After two consecutive finals, Arana Sr. ready to take next step in Denver

DENVER, CO – Lucas Oil Buell rider Hector Arana Sr. is one of the hottest riders in Pro Stock Motorcycle, having reached the final round in each of the last two races, but he’d like to take one more step during the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals on Sunday at Bandimere Speedway.

“I would love to be back in the final,” Arana said, “and take a win.”

Arana qualified No. 9 in the thinner Denver air with a top pass of 7.251 seconds at 185.54 mph. He’ll square off against Matt Smith in the first round of eliminations Sunday after Smith qualified No. 8 with a run of 7.247 at 184.02 mph.

“We are OK with it,” Arana said. “We are still learning. I am behind a little bit on my clutch and the tune-up, but little by little I have been picking on it and it looks like it is coming around. I believe I just had a good run to get me a good day for Sunday. That’s all that counts on Sunday.”

Arana went to the final round in Chicago and Norwalk, Ohio, helping him move to fourth in the Pro Stock Motorcycle points standings. He’ll have to come from the bottom half of the field here if he intends to duplicate that success.

But Arana has consistency on his side in Denver, and staying consistent on race day usually leads to a good, long day. Arana’s qualifying passes, starting with the quickest, were 7.251, 7.258, 7.270, and 7.279.

“Consistency over the weekend does give me more confidence because I am not all over the map,” Arana said. “As we have made runs, we have improved, so that is a good sign for me. It’s not a one-shot deal and then we lost. All I have to do tomorrow is my job.”

Final eliminations at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals begin at noon, Sunday. ESPN2 will broadcast all elimination action, including live coverage of the final two rounds.