Five questions with record-setting NHRA champ Gaige Herrera

Drag racing happens so fast it's over almost before you know it, but there's a lot of prep time you never hear about, and not just with the bikes. How the riders deal with the off season, with personal training, and practice is as important as dyno time and flow-bench testing. We spoke to Herrera about some of the lesser-known facets of competing at the highest level of motorcycle drag racing. What he had to say lifts the lid off a side of the sport few fans know about.

Common Tread: Road racers and motocross riders focus on aerobic fitness so they can handle the exertion of a race. With each race lasting only seconds, what kind of physical training is most important for a drag racer?

Gaige Herrera: I try to take care of my body the best I can. I eat the best I can, but I also work out a little bit here and there — nothing crazy, though, where I gain a lot of muscle because we don't want to gain weight for the drag bike. I ride a bicycle and run. I do about five or six miles every other day.

CT: Road racers sometimes ride motocross or flat track as part of their training. Does riding any other kind of motorcycle have any relevance to drag racing? And do you ride on the street?

GH: I ride dirt bikes. I used to race dirt bikes heavily before. I just got tired of getting hurt. Now I go back to it as something fun to do every once in a while on the weekends with a buddy at a local track. Where I'm based [northern Indiana] with the snow it's a little hard but they have riding up here. I ride motocross but not as much as I like because of my busy schedule. I feel like it keeps your reactions sharp, which plays a role in both types of racing.

I have a 2015 Road King. I prefer to cruise on the street. You get your fast fix on the track.

CT: Motocross racers practice all the time and road racers can at least get on track some days in the off season. How much practice do you get on your drag bike?

GH: We really don’t get too much practice. Last time I rode the bike was in November at Pomona and the next time’s going to be Wednesday the week of the first race of this year. We can test if we want to but we're really not changing anything on the motorcycle during the off-season so it makes it hard.

Once the season starts, it's every other weekend. I'm not going to lie, it takes a couple of laps to get back in the groove after being off the bike. I did a race on a no-bar bike and I feel that kind of keeps me up to par, but the off-season is definitely hard because it's not like you can hop on the bike and ride it whenever you want.

CT: You're back with the same Vance & Hines team in 2025 and the same teammate, Richard Gadson. Does that give you an advantage? What's the biggest strength of the Vance & Hines team?

GH: I feel like the biggest advantage is working with Vance & Hines. Andrew, Ed, Richard, all of them — we're a big group of family and friends. We help each other out no matter what's going on, whether Richard's doing good or I'm doing good. I feel like that's what makes us strong. Even the guys back at the shop, the bagger team and the drag race team, they all work together to push themselves as hard as they can to get championships for both sides. We all want to win but we're not jealous of each other. We each want the other to get the best result possible.

CT: After setting a record for consecutive wins last year, do you have any specific goals for this season?

GH: My goal this year is to go out there and try to do it again. It's going to be tough with Richard and all the other competitors. I have to go out there and beat myself, beat my own record. The records I already have are amazing in just two full seasons, but I owe all that to my team and Vance & Hines. My goal is to be as consistent as I can and go for a third championship. It would be awesome if we could get it for RevZilla, Suzuki, Motul, and Vance & Hines.

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