2024 NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle Round 3 Results

| May 21, 2024

For the last year and a half, RevZilla/Vance & Hines Suzuki’s Gaige Herrera has rewritten the NHRA history books with one of the most dominant performances in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class history.

Gaige Herrera at Route 66 NHRA — **Gaige Herrera continued to dominate the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle Championship. His latest victory came in Chicago.**

By Kevin McKenna | Photos by Matt Polito

Following a year in which he won 11 of 15 races and coasted to the World title, Herrera remains unbeaten in 2024 following his latest victory at Route 66 Raceway near Chicago, May 17-19. After defeating Trick Tools Suzuki’s Chase Van Sant in the final, Herrera has now won eight straight events, breaking a 30-year-old record held by late Hall of Fame rider Dave Schultz.

Herrera left the starting line first in the final and never trailed. He rode to a 6.713-second elapsed time to easily cover Van Sant’s 6.797. Herrera now has won 14 of the last 18 Pro Stock Motorcycle events.

“First, congrats to Chase Van Sant. He did a great job today and he’s on his way,” Herrera said. “As far as tying Dave Schultz, I’m honored. I wish I’d had a chance to meet him, but I’ve heard a lot of great stories, and I know what he did for this Pro Stock Motorcycle class. It’s still hard to believe I’m mentioned in the same sentence as him.

“We qualified second behind Matt [Smith], but today was a different day,” Herrera said. “The weather was consistent, and that let us really work on our tune-up. I honestly thought it would be Matt and me in the final round. I was consistent, and my bike was on rails.”

Herrera’s record-setting performances include a string of impressive qualifying performances, but this weekend, he yielded the top spot to Denso Buell’s Matt Smith, who sent a message with a 6.708 that shows Herrera’s days of dominance are numbered. Herrera was number two in qualifying with a 6.733 and then rode to victories against Wes Wells, John Hall and Maple Grove Raceway Suzuki’s LE Tonglet to reach the final. Early on, Herrera made headlines with a 6.694, the quickest run of the event.

Angie Smith at Route 66 NHRA — **Angie Smith made it to the semi-final where she got knocked out by Chase Van Sant.**

“I did not expect that run,” Herrera said. “We’d had a headwind, but it died down a bit just before we ran, and that helped us. That run required almost no correction, so that was also a factor. My hat’s off to Drew [Hines, crew chief] and the Vance & Hines guys. We started using a new [NHRA-mandated] fuel at the last race, and I think we’ve got a handle on it.”

Van Sant won last year’s Rookie of the Year award even though his 2023 season was cut short after he was injured in a late-season incident in Dallas. Fully recovered, he’s regained his confidence and advanced to his first career final at Route 66 Raceway.

The number-eight qualifier with a 6.822, Van Sant, topped Steve Johnson in round one and then scored a big upset against low qualifier Matt Smith in round two, winning a 6.808 to 6.812 match. Van Sant then stopped Smith’s wife, Angie, in the semi-final round to reach the final.

“We’re making steady progress so this was a good day,” said Van Sant. “I tried not to think too much about who I was racing in the final. I just tried to focus on my lane and be the best rider I can be. If I can do that, the results will eventually take care of themselves.”

The Pro Stock Motorcycle class will next head to Bristol, Tennessee, for the Thunder Valley Nationals, one of the few events that Herrera did not win last season.