British Drag Racing Hall of Fame director Robin Jackson has sent in this latest news: Finland’s four-time FIA European Top Fuel champion and British Drag Racing Hall of Fame Member Anita Mäkelä has been inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame.
The ceremony took place during the Hall of Fame banquet held in Gainesville, Florida, on the eve of the recent NHRA Gatornationals. Mäkelä becomes the sixth person to be honoured by both British and International Halls of Fame, joining Sydney Allard, Carl Olson, Don Garlits, Dennis Priddle and Stuart Bradbury.
Anita was welcomed into the Hall of Fame by Bobby Lagana Jr., car chief for Billy Torrence’s Capco NHRA Top Fueler, who, with brother Dom Lagana, had played a significant role in Anita’s on-track success. Anita’s acceptance speech, including a greeting in Finnish (probably a first for this occasion), was pitched perfectly, in an evening when not all inductees were so concise. Anita was accompanied at the banquet by her husband and fellow Top Fuel racer, Tommi Haapanen.
During her racing career, Anita accumulated 15 FIA Top Fuel wins, six more than any other competitor, and four TF championships, to accompany an earlier pair of Top Methanol Dragster titles.
The International Drag Racing Hall of Fame is a presentation of the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing. Video of the ceremony is available on CompetitionPlusTV’s YouTube channel by clicking here.
Text: eurodragster.com
