JOSEPH BLASIUS TO RACE MOTOAMERICA TWINS CUP WITH TEAM HAMMER IN 2019
Team Hammer, Inc. has signed up-and-coming racer Joseph Blasius to contest the 2019 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing series.
Blasius will team with former MotoAmerica Junior Cup rival Alex Dumas as the two step up to the MotoAmerica Twins Cup aboard a pair of Team Hammer Suzuki SV650s this season. Blasius will run under the Autovest Suzuki banner.
Despite getting a late start in racing compared to some of his competitors, 25-year-old Blasius has made rapid progress since buying his first sportbike a few years ago.
Just three years after he kicked off his amateur racing career, the Northville, Michigan, native earned the prestigious 2017 Nicky Hayden AMA Road Race Horizon Award. That same year, he earned three WERA National Challenge Series titles, in the 750cc Superbike Expert, 600cc Superbike Expert, and 600cc Superstock Expert classes.
Blasius moved into the MotoAmerica Junior Cup in 2018 and steadily improved throughout the season. He took 11 points-paying finishes in all and claimed his four best finishes over the final five races of the season, including a pair of top-five finishes headlined by a podium result at New Jersey Motorsports Park.
(Above) Joseph Blasius with his Autovest Suzuki SV650 MotoAmerica Twins Cup racebike.
“I’m really excited to join the team, knowing the history of the team and what kind of program the team runs,” said Blasius. “I’m excited to be on the SV650. It is new to me, but having ridden the bike, I am very comfortable already and expecting big things. I hope to be a contender in the class.”
“Joe comes to us from the Junior Cup,” said Team Hammer Vice President of Operations/Rider Scout Chris Ulrich. “We’re looking to help him refine his skills and further his racing career. The team wants to see what he can do in the Twins Cup, a sensible advancement for a rider who has shown speed and had some notable successes thus far. We’re here to help Joe reach his potential in a professional environment. He tested with us and he looked good and enjoyed the bike. We’re happy with his feedback and how things are going.”
About Team Hammer
The 2019 season marks Team Hammer’s 39th consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won 70 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums 202 times and have won five AMA Pro National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships. The team has also won 135 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 Overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running “Methanol Monster” GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.
About Autovest
Autovest is a private investment company acquiring distressed consumer automobile portfolios since December 2003. Autovest acquires consumer loan portfolios direct from Fortune 500 banks and automobile finance companies. The company currently holds more than $1.7 billion in charged off automobile debt.
Autovest’s disciplined collection philosophy is that of long-term collectability. Autovest utilizes exclusive scoring models and cutting edge skip-tracing tools to successfully analyze the cost effectiveness of pursuing individual accounts through litigation. This is essential in the success of collecting on automobile deficiency portfolios and has been reflected in Autovest’s continuous growth.
Autovest has established a strong network of relationships throughout the debt-buying industry. This includes relations with debt sellers, attorney firms, and collection agency centers. Autovest utilizes a state-of-the-art operating facility, allowing for centralized decision making and enhancing the automation of operations.