2024 NHRA 70th Annual Toyota U.S. Nationals – Pro Stock Motorcycle
70th annual Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals
Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park
August 28 – September 2, 2024
Pro Stock Motorcycle
SATURDAY Qualifying
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Matt Smith Racing continued to have a strong weekend at Indy, with John Hall making a big move to the No. 1 position with a run of 6.830 at 198.76 on his Denso Auto Parts Buell. Hall made the best run of both sessions on Saturday, putting him in a great position to earn his first career No. 1 qualifier. Hall is a previous U.S. Nationals winner and knows full well what success at this race means.
“In this weather, I think a 6.83 is pretty good,” Hall said. “Normally, the Friday run would have been the best, but it was hot yesterday, so we had an opportunity to pick up today. I was in a similar spot in 2013 but this time I have more confidence than ever and that’s the No. 1 thing you can have. This is the biggest race of the year and the one you really want. We want to win all of them, but this is the one that sticks with you for life. I was fortunate to win once but I’d love to have two.”
Matt Smith is currently second after going 6.836 at 199.35, while points leader Gaige Herrera moved up to third thanks to a 6.850 at 196.64.
Saturday Qualifying Order
1. John Hall, Beull, 6.830, 198.76
2. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.836, 199.35
3. Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.850, 196.64
4. Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.856, 199.29
5. Angie Smith, Buell, 6.859, 197.94
6. Hector Arana Jr, EBR, 6.878, 196.62
7. Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.887, 195.45
8. Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.912, 195.90
9. Kelly Clontz, Suzuki, 6.935, 194.60
10. Chris Bostick, Suzuki, 6.944, 195.34
11. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.963, 192.36
12. Geno Scali, Suzuki, 6.998, 193.54
13. Ryan Oehler, EBR, 7.008, 191.59
14. Marc Ingwersen, EBR, 7.012, 191.73
15. Ron Tornow, Victory, 7.058, 190.46
16. Wesley Wells, Suzuki, 7.479, 178.90
Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge
Pro Stock Motorcycle’s John Hall earned his first-ever win in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge on Saturday, getting the victory when teammate Matt Smith went red in the final round of the bonus race. Hall, a former U.S. Nationals winner, has come on strong at the right time on his Denso Auto Parts Buell, making a pair of impressive runs on Saturday.
“Today was a great day. I honestly didn’t know what to expect because we didn’t get to make a run on Friday night,” Hall said. “Normally, missing the first run wouldn’t be a big deal but when you have to go right into the Mission Challenge, you don’t know what the bike will run or what kind of a light you’ll have. I did just fine in the first run with a .011 light and I’m not sure what happened in the second, but I have to thank Matt for going red because I was way off.”
Gaige Herrera claimed the overall title in the category, slipping past Matt Smith on a tiebreaker. Both standouts finished with 12 bonus points for the playoffs, but Herrera won the tiebreaker by virtue of his three overall Challenge wins to Smith’s two.
ROUND ONE
W – John Hall, 6.830, 198.76
L – Hector Arana Jr, Foul – Red Light
W – Matt Smith, Buell, 6.836, 199.35
L – Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.856, 199.29
FINAL
W – John Hall, 6.846, 198.09
RU – Matt Smith, Foul – Red Light
FRIDAY Qualifying
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Angie Smith made the biggest move to kick off qualifying at the Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals, going 6.883 at 197.10 on her Denso Auto Parts Buell to grab the provisional No. 1 spot. Should that hold, Smith would pick up her first No. 1 qualifier of the season and third in her career and it would certainly come at the perfect time. Entering Indy sixth in points, Smith lost in the first round in back-to-back races leading into Indy. But after a strong test session, Smith feels good about where the bike is now at heading into a crucial part of the season – and at the world’s biggest drag race.
“We got rid of my other bike, that’s what happened,” Smith said. “I got a brand-new bike. Every single part of that motorcycle is brand new except for me. I was glad to get a new bike. Coming to Indy without a full run on a brand-new motorcycle is kind of nerve-wracking but it all worked out.
“My mindset coming into this race, I just wanted to do well and make good laps to prepare me for the Countdown. The middle of the season has not been a stellar performance for me and I have expected a lot better performance for myself and from the bike and we weren’t getting it. The boys have been working extremely hard back in the shop, and for me to get a No. 1, I feel like it kind of repays them a little bit for all the hard work.”
Her husband, Matt, who has won the last two races at The Big Go – and the most recent race in Sonoma – is currently second after going 6.895 at 197.74 and Gaige Herrera grabbed the third position on Friday thanks to a run of 6.929 at 195.90.
Friday Qualifying Order
1. Angie Smith, Buell, 6.883, 197.10
2. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.895, 197.74
3. Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.929, 195.90
4. Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.939, 198.15
5. Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.964, 194.88
6. Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.970, 193.54
7. Chris Bostick, Suzuki, 7.001, 192.82
8. Hector Arana Jr, EBR, 7.032, 197.22
9. Marc Ingwersen, EBR, 7.055, 186.82
10. Ryan Oehler, EBR, 7.097, 188.28
11. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 7.123, 191.51
12. Geno Scali, Suzuki, 7.134, 192.14
13. Ron Tornow, Victory, 7.141, 188.33
14. Wesley Wells, Suzuki, 7.479, 178.90
15. Kelly Clontz, Suzuki, 16.315, 40.68
ABOUT NHRA
The National Hot Rod Association, the largest auto racing organization in the world, has come a long way since Wally Parks founded it in 1951.
Though it has grown into a global sports-entertainment business, NHRA has not lost sight of Parks’ original goal: to provide competitors a place to race. But now those places are deluxe supertracks in major U.S. markets, and the racing runs the gamut from 11,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragsters to 5-horsepower Jr. Dragsters. Drag racing’s journey through the decades has been sometimes swift, sometimes rocky, but always exciting and always worth the trip.
In the 1950s, top performance marks were 140 mph in 9 seconds. Today, they’re more than 330 mph in less than 3.7 seconds. Back then, winners earned little more than a trophy and bragging rights. Today’s racers compete for trophies and bragging rights as well as a share of more than $3 million in prize money.
In 2024, NHRA joined forces with Mission Foods to present the world’s fastest motorsports attraction as the flagship sponsor of the national touring series, the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.
Under the leadership of President Glen Cromwell, NHRA raced forward in 2020 with a number of key initiatives, including a multiyear partnership with FOX Sports to televise NHRA events from the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, and the Pro Mod Drag Racing Series. FOX Sports networks aired more than 500 hours of programming throughout the year, highlighted by 22 race-day shows, including eight on FOX’s national network, in addition to primetime Friday night qualifying shows, and fans are in for more of the same this year.
NHRA has extremely loyal fans that are committed to the sport they love, and it’s easy to see why. They continue to have the best access to the behind-the-scenes action of racing. NHRA’s open-pits policy allows fans to get an up-close-and personal view of how teams rebuild engines. Drivers are often found in their pit areas, signing autographs and chatting with fans, who have the rare opportunity to get behind the wheel themselves in a variety of racing simulators in the Nitro Alley Fan Zone. Those are just a few reasons NHRA fans continue to be some of the most loyal in any sport.
For more information, log on to NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.
About Mission Foods
Great food is a great motivator. It brings everyone to the table and inspires us to explore all kinds of delicious destinations. At Mission®, it drives us to seek the freshest ingredients, simple recipes, diverse flavors and wholesome products that help us discover all the places our tortillas can go. There are better-for-you destinations like with our high protein, low carb, or gluten-free tortillas. Of course, tacos and nachos are favorite stops. We are always up for those. www.missionfoods.com
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