2014 NHRA U.S. NATIONALS - PRO STOCK BIKE NOTEBOOK
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MONDAY - KRAWIEC CAPTURES FIRST INDY WIN
Eddie Krawiec has won three NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle world championships – 2008, 2011 and 2012.
Yet, he never captured the coveted U.S. Nationals title – until Monday that is.
Krawiec was the top qualifier and then sped past the competition for the win at Lucas Oil Raceway on his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley Davidson.
In the finals, Krawiec used a 6.941-second time to cruise past Jerry Savoie’s 6.987-second lap.
“I was going to hand over the keys to my Harley and say I’m out of here,” said Krawiec about what was going through his mind after the huge win. “I’m not even running the Countdown, I’m going to go out on top. At the end of the year, you talk about two things usually, the Indy winner and the champion. So hopefully I can give them two things to talk about, winning Indy and being the champion. I’ve won Englishtown (N.J.) and for me Englishtown was my Indy because that was my home track, but to win at Indy with my team and have everybody supporting us is just awesome.”
This was Krawiec’s 25th career victory and third this season in five final-round appearances.
Krawiec took control of his race against Savoie with a .026 reaction time compared to Savoie’s .143 time on the tree.
“I’m really glad and I’m proud to race for the team I am on,” Krawiec said. “Terry Vance and Byron Hines are basically the pinnacle of the sport and to have my teammate Andrew Hines and everybody standing behind me means a lot. When I came on the team, Matt (Hines) took me under his wing and sort brought me up to speed and got me going. Both he and Andrew did that for me and here I am three championships later. All that reflects on how good those guys are.”
Krawiec was dominant Monday, ousting Shawn Gann, Andrew Hines, Hector Arana Jr., and Savoie. With a win, Savoie could have edged past 10th past Steve Johnson and into the Countdown to the Championship.
“I thought about it for about three tenths of a second,” said Krawiec about Savoie’s Countdown chance. “It was like OK, Jerry needs to beat me, so he’s going to be hungry, but I have to do what I need to do. That’s sort of the way it is with a racer mentality. If you try to alter your program or try to change anything in it, you bobble and make a mistake. You know what to do best and once your helmet is on, go out there and don’t think about anything because if you do, chances are you are going to mess up.”
Now that Krawiec has checked Indy off his bucket list, he’s focusing on another world crown. Krawiec is second in the point standings behind Hines. The six-race Countdown to the Championship begins Sept. 12-14 at the Carolina Nationals in Charlotte.
“I struggled a little bit in the early part of the year and through the middle of the year,” Krawiec said. “I just got into a funk where I couldn’t hit the tree and I was struggling. I sort of revised my game plan. I had what I called qualifying mode and race day mode. It seems to work for me and no better time than now than to figure that all out and move forward. I’m confident and excited going into the Countdown.” 
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 6.941, 192.63 def. Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 6.987, 192.58.
TIMING IS EVERYTHING - Jerry Savoie picked a great weekend to have a great weekend.
The alligator farmer from Cut Off, La., qualified second for the U.S. Nationals with a 6.878-second time.
Savoie proved that was no fluke as he won consecutive rounds over Chaz Kennedy, John Hall, and reigning world champion Matt Smith to reach the finals.
Not a bad effort for Savoie, who had no national events since joining the NHRA national circuit in 2011. Savoie finished 11th in the final regular-season point standings – one place out of being able to contend for a title in the Countdown to the Championship.
“I think Jerry is going to hurt a lot of people’s feelings in the Countdown,” fellow rider Eddie Krawiec said. “He’s the real deal. They have a great program over there and he wants to win. That’s a combination for a perfect storm to come in and wreck a lot of people’s weekends.”
HUSBAND VS. WIFE PART 2 – Like in Pro Stock when Erica Enders-Stevens and Richie Stevens met in first round in Pro Stock, husband and wife – Matt Smith and Angie Smith – met in round two of the Pro Stock Motorcycle class at Indy.
Matt won on a holeshot with a 7.030-second time compared to Angie’s 6.987-second effort. The difference was Matt’s .021 reaction time and Angie’s was .072.
“We tried something on this Nitro Fish Buell and it didn’t like it,” said Smith, who is the reigning Pro Stock Motorcycle world championship. “At the bottom of the gear change, it just stumbled every time. We will go back and try and make it better.”
HARLEY VS. HARLEY – Teammates racing against each other is not uncommon in drag racing and that’s exactly what happened Monday when Vance & Hines Harley Davidson riders – Eddie Krawiec and Andrew Hines – met in second round.
All weekend, Krawiec has the faster motorcycle and that was the case again in this match-up. Krawiec clocked a 6.898-second lap to beat Hines’ 6.987-second effort.
Krawiec kept his momentum going with a semifinal win over Hector Arana Jr. Krawiec came in at 6.902 seconds and Arana Jr. slowed to 6.962 seconds.
UNDERDAHL SCORES UPSET – Jim Underdahl started picking up power in qualifying Sunday and that continued Monday.
Underdahl powered his Suzuki to an upset of Michael Ray in the first round. Underdahl clocked a 6.994-second pass to defeat Ray’s 7.054-second effort.
In the second round, Underdahl met Hector Arana Jr. in round two and had his day end. Arana Jr. had a 6.935-second lap to edge Underhahl’s 6.954-second effort.
SUNDAY - KRAWIEC BACK ON TOP, CLASS BRANDING, BATMAN RETURNS
BACK ON TOP – On Friday, Eddie Krawiec set the pace in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class.
The world champion Harley-Davidson rider was knocked out of the No. 1 position on Saturday, but regrouped to capture the top spot Sunday with a 6.829-second time at 196.56 mph.
“It is definitely one I would like to put a check next to,” Krawiec said about getting his first U.S. Nationals win. “We’ve learned some stuff (Sunday) and that was the key to moving on to race day here. It’s not often you get five qualifying runs, but when you do you have to take advantage of it. Friday when I got my first lap, I came off the trailer and ran quite well. I went back Saturday and changed a bunch of stuff on the bike, chassis-wise, clutch-wise, tire everything just to sort of see what it would do. See what the bike would do with fresh rubber on it and a different setup and we struggled a little bit on Saturday and didn’t really get the results we were looking for. We went back to our basic setup for Sunday morning and off the truck the thing was a rocket ship. It flew down the track and ran really well.”
Unfortunately on Sunday afternoon, Krawiec’s motorcycle broke right when he left the starting line.
“We tried one other thing in the final session and sort of ran the bike the way we have been running it throughout the year and I’ve bitten by the bog bug as I like to call it a couple races in first round or second round,” Krawiec said. “It bogged that last session and we learned something and I think we are going to be able to take that data and run with it. (Monday), I’m very confident and I have an awesome motorcycle.”
While Krawiec has been strong all weekend, his teammate, Andrew Hines, the current Pro Stock Motorcycle leader has struggled. The three-time world champ is No. 9 in the field at 6.926 seconds.
“To be honest I think we hurt the motor in his (on the second qualifying run) and we didn’t really catch it,” Krawiec said. “So basically it ran through Saturday and Sunday morning with a hurt engine. We just swapped it for that round (Sunday afternoon) and had to throw a basic tuneup in it. We didn’t really have anything to work off for data and we’re very happy with where it is now and it showed it some promise. I would expect to see that bike moving around a little bit (Monday).”
BRANDING THE PSM CLASS – During the race at Englishtown, May 29-June 1, Pro Stock Motorcycle riders had a meeting to talk about the brand of their NHRA class.
“We put everybody together and I basically talked about how corporate America is always branding itself,” veteran Pro Stock Motorcycle racer Steve Johnson said. “Facebook is a great brand. When you see the logo what do you think of? You think of hey I’m communicating with my friends. I’ve been to a branding seminar and I told them basically what I learned. Things like a consistent message and consistent image. These are things that are important. The sanctioning body is in charge of that and whether we think they do a good job or not doesn’t matter. I think we need to take charge of our own destiny so to speak and increase our brand with all the media outlets and really engage social media about what we are doing.”
Johnson added the Pro Stock Motorcycle class needs to prove its value in NHRA.
“We need to try and generate some data, some measurables that show the show the sanctioning body as well as the track owners the value that the motorcycles bring,” Johnson said. “The world is filled with perception of what marketing does. I think with motorsports sometimes you are chasing things. There’s a lot of feel good and a lot measurables. We are motorcycle racers, and we are team owners and we don’t necessarily get involved with that. My team specifically has reached out and we’ve expanded and we’ve got a motorsports engine that’s going to promote our category, actually our motorcycle team through our category and through the sanctioning body.”
After the meeting, #NHRAPSM was created as a vehicle for fans to connect with riders, team owners, and crew chiefs.
“Now all the race teams have the #NHRAPSM logos on our motorcycles and trailers, so now fans can see what we are doing away from the track,” Johnson said. “Now, the goal is for example, Lucas Oil wants to get a value for what Hector’s team does they can do the search on the hashtag and Hector can be putting in fuel treatment and now he not only conveys what he’s doing off the track, but now Lucas has a measurable. If there 20,000 watching that hashtag, that’s 20,000 people that just Hector using fuel treatment. Now we have increased Hector’s value back to his sponsor arguably fivefold or whatever it is. These are the kind of things we need to do with communication, activation and creating measurables for the results is what we are about.”
Johnson finished No. 10 on the qualifying ladder and will meet No. 7 John Hall, the defending U.S. Nationals champion, in the first round.
STAYING WITH BATMAN – Seemingly ever since Shawn Gann made his NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle debut in 2000, he’s been known for wearing flashy leather firesuits.
That continues to be the case and for the last year he’s been sporting a silver, royal blue and yellow suit with the yellow and black Batman emblem on his chest.
“I had thought about switching, but I think I’m probably going to stay with Batman,” Gann, 36, said. “It just depends. If I go to (another suit) it would be Flash (Gordon).”
Heading into final round of qualifying Sunday, Gann was sitting in the No. 15 spot at 7.011 seconds at 189.20 mph, and he fell one spot to No. 16.
“We switched motors Saturday night,” Gann said. “We burned some stuff up, not by choice. “I figured we would be better (Sunday).”
UNDERDAHL MAKES A MOVE – During the first three Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying sessions at Indy, Jim Underdahl was struggling on his Suzuki, clocking a best time of 7.001 seconds.
On Sunday morning, Underdahl made a statement with a 6.944-second lap at 191.54 mph to move up to the No. 12 spot and he stayed at the No. 13 spot the field with that time.
“We were struggling with our tuneup earlier and only went a best of 7 flat,” Underdahl said. “We just completely re-did our tuneup from a different race and put that in the bike and finally reacted. We knew the power was in there, we just needed to find it. Jerry (Savoie) has the same motor we do and he’s going 80s, so we know we have the power, we just have to find it.”
Underdahl is using a Vance & Hines Suzuki motor.
“We just want to go faster,” Underdahl said. “The purpose out here is to go quicker and quicker each time you go on the track, and that’s our goal.”
Underdahl, who made his Pro Stock Motorcycle debut in 2005, has no plans of leaving the sport.
“I keep doing this because of the love of the sport,” Underdahl said. “Not qualifying at a race just makes you want to go back out and try it again and try and do it better and better.”
SAVOIE SETTLES FOR SECOND – Jerry Savoie turned some heads with his 6.878-lap, which vaulted him to the No. 1 qualifying position at the time. By the time all the qualifying sessions were completed, Savoie’s 6.878 run left in second place in qualifying. Savoie meets Chaz Kennedy in round one.
RAIN, RAIN WENT AWAY – Right before most of the Pro Stock Motorcycle competitors were prepared to make runs in the fourth qualifying session Sunday morning, they were called away from the staging lanes because of rain.
“This race day tuneup for us so we would at least like to kind of have an idea for what we have (Monday),” Ray said.
Ray found out a short time later when the track was dried. He clocked a 6.890-second lap which put him up to No. 4 on the qualifying ladder, which is where he stayed.
Ray meets Adam Arana in first round.
SATURDAY - GATORS COME FIRST, HANGING ON TO THE BEARD, ANGIE UP AND EDDIE DOWN
SAVOIE’S HOLDING PSM NO. 1 QUALIFYING POSITION – Jerry Savoie has turned some heads of late in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class.
At the Sonoma (Calif.) Nationals, Savoie was the No. 1 qualifier on his Suzuki and advanced all the way to the finals before losing to Eddie Krawiec.
That performance was no fluke. After three qualifying sessions at the U.S. Nationals, Savoie was No. 1 on the qualifying ladder at 6.878 seconds at 194.18 mph.
“That was phenomenal,” Savoie said about his 6.878-second run Saturday afternoon. “The whole team is clicking.”
In the final qualifying session Saturday, Savoie had a problem at the starting line and had to be restarted, but his earlier time held.
“We thought we were going to go faster (Saturday night), and we thought the (6.878) would not stick, but it just didn’t happen,” Savoie said. “We thought someone would at least run an 86, but it didn’t happen and we’re very fortunate.”
The numbers Savoie has been posting of late haven’t come as a shock to him.
“The power has been there since the beginning when they gave us a new crank,” Savoie said. “We were just off on the tuneup. The power is there in the engine it is just a matter of bringing it out and right now it is all good. Vance & Hines told us at the beginning of the year that the power was there and nobody had really been able to find it, so we’re definitely excited.”
Savoie’s crew chief is Tim Kulungian. Savoie, who is from Cut Off, La., has competed in 8 of the nine Pro Stock Motorcycle races this season, sitting out the Mile-High Nationals.
Missing the national event at Bandimere Speedway wasn’t the plan.
“We landed in Denver and we got off the plane and we had a text message from one of major landowners saying they had 8½-inches of rain in like 10 hours and the (alligator) eggs in that area of South Louisiana and Lake Charles in the next two days would probably be under water. So I made a decision to get four tickets and put my family back on another plane and 35 minutes later we went back to Louisiana. I went to Lake Charles with 14 airboats and 25 people and picked up 32,000 (alligator eggs) in like a day and a half.”
Savoie really had no choice but to skip the Mile-High Nationals, because he is an alligator farmer by profession.
“You don’t pick them eggs up you don’t have any money and you don’t have any money, you can’t go racing,” Savoie said. “That time of year for me is really stressful because that’s my livelihood. I will race at the remaining (NHRA) events this season. The eggs are already hatching and life is good.”
Savoie did some testing at Gateway Motorsports Park in St. Louis right before he came to Indy.
“The track was 140 degrees and right of the trailer it went an 89, so we felt pretty good about that,” Savoie said.
As much as Savoie would love to get his first Pro Stock national event win – he has three runner-up finishes – he remains realistic.
“Just to qualify is a good thing and race day it is a whole other game,” Savoie said. “If we have a top five motorcycle, that’s exciting. It is tough. Everybody thinks it is easy and if you think it is easy then come on out and get you some, that’s what I tell them.”
Savoie told Competition Plus he plans on returning to NHRA’s Pro Stock Motorcycle circuit in 2015.
“We’re definitely running next year,” Savoie said. “We have a few things we are working on and we’re always tweaking on things to make them better.”
Although Savoie came to Indy 12th in the season points and has a slim chance to slip into the top 10 and into the Countdown to the Championship, he isn’t putting any pressure on himself.
“It is good to be in the Countdown, especially if you have a really fast bike where maybe you could do some damage,” Savoie said. “But, all of that in reality doesn’t make a difference to me. I’m out here because my heart wants to be here and I love drag racing and I love the competition. Pro Stock bikes are the fastest naturally aspirated motorcycles on the planet. I choose to be out here because I want to. I don’t do it for a living. I do it because I love it. So if I don’t make the Countdown and I can come out here and spoil some weekends for some of these guys in the Countdown, so be it. It is what it is. I’m out here to drag race and have fun.”
HECTOR AND THE BEARD – Hector Arana Sr., the driver of the Lucas Oil Buell, has been sporting a new look this season – a full beard.
“Every winter I let the beard grow,” said Arana Sr., who captured the 2009 Pro Stock Motorcycle NHRA world championship. “I meant to shave right before the season started so I could start getting a tan on my face. Then we went testing and we had a problem there. So I’m working on the engine and I thought well I will shave before I get to Gainesville (Fla., March 13-16), but that never happened. I got to Gainesville and before I stepped out of (the trailer), I took the trimmer out and I went to shave it off and the trimmer didn’t work. So, I thought maybe it was not meant to be (shaved off).”
Once the beard didn’t come off Arana Sr. started getting questions from fans.
“People were asking what I was going to do,” Arana Sr. “I said let’s put it up for a vote and see what the fans want and the beard won. Not by that many votes, but it still won.”
The win by the beard didn’t go over well with Arana Sr.’s wife Grace.
“My wife hates it and I hear it every day,” Arana said. “She is always telling me to shave, but I still have the beard.”
Adam Arana, Hector’s youngest son, believes his dad has another motivation for the beard.
“I think he’s trying to do it for the senior discount over at restaurants and stuff,” Adam said.
Arana Sr. said if does win at Indy, he will cut ties with the gray beard.
“If I win I will shave it here,” Arana said.
Arana Sr. will have some work to do to win a wally as he was the 13th fastest qualifier after three sessions at 6.979 seconds.
Arana Sr. also knows there’s plenty at stake at this point in the season. He came to Indy No. 4 in the season points and Hector Arana Jr. is No. 3. Hector Jr. is the No. 3 qualifying position at 6.906 seconds.
“Everything is coming into play just as the Countdown is beginning to start,” Arana said about the six-race Countdown to the Championship which begins Sept. 12-14 at Charlotte.
Arana Sr. knows the rest of the Pro Stock Motorcycle competitors will be chasing Harley-Davidson riders Andrew Hines and Eddie Krawiec.
“The way I look at it, that’s why we’re here,” Arana Sr. said. “I like competitiveness. That (the Vance & Hines team) is a first-class act right there. They’re serious about it about it and I knew it would take them long to find their way back and it has shown. That’s what happens, if you work on something and don’t give up, you will succeed. For us it is good. Now they are fast and now we are working harder to try and pass them again. That’s how I see it as a challenge.”
ADAM ARANA AIMS TO END SEASON WITH MOMENTUM – A year ago as a rookie Adam Arana had a solid Pro Stock Motorcycle season, finishing 10th in the point standings. The 2014 season hasn’t gone as well for Arana. He came to the U.S. Nationals 11th in the points with a 5-8 season record. Arana arrived at Indy 66 points behind 10th place Steve Johnson.
“Performance-wise I have been struggling a little, but we found the issue and we are working on correcting it,” Arana, 23, said. “It might be a little to late, but we are going to go for it. You can’t stop trying. I really would like to qualify in the top half because I haven’t done that all year. If I can do that, then I want to just stay relaxed on Sunday. If you stay relaxed on Sunday, you tend to drive better.”
Adam Arana is No. 12 on the qualifying ladder at 6.975 seconds.
KRAWIEC MOVES DOWN A SPOT – Eddie Krawiec had the No. 1 qualifying spot after Friday’s lone session at Indy.
After Saturday’s two qualifying session, Krawiec dropped to second with a best run of 6.904 seconds at 194.74 mph. While Krawiec has had a strong performance at Indy, the same can’t be said for his teammate Andrew Hines. Hines’ best run so far this weekend was a 6.953-second run, leaving him in the No. 11 spot.
ANGIE SMITH MOVES UP QUALIFYING LADDER – This has already been a memorable season for Angie Smith.
The veteran Pro Stock Motorcycle racer won her first career national event at Epping, N.H. June 22.
On Saturday, Smith made a move in qualifying to the No. 4 spot with a 6.915-second lap.
Angie’s husband, reigning world champ Matt Smith, was No. 7 in the field at 6.935 seconds. John Hall (6.925) and Scotty Pollacheck (6.944), who are also part of Matt Smith Racing, are No. 5 and No. 10 in the qualifying ladder.
OUTSIDE LOOKING IN – Hector Arana Sr. wasn’t the only rider left with trying to qualify Sunday.
Mike Berry, Elvira Karlsson, Chaz Kennedy, Jim Underdahl, Shawn Gann, Fred Camarena, Craig Treble, Joe DeSantis and Redell Harris all have failed to register a qualifying spot in the top 12.
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FRIDAY - BIG WHEELS KEEP ON TURNIN'
KRAWIEC GRABS PROVISIONAL NO. 1 PSM POSITION – Pro Stock Motorcycle racer Eddie Krawiec has had a strong season, as he came to the U.S. Nationals this weekend second in the Pro Stock Motorcycle point standings.
Outside of Krawiec’s two national event wins, he also has been boosted by five No. 1 qualifying positions.
He may on his way to No. 6.
Krawiec rode his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson to a 6.930-second lap at 193.57 mph Friday night to take the provisional No. 1 spot.
“It means everything,” said about his quick start in qualifying at Indy. “It’s nice to make a good lap right off the truck. I think it sets your pace for the weekend and gets you going. The most important thing is you are getting data and it doesn’t put you behind. My strategy is to go out there and make good runs because you have bonus points and everything that you can get. I’m fortunate that I’m in the position that I’m in that I’m really not racing to maintain, I’m racing to win and that’s my objective here this weekend.”
LE TONGLET RETURNS - Being a firefighter has taken away from LE Tonglet’s time to compete on NHRA’s Pro Stock Motorcycle circuit.
Tonglet became a firefighter with the Jefferson Parish Fire Department in Metairie, La., in April.
“It’s the best job, but it’s kind of keeping us away from racing right now,” Tonglet, 24, said. “We’ve had a couple of fires, but nothing major. One house was a two-alarm fire and we got it out. The rush is unreal. It’s totally different than the racing side. It’s great when we get the call and we’re able to save the house. We haven’t saved anybody because everybody has been getting out, thank God.”
Tonglet, the 2010 Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion, has only competed at two races this season at Englishtown, N.J. (May 29-June 1) and Chicago (June 26-29). Both those races Tonglet lost in the first round. He has returned to the track this weekend to compete at the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.
“It’s a little bit harder because we’re not out here as much, but the main thing is I’m not on the bike I’ve been riding,” LE said. “I’m on GT’s (his brother’s) bike, and my bike is almost back together. We are getting new wheelie bars for it and it will be done in the next couple of weeks. I get a little nervous when I come back out here, but as soon as it starts up and you do a burnout, you are right back in sync.”
Tonglet said his father/crew chief, Gary, leased out his Suzuki to be raced at the Four-Wide Nationals (April 11-13) in Charlotte, N.C., but the driver he leased the motorcycle to crashed it in testing at Atlanta right before Charlotte event.
The motorcycle LE is on now is one GT raced in 2011.
“The setup on GT’s bike is totally different than mine,” LE said. “We have not had any time to go test or anything like that. Hopefully we will be able to run three or four more races this season, that would be the best case scenario, but who knows. My dad wants to go to Vegas and Pomona, and then maybe Dallas or St. Louis, but that’s the best case scenario.”
Tonglet made his NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle debut in 2009 and has nine career national event wins, including the U.S. Nationals in 2010 when he beat Andrew Hines in the finals.
Tonglet qualified No. 12 Friday at 7.056 seconds.
JUST MISSED – Hector Arana Jr. made a strong run Friday night at Indy, clocking a 6.931-second elapsed time at 192.96 mph.
It seemed like Arana Jr. would grab the provisional No. 1 qualifying spot, but at the last moment it was taken from him by Harley-Davidson racer Eddie Krawiec. Krawiec recorded a 6.930-second run to grab the top spot.
“That guy always gets me,” Arana Jr. said of Krawiec. “We always seems to be battling for that No. 1 spot, but hey that’s what makes it fun and what makes this Lucas Oil team strive to do even better.”
ELVIRA LEARNING ON THE JOB – Elvira Elin Karlsson obviously isn’t afraid to take on a challenge.
The Uppsala, Sweden, resident is competing in NHRA’s Pro Stock Motorcycle class this season for the first time in her career.
Karlsson has run in six races this season, the last being at Norwalk, Ohio, on July 6. Karlsson is tied for 18th place in the point standings with Justin Finley.
“It’s very cool to race in this class,” Karlsson, 19, said. “The racing is so big here. It’s nice to compete here, but there is a lot of competition.”
Last year, Karlsson turned some heads by becoming the first European Pro Stock Motorcycle racer to run in the 6s with a 6.998-second lap at England’s Santa Pod Raceway.
“I wanted to come to (NHRA) because it is so big here and there are so many more bikes, and so many more races,” Karlsson said.
Following the U.S. Nationals this weekend, Karlsson said she will compete again on the NHRA circuit at the final two races of the season at Las Vegas (Oct. 30-Nov. 2) and Pomona, Calif. (Nov. 13-16).
“We want to race here in the USA next year, we just need more sponsorship,” Karlsson said.
Karlsson had the 17th fastest time Friday at 7.138 seconds at 184.85 mph.
RETIREMENT NOT IN RAY’S IMMEDIATE FUTURE – A year ago at the U.S. Nationals, Pro Stock Motorcycle racer Michael Ray was set on retiring after the 2013 season.
That’s not the case anymore.
“They keep sweetening the pot and we keep having fun, so we keep racing,” Ray, 30 said. “I have a good support staff around me and a lot of good people who have helped me keep my focus in racing, and allowed me to enjoy it instead of worrying about rushing into plans because everything is going to be around for awhile. We finished No. 2 last year, just a few points behind Matt Smith and when you carry a No. 2 plate, it kind of makes you want to come back out and see if you can move up another notch.”
Ray, who rides the Star Racing Buell, entered the U.S. Nationals this weekend at Lucas Oil Raceway Park in Indianapolis seventh in the point standings. Ray has made it to the finals once this season, losing to Andrew Hines at the Mile-High Nationals in Denver.
Ray and his wife Jennifer have no children. They were married in October of 2011.
“This year has been fun, and it has definitely been more nerve-wracking than last year,” Ray said. “Last year you just had to drive well, you didn’t have to be spectacular. Now this year you have to be on your toes every round. The Harleys (Andrew Hines and Eddie Krawiec) seem to be a hundredth or two at least in front of everybody right now and that’s OK. They worked at it for a couple of years and NHRA did some things over the winter that they felt they needed to do to let them be more competitive and when you’re the sanctioning body you can do that and it worked out for them. So, you just have to go up there and you have to race Pro Stock. It’s not like you can be 50 or 60 on the tree and expect to win. Last year you didn’t have to be crazy, you just had to have a fast bike, and now there are a lot of fast bikes.”
And, Ray’s optimistic about what his team can accomplish at Indy.
“We went on a pretty good run of hurting engines, and it really wasn’t making any sense why we were hurting them,” Ray said. “I would love to be able to tell you what we found, but I really don’t (know). I know when George (Bryce, the team owner) got home, they were working 7 days a week, 10 hours a day, and they got it fixed. So, we have all of our motors fresh and all new parts and all new pieces and hopefully we will come out swinging.”
Ray was No. 7 on the qualifying ladder Friday at 6.991 seconds.
MATT SMITH KEEPING PLENTY BUSY - Although Matt Smith won his second Pro Stock Motorcycle world championship last season, it didn’t make finding a sponsorship for the 2014 season any easier.
“I have this race (the U.S. Nationals) left with Kenny (Koretsky, and Nitro Fish colors), and Reading (Pa., Oct. 2-5) and Pomona (Nov. 13-16),” Smith said. “I also worked a deal out with them for John Hall’s bike to go the rest of the year with Nitro Fish. Angie (Smith, Matt’s wife) has Kandy (Magazine) for the rest of the year and Scott Pollacheck has Petrolhead (Apparel line) for the rest of the year. This year has been a struggle. You win a championship and you shouldn’t have to worry about going to find money to race on. That’s what has been my main struggle all year is to try and get money to go racing. It’s has been frustrating because it takes a lot of focus away from me running my program like I need to. That’s kind of been the bad part about our deal.”
Matt Smith also has had plenty to worry about that doesn’t have anything to do with sponsors.
“I’m the one who rides and I tune everybody’s bikes, and if my bike is not out here, then that means all these other bikes have to pay more money for this truck and trailer to go up and down the road,” Smith said. “It’s really important for me to have a deal, that way I can give a good deal to these other guys because it doesn’t cost any more money to put a bike or two in the trailer.”
Despite the hectic season, the Matt Smith Racing motorcycles have produced results heading into Indy.
Hall and Matt Smith are fifth and sixth in the points, Pollacheck is eighth and Angie Smith is ninth.
“All four bikes are in the top nine in points and that’s impressive,” Matt said. “I’ve been focused more than anything on getting John Hall, Angie and Scotty into this Countdown. I have kind of neglected my bike a little bit and if John, Angie and Scotty come here (to Indy) and qualify good and they win one round they are locked in period (to the Countdown to the Championship). So, I think you are going to start seeing my bike run a lot better. I’m going to start focusing more on my deal.”
According to Matt, Steve Nichols is arriving at Indy Saturday morning and he will be helping on tuning with his team.
“Steve hasn’t helped me this year, but he has helped me a lot every year up to this year. If I have a problem, I just call him on the phone, and he just gets me through whatever problems I have got,” Matt said. “He’s a good fuel injection guy and I will tune my bike and John Hall’s bike and I’m going to let him do Angie’s and Scotty’s. We have the power. I just have to focus more on getting my bike to work again at the eighth-mile like I’ve always been known for. We went to Rockingham (N.C.) and tested last Thursday and Friday and I made seven runs and John made five, and I think I got it back where I want it to be.”
Matt Smith was No. 4 on the qualifying ladder (6.964 seconds), Hall was No. 5 (6.984), Angie Smith was No. 9 (7.013 seconds) and Pollacheck was No. 14 (7.076).
The six-race Countdown to the Championship begins Sept. 12-14 at the Carolina Nationals in Charlotte.
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