against Katie Sullivan and a
6.90 to defeat his wife and
teammate, Angie, on her Denso
EBR. Smith's most significant
challenge came in the final four
when he was paired against
Screamin' Eagle Vance & Hines'
Andrew Hines, the current points
leader, and five-time series
champion. A loss would have
eliminated Smith from title con-
tention, but he was able to win
the round after Hines red-lighted
at the start. Smith would have
been tough to beat with a 6.89
that easily covered Hines' 6.96
on his Harley FXDR.
"That win was huge," Smith
said. "That was our whole
season right there. I was aware
of what was at stake, and I was
actually disappointed that Jerry
[Savoie] didn't take him out in
round two. We had to beat
Andrew to have any chance at
the championship. Fortunately,
he red-lighted, but I think we had
enough for him no matter what.
It's not over mathematically, but
he's got a pretty big dagger in
it. This Denso bike is mean right
now, and we just need to take it
to Pomona in two weeks and do
the same thing we did this week-
end. I can't really control what
happens as far as the champion-
ship goes, but we're going to
give it our best shot."
Runner-up Johnson has au-
thored one of the most interest-
ing storylines of the season in
the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle
category. Earlier this season,
he was sidelined by a lack of
sponsorship after breaking his
best engine. Johnson sat out
the rounds in Norwalk (Ohio),
Denver, and Sonoma, ending a
perfect attendance streak that
extends back to his debut dur-
ing the 1987 season. Since his
return, Smith has been among
the most competitive riders in
the class with a runner-up fin-
ish in Reading and a pair of
semi-finals in St. Louis and
Charlotte. Johnson's march
to the final included wins
against Ron Tornow, Harley-
Davidson's Angelle Sampey
and Scotty Pollacheck.
Earlier this season, Smith
and Johnson had a memo-
rable war of words where
Smith, a full-time professional
in the NHRA series, made
some less-than-flattering
comments about the riders
he perceived to be "hobby
racers," including Johnson.
Both riders have claimed to
put the confrontation behind
them, but after the final, Smith
couldn't resist offering a parting
shot.
"I think he may have had the
better bike by a bit, but in the
final, we decided to shoot for
the moon, and it worked," Smith
said. "In the end, the pro team
won the race. That's the way it's
supposed to go, isn't it?"
Heading into the final race
of the season, Hines holds a
115-point lead over Savoie, with
Eddie Krawiec (116) and Smith
(117) close behind. The Auto
Club Finals in Pomona features
a points-and-a-half format,
which means that Hines needs
to qualify and just win the first
round of eliminations to clinch
his sixth championship.
Kevin McKenna
Final Result
1. Matt Smith (EBR)
2. Steve Johnson (Suz)
VOLUME 56 ISSUE 44 NOVEMBER 5, 2019 P29
Steve Johnson
put up a fight
but narrowly lost
out to Smith in
the final.
