Matt Smith won again on Sunday, while the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series Pro Stock Motorcycle class had a tough day at the 24th annual Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals in Reading, PA. The field was quick in qualifying, but the red light would be the challenger to beat, as nine of the sixteen riders fouled out. More than half the field left the line too soon, triggering the red light, and immediately handing the win to their competitors.

In the first round of eliminations, six of the eight elimination races were decided by the red light, mostly in the right lane. Hector Arana, Andrew Hines, Wesley Wells, Junior Pippin, Matt Guidera, and Paul Gast all lost the first round to the light. Elimination round two went the same way as the first with three out four runs decided by the red light.

In the semi-final round, the red light was no longer a problem. Angelle Sampey and her Rush Racing Products Buell defeated Karen Stoffer and her Geico Suzuki, with a 7.024 second E.T. at 187.21 MPH with a 0.107 reaction time (RT) to Stoffer’s 7.093 second E.T. at 186.15 MPH with a 0.069 RT. Karen Stoffer’s appearance in the semi-final round earned her enough points to break into the top ten in the points standings. Matt Smith’s NitroFish / Torco Buell defeated Steve Johnson’s Snap-On Tools Suzuki, with a 6.983 E.T. at 188.81 MPH with a 0.030 RT, to Steve’s 7.019 E.T. at 189.90 MPH with a 0.007 RT.

In the final round, Matt Smith outran Angelle Sampey for the win. Smith, the event’s top qualifier, ran a 6.957 E.T. at 188.81 MPH, beating Sampey’s 7.061 E.T. at 186.28 MPH.

This weekend also set the field for the Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle scheduled for Saturday August 30th during the Mac Tools U.S Nationals at Indianapolis. The Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle is a race within the race for a $15,000 for the winner.

The field for the Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle is:

Chip Ellis
Matt Smith
Andrew Hines
Eddie Krawiec
Angelle Sampey
Karen Stoffer
Chris Rivas
Matt Guidera

Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying was quick at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, 24th annual Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals in Reading, PA.   The top ten qualifiers all ran under seven second elapsed times. Matt Smith is the top qualifier after his NitroFish / Torco Buell ran a scorching 6.909 second elapsed time. at 192.38 MPH during the second round of qualifying on Friday.

The Suzuki riders have cut into the V-twin’s dominance of qualifying during prior races.  Chip Ellis took the second qualifying spot on his Schumacher Electric Suzuki with a 6.916 second E.T. at  193.88 MPH.  Steve Johnson and his Snap-On Tools Suzuki took the fifth spot with a 6.955 second E.T. at 193.88 MPH.  The final two of seven qualified Suzuki entries to make the field were Shawn Gann and Paul Gast.  Gann’s Race Girl / Pure Power Suzuki took the fifteenth spot with a 7.065 second E.T. at 191.89MPH while Gast’s  Fast By Gast Suzuki rounded out the field in sixteenth with a 7.066 E.T. at 187.08 MPH.  The competition is really quick when it takes a 7.066 second run to make the field.

ESPN2 will broadcast Eliminations on August 17 from 10:00 PM to 1:00 AM ET and will rebroadcast the race on August 22 from 2:00 AM to 4:00 AM ET.

Qualifying results and first round match-ups for Sunday’s Elimantions:

1. Matt Smith                NitroFish/Torco Buell                    6.909  192.38
16. Paul Gast                  Fast By Gast Suzuki                        7.066  187.08

2. Chip Ellis                  Schumacher Electric Suzuki           6.916  193.88
15. Shawn Gann              Race Girl/Pure Power Suzuki          7.065  191.89

3. Chris Rivas               Drag Specialties/S&S/G2 Buell       6.941  191.59
14. Angie McBride          Indicom Electric Buell                     7.062  185.08

4. Eddie Krawiec           Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines      6.943  192.63
13. Matt Guidera             Rocklin Motorsports Buell              7.052  188.04

5. Steve Johnson          Snap-On Tools Suzuki                    6.955  193.88
12. Junior Pippin             Stone Mountain & Granite               7.044  189.98
Mountain HD Buell

6. Angelle Sampey       Rush Racing Products Buell              6.964  190.65
11. Wes Wells                Ray Skillman Performance                7.033  190.67
Parts Suzuki

7. Andrew Hines           Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines       6.972  192.77
10. Karen Stoffer            Geico Suzuki                                    6.996  191.54

8. Craig Treble             Team Tigue Suzuki                           6.980  191.46
9. Hector Arana            Lucas Oil Buell                                 6.991  192.85

Matt Smith wins the Lucas Oil Nationals in Brainerd, Minnesota on a bye-run. Smith's NitroFish / Torco Buell broke the track record elapsed time that he set in qualifying (6.958 seconds) with his first round elimination run of 6.954 seconds at 190.14 MPH. His opponent in the round was Jim Underdahl, whose Fast Lane Sports / TVT 24-7 Engine Treatment Suzuki broke, giving Smith a bye-run and the win. David Hope made it to the semi-final round on his Vroom Racing Buell, only to be bested by Matt Smith's consistent high six-second runs.

Angelle Sampey had a great weekend, qualifying third and successively defeating Matt Guidera, Andrew Hines, and Chip Ellis to get to the final round. Unfortunately, Sampey's Rush Racing Products Buell would not start at the line. Matt Smith gave Sampey as much time she needed, until NHRA told Smith he had to go. Rather than idle his bike to the win, Smith ran his second bye-run at a scorching 6.973 second E.T. at 188.60 MPH, with a 0.057 second reaction time.

Matt Smith set the quickest time in qualifying for the Lucas Oil Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minnesota on Saturday. Smith's Nitro Fish Buell ran a 6.958 second E.T. at 189.55 MPH, giving the top spot while setting a track elapsed time record. Smith made consistently quick runs despite pain from kidney stones. He told Kevin McKenna of NHRA.com that he would be going to a hospital Saturday night, and not matter what happened, he would be racing on Sunday.

Chris Rivas' Drag Specialties / S&S / G2 Buell qualified second with a 6.977 second E.T. at 190.22 MPH in the final qualifying session. Angelle Sampey qualified third on the Rush Racing Products Buell with a 6.984 E.T. at 189.42 MPH. Smith, Rivas, and Sampey were the only riders able to hit six-second range qualifying runs.

Chip Ellis had the fastest Suzuki entry, qualifying seventh with 7.026 E.T. at 191.10 MPH on his Schumacher Electric Suzuki. Angie McBride, Joe DeSantis, and Buddy Robinson did not qualify (DNQ).

Qualifying results and first round pairings:

1. Matt Smith NitroFish/Torco Buell 6.958 189.55
16. Jim Underdahl Suzuki 7.274 185.10

2. Chris Rivas Drag Specialties/S&S/G2 Buell 6.977 190.22
15. Wes Wells Ray Skillman Perf. Parts Suzuki 7.173 187.47

3. Angelle Sampey Rush Racing Products Buell 6.984 189.42
14. Junior Pippin Stone Mtn & Granite Mtn HD Buell 7.132 187.16

4. Hector Arana Lucas Oil Buell 7.019 189.34
13. David Hope R&J Racing Buell 7.107 186.07

5. Eddie Krawiec Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines 7.021 188.73
12. Mike Berry MB Precision Machining Suzuki 7.094 186.18

6. Andrew Hines Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines 7.022 191.08
11. Matt Guidera Rocklin Motorsports Buell 7.089 185.41

7. Chip Ellis Schumacher Electric Suzuki 7.026 191.10
10. Karen Stoffer Geico Suzuki 7.083 190.38

8. Steve Johnson Snap-On Tools Suzuki 7.046 188.52
9. Craig Treble Team Tigue Suzuki 7.053 190.46

Timing results courtesy of NHRA.

Chris Rivas was the fastest rider in both qualifying sessions on Friday at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minnesota. Rivas ran a 6.992 second E.T. on his Drag Specialties / S&S / G2 Buell during the first qualifying session. In the second round of qualifying, he backed up the first run with an even quicker 6.979 second E.T at 190.00 MPH. Chris Rivas currently sits 4th in the points standings with 569 points, 193 points behind points leader Andrew Hines.

Matt Smith was also fast and consistent in the Friday qualifying sessions. His NitroFish / Torco Buell ran a 6.997 second E.T. in the first round, followed by a 6.985 second E.T. at 188.94 MPH in the second round. Smith is currently second in points with 689, which is 76 points behind the leader.

Hector Arana qualified third in both sessions, locking up Buell's hold on top three slots. Andrews Hines took the 4th slot in both qualifying rounds on his V-Rod.

Qualifying will be shown on ESPN 2, August 9th from 8:30 P.M.-10:30 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, with eliminations broadcast on Sunday August 10 from 7:00 P.M.-10:00 P.M. EST.

Matt Guidera defeated Andrew Hines in the final round of the Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals in Sonoma, CA.  Guidera on his Rocklin Motorsports Buell ran 7.054 E.T. at 185.74 MPH with a reaction time of 0.018 seconds, defeating Andrew Hines' time 7.026 E.T. at 187.34 MPH with a 0.050 seconds.  Guidera's reaction times were fast throughout the weekend.

Karen Stoffer put her GEICO Suzuki in the number one qualifying spot at Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma California this weekend.  Stoffer took the top spot with a 6.962 second E.T. at 191.21 MPH run on Saturday.  She ran consistently fast during the qualifying sessions, staying within the top three spots throughout the weekend.

Chris Rivas took the number two spot on his Drag Specialties / S&S / G2 Buell, followed by Matt Smith on the NitroFish / Torco Buell.  Chip Ellis rounded out the top four with a 6.980 second E.T. at 190.48 MPH
Schumacher Electric Suzuki.  Only the top four qualifiers spots had sub-seven second runs, and to were Suzukis.  The Suzuki riders have found the extra horsepower they needed to run competitively with the Buell and Harley-Davidson riders.

Notably, Angie McBride qualified her Indicom Electric Buell fifteenth with 7.240 E.T. at 182.58 MPH and newcomer Freddie Camarena qualified his Embee/Clay Smith Cams Suzuki in the sixteenth spot with a 7.274 E.T., 183.34 MPH pass during his first Pro Stock Motorcycle appearance.

Qualifying positions and first round pairings for Sunday’s eliminations are as follows:

Karen Stoffer                 Geico Suzuki                                            6.962  191.21
Freddie Camarena         Embee/Clay Smith Cams Suzuki               7.274  183.34

Chris Rivas                  Drag Specialties/S&S/G2 Buell                   6.964  190.62
Angie McBride              Indicom Electric Buell                                7.240  182.58

Matt Smith                  NitroFish/Torco Buell                                 6.977  189.12
Junior Pippin               Stone Mountain & Granite Mountain HD     7.154  182.75

Chip Ellis                    Schumacher Electric Suzuki                         6.980  190.48
Peggy Llewellyn          Rocklin Motorsports Buell                            7.128  186.38

Angelle Sampey           Rush Racing Products Buell                         7.000  188.44
Steve Johnson              Snap-On Tools Suzuki                                7.111  190.40

Andrew Hines             Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines                   7.033  191.10
Hector Arana              Lucas Oil Buell                                             7.068  188.62

Eddie Krawiec            Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines                    7.036  188.99
Craig Treble              Team Tigue Suzuki                                       7.061  189.60

Matt Guidera             Rocklin Motorsports Buell                            7.040  187.05
Mike Berry                MB Precision Machining Suzuki                     7.048  189.04

AMA Dragbike has announced that they've canceled all races in their Pro Stock Motorcycle class for the rest of the racing season. The cancellation is immediate, so the Pro Stock class will not run at the next race. The next scheduled AMA Dragbkie race is the Pingel Thunder Nationals at Indy.

AMA Dragbike president Scott Valetti stated,“the rising cost of racing in the class led to a lack of participation, which led to this decision. It simply makes no sense to continue running the class when racers are choosing not to run it.”

Pro Stock Motorcycle entries have been declining at AMA Dragbike and NHRA events this year. Racers have struggled to secure major season sponsors and have also suffered due to higher fuel expenses as they travel to major series events, causing some to stay home. The increased travel expenses have reduced racer participation in all professional drag racing series.

AMA Dragbike will introduce their new Factory Extreme class at the Pingel Thunder Nationals. AMA Dragbike says that the Factory Extreme class is the, Pro Stock for modern bikes." The class is for modern production sportbikes set up for drag racing, using slicks and wheelie bars, will be run an exhibition series this year. Factory Extreme will be a competition class series in 2009.