Matt Smith Indianapolis final report

Matt Smith Fall in Rd. 1 in Upset at Indy

Matt Smith

Photo by: Michael C. Johnson

CLERMONT, Ind. – For 2007 NHRA Full Throttle Series Pro Stock Motorcycle champion and 2006 Mac Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals winner Matt Smith, it was a good weekend. The North Carolina native was the top qualifier for the first two days of the event and went into eliminations Monday second on the speed charts. He also tuned his wife Angie's Buell and she turned a strong Q4 and Q5 into a 12th-place qualifying effort, especially rewarding since she missed the show last year. So, it was a good weekend.

Until Rd. 1 on Monday.

No. 15 qualifier Jim Underdahl beat Smith in one of many upsets in the PSM class at the Big Go after Matt experienced clutch issues on the starting line. "I was really disappointed with the way I ran," Smith said. "I think I could have run a 6.89 in the first round, but a clutch issue burned us."

The track temp was well below the 134 degrees it reached earlier in the weekend due to cool temps and overcast skies, making the loss even more disappointing since the conditions were perfect for record runs. Underdahl went on to beat former class champion Hector Arana in the next round, losing to Jerry Savoie in the semi-final round. Savoie would go on to the finals where he lost to Hector Arana Jr., winning his first-ever NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle race.

The next event for Matt Smith Racing is at his home track, zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C., for the O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals.