NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Matt Smith has had the best bike in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class at almost every race this season and as a result, his Denso Buell will once again carry the No. 1 plate in 2021. Smith clinched his fifth Camping World NHRA Series championship on Sunday in Pomona when he beat Angelle Sampey on a holeshot in the quarterfinal round. Sampey set low elapsed time with a 6.777  but it wasn’t enough to hold off Smith’s 6.808.

“I just want to be one of the greatest of all time,” Smith said. “You’ve got people like Dave Schultz, John Meyers, Angelle [Sampey], Eddie Krawiec, and Andrew Hines and I just want to be included with that group. I've got to thank Denso, Mark Stockseth, Glen Butcher Trucking and everyone else who supports us. We did it. We've got five of them and that's all I needed."

Smiths’ winning run was not without  a bit of drama as a brake failure sent his Denso Buell into the Pomona sand trap at the conclusion of his winning run. Smith wasn’t hurt but did wear out a pair of riding boots trying to get the bike stopped.

Smith entered the Auto Club NHRA Finals with a tenuous 20 point lead over Steve Johnson and a 30-point advantage over Sampey, who was chasing her third fourth championship and first since 2002. Smith managed to extend that lead in qualifying when he had the quickest bike in two of three qualifying sessions.

Smith, who also won titles in  2007, 2012, 2018, and 2020, becomes just the third Pro Stock Motorcycle rider to win 5 or more championships joining the late Dave Schultz, who won five before his untimely death in 2002, and Andrew Hines, who is the current class leader with six.

En route to his latest championship, Smith won five of the first 14 events of the season, securing victories in Gainesville, Norwalk, Denver, Pomona 1, and Dallas. He was in first place for 11 of 14 races and was never ranked lower than third at any point in the season. Smith’s 34-9 record in elimination rounds compares favorably with any other NHRA pro.

Smith, racing as part of multi-bike team along with his wife, Angie, and 2020 U.S. Nationals champ Scotty Pollacheck, was dominant at times this season, particularly during the Countdown to the Champonship where he carried an 11-4 record in eliminations into the final event of the season. Smith has also made more 200-mph runs than anyone else in the class.