Cameron Beaubier smashed the GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike (DSB) lap record and claimed provisional pole position during qualifying Friday at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Beaubier, riding his Y.E.S./Monster Energy/Graves Yamaha YZF-R6, turned a best lap of 1:22.087, which is well below Tommy Aquino’s 2009 record of 1:23.502. For Beaubier, it is the fifth time in 2013 that he has broken an AMA Pro Daytona SportBike lap record. But his day did not start as well as it ended, as he suffered his very first crash of the season in Free Practice One. “We started off pretty rough [in Free Practice One],” said Beaubier. “I just had no feeling in the front end and the left side of the tire was taking a lot of heat up and stuff. I was definitely struggling this morning. Towards the end of the practice we went out with five minutes to go and on the second lap I crashed in the fourth corner, which was a bummer. “My team did an awesome job of fixing my A-bike. I got out onto the track with five minutes into the [qualifying] session. I put in some really good laps, and I felt really consistent. I did some low 1:22s, which I was really happy about. “We found a good setting with the soft tire. I’m not sure how it’s going to work out tomorrow. I think the temperature’s going to be a little cooler, so I don’t think we’re going to be able to run that for the race. But right now it’s going good. For tomorrow morning we’re going to try and couple of things and see if we can go faster.” Beaubier comes into the weekend with an 86-point lead with just three races remaining, meaning he can clinch his first AMA Pro Championship in Race One on Saturday. But the 20-year-old Californian said he is trying to avoid thinking about it too much. “I’m trying not to focus too much on the Championship,” Beaubier said. “I know I can wrap it up tomorrow. I need nine points. I think that’s 12th or 13th place [in the race]. So that’s definitely going to be in the back of my head. I think it will be more of a relief than anything. And then just put my head down for the last two races. I think it will be really good though. I’ve worked so hard to get to this point. It’s kind of crazy that this weekend is when I can clinch it. So I’m excited.” And while he was talking to the media, Beaubier was asked if his plans for the 2014 season had been finalized. “Not yet,” he said. “There’s been talks. I’ve been talking to Keith [McCarty, Yamaha Motors Corp, U.S.A. Racing Division Manager] and stuff. My goal is to ride [AMA Pro] Superbike, but nothing’s official yet. I should know by the end of this month.” Beaubier’s teammate Garrett Gerloff was the best of the rest with a 1:22.674. DSB rookie Jake Lewis finished the session ranked third with a 1:23.365 on his Meen Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R6. Bobby Fong claimed the final spot on the provisional front row by turning a 1:23.418 on his D&D Cycles/Castrol Triumph Daytona 675R. Red Bull/RoadRace Factory Yamaha’s Jake Gagne (1:23.486) was the fifth and final rider to go faster than the old lap record on Friday. New Jersey Lottery Devil’s Showdown/GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike New Jersey Motorsports Park Millville, New Jersey September 13, 2013 Provisional Qualifying Session One Results (all on Dunlop tires): 1. Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R6), 1:22.087* 2. Garrett Gerloff (Yam YZF-R6), 1:22.674 3. Jake Lewis (Yam YZF-R6), 1:23.365 4. Bobby Fong (Tri Daytona 675R), 1:23.418 5. Jake Gagne (Yam YZF-R6), 1:23.486 6. James Rispoli (Suz GSX-R600), 1:23.902 7. JD Beach (Yam YZF-R6), 1:24.052 8. Joey Pascarella (Tri Daytona 675R), 1:24.275 9. Dane Westby (Hon CBR600RR), 1:24.399 10. Jason DiSalvo (Tri Daytona 675R), 1:24.473 11. Jake Zemke (Tri Daytona 675R), 1:25.156 12. Eric Stump (Yam YZF-R6), 1:25.500 13. Kyle Wyman (Tri Daytona 675R), 1:25.593 14. Elena Myers (Tri Daytona 675R), 1:25.625 15. Ben Young (Yam YZF-R6), 1:25.669 16. Benny Solis (Hon CBR600RR), 1:25.707 17. Dustin Dominguez (Kaw ZX-6R), 1:25.819 18. Bryce Prince (Yam YZF-R6), 1:25.973 19. Fernando Amantini (Yam YZF-R6), 1:26.002 20. Kenny Riedmann (Tri Daytona 675R), 1:26.868 21. Barrett Long (Duc 848), 1:27.367 22. Melissa Paris (Hon CBR600RR), 1:27.691 23. Daniel Ortega (Yam YZF-R6), 1:28.384 24. Scott Ryan (Yam YZF-R6), 1:28.954 25. Anthony Fania (Yam YZF-R6), 1:29.720 *new lap record More, from a press release issued by Yamaha: Beaubier & Gerloff Both Obliterate Lap Record At New Jersey Motorsports Park; Beaubier Earns Provisional DSB Pole Aboard His #6 Yamaha Extended Service/ Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha YZF-R6 Millville, NJ – September 13, 2013 – The two-rider tandem of Cameron Beaubier and Garrett Gerloff were both well under the qualifying track record in AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike at New Jersey Motorsports Park in today’s provisional qualifying session. The Y.E.S./Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha teammates were the fastest two riders on the track, and Cameron earned the provisional pole with a blistering lap time that was 1.5 second faster than the previous qualifying-lap record at the track Following his record-breaking session, which is the fifth racetrack in a row on which he’s broken the track record, Cameron said, “This morning, we started off pretty rough, and I actually crashed towards the end of that session. But, my team did a great job getting the bike back together. We found a really good setup with the soft tire in qualifying, so I was able to put in a bunch of fast laps.” Garrett said, “I felt really good for qualifying. I think I could have dropped my laptimes even more, but where you are on the track is always so important. I came up on some slower riders there at the end, and it slowed me a little bit. This track is really connected together, so you have to carry momentum all the way around. My bike should be faster in the morning with the cooler temps, so we’ll look to improve some in tomorrow’s final qualifying session.” After final qualifying for Daytona SportBike tomorrow morning at 8:50 AM ET, DSB Race 1 will go green at 2 PM ET. Check out Yamaha’s Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @YamahaMotorUSA for more news, results, and other team info. More, from a press release issued by GEICO Motorcycle Road Racing: Westby looks to rally and earn a better qualifying spot in Devil’s Showdown MILLVILLE, N.J. (Sept. 13) – Dane Westby put his GEICO Motorcycle Honda in the provisional ninth spot in the GoPro Daytona SportBike grid on Friday at the New Jersey Lottery Devil’s Showdown, this weekend’s stop in the GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing Series. Westby said the practice was smooth in the morning but the team encountered some stumbling blocks once the first qualifier rolled around in the afternoon at New Jersey Motorsports Park. “It wasn’t quite turning the way I wanted,” Westby said. “I was trying to turn it too hard physically instead of establishing a rhythm. We’re going to address that for the next session.” Westby recorded a best lap of 1 minute, 24.399 seconds during the nearly hour-long session. “We know where we need to work, so we’re not out in left field,” he said. “I know we’re still in the game. Some of the problems we were having were coming from the rear of the bike. We’ll probably do some suspension adjustments and go from there.” The bike telemetry showed Westby had brilliant moments in individual segments but never really strung it all together at once. “I was kind of sporadic during qualifying,” Westby said. “I think that ties into trying to ride the bike too hard. Once we get the bike and I a little more friendly, we’ll have a really good chance at this track just because of how well it suits our bike.” Westby decided to play it conservatively as the qualifying session wore on. “I’m counting on coming back strong for the second qualifier tomorrow,” Westby said. “I knew it was out there. I pushed in the early part of the session, but when it wasn’t coming I wasn’t going to do something risky and put myself on the ground.” Saturday’s qualifying session gets under way at 8:50 a.m. EDT from New Jersey Motorsports Park. Race 1 of the Devil’s Showdown for the GoPro Daytona SportBikes begins at 2 p.m. on Saturday and Race 2 will be at 3 p.m. on Sunday. CBS Sports Network will air Race 1 at 1 p.m. EDT on Sunday and Race 2 at 3 p.m.