Chris Matheson aboard his Nitro Voodoo Top Fuel Motorcycle Team won the IHRA 400 Thunder East Coast Thunder Nationals last weekend.
Matheson top qualified with a 6.59 to head the field into racing, though admittedly Matheson said he struggled in qualifying with his set up.
Race day saw much cooler conditions from the previous day’s event and the field was set to race. Matheson blasted his way into the final after a 6.33 in a practice round due to low entry numbers, then a 6.73 in first elimination round in the lead up to the final against Damian Muscat who had knocked out Chris Porter.
On the final Matheson said. “The track was good, the big winds virtually stopped and we were ready to run.”
Matheson holeshot Muscat and was never threatened to the line running a 6.59 to take out the final.
Crew Chief Graeme Turner later said “We lost power just past half-track due to a failure in the oil pump, however, it was enough to get a green light.”
“We are slowly getting a handle on the new combo, albeit slower than we want. Chris just wants more power, more speed, as every true racer does. We are looking forward to the next round to get a few more runs on the bike.”
After the win Matheson commented “Damian Muscat ran a good lead up to the final, only to get pipped in the final.”
Matheson’s win in the opening round of the championship will sends an ominous message to his rivals, with the next IHRA 400 Thunder round being the New Years Thunder at Willowbank Raceway on Saturday January 7th 2017.
Matheson would like to thank his sponsors and supporters: GT Radiators & Machining, Kitten Car Care Products, CRC, Rocket Industries, Performance Wholesale, WebCam, PDS Graphics, Worldwide Bearings, Hi-Side Leathers, Boninfante Friction Inc., Ballistic Racing, Aeroflow, BlackAdda with special thanks to Steve and Larry McBride.
