Mechanical woes bug Matt Smith in first round of Gatornationals
Call them gremlins, bugs or just plain mechanical miseries, but whatever plagued Matt Smith’s Al-Anabi Racing V-Twin Pro Stock Motorcycle during the Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals was uncommon, unexpected and unwanted. A string of first-race maladies led to a disappointing first-round exit for the veteran rider and 2007 series champion. As frustrating as that was, Smith could only shake his head in disbelief when discussing what occurred in his match against Steve Johnson. “The e.g.t. wire fell on the front coil pack and shorted out a cylinder,” Smith said. “The motor started missing and popping and it did that all the way down the track. It’s something I’d never seen before.” It resulted in a loss to Johnson, 6.978 seconds at 191.13 mph to a 6.982 at 191.13. “I’m glad this weekend is over,” said Smith. “We are going to test here on Monday so we can get everything working right. We’re already set up here so we’ll take advantage of it.” The next race is the Inaugural Four-Wide Nationals, March 26-28, at his hometown track of zMAX Dragway near Charlotte. |
