Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1367911
IN THE WIND P56 Pollacheck Wins Last Atlanta NHRA F or the 40th and final time, the Camping World NHRA Drag Racing Series headed to Atlanta Dragway for the Lucas Oil Southern Nationals, April 30-May 2, where Scotty Polla- check defeated teammate Matt Smith in the facility's last-ever Pro Stock Motorcycle final. It took Pollacheck nearly 10 years to claim his first win in NHRA's top two-wheel category during last season's U.S. Nationals, but his second victory came just eight races later, at the third round of the 2021 season. In the final-round battle featur- ing a pair of Denso EBR en- tries, Pollacheck's bike bogged badly on the starting line, but he breezed to the win after team owner Smith left the starting line too quickly and red-lighted by just one thousandth of a second. Pollacheck made a near clean sweep of the Atlanta event with a 6.779 at over 199-mph to seal the number-one qualifying position on Saturday. During Sunday's final eliminations, Pol- lacheck had a tough road to the final with races against World Champions Jerry Savoie and An- gelle Sampey, as well as recent Las Vegas winner and incom- ing points leader Ryan Oehler. He was consistent with a pair of 6.80 runs and a 6.86 to top Savoie's White Alligator Suzuki. Smith doesn't lose many finals, but he was able to take some comfort in his loss to a team- mate. The MSR team has won two of the first three events of the season. Smith also defeated Steve Johnson, Joey Gladstone and Eddie Krawiec to reach the 60th final round of his career. Following the Atlanta round, Smith has the points lead, with a scant three-point advantage over Pollacheck. The Atlanta event will also be known for several memorable comebacks. Gladstone returned to the class less than a month after suffering serious injuries in a testing accident in South Carolina. Gladstone crashed a Pro Mod bike at over 208 mph and suffered a broken collar- bone, shoulder blade and four ribs, as well as multiple bruises and abrasions. He recovered quickly and was cleared to return in Atlanta, missing just one event. Gladstone showed no ill-effects from the accident as he qualified number two with a 6.780, one of the best runs of his career. Vance & Hines teammates Krawiec and Andrew Hines also returned to the tour in Atlanta. They had been sidelined for the first two races after Harley-Da- vidson withdrew from the class following the 2020 season. The duo arrived with their new Buell entries, powered by the Vance & Hines branded V-twin engine. Hines joined the Denso 200-mph Club with a 200.11 run in qualify- ing, while Kraweic set the fastest speed of the race at 201.70 mph. Kevin McKenna Scotty Pollacheck topped the Lucas Oil Southern Nationals in Atlanta after teammate Matt Smith red-lighted. PHOTO: MATT POLITO