After a second round win over Angelle Sampey and clinching the 2021 championship in Pro Stock Motorcycle, you may have doubted Matt Smith's ability to still win the event by looking at his bike.
After losing his breaks and taking the 2nd round win, Smith sailed into the kitty litter to stop his bike. The Matt Smith Racing team quickly regrouped and was able to get the bike cleaned up and perform any repair that were required for him to move on.
“What a relief, this has been a tough year,” Smith said. “I’ve said all year long that those Suzuki bikes are fast. We made it work. I managed to outperform them on the starting line and we needed it. To Denso, Mark Stockseth, and Glen Butcher Trucking, thanks for all you do.”
RPM would like to congratulate Matt Smith, the whole Matt Smith Racing team and all of their partners on an incredible 2021. Looking forward to see what changes occur for 2022.
RPM Round By Round:
Round 1 - Smith faced off against Ryan Oehler in round number one and he has a 188-82 advantage against him opponents to kick events off. In 2021 he holds a 13-1 record in the first round. In prior events, Smith holds the advantage over Oehler with a 5-3 record. Ohler had a slight advantage at the launch for Smith quickly evened up and eventually passed him with a run of 6.779 at 201.85 MPH.
Round 2 - Championship contender Angelle Sampey was ready in round two and her only chance to continue to championship hunt in 2021 was to beat Smith. Smith holds the overall advantage over Smith in previous events by a wide margin, 20-7. Smith gets a substantial advantage at the start but Sampey keeps it close throughout the run. Smith gets the hole shot victory but loses his brakes and ends up in the gravel after running 6.808 at 199.85 MPH. With both Sampey and Steve Johnson losing in the quarterfinals, Matt Smith has earned his 5th championship.
Round 3 - Smith continues on after doing some quick repairs on his bike and faces Eddie Krawiec in the semifinals. Krawiec also has an advantage over Smith in previous matchups with a record of 28-20. Krawiec gets a slight advantage but Smith quickly gets past and pedals to the finish with a run of 6.818 at 200.50 MPH. Its time for Smith's 65th final.
Round 4 - With Karen Stoffer pushing it to the limit in her bye run in the 3rd round, she had the lane choice for the final putting Matt Smith's back against the wall. If he wanted to sweep the weekend he would have to get by Stoffer who has been hot lately but hadn't been able to finish things off. Smith has a 3-2 advantage against Stoffer in prior final rounds and holds a 18-15 edge overall. Stoffer stumbles at the start and was unable to recover as Matt Smith wins for the 6th time in 2022 and the 32nd time in his career.
See the Pro Stock Motorcycle Recap By Kevin McKenna, NHRA National Dragster Senior Editor:
Auto Club NHRA Finals Sunday photo gallery (NHRA National Dragster):
Camping World points standings:
Photo: NHRA National Dragster
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