By Lisa Theobald Marco Martinez won the Unlimited Grand Prix on his GSXR1000 and came close to setting a new track record. It was Greg Melka who nabbed the holeshot with his R6 and led the first lap of the race. Behind him, Michael Rouleau, Martinez, Darren Luck, and Dave McEnery were all vying to for the top spot. Halfway through lap two, Martinez made his passing move as they worked through the esses and took over the lead. From there he proceeded to open a gap on the rest of the field. Behind him, an all out battle for second place had developed. Melka continued to hold back the rest of the field as he maintained the number two spot. At the halfway point, McEnery had maneuvered his GSXR1000 into third place and was looking for a way around Melka. With just two laps to go, Martinez was now the breakaway leader with a five second lead over the new second place, McEnery. Rouleau had also maneuvered GSXR1000 past Melka and into third place. Martinez had run close to record pace as he maintained his leading advantage all the way to the checkered flag. McEnery finished second with Rouleau close behind in third, making the podium an all GSXR1000 event. Martinez’s fastest lap time of 1:34.8 was a mere 2/10 of a second slower than the current track record, recently set by Darren Luck. Luck had run the fastest lap during the Shootout race just two months earlier. Prior to that Martinez had held the record from August 2002 through May 2006. On the podium Martinez stated that he intended to reclaim his record during the next Moroso event. “I wish I didn’t look back,” he said. “After I saw the gap, I kind of backed off a little. I was so tired form the previous race. I know I can do it and next time we come back here, that’s going to be my goal, get my track record back.” Of his competitors, Martinez commented, “Mike, he’s got a really good line. He knows where to block and he’s very hard to get around. And, once I was able to get in front of him it was just a matter of putting my head down. And Dave, he also ran an awesome race. All day today.” Another local top finisher and Shootout contender, Jim Pihokken, was injured early during the GTO race and transported to a local hospital for treatment. His presence in the Shootout was missed by fellow racers, as Martinez commented, “I wish Jim was here. I really hope he gets better fast and I hope he comes back strong.” McEnery said, “He’s going to be hurting for a little bit, but he’s a tough guy. He’s one of the toughest out here, if not THE.” He urged, “Everybody just think about him, he needs some healing vibes.” Martinez also won the GTO, Unlimited Superbike, Middleweight Superbike, and Middleweight Grand Prix classes, making him the winningest racer of the day with five first place finishes. Christopher Boy and Darren Luck were just behind with four first place finishes each. Boy won the GT Lights, Supertwins, Lightweight Superbike, and Thunderbike classes. Luck won GTU, Middleweight Supersport, Heavyweight Supersport, and Heavyweight Superbike. SHOOTOUT RESULTS: 1. Marco Martinez (GSXR1000); 2. David McEnery (GSXR1000); 3. Michael Rouleau (GSXR1000); 4. Santiago Villa (R1); 5. Darren Luck (GSXR600); 6. Greg Melka (R6); 7. Carlos Macias (ZX10); 8. Alvaro Toledo (GSXR1000); 9. Rodolfo Ramirez (GSXR1000); 10. Drew Miller (CBR1000)