Pro Stock Motorcycle points leader Gaige Herrera continued his dominant season on Saturday at Sonoma Raceway, winning the first-ever NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout as part of this weekend’s 35th annual Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals.
In the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and J.R. Todd (Funny Car) both won the bonus event in Sonoma. Austin Prock (Top Fuel) and Bob Tasca III (Funny Car) each qualified No. 1 at the 12th of 21 races during the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.
In the final round of the Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout, Herrera went 6.756s at 196.42mph on his Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Suzuki to defeat Angie Smith and collect yet another win in a bonus event in 2023. Adding in his three wins in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, that gives the points leader four specialty race wins. Herrera’s Friday pass of 6.728s at 199.94mph held up to hand him a seventh No. 1 qualifier this season. On Sunday, he’ll also look to become the first rider in Pro Stock Motorcycle history to sweep the three-race NHRA Western Swing.
“It’s been amazing,” Herrera said. “I was out of breath after that. It was a big one and I wanted it really bad. There’s nothing like winning a Wally, but to win this first Callout for the class is pretty cool. It’s awesome for the whole team and I’m so happy right now. The amount of effort this team puts into these bikes is really amazing and it’s all paid off.
“This is special because a win like this takes a lot as a team. You get bragging rights and something like this is good for the sport and the class. We’re in a great position (to sweep the Western Swing). I’ve got all the confidence in the world in my team. I’m very excited and we’ll see what happens.”
Matt Smith qualified second thanks to his 6.729s at 200.23mph from Friday, while Eddie Krawiec’s 6.771s at 199.1mph put him third.
In Top Fuel, Torrence won his second straight Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, following up his impressive Seattle weekend by beating Clay Millican on a holeshot in the finals of the bonus race in his Capco Contractors/Toyota dragster. Torrence went 3.7888s at 326.08mph, using a 0.067s reaction time to best Millican’s run of 3.781mph. Torrence moved back into the points lead with his Seattle sweep and will look to continue that momentum with another double-up event on Sunday in Sonoma.
“Everything is going really well for us right now,” Torrence said. “The car has showed glimmers of hope throughout last year, mainly at the end of the year and now this year. The consistency is finally coming there. To win on a holeshot, that always makes you feel good as a driver. That was the best light I’ve had all weekend. I’ve been pretty late on the tree and I was just amped up.
“When you go up there, it’s not just another round of qualifying, it’s a race win. We’re going to try to finish this Western Swing with a win and keep this momentum going.”
Prock hung onto his first No. 1 qualifier this year in his Montana Brands/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet dragster thanks to his 3.704s at 331.36mph from Friday. He also put together a strong final run to close out qualifying on Saturday as he looks for his second win this season. Torrence finished second in qualifying with a 3.706s at 329.67mph and Antron Brown’s 3.721s at 329.75mph has him third.
“The No. 1s are very cool,” Prock said. “This is only my second in my career and this is my third season. They’re very hard to come by. When you qualify No. 1, it all goes to the race team. It shows that your crew chiefs and crew out did everybody out there and that’s very special. This was the first No. 1 qualifier for Chris Cunningham and Joe Barlam as a tandem so that was really special. Everybody is really proud of how this team is working and hopefully we can turn this into four round wins tomorrow.”