Two-time and defending AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies tangled with local privateer Tim Knutson during Friday morning AMA Superbike practice, April 25, at Auto Club Speedway, in Fontana, California, and as a result Knutson crashed and his bike was destroyed. Video replays of the incident showed that Spies was attempting to pass Knutson when the rear of Spies’ Rockstar Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 made contact with Knutson’s Lee’s Cycle’s Suzuki GSX-R1000. Knutson was pulled off his bike, fell onto Spies’ rear tire and then the ground, went for a long slide on the pavement but only suffered some relatively minor abrasions on his arm (which touched Spies’ rear tire) and bruised ribs. Spies ran off track, using an escape road. Knutson’s bike, however, ghost rode into a tire-fronted barrier and broke its frame into two pieces. Knutson was able to continue racing, thanks in part to Jeremy Toye loaning him his personal Suzuki GSX-R1000 Superbike, and Knutson was able to collect 18th- and 11th-place finishes in the two Superbike races later that weekend. Following the weekend, Knutson issued a press release (~https://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=32229~) which read, in part: “‘You know it’s a real let down to put in as much work as I do on my own program, working 50hrs a week delivering packages for UPS to come out here and have it all taken from you in an instant because the 2 time defending AMA Superbike Champion makes an error in judgment”¦’ “After cooling off Tim headed to the riders meeting, standing less than 10ft. from Mr. Spies, figuring [he] would say something to him exiting the meeting. “‘I know Ben doesn’t know me from Adam, but I thought he or somebody from his team would come over and check to see if I was ok, and apologize for the incident. I guess past champions and future MOTO GP riders are exempt from this common courtesy.'” Today, Spies felt compelled to respond to Knutson’s press release, telling Roadracingworld.com, “I got up this morning and read that, and I was kind of disappointed. It’s one of those things where no one really knows whose fault it was. The fact is he fell down, and it was worse for him than me. I apologize for whatever part I had in him crashing, any, all or whatever. “When I got back to my pits I told my team I should probably go apologize, but everybody said don’t worry about it. Don [Sakakura, Spies’ Team Manager] said he told him [Knutson] what I said and apologized for me. “Right after the crash I went on the Internet and saw that he was eight or nine seconds a lap slower than I was in that session. Maybe I did come over on him. Maybe it was a combination of me coming over and him not hitting his brake marker like he normally does. When people used to come by me like that I know I sometimes used to mess up my braking and get in too hot. All I know is as soon as I passed him and he was out of my vision then I braked, then I felt a bump from behind. Maybe he was out braking me into that corner, but I don’t see that happening. “I don’t want it to seem like I’m putting the blame on him or I’m putting the blame on me. The end result is he fell and his bike broke in half. It sucks. That’s racing. I didn’t want it to happen. It’s not like I tried to do it. It’s just one of those bad things that happens some times. “But I really didn’t understand his press release, how he expected me to come apologize to him when I don’t even know who he is or what he looks like. That’s the reason I didn’t go up to him in the rider’s meeting. If he was 10 feet away I wish he would’ve come up and said his piece so we could’ve talked about it.”