Racing against the three-man Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson team of Eddie Krawiec, Andrew Hines and Chip Ellis is a welcome challenge for Jerry Savoie in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship.

Savoie just thinks it doesn’t make good business sense to have three Harley-Davidsons competing.

“I’m not upset, I just think from a business point of view I don’t think it’s great to have a third bike because of the other Vance & Hines customers,” Savoie said. “All these other people they just want to dream of qualifying, not necessarily winning a race. Not W.A.R. (White Alligator Racing) because W.A.R. is big boys and we can handle ourselves against the Harleys. It’s not a problem. Chip (Ellis) is a great friend of mine and a great rider and I’m glad for him that he can get on one of these (Harleys) and get out here and compete. You ask me about blockers, and I don’t care about that sh**. It doesn’t bother my program whatsoever.”

W.A.R. consists of Savoie, the 2016 Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion, and LE Tonglet, the 2010 Pro Stock Motorcycle world champ. They ride Vance & Hines Suzukis.

The Harleys aside, Savoie’s biggest concern right now is the parity in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class.

“I think the class right now is out of whack a little bit,” Savoie said. “The new body NHRA let come out, the EBR (Erik Buell Racing) body, is two hundredths faster than anything at the track in the back half. Forget the front half, the back half is two hundredths faster, and that’s a problem. I mean look, I’m not crying because we got beat (by Matt Smith in the finals at St. Louis). LE had a great light an .018 to Matt Smith’s .008, but by the eighth-mile we were out on him. LE had already gained on him and passed him up, but by the 1,000-foot mark Matt came back around him because that body is two hundredths faster. It’s like having a damn nitrous button on your bike. Matt (Smith) is a friend of mine and if he comes over here and needs something from me I will gladly give it to him. The bottom line is when that (EBR) body was submitted that bike was supposed to be in production and it was not. It never hit the showroom floor.”

Smith is leading the points standings and Tonglet is 21 points behind in second place. Savoie is sixth in points – 106 points back of Smith.

There are four races left in the Countdown to the Championship. The next race on the schedule is AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals Oct. 4-7 in Dallas, Texas.

“We have our own issues to deal with the bikes, and we just need to keep plugging away and focus on what we focus on,” Savoie said.

Savoie also addressed his team plans for 2019.

“I’m not sure what Nitro Fish is going to do with LE,” Savoie said. “No matter what, the team will be at every race. I plan on making five, six, seven, eight, maybe even 10 races. I want to be able to come and go as I please. I’ve been getting a lot of text messages about people giving their suggestions of riders and from people who are interested in riding in this class. The first and foremost thing is that it is not a free ride, you have to pay to ride. Not to say it in an ugly way, but it cost a lot of money to run these things and I’m not looking for a rider to be out here, I don’t make money doing that. I need somebody to pay their own way.”

In the ideal situation next season, Tonglet would be a rider along with one other rider and Savoie would run a third bike for W.A.R.