Mathew Scholtz Bounces Back From A Rough Saturday To Finish Fifth On Sunday At Sonoma Raceway
Sonoma, CA – Sonoma Raceway is arguably the most-technical, most-challenging track on the MotoAmerica schedule. The 2.52-mile, 12-turn undulating road course is difficult to master, particularly on a Superbike with more than 200 horsepower. And, for Mathew Scholtz, that seemed to be the case in Saturday’s Race 1, if not Sunday’s Race 2.
Saturday got off to a great start for Mathew and his Yamalube/Westby Racing team as they qualified second in Superpole and earned a front-row start. But, when the race went green, Mathew struggled off the line, and as he tried to make up positions on the opening lap, he crashed and damaged his #11 Yamaha YZF-R1 Superbike’s steering components. Determined to continue, he got back under way, but the damage to his bike caused him to crash a second time, which created additional damage, resulting in the South African bringing the bike back into the pits and calling it a day.
The team repaired the bike, regrouped overnight, and Mathew was third-fastest in the Sunday morning warmup session, restoring his confidence for the afternoon’s Superbike Race 2. At the start, Mathew got one of the best jumps he’s had all year and immediately looked to be headed for a podium finish on the day. Unfortunately, though, as the laps wound down, the challenging track’s hard-braking zones created arm-pump problems for Mathew, and he faded but still managed to finish fifth on the day.
The weekend’s results moved Mathew from third place down to fourth in the Championship standings with three rounds and six races left to go in the season.
Commenting on his weekend, Mathew said, “Yesterday, we didn’t get too much data from the race (because of the crash), so we were concentrating on having a solid finish to Sunday’s race. The morning warmup was really positive for us, and I was confident going into Race 2. I got a good jump off the line, which hasn’t been the case too much this year, so it felt good that I didn’t have to try to pass a bunch of guys in the early laps of the race. We got to lap seven or eight, and I started getting arm pump really bad, which is a problem that I’ve had at Sonoma in the past. I just couldn’t hang on to the bike very well, and I began dropping back. All in all, I’m pretty happy that we managed to finish fifth. The guys worked really hard all weekend long, and I’m sorry to them that I crashed on Saturday because I gave them a lot of extra work to do. I’m looking forward to Pittsburgh where we did well last year on the Superstock 1000 bike. We’ve got more horsepower with this Superbike this year, and Pittsburgh is one of my favorite tracks.
As Mathew alluded to, Round 8 of the 2018 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship will take place at Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum, Pennsylvania on August 14 through 26.
MotoAmerica Superbike Standings
1. Cameron Beaubier – Yamaha – 298
2. Toni Elias – Suzuki – 235
3. Josh Herrin – 187
4. Mathew Scholtz – Yamaha – 163
For more updates about Yamalube/Westby Racing, including news, photos, and videos, visit http://www.WestbyRacing.com
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More, from a press release issued by Yoshimura Suzuki:
Yoshimura Suzuki’s Toni Elias Takes Two Podiums in Sonoma
Fans Lavish Well Wishes on Roger Hayden in his Last Race at Northern California Circuit
Sonoma, CA — Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing’s Toni Elias tallied a solid weekend in MotoAmerica Superbike Championship racing at Sonoma Raceway. Elias raced his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 to a pair of podium finishes with a third in Saturday’s race one, then improving to finish runner up in Sunday’s race.
In his last race in Sonoma, fellow Yoshimura Suzuki rider Roger Hayden nailed down two top-10 finishes, with a sixth and seventh at the doubleheader weekend in the heart of Northern California wine country.
Elias got great starts and battled up front all weekend, but ultimately no one could match the pace of series leader Cameron Beaubier, who won both races.
“We came away with a couple of podium finishes and found improvements with the bike in Sunday’s race,” said Elias, the defending MotoAmerica Superbike Champion. “Cameron has a fantastic feeling for this track and he is riding the best I’ve seen since I’ve been here.
“Obviously I would like to get the feeling for the bike I had earlier in the season, but sometimes you do not have it and this is where we are at the moment. We will continue to work hard to find solutions and my goal is to get back to winning races so that we might be able to apply a little pressure on the competition.”
For Hayden the Sonoma weekend was bittersweet. He was racing in his first event since announcing his retirement from racing at the end of this season. He was overwhelmed by the well wishes he received from fans, but was not satisfied with his results on the track. He experienced arm pump in both races.
“For whatever reason I’ve never got along with this track and that carried over to this weekend,” Hayden said. “But on the positive side I was taken aback by the warmth of fans here. They were so thoughtful in telling me how they followed my career and how they wished me well as I move on to the next stage in my life. For that alone I’ll always have a good memory of my last race here. “
“Now we move on to Pittsburgh. I had pretty good luck there last year, so I’m hoping to find it again this time around.”
Elias remains second in the series after 14 of 20 races. He is 63 points behind Beaubier. Hayden moved up a position from ninth to eighth in the MotoAmerica Superbike standings.
Next up for Yoshimura Suzuki is the Championship of Pittsburgh, MotoAmerica round eight scheduled for August 24-26 at Pittsburgh International Race Complex. For ticket information visit www.MotoAmerica.com. You can also watch all the action televised on beIN Sports.
For additional information visit: www.motoamerica.com
You can keep up with the team’s progress by visiting yoshimura-racing.com and www.suzukicycles.com/Racing and via YouTube at www.suzukicycles.com/Racing
More, from a press release issued by KTM North America:
KTM ORANGE BRIGADE RIDER DUMAS SCORES PODIUM FINISH IN SONOMA TO MAINTAIN FIRST PLACE IN MOTOAMERICA JUNIOR CUP STANDINGS
Round 7 – MotoAmerica Junior Cup
SONOMA, Calif. – It was a weekend of stellar comebacks for KTM Orange Brigade riders Alex Dumas and Sean Ungvarsky at the MotoAmerica Championship of Sonoma.
Dumas and Ungvarsky riders rebounded from unfortunate errors in Saturday’s Race 1 to capture a second-place and sixth-place finishes, respectively, in Sunday’s Race 2 on Sonoma Raceway’s 2.22-mile circuit. Dumas ended the event still atop the championship points standings, and Ungvarsky got up to speed quickly at a technical, demanding track he had not raced at before. Ungvarsky and his crew also made big strides with the setup of his KTM RC 390 R.
Dumas got a good start in Race 1 from third on the grid and was immediately battling for the lead of the race. After taking the lead on Lap 5, he approached the track’s bumpy final corner and tried taking a different line to protect his lead. Unfortunately, Dumas lost traction on the front tire, crashed, and was unable to rejoin the race due to a broken-off handlebar. Ungvarsky got a good start in Race 1. He had moved up to ninth place on Lap 3 but made a mistake and ran off track on Lap 4. Ungvarsky rejoined the race in 17th place and raced his way to an 10th-place finish.
Dumas went into Sunday’s Race 2 looking for redemption and found it. He got another good start and was in the group battling for the lead again. Dumas battled hard with the lead riders but was waiting to show his true pace until the end of the race. Just as Dumas was making his move for the lead with three laps to go, the race was red flag due to another rider’s crash on the front straight. The race was not restarted, and Dumas was forced to settle for a second-place finish.
The team made some major set up changes to Ungvarsky’s bike between Race 1 and Race 2. The changes were immediately evident in Race 2. He got a great start and moved up four positions in five laps. Ungvarsky spent the remaining laps of the race in an intense battle for the top five and was running in sixth-place when the race was red flagged.
The MotoAmerica Junior Cup’s next round will take place at Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum, Pa., Aug. 24-26. It was the facility’s first time hosting a MotoAmerica event in 2017, and Dumas quickly developed an affinity for the undulating, 2.780-mile, 19-turn circuit. He won both KTM RC 390 Cup races that weekend and will be aiming for a repeat performance at the 2018 Championship of Pittsburgh. The facility also is one of the few circuits on the MotoAmerica Junior Cup calendar that Ungvarsky has experience racing at.
Sean Ungvarsky / #48
“This weekend was all about progress for myself and my crew. We made huge strides every session with our bike set up. Our pace at the end of the weekend was very good. I had an unfortunate off-track excursion in Race 1 but got back on the track, put my head down, and was able to get my KTM RC 390 R into the top 10 at the finish line. I am looking forward to taking what we learned this weekend into the next round at Pittsburgh International Race Complex. I did well there last year and am hoping for an even stronger performance this year.”
Chris Fillmore / Team Manager
“Saturday was very tough for our riders. Alex took a new line into the last corner and lost the front after he hit a big bump in the track. It was Sean’s first time racing at Sonoma and he was making good progress as the weekend progressed. Sean’s pace in Race 1 was good but wasn’t apparent because he ran off-track early in the race. Sunday was really good for both riders. Alex had a tough break with the red flag coming out just has he was executing his race strategy and making his move for the lead. We threw a big set-up change at Sean’s bike on Sunday to make him more comfortable. It really worked for him and he was running as high as fifth in Sunday’s race. I am expecting good things from both riders at the next round at Pittsburgh. Alex swept the weekend on a KTM there last year, and Sean scored two strong finishes there in his first races of his 2017 season. Hopefully both riders’ experience will help them perform well, as well as help Alex extend his championship points lead.”
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Beaubier and Beach Dominate with Double Victories at Sonoma Raceway
Ventura Scores Sunday Junior Cup Win for Graves/Yamaha R3 Support Program
Sonoma, Calif. – August 13, 2018 – Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing’s Cameron Beaubier wrapped up a flawless weekend at Sonoma Raceway on Sunday with another dominant performance in Superbike Race 2. Leading every lap and session of the weekend, the Northern California native emerged from his home race with a double-victory and a 63-point lead in the prestigious MotoAmerica Superbike Championship.
In Supersport action, Monster Energy/Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha’s JD Beach also notched a perfect score in Sonoma, making for an incredible weekend for the Yamaha bLU cRU at Round 7 of the MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship. Beach’s Race 2 victory now gives him a 100-point lead in the Supersport Championship.
History tends to repeat itself at Sonoma Raceway, with Beaubier’s double-victories matching his 2017 performance and Beach duplicating the double-victories achieved by Gerloff in the Supersport class in 2017. Together, their performances reinforce the dominance of Yamaha’s mighty R1 and nimble R6 at the legendary road course that all started when Josh Hayes claimed the very first R1 Superbike victory at Sonoma Raceway in 2009.
Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing Superbike Team
As the green flag waived to signal the start of Superbike Race 2, Cameron Beaubier made it clear that he was out to win as he piloted his R1 to a commanding lead from the start of the race. Beaubier and the team worked hard throughout the weekend to find the perfect set-up for the technical Sonoma course, and it paid off with more than a 9-second gap on the competition by the middle of the race. In true champion form, Beaubier gave his hometown crowd of fans lots to cheer for when he crossed the finish line, claiming victory 6.5 seconds ahead of Toni Elias in the runner-up position.
Garrett Gerloff launched from the starting grid to a top-five position, keeping himself within striking distance of the podium battle early on. The Superbike rookie stalked Yamaha bLU cRU rider Mathew Scholtz for the first 15 laps as he sized up the passing opportunities. With seven laps to go, Gerloff pulled the trigger and powered his R1 into the fourth-place position. Gerloff continued to push towards the podium battle ahead, and ultimately crossed the finish line in fourth place.
Cameron Beaubier – #6 YZF-R1
“I’m so happy! I don’t know what it is about this place but I feel like my bike and my style work so good at this track. I don’t know if it’s riding in front of my hometown, or my family and friends or what but I’m just kind of speechless right now. It feels really good. We were able to increase our points lead, which was the most important thing and getting out of here with two wins. We came into this weekend pretty confident thinking that we could get it done, and we did, so hats off to the entire team. I just really enjoyed myself this weekend.”
Garrett Gerloff – #31 YZF-R1
“Today I had more expectations than what happened. I really expected myself to have a good first couple of laps and be right there with Josh [Herrin] and Toni [Elias], at least fighting for that second or third spot, but after a pretty embarrassing first four laps I found myself battling for fourth with Jake Lewis and Mathew Scholtz and they were riding really good. Mathew kind of fell off at the end at I was able to capitalize on it, but I’m really just disappointed with the weekend in general. I felt good coming in, especially after a great weekend in Utah, and I really felt like this was going to be a good stepping stone weekend. In the end, I learned some things and it’s not failing if you learn something. I learned some things about setup and I’m going to take that to the next round in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh is a track that I really like and it’s kind of an advantage for me because it’s a track that really nobody has ridden on too much. We only had it two times last year – a test and a race – so it’s still a little bit new for everybody so I feel like I’ll have a little bit more of an advantage at that one. It’s a really fun track, very flowing and has a lot of really cool sections and smooth pavement. All-in-all, I think we learned a lot this weekend and we’ll have a really good bike for two hard races and we’re going to try and get it done.”
Tom Halverson – Team Manager
“What a fantastic weekend for us, another double-win! Cam was just so dominant here at Sonoma and we’re all super excited to come out of here with a 63-point lead at this point in the championship. Garrett took another fourth-place today and he did great. The learning process continues and I think he’s going to be strong at Pittsburgh. This track [Sonoma Raceway] is very, very difficult on a Superbike, which everyone knows. Congrats to the entire team, we had a little fire drill this morning and everyone pulled together and did a great job, so hats off to everyone involved.”
2018 MotoAmerica Superbike Standings – 14 of 20 Series Races Completed
Pos. Rider Points
1 Cameron Beaubier – Yamaha 298
2 Toni Elias – Suzuki 235
3 Josh Herrin – Yamaha 187
4 Mathew Scholtz – Yamaha 163
5 Garrett Gerloff – Yamaha 157
7 Kyle Wyman – Yamaha 116
Monster Energy/Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha Supersport Team
Beach once again pulled out all the stops to maintain the lead in Supersport Race 2 from start to finish. He powered his Monster Energy/Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha R6 to the front right off the start and he never looked back as he held off a hard-charging Valentin Debise for 19 laps of high-speed racing. Beach’s double victory at Sonoma gives the points leader a six-race winning streak after 11 races completed this season.
JD Beach – #95 YZF-R6
“That was a hard race, almost every lap I came around and saw ‘plus zero’ on the board. I could hear both of them [Valentin Debise and Hayden Gillim] right on me. We started getting a bit of a gap to Hayden but Valentin was right there. My R6 was working great, we definitely did our homework last night and I feel like my pace was good, especially considering this was one of my worst tracks last year.”
Chuck Graves – Team Owner
“JD Beach continued to show his dominance in the Supersport class today, and his race strategy was well thought-out. I’m really happy to see him continue to extend his championship points lead on the R6, and we’re looking forward to Pittsburgh in a couple of weeks.”
2018 MotoAmerica Supersport Standings – 11 of 17 Series Races Completed
Pos. Rider Points
1 JD Beach – Yamaha 265
2 Hayden Gillim – Yamaha 165
3 Valentin Debise – Suzuki 125
Additional Yamaha bLU cRU Rider Notes
Attack Performance/Herrin Compound/Yamaha’s Josh Herrin gave it his all on Sunday in a hard-fought Superbike Race 2 battle. Herrin once again diced back-and-forth with reigning MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Toni Elias in a close battle for second. Herrin kept the pressure on Elias in the final laps but a mistake late in the race cost him the opportunity to make a lasting impression, where he finished a hard-fought third in Race 2.
Rickdiculous Racing’s Hayden Gillim put forth a great effort in Supersport Race 2 to land his R6 atop the podium once again with third-place. With a solid string of podium finishes thus far, Gillim maintains second overall in the Supersport Championship standings.
It was a pivotal day for the Graves/Yamaha R3 Support Program as MP13 Racing’s Cory Ventura rode his R3 to the top of the MotoAmerica Junior Cup podium for Sunday’s Race 2. It was a career-first victory for Ventura in the class, and it closely followed a once-in-a-lifetime learning experience at the VR46 Master Camp in Italy. In addition to bringing a wealth of knowledge into the race weekend, Ventura and the other Graves/Yamaha R3 Support Program riders received riding tips and advice from Yamaha bLU cRU Rider Coach Josh Hayes.
“Today’s MotoAmerica Junior Cup race was a breakthrough moment for the Graves/Yamaha-supported R3 racers, with Cory Ventura scoring the top position on the podium, and many other riders improving their results,” said Chuck Graves. “Everyone worked really hard to improve settings that benefitted all of the riders, and I was very proud to see that it resulted in podium finishes this weekend.”
Tom Halverson added, “That was very exciting. We got to be a part of taking Cory [Ventura] to Italy for the VR46 Master Camp and it was really great seeing how he did over there and getting the reports back on what he learned and how excited he was. I think it really paid off here, we knew he had the potential anyways, but maybe it was just a little bit extra that he gave to pull off that win. Congratulations to him, his parents and the entire Graves organization for putting such a great program together for the R3s and hopefully we can repeat that in Pittsburgh.”
The Yamaha bLU cRU riders will head to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on August 24-26 for Round 8 of the 2018 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship series at Pittsburgh International Race Complex. For complete schedule details, visit: http://motoamerica.com/.
For more Yamaha racing news, results, photos, and videos, visit http://www.YamahaMotorsports.com/Racing
Also, check out “YamahaMotorUSA” on your favorite social media site.
More, from a press release issued by RiderzLaw Racing:
RiderzLaw Racing Takes 1st in Stock 1000, Podium in Junior Cup
Sonoma, CA – RiderzLaw, the presenting sponsor for the Sonoma Round of MotoAmerica Stock 1000 and Liqui Moly Junior Cup, saw their riders on the podium for both classes.
In Stock 1000, Andrew Lee entered the weekend leading the championship by 21 points. Despite consistent success, however, a first-place finish eluded him. Lee put his RiderzLaw Racing ZX-10rr on pole with a best lap time of 1:38.946. The race was no different, as Lee got a strong start and led the entire race. Lee was ahead by over 10 seconds when the race concluded as a result of a red flag with two laps to go.
“After my success racing last weekend at Suzuka, we came into the weekend feeling very confident,” said Andrew. “Brad Stokes from Ohlins helped us out with a few changes to the suspension, and it made all the difference. After getting the holeshot, we never looked back.” With three races left, Andrew Lee now holds a 30-point lead in the championship.
Saturday’s Junior Cup also resulted in success for the team. After coming back from the Valentino Rossi’s VR46 Camp, “Action” Jackson Blackmon was eager to put his new-found skills to the test. Starting from the third row, Blackmon had a lot of ground to make up. In a war of attrition that saw multiple crashes, Blackmon bested Kevin Olmedo by a mere 0.026 seconds to finish third and get his first podium of the season.
“The weekend started out a little rough with a crash in Q1,” said Blackmon. “But Race 1 was a great battle with Kevin [Olmedo] that came down to a photo finish with me barely getting him to grab my first podium of 2018! We made big progress with the bike and I can’t thank RiderzLaw enough for putting me on a great bike and having me such a great crew. Couldn’t ask for a better team. Now on to Pittsburgh!”
“We love this venue, and our riders have had a lot of success here. It’s special to be able to present two of our own riders with hardware,” says RiderzLaw co-founder Sy Nazif. “What more can you ask for from a race weekend?”
RiderzLaw has dedicated lawyers who are experts in helping victims of serious motorcycle accidents. For more information on how to contact RiderzLaw, please visit www.riderzlaw.com or call 1-888-5-RIDERZ. Follow RiderzLaw on Instagram, @riderzlawracing.