CONCORD, N.C.: CONCORD, N.C. – It’s been a busy week for King, N.C. native Matt Smith and it’s only Day 1 of the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals at zMAX Dragway. On Thursday, the former NHRA Full Throttle Series Pro Stock Motorcycle champion and his wife, fellow rider Angie, entertained fans at their pit to thank them for their participation in Matt’s Fan Bike Sponsor program. Each sponsor had their name written on Matt’s bike and received autographs from the duo, along with a visit from recent U.S. Nationals Top Fuel champ and former PSM standout, Antron Brown.
Prior to Rd. 1 of qualifying Friday, Matt, along with the other nine class Countdown to 1 participants, were introduced to the crowd. Immediately following the ceremony under overcast skies on a cold track, Smith jumped on his Buell and rocketed down the track at 6.871 seconds, good enough to put him solidly in second place. With a Q2 run of 6.913 seconds, the first round ET holds and keeps him at P2 going into Saturday’s final qualifying runs.
“First, the fan bike turned out great,” Smith said. “Thank you to all the fans for your support. We couldn’t have done this without you all and I hope you’re enjoying the ride.
“We have a good bike. We were second of the round on both runs today. We hurt the motor on the first pass so we’re going to get it out and see what happened and try to get it back right, but I think we’ll be in pretty good shape tomorrow if it doesn’t rain.”
In addition to tuning his own Buell this weekend, Matt is also tuning Angie’s and Michael Bay’s as he did two weeks ago in Indianapolis. Angie sits fifth on the provisional qualifying ladder with a run of 6.920 seconds and Bay is currently tenth with an ET of 6.943 seconds. Former class champion and current No. 1 seed in the class Countdown bracket Eddie Krawiec holds the provisional pole with an ET of 6.833 seconds at 196.70 mph.
Saturday’s qualifying rounds begin at 11:15 a.m. EDT with Q4 scheduled for 1:45 p.m. Eliminations are expected to begin Sunday at Noon. Spectator gates open at 7:30 a.m. Saturday and 9:30 a.m. Sunday. For more information on this weekend’s event or for tickets, click HERE.
Prior to Rd. 1 of qualifying Friday, Matt, along with the other nine class Countdown to 1 participants, were introduced to the crowd. Immediately following the ceremony under overcast skies on a cold track, Smith jumped on his Buell and rocketed down the track at 6.871 seconds, good enough to put him solidly in second place. With a Q2 run of 6.913 seconds, the first round ET holds and keeps him at P2 going into Saturday’s final qualifying runs.
“First, the fan bike turned out great,” Smith said. “Thank you to all the fans for your support. We couldn’t have done this without you all and I hope you’re enjoying the ride.
“We have a good bike. We were second of the round on both runs today. We hurt the motor on the first pass so we’re going to get it out and see what happened and try to get it back right, but I think we’ll be in pretty good shape tomorrow if it doesn’t rain.”
In addition to tuning his own Buell this weekend, Matt is also tuning Angie’s and Michael Bay’s as he did two weeks ago in Indianapolis. Angie sits fifth on the provisional qualifying ladder with a run of 6.920 seconds and Bay is currently tenth with an ET of 6.943 seconds. Former class champion and current No. 1 seed in the class Countdown bracket Eddie Krawiec holds the provisional pole with an ET of 6.833 seconds at 196.70 mph.
Saturday’s qualifying rounds begin at 11:15 a.m. EDT with Q4 scheduled for 1:45 p.m. Eliminations are expected to begin Sunday at Noon. Spectator gates open at 7:30 a.m. Saturday and 9:30 a.m. Sunday. For more information on this weekend’s event or for tickets, click HERE.
