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SHINING STAR: Although Matt Smith opened the Countdown to the Championship with a win in Reading to temporarily take the points lead, it’s been all Gaige Herrera since then. After a stunning, tire-spinning second-round loss in Reading, Herrera and the Andrew Hines-tuned Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki have been undefeated, going 8-0 and winning in Charlotte and St. Louis to retake the points lead. They also have been the low qualifier at all three Countdown events, and his teammate, Eddie Krawiec, was the runner-up to him in St. Louis, re-emphasizing that they have the bikes to beat. Herrera is almost 100 points clear of second-place Smith.

“We’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing all season to keep the momentum going,” said Hines. “We have two formidable Hayabusas that will be a problem for every other competitor in the last three races.”

GAINING TRACTION: Although the top four seeds entering the Countdown — Herrera, Smith, Hector Arana Jr., and Krawiec — remain in those same spots three races later, there have been gains. Both Arana and Krawiec have 6-3 records and have a runner-up (Arana in Charlotte and Krawiec, as mentioned, in St. Louis) and will be there for the duration but will need to make big moves in Dallas if they’re going to stay in contention, though that seems unlikely given Herrera’s prowess.

“Right now, it’s really a race for second place for everyone else,” admitted Krawiec.

Smith, of course, is an enigma rolled in a riddle. After deploying Chip Ellis as a blocker in Reading and Charlotte, and having Ellis, runner-up to Smith in Reading, switch bikes with Smith’s wife, Angie, in Charlotte, and then deploying Joey Gladstone as a blocker in St. Louis, where Angie suffered a season-ending injury in a top-end crash and Matt went back to his tired and true Buel, who knows what we’ll see happen in Dallas and beyond? Well, turns out that we do know: Smith will be back aboard his Suzuki for the rest of the Countdown and Gladstone will be back on Angie's pink bike as a blocker.

Chase Van Sant further embossed his hopes for the NHRA Rookie of the Year title with semifinal finishes in Charlotte and St. Louis and has moved up two positions to fifth place, and Jianna Evaristo, who ran her first 200-mph pass in Reading en route to a semifinal finish also jumped up two spots to seventh.

LOSING TRACTION: Marc Ingwersen dropped a spot from ninth to eighth after just one round-win in three races, while veteran Steve Johnson is 0-3 and slipped from a promising fourth place to sixth. Ryan Oehler, who missed the events in Reading and Charlotte before returning in St. Louis, is down to 12th.