Triumph Big Kahuna New Orleans/GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike NOLA Motorsports Park Avondale, Louisiana October 6, 2012 Provisional Race One Results (all on Dunlop tires): 1. Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R6), 18 laps 2. Dane Westby (Suz GSX-R600), -4.782 seconds 3. JD Beach (Yam YZF-R6), -7.636 4. Tommy Aquino (Yam YZF-R6), -12.438 5. Jake Zemke (Duc 848EVO), -22.001 6. Jason DiSalvo (Tri Daytona 675R), -24.869 7. David Gaviria (Yam YZF-R6), -25.428 8. Cory West (Suz GSX-R600), -25.707 9. Austin DeHaven (Yam YZF-R6), -26.047 10. Tommy Hayden (Yam YZF-R6), -26.173 11. Kris Turner (Tri Daytona 675R), -43.266 12. Ben Young (Yam YZF-R6), -47.759 13. Shane Narbonne (Yam YZF-R6), -48.899 14. Joey Pascarella (Suz GSX-R600), -48.904 15. Danny Kelsey (Yam YZF-R6), -66.477 16. Nicollas Ferreira (Yam YZF-R6), -67.376 17. Fernando Amantini (Kaw ZX-6R), -71.390 18. Scott Ryan (Yam YZF-R6), -71.466 19. Kenny Riedmann (Tri Daytona 675R), -98.301, crash 20. Josh Galster (Yam YZF-R6), -99.100 21. Jeff Wrobel (Yam YZF-R6), -101.890 22. Michael Beck (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap, 43.320 seconds, crash 23. Bryce Prince (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap, 71.186 24. Martin Cardenas (Suz GSX-R600), -3 laps, DNF, crash 25. Derek Wagnon (Duc 848EVO), -7 laps, DNF 26. Chris Peris (Yam YZF-R6), -7 laps, DNF 27. Huntley Nash (Yam YZF-R6), -9 laps, DNF, mechanical 28. Bobby Fong (Yam YZF-R6), -16 laps, DNF, crash 29. Jake Gagne (Yam YZF-R6), -16 laps, DNF, crash 30. Melissa Paris (Suz GSX-R600), -16 laps, DNF, mechanical 31. Benny Solis (Yam YZF-R6), DNS 32. Michael Barnes (Yam YZF-R6), DNS 33. Garrett Willis (Yam YZF-R6), DNS Championship Point Standings (after 18 of 19 events): 1. Cardenas, 416 points (clinched 2012 Championship) 2. Westby, 364 3. Beaubier, 347 4. Tommy Hayden, 261 5. DiSalvo, 240 6. Beach, 236 7. Zemke, 229 8. Fong, 222 9. Pascarella, 196 10. West, 194 11. Gagne, 178 12. Nash, 130 13. Beck, 122 14. Amantini, 107 15. DeHaven, 105 16. Solis, 101 17. Gaviria, 99 18. Prince, 94 19. Aquino, 90 20. Narbonne, 59 More, from a press release issued by Geiger Media on behalf of GEICO: Championship in hand, Cardenas pushes hard for win No. 8 only to crash late NEW ORLEANS (Oct. 6) — With just two laps remaining in Saturday’s Big Kahuna New Orleans, newly-crowned GoPro Daytona SportBike champion Martin Cardenas had just one thought as he led the field around Turn 16 and onto the front straightaway — “Today I was not going to be second.” Locked in a tight battle with Cameron Beaubier from mid-race on, Cardenas had just retaken the lead he held for the first 13 laps when he lost the front end of his GEICO Suzuki. The 29-year-old Colombian slid to a stop in a grassy run-off area and immediately jumped to his feet in an attempt to rejoin the race, but the damage to his bike was too much for him to continue and he was forced to resign from the contest. “I got a little bit outside the line and just lost grip,” said Cardenas, a seven-time winner this season. “It happened very quickly. Cameron and I were having a great battle and I knew it would go down to the very end between us. “Having the title already, I was able to take a chance. He had followed me for several laps and then took the lead. I went right back around the first chance that I had and was feeling comfortable again in the lead. We got through a few turns and were just going into 16 when it happened. No problem. I am fine. We try again tomorrow.” A prerace concern about tire life on the brand-new racing surface proved to be a non-factor and Cardenas actually praised Dunlop for the racing slicks he used. “It was never an issue,” Cardenas said. “Just normal wear and tear. That’s not why I went down. We’ve had a slight problem the last few races with the rear end. It’s just sliding a little too much. Just barely off, but off. The tires were not a problem for me.” The race was red-flagged in Lap 2 after a scary crash between Jake Gagne and Bobby Fong, who shared the front row with Cardenas and Beaubier. Fortunately, Cardenas had gotten the jump and already had a slight gap on the field when it happened so he wasn’t disrupted by the incident. On the restart, Cardenas once again got a great start and gapped the field before Beaubier began tracking him down, eventually catching him with nine laps to go. An extremely tight fight between the two carried forward until the accident. “I expect we’ll have another great race, just like today, when we line up tomorrow,” Cardenas said. “And once again I will try to win.” Saturday’s race will air on SPEED TV, as will Sunday’s season finale, which begins at 2:15 p.m. at NOLA Motorsports Park. More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Cagey Cameron Goes Cajun As Beaubier Wins Saturday Daytona SportBike Race In New Orleans New Orleans, LA October 6, 2012 Cameron Beaubier, the rapidly rising star of the Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha team, won Saturday’s AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Race One at NOLA Motorsports Park. For Cameron and his #6 Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha YZF-R6, the victory was their seventh out of the past nine races. In the press conference following his well-earned victory, Cameron said, “I didn’t get the greatest of starts, and I had to work hard to get myself to the front. My Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha team gave me an awesome bike. I’m trying to win as many races as I can before the season ends, and I’m really looking forward to getting back on my R6 for tomorrow’s race.” Cameron’s teammate Tommy Hayden, in his first race back from suffering injuries in a crash at New Jersey Motorsports Park, was understandably still feeling the effects of the incident that occurred just a month ago. He put in a heroic effort and finished a respectable 10th. In Saturday’s AMA Pro Motorcycle-SuperStore.com SuperSport Race One, Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha rider Garrett Gerloff had a great race going and had worked himself into 2nd on his #96 R6. Unfortunately, due to an as-yet-unidentifiable mechanical or electrical issue with his bike, he ultimately finished in 15th place. The team has been working to diagnose the problem, and they are determined to resolve the issue and ensure that Garrett’s R6 is ready for Sunday’s SuperSport Race Two. That race will go green on Sunday at 1:15 PM, and Daytona SportBike Race Two will start at 2:15 PM. All times are Central. For more news, results, and other team info, be sure to check out Yamaha’s Facebook page. More, from a press release issued by LTD Racing: NASH RETIRES FROM SATURDAY RACE IN NEW ORLEANS New Orleans, LA (October 6, 2012) Huntley Nash retired from Saturday’s AMA Pro Daytona SportBike race at the halfway point. Nash had brake issues in the contest at Nola Motorsports Park and retired after 9 laps. The promising young racer was still able to approach his qualifying time in the race despite the issues. “We’ve been trimming time off every session this weekend and I was hopeful we’d improve more in the race but we had some brake issues,” said Nash. “I was afraid I was going to run into someone and knock them down so I went ahead and pulled in.” The issue with his bike is repaired and Nash is hopeful for a better race on Sunday. The season finale, an 18-lap race at the 2.75-mile circuit, will be held at 2:15 PM. More, from a press release issued by Team Hammer: WESTBY SECOND IN NEW ORLEANS DAYTONA SPORTBIKE RACE Team Hammer registered another standout performance across all three AMA Pro classes in Saturday’s maiden races at NOLA Motorsports Park. M4 Suzuki’s Dane Westby notched up his tenth podium finish of the ’12 Daytona SportBike season following a race-long struggle for the position. ‘The Wolverine’ sliced way up from eighth on the opening lap to second by lap five. From there he jostled with a pack, ultimately holding strong in second on the final lap to secure a runner-up result. The outstanding effort has Westby in strong position to lock down second in the SportBike championship as he heads into Sunday’s final holding a 17-point advantage over third. A win tomorrow combined with today’s second would also earn Dane the title of ‘Big Kahuna’ for the weekend and the surfboard trophy that comes along with it. “It was a pretty good race,” Westby said. “I was trying to make inroads on the leader but I just couldn’t get it to work. I’ll figure something out for tomorrow. The bike was working really good. We made a change this morning that gave me a lot more front-end confidence. To hold some of those guys off, I had to make a change. We’ll keep working on that and keep on keepin’ on, and try to get a surfboard tomorrow.” Team Venezuela’s Robertino Pietri put forth a stirring effort in the day’s Superbike contest, coming home with a top-five result despite being docked five seconds as a penalty for crossing a designated line near the wall in Turn 16. The Venezuelan charged up from eighth to fourth before being penalized. Undeterred, he continued to push and made up the positions before finally taking the checkered flag in fifth. M4 Suzuki’s Chris Ulrich, meanwhile, finished in 13th in the premier-class contest. Suzuki SportBikeTrackTime.com’s Elena Myers continued the theme, fighting her way forward from tenth in the opening stages of the day’s SuperSport race to work inside the top five. Myers actually slotted into fourth position on lap 12 of a scheduled 15, but the race was red flagged moments later. The race was called complete and the results were taken from the previous lap, leaving her fifth in the final order. Team Hammer will look to match or better its triple top-five day in tomorrow’s final races of the 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing season. In 2012, Team Hammer, Inc. is competing in its 32nd consecutive racing season and marks its sixth year of offering technical and logistical support through its Contract Services Department. Riders on Team Hammer-prepared racebikes have earned 54 AMA Pro National race wins; 132 AMA Pro National podium finishes; 5 AMA Pro Championships; 133 Overall National Endurance race wins; 13 National Endurance Championships and assorted other race wins and titles.