Triumph Big Kahuna Atlanta/AMA Pro Road Racing GoPro Daytona SportBike Road Atlanta Braselton, Georgia April 21, 2012 Provisional Race One Results (all on Dunlop tires): 1. Martin Cardenas (Suz GSX-R600), 20 laps 2. Dane Westby (Suz GSX-R600), -4.460 seconds 3. Tommy Hayden (Yam YZF-R6), -10.089 4. Jake Zemke (Duc 848EVO), -13.709 5. Cory West (Suz GSX-R600), -14.730 6. Bobby Fong (Yam YZF-R6), -14.786 7. Huntley Nash (Yam YZF-R6), -32.496 8. Joey Pascarella (Yam YZF-R6), -32.689 9. J.D. Beach (Yam YZF-R6), -32.901 10. Michael Beck (Yam YZF-R6), -33.287 11. Austin DeHaven (Yam YZF-R6), -51.840 12. Bryce Prince (Yam YZF-R6), -52.197 13. Fernando Amantini (Kaw ZX-6R), -56.483 14. Barrett Long (Duc 848EVO), -56.665 15. David Gaviria (Yam YZF-R6), -65.499 16. Derek Wagnon (Duc 848EVO), -65.821 17. Jason DiSalvo (Tri Daytona 675R), -69.613, pitted 18. Ben Young (Yam YZF-R6), -70.937 19. Shane Narbonne (Yam YZF-R6), -76.828 20. Josh Galster (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap 21. Matt Sadowski (Suz GSX-R600), -1 lap, 2.552 seconds 22. Mike Morgan (Suz GSX-R600), -1 lap, 9.850 23. Walt Sipp (Buell 1125R), -1 lap, 17.124 24. Jeff Wrobel (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap, 17.207 25. David White (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap, 43.278 26. Sam Rozynski (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap, 88.766 27. Benny Solis, Jr. (Suz GSX-R600), -2 laps, DNF, crash 28. Kris Turner (Tri Daytona 675R), -6 laps, DNF, retired 29. Jake Gagne (Yam YZF-R6), -9 laps, DNF, crash 30. Paul Allison (Yam YZF-R6), -17 laps, DNF, mechanical 31. Kyle Wyman (Tri Daytona 675R), DNS More, from a press release issued by Geiger Media on behalf of GEICO: GEICO’s Cardenas wins Atlanta opener, surges into AMA Pro points lead BRASELTON, Ga. (April 21) — Martin Cardenas’ love affair with Road Atlanta continued Saturday as the 29-year-old Colombian rode his GEICO Suzuki GSX-R600 to a wire-to-wire victory in the first of two AMA Pro Daytona SportBike races this weekend. This was Cardenas fourth win at Road Atlanta and his record 17th in the class. The performance lifted him from fourth in the rankings to a seven-point lead over Daytona 200 winner Joey Pascarella, who was eighth. “The race was excellent for me,” Cardenas said. “I didn’t expect it to be that way. I thought we would have a four or five-bike grouping like we normally do in Daytona SportBike. Fortunately for me, my pace was a little bit better than the others and I just tried to maintain it throughout the race. I knew if I could do that, I would win. “This may sound funny but I actually prefer to race in a group because the race goes by very fast when you are in a fight. When you’re out front with a gap it seems to take a long time. You’re always looking at the pit board to see how far you have to go. It’s nice to win either way, though. We’ll take it.” It’s been a dream season for Cardenas as he’s earned the pole at both Daytona and Atlanta. Saturday’s win was dominant as he rode from the No. 1 spot on the grid to a 4.461-second victory over Team Hammer stablemate Dane Westby. As easy as it looked, the race wasn’t totally comfortable for Cardenas as he wobbled hard going up the hill after Turn 1 in one of the later laps. “I put my foot on the rear brake by mistake and the tire began to slip out,” he said. “I nearly crashed there and was fortunate to save it.” In another area, he briefly went across the grass after straying out of the narrow racing groove. “It’s very easy to make mistakes when you’re alone,” Cardenas said. “I was going through that little chicane area and was distracted for just a moment and lost the line. It doesn’t take much. I lost a little time there, maybe a second and a half or so, but was able to run my best lap next time around so I rebuilt the gap.” Cardenas will hit the 2.55-mile, 12-turn track again at 9 a.m. Sunday morning for a 20-minute warm-up session. He’ll then start the second race of the Triumph Big Kahuna Nationals at 2:15 p.m. from the pole position. “Thanks to my team and GEICO for putting me in this position,” Cardenas said. “I am very, very happy.” More, from a press release issued by LTD Racing: HUNTLEY NASH EARNS BEST DSB RESULT SO FAR AT ROAD ATLANTA FOR LTD RACING Braselton, GA (April 21, 2012) LTD Racing’s Huntley Nash earned seventh place in the first of two AMA Pro Daytona SportBike races at Road Atlanta. David Gaviria earned 15th in his first race back after a testing crash. Young Georgian Nash has shown steady progress in 2012 after being injured in 2011. After flashing speed at Daytona, Nash qualified tenth on his K&N-sponsored bike at Road Atlanta then got a good start to the race. “It was good. I was with the leading pack and riding pretty well,” said Nash. “I messed up turn 10, couldn’t stop, and lost some positions. I got back on the track and tried to catch up the group in front of me. I had some bad arm pump from being so tense trying to catch those guys and then when I got to the front, I didn’t think I was going to be able to hang on. It feels great to be healthy and competitive and after we struggled last year, it’s nice to be able to push like I want. Obviously it was my best DSB race so far and we’re looking to build on this and keep improving.” “For tomorrow, my goal is to get another good start and be more relaxed and avoid the arm pump situation,” said Nash. David Gaviria also improved during the race. A 140+ mph crash at the Homestead test left David sore and his laps on Friday were less than the full capability of the reigning AMA Pro SuperSport West champion. But Gaviria has worked hard and improved his pace throughout the weekend. In the race, he improved five positions to take 15th. “I’m happy with how the boys rode today,” said LTD Racing’s Gary Medley. “Hunt had a good one and got a nice result. David’s confidence is coming back after he had a bad crash. We’re looking forward to getting back to racing tomorrow.” More, from a press release issued by Team Hammer: WESTBY CHARGES TO SECOND IN ROAD ATLANTA OPENER M4 Broaster Chicken Suzuki’s Dane Westby charged his way up through the field in Saturday’s AMA Pro Daytona SportBike contest at Road Atlanta to score a runner-up finish. Westby, who started from the outside of Row 2, found himself shuffled to the bottom of the top ten at the opening of the 20-lap contest. No stranger to dicing his way forward through the pack, Westby picked off a rider on each lap aboard his GSX-R600, arriving in fifth on lap 4. He continued his steady climb from there, laying claim on second position at the race’s halfway point. While several seconds out of first at that point, the Oklahoman kept the race leader, teammate Martin Cardenas on the GEICO Suzuki, honest at the front, closing the gap down to 3.5-seconds at one point before finally accepting a hard-earned second-place result. “I just tried working on the guys up front,” Westby explained of climb. “I didn’t get that great of a start; someone from the third row got ahead of me. I had to work on those guys, work on those guys. “By the time I got up there, Martin was pretty far away. I couldn’t see him over Turn 3 or a couple other corners. Maybe if I had been up there at the start it would have been easier on me. “The guys on the pitboard kept giving me the +0 — they wanted me to catch Martin so I was really on the stick the whole time.” Meanwhile, SuzukiScoopFans Sportbike TrackGear.com M4 Suzuki’s Elena Myers made a rocket start from the third row in the day’s earlier AMA Pro SuperSport contest. Starting from the ninth on the grid, Elena immediately slotted into third as the pack entered Turn 1 for the first time. 18-year-old Myers fought a pack battle for fourth position throughout much of the race but her wrist, still on the mend from surgery less than a month ago, didn’t allow her to push to her potential to the checkered flag. She ultimately finished in eighth position and within sight of fourth. In the Superbike class Team Venezuela’s Robertino Pietri finished the race in 13th aboard his GSX-R1000 after qualifying for the race on third row in 11th. Chris Ulrich had a disappointing afternoon on the M4 Broaster Chicken Suzuki GSX-R1000. Ulrich was forced to retire from the race due to a mechanical issue — the first in two full seasons. Westby, Myers, Pietri, and Ulrich will all be back in action on Sunday at Road Atlanta for the second half of the weekend’s AMA Pro Road Racing doubleheaders in SportBike, SuperSport, and Superbike.