Richard Gadson raced his RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki Gen 3 Hayabusa to the final round of Pro Stock Motorcycle eliminations and a narrow loss on Sunday at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH.
In round one, Gadson defeated Chase Van Sant (6.935 seconds/193.79 mph) with a 6.844-second/197.97 mph run. In round two, he posted the low elapsed time of the round, running 6.847 seconds at 197.68 mph in a victory over Angie Smith (7.001 seconds/173.36 mph), avenging his semi-final round loss to her a week ago in Richmond. Gadson continued his run through eliminations in the semi-finals by defeating Smith’s husband, Matt (6.942 seconds/196.27 mph), with a 6.929-second/195.59 mph pass to advance to his third final-round appearance this season and sixth of his career.
Seeking a second career win, Gadson suffered a mechanical issue in his final round loss to John Hall (6.880 seconds/196.87 mph), who claimed his first Pro Stock Motorcycle victory since the 2013 season. Despite getting off to a large starting line advantage, Gadson’s 6.967-second/195.19 mph run came up just short of the victory when his motorcycle’s transmission failed to properly shift through the gears.
“The engine revs dropped when the transmission shifted from second straight into fourth. I didn’t see John next to me in the other lane when I looked over, so instead of pulling in the clutch and aborting the run, I pinned the throttle all the way to the finish line hoping to still get the win. I almost did, but he came around me right at the end,” Gadson said. “I did everything I could to win this weekend, but sometimes things happen that are out of your control. This one cost me a Wally. It’s a hard pill to swallow, but I keep focusing on the fact that I’m riding a great motorcycle that gives me these opportunities to win. I’m staying in killer mode between now and Seattle, because I know that in the long run things will work out for me more times than they won’t. I’m playing the law of averages.”
Gaige Herrera qualified second with a 6.820-second/199.11 mph run on Saturday and won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, a bonus race contested during qualifications in which semi-finalists from the previous race compete head-to-head for a cash purse and championship bonus points. It was Herrera’s third challenge win this season and the 10th of his career.
In the first round of eliminations, Herrera defeated Odolph Daniels (foul) with a 6.833-second/197.83 mph pass. Herrera advanced to the semi-finals after posting a 6.864-second/198.26 mph run on a solo bye run in round two.
In his semi-final round matchup against John Hall (6.956 seconds/194.10 mph), Herrera committed a rare starting line foul, losing to the eventual race winner by leaving the starting line 0.014-second too soon. It was the first red light loss for the two-time reigning world champion since the Maple Grove round last season. Despite his early exit, Herrera held onto first place in the championship standings and maintained his points lead over top rival Matt Smith, who also lost in the semis.
“John’s usually a good leaver, so I went up there hoping to be in the teens on the tree, but on the green side, not the red side. I felt like I was on my game, but it was just an honest mistake. You live by the sword, you die by the sword,” Herrera said. “I’m not too mad or sad about it, and I’m going into the next race in Seattle with a lot of momentum and confidence. These hot conditions we’ve had the past two race weekends take a toll on your body and mind as a rider, so I’m looking forward to the weather and the scenery being a little better out on the west coast.”
RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki crew chief Andrew Hines was pleased with Herrera’s Mission #2Fast2Tasty challenge win on Saturday but disappointed not to come away with the overall victory.
“We came up short today with a transmission issue on Richard’s motorcycle. He was deserving of the win today, but the transmission let him down. Lightning struck us two races in a row. It’s a known issue that these transmissions can sometimes skip the third gear shift. It’s happening more frequently now, probably because of the higher horsepower we’re making and the heavier mandatory weight we’re carrying this season,” Hines said. “But overall, we’re better and smarter all around as a team after our last couple of races and we’re ready to move on to faster things at the west coast races. I’m tired of running 6.80s in this heat. I want to see our Hayabusas go low 6.70s in hopefully cooler weather out there.”
After the six of 15 rounds in the 2025 Pro Stock Motorcycle season, Herrera and Gadson sit first and third in the Pro Stock Motorcycle standings with 628 and 517 points, respectively.
The RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines team returns to action July 18-20 at the Muckleshoot Casino Resort NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways in Kent, WA.
