NHRA Sonoma Nationals – Richard Gadson Wins Pro Stock Motorcycle
37th annual Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge
Sonoma Raceway
July 25-26, 2025
Pro Stock Motorcycle’s Richard Gadson bounced back from Saturday’s disappointment in the GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout in the best – and quickest – way possible, defeating John Hall in the final round on Sunday in Sonoma with a run of 6.756 at 199.97 on his RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki.
Gadson, who qualified No. 1 for the first time in his career, went red by .001 in the final round of Saturday’s bonus race to Matt Smith, but shrugged off that frustration with a spectacular raceday. He defeated B Hawkes and Angie Smith to reach the final round and then chased down Hall, who went 6.807 at 196.04. It hands Gadson his second career victory, with both coming in the last five races.
Saturday’s red light was the chief motivator on Sunday, but Gadson was thrilled to earn a second win so quickly after picking up his first career Pro Stock Motorcycle victory last month in Bristol.
“This is all about getting right back after it following that red light and I probably couldn’t think of a better way to do it than how this day turned out,” Gadson said.
“Normally, when something like that happens, you’ve got to sit on it for a week or however long until the next race. Luckily for me, I got to go back out the next day and try it again. Today, revenge was on my mind. We all find our motivators from different things and that’s the kind of guy I am.
John Hall is a good friend of mine, but he beat me in Norwalk and that one kind of slipped through the cracks. To bring this home is really big.”
Hall reached the final round for the second time in three races, defeating Chris Bostick, points leader Gaige Herrera and Smith, who won the GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout on Saturday. Herrera leaves Sonoma with a 70-point lead over Gadson.
The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series returns to action Aug. 14-17 with the 43rd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals from Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minn.
ROUND ONE
W – Angie Smith, Buell, 6.780, 199.23
L – Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.821, 197.42
W – Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.775, 199.64
L – Freddie Camarena, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light
W – Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.737, 200.29
L – Clayton Howey, Suzuki, 6.976, 192.77
W – John Hall, 6.729, 201.70
L – Chris Bostick, Suzuki, 6.910, 193.35
W – Matt Smith, Buell, 6.785, 200.56
L – Charles Poskey, Suzuki, 7.094, 190.89
W – Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.744, 200.56
L – Brad Hawkes, Suzuki, Foul – Outer Boundary
QUARTERFINALS
W – John Hall, 6.739, 200.50
L – Gaige Herrera, 6.813, 198.52
W – Matt Smith, 6.817, 199.43
L – Jianna Evaristo, 6.809, 198.76
W – Richard Gadson, 6.779, 200.50
L – Angie Smith, Broke
SEMIFINALS
W – John Hall, 6.782, 199.43
Matt Smith, 6.817, 198.41
W – Richard Gadson, 6.817, 199.14
unopposed
FINAL
WIN – Richard Gadson, 6.756, 199.97
RU – John Hall, 6.807, 196.04
MATT SMITH GOES BACK-TO-BACK WITH VICTORY IN THE GETTRX PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE ALL-STAR CALLOUT IN SONOMA
Six-time Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion Matt Smith continued to enjoy success at Sonoma Raceway in specialty races, winning the GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout for a second straight year on Saturday as part of this weekend’s Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge.
Smith picked up the victory when Richard Gadson went red in the final round, claiming the $25,000 prize and winning the Callout in back-to-back years. He’s won a bonus race in Sonoma four times on his Denso/Matt Smith Racing Buell and continued to have the magic touch at the facility on Saturday.
Smith went 6.783-seconds at 199.76 mph against Gadson, who went red by .001, as the multi-time champion enjoyed another magical Saturday in Sonoma. Smith opened the Callout with a victory against Chase Van Sant and then beat teammate John Hall in the semifinals, setting up the marquee matchup with Gadson in the championship round.
“This is awesome. I love this track. I came here as a kid and watched my dad [Rickie] win in a Pro Stock car. It’s a long tow from North Carolina but it’s worth it. This is also Denso’s home race,” Smith said.
“The track was really good but we had a headwind. We’ve had a headwind all weekend. If we could get a tail wind, you might see our 205 mph record get hit. When we ran the semis, I made the decision to choose John, that way we were sure to have a Denso/MSR bike in the final. It was just a strategy call and it worked. It was also a way to make sure they [Vance & Hines] didn’t put both of their bikes in the final.”
Despite the loss in the final round, Gadson did get to enjoy qualifying No. 1 for the first time in his career, as Friday’s run of 6.702 at 200.77 on his RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki held up.
He’ll take that top spot into raceday – as well as a first-round matchup against Brad Hawkes – as he looks to win for the second time this season.
“I’m glad we were able to hold on to No. 1,” Gadson said. “This is my first yellow hat and it’s something I’ve wanted for a long time. That was a big run. We didn’t qualify No. 1 by a little bit. It was quite a bit.
“As for the [GETTRX Callout final], we’re running for a lot of money so I made the decision to let it all hang out. Going red by a thousandth of a second is just part of the deal. You’ve got to know how to shake it off.”
Smith qualified second with a 6.740 at 200.26 and John Hall is third with a 6.759 at 197.28.
ROUND ONE
W – John Hall, 6.713, 201.52
L – Angie Smith, Buell, 6.795, 197.80
W – Richard Gadson, Suzuki,6.720, 192.08
L – Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.729, 197.19
W – Matt Smith, Buell, 6.707, 202.55
L – Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.791, 197.45
W – Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.727, 199.91
L – Chris Bostick, Suzuki,Broke – No Show
SEMIFINALS
W – Richard Gadson, 6.749, 199.76
L – Gaige Herrera, 6.769, 199.14
W – Matt Smith, 6.764, 200.83
L – John Hall, 7.689, 124.14
FINAL
Win – Matt Smith, 6.783, 198.35
L – Richard Gadson, Foul – Red Light.
Eliminations for the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge begin at 10:30 a.m. PT on Sunday at Sonoma Raceway.
Friday Qualifying
A month after winning his first career Pro Stock Motorcycle race, Richard Gadson would love to add another first this weekend and the second-year standout is on track to do so, claiming the top position through two sessions with a run of 6.702 at 200.77 on his RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki.
The run put a significant distance between Gadson and the next-closest rider, a solid sign heading into the rest of the weekend. After winning in Bristol in early June, Gadson can pick up a No. 1 qualifier on Saturday, when more ideal conditions are expected. He’ll also try to pick up a victory in the GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout.
First-round selections were made for Saturday’s GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle Callout. Top seed Gaige Herrera called out Chris Bostick, while defending event winner Smith took Chase Van Sant. Gadson selected Jianna Evaristo to open the bonus race, setting the last matchup as Angie Smith against John Hall. The opening round of the Callout starts at 11:15 a.m. PT, with the semifinals at 1:45 p.m. and the final of the bonus race at 4:15.
“I am a big advocate of taking small victories and this was one of them because I’ve never been a low qualifier before,” Gadson said. “Not only are we No. 1, but that was also the best run of my career. To be honest, I was a little disappointed because I wanted to make my first run in the 6.60s. I was mad for a second but it takes perspective, and I realized we did something really good.
“For tomorrow, I feel good about the [GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout] and my [first round] race against Jianna Evaristo. I don’t take anyone lightly and if you remember, she was the Queen of this track last year. I wasn’t completely happy with my staging routine today but I’ll clean that up for tomorrow.”
Matt Smith is currently second with a 6.740 at 200.26 and John Hall is third with a run of 6.759 at 197.28.
1. Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.702, 200.77
2. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.740, 200.26
3. John Hall, Beull, 6.759, 197.28
4. Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.761, 198.82
5. Angie Smith, Buell, 6.780, 198.09
6. Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.860, 196.36
7. Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.916, 196.24
8. Freddie Camarena, Suzuki, 6.933, 194.04
9. Clayton Howey, Suzuki, 7.014, 191.76
10. Brad Hawkes, Suzuki, 7.339, 181.28
11. Charles Poskey, Suzuki, 7.600, 184.12
12. Chris Bostick, Suzuki, broke.
Qualifying continues at 11:45 a.m. PT on Saturday at the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge at Sonoma Raceway.
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.
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