Matt Smith kept Gaige Herrera from his second straight championship on Saturday, securing enough qualifying bonus – as well as the No. 1 spot – to extend the championship race into Sunday at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals. He qualified in the top spot for the sixth time this year, going 6.721 at 202.64 on his Denso Auto Parts/Matt Smith Racing Buell. With that, he closed the gap to 119 points against Herrera, though Smith will need plenty of help to secure a seventh world championship on Sunday.
If Herrera knocks off Clayton Howey in the opening round of eliminations, Herrera will claim his second straight world title. Smith’s only path to a championship is if Herrera loses in the first round and Smith wins the race. If that doesn’t happen, Smith would at least like to end the year with a victory.
“We came here to try and get the win and we’re in a spot to do that,” Smith said. “We’re still alive [for the championship] but we made too many mistakes during the Countdown to battle Gaige [Herrera] for the championship.
“Funny, but I’m going to finish No. 2 in the championship and I’ve never been No. 2 in my career. I’ve either won the championship or been third or fourth or lower. It would be huge for us to win the race tomorrow or for Angie [Smith], John Hall or Jianna [Evaristo] to win it. I’d love to see one of them win it. It would be a great way to end the season.”
A. Smith qualified second with a 6.758 at 201.43 and Herrera is third after going 6.765 at 201.22.
Eliminations for the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals begin at 11 a.m. PT on Sunday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.
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