Armando Ferrer won the CCS Unlimited Grand Prix race August 30 at Roebling Road Raceway on his RacersPrice.com Kawasaki ZX-10R, after battling with Bruno Silva for the lead. Ferrer nailed the holeshot and led the field down the front straight, but Silva was later on the brakes and took over the lead going into turn one on his ART Performance Kawasaki ZX-10R in the first of six laps. Silva held the front spot for the first half of the race with Ferrer looking for a way around. At the halfway mark, Silva went wide through the exit of turn four and Ferrer made his passing move on the inside to take over the lead. In the amateur ranks, Mark Rhoades was out front from the start of the race on his Precision Wheel Repair/Farrell Performance Kawasaki ZX-6R and methodically working his way through the end of the expert field. Up front, Ferrer maintained his advantage in the remaining laps to take the win. Silva finished second, and Anthony Giangrasso took third on his Yamaha YZF-R1. Rhoades claimed his victory in the amateur class with Marcelo Paladini finishing second on his Aprilia RSV4 and Nathaniel Tiuseco third on a borrowed Yamaha YZF-R1.

After the race, Ferrer said that he was “super grateful” for his results at Roebling Road and thanked his sponsors: Dunlop Tire, RacersPrice.com, Motofairings, and Rodolfo Ramirez, whom he said it wouldn’t have been possible without his support. Earlier in the day, Ferrer finished second in GTO and Unlimited Superbike races behind Silva.

Rhoades was the winningest racer of the event with eight first place finishes. He also won the Amateur Unlimited Supersport, Heavyweight Supersport , Middleweight Superbike, Unlimited Superbike, Middleweight Grand Prix, Havyweight Superbike, and Rookies Cup GTO classes. He finished second in the GTO and Middleweight Supersport races. “I like it in the wet,” exclaimed Rhoades. “I had a lot of fun in the rain races. Thank you, Careless Clothing, Kabuto Helmets, and Design Engineering.”

There were several great battles throughout the weekend that consisted of iffy weather: rainy, wet, and sort of wet track conditions. An oil spill that ran from turns five through nine and a heavy downpour caused a delay in the afternoon’s schedule and resulted in shortening the remaining races from eight to six laps.

In the morning, on a semi-wet track, Holeshot King Greg Melka led the first few laps of the Expert GTU race on his Yamaha YZF-R6. A red flag only five minutes into the 25 minute timed race sent the riders back to regrid. After several minutes of down time for track clean up, the race was restarted with Melka back out front and leading the charge. In a tight pack behind Melka, Tim Hunt, Lucas Silva, and Fernando Silva were all hot on his tail and battling each other for the pass to the front. Melka was able to hold on to his advantage all the way to the checkered flag in a fight for the lead with Lucas Silva, where he took the victory by a .055 second margin. Hunt finished third with Fernando Silva and Boelo Lussenburg, Jr. rounding off the top five.

Melka was out again from the start of the Expert Middleweight Supersport race with Stefano Mesa close behind on his West Side Performance Yamaha YZF-R6, and a freight train just behind them battling for third. Mesa took over the lead just past the half way mark and the front runners were soon working their way through the back of the amateur field. Mesa took the checkered flag while passing a lapper across the finish line with Melka close behind in second. Fernando Silva, Hunt, and Lussenburg, rounded off the top five again in a close fight to the finish.

Other notable multiple race winners were expert riders Mike Eaton and Lucas Silva with four victories each. Eaton won the GT Lights, Lightweight Formula 40, Thunderbike, and Lightweight Grand Prix classes, and finished second in Supertwins on his MotoCorse Performance built Ducatis.

Lucas Silva dominated his races in the rain getting early starts and opening gaps on the competition in back to back wet races on his ART Performance Yamaha YZF-R6.

He won the Heavyweight Supersport, Middleweight Superbike, Middleweight Grand Prix, and Heavyweight Superbike Classes.

The CCS Southeast Region will compete again at Virginia International Raceway along with the Mid Atlantic Region on September 19-20th for the VIR End of Summer Cyclefest. The event will also feature the ASRA Team Challenge Series Presented by Michelin Tire and AMA Road Race Grand Championships in the VIR End of Summer Cyclefest. The CCS Florida region will meet again to compete at Palm Beach International Raceway October 3-4th.

For full results, lap times, points standings, and additional information, please go to: www.ccsracing.us.

EXPERT UNLIMITED GRAND PRIX RESULTS:

1. Armando Ferrer (Kaw ZX-10R); 2. Bruno Silva (Kaw ZX-10R); 3. Anthony Giangrasso (Yam YZF-R1); 4. Jon Foy (Kaw ZX-10R); 5. Rafael Carrillo (Yam YZF-R1).

AMATEUR UNLIMITED GRAND PRIX RESULTS:

1. Mark Rhoades (Kaw ZX6-R); 2. Marcelo Paladini (Apr RSV4); 3. Nathaniel Tiuseco (Yam YZF-R1).