Lucas Oil/KWR team grabs solid results in Atlanta season opener

BRASELTON, Ga. – The Lucas Oil/KWR team brought home solid finishes in the Road Atlanta season opener this past weekend for the first round of the 2018 MotoAmerica Series. Kyle Wyman scored 6th and 4th place finishes in the Superbike category while Bryce Prince placed 7th and 11th in Supersport races one and two, respectively.

For Wyman, the weekend started out dry on Friday and a 5th fastest time overall in the morning QP1 session aboard his Lucas Oil-sponsored Yamaha YZF-R1. He then matched his best time in the afternoon session on used tires, clocking his fastest time on the 18th lap of the Dunlop soft compound rear.

“Friday was going to plan,” Wyman said. “We were clicking off laps and working on the race setup. We didn’t have an opportunity to try for a fast time on new tires because of red flags ending our sessions early, but luckily we still had plenty of time to put in good work on the race tires.”

With that good work in the books, the KWR crew prepped the bike for Saturday morning’s FP3 session, in which Wyman had a small crash. The crew would have to fix the bike with only 40 minutes before the crucial Superpole qualifying session. Wyman re-grouped and qualified 7th, with his fastest lap time coming on the second qualifying tire lap.

“This year we get to use two qualifying tires, which I really like,” Wyman added. “Two chances to put in a time, and luckily I went faster on my second go. I had a huge wheelie out of the last corner that cost me time on my fast lap but overall I was happy – I still had gone about 7-tenths quicker than my qualifying time from 2017.”

In race one Wyman got a great start and stuck with the front pack until some electrical gremlins interfered with his race, ultimately costing him a top-5 result. Wyman dropped from his 4th spot back to 6th and rode a lonely race all the way to the end.

“Everything was going perfectly to plan off the start in race one,” Wyman said. “The chassis felt great – my KTR-4 forks were working amazing and I was right there with the lead pack in 4th. Unfortunately things got a little whacky with the bike and I had to adjust to it, it cost me some time but luckily not enough to put us any lower than 6th. Some attrition went in my favor and I was able to finally finish the first superbike race of the year, something I hadn’t done in 2016 or 2017.”

With higher hopes for race two, mother nature brought a wet-and-wild Sunday forecast that certainly delivered, in the way of nearly 2-inches of rain starting 5am Sunday morning. Wyman was confident going into the wet race since the team had tested in the wet conditions just two weeks prior at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in California. Wyman was able to fight through the rain and avoid disaster on his way to a season-best 4th position in Superbike race two.

“There were guys crashing left, right and center,” Wyman said. “They were dropping like flies, and my plan was to go with the front guys but also to be cautious. I rode a smart race and feel like I didn’t take any risks at all. To come away 4th after so much attrition and different things that happened, without the risk, is a great result. We’ve got the first round out of the way now and I’m looking forward to COTA in just a few days.”

Bryce Prince goes 7-11 in Supersport Season Opener

After a month of strenuous prep and planning, Bryce Prince finally made his KWR debut in the MotoAmerica Supersport category at Road Atlanta. Prince fought his way to 7th in a dry race one, and followed it with a 11th place finish in the wet race two.

“Atlanta was a very important weekend for me,” Prince said. “It was the first time back on a 600 at a National race on a brand new bike and team. I could not be happier with how it went. I had little to no issues with everything. On Saturday we were able to run the pace to be on the podium the whole race in a big group and came home 7th. Our dry setup had huge improvements we made for Sunday and we were confident to try and get on the box.

On Sunday Prince rode his Lucas Oil/KWR Supersport bike in the rain for the first time, ever.

“On Sunday it rained all day long,” Prince added. “And for me it was important to leave Atlanta with some good points. I finished 11th and rode a safe race, not having any wet time on the new bike so it was a big learning curve. We are tied for 7th in points and I’m really excited to head to VIR and Road America soon, those tracks really fit my style. I cannot thank Kyle Wyman Racing enough for all of the support. I have to personally thank my crew JR and Louis for all the hard work and flawless weekend. It was my first time working with them and they were incredible!”

The MotoAmerica series heads to Circuit of the Americas this coming weekend in Austin, Texas, April 20-22, 2018. Stay tuned for news and updates as the season progresses.

More, from a press release issued by Weir Everywhere Racing:

Weir Everywhere Racing

April 16, 2018

Win for a cause: Travis Wyman takes victory in first-ever MotoAmerica Stock 1000 class race

Weir Everywhere Racing BMW rider victorious for the third time at Road Atlanta while supporting child’s battle with cancer

Travis Wyman pilots his Weir Everywhere Racing BMW S 1000 RR to victory Sunday in MotoAmerica’s first-ever Stock 1000 race.

BRASELTON, Ga. — Victory is often a product of preparation, relentlessness, and teamwork. Those three elements came together for the Weir Everywhere Racing BMW team on Sunday at Road Atlanta when it took the win in the first-ever MotoAmerica Stock 1000 class race. The team came into the first MotoAmerica event of the 2018 season with confidence after several strong performances in pre-season club racing.

Rider Travis Wyman, who has now claimed two of his four professional motorcycle road racing victories at Road Atlanta, showed he had the pace to win right out of the gate. Wyman posted the second-fastest time in the class’ only practice session before claiming provisional pole in a dry Saturday afternoon qualifying session. Wyman’s pole position was finalized on Sunday morning when heavy bands of rain poured down on Road Atlanta, making it impossible for anyone to top Wyman’s time.

The team took a gamble by not going out for the wet Sunday morning qualifying session. Despite having no time racing in the rain on a literbike, Wyman slotted into second-place at turn one, and made a pass to take the lead for good on lap 2. Once out in front, Wyman built up a commanding lead over his nearest competitor and took the victory by over five seconds.

A race win is normally the highlight of a racer’s weekend. For Wyman, Road Atlanta was far more memorable for who joined his winning team for a weekend, as well as how Wyman joined another team looking for a big victory of their own. Travis learned about the plight of Alec Ingram, a 12-year-old boy who has been battling an aggressive form of cancer for three years, through one of his sponsors.

Alec is an avid motorsports fan, and Wyman was determined to do something to support and encourage Alec. Wyman flew Alec and his family to Road Atlanta for Saturday’s on-track action and made Alec a part of the Weir Everywhere Racing team for the weekend. For more information on Alec’s battle with cancer, as well as ways individuals and family can support Alec, please visit https://www.facebook.com/Alec-Ingrams-fight-with-…

The MotoAmerica Stock 1000 class will next travel to the rolling hills and long front straight of VIRginia International Speedway May 4-6.

Brand managers and business owners who are seeking new marketing opportunities to strengthen or energize their brands with a proven, race-winning, and factory-supported MotoAmerica team may contact Travis Wyman about available sponsorship opportunities at [email protected].

Travis Wyman, rider for Weir Everywhere Racing, said, “We opted to sit out this morning’s session. The tricky conditions would have meant risking the bike and the forecast was calling for the rain to stop before the Stock 1000 race started. We knew it was a gamble, especially since I have never raced a literbike in wet conditions. However, I have been a strong wet weather racer throughout my career, and we as a team decided to put our faith in my ability and the incredible BMW S 1000 RR package we will be campaigning this year. Fortunately, the gamble paid off. I felt comfortable right from the start of the race. I made a pass early on for the lead and was able to start building a gap to the rest of the field. Track conditions were very difficult, and I had a couple close calls out there. Once I had my lead up to about 8 seconds I was able to back off a little and bring the Weir Everywhere Racing BMW home for our first victory of the season. I can’t thank my team enough. Steve Weir, Alex Torres, and I have worked incredibly hard to get our bike ready for MotoAmerica’s new Stock 1000 class, and I truly believe the BMW is the bike to have in this class. I am really looking forward the next round at VIR, as the track layout compliments some of the strengths of our BMW package. I believe my team and Lenny Albin from K-Tech Suspension will be able to get my bike dialed in again at VIR like they did today, and I expect us to be contending for the win again.”

Steve Weir, crew chief for Weir Everywhere Racing, said, “In the pre-season, I compared our team to a perfect storm coming together. The storm raged through our off-season club racing program, and today the storm struck MotoAmerica for the first time. I am really impressed with Travis, Alex, and Lenny’s hard work this weekend, and it was great rallying as a team behind Alec Ingram’s cause. This was our first professional race as a team, and I only see us getting stronger from here. I fully expect our on-track results to remain strong all season, and look forward to continuing our development of our BMW S 1000 RR package.”

More, from a press release issued by RiCKdiculous Racing:

RiCKdiculous Racing’s Hayden Gillim takes top spot at Road Atlanta!

The opening round of the MotoAmerica Championship at Road Atlanta saw the RiCKdiculous Racing team debut 2 new riders and new crew for 2018. Hayden Gillim and Jason Aguilar were added in the off season for the Supersport 600 class onboard Graves built Yamaha R6’s and Gauge Rees was chosen to pilot the Yamaha R3 in the Junior Cup.

Saturday Qualifying found Hayden in the 2 spot behind long time friend and Yamaha Rider JD Beach. The stage was set for an epic battle. In race 1, a mistake by another rider put Hayden on the ground in the early laps. A red flag later that lap saved his hopes of a podium run. The crew headed by Robert Ward and mechanic Shawn Keene went to work on pit wall and had the bike repaired and ready to ride in short order. With a full restart and shortened race, Gillim had little time to waste. After a tremendous ride to the front of the pack, Hayden was able to hold on to the 2 spot only .223 seconds behind Beach. Jason Aguilar was able to hold on to a top 10 spot and score valuable points for the Championship.

The Junior Cup race was going to be a learning experience for young Gauge Rees. With minimal lightweight bike racing action, his main goal was to gain experience and learn drafting strategy. At the end of the race he scored 11th position and ran the 2nd fastest R3 lap time of the race!

Sunday’s races were set to be run in rapidly changing conditions even seeing races delayed by downpours. When asked about the conditions, Gillims mechanic Shawn Keene said, “My guy is a fish, bring it on!” When the green flag dropped Gillim made it to the front of the pack in a few short laps, then began to check out on the field. The end of the race put Gillim ahead of 2nd place by nearly 12 seconds and lapping the field to 11th. This put Gillim tied for the Championship with JD Beach going into the next round at Virginia. “Today was awesome. It’s my first win in four years, and it’s on a 600 again, and I am loving riding this thing. I’m just so pumped right now. Hopefully, it doesn’t change anything between JD and I (laughs). We’ll see how that goes when we get home.” said Gillim.

Jason Aguilar struggled a bit in the rain, but brought his RiCKdiculous Racing Graves R6 back to the pits in perfect order and awaiting battle in Virginia! “Road Atlanta was a struggle for us. We couldn’t put together a good race from start to finish and our qualifying pace was a bit off. The team worked extremely hard this weekend to make sure everything went as planned, but some things you can’t always control. We are hoping to be back on track come next round at VIR. Big thanks to the team and all our sponsors for making this all possible.”

The Junior Cup race found Rees battling for 10th and finishing in 12th. “Overall, the first round of the season went pretty well. Before this weekend, I didn’t have any experience racing in a big pack, dealing with the draft, or racing a 300 in the rain. I learned a ton and now that I have those tools in my arsenal, I’m really looking forward to jumping back on the Rickdiculous Racing Graves Yamaha R3 in Virginia and pushing to the front of the Junior Cup grid.” Said Rees.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the team and all their hard work! The process works!” Said Adam Bronfman, the team’s owner. “We all believe in the system Ken [Hill] has created, and Josh and I have worked really hard to put the pieces around Ken to allow the program to flourish. Everyone on the team that Kelly assembled is beyond professional, and it showed all weekend. Despite some setbacks for every rider and crew, they all walked away from Road Atlanta with their heads held high and looking forward to Virginia. We also couldn’t be more proud of Hayden Gillim and his crew for his RiCKdiculous ride in the rain, where he earned RiCKdiculous Racing their first win at the professional level! We are very proud of Jason and Gauge for their successful weekends and look forward to Virginia!”

“All of the hard work the entire team did in the off season is paying off. Right after last season ended, we were able to evaluate the Rick riders and build their off season training program so they could out of the gate strong. Hayden came out swinging and both Jason and Gauge had strong Saturday performances. The Rick crew Kelly Rees assembled is beyond amazing. Every member worked together as a team and each deserve equal credit for the weekend’s results. We’ll take what we learned and train harder for VIR!”

“I was very proud of my guys this weekend.” Team manager Kelly Rees said. “Hayden rode like we all knew he could. Seeing him have a solid start to the year and a great crew behind him has me very optimistic about the season. Aguilar will be right there with him, he just needs to settle in and he will be fighting for the front. Gauge has an uphill battle in the Jr. Cup. MotoAmerica and FIM must do something with the rules package to bring some parity to the class. We all saw the massive disparity the KTM and Kawasaki 400 have created this year both in MotoAmerica and the WSS300 race held this past weekend. “

Rickdiculous Racing would like to thank its sponsors and partners for their continued support. Galfer brakes, Graves, Yamaha, Yamalube, Motion Pro, Superbike Unlimited, Dunlop, MotoStation and Dianese.

More, from a press release issued by SBS Brakes:

SBS MotoAmerica Sweeps The Podium at Road Atlanta!

Daytona, FL – April 16, 2018 – What a weekend of events at MotoAmerica for SBS and its racers. To start, in the Superbike class Mathew Scholtz had a fantastic debut. He took pole position by setting a 1:24:067 in Superpole and finished 2nd in race one but got tangled up in a crash on lap one in race 2 – whereby running off the track into the red Georgia clay but managed to run back from last place to third by end of the race.

Another exciting story of the weekend was Josh Herrin’s unfortunate situation where the team’s transporter broke down in Louisiana, so Josh and his mechanics prepped his Yamaha R1S street bike to enter the Superbike races and ran as high as 2nd in the wet Sunday race before a technical problem dropped him down to 6th at the checkered flag. SBS helped with the effort by supplying a set of Dual Sinter pads.

In the Stock 1000 class, Travis Wyman won in superior style. Travis had no seat time in the wet on the Team Weirever BMW S1000RR prior to the sighting lap. The weather forecast said that conditions would be dry during the race so he sat out the morning Qualifying session, but the full wet race didn’t faze Travis who rode away from the rest of the field. And in the Supersport 600 class, Ashton Yates rode his way up to 3rd by the end. The wet track really suited Ashton’s smooth riding style.

Also, in the Junior Cup, Ashton Yates finished 2nd in race one on Saturday but really came to light on Sunday winning the wet race by over 13 seconds down to second place. Jamie Astudillo came in 3rd to become the first female on a MotoAmerica podium. Both used SBS Dual Carbon brake pads, proving that they are superior even in wet conditions.

In the new Twins class, Altus Motorsports rider Jason Madama finished 2nd, only 0.05 seconds from the winner.

Lastly, in the WERA Triple Crown +1 support race we swept the podium! Brad Burns won, Billy Ethridge came 2nd and Stefano Mesa 3rd. The race was started in a torrential downpour but had to be red flagged and moved to the end of the day in drying conditions. This didn’t worry the strong SBS riders, as they continued where they left off. (Photo attached)

Chris Jensen, SBS North American Market Manager states: “SBS has been racing and supporting our racers for years, and it is always a pleasure to walk away from a track with these types of success stories, podium or not. Congratulations to all of those who put their best effort forward. We look forward to a great MotoAmerica season.”

About SBS Friction A/S

SBS is a world leader within the development, production and sales of disc brake pads and friction solutions for motorcycles, scooters, motorsport and special applications. Based on our vast friction experience, we supply both the OEM and aftermarket and offer a full range of compounds for all riding styles. Made in Denmark, SBS Friction is part of the SBS Group.