Matt Smith wasn’t about to let Richard Gadson take another step toward the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle championship without a fight. And when the two lined up Sunday in the final round of the Texas NHRA FallNationals, the six-time world champion reminded the points leader that a quicker motorcycle doesn’t always win a drag race.
Smith delivered a .006-second reaction time and held off Gadson on a holeshot, running 6.660 seconds at 203.08 mph aboard his Denso Auto Parts Buell. Gadson was quicker at 6.654 and 203.79 mph, but Smith’s starting-line advantage was enough to secure his fourth victory of 2026 and 46th of his career.
The victory was Smith’s second at Texas Motorplex and kept his pursuit of a seventh world championship alive. With two races remaining, Smith sits third in the standings, 85 points behind Gadson, while teammate Gaige Herrera trails the leader by 58.
Smith understood what he was up against. The rival camp had been setting the performance standard, and he knew beating Gadson would require more than a good motorcycle.
“When you’re running that other camp like that, you know what they have,” Smith said. “They have the best stuff out here and you got to get up on the wheel and go.”
Smith had already tested his starting-line approach against Gadson during Saturday’s final qualifying session, cutting a .008 light. When the championship contenders met again Sunday, he returned to the same clutch and switch settings.
“I knew Q4 in qualifying, I went 008 against Richard when we ran each other, and I just set my clutch and my switch right back to that,” Smith said. “It went up there and went 006. So I knew where I needed to be. I just didn’t know if I had the bike to beat them.”
One tuning adjustment after the semifinals provided the performance Smith needed. His 6.660-second run was enough to overcome Gadson’s quicker elapsed time and turn what could have been a damaging championship weekend into a victory.
Smith defeated Malcolm Phillips Jr., Chase Van Sant and Ryan Oehler before meeting Gadson in the final. Gadson advanced through Marc Ingwersen, Angie Smith and Steve Johnson to reach his eighth final round of the season.
For Smith, the Dallas victory was part of a championship plan he had laid out before leaving home. He believed his team could still overcome its Countdown deficit, provided it started winning races and getting some help from the competition.
“Look, it’s not over yet,” Smith recalled telling his team. “We go to here, we win. We can knock them out second, third round. We got a shot.”
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Herrera’s second-round elimination helped Smith, but Gadson’s trip to the final prevented him from making a larger points gain. Smith nevertheless left Texas convinced the championship remained within reach.
“We’re going to Vegas,” Smith said. “We’re going to roll some dice, and we’re going to do our job and try to be good.”
There was another concern beneath the celebration, one Smith said nearly put him on the ground during eliminations. He described the Texas Motorplex shutdown area as dangerously rough for motorcycles traveling more than 200 mph, particularly because Pro Stock Motorcycles have no suspension.
“Actually, in E2, I though I was coming off the bike,” Smith said. “I thought I was done. I just about gave it up, and just got in that tuck position, and just tried to go and slide.”
Smith said the bumps caused his motorcycle to become airborne at one point, forcing him to concentrate on controlling the machine after crossing the finish line. He praised the Meyer family’s work at the facility but urged improvements to the shutdown area before next year’s event.
The championship pursuit also comes during a physically difficult season for Smith. He has undergone two surgeries related to gallbladder problems and said additional procedures for hernias will likely wait until December.
He has no intention of allowing those problems to end his title bid. Smith pointed to previous championship runs when outsiders had written off his chances, only to watch him leave Pomona with another trophy.
“I’ve seen a lot of things happen,” Smith said. “A lot of people’s counted us out before and we’ve walked away with six championships at Pomona. So we’re going to try to walk away with seven and see what happens.”
