NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle: Matt Smith Wins 4-Wide Nationals
15th annual American Rebel Light NHRA 4-Wide Nationals
zMAX Dragway
April 25-27, 2025
Matt Smith Wins 4-Wide Nationals
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Matt Smith had the last laugh of the weekend, getting his first victory of the season on his Denso Auto Parts Buell with a run of 6.736 at 202.91 to hold off the likes of Gaige Herrera, Richard Gadson and Steve Johnson. Herrera was the No. 1 qualifier and Gadson won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge on Saturday, but it was the veteran and six-time world champion who prevailed in the end at his home track.
He left the starting line first with a strong .014 reaction time and then had the quickest run in the quad, holding off Gadson’s 6.738 and Herrera’s 6.747 to win for the 42nd time in his career. Smith ran well on Saturday and that carried over to eliminations, where the longtime standout was on his game over all three rounds.
“This has been a long weekend. We had a lot of gremlins in our pits,” Smith said. “This morning, we cranked my bike up and it started squeaking. We have another engine called ‘Old Faithful,’ so we put in a new engine and it went smoothly after that.
“Hats off to my team. I can’t say enough about my crew guys. Everyone helps but it’s a lot of work to run four bikes with three mechanics. I do the fuel maps and clutches and I also get to ride, but it’s a lot of work. I’m on the positive side now. I had 41 wins and 41 runner-up finishes. Now, I’m 42 and 41 so at least I’m on the positive side now.”
Gadson finished as the runner-up, while Smith moved into the points lead over Herrera.
The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series returns to action May 15-18 with the 25th annual Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by PEAK at Route 66 Raceway in Chicago.
Eliminations Round 1Lane 1 – Steve Johnson – WIN / 0.023 / 6.798 / 196.9
Lane 2 – Ryan Oehler – 3RD / 0.075 / 6.89 / 195.45
Lane 3 – Marc Ingwersen – RU / 0.029 / 6.866 / 197.51
Lane 4 – Jerry Savoie – 4TH / No Data
Marc Ingwersen had the best R/T (.017) in his quad here last year and still lost Steve Johnson is 1 of 2 active PSM riders to have won this race more than once (G. Herrera) Ryan Oehler was in the Final quad here in 2019 (his 1st Final round) This is the first race for Jerry Savoie since Pomona-2, 2023 Savoie has problems and does not make a pass. Johnson gets out of the gate first and makes his quickest pass of the weekend to take the win.
Steve Johnson’s incremental times: 60ft-1.055 sec., 330ft-2.827, 660ft-4.335/162.65 mph, 1,000ft-5.661. Ingwersen gets off the line second and holds off Oehler to take the second spot and move on. Oehler makes his quickest pass of the weekend but it isn’t enough to move on.
Lane-by-lane time (seconds) and speed (mph) behind leader (or fastest) at each timing increment, (0.000 if leading, 000 if fastest): Start 60 ft 330 ft 660 ft 1,000 ft Finish Steve Johnson Lane 1: 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000/000 0.000 0.000/001 Ryan Oehler Lane 2: 0.052 0.107 0.129 0.133/001 0.137 0.144/002 Marc Ingwersen Lane 3: 0.006 0.041 0.070 0.079/001 0.077 0.074/000 Jerry Savoie Lane 4: Broke
Lane 1 – Matt Smith – WIN / 0.042 / 6.752 / 202.18
Lane 2 – Chase Van Sant – RU / 0.018 / 6.799 / 199.08
Lane 3 – Chris Bostick – 4TH / 0.085 / 6.847 / 194.3
Lane 4 – Angie Smith – 3RD / 0.12 / 6.791 / 198.79
This is Chase Van Sant’s 3rd start at a 4-wide event . Matt Smith is 9 – 3 in Rd. 1 at this event. This will be Chris Bostick’s 1st round win in 8 races at this track Angie Smith is 3 – 10 in her Rd. 1 races at this event (and has never been past Rd. 2) Matt Smith is second off of the line but makes his quickest pass of the weekend to pull away for the win. Matt Smith’s incremental times: 60ft-1.080 sec., 330ft-2.849, 660ft-4.342/164.79 mph, 1,000ft-5.643.
Van Sant gets the holeshot and makes his quickest pass of the weekend to take the second spot and move on. Chase Van Sant’s incremental times: 60ft-1.057 sec., 330ft-2.850, 660ft-4.358/162.88 mph, 1,000ft-5.673. Bostick makes his quickest pass of the weekend but it isn’t enough to move on. Angie Smith makes her quickest pass of the weekend but comes in third in the quad.
Lane-by-lane time (seconds) and speed (mph) behind leader (or fastest) at each timing increment, (0.000 if leading, 000 if fastest): Start 60 ft 330 ft 660 ft 1,000 ft Finish Matt Smith Lane 1: 0.024 0.047 0.023 0.008/000 0.000 0.000/000 Chase Van Sant Lane 2: 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000/002 0.006 0.023/003 Chris Bostick Lane 3: 0.067 0.078 0.073 0.074/002 0.095 0.138/008 Angie Smith Lane 4: 0.102 0.125 0.107 0.104/002 0.105 0.117/003
Lane 1 – Kelly Clontz – WIN / 0.142 / 6.891 / 197.45
Lane 2 – Bye Run / No Data
Lane 3 – Jianna Evaristo – 3RD / No Data /
Lane 4 – Richard Gadson – RU / 0.018 / 9.393 / 89.97
This is the 6th time that Kelly Clontz has started in the top half of the field. Jianna Evaristo lost in Rd. 1 here last year. Richard Gadson has qualified in the top half of the field at 16 of his 20 races. Clontz goes down the groove with a decent pass to take the quad win.
Evaristo is not able to get her bike to start and does not make a pass. Gadson has problems and is off of the throttle early but he is able to move on to the next round. In the next round it will be Matt Smith with lane choice over Van Sant, Clontz, and Gadson.
Lane 1 – Gaige Herrera – WIN / 0.018 / 6.728 / 201.7
Lane 2 – Hector Arana Jr – RU / -0.003 / 6.825 / 199.49
Lane 3 – John Hall – 3RD / -.019 / 6.797 / 200.02
John Hall was R/U here last year. Hector Arana Jr. has won a 4-wide race in Charlotte and Las Vegas. Gaige Herrera “Swept” this event in 2023 & 2024. Hall leaves too soon and goes red ending his day. Arana misses the tree but will move on to the next round. Herrera goes down the groove with the quickest pass of the round to take the win.
Gaige Herrera’s incremental times: 60ft-1.061 sec., 330ft-2.827, 660ft-4.316/164.33 mph, 1,000ft-5.616. In the next round it will be Herrera with lane choice over Johnson, Arana, and Ingwersen.
Eliminations – Semi-Final
Lane 1 – Matt Smith – WIN / 0.067 / 6.737 / 203.16
Lane 2 – Chase Van Sant – 3RD / 0.007 / 6.815 / 197.91
Lane 3 – Kelly Clontz – 4TH / 0.144 / 6.81 / 196.87
Lane 4 – Richard Gadson – RU / 0.044 / 6.762 / 200.62
Smith goes down the groove with his quickest and the fastest run of the weekend for the bikes to take the win. Matt Smith’s incremental times: 60ft-1.084 sec., 330ft-2.848, 660ft-4.339/164.77 mph, 1,000ft-5.634. Van Sant gets a great light but it isn’t enough to get him to the final round. Clontz makes a decent run but it isn’t enough. Gadson makes a good run and comes in second to move to the final round.
Finish Order & Margins: 1. Matt Smith was 0.0023 sec./about 8 inches ahead of 2. Richard Gadson, who was 0.016 sec./about 5 feet ahead of 3. Chase Van Sant, who was 0.132 sec./about 38 feet ahead of 4. Kelly Clontz
Lane 1 – Steve Johnson – RU / 0.036 / 6.806 / 196.19
Lane 2 – Hector Arana Jr – 4TH / 0.044 / 6.997 / 162.08
Lane 3 – Gaige Herrera – WIN / 0.041 / 6.762 / 200.17
Lane 4 – Marc Ingwersen – 3RD / 0.051 / 6.884 / 195.59
Johnson gets out of the gate first and runs well enough to take the second spot and move on to the final round. Arana has problems late in the run and was off of the throttle early. Herrera goes down the groove with a good run to win this quad. Ingwersen makes a decent pass but it isn’t enough.
Finish Order & Margins: 1. Gaige Herrera was 0.0396 sec./about 11 feet ahead of 2. Steve Johnson, who was 0.093 sec./about 27 feet ahead of 3. Marc Ingwersen, who was 0.106 sec./about 25 feet ahead of 4. Hector Arana Jr In the next round it will be Matt Smith with lane choice over Gadson, Herrera, and Johnson.
Eliminations – Final
Lane 1 – Matt Smith – WIN / 0.014 / 6.736 / 202.91
Lane 2 – Steve Johnson – 4TH / 0.02 / 6.799 / 196.62
Lane 3 – Gaige Herrera- 3RD / 0.027 / 6.747 / 201.13
Lane 4 – Richard Gadson- RU / 0.016 / 6.738 / 201.37
Smith gets the holeshot and goes down the track with the quickest run of the round to take the win. Matt Smith’s incremental times: 60ft-1.076 sec., 330ft-2.841, 660ft-4.332/164.91 mph, 1,000ft-5.630. Gadson is second off of the line and he comes up a little short.
Finish Order & Margins: 1. Matt Smith was 0.0047 sec./about 17 inches ahead of 2. Richard Gadson, who was 0.020 sec./about 6 feet ahead of 3. Gaige Herrera, who was 0.045 sec./about 13 feet ahead of 4. Steve Johnson This is Smith’s 42nd national event win.
Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge
Richard Gadson collected his first Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge win of the year on his RevZilla/Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki, defeating teammate Gaige Herrera and Matt Smith in the final round of the bonus race.
“It was crazy but I’ll take it,” Gadson said. “It’s not often you get there in front of Gaige and Matt. It’s big for our team to know we have a second bike that can get the job done. Today was the first day I felt like I had bike that could run with them.
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“I didn’t see Gaige and I saw his win light came on. It was all a bit confusing until they came over and told me I’d won. Whatever the case may be, I’ll take it. To be honest, I didn’t really think about winning till 30 minutes before we ran.”
Qualifying – Saturday
Herrera easily grabbed his 25th career No. 1 qualifier thanks to Friday’s outstanding run of 6.680 at 201.64. Gadson took second with a 6.759 at 200.77 and Smith’s 6.773 at 201.34 gave him third.
“I’m happy to see (Richard) get the win. All the hard work he’s put in after Gainesville is paying off. The bottom line is we’ve both got fast hot rods. Now, I worry about him more than Matt,” Herrera said.
“Today was reflection of us not wanting us to turn the bike down from last night. My bike spun the tire in the first 60-feet. I had a 1.09 60-foot time and that’s because Andrew [Hines, crew chief] didn’t take enough power out for these conditions. We were shooting for a 6.74 or 6.75 but we did get some good data for tomorrow so we’ll be just fine.”
01. Gaige Herrera / 6.680 / 201.64
02. Richard Gadson / 6.759 / 200.77
03. Matt Smith / 6.773 / 201.34
04. Marc Ingwersen / 6.799 / 197.80
05. Steve Johnson / 6.805 / 196.79
06. Angie Smith / 6.811 / 199.55
07. Kelly Clontz / 6.817 / 198.47
08. Hector Arana Jr / 6.824 / 199.88
09. John Hall / 6.833 / 198.58
10. Jianna Evaristo / 6.854 / 196.10
11. Chase Van Sant / 6.895 / 197.91
12. Jerry Savoie / 6.902 / 194.38
13. Ryan Oehler / 6.909 / 196.56
14. Chris Bostick / 6.921 / 1997.71
Qualifying – Friday
Racing for the first time since early March, the Pro Stock Motorcycle category returned on Friday and defending world champion Gaige Herrera was back to his usual dominant self, going a remarkable 6.680 at 201.64 on his RevZilla/Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki to take the provisional No. 1 spot.
Herrera, who won in Gainesville to open 2025 after winning back-to-back world titles, was the quickest bike in each session, just missing the track record during the night session. It also puts Herrera, the defending event winner, on track for his milestone 25th career No. 1 qualifier, which has a chance to happen in just his 38th career race in the category.
“We’ve had six weeks off since Gainesville and our guys have been busy in the shop working. Andrew [Hines, crew chief] is still learning this new [VP Fuel] and it’s showing on the dyno and on the track,” Herrera said. “That run felt the same as last year when we set the record in Dallas. I had a 1.02-second 60-foot time, which is impressive at our current weight. It was amazing, a picture-perfect run. I didn’t have to correct it.
“For the four-wide, I don’t change my mindset. You just have to pay attention. With the bikes it might be a bit easier than a car because you can look around.”
Richard Gadson moved to second in the night session with a run of 6.759 at 200.77 and Matt Smith’s 6.773 at 201.34 has him third.
01. Gaige Herrera / 6.680 / 201.64
02. Richard Gadson / 6.759 / 200.77
03. Matt Smith / 6.773 / 201.34
04. Marc Ingwersen / 6.799 / 197.80
05. Steve Johnson / 6.805 / 196.79
06. Angie Smith / 6.816 / 198.52
07. Kelly Clontz / 6.817 / 198.47
08. Hector Arana Jr / 6.824 / 199.88
09. John Hall / 6.833 / 198.58
10. Jianna Evaristo / 6.854 / 196.10
11. Chase Van Sant / 6.895 / 197.91
12. Jerry Savoie / 6.902 / 194.38
13. Ryan Oehler / 6.911 / 194.94
14. Chris Bostick / 7.144 / 189.87
About Mission Foods
MISSION®, owned by GRUMA, S.A.B. de C.V., is the world’s leading brand for tortillas and wraps. MISSION® is also globally renowned for flatbreads, dips, salsas and Mexican food products. With presence in over 112 countries, MISSION® products are suited to the lifestyles and the local tastes of each country. With innovation and customer needs in mind, MISSION® focuses on the highest quality, authentic flavors, and providing healthy options that families and friends can enjoy together. For more information, please visit https://www.missionfoods.com/
About NHRA
NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 20 national events featuring the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series and NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, as well as the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+, NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown™, NHRA Holley EFI Factory X, Pingel Top Fuel Motorcycle and Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock at select national events. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street® program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for youth ages 5 to 17. With 110 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services® (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
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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