Third Time is the Charm for Herrera
R
evZilla/Vance & Hines Suzu-
ki's Gaige Herrera has raced
in the season-opening NHRA
event in Gainesville three times,
and he's won all three of them.
Herrera claimed his third-straight
victory at the Amalie Motor Oil
NHRA Gatornationals following
a final-round win over his arch-
rival, Denso Buell's Matt Smith.
On a weekend when team
owners Terry Vance and Byron
Hines were inducted into the
International Drag Racing Hall of
Fame, and Vance & Hines rider
Matthew Chapin won the SC
Project Twins Cup race across
the state in Daytona, Herrera de
-
livered his 22nd career Pro Stock
Motorcycle win as he begins his
third campaign with the Browns
-
burg, Indiana-based squad.
"This was a good day for me
and a great day for Vance &
Hines, although the rain sort of
put me in a weird mood," Her-
rera said. "We got here early this
morning and had to sit through
hours of rain, and I was like, 'Let's
get on with it.' I'm not the type of
person who likes to sit around.
"The rain made it tough, but
otherwise, my bike was deadly
consistent. We made three
straight runs that were 6.76, and
I'm amazed that Andrew [Hines,
crew chief] can do that. In the
final, we knew we needed more,
so we threw everything at it. I
thought we'd run better, but I
didn't expect a 6.72."
In an incredibly close final
round, Herrera won with a 6.722
elapsed time, stopping Smith's
6.723. Smith had a slightly faster
speed, 203.19 to 200.23, but
Herrera was first off the starting
line, and that helped make the
difference.
"We are very evenly matched,
but I got him on the Tree a little,"
Herrera said. "Before that final,
we were a little behind in perfor
-
mance, but we threw our special
tire on there and said, 'Let's see
what happens,' and we came
away with the win. To start the
season with a win here in Gaines-
ville makes for an incredible week-
end for the Vance & Hines team."
Given the longstanding and
sometimes bitter rivalry between
the two powerhouse teams,
WIND
IN THE
P44
Gaige Herrera won
the opening round of
the 2025 NHRA Pro
Stock Motorcycle
class at Gainesville.
PHOTOS: MATT POLITO
