Ed Krawiec Wins Indy NHRA U.S. National: Pro Stock Motorcycle
Harley-Davidson Screamin’ Eagle/Vance & Hines pilot Ed Krawiec was untouchable Labor Day weekend during the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis.
Riding a Harley-Davidson Street Rod in the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle class, Krawiec claimed top qualifier with a 6.822-second elapsed time.
He followed this during Monday’s eliminations with a best of 6.842 seconds at 196.56 mph in round one and then proceeded to charge through the field. Krawiec’s final-round win was the third of the season for the three-time world champion and the 39th of his career.
“This was a really big win for us,” says Ed Krawiec. “We showed the rest of the field that we have our new chassis figured out and we’ll be bringing two very fast Harley Street Rods to the Countdown. We are here to play and they better be ready.”
Krawiec’s teammate Andrew Hines was also quick; he qualified second at 6.825 seconds and advanced to the second round of eliminations on Monday. Hines set the top Pro Stock Motorcycle speed of the Indy weekend when his Street Rod race bike was clocked at 197.22 mph.
Krawiec and Hines have both secured slots in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, open to the top 10 racers in each NHRA class. Krawiec is the number two Pro Stock Motorcycle seed for the Countdown and Hines, a five-time Pro Stock Motorcycle champion, is seeded sixth.
“This was the prefect weekend to get the new Street Rod bikes dialed in,” said Krawiec. “We’ve been making chassis adjustments for the past three races and it’s finally starting to click for us. It’s great to be hot heading into the Countdown and racing for another championship for Harley-Davidson.”
NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series points will reset for the Countdown, which is held over the final six races of the season. Krawiec will start the Pro Stock Motorcycle playoffs in second place with 2,080 points, 30 points behind leader Le Tonglet (Nitro Fish Racing Suzuki). Hines is seeded sixth with 2,040 points.
The Harley-Davidson® Screamin’ Eagle®/Vance & Hines Pro Stock Motorcycle drag racing team will begin the Countdown playoffs Sept. 15-17 at the NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C.