Eslick’s runner-up finish moves him to third in Daytona SportBike points SONOMA, Calif. (May 15) — GEICO Suzuki rider Danny Eslick knew he had some catching up to do at this weekend’s West Coast Moto Jam and the 2009 Daytona SportBike champion delivered with a pair of podium finishes highlighted by Sunday’s runner-up result at Infineon Raceway. A third-place finisher in Saturday’s race, Eslick and the rest of the pros had to deal with a light rain at the beginning of Sunday’s 22-lap race. The Oklahoman shook off the cold drizzle and was one of the early leaders until the rain picked up and officials were forced to halt the proceedings. “We got off well and everyone kind of settled in,” Eslick said. “I felt good but then the rain really started coming down. They came out with the red flag and I pretty much agreed with it because this is not a track to mess with. There are places where you can get into some serious trouble so I think they made a good call by stopping the race when they did.” After a 20-minute rain delay and some expert work by the safety crew, the track was deemed ready for action. Eslick was quick again on the restart and battled leader Jason DiSalvo for the top spot for most of the remainder of the race, a nice change of pace from Saturday’s race where DiSalvo raced away for an easy victory. In the end, DiSalvo took the checkered flag with Eslick crossing four seconds later. “After the restart we all kind of fell back into the same place as when we stopped,” Eslick said. “We were going back and forth, running around and trying to figure out where we were all going. It was a lot of fun because yesterday was a pretty boring race for me since I was by myself for most of it.” As the defending event champion, Eslick really wanted to earn back-to-back victories in the Wine Country but DiSalvo was simply too sharp this weekend. “It was nice to throw a little bit of excitement in there,” Eslick said. “We just didn’t have anything for Jason. He’s riding well and their bike is working well for them. It was all we could do to hang in there. I felt I had him a couple times but it just didn’t happen for us this race.” The Richie Morris Racing crew made a few adjustments to Eslick’s GEICO Suzuki before Sunday’s race. Eslick credits them and the fact he felt more comfortable on the track for his improved finish. “We made a few changes,” Eslick said. “Plus I think I just rode better. I was able to keep him in site all day and it always pushes you harder when you have a carrot to chase.” After a DNF at the season opener in Daytona, Fla., which left him with zero points, Eslick jumped all the way up to third place in the championship chase with his impressive weekend in the Wine Country. “It’s going to be a very competitive season,” Eslick said. “It’s always tough racing these guys, no matter where we are. I’m just glad we doubled up on the podium, it really helped us with in the points but we still have a lot of making up to do.” The next round of AMA Daytona SportBike racing will take place May 28-30 at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah. More, from a press release issued by Harley-Davidson: Fillmore Takes AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Victory at Infineon Barnes and Rapp Round Out Podium Spots Sonoma, CA RMR/Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Racing’s Chris Fillmore earned his first AMA Pro road racing win with a victory over veterans Michael Barnes and Steve Rapp in the Vance & Hines XR1200 series at Infineon Raceway May 14. Starting from pole position, Fillmore engaged in a see-saw battle for the lead with Drag Specialties rider Barnes, as Rapp (Parts Unlimited) followed in close pursuit during the opening five laps of the 11-lap race. The race was red-flagged on lap six when Gerry Signorelli high-sided at the exit of the final turn before the start/finish line on lap six with Barnes in the lead. After the restart, Fillmore quickly took the lead and broke away to take a 3.586-second victory over Barnes and Rapp, who was hit with a 5-second penalty for jumping the restart. “You can’t really make up any ground because the bikes are so even on power. So it’s all under braking and if you’re not right there, the places where I thought I’d be able to pass Barney and catch up to him, he’d get that little bit of a gap, and we all pretty much hit the same brake markers,” Fillmore said about the opening laps battle with Barnes. “[On the restart] Barney opened the door a little bit going into the carousel, and I just went for it and put my head down and did everything I could to pull away.” Barnes, who is still recovering from a broken collarbone sustained at the AMA Pro season opener at Daytona, was suffering from some nagging injuries that hampered his race. “I felt a little more confident on the first start. I haven’t been on a motorcycle since Daytona, and my throttle arm hasn’t been working as well as I want it to. I got some arm pump from the brakes,” Barnes said. “I thought I had a little bit more for Chris, but he really stepped it up for the restart, and I didn’t have much left in my arm. I knew Rapp had that penalty and it was all I could do to try to stay within that 5-second gap.” Further back in the order, Daytona XR1200 race winner Kyle Wyman crashed out of the race with four laps to go, and AMA Pro Harley Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship points leader Sammy Halbert finished 13th in his professional road racing debut. The AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 series returns to action in two weeks at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, UT. Infineon Race Result: 1. Chris Fillmore (RMR/Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Racing), 11 laps 2. Michael Barnes (Drag Specialties), -3.586 seconds 3. Steve Rapp (Parts Unlimited), -7.323 (includes 5-second penalty) 4. Tyler O’Hara (GPBikeParts.com), -8.549 5. Michael Beck (J&P Cycles), -8.713 6. Michael Corbino (RMR/Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Racing), -9.141 7. Chase McFarland (Latus Motors Racing), -10.430 8. Bradley Adams (Sport Rider Magazine), -23.977 9. Joe Kopp (Latus Motors Racing), -36.594 10. Josh Chisum (Troy Lee Designs), -38.889 11. Michael Morgan (Python Exhaust), -39.915 12. Paul James (James Gang/Hoban Brothers/H-D of Appleton), -53.481 13. Sammy Halbert (HOG Racing), -76.405 14. Kyle Wyman (RMR/Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Racing), – 4 laps, crash 15. Gerry Signorelli (Kuryakyn), -6 laps crash XR1200 Series Points Standings 1. Chris Fillmore, 57 2. Steve Rapp, 40 3. Kyle Wyman, 38 4. Joe Kopp, 33 5. Michael Beck, 29 6. Chase McFarland, 29 7. Michael Corbino, 27 8. Michael Barnes, 25 9. Tyler O’Hara, 18 9. Paul James, 18 More, from a press release issued by Y.E.S. LTD Racing: PUERTA RETAINS POINTS LEAD, FINISHES SECOND AT INFINEON Sonoma, CA — Y.E.S. LTD Racing’s Tomy Puerta earned second place in Sunday’s AMA Pro SuperSport race, continuing his string of first-or-second finishes in the 2011 season. The East SuperSport points leader led early and then consolidated second place to match his result from Saturday. David Gaviria crashed out while running up front in SuperSport, while Sam Nash earned a top ten finish. Huntley Nash took 16th place in the Daytona SportBike class. Puerta now leads the overall AMA Pro SuperSport points chase by virtue of his win and three second places this year. He led the first six laps of the race as well. “I had a good start and put my head down to see if I could make a gap. I looked back and Gaviria and Benny were there. I just was trying to be stable on the times, then I made a mistake and Benny passed me,” said the Colombian. “I tried to keep up with him, but I didn’t have enough. I tried to stay in his draft, and I almost crashed about five times. I just wanted to be on the podium and keep it on two wheels today to fight for the championship. That is the most important goal for us.” Gaviria crashed in the final turn while closely trailing Puerta in the opening laps. “I highsided,” said Gaviria. “Tomy and I were riding close and we were both pushing hard to go fast. I made a mistake and it cost us today but I am looking forward to the next races.” Sam Nash earned a fine top ten finish and ran as high as seventh as the part-time competitor showed his speed. “I’m pretty happy with the race,” said Nash. “Any time you can get a top ten, it’s a good result. I thought I could do a little better but someone ran me wide at one of the turns and I lost some ground. It was great to race and thanks to the team for all their hard work.” Huntley Nash had a tough weekend and showed a lot of determination in his bid to shine in the ultra-competitive Daytona SportBike class. “The weekend didn’t go like we wanted but we tried hard and learned some things,” said Nash. “We haven’t raced in two months before this and what we really need is some seat time to get our setup the way we need to get it. The good news is we’re going to Utah soon.” More, from a press release issued by Team M4 Suzuki: CHALLENGING DAY FOR M4 SUZUKI TEAM AT INFINEON RACEWAY Coming off his first career AMA Superbike podium a day earlier, M4 Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas managed to transform an otherwise nightmarish Sunday at Infineon Raceway into a positive result through sheer toughness and determination. The day got off on the wrong foot almost from the start, as Martin suffered a nasty highside crash in the morning warm-up, dislocating his left shoulder. However, the Colombian had his shoulder reset and took his place on the second row of the grid fully ready to race. Cardenas’ day took another blow on the second lap as he lost the front at speed in Turn 4, an incident that brought out the red flag. He hustled back to the pits and prepared to restart the contest from the very back of the field aboard his backup GSX-R1000. Making things more difficult still, a multi-rider incident shortly following the restart scattered men and machines across the track just in front of him, forcing Cardenas to take evasive action and run off track. After that he put his head down and registered a calculated ride up through the field in search of maximum points. In the end Martin climbed all the way up to eighth position. Never satisfied with anything less than victory, Cardenas said, “Not a very good result. I went into Turn 4 and I lost the front. I’m not really sure why, it was the same that time as always. I don’t really know what happened. “On the restart, I got caught behind the crash and had to run off track to avoid it. I lost a lot of time and from there on there was nothing I could do. I tried to ride a safe pace to make sure I finished to score as many points as possible.” Cardenas wasn’t the only M4 Suzuki pilot to endure a trying Sunday in Sonoma. Chris Ulrich’s race ended just two corners into the event as he was sent flipping over his bars as the pack barreled into Turn 2. Ulrich slid through the dirt with his GSX-R1000 somersaulting alongside. Chris was transferred to a local hospital following the fall. The veteran racer cracked two lumbar vertebrae in the crash and suffered a concussion and internal bruising. Ulrich was held for observation in ICU to make sure there was no internal bleeding. M4 Suzuki’s Sunday outing in the Daytona SportBike class was somewhat less eventful. Another once-stopped affair, Dane Westby maneuvered his way up from 12th early on to claim a solid top-ten result by taking the checkered flag eighth. Teammate Santiago Villa improved as well, gaining a position to finish the race 14th at the conclusion of the 22-lap event. M4 Suzuki will next head to Miller Motorsports Park in Salt Lake City, UT for the much-anticipated combined World/AMA Superbike event on Memorial Day weekend, May 28-30. More, from a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: Race Report: AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike, Race 2 SONOMA, CA – Sunday’s AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Race 2 at Infineon Raceway was red-flagged following two hugely dramatic first laps, which kicked off with Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Tommy Hayden swooping into the lead while teammate Blake Young rubbed elbows with Monster Energy Graves Yamaha’s Josh Hayes immediately behind. Within a minute, however, the M4 Suzuki team had lost both its riders, Chris Ulrich suffering a nasty crash in Turn 2 and Martin Cardenas sliding out moments later, his bike coming to rest atop the AirFence. It was the second get-off for Cardenas in one day, as a crash in morning practice had left him with a dislocated left shoulder just hours earlier. Cardenas regridded at the back, determined to grab some all-important championship points, but his misfortune was quickly overshadowed by a big crash on the restart that collected JD Beach (Cycle World/Attack Performance Kawasaki), Tony Kasper (Team Iron Horse BMW), and Jeremy Burgess (ADR Fly Racing). All injured riders were treated at the at-track facility and released, save for M4 Suzuki’s Chris Ulrich, who was transported by ground to the local hospital. (No additional information was available at press time; team news will be posted as it’s received.) The track was cleared without bringing out the red flag, and Hayden tried to take advantage of his second holeshot to shake Hayes and Young, engaged in furious battle behind him. Hayes quickly bashed by Young, however, and set out after Hayden, passing via an aggressive move that nearly cost him. Once in second, however, Hayden didn’t particularly seem to mind””he stayed close on Hayes’ wheel through the following laps, periodically laying down a handful of the fastest laps the race saw and occasionally taking a look at the inside or outside of Hayes’ line. When Tommy finally passed for the lead with just a few laps remaining, he put his head down and built some safety into his first National Guard SuperBike win of 2011, crossing the line with a margin of 1.926 seconds. Hayes and Young brought their bikes home uneventfully in second and third, respectively, while several battles were decided behind them. Steve Rapp (San Diego BMWE) came out on top of his fourth-place battle with Foremost Insurance Racing’s Larry Pegram, and Jordan Suzuki’s Ben Bostrom, who’d diced throughout the second half of the race with National Guard Jordan Suzuki teammate Roger Hayden for sixth, took at least that version of a victory. Equally valorous, thought the results may not reflect it, was M4 Suzuki’s Cardenas, who fought his way up to eighth from the back of the grid. The top-ten finishing order was Hayes, Hayes, Young, Rapp, Pegram, Bostrom, Roger Hayden, Cardenas, Chris Peris (Iron Horse BMW), and Chris Clark (Y.E.S./Pat Clark/Graves Yamaha). Young, 3rd: “I felt better on the first start. When I got up there on the second start, I thought, ‘Maybe I can hang in here today and see where they go,’ but I looked down at my lap timer and didn’t think they were all that quick. I knew they were going to step up the pace, and I just don’t think I was ready for it. I tried to keep my head down and ride my own race, but today I couldn’t really stay there. I had to bring home third for my guys, at least get it on the podium, but I’m just looking forward to the next race already.” Hayes, 2nd: “Man, both of them just came off the line like rocket ships. I got a pretty good jump, but I just didn’t get rolling as good as they did. I’m sitting here thinking about the race, and I really had a hard race. It’s just, the bike was a bit of a handful today “¦ I think the red flag hurt me a little. Before that I felt pretty good, but on the restart, right in the beginning I had a couple of pretty big ones and I thought, ‘Man, I’ve been this route before. I’ve been able to do pretty good laps, so I’m just doing to dig deep and ride this thing the best I can. Knowing Tommy, he’s back there watching me, laughing at me, and getting ready to kick my butt,’ which is what he did [laughs].” Hayden, 1st: “Seemed like as the race went on it was coming to me a little bit. I made some changes for the race, so it kind of took me a couple laps to be 100 percent confident with what I had. About the time I was feeling decent, Josh came by, and I kind of settled into that. It was tough for a few laps, but then my bike really started working good””felt like it was working better and better. With about ten to go I was following pretty close; I had a couple looks in a few places kept kind of botching it up a little and falling back a couple of bike-lengths. I was close to going by a few times and didn’t, and that hurt me a little bit, but I had two or three places I thought I could get by, so I was just trying to hurry up and do it and put my head down to the finish. “This win today feels really good. I was really disappointed with my performance here last year, so I really challenged myself to come here this year and redeem myself, not give away the kind of points I did here last hear. That’s not something you can do when you’re racing guys like Josh and Blake, so this feels really good.” The AMA Pro Road Racing Series next travels to Utah’s Miller Motorsports Park for the “Big M Weekend,” where it will run alongside the World Superbike series in a combined May 28-30 event. For tickets and information, visit http://www.bigmweekend.com/. To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us via facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing, twitter.com/AMAProSBK, and twitter.com/AMAProLIVE. More, from another press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: Race Report: AMA Pro Daytona SportBike, Race 2 SONOMA, CA – Monster Energy Graves Yamaha’s Josh Herrin seemed to return with a vengeance on Sunday; having sat out AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Race 1 while serving a one-race penalty incurred at Round 1, he wasted no time when the track when green for Sunday’s Infineon Raceway event. Though Latus Motors Racing’s Jason DiSalvo didn’t let Herrin have it easy, Herrin sailed into the lead off the start, with Jake Holden (Jake Holden racing) hot on DiSalvo’s rear wheel. Holden, too, had company, as GEICO Powersports RMR Suzuki’s Danny Eslick was immediately gunning for third, and while DiSalvo and Herrin diced for the lead, Holden targeted the position ahead. The first big lineup-change came when DiSalvo tried the inside of Herrin, only to be sent wide when Herrin shut the door, DiSalvo’s trip leaving the way wide open for both Holden and Eslick. The top four now covered by less than a second, Holden set out after Herrin and made a desperate grab for the lead when Herrin went wide, holding it while the Yamaha rider raged behind. With Eslick watching from third position, Herrin continued to put pressure on Holden until Holden slid out of the lead, ceding the frontrunner position to Herrin and being left on the sidelines with his head in his hands. With just four laps elapsed, DiSalvo, and Eslick””trailed by dueling riders Cory West (Vesrah Suzuki) and PJ Jacobsen (Celtic Racing/Fast by Ferracci)””began a back-and-forth contest for second position that was suddenly halted by a weather-induced red flag, as several corners began reporting wet track surfaces. The riders retook the grid just under thirty minutes later, Herrin again commanding the holeshot with DiSalvo in hot pursuit. Through the next handful of laps the top three diced for position, each taking over the lead temporarily until DiSalvo did so with authority on Lap 11 and dropped his head, dedicated to the all-important task of building a buffer between himself and the chase pair. Immediately laying down the quickest lap the race had seen thus far, DiSalvo proceeded to do just that, soon putting a second between himself and Herrin””a gap he proceeded to stretch through the remaining laps. Herrin, meanwhile, proved unable to sustain under Eslick’s onslaught; following some back-and-forth swapping of position, Eslick finally made it stick and set out after DiSalvo. All the action at the front, meanwhile, was complemented by a forced rippling up through the ranks behind, as young-gun Jacobsen had climbed as high as fourth and spent the remaining handful of laps chipping away at the gap between himself and the Yamaha rider, who seemed to be flagging as the race wound down. Beaubier, Aquino, and Westby, meanwhile, were all gunning to take over the fifth-place position held by West, who in the end managed to hold it by just a few tenths. The top-ten order at races end was DiSalvo, Eslick, Herrin, Jacobsen, West, Beaubier, Aquino, Westby, Knapp, Allison. Herrin, 3rd: “The first start was really good for us, we were running really well. Then the red flag came out because of the rain, and the restart was good start again, and I just tried to stay out there. I had a feeling once we let Jason go by it was going to be hard to keep up with him, and it was. Trying to keep the pace he was running, I kind of overcooked my tires a little bit “¦ [but] I’m just really excited to get out of here with some points. Real grateful we got to ride, and just glad to put [Daytona] behind us.” Eslick, 2nd: “I think we made a good call in taking a little break and restarting [the race]. After the restart we were all going back and forth and running around and just trying to figure out who was doing what, so it was pretty fun. It was nice to throw a little bit of excitement in there … [but] I just didn’t have anything for Jason today. He was riding great and the bike was working good for him, so it was all we could do to hang in there. It’s gonna be a tough season.” DiSalvo, 1st: “I was strong a couple places on the brakes today, so I thought I could make some passes. But from yesterday, too, all my experience for the twenty-two laps of yesterday’s race was leading out at the front, and that’s what I was used to seeing. I wasn’t used to having Josh and Danny blocking my sight in a couple corners, and I wasn’t able to get some visual references to kind of see where I was going. So once I got out in front, got in that rhythm, got in that zone, I just kept chugging away””pulling laps, keeping my head down, and riding hard.” The AMA Pro Road Racing Series next travels to Utah’s Miller Motorsports Park for the “Big M Weekend,” where it will run alongside the World Superbike series in a combined May 28-30 event. For tickets and information, visit http://www.bigmweekend.com/. To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us via facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing, twitter.com/AMAProSBK, and twitter.com/AMAProLIVE. More, from another press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: Race Report: AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport, Race 2 SONOMA, CA – In a repeat performance of yesterday’s dominant performance, Roadracingworld.com’s Benny Solis took Sunday’s AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport victory by a big margin, besting Y.E.S. LTD Racing’s Tomas Puerta along with the rest of the twenty-rider field. Puerta’s hard-charging teammate, David Gaviria (yesterday’s third-place finisher), was also in line to notch another podium finish until misfortune struck on Lap 5. Puerta seized the lead off the line, followed closely by Solis and Gaviria, the latter sliding underneath to take over second position before the end of Lap 1. Behind them, Vesrah Suzuki’s Corey Alexander headed a six-rider line of riders but began to quickly outpace the rest of the field behind him. The top three sailed around the track just tenths apart, the battle putting space between the trio and fourth place. While Solis hunted Gaviria, Gaviria was intensely looking for a way past Puerta, a hope that ended when Gaviria highsided in Turn 11 of Lap 5, his bike coming to rest in the corner itself while the rider scrambled to the sidelines. Solis, meanwhile, had been forced to check up significantly to avoid both bike and rider but quickly made up time on Puerta, passing him within laps and almost immediately beginning to put time on the second-place rider. Suddenly, heartbreak hit Alexander, the Vesrah rider sliding into the grass then scrambling to get his bike upright and back on track. While Solis continued to stretch his lead, Alexander began an inspired charge up through the pack, picking off riders until he reached fourth, where the dwindling laps fated him to remain. What would have been Alexander’s career-first AMA Pro podium instead became Ohge’s, while Solis and Puerta brought their machines home in first and second, respectively. The top-ten was rounded out by Alexander, Sebastiao Ferreira (GP Bike Parts), Jason Lauritzen (Z2 Trackdays), Nadr Riad (San Jose Yamaha), Jett Chandler (GPBikePartsRacing.com), Rocco Horvath (Zen Motorcycle), and Sam Nash (Y.E.S. LTD Racing Yamaha). Ohge, 3rd: “This is only my second time here”¦. Last year I came for the first pro race of my life, just as I was turning 16, and this year my birthday fell on the day of qualifying. I went out on Friday and wasn’t sure what to expect, but after the first practice I was in first, so I was pretty happy about that. I kind of fell back after that, but I went out in the race yesterday and pulled out a good race, finished in the top-five. Today I went off the start and thought I was in gear but was actually in neutral, so by the time I was in Turn 1, I must have been close to in fifteenth place. I rode my butt off to get up to the front, and I was in fifth when Gaviria went off “¦ then a little later I saw Corey off the side of the track. I rode the best race I could and just tried to be consistent. My plans are to keep getting on the box and eventually get to that first spot.” Puerta, 2nd: “We did a couple changes on the bike from yesterday”¦. I had a good start and put my head down to see if I could make a gap, looked back and Gaviria and Benny were there. I just was trying to be stable on the times, then I made a mistake and Benny passed me. I tried to keep up with him, but I didn’t have enough. I tried to stay in his draft, and I almost crashed like five times. I just wanted to be on the podium and keep it on two wheels today to fight for the championship.” Solis, 1st: “I got a good start, then Tomas got a better start. My plan was to stay behind Tomas for a while and see what I could learn. David got by, and I just decided to follow both of them. When David crashed it kind of missed me up””I saw his bike get sideways, I was trying to avoid it, then he jumped off and I was almost going to hit him; it definitely scared me. But once I got in front, I was able to put my head down and get a good gap.” The AMA Pro Road Racing Series next travels to Utah’s Miller Motorsports Park for the “Big M Weekend,” where it will run alongside the World Superbike series in a combined May 28-30 event. For tickets and information, visit http://www.bigmweekend.com/. To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us via facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing, twitter.com/AMAProSBK, and twitter.com/AMAProLIVE.