RIM Racing and Autolite head to VIR for the Suzuki White Lightening AMA Pro Nationals in hopes to make some Sparks of their own!!! After an incredible start to the 2010 AMA Daytona Sportbike season RIM Racing with rider Mike Morgan hope to keep their string of great finishes in check. Finishing the last few rounds well inside the top 20 while having the chance to battle for positions as high as 10th the team is excited to return to Virginia International Raceway this weekend, August 13-15, 2010. “VIR was one of my best tracks last year,” exclaimed RIM Racing’s Mike Morgan. “The team has grown so much this year and out equipment is 10 fold better than it has been in the past and I am really excited to get the chance to ride my Autolite Suzuki GSX-R600. Hopefully putting what I have learned this year as a rider with this great equipment our hopes are to break into the top 15 and have a good race. If we can gain just a little here like we have been doing all year then I think it’s going to be a real fun weekend.” With running a limited schedule this year mainly consisting of all the East Coast rounds RIM Racing’s season is slowly coming to an end. Having shown great composure and skill this small teams effort has really pulled together to make a big team showing. Autolite being the main sponsor of RIM Racing chose to use a photo of the #811 machine in their national campaign ad to promote their top of the line Extreme Sport Iridium spark plugs. The owners of RIM Racing hopes this will grab them the kind of attention they need to attract even more partners to run possibly a larger schedule in 2011. RIM Racing owner Mike Morgan “It has been a wonderful year for us in 2010. We have not only had the opportunity to race with some of the best in the country but we even had them scared into thinking we were cheating, (During round 5 of the AMA Daytona Sportbike at Road America some of the fellow competitors complained of the speed of the RIM Racing Suzuki thus creating a protest and a tear down by AMA Technical Inspectors. During this inspections it was found that RIM Racing’s equipment was legal and built within the rules). We have had the great opportunity of working with Autolite and helping showcase their products not only within our sport but nationally as well. Our hope is to build on some of our current relationships as well as form new ones for 2011. For more information on RIM Racing please visit www.mikemorganracing.com , www.facebook.com Mike Morgan RIM Racing. More, from a press release issued by Penny Nicolai on behalf of Ryan Kerr: RYAN KERR READY FOR BATTLE Johnstown, Ohio”¦Ready for battle, Ryan Kerr and the entire Ryan Kerr Racing team head for Alton, Va. and the Suzuki White Lightning AMA Pro Superbike Nationals at Virginia International Raceway, August 13-15. “I am really looking forward to running at VIR,” says Kerr. I’ve heard lots of good things about the track and the whole facility. I’ve been watching videos of past races there and studying the track map. That’s the best I can do until we get there and start practice. Hopefully, this will be a good race for us.” Currently tied for 7th place in the AMA Pro SuperSport Standings, Kerr sits just one point out of 6th place. “Our goal is to try and move back up into 5th place,” explains Kerr, who had a handling problem at the last event which dropped him down slightly in the point’s chase. “A couple of strong finishes would really help and that is what we are aiming for. I would be thrilled to be able to end the season in 5th place in SuperSport East. We aren’t that far off so it is still within the realm of possibilities. Our whole crew has been working on my Kawasaki for the past few weeks and I think we should be good to go. We have switched to Ohlin’s and we found a clutch problem which is now fixed. We tested the bike yesterday and everything was great, so I think we will be in good shape.” A hard charger, Kerr, who is in his first year of competition, considers himself extremely lucky. “Not everyone gets to live their dream,” he says with a big smile. “My dad has given me an incredible opportunity and I don’t plan to mess it up. I learn a little more each race. I have managed to finish all the races and not crash my Kawasaki. It is definitely a giant learning curve for me, but the more I race, the better I will get. I want to go all the way to the top and with a little luck, that will happen.” Ryan Kerr Racing is sponsored by MJ USA, 614Paintworx, Leo Vince, Arai, Di-Digital Impressions, Woodcraft, KobieC.com, Kawasaki and MJ Motorgear, and Mid-Ohio School. More, from a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (August 11, 2010) – AMA Pro SuperSport has two Divisional points races and two distinct divisions under the overall SuperSport banner. There is Young Gun and Top Gun as well as a West Division and East Division for the Young Gun riders. As confusing as that sounds, one thing is very clear, the all out racing in this class has been thrilling fans and enthusiasts across the USA all season long. To further explain, the AMA Pro SuperSport class is a place where young and up-and-coming riders can show their considerable skills and develop their racecraft in a technically restricted class where the emphasis is focused on the riders. The Young Gun class is for 16 to 21 year olds and they are the ones that compete for the Divisional Championships. Each rider declares their designated Division and to help with the costs of going racing, they can choose to race in their regionally located Divisional races. The Top Gun riders are a little different. They are riders with an Expert Level License from a recognized racing organization regardless of age. These riders enter events, usually their local races, to enjoy the benefits of racing under the halo of an AMA Pro Road Racing weekend. Local fans have a chance to cheer on their favorite riders and also to see the future of AMA Pro Road Racing as the Young Gun riders showcase their abilities for everyone to see. As a result of this confluence of elements, the 2010 AMA Pro SuperSport season has been nothing short of spectacular. The Young Gun West Division title has already been clinched by early multi-race winner Joey Pascarella who, first with LTD Racing Yamaha and then the DNA Energy Drink Yamaha team, was able to build on his early season run of three wins to clinch his West Division title at Mid-Ohio. Finishing second to Pascarella in the West Division is Lucas Oil Roadracingworld.com RMR Suzuki rider Elena Myers who made history with her well earned victory at Infineon Raceway earlier this year. Myers has shown excellent speed all year and her solid victory at Infineon is an example of her considerable talent at the age of 16. She came close to winning the second race at Infineon and has finished no lower than eighth in eight of the eleven races in her division. You can add another fifth place finish if you add in an out of Division race she ran at Road Atlanta. Myers is showing great maturity and speed, keep your eye on her this weekend at VIR. The rider on the other side of the equation is East Division points leader J.D. Beach and his very capable Rockwall Engineering Yamaha team. Beach has amassed five wins this year. Right behind Beach has been his Rockwall Yamaha teammate Cameron Beaubier who has taken two wins of his own, the first at the opening race of the season at Daytona where Beaubier won in dramatic fashion by 0.001 of a second and then another win, out of his division at Infineon Raceway. In a late development, Beaubier has injured his shoulder and unfortunately, won’t be participating at VIR. The other group that has been taking the fight to Rockwall Engineering is the formidable LTD Racing Yamaha team. Led by the vastly experienced Gary Medley, this team has featured heavily all year long. Beginning with Pascarella’s early domination and ably supported by two time winner Huntley Nash and his teammate Tomas Puerta, LTD Racing are in the mix every time they take to the track. Nash and Puerta have been right in the middle of every race and currently sit three/four in the points. Nash has had a fantastic year and he took his first ever AMA Pro win at Road America and then followed it up at the last race at Laguna Seca with a hard fought win. Puerta has put together a very consistent season, he has yet to win but will very soon. Right behind the big teams is a rider that has shown steady improvement and speed since he joined the series at the third race of the season (only the second in the East Division) at Road Atlanta. Running with his own family run program, James Rispoli on his ANT-Racing.com Suzuki has put together a nice solid season. After not starting the first of the two Road Atlanta races, he came back to post a seventh place run in race two and then took a very impressive third place finish at the daunting Road America track and three more fifth place finishes along with a seventh in the West Division race recently at Laguna Seca. Don’t miss any of the exciting SuperSport action this weekend at VIR. You can meet these riders close up during the weekend’s Pit Lane Fan Walk on both Saturday and Sunday. The Suzuki White Lightning AMA Pro Nationals Presented by Foremost Insurance kicks off Friday, August 13 with practice and first round qualifying. Saturday will see the first of two races in the SuperSport class and Sunday, August 15 will feature the second of the doubleheader weekend races and also the AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 series race. One other worthwhile activity will be the second Annual MRO VIR Food Drive to Benefit God’s Storehousein Danville, VA. For more info contact [email protected]. God’s Storehouse can be contacted via their website, godsstorehouse.org or by calling 34-793-3663. Please visit www.virclub.com for ticket and event information and www.amaproracing.com for series information. 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 another press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: AMA Pro Road Racing VIR Rider Update – Aaron Yates Returns, Blake Young Still Recovering DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (August 11, 2010) – The popular Aaron Yates, injured back in March, will make his return to the AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike series at this weekend’s Suzuki White Lightning AMA Pro Nationals Presented by Foremost Insurance at Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Va. Yates will practice his #23 Jordan Suzuki and make a further evaluation if he will race after that. Brett McCormick, Aaron’s teammate who has been riding the second Jordan Suzuki in Yates’ absence will also compete along with National Guard Suzuki Jordan rider Jake Zemke. “I’m excited about riding again,” said Yates. “And really looking forward to getting back out there.” In a correction, Blake Young, rider of the Rockstar Makita Suzuki will not be riding this weekend at VIR. Young continues his recovery from injuries suffered in a testing accident at Barber Motorsports Park, not at VIR as erroneously reported by AMA Pro. Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s team manager Peter Doyle is hopeful that Blake will be able to return to racing soon but isn’t putting a date on Young’s comeback. “I think it’s one of those injuries that you just have to let heal in its own time,” Doyle said. “We want Blake back 100 percent healthy so we can go out there and try to win some races full force. We’ll just have to take it a day at a time.” The AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series will also compete this weekend. Danny Eslick and Jake Holden will again lead the field of Harley-Davidson XR1200s in the third race of the season for the big twins. Eslick, winner of the first two races and his teammate Holden, will be back aboard their RMR Bruce Rossmeyer Daytona Racing XR1200s with support from GEICO Powersports and Lucas Oil. Joining them on the grid will be the Wyman brothers, Travis and Kyle. Kyle will be on another RMR Bruce Rossmeyer Daytona Racing XR1200 and Travis will be on the Harv’s Harley-Davidson Racing machine. Eric Stump will be back on the AbsoluteCycle.com XR1200 and Paul James will be returning on the James Gang Hoban Brothers Racing XR1200 with support from Harley-Davidson of Appleton. Matthew Heidel makes his series debut on the Shar-Tuff Uniforms Harley-Davidson and Mark Cernicky joins the series on the Hog Racing XR1200. Practice and qualifying will be on Saturday, August 14th and the 18 lap race will be on Sunday, August 15th. Please visit www.virclub.com for ticket and event information and www.amaproracing.com for series information. 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.