a 3.895 E.T. Gordon recorded a consistent 3.826 E.T. at 330.88 mph in the second round, though she reached the finish line second behind Tony Stewart and his winning 3.805 E.T.
“Even though we didn’t qualify well, I had confidence in our car,” said Gordon, who sported a special carbon fiber cowboy hat crafted by NASCAR driver and racing seat fabricator Corey LaJoie using Revchem Composites materials, throughout the weekend. “Rob and Troy talked me through all the changes that they made for race day and I just felt really confident that we had a good race car. Going up against Billy is a tough matchup, so I was super pumped to get past the first round. It would’ve been really nice to get through second round against Tony, but it didn’t happen. It was still a good race. There are conditions here we don’t really see anywhere else with the altitude. We’re going to keep learning and keep it rolling for Norwalk.”
Gordon and the Carlyle Tools Top Fuel team will have a weekend off before returning to action at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, June 26-28, at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.
Start / Finish: No. 12 / def. in quarterfinals
Points Standing / Total: No. 7 / 499 pts. (-421)
Next Race: Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, Norwalk, Ohio
How to Watch or Listen: FS1, NHRA.TV
NAPA Racing:@NAPARacing
Maddi Gordon: @MaddiGordon_TF
Ron Capps Motorsports: @TeamRonCapps
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Ron Capps Motorsports View All
Established in 2021, Ron Capps Motorsports is a multi-car NHRA team owned and operated by three-time Funny Car world champion Ron Capps. Headquartered in Brownsburg, Ind., the team made its on-track debut in 2022 and competes on the 20-race NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series circuit thanks to the support of NAPA Auto Parts, Carlyle Tools, USA Compression, Champion Spark Plugs, Mobil 1, Blue Wolf, Johnsen’s Brake Clean, and Core Scientific. Capps, who pilots the NAPA Auto Care Funny Car, is the second-winningest Funny Car driver in NHRA history and a class leader among active drivers with 76 wins in the category. His 77 overall wins (1 Top Fuel) rank seventh amongst NHRA’s four premier classes. The 2026 NHRA season marks Capps’ 32nd year competing in the sport’s professional ranks and 19th representing NAPA Auto Parts. Driving the organization’s second entry is third-generation drag racer Maddi Gordon, who will make her professional NHRA debut during the 2026 season aboard the Carlyle Tools Top Fuel dragster. Previously, Gordon competed in the Top Alcohol Funny Car category where she became the 100th woman to win an NHRA national event in 2024.