NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Angie Smith came 0.78-mph away from become the fourth rider to join the Denso Spark Plugs 200-mph club on Saturday at the NHRA Sonoma Nationals. Her husband, Matt Smith, made the only run in the double-century mark, helping him towards the provisional No. 1 qualifier at Sonoma Raceway and a track record at 200.83-mph in Pro Stock Motorcycle. 

Matt ran a 6.779-second pass in the first qualifying session to get to the top of the heap. The Pro Stock Motorcycle contingent did most of the damage in the first session, despite warmer weather, thanks to a healthy tailwind. A headwind swung down Sonoma Raceway in the second session, hurting the performance of the two-wheel class. 

"This is just a testament to my crew and the sponsors that we have," said Smith. "My crew guys do a fantastic job and I can't say enough about the sponsors that I have. To be battling the big boys with all the money, I can't be more proud."

Related: Pro Stock Motorcycle Qualifying Order

Jerry Savoie continued his late-season surge onboard his Suzuki with a 6.801-second pass at 198.2-mph. He was followed by Eddie Krawiec (6.838) and Angie Smith (6.843). Karen Stoffer, running as a White Alligator Racing teammate with Savoie, ran a 6.844 to round out the top five.

Scotty Pollacheck, also running with Matt Smith Racing is in the top half of the field with a 6.91-second pass at 196.07-mph. He is battling with Hector Arana Sr. and Savoie to try to make the NHRA Countdown to the Championship. This is the penultimate race of make points before the top 10 locks. 

Dylan Hendrix made his NHRA national event debut, but not without controversy. Both he and fellow Californian Katie Sullivan made clean 7-second passes in the first qualifying session, but neither stood up. The two went through tech inspections at the top end and had their runs disallowed following a fuel check. That did not keep Sullivan nor Hendrix from running in the second session, and Hendrix ended the day in the field. 

Michael Ray is holding down the bump spot with a 7.158-second pass. Cory Reed, Jianna Salinas, James Surber, Scott Bottorff and Melissa Surber will all trying to fight their way into the field on Saturday. 

The third qualifying session is set for 1:15 p.m. Pacific. That comes right after introductions for the Mickey Thompson Pro Bike Battle, which you can watch live on NHRA.tv. You won’t want to miss any Pro Stock Motorcycle action on Saturday, as eight riders compete for a $25,000 pay day.