Hayes, Herrin Split AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Wins at Mid-Ohio

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 17, 2013) – Despite the fact that the 2013 GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing season is entering the stretch run with just six races remaining to determine this season’s AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike champion, there are more races left (six) than points separating the top three title contenders (five). This past weekend at the Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Monster Energy Graves Yamaha’s Josh Hayes finally reclaimed his position atop the ’13 points order — a spot he held for only a few hours in March when he led the field 1-0 by winning pole for the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. The defending triple champion’s quest to become the first man in AMA Pro Road Racing history to win four consecutive SuperBike titles was put in serious jeopardy from the start. Hayes’ double retirement at Daytona left him will a massive challenge to conquer as an encore to the most dominant title campaign the class had ever seen. Hayes made up the deficit in big chunks — even with his chief rivals encountering no major problems and performing at a consistently high level — and moved into first place following his Saturday triumph on the strength of five perfect races (taking every available point, including the bonus markers awarded for laps led and pole positions). However, the legend-in-the-making saw his streak of perfection snapped the following day at the conclusion of an intense, albeit unconventional, nail-biter. For the second time in as many race weekends, Hayes was penalized for jumping the start. This time he couldn’t race his way out of his five-second punishment, as his Monster Energy Graves Yamaha teammate, Josh Herrin, hung tough and finished 4.878 seconds behind Hayes — good enough to claim his second-career AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike victory by a scant 0.122 seconds at the checkered flag. After routinely demonstrating outstanding pace when following in Hayes’ wheel tracks but struggling to match that sort of speed while circulating on his own, the developing SuperBike pilot has made it his mission in recent weeks to put in the hard work required to become a more consistent, all-around threat. The steady improvements he’s shown in that short time have already paid off in the form of a win as he continued to post solid lap times even after a charging Hayes shook him off his shadow. Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing’s Martin Cardenas salvaged a pair of third-place results from a somewhat frustrating weekend at a circuit he’s never quite mastered. Despite losing two spots in the championship order, falling to third after entering Mid-Ohio with the lead, the stage is now set for an epic conclusion to the championship. Hayes currently leads with 191 points but Herrin and Cardenas are both close enough to make that up that gap with a single convincing outing, as they currently reside just four and five points back, respectively. Even though Hayes saw his win streak come to an even despite taking the checkered flag first, he didn’t seem overly disappointed. He explained, “At the end of the day, I’m proud of the way I rode. I feel good about my race. The result is the result — that’s what goes in the books…I tried really hard. All the way to the last corner on the last lap, I rode the best race I possible could and I’m happy with that… I felt like it was (Josh Herrin’s) race to lose. I don’t think I can be upset with myself because he did a good job today. All I do is offer him a big congrats today, I’m proud of the way he did it, and I’m glad it was my teammate and another Monster Energy Yamaha up front. “And it should have tightened up the points and made things really interesting and a lot of fun. We’ve got what? Six races left. It should be a barnburner — let’s go get ’em.” Herrin later admitted that his strong push to the checkered flag came as a result of an effort to fend off third rather than hold onto first. He was unaware that Hayes had been penalized, but his recent efforts to up his game paid off all the same (even more handsomely in fact). Herrin said, “I guess that was kind of a crazy race. I had no idea that I won the race until I was interviewed for television and I was kind of shocked for a second. I couldn’t even say anything… Josh really rode a great race as he does every time he gets on the bike. He’s proven over the past three years that he’s a GP quality rider… I just have to thank him for all the help that he’s given me. I really lucked out today. We’ll take it — a wins a win — and we’ll move onto Laguna with a lot of confidence, just in the way that we rode. I think we rode pretty well today even though Josh beat me by so much. I was proud of the way I was able to keep a consistent pace by myself and hopefully Laguna goes just as well.” Cardenas’ double-third marked his fifth and sixth podium finishes in the seven races he’s contested as a works Suzuki SuperBike pilot (his solitary result off the podium was a fourth). “We’ll have to wait for next weekend and see what we can do,” Cardenas said about his response to being toppled from the prime spot the championship order. “I knew this weekend was going to be hard; not that I’m bad here, but it’s not my best track. It turned out to be okay — not what we were hoping for. We’ll have to wait and see about next week and see where we’re at.” The results were remarkably consistent over the two days down the field at Mid-Ohio. If not for the penalty-related reversal of first and second on Sunday, the top eight finishers would have been exactly the same on both days. Jordan Suzuki’s Danny Eslick ran 4-4 at Mid-O. The Oklahoman factored near the top of the charts in practice and qualifying, proving that he can run the lead pace on a SuperBike when given a tow. He’s still looking to find that bit of race pace required to join the week-in, week-out podium contenders on a consistent basis, but he’s well on his way to establishing himself as the next man up. “The weekend started pretty good,” said Eslick. “The Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000 was fast right out of the box and helped me get the weekend off on the right foot. Both my races were pretty much the same. I got good starts and was able to hang with the lead guys. It was tough to keep up with them but I was doing it, and then I made a few mistakes and lost some time. But this was the best weekend I’ve had as far as feeling comfortable with the bike and getting my confidence up. So now, we’ll head for Laguna Seca and hopefully talk about winning next weekend.” On both days, the series’ leading twin-cylinder machines locked up for a pair of three-way scraps for fifth. And on both occasions, it was Team Hero EBR’s Geoff May who secured the spot with some good defense, outlasting teammate Aaron Yates on the Team AMSOIL/Hero EBR 1190RS and KTM/HMC Racing’s Chris Fillmore. May said, “With this long straightway here, leaving with two top fives makes me pretty happy. The next track favors our bike a lot more. This EBR loves it when it’s cool and runs a lot faster. I’m excited about getting up there and racing with those front-runners and surprise them.” “Aaron could run faster than me. He was running a better pace than me, but I was hitting all my marks and using the whole track. If anybody wanted to get by me, they really had to make a nasty pass. Fillmore got by me once or twice, then he’d screw up and I’d get around him. I used my experience and rode smart, which put me in fifth today even though some of the guys behind me were a little quicker.” Yates confirmed May’s assessment, explaining, “I just couldn’t get by Geoff. I didn’t want to put some kind of crazy move on him to make the pass. I was struggling to get stopped at the end of the straightaway after half way. I really couldn’t make a move on the brakes anywhere.” He added, “We’ve got the bike feeling really good to me. It’s really getting through the corners well. I could make a mistake and lose some ground to Geoff but make it all back up in a couple of turns. It’s fun to ride. If we get a little more power, we’ll be in the show and in contention for a podium.” Fillmore may have had to lap times in him to do even better than his 7-7 result shows, but tire issues slowed him on Saturday and he suffered a massive fall in Sunday’s warm-up that left him feeling more than a little beat up in Race 2. However, Fillmore’s weekend still went better than those of two other riders who entered Mid-Ohio with big expectations. Based on his performance at Barber Motorsports Park last time out, along with his glittering past record at Mid-Ohio, National Guard Jordan Suzuki’s Roger Hayden was a popular pick to contend for race wins this past weekend. Unfortunately, tire issues also slowed him on Saturday and he ran off track while fighting for the lead a third of the way into Sunday’s final. In the end, Hayden could only manage a pair of eighths. “It was a tough weekend,” Hayden said. “We struggled a bit at first but the team worked hard and gave me a good bike with the Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000. I was able to run with the leaders in Saturday’s race until we had some tire problems midway through. So we switched tires on Sunday and I was able to keep up with the frontrunners until I made a mistake with a false neutral. I feel bad for my guys because they worked hard and made my bike really good after we struggled on the first day. Now I’m glad we only have a few days off before we get another chance at it. Laguna Seca has always been a good track for me and I’m looking forward to that race.” Things went even worse for Ohio native Larry Pegram on the Foremost Insurance Pegram Racing YZF-R1. Pegram also struggled with his rubber on Saturday en route to ninth and then crashed on the sighting lap ahead of Sunday’s race. He hustled to get back to the grid but subsequently suffered another spill in the race before ultimately retiring. Motosport.com Motul Fly Racing’s David Anthony (18-9), Fillmore’s KTM/HMC Racing teammate, Taylor Knapp (12-10), and Motosport.com/EBR II’s Cory West (10-11) walked away with the remaining results in the top ten over the Mid-Ohio weekend.

AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Recap

The AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike round at Mid-Ohio saw Yamaha Extended Service/Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha’s Cameron Beaubier take two more wins despite some serious pressure along the way. The Californian was able to bust out two more victories to add to his impressive record in 2013. Beaubier’s six wins out of seven races is an impressive mark and the way he’s done it has enhanced his reputation as one of the top racers in America. At Mid-Ohio, Beaubier wasn’t able to shake the field like he did at Daytona to start the season. He was able to run complete, focused races aimed at getting to the finish line first. Beaubier’s patented late race push has been the key to his Daytona SportBike wins and after Mid-Ohio, Beaubier now stands third all-time on the wins list in the class. Beaubier doesn’t always get flier starts but usually gains ground in the opening laps. On Saturday, Beaubier was able to outpace his two most consistent rivals, Jake Gagne and JD Beach of the RoadRace Factory/Red Bull team over the 21 laps but saw himself down in the field on the first one. “I got a pretty bad start,” said Beaubier. “My jump wasn’t too bad but I wasn’t very aggressive going into the first corner. Then Dane (Westby) passed me in the corner going onto the back straight and I got shuffled back to like fifth or sixth or something like that. I slowly started making my way through. Jake and I had a good battle right to the end. I pushed it hard the last couple laps. I made a few mistakes today — I pushed the front a couple times and almost highsided coming out of 1. But I really want to thank my team for giving me an awesome bike.” On Sunday, Beaubier had a similar start but his toughest challenge was Beach. Beaubier couldn’t shake the Kentucky resident but still managed a victory by just 0.655 seconds. “I was a little timid in the first couple of laps but my Y.E.S./Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha team gave me a great bike, and I was able to go to work reeling in the leaders in those first couple of laps,” he said. “I made a few passes, got to the front, and just concentrated on running clean, fast laps. I’m looking forward to heading back to California and racing at Laguna Seca, which is close to home for me.” Beaubier now leads the championship by 45 points over Gagne at the halfway point, but the races are looking tougher. “Jake and JD are right on me and I just need to stay consistent,” Beaubier said. Gagne and Beach impressed as well. Beach’s Sunday race was his best yet in AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike. Beach lead laps and actually closed ground on Beaubier late and set fast lap of the race. “I got a good start and tried to put my head down. I know that in these races, sometimes people get up front but don’t finish there so I wanted to break away. I was leading and it felt good. Cameron came past me and I made a mistake, but I put my head down and did a decent lap time and caught up. I was able to bring it home in second.” For Beach, the race was a breakthrough. He performed well as a teammate to Beaubier in AMA Pro Motorcycle-SuperStore.com SuperSport and many felt he outperformed Beaubier a few seasons ago but the young rider has been chasing his former and current teammates in 2013. “From last year to this year, it’s been up and down. I’ve shown moments but I’m not always where I should be. But me and my crew, we’ve been working hard. I know I can be up there,” said Beach. Gagne earned a second and third and remains second in points. With six podiums on the season, Gagne has proven himself to be Beaubier’s most consistent challenger. He backed up Saturday’s second place (his fourth of the year) with a third on Sunday in what he considered a subpar race. “I had too many moments out there and decided to bring it home third,” said Gagne. Y.E.S/Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha’s Garrett Gerloff was able to earn fourth and fifth place finishes, emerging on top of some tough battles just behind the leaders. Gerloff said, “I’m happy to be racing in the lead pack, but I’d like to be even closer to the front. My team and I are working hard to make that happen. I’m hungry for a podium finish like I got at Daytona, and we’ve got another race in less than a week, so I’m excited about that.” Jake Lewis on the Meen Motorsports machine earned fourth on Saturday. The youngster battled with the likes of Gerloff and James Rispoli once again in what is shaping up to be a common fight in the 2013 races. James Rispoli and National Guard/Celtic Racing showed speed once again, with James eager to lead early. Fifth in points, Rispoli’s aggressive racing produced a seventh and a fifth at Mid-Ohio, but his early pace was even better. Dane Westby (GEICO Motorcycle Road Racing) had won at the last two Mid-Ohio events and the Oklahoman would have been disappointed with anything less than another victory. But an injury and developing a new motorcycle have made 2013 a tougher challenge. Westby was sixth and seventh in Lexington on his Honda and has finished inside the top eight in every race since his Daytona injury. His Team Hammer teammate Benny Solis finished in the top ten twice on the M4 Broaster Chicken Racing entry, earning eighth and tenth. Other top ten finishers included Fernando Amantini (Team Amantini) and Jason DiSalvo (Latus Motors Racing.) DiSalvo got great starts and showed good speed, but he and his team are continuing to up their pace for the entire race. With little downtime before this weekend’s races at Laguna Seca, the field has little time to celebrate or contemplate the Mid-Ohio races.

AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport Recap

This season has seen a varied number of winners in AMA Pro Motorcycle-SuperStore.com SuperSport but it doesn’t stop there. The podium spots, perhaps even the top five, are up for grabs every week. RoadRace Factory’s Tomas Puerta won his second race of the year on Saturday as the Colombian took care of business at the 2.4-mile circuit. Puerta, the West points leader, took his second win of the year in this East points race. Puerta pulled away to win by 3.213 seconds. “It was a tough race,” said Puerta. “17 hard laps. Every time I looked at my board, the message was ‘+0.’ They made me work hard. The last four or five laps, I was really going. I wasn’t worried about crashing, I was trying to bring the race home, and they made me work really hard.” On Sunday, Puerta looked poised for another win. As soon as he took the lead at the end of Mid-Ohio’s straight, he had a machine issue that forced his retirement. Team 95’s Hayden Gillim had a spectacular weekend, earning second on Saturday and improving to a victory on Sunday, his first of the year. Gillim topped Travis Wyman in a shootout that saw the riders trade the lead until the checkered flag. “These guys were running a really good pace, too,” said Gillim, who won by 0.184 of a second. “Travis got out in front. The last couple of laps, we were going at it. I was racing for the win. It was a really fun race.” “I was getting killed out of The Keyhole (on Saturday,)” said Gillim. “I tried to be more aggressive today.” Gillim became the fifth rider to take victory in 2013 in AMA Pro Motorcycle SuperStore.com SuperSport. Wyman’s performance in Sunday’s race was also spectacular. The Harv’s Harley Davidson-backed rider fought for his second career win and came up just short. “It was a good, hard-fought battle for the lead with Hayden. Towards the end, I thought I might be able to make a break. I tried to make a break and close any doors. We traded positions a couple of times at the end,” said Wyman. “I tried to make a move but he held his line and I am happy to be up in second. We’ve been working hard to get back on the podium all year.” CTR Racing’s Miles Thornton also raced well at Mid-Ohio. The Georgian won pole and took two third place finishes to remain fourth in East points, leading Wyman by a single point. “I feel good and I wanted to win, but I’ll take (a podium) any day,” said Thornton. “It’s been a long time since I have been on the top. Barber was a great weekend too and I want to keep moving forward.” Corey Alexander (National Guard Celtic Racing) took the East points lead with his seventh and fourth results. Alexander said, “It’s huge,” said Alexander.” I’m in the point lead now and every position is crucial.” Stefano Mesa is third in points, but the MotoSport.com RSRacecraft pilot crashed on Saturday before rebounding to fifth on Sunday. With just New Jersey remaining on the East schedule, the trio of Alexander, Gillim, and Mesa will duke it out for the title at the season’s final round. Other riders earning top tens in Ohio included Nick McFadden (TOBC Racing), Conner Blevins (Ajax Kawasaki), Devin McDonough (Motorcyclesuperstore.com) and Kaleb De Keyrel (CWS, Bleavley-Hayes). Erick Sanchez (EYK) and Brandon Cleland (MotoSport.com RSRacecraft) also posted their best finishes of the year. After a couple of East events, the West points fight now takes center stage at Laguna Seca.

AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Series Recap The story of the 2013 AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Series has been the various race weekend dramas of the otherwise easygoing Steve Rapp. The accomplished AMA Pro Road Racing veteran hooked up with Suburban Harley-Davidson just prior to the season opener at Daytona but his race there lasted all of one lap after he’d qualified in second due to mechanical woes. At the subsequent two races, Rapp reestablished himself as a title favorite despite having to balance his racing career and his new life as a commercial airline pilot. With a hectic schedule that forced him to miss a full day of practice and qualifying at Road America and then the opening practice at Barber Motorsports Park, Rapp nonetheless came through to score dominant victories. The Mid-Ohio weekend was supposed to be different. It was supposed to be easy. Rapp took part in every session and was rewarded with his first pole position of the season. The Californian was a heavy favorite going into Sunday’s race, but that drama returned once again. Rapp was almost forced to miss the race due to a ‘wardrobe malfunction’ with his race leathers. He explained, “It’s so embarrassing… It’s never happened ever in all the years I’ve raced. The zipper got stuck and I couldn’t get it up or down. Then we were really getting on it and the whole zipper broke off, so I had no suit. Luckily the guys from Suburban ran back and got me (teammate) Brice Cooper’s suit. I put it on last second. I missed the warm-up lap and jumped over the wall just as they were taking the grid, but I was able to go from my grid spot.” Rapp started from his spot at the front of the grid but lost a few spots as he built up heat in his tires. While that was happening, an on-form Travis Wyman (Harv’s Harley-Davidson) took control of the race at the front. Rapp ultimately diced through the field and tracked him down. After that the two went back and forth as they battled to the checkered flag, with the veteran overcoming the up-and-comer by a slim 0.173-second margin. “It was more exciting, that’s for sure,” Rapp said of the unexpected shape of the race due to the pre-race zipper incident. “It took me a couple laps to get the tires up to temperature and everyone was riding fast so I had to really work hard. I think I burnt my tires up quite a bit just catching up and passing a couple of the guys. “Once Travis and I were together I couldn’t ride as hard as I wanted to. I felt like it was a little greasier than it had been in the morning or something. I was a little tentative in some of the corners. All-in-all, I knew it was just going to come down to me and him at that point and whoever was in the right place at the right time and had the best last lap. Fortunately, it worked out.” Wyman, who also earned a runner-up result in the SuperSport contest, said, “I feel good; I’m happy to come away with two second-place finishes today. Off the start I had the lead for a little bit and thought I could make a break. I saw I had about a second there early on and figured it was Rapp who was closing on me when I saw ‘+0’. Within a lap or two he got by me but I was able to hang onto his tail there and keep up the pace. “I got around him — we were going back and forth a little bit. And then on the last lap we were side-by-side going into Turn 6 and he had the better line and made it work. I tried to get back around him in the last section but couldn’t make anything work. I’m really happy to earn this podium and prove that I can run upfront in this class. I’m glad to have my Harv’s Harley-Davidson XR1200 on the podium.” After Rapp and Wyman cleared off, Eco Fuel Saver/Scrubblade’s Tyler O’Hara settled into a hard-fought tussle for the final spot on the podium with championship hopeful Ben Carlson (Suburban Harley-Davidson) and defending class king Michael Barnes (Spyke’s Harley-Davidson), which O’Hara ultimately won. “When I passed Rapp I saw ‘Cooper’ on his back and thought, ‘wow, he got a really good start,” O’Hara said with a laugh. “And then he passed me back and I figured it was Rapp. “It was a lot of fun. Travis and Rapp set the bar all weekend and we were kind of playing catch-up. We had little issues with our front tire this weekend and didn’t really have much side bite on the right, but we really had a turnaround from where we were at. I’ve really got to thank my whole team – Eco Fuel Saver, Scrubblade, and Bartel’s Harley-Davidson and Josh Chisum for supporting us. “And hats off to (Rapp and Wyman). Every time I ride with Steve I learn a lot. Hopefully, one of these times the student will prevail.” Eric Stump (Fernet Insurance), Nicholas Hansen (H&S Distributors), Josh Chisum (Eco Fuel Saver/Scrubblade), Hayden Schultz (Happy Trails MC Connnection), and Shane Narbonne (Mob Racing) scored important finishes in the top ten at Mid-Ohio as well with just one race remaining to get into the championship top ten and qualify for the $60,000 XR Challenge. Speaking of drama, there’s sure to be plenty of it to go around when the AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Series returns to action at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, UT, after sitting out the upcoming Laguna Seca weekend, with riders ranked as deep as 18th still within eight points of a qualifying position. Next Up The 2013 GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing season will pick right back up this weekend (July 19-21) in Monterey, California as the series shares the spotlight with the global superstars of the MotoGP World Championship for the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. This season’s GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing action is being broadcast on CBS Sports Network as part of the CBS Sports Spectacular. Fans can find CBS Sports Network on their TV by using the channel finder at http://www.cbssportsnetwork.com/channel-finder. In addition to the live broadcasts on CBS Sports Network, AMA Pro Live will be live streaming multiple channels of behind-the-scenes video of the weekend’s activities alongside Live Timing & Scoring. 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 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.

More, from a press release issued by RoadRace Factory:

In the begininng Set amongst some of the beautiful rolling green hills and farmland Ohio has to offer, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is a track that is as steeped in history as it is picturesque. Mid-Ohio has been a rider and fan favorite track since it first appeared on the AMA Series calendar. And this past weekend, the RoadRace Factory / Red Bull team arrived on scene to leave our mark on this historical circuit.

The weekend flowed much like the 2.4 mile long track, full of ups and downs, but when the checkers fell for the last time on Sunday, we left with 2 double podiums in DSB and a victory in SuperSport. More importantly, we showed what we can do when riders and crew work together on a common goal. In Daytona Sportbike we are closing the gap to the factory teams and with Jake and JD sharing 2nd’s and 3rd’s this weekend, they own 2nd and 3rd (respectively) in the championship standings. Tomas has a solid lead in the Supersport West Standings, the DNF on Sunday, for sure wasn’t what we wanted, but it did no damage to his points lead.

GoPro Daytona SportBike The weather this weekend was perfect for racing. Warm and with high cloud cover, the track conditions were optimal for Jake and JD to begin pushing hard from the onset. In the first practice session, it was clear that the storms that had just blown through the area washed all the rubber off the track. Both riders were running quick times, but nowhere near the pace from last year. It wouldn’t be until the first qualifying session that the guys would be Gagne able to get to work in earnest on their set-ups.

By the time Q1 arrived in the afternoon, the track was beginning to get a decent layer of rubber laid back down and the times were dropping. JD looked impressive. He was riding with a level of aggression that was obvious in every area of the circuit. Making quick transitions, his body position was all about maintaining as much drive as possible. Jake was going well, but it was clear he wasn’t able to ride like he wanted. He was out trying some new suspension settings and he wasn’t getting the expected performance out of his R6. The session ended with JD sitting in a very fast 3rd and Jake needing some more tweaking in P7.

On Saturday morning, Q2 was all about stepping up and finding the pace needed to get on the front of the grid. Right out of the hot pit, Jake was seeking to improve and he did! Jake was throwing down quick lap after quick lap and was doing exactly what he needed to be doing. The adjustments made to his suspension were evidently the right ones and at the end of the session, he had moved up to P2 overall and would be sitting on the second grid position. JD too was improving his times lap by lap. However everyone else was improving faster than he was. Despite his best efforts he was only able to come out of qualifying in P7. The difference between P3 through P7 was less than a second, this placed him well within reach of the podium.

Lining up for the start of Race 1, Jake and JD were confident in their bikes and in themselves to push hard right off the line. As the green flag flew they launched off the grid and JD found himself right behind Jake occupying the 4th position. Cameron Beaubier had bogged the start and was sitting at the end of the front runners. Jake and JD moved up to front quickly, knowing that they had to begin to pull away before Cameron started his charge. Gagne made the move and took the lead from James Respoli and race 1 tried to build a gap. Cameron was coming and JD was fighting with Jas on DeSalvo and James Respoli for 2nd. As quickly as JD grabbed P2, Cameron made his move to knock JD back to P3. Within a few laps, Cameron was on Jake’s rear wheel and applying pressure on his factory Yamaha R6. Jake fought hard and was able to match pace for most of the race, but as the Checkers were brought out, Cameron took the win, Jake come home in 2nd with JD in 3rd. Times revealed that we have really started closing the gap to t he factory bikes and that gave us a huge confidence boost going into Race 2 on Sunday.

A night of working on the bikes based on rider input and data acquisition was all about to be tested as the riders lined up for Race 2. Race 2 was delayed by an oil spill which deposited when a fan on his motorcycle crashed during the fan parade laps. The nearly hour and half delay caused more than uncertainty in track conditions but it also cut the number of laps. The 21 lap race was cut to 15 and the riders had to contend with a possible slick track in the critical T9 through Thunder Alley section of the track. When the field went green, one rider didn’t hesitate. JD rocketed up to the lead and was pushing through the sketchy turns. Jake saw this and decided it was safe too and within a few laps, the pair were running P1 and P3 separated by James Respoli. Cameron had gotten another terrible start and had his work cut out for him. By the mid race distance, Cameron had caught up and moved into the number one spot. JD and Jake were left to decide the remaining podium positions. At the line, JD scored his best finish of the season in 2nd and Jake scored a solid 3rd place.

Jake Gagne – 2nd in Series Points “Race 1 was pretty fun. I got off to a good start and was doing great until I had an issue with my quick shifter. Pretty bummed but I’ll take the second. Race 2 was bit different. The guys gave me a great bike but JD was just on it. Congrats to him! Overall I’m pretty happy with the weekend. Looking forward to Laguna next weekend.”

JD Beach – 3nd in Series Points “Mid Ohio was a great weekend for me. I really enjoy the track and coming into the weekend I knew Scott (Jensen) and Danny (Anderson) would give me the best bike possible. We worked really hard all weekend and had my best finishes ever in the Daytona SportBike class.”

Motorcycle SuperStore SuperSport Coming into this round Tomy was leading the points chase in the West Coast Rounds and was looking forward to scoring some more overall points. In typical Tomy Puerta fashion, he was on the gas from the first practice lap till the last possible second of track time. Daytona Anderson arrived in Lexington feeling more confident after getting to grips to his new bike and crew at Barber. We also had Felipe MacLean joining us on a two round self sponsored ride. As the SuperSport riders used their practice time to help lay down a much needed coat of new rubber on the track, times weren’t reflective of race pace. The session was used to primarily focus on set-up and for Daytona and Felipe, it was much needed track time to learn the course.

Qualifying got under way and Tomy went right to work, within a few laps he was setting quick laps and was only bested by Miles Thornton. Daytona was also dropping his lap times on a consistent basis. It was clear that he was beginning to get more comfortable with his machine as his body position was looking more relaxed. Felipe was right where he needed to be. His goal was to learn the 600cc as he typically rides a 1000cc. He showed the proper frame of mind needed to race as a professional in the AMA. At the end of Q1 Tomy was in P2 and excited knowing he had the pace to improve. Daytona improved his qualifying efforts and was in P21. Felipe was right behind him in P23. The second qualifying session in the morning saw times improve, but as expected, the overall field improved and when time was called, Tomy was still in P2. Daytona qualified P19 despite an engine problem early in the session and Felipe was in P21 after methodically churning out laps.

The anticipation around Race 1 was building as the riders headed out for their sighting lap. When the riders lined up for the start, it was electric. Miles was on an impressive run all weekend and Tomy was looking forward to a good race. Tomy lept off the line and took the lead going into the Keyhole. Hayden Gillim had jumped up to 2nd position was was pushing Tomy all race. While the battle for the lead was going on, Daytona and Felipe were involved in a great battle of their own. They were among 7 riders swapping positions lap after lap. With each pass and corner the two of them gained valuable experience. Up front, after a good battle with Travis Wymen and Hayden Gillim, Tomy found an extra gear and began to pull a lead that he would not surrender. At the line it was Tomy in a lonely 1st, happy to have not been beaten to the line again by thousandths of a second. Daytona and Felipe worked through their on track battles to finish 16th and 20th respectively.

Race 2 saw something different in the mix for Tomy. The race was red flagged after three laps due to a crash mid pack. The race-restart got off without a hitch, Hayden took the early lead, Tomy was in P2 with Travis and Miles in tow. After the 4th lap, as he was entering into turn 6, something happened to Tomy’s bike. He pulled off the line and limped the bike back into the pits. An electrical failure with the speed shifter had caused his unplanned pit stop. Meanwhile, Daytona and Felipe had picked up right where they left off in Race 1. Only this time, the battle was with fewer riders as their times improved and they moved up the order. Tomy went back out on track but after a few laps retired back to the pits. That left Daytona to fly the RoadRace Factory colors with Felipe hot on his exhaust. Soon, the battle had subsided and each rider rode a flawless race and crossed the line in 16th (Daytona) and 20th (Felipe).

Tomy Puerta – 1st in Series Points (West) “I had a good weekend. I was fast all weekend and knew that I could get the double win here. Race one gave me the first of the double. In race two everyone got great starts and we fight for position. I was moving up when something broke on my bike. Jamie tired to give to fix it, but in the end I had to leave the rack in Race 1Onward to Laguna

Daytona Anderson – 13th in Series Points “Coming into Mid Ohio I was pretty excited to learn a new track and put my leg over my Road Race Factory Yamaha R6 again. The track has an awesome layout with elevation changes, but the track surface was tough to get comfortable with. My crew chief Philly Joe gave me some great advice on how to approach the track without getting in over my head. Qualifying went pretty well, but I need to do a better job of qualifying so I don’t have so many racers to work through during the race. I qualified 21st and finished both races in 16th. My confidence is quickly building with the team and my mechanics. Overall the weekend was a success and I’m looking forward to Laguna so we can keep improving and hopefully break the top ten.”

Wrap it Up – Danny Walker “What more can I say? I’m super proud of the guys this weekend. We tried to eliminate as many variables as possible with the bikes and really dial in on a solid base set-up. The crews did an amazing job of keeping our boys near the top. Jake rode well all weekend and was rewarded with a 2nd and 3rd. JD too was riding like we haven’t seen in quite some time. It was impressive to see him man handle that bike and bring it home in P3 and snag his best finish of the year in P2.”

“In the SuperSport races, Tomy was determined to not be beat to the line again. He showed us how it’s done in Race 1, then in Race 2 we had a minor issue that caused him to come in early. Daytona and Felipe continued to show improvement in both races. I’m also impressed with Daytona and his track presence. We had a small issue in Q2 and he kept his head about him, and brought the bike and himself home without incident.”

“Most important to me, is that we are closing the gaps to the established teams. The team is a testament to hard work and dedication. They are showing the rest of the paddock what can be done in this ultra competitive class if you just work together”

More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team:

Sachsenring, Germany: Scott Redding saw his lead in the FIM Moto2 World Championship cut by seven points, after severe tyre issues saw him struggle to a seventh place finish in today’s German Moto2 Grand Prix at the Sachsenring. Mika Kallio showed strongly at the start of today’s 29-lap race, but slipped down the order to eventually finish 13th, after experiencing the same tyre problems as his Marc VDS teammate.

Redding got a good start from eighth position on the grid, but was unable to make contact with the leading group as rear grip dropped off sharply in the early stages of the race. Despite a rapidly deteriorating rear tyre, the 20-year-old Briton was initially involved in the battle for fourth place, but dropped back when the tyre started tearing at the midpoint of the race and eventually finished seventh.

For Kallio the tyre issues started almost immediately, as he experienced a severe drop off in rear grip from lap six onwards. The 30-year-old Finn managed to hold on to fifth place for two more laps, before rapidly dropping down the order as the rear tyre continued to deteriorate, to eventually finish a disappointing 13th.

Livio Loi banked a season’s worth of race experience in one day at the Sachsenring, as the 16-year-old Belgian overcame his own rear tyre issue to head a race long, seven-way battle in today’s German Moto3 Grand Prix. Loi made up two places from the start and then spent the remainder of the race battling for position in a closely matched group of seven riders. In the final stages of the race Loi broke away from his pursuers and was closing rapidly on Toni Finsterbusch in 21st, but ran out of laps and had to settle for 22nd at the line.

Scott Redding #45: 7th “What can I say; from the lap two or three I was struggling with rear grip from the left hand side of the tyre. In the right-handers and through the first sector I was catching hand over fist, but when it came to the left-hand corners I had virtually no edge grip on entry or exit. From halfway onwards the tyre started to tear, which reduced grip even further and also caused pretty bad chatter. I was disappointed not to finish in front of Lüthi and De Angelis, because with Pol only third here today, a fifth place finish would have seen me go into the summer break with more than a 25 point lead in the championship standings. I need to come back strong in Indianapolis, to start the second half of the season in the same way I started the first half.”

Mika Kallio #36: 13th “It’s difficult to understand the tyre problem we had today. In practice yesterday I completed two race distance runs of 27 or 28 laps on the same tyre, with the same settings in the bike, in almost identical conditions and there was no problem. Today, after just six laps, the rear grip dropped off massively while I was running fifth and I couldn’t maintain the lap time. As the race progressed and the rear continued to deteriorate it started inducing chatter, which was causing a lot of problems on corner entry. I’m really disappointed, as I thought we’d done everything right this weekend, but today was a disaster.”

Livio Loi #11: 22nd “For the first time I got a good start, making up a couple of places, but straight away I had a problem with the tyres. I felt directly that the rear was sliding as soon as I got on the gas and I was struggling to make my lap times. It meant I spent the whole race trying to adapt my riding style to compensate, whilst involved in a big battle with six or seven other riders. Eventually I managed to pull away from the chasing group and started to close the gap to Finsterbusch, but I ran out of laps. The result is not what I was looking for, but I learnt a lot out there today.”

Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal “We are lucky to leave the Sachsenring with Scott still leading the championship by 23 points after the tyre problems he and Mika experienced today. We know tyres are an issue here, especially the left hand side of the rear, but we weren’t expecting such a rapid deterioration. During free practice we ran more than one race simulation on the tyres we used today in the race, in very similar conditions, with no problems at all. But then, today, it’s like we’d used a completely different tyre. It’s a similar situation to that which we experienced in Austin and, to be honest, it’s something that needs to be addressed as a matter of safety. Scott and Mika did well not to crash today, never mind finish in the points, but both are bitterly disappointed with the results. I know Livio is also a little disappointed, but this is a learning year for him and he learnt a lot today in the race, probably more than he’s learnt in all the previous races put together. He did well to overcome an issue with the rear tyre and he came very close to achieving his target of a top 20 finish, only to run out of time right at the end.”

More, from a press release issued by Blusens Avintia Racing:

Toni Elías finishes twenty-first at the German GP after a difficult weekend

Smith falls on the sixth lap trying to move up Sachsenring. Bad weekend for the Blusens Avintia team at the GP of Germany. Despite the hard work of the entire team, neither Toni Elías nor Kyle Smith had the opportunity to achieve a good result. Toni had been working during the two days of practice in search of adherence on his rear wheel but he did not succeed in it. This implied a bad qualifying session on Saturday and starting far from the first rows of the grid this Sunday. The race did not go better. Elías reached the twenty-first place, moving up some positions regarding his starting spot, but a team like the Blusens Avintia team and a champion like him deserve a better final position.

Kyle seemed to have a set-up that was giving him less trouble than Toni, but two falls during the practice sessions, due to a front tyre that was not working as he had wished, and a third fall in the race, when he was trying to move up positions, conditioned the weekend of the Blusens Avintia rider. Now the summer break until the GP of Indianapolis is coming and the team will throw itself into finding the path of good results and this way they will be able to wipe the slate clean for to the second part of the season.

24 Toni Elías (21st, +47.005): I have not been able to move up much. I have not felt at ease with the bike during the weekend and I can not be happy. We need to analyse the reason why we are not able to be competitive and find solutions. Now we have time until Indianapolis, where I hope that things go much better than here. It has been a pity because if we had managed to ride well on this track, we would probably have done it well in the rest of the circuits because this layout is complicated and demands a lot from the set-up of the bike. We will not give up and we will keep fighting.

9 Kyle Smith (NC): What can I say after a weekend like this? Yesterday I had two crashes because of a front tyre that did not work as it should have worked and in the qualifying session I did not get a good place because my riding was too aggressive and little efficient. Today I have started in a lively way and during the first laps I have overtaken rivals looking for higher positions but when I have reached Rea I have run wide a little bit and I have suffered a fall. The final count is not good, so these days we have ahead until Indianapolis we will have to think things over and face the second part of the season in another way.

More, from a press release issued by Bel-Ray:

Bel-Ray Racer Jordi Torres Scores First Career Grand Prix Victory in Germany Aleix Espargaro Continues as Top CRT Racer FARMINGDALE, N.J. ? The 2013 MotoGP series continued this weekend at the Sachsenring circuit in Germany. The famous circuit first hosted a MotoGP event in 1998 and has consistently provided great racing for fans. Bel-Ray sponsored Team Aspar fielded five racers in the various championship classes throughout the weekend. In moto 2 racing action, Bel-Ray experienced the highs and lows of championship racing. A DNF by Nico Terol was the negative, but teammate Jordi Torres experienced the highlight of his young career with his first ever Grand Prix victory. Coming from second place on the grid, Torres stalked the leader for 19 laps, eventually making the decisive move for the lead and ultimately the victory. He dedicated the victory to his late brother Ruben, who was tragically killed in a racing accident at Montmeló in 2006. Torres spoke about this emotional victory following the race. “After all our work over the weekend, I knew I had pace. At the beginning of the race, I thought that I could take and hold the lead. I am very happy with my first win. Now, I have all of the summer break to take it in. It is an honor for me to win a GP. I had a chance, coming from the CEV, and I have taken it, I hope to continue in this way. Although today I learned a lot, especially to believe in myself, I still have to continue to accumulate experience. We must continue demanding more of ourselves every day. When I crossed the finish line, I was overcome with emotion; this victory is dedicated to my brother Ruben and my whole family.” Terol was noticeably disappointed with his results, but he waited for his teammate under the podium to offer his congratulations. “At the start, I lost some positions, but then I began to climb back up through the field. Today, I had a great pace thanks to the work we had done this weekend. I was gradually gaining ground, and I was closing in on the frontrunners. As the laps went by, the engine temperature rose very high, and I kept losing power. I did not think about it; I just wanted to continue moving up, but the engine performance declined sharply. Eventually, the bike broke down completely. It was a shame because I could not complete the race.” In MotoGP racing action, Bel-Ray-sponsored Power Electronics Aspar racer Aleix Esparagro continued his top results in the CRT division of MotoGP racing. Starting from a fifth-place grid position, Espargaro was inside the lead group early in the race. He eventually slid back to an eighth-place finish, a best finish for CRT machines. He continues to be the top CRT racer in the series standings in eighth overall. “I am very pleased with our start to the race. I knew I could be fast with the soft tyre on the first few laps. So, I did what I could to stay ahead. I pushed hard, but inevitably, gradually, I lost touch with the frontrunners,” said Espargaro following the race. “Today was the hottest day of the weekend and increased track temperatures hindered the situation somewhat. I think we had a great race, and the difference to first place was the smallest so far this year. We again picked up plenty of points and were fighting with official bikes. We are in a good position in the championship, and I’m very happy with this eighth place.” Espargaro’s teammate Randy DePuniet has been searching for a comfortable feel and returned to a 2012 chassis in an attempt to find this comfort level. He was encouraged by his 12th-place finish at the end of the day. “This morning, we decided to go back to the 2012 chassis. From the beginning of the year, I have had a lot of difficulty adjusting to this season’s chassis. The difference is small, but in the warm-up session, I found the best feeling of the weekend with the bike. I’m happy because today we finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel. As the laps went by, I could enjoy riding again.” Bel-Ray’s entry in the Moto3 class is German racer Jonas Folger. He came to his home Grand Prix with high hopes of a podium finish, but a lack of grip in his tires during the race led to only an eighth-place result. “I started quite well, but I went wide on the first corner. I don’t think I could have kept up with the leaders anyway, as I had a hard time through the second sector. The bike was sliding too much, and I was not able to keep up my pace on the corners,” said Folger after the checkered flag. “Every lap, I tried to change my style and negotiate the corners in various ways, but my feelings in the second section today were not good. I’m disappointed, as I’d expected more from this weekend. In fact, the practice sessions were positive, but in the race, we were missing something. Now, we have time to determine what happened and see how we can be in good shape when we return to work at Indianapolis after the holidays.” Bel-Ray Super Clean Chain Lube is one of the products chosen by the teams to keep their machines performing their best. Bel-Ray® Super Clean Chain Lube is an aerosol chain lube that utilizes the latest innovation in chain lubricant technology, combining unsurpassed anti-wear protection for long chain and sprocket life with an outer protective coating that will not attract dirt, sand or grit and ABSOLUTELY WILL NOT FLING OFF when used as directed. The series will now come to the United States for rounds at Laguna Seca in California on July 21st and Indianapolis in Indiana on August 18th. To learn more about Bel-Ray specialty powersports lubricants, visit www.belray.com/powersports or call (732) 938-2421. Follow Bel-Ray racers all season long at www.belray.com

More, from a press release issued by KMR Kawasaki powered by Vauxhall (Northern Ireland dealers):

Busy week sees KMR Kawasaki record more top class results

A busy week of road racing at the recent Southern 100 and Walderstown road races saw the KMR Kawasaki team of Jamie Hamilton, Connor Behan, James Cowton and Joe Faragher record a clutch of top class results with wins and podiums recorded aplenty. The Southern 100 course on the Isle of Man was bathed in sunshine all week and, making just his second appearance around the 4.25-mile Billown circuit, Hamilton was in fine form throughout. Opening his account with fourth in Tuesday evening’s 1000cc race, this was followed up on the next night with fifth in the second 1000cc race, a win in the first Supertwins outing and another fourth, this time in the Supersport 600cc race. Thursday saw him claim third in the second Supertwins event and fourth in the feature Solo Championship race to wrap up a highly productive week. Yorkshire’s Cowton and Manxman Faragher joined him in the Supertwins races with the former recording excellent third and fourth place finishes and the latter, having just his second ever road race, acquitting himself well with 13th and 15th in the two races, improving his lap speeds by over 3mph from the previous month’s Post TT races. There was little respite for Hamilton as he headed straight to Walderstown where he was joined by Northwich rider Behan and the duo were in contention for race wins in each of their outings. A broken fork seal on the Superbike meant Hamilton had to use the Superstock machine for the Open and Grand Final races but he used it to good effect with fourth and fifth respectively. Another win was added in the Supertwins class, maintaining his 100% record in the Irish Championship, whilst he nearly made it two wins, only missing out on the 600cc victory by 0.111s. Behan, meanwhile, soon got to grips with the 2-mile circuit where he was making his debut and he went on to take second and fourth in the Irish Junior and Senior Support Championship races as well as third in the 750cc non-Championship event. Speaking at the end of the week, a delighted team boss Ryan Farquhar commented; “All in all it’s been a great week for the team and all of the riders have been in fine form. Jamie rode well all week, finishing all of his races inside the top six and it‘s easy to forget it was only his second time at the Southern. He finished in front of a lot of more experienced riders and although we’ve a bit of work to do on the 650 and 600 to find a bit more speed, he put in some fine performances. Likewise James, and with third and fourth in the two Supertwins races, he did a fantastic job. He’s learning all the time and if we can get the 650 performing as well as we’d like, he’ll be in good shape at the Manx GP.” “Jamie had to use the Superstock bike at Walderstown but, again, he did a great job. He’s getting more experienced with each and every outing and more than proving he’s fit to run with the front runners week in week out. He maintained his, and the team’s 100% win record in the Supertwins championship and that’s great for all concerned. Connor also had three good races and although he made a couple of wee mistakes and ran wide a few times, with second, third and fourth in his three races I’m very pleased with how he’s progressing.” “Finally, whilst we’ve all enjoyed some great racing and some fantastic weather these past few days, the meetings were affected by the loss of four competitors, three at the Southern and one at Walderstown, and everyone at KMR Kawasaki is thinking of all the family and friends at this sad time.” The team now head to Oliver’s Mount, Scarborough for the Cock o’ the North road races, which take place this weekend July 21-22.

More, from a press release issued by Gino Rea Racing:

Gino Rea closes gap to leaders at Sachsenring GP wildcard appearance

Gino Rea and his self-run Gino Rea Race Team made significant progress at the German GP at Sachsenring last weekend qualifying just 0.7 seconds off pole position. In his third wildcard outing of the 2013 Moto2 world championship, Gino progressed in every practice session of the race weekend, closing the gap to the leaders each time. Gino’s qualifying position of 17th saw him ahead GP regulars including former Moto3 and Moto2 world champions as well as Moto2 podium finishers.

Gino went into Sunday’s race having finished 15th in morning warm up as the team continued to make progress with the FTR machine. Optimistic for a strong race finish to conclude a successful weekend for his family run team, Gino’s progress was halted by an unfortunate error made by the tyre supplier. Prior to the race, an issue with Gino’s race tyre led to a replacement in which Gino was given the wrong tyre compound in return. A tyre that Rea had chosen not to use and had not set the bike up for. During the race, Gino struggled with rear grip and the tyre tearing and despite battling with world champions Toni Elias and Mike Di Meglio, he could do more than 24th position. The Gino Rea Race team look forward to better fortune during their next outing at the Czech GP at Brno on the 25th August. Gino adds: “It’s been a very positive weekend up until the race. To qualify 0.7 from pole position and then run inside the top 15 in the warm up ahead of lots of permanent teams and riders proved we are doing a good job. It’s nice to close that gap to the leaders and mix it up with the regulars, especially after I missed most of FP1 with another fault in the engine. I also had a problem with my quickshifter throughout qualifying, it basically wasn’t working so I was loosing a little time there too.

It was unfortunate that we had the tyre issue in the race as it wasn’t our team’s mistake. During the race I struggled to get within a second of the lap times I did on our chosen tyre so I was quite disappointed with it. We have to take the positives and move on to our next race at Brno, one of my favourite circuits. Hopefully we can squeeze in a test to continue development with the FTR. I want to thank everyone in my team and all of my personal sponsors for their continued support.”

Looking ahead, the Gino Rea Race Team have received official confirmation of their entry at the Czech Grand Prix at Brno on the 25th August.

Beyond Brno, Gino is seeking the support of sponsors to help him make the grid at Silverstone, a circuit where the Londoner enjoyed a World Supersport podium and qualified 14th in Moto2 during the 2012 season. Fans can help Gino by purchasing Gino Rea merchandise at www.GinoReaClub.com. Gino will be selling updated photographs and t-shirts soon. Interested sponsors are urged to contact Gino Rea Race Team at [email protected].

More, from a press release issued by Saddlemen:

Saddlemen Riders Dominant at Mid-Ohio

Rancho Dominguez, Calif. – Saddlemen added a pair of SuperSport victories and seven total podium appearances to a growing list of accolades in Lexington, OH as AMA Pro Road Racing hit the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the Buckeye SuperBike Weekend.

AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Still relatively early in the season, the leaders of the Daytona SportBike class are busy building on their early success by adding podiums and stretching class leads. RoadRace Factory teammates Jake Gagne and JD Beach have been landing plenty of top-5 finishes, with the pair swapping 2nd and 3rd in the two races.

Gagne managed to take the lead briefly in Saturday’s race but relinquished it on his way to his fourth 2nd place finish of the season aboard his Saddlemen Performance Seat. Beach finished in 3rd as the top 3 were stretched out by several seconds apiece.

National Guard/Celtic Racing’s James Rispoli hit lucky number 7 once again, finishing 7th for the fifth time this season. Eyeball Moto’s Eric Stump rounded out the top-10, and Riders Discount Racing’s Joey Pascarella finished 13th.

Though the Daytona SportBike class has not seen many new faces on the podium this year, there have still been some exciting races that come down to the wire. Sunday’s DSB race was a perfect example as JD Beach missed out on the win by just 0.655 second. The 2nd place finish is a career-best for Beach, who has finished in the top-5 in every single race this season on his Saddlemen Performance Seat.

Jake Gagne finished 3rd for his sixth straight podium. Rispoli started off hot in Race 2 and even challenged Gagne for the number 3 spot, but settled for a career-best 5th place finish in DSB competition. Pascarella finished 11th and Stump finished 14th.

Gagne is all alone in 2nd place in the Daytona SportBike standings with Beach behind him in 3rd. Rispoli’s consistent performances have kept him in 5th place in the standings with four events and six races yet to go.

AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport RoadRace Factory’s Tomas Puerta continued his hot streak Saturday with his second race win of the season on his Saddlemen-equipped R6, doing it this time by a healthy 3+ seconds. Puerta was followed across the line by fellow Saddlemen rider Hayden Gillim, who is slowly but surely proving that he belongs on the podium.

TOBC Racing’s Nick McFadden was coming off a surprising first time performance at Barber and showed that he could keep up with the pack, finishing 5th in Race 1. Corey Alexander finished 7th, but the National Guard/Celtic Racing rider was thrust into 1st place in the SuperSport East standings all the same.

Team 95’s Hayden Gillim followed his solid 2nd place in Race 1 with his first victory of the season on his Saddlemen Performance Chicane Seat. Gillim battled for the lead after a restart, eventually snagging the top spot on the final lap and winning by just 0.184 second. Corey Alexander was the next Saddlemen rider in with a 4th place finish.

Nick McFadden dueled for 6th place and emerged the winner of that battle. Tomas Puerta was at the front of the pack for much of the race but was forced to pit with a mechanical issue, officially finishing 23rd.

Gillim is just 9 points behind Alexander in the SuperSport East standings, and McFadden is in 7th despite only being able to race half of the events so far this season. Just one race remains for points opportunity in the East: New Jersey. The SuperSport West leader board remains intact with Puerta leading the way. They will get their next shot at points this weekend at Laguna Seca.

AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Series Saddlemen’s lone representative in the Harley-Davidson Series at Mid-Ohio was Eric Stump. The Eyeball Moto rider had a busy weekend, racing both the Daytona SuperBike class as well as the Harley-Davidson class. Stump finished 6th in Sunday’s race and after missing Barber is in 17th in the class standings.

Saddlemen riders have a short turnaround as AMA Pro Road Racing immediately heads to Monterey, CA for the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at the legendary Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The July 19-21 event brings both AMA and MotoGP together at the same track for one of the biggest weekends of motorcycle racing each year. Visit www.saddlemen.com for more information on Saddlemen Performance Seats.

More, from a press release issued by Ben Young Racing:

Young Resilient after Unlucky Weekend in Mid-Ohio LEXINGTON, Ohio July 17, 2013 – Canadian AMA Pro GoPro Daytona Sportbike racer Ben Young had high hopes to Make a Splash at this past weekend’s Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course however a variety challenges prevented him from cracking the top 10, resulting in an 18th place finish on Saturday and a 16th on Sunday.

The optimistic BYR Team pilot took to the historic yet challenging Mid-Ohio track for the first time during Friday’s practice session. Struggling with the overall handling of the bike an adjustment to the rear shock was in order.

The fine-tuning of Young’s #86 Yamaha R6’s rear suspension enabled him to drop a second and a half off of his times from the day before putting him 13th on the grid. The 13th place starting position may not have been the luckiest spot for the young Canadian as he ended up tangling with fellow rider resulting in a big crash in the closing laps.

Young initially had a good launch off the line in Saturday’s race but wasn’t able to capitalize on it as he’s done during previous rounds this year and fell back to16th. Pushing hard to try and improve on his position, Young’s ambition may have got the better of him around lap 4 as he ran off the back straight and was about 130 ft. away from the track. The resilient rider turned it around and pushed to get the points and ended up 18th in the first of the two races of the weekend.

On Sunday, Young had a good morning warm-up and made further adjustments; including adding some additional preload to the front end. The pilot of #86 Yamaha R6’s ended the practice session 13th fastest.

During the pre-race parade laps at lunch a bike deposited oil on the track triggering a 30 minute delay to the start of the second AMA Pro GoPro Daytona Sportbike race of the weekend.

The shortened race eventually got underway with Young getting a better start than he had in the previous day’s race. Hot temperatures and slick track conditions presented an additional challenge for Young during the opening laps.

Stabilizing track temperatures, and proper tire choice seemed to finally find some common ground beneath Young’s Yamaha R6 allowing him to feel more confidant on his machine. He quickly began to close-in on Elena Myers during the last couple of laps of the 6-lap shortened race, which saw Young cross the Start/Finish line in 16th

“Another lap or two I think I would have been able to make the pass for 15th. This was a tough weekend for us. We had high hopes for another top-ten finish but sometimes it just doesn’t go your way. We’ve accumulated more points and learned a few more things about our current setup.” said Young.

Ben Young and the BYR team would like to thank; Tim Hortons – Sudbury, Scotbuild Developments, Fogi Racing Development, Arai Helmets, AXO, GP Tech LLC, Hindle Exhaust Systems, DUA Motorsports Bodywork, KICK Energy Drink, K&N Filters, Performance Cycleworx , Thornbury Home Hardware, BCL Motorsports Pit Kit, Vortex Racing, Motul Oils, Bickle Racing Tire Warmers, GB Racing and The North American International Motorcycle SUPERSHOW, Jerry Daggett, the fans and family.

To keep up-to-date on Ben Young throughout the year visit; www.fogi.us, www.facebook.com/BenYoungRacing and on Twitter @bcyoung86.

More, from a press release issued by Rider’s Discount Triumph:

Joey Pascarella And Riders Discount Triumph Looking Forward To Laguna After Tough Weekend At Mid-Ohio

Joey Pascarella and Riders Discount Triumph wrapped up the 4th round of the AMA Pro Road Racing Daytona Sportbike season at Mid-Ohio with a 13th place in Saturday’s race and an 11th place finish on Sunday. While these may not be the results the team was hoping for, they did gain a great of valuable insight and data on their 2013 Triumph Daytona 675R’s throughout the weekend.

Qualifying had Pascarella starting from the 10th spot on the grid for Saturday’s race, but an issue with a hose during the warm up lap forced him to pull off and push the bike to the wall. Luckily this all occurred close enough to the pits that he was able to sprint back to the paddock. As soon as they realized what had happened, the crew worked quickly to remove the tire warmers from the backup 675R and get it off of the stands so that Pascarella could start his race in earnest – all while the rest of the competition sped away. Despite being on a bike that he hadn’t intended to race, Pascarella was able to put his head down and churn out an impressive run of steadily improving lap times that brought him back up to 13th from well behind the very back of the field.

“I was feeling good going into the first race after making some changes to the setup in order to get more rear grip,” said Pascarella on Saturday. “Unfortunately we had the water leak just before the start and I had to push the bike to the pit wall. I made it onto the backup bike and started from pit lane, so I was pretty much riding by myself for a while. On the plus side, I did get some good data for the crew and was able to put in some quick laps that ended up being faster than I had gone in any of the previous practice or qualifying sessions.”

Team manager Bree Poland added, “Even though we finished the race in 13th, I’m really glad Joey was able to get back to the pits and back out on track. Everyone else had a solid head start at that point and he was still able to put in a couple of his fastest laps of the weekend up to that point – even though he was on a bike he didn’t mean to ride. We also have to give big thanks to the AMA Pro Road Racing crew for lifting our stalled bike over the pit wall before everyone came back around track again. Not only did they get it safely out of the way in time, but they lifted it over the tall Mid-Ohio wall by hand!”

Prior to Sunday’s race, the Riders Discount Triumph crew was able make the most of the data gathered on the backup Triumph 675R used during race one by improving the setup for Pascarella. This showed in the race, when Pascarella put in substantially faster times than the day before. He ended up finishing just outside of the top ten in 11th place.

“Overall, this wasn’t the weekend that the team and I were hoping for, but we are all very determined to improve. I am looking forward to next weekend and I feel that Laguna will suit us better.”

Joey Pascarella and Riders Discount Triumph are very optimistic going forward and they are ready for the next challenge. This challenge will come in just a few days time, when the Riders Discount Triumph truck and crew arrive at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in California for the 5th round of racing during the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix.

About RidersDiscount.com: RidersDiscount.com is an online retailer of quality powersports gear, apparel and accessories. A company founded by racers,RidersDiscount.com ships equipment for every riding style to customers worldwide, backed by knowledgeable sales team and excellent customer service.

Triumph Motorcycles (www.TriumphMotorcycles.com) is the British motorcycle marquee that produces a wide range of sport, cruiser, adventure and touring motorcycles. From the storied Bonneville to the class-leading Speed Triple and Daytona 675R, Triumph offers a blend of design, character and performance that result in truly distinctive motorcycles. First established in 1902 and now located in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England, Triumph has always set the pace for category-winning machines. The company is solely owned by Bloor Holdings Ltd. and its North American operations are based in Atlanta.

*If interested in being a partner/sponsor of Riders Discount Racing, please contact [email protected] for more info.