Cameron Beaubier earned the first Superbike pole position of his career during RaceFuelZ Pro Superbike qualifying Saturday at the Arai Pacific Nationals, Round Two of the GEICO Motorcycle Superbike Shootout Presented by Yamaha, at Sonoma Raceway.
Riding his Monster Energy Graves Yamaha YZF-R1, 21-year-old Beaubier roared around the 2.3-mile, 12-turn road course in a time of 1:36.156, more than half a second faster than his nearest competitor.
“It feels great to get my first pole on a Superbike,” said Beaubier, a resident of Roseville, California. “Last time I was here was two years ago and I had a bum knee, so I was just trying to get through the weekend. And this weekend I actually get to enjoy it, so I’m excited.
“This is my first weekend here on the 1000, on the R1. I honestly didn’t think it was going to be very fun, but after riding the two sessions we did today it’s so much fun. It’s the most fun I’ve had on this bike so far.”
If Beaubier career-first pole position wasn’t enough of a milestone, the qualifying session saw SIC/Motul/Fly Racing’s “Aussie Dave” Anthony and KTM/HMC Racing’s Chris Fillmore earn their first front-row starts for a Pro Superbike race.
Anthony, riding his privateer Suzuki, qualified second with a lap time of 1:36.822, bettering all three of the factory Suzuki riders in the field. The Australian said battling with the factory riders during Round One at Auto Club Speedway boosted his morale coming into this weekend’s event and his performance.
“The confidence is a huge thing,” said Anthony, who finished a close fifth at Round One. “The boys [on my team] are saying my head was a bit bigger during the week, but I definitely came here confident. I think that’s definitely helping. It’s definitely exciting to be up there with the [factory] boys. Last year I couldn’t even consider running with those guys, and now I’m there. So hopefully I can keep doing it.”
Fillmore, who qualified third with a time of 1:36.980 on his KTM RC8R, said it wasn’t what he came to Sonoma Raceway with that mattered. It was when he came that mattered.
“I’ve been here all week,” Fillmore told reporters. “I drove up Tuesday and did a track day on Wednesday, and then I raced the AHRMA vintage races on Thursday and Friday. We’re trying to get as much track time as we can. We have a lot to go through. I’d like to say that we got to a point where we were doing pretty good because we’re sitting on the front row, but it hasn’t been all great all week. Sometimes it was almost more frustrating being with those guys. I was way off the pace I should have been, and I wasn’t happy with the bike. It was hard to get consistent laps through the week. I was going to bed at night thinking, ‘Can I still ride a motorcycle?’ My brake points and everything were way off. But it felt good to show up [this morning] and be going fast straightaway. And everything just kind of filled in.”
Beaubier’s teammate, three-time Pro Superbike Champion Josh Hayes earned the final spot on the front row with a fourth-fastest time of 1:37.665.
Round One race winner Martin Cardenas qualified fifth with an effort of 1:38.287 on his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000. Cardenas’ teammate Roger Hayden claimed the sixth starting spot thanks to his lap of 1:38.332. The seventh spot on the grid went to Petaluma, California’s Tyler O’Hara (1:39.650), who is making his Pro Superbike debut on a Meen Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R1.
Yoshimura Suzuki’s Chris Clark (1:39.840), GEICO Motorcycle Honda’s Chris Ulrich (1:40.586) and OC Racing’s Mathew Orange (1:40.731) rounded out the top 10 qualifiers.
Team AMSOIL/HERO/K&L Supply’s Cory West crashed his EBR 1190RS during the sole qualifying session and ended up 15th in the order with a 1:42.659.
The 20-lap RaceFuelZ Pro Superbike race is scheduled for 3:25 p.m. Pacific Time Sunday.
Arai Pacific Nationals hosted by AFM
GEICO Motorcycle Superbike Shootout Presented by Yamaha
Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma, California
May 3, 2014
RaceFuelZ Pro Superbike Free Practice One Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R1), 1:36.156
2. David Anthony (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:36.822
3. Chris Fillmore (KTM RC8R), 1:36.980
4. Josh Hayes (Yam YZF-R1), 1:37.665
5. Martin Cardenas (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:38.287
6. Roger Hayden (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:38.332
7. Tyler O’Hara (Yam YZF-R1), 1:39.650
8. Chris Clark (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:39.840
9. Chris Ulrich (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:40.586
10. Mathew Orange (BMW S1000RR), 1:40.731
11. Sebastiao Ferreira (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:41.297
12. Lenny Hale (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:41.592
13. Steve Metz (Duc 1199 Panigale), 1:42.039
14. Marcel Irnie (BMW S1000RR), 1:42.288
15. Cory West (EBR 1190RS), 1:42.659
16. Daytona Anderson (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:43.038
17. Jeffrey Tigert (Duc 1199 Panigale), 1:44.765
18. Joy Higa, 1:46.765
19. Ricky Orlando (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:47.761
20. Johnny Rock Page (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:48.026
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Home-Cooking Cameron Beaubier Earns The Pacific Nationals Pro Superbike Pole At Sonoma Raceway; Garrett Gerloff Gouges The Field With A Pole-Earning, Pro Sportbike Laptime
Sonoma, CA – May 3, 2014 – Following last weekend’s Yamaha SoCal Nationals, the GEICO Motorcycle Superbike Shootout Presented By Yamaha traveled north to Sonoma Raceway for the Arai Pacific Nationals, and local rider Cameron Beaubier took advantage of the home cooking to put his #2 Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha YZF-R1 on the pole for Sunday’s Pro Superbike race. Cameron’s teammate Josh Hayes, a three-time Superbike Champion in the U.S., also qualified on the front row for tomorrow’s race. Josh is poised to get off the line quickly and make a hard charge to the front.
After earning the pole, Cameron said, “My session started out a little slow, and I wasn’t feeling comfortable. But, I came in (to the pits), and my crew put on a new tire, which made a huge difference. The last time we were here, I was coming off knee surgery, so it’s great to be back here in front of my friends and family, and to be healthy. I felt great the whole session, and I’m really enjoying the track.”
Sunday’s 20-lap Pro Superbike race is scheduled to start at 3:25 PM PST.
Yamaha Extended Service/Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha Pro Sportbike
On his very first day on track at Sonoma Raceway, Garrett Gerloff dominantly earned the pole position for Sunday’s Pro Sportbike race. His qualifying time of 1:38.669 was a full second fastest than the rider who qualified in second position.
“This is a new track for me, and every lap I do here, I learn a little more,” Garrett said. “My teammate (JD Beach) and I ran a few laps together, and that helped me. This is an awesome track, and I’m having fun. I really enjoy riding (at Sonoma Raceway).”
Like Cameron’s teammate Josh in Pro Superbike, Garrett’s teammate JD Beach will start from row two in Pro Sportbike aboard his #6 Y.E.S./Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha YZF-R6.
Sunday’s 20-lap Pro Sportbike race is set to go green at 12:55 PM PST.
Tune In To MAVTV For The Pro Sportbike and Pro Superbike Races
The Pro Sportbike and Pro Superbike races are being taped for airing later on MAVTV. Log on to www.MAVTV.com for the exact time and channel, and don’t miss it!
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