Richmond: Scott Kalitta final report

Scott Kalitta, DHL Toyota Solara Funny Car, No. 11 qualifier -- defeated in round one
Scott Kalitta and the DHL team turned back from Richmond win

RICHMOND, Va., (Oct. 7, 2007) -- At the Torco Racing Fuels NHRA Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park in Richmond, Va., Scott Kalitta, driver of the DHL Toyota Solara Nitro Funny Car, was denied a chance to compete for the Funny Car title in the Commonwealth after an early defeat.

Kalitta, the No. 11 qualifier, raced against No. 6 qualifier Tony Pedregon in the first round of Funny Car eliminations. In a battle of the former NHRA World Champions, the race down the quarter-mile at VMP was close early in the run, but Pedregon began pulling away and went on to get the win, 5.044 seconds, 303.09 mph to 4.896 sec., 309.98 mph.

"It was a tough day for our DHL team," Kalitta said. "We went up there and gave it our best shot and just got beat. Unfortunately, there can only be one winner, and this time, it wasn't us. We'll get everything back together and go see what we can do in Las Vegas (next event)."

-credit: km