race with the points lead. Smith
has now won five times at World
Wide Technology Raceway in St.
Louis, which is the most in the
class.
"This has always been a good
track for me," Smith said. "I
came here in 2007 and beat An-
gelle [Sampey] in the final, and I
remember that was a big win. We
also won here in 2020 when I
beat my teammate, Scotty Polla-
check, in the final. For whatever
reason, my bike always seems to
run well here."
Savoie, who previously won
the Bristol, Tennessee, round
last June, reached the final
round for the second time this
season and the 32nd time in
his career, knocking off Ryan
Oehler, Angelle Sampey and
Eddie Krawiec. Savoie also has
a fondness for the St. Louis
track as it was the site of his
first NHRA victory in 2014. The
Louisiana-based alligator farmer
also won here in 2016, his cham-
pionship season.
"Our bike was good this week-
end, but not as good as Matt's,"
Savoie said. We made some
decent runs and scored some
points, but just couldn't get it
done in the final round."
The Countdown to the Cham-
pionship, NHRA's five race
playoff to determine season
champions, is now approaching
the homestretch with two races
down. In the battle for his sixth
NHRA title, Smith's points lead
stands at 21 over Gladstone,
while Angie Smith is third, 90
points back.
The Vance & Hines team
endured a tough weekend,
as riders Eddie Krawiec and
Angelle Sampey each lost via
a starting line holeshot. Savoie
was responsible for the damage
both times, as he beat Sampey
in the second round and then
stopped Krawiec in the semi-
finals. Krawiec is now ranked
fourth in the standings, while
Sampey is seventh. Both are
still in the running for the title but
have much work to do in the final
three events of the season.
Kevin McKenna
FINAL
1. Matt Smith (Bue)
2. Jerry Savoie (Suz)
IN
THE
WIND
P48
Jerry Savoie's winning run
in St. Louis ended when
he met Smith in the final.
