Three-time and defending AMA Pro National Guard Superbike Champion Josh Hayes continued his march toward an unprecedented fourth consecutive title by topping provisional qualifying Friday at Miller Motorsports Park. With 17 minutes to go, four riders were tightly bunched at the top of the order. Hayes’ teammate Herrin led with a 1:51.601, Yoshimura Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas was next with a 1:51.628, National Guard Suzuki’s Roger Hayden was third with a 1:51.673 and Hayes was fourth at 1:51.693. Four riders within 0.1 second. Then Hayes came in and got the softer-compound rear tires, went back out and put himself on top to stay with a 1:51.021. But even though that time was the best of the field, it was far from Hayes’ 2012 qualifying time, 1:49.729, and it wasn’t much faster than Hayes’ competitors. Hayes said both of those situations were a factor of it being the debut of Dunlop’s US-made rear tires at Miller Motorsports Park. “Hard work today,” were the first words of Hayes’ mouth in the post-qualifying press conference. “Things are a bit of a struggle. The tires are not what I remember last year. Being on the new tires makes it a little bit tough. It’s kept it close. I’m trying very, very hard. I’m riding very hard. I’m hoping that as usual a good night’s sleep tonight will help me come back tomorrow and put the puzzle pieces together a little bit better. I learned a few things, tried a few things. We’re kind of going back and forth between the two tires and trying to figure out what we think our best race strategy will be. The Hard [-compound tire] is hard to do the pace on, but it definitely stays more consistent for race distance. And the Medium is definitely faster in the beginning, but performance seems to drop off pretty quickly. So we either have to be able to get some life out of the soft one or see if we can get some pace on the hard one. That’s what we’re working on.” Hayden ended up second-best with a time of 1:51.391, Herrin slipped to third with his 1:51.395, and Cardenas finished fourth with his 1:51.628. Miller Motorsports Park National/GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Miller Motorsports Park Tooele, Utah August 2, 2013 Provisional Qualifying Session One Results (all on Dunlop tires): 1. Josh Hayes (Yam YZF-R1), 1:51.021 2. Roger Hayden (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:51.391 3. Josh Herrin (Yam YZF-R1), 1:51.395 4. Martin Cardenas (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:51.628 5. Danny Eslick (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:52.204 6. Larry Pegram (Yam YZF-R1), 1:52.577 7. Geoff May (EBR 1190RS), 1:52.658 8. David Anthony (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:52.807 9. Chris Fillmore (KTM RC8R), 1:53.644 10. Taylor Knapp (KTM RC8R), 1:53.806 11. Aaron Yates (EBR 1190RS), 1:53.959 12. Cory West (EBR 1190RS), 1:54.266 13. Chris Clark (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:54.535 14. Chris Ulrich (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:55.139 15. Robertino Pietri (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:55.841 16. Oleg Pianykh (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:56.361 17. Dustin Dominguez (EBR 1190RS), 1:56.552 18. Marie-Josee Boucher (BMW S1000RR), 1:57.123 19. Francois Dumas (BMW S1000RR), 1:57.403 20. Trent Gibson (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:57.883 21. Mathew Orange (BMW S1000RR), 1:58.714 22. Tony Porter (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:59.961 23. Johnny Rock Page (Suz GSX-R1000), 2:05.199 24. Reese Wacker (Suz GSX-R1000), no time recorded 25. Aaron Ascher (Kaw ZX-10R), no time recorded More, from a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: TOOELE, Utah (August 2, 2013) – With just five minutes remaining in Friday’s AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike qualifying session at Miller Motorsports Park, reigning champion Josh Hayes found himself in the unusual position of fourth fastest. However, the Monster Energy Graves Yamaha ace ultimately gave the session a more familiar look by throwing down a blistering 1:51.021 lap in the final minutes to claim the SuperBike provisional pole for the GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing doubleheader weekend in Tooele, Utah. The session was one of the closest in recent memory, with Hayes and his chief rivals, National Guard Jordan Suzuki’s Roger Hayden, second Monster Energy Graves Yamaha title hopeful Josh Herrin, and Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing’s Martin Cardenas, separated by a mere 0.092 seconds at the top of the charts prior to the late flurry of quick laps. “It was hard work today,” Hayes said. “Things were a bit of a struggle. The tires are not what I remember from last year and being on the new tires makes it a bit tough. It’s kept it really close; I’m trying very, very hard and I’m riding very hard. I’m hoping that, as usual, after a good night’s sleep, I’ll come back tomorrow and put the pieces to the puzzle together a little bit better. “I tried a few things and learned a few things. We’re kind of going back and forth between the two tires and figuring out what our best race strategy will be. The hard (tire) is hard to do the pace on, but it’s definitely more consistent for race distance. And the medium is definitely faster in the beginning but performance drops off pretty quickly. So, we either have to be able to get some life out of the softer one or see if we can get some pace out of the harder one. That’s what we’re working on.” After Hayes leapt up from fourth to first, Hayden improved from fourth to second with a time of 1:51.391. The Kentuckian ranked at or near the top of the charts throughout the day, continuing his recent run of excellent speed. Ever since his double runner-up performance at Barber Motorsports Park, the Michael Jordan Motorsports runner has nearly matched Hayes in terms of outright pace, although poor luck has prevented him from collecting results reflecting that sort of form. Hayden is motivated to make up for that disappointment this weekend, and it showed on Friday. Herrin, too, impressed today. Frequently a bit slower to work up to speed on race weekends, Herrin headed the charts for the bulk of Friday’s session before ending the day a close third at 1:51.395. Cardenas lost out in the shuffle but was still fast enough to hold onto a position on the provisional front row. The Colombian ended Friday fourth-fastest at 1:51.628. Jordan Suzuki’s Danny Eslick was once again ‘next man up,’ and not too far removed from the lead pace at 1:52.204. The Oklahoman was joined on the provisional front row by Foremost Insurance Pegram Racing’s Larry Pegram (1:52.577), ’12 MMP front-row qualifier Geoff May on the Team Hero EBR (1:52.658), and Motosport.com Motul Fly Racing’s David Anthony (1:52.807). KTM/HMC Racing teammates Chris Fillmore (1:53.644) and Taylor Knapp (1:53.806) rounded out the Friday top ten fresh from an impressive outing last time out at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Cameron Beaubier was fastest in the opening AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike qualifying session on Friday. Beaubier trailed his Yamaha Extended Service/Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha teammate Garrett Gerloff in the early part of the session, but the class leader put in some fliers at the end to break into the 1:53 mark, ultimately punching in with a mark of 1:53.637 to demolish the old lap record by over a second and a half. Beaubier managed to up his comfort level as the session went on, and in the heat managed considerable speed. “The third stint, I felt a lot more comfortable. The reason I think the times are so much better is because we’re racing in the middle of the summer,” said Beaubier. “”We’ve got a good setup but we’re still working on some things in the fast corners. I think we’ll be good.” “Coming to Laguna and then here, it feels awesome to have two world-class tracks back to back,” Beaubier continued. “I love coming to these fast tracks, and it reminds me of Europe.” Gerloff had a crash in the session but was quickly up and lapping again. The Texan held second place, 1.087 seconds back. Meen Motorsports’ Jake Lewis was third, setting his best lap at 1:54.844. Also on the provisional front row was Jason DiSalvo on the Latus Motors Racing Triumph. The RoadRace Factory/Red Bull pilots lead row two, with JD Beach ahead of Jake Gagne. GEICO Motorcycle Road Racing’s Dane Westby topped National Guard Celtic Racing’s James Rispoli for seventh. AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport RoadRace Factory’s Tomas Puerta won provisional pole for the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport class in Utah. West points leader Puerta battled with second-place points man Jeffery Tigert, who put the Baby Appleseed CM Motorsports entry in second place. “It was a little tough in the beginning with a lot of riders on the track, but I came in and we put on a new tire. I was pretty happy with the 1:57.1, but I thought we could go faster, perhaps a mid-1:56,” said Puerta. “I had some minor issues with the bike, but the time we set was pretty good. Hopefully we can improve some more tomorrow. I’m looking forward to riding my own race this weekend and doing the best I can. Wyatt Farris put his Meen Motorsports entry third on the provisional grid, ahead of California Superbike School Roadracing World.com’s Joe Roberts. Roberts has won his first three AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport races and was within a half-second of Puerta on Friday. The second row of the 41-rider field includes Stefano Mesa of the Motosport.com RSRacecraft team, Sebastiao Ferreira of BP Racing, Brandon Cleland on another Motosport.com RSRacecraft bike, and National Guard Celtic Racing’s Corey Alexander. For tickets to this weekend’s event at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah, please visit http://www.millermotorsportspark.com/events/ama-pro-road-racing-race.html. Television Broadcasts on CBS Sports Network Leading into coverage of GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing Round 6 at Miller Motorsports Park, CBS Sports Network will broadcast the AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike and AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike races from last weekend’s Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca as part of the CBS Sports Spectacular in a primetime special on CBS Sports Network beginning Friday, August 2 at 7:00 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. Following the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca broadcasts, a primetime airing of the weekend preview show for the Miller Motorsports Park event will begin on Friday, August 2 at 9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. PT. This weekend’s racing coverage will include three hours of LIVE broadcasts from Utah. AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Race 1 will air LIVE on Saturday, August 3 at 5:00 p.m. ET/2:00 p.m. PT and will be followed by a same-day delayed broadcast of AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Race 1 slotted for 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT. Sunday’s coverage will include a two-hour block of LIVE coverage, beginning with GoPro Daytona SportBike Race 2 on Sunday, August 4 at 3:00 p.m. ET/12:00 noon PT followed by National Guard SuperBike Race 2 at 4:00 p.m. ET/1:00 p.m. PT. For an up-to-date list of the GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing broadcasts scheduled on CBS Sports Network, please visit http://www.amaproracing.com/rr/events/tvlistings.cfm?year=2013. To locate CBS Sports Network on your cable or satellite provider, please visit the Channel Finder at http://www.cbssportsnetwork.com/channel-finder. International Pay-Per-View Fully produced, high definition broadcasts of this weekend’s races from Miller Motorsports Park will be available to audiences outside of the United States and Canada through AMA Pro Live, AMA Pro Racing’s live streaming video website. At the low introductory cost of $0.99 USD per race, international fans can follow along with their favorite GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing stars this weekend by logging on at http://www.amaprolive.com/rr/. The international pay-per-view channel will be available for the following races: GoPro Daytona SportBike Race 1 (Saturday, July 13 at 1:00 p.m. ET) National Guard SuperBike Race 1 (Saturday, July 13 at 3:00 p.m. ET) GoPro Daytona SportBike Race 2 (Sunday, July 14 at 1:00 p.m. ET) National Guard SuperBike Race 2 (Sunday, July 14 at 2:00 p.m. ET) Streaming Video and Social Media In addition to the live broadcasts on CBS Sports Network and AMA Pro Live, AMA Pro Racing will be live streaming multiple channels of behind-the-scenes video of the weekend’s activities alongside Live Timing & Scoring on the AMA Pro Live streaming video website. AMA Pro Live puts fans in the director’s chair, allowing them to choose from a variety of viewpoints including track cameras, paddock cameras and a press conference channel. Streaming will begin with coverage of the weekend’s practice and qualifying sessions on Friday, August 2 at 1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT at http://www.amaprolive.com. Stay connected with GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing on social media at http://twitter.com/AMAProSBK and http://www.facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing. About GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing: GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing is the premier motorcycle road racing series in North America and is universally regarded as one of the most competitive road racing organizations in the world. The 2013 schedule consists of nine rounds of competition on the country’s finest road courses. The Series is comprised of four production-based classes: AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike, AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike, AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport and the AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Series. Learn more about GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing at www.amaproracing.com/rr/. AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com. More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Hayes Lays Down The Gauntlet For Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha In Friday’s First Qualifying Session At Miller Motorsports Park Tooele, UT – August 2, 2013 – In the first day of action at Miller Motorsports Park, three-time defending AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Champion Josh Hayes got off to his usual successful start by earning the provisional pole aboard his #1 Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha YZF-R1. Hayes’ teammate and rider of the #2 R1, Josh Herrin, also had a good first-qualifying session, and the 2012 SuperBike Rookie of the Year is currently in third position on the provisional front row. After the opening qualifying session, Hayes said, “It was hard work today. I’m trying very, very hard, and I’m hoping, after a good night’s sleep, I can put something together for tomorrow. The performance of the tires seems to be dropping off pretty quickly. The cooler temperatures should help us, though, and I would expect to go a little bit faster tomorrow, but we’ll see how it goes in the morning.” Herrin said, “We did a few things with the bike this morning, and it really helped for qualifying. There are some new concrete patches on the track, and they’re a little tricky to negotiate, but my laptimes e were way more consistent through the session than some of the other riders. We’re going to try a couple of other things in the morning and see how we do, but I feel comfortable, and I hope to go faster tomorrow.” Tomorrow morning’s final SuperBike qualifying session will begin at 9:40 AM, and SuperBike Race 1 from Miller Motorsports Park will go green at 3 PM MT. For more news, results, and other team info, be sure to check out Yamaha’s Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @YamahaMotorUSA. More, from a press release issued by Geiger Media on behalf of AMSOIL: AMSOIL EBR teammates ready to step it up in Salt Lake City SALT LAKE CITY (Aug. 2) – Despite tough conditions, AMSOIL-backed riders Geoff May and Aaron Yates put down some pretty fast laps during the first qualifying session in the National Guard SuperBike category on Friday afternoon at Miller Motorsports Park and qualified their Hero/EBR Racing 1190RS machines seventh and 11th, respectively, with one more qualifying session to go on Saturday. “I thought it went very good,” May said. “We made quite a few changes from this morning and they proved to be very productive. We dropped over two seconds consistently off our times from (practice) this morning. We are definitely moving forward. We have a really good race bike right now. We just need to fix a few little minor comfort things and drop another half a second and get down where the leaders seem to be.” May only ran 15 laps in the 60-minute qualifying session, putting down a best-of 1:52.658 on his 10th circuit with his No. 99 Team Hero/AMSOIL EBR, which left him just over 1.6 seconds off the top spot. “We are coming to grips with the new tire, ignoring our notes from last year and just working twice as hard and coming up with results,” May said. “I have to give credit to my crew chief and the guys. They are working their butts off and are making a lot of changes and it is paying off.” But while May was happy with his effort, the same could not be said for Yates, who ran just 11 laps in Qualifying 1, saving his best effort – a 1:53.959 circuit on his No. 20 AMSOIL/Hero EBR – for his last lap. “Overall, it really wasn’t what we were hoping for,” Yates said. “We made some changes to the front end of the bike for the first session. It was something we wanted to try and get it out of the way. It didn’t really make any improvements for us. We also had a few little gremlins. I think we got it all sorted out now. We’re gonna put the other geometry back in the (front end of the) bike and go out there and ride it like we did at Laguna (Seca) and Mid-Ohio.” But despite the little problems he had on Friday, Yates said he will be ready to step it up on Saturday. “The bike is running good,” he said. “We didn’t get the laps we needed out there in that session. We will be ready to go tomorrow and turn some hot laps.” The field will be set following the final qualifying session, which starts at 9:40 a.m. on Saturday. Race 1 is set to begin at 3 p.m. on the same day and Race 2 will be run at 3 p.m. on Sunday.