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Sixth World Title Within Reach for Pro Stock Motorcycle’s Matt Smith at Auto Club NHRA Finals

2022 NHRA Auto Club Finals logo (678)

POMONA, CA – November 11, 2022 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – The finishing touches are all that’s left of what Matt Smith hopes is his sixth Pro Stock Motorcycle world championship, a number that would tie him with Andrew Hines and Dave Schultz for the most in NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series history.

But it’s not official yet, which means Smith knows the job isn’t quite done heading into this weekend at the 57th annual Auto Club NHRA Finals at legendary Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. Smith currently leads Joey Gladstone by 104 points heading into the finale in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, meaning he has a sizable lead but not enough to officially clinch the title.

That could come as early as a first-round victory if qualifying goes well for Smith on his Denso Auto Parts Buell, but the standout remains as focused as ever as he closes in on a historic achievement.

“I feel comfortable and confident heading into a track where we’ve done really well,” said Smith, who has five career wins in Pomona. “I’m just going to come in with the mindset of running my race and try to stay focused on winning. If I do my job, we’ll be okay. There can be a lot on your mind, but I’m going to rely on my experience, and we’ll see what happens.”

Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Bob Tasca III (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) won last year’s race, while Torrence, Capps (Funny Car), Anderson and Smith all claimed world titles in Pomona as well. The race will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1 (FS1), including eliminations at 4 p.m. on Sunday, where Smith could cap off his great season with a victory.

He’s picked up four wins this season, including one in the playoffs, and advanced to three finals in the postseason, taking control down the stretch in a class that had been back and forth for most of the year. Gladstone has enjoyed a breakout year with three victories but would need an incredible weekend – plus a significant slip-up from Smith – to claim his first world title. That may be difficult considering Smith’s track record in Pomona, where he’s managed to win the race and clinch the world title on the same weekend three different times.

“It’s huge to win the race and win the championship all in the same weekend,” Smith said. “We’ve done it numerous times and we’ve got a good tradition of being able to do that. Hopefully, we can do it again. The first half of the year we…

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