Millennium/KWS Suzuki’s Ben Thompson Wins in Formula 1 at the GNF

Braselton, GA Oct 2008 — Millennium/KWS Suzuki sponsored by Suzuki of Orangeburg’s Ben Thompson blazed through the field to win the WERA Formula 1 race at Road Atlanta on a very special Millennium/KWS Suzuki GSX-R1000.

The WERA Grand National Finals is the premier club racing event in the country. Millennium/KWS Suzuki has participated in the event since 2005 to support our customers and field a rider in the Suzuki GSX-R1000 Cup and Formula 1 race.

The 2008 event was hampered by bad weather that kept track time to a minimum. After only a handful of laps in practice, team rider Ben Thompson qualified the Millennium Technologies Suzuki GSX-R1000 fourth with a time of 1:27.672 for the Suzuki GSX-R1000 Cup race. Thompson, the 2007 GSX-R1000 Cup Champion, got a good start and was battling with David Anthony and pole sitter Ryan Elleby when he made a mistake going into turn ten and crashed. Despite the disappointment of being unable to defend his 2007 race win, Thompson put the crash behind him and focused on the Formula 1 race twenty minutes later.

The WERA Formula 1 class is virtually unlimited in the amount of modifications allowed on the motorcycle. KWS Motorsports decided to take advantage of the latitude in the rule book to build a very special motor. Using the team’s Suzuki GSX-R1000 AMA Superbike as a base, KWS built a 1070cc engine using Millennium Technologies cylinders, Wiseco Pistons, and Web Cams. This combination yielded well over 210hp and almost 100 ft-lbs of torque all put to the ground through super sticky 16.5″ Dunlop tires.

The Formula 1 class is gridded on points and since the team had only done one previous event, Thompson had to start from the sixth row in the fifteenth position. Thompson got an incredible start and was eighth after the first lap. Thompson put his head down and proceeded to turn the fastest lap of the entire six day event with a time of 1:26.218. Passing one or two riders each lap Thompson caught the leader, Taylor Knapp (also on a KWS built GSX-R1000) on the last lap. The two riders went back and forth briefly, but Thompson was able to make the pass for the lead and take the win by a margin of .214 of a second over Knapp.

Ben Thompson “The motor in the Formula 1 bike was a monster and it was easily the fastest bike I have ever ridden. I really want to thank the team for all their hard work. Michael Godin, Rick Matheny, and Chip Spalding gave me a couple of awesome race bikes this weekend. I was very happy to be able to give them a win in F1 after crashing in the GSX-R1000 Cup race. We had the bike to win the GSX-R1000 Cup race again this year; I just made a small mistake. Thanks to all the sponsors for a wonderful year!”

Kevin Hunt (Team Owner) “It was a really good weekend. All of our customers had a lot of success. We are all disappointed about the crash in the GSX-R1000 Cup race, but it was very good that Ben was able to get a win on the Formula 1 bike. It takes a very talented rider to get the most out of a bike with that much power and Ben did an amazing job. I would like to say thanks to Evelyn and Sean Clarke and everybody at WERA for putting on a great event.”

KWS Motorsports would like to thank and congratulate all of our friends, customers and sponsored riders for all of their success at the GNF this year:

Taylor Knapp (1st GSX-R1000 Cup, 1st F1 Regional, 1st Open Superstock)

Scott Carpenter (2nd Senior Superbike / 2nd A Superbike)

Tim Hunt (1st Senior Superbike)

Jim Eberhart (1st HWT Superbike)

Rocky Stargel (1st C Superbike)

Millennium/KWS Suzuki is proudly sponsored by:

Millennium Technologies, American Suzuki, Suzuki of Orangeburg, Dunlop Tires, Pit Bull, LeoVince Exhaust, K&N Filters, GP Tech, Galespeed, Active, Bazzaz Performance, Sebimoto, Yoyodyne, Ohlins, VP Fuels, EK Chains, Wiseco Pistons, BG Lubricants, Webcam, Performance Friction Brakes, Shock Doctor, Worldwide Bearing, Zero Gravity, XT Racing, APE, CTR Suspensions, Chicken Hawk Racing, Hel Brake Lines

For Information: http://www.kwsracing.com

More, from a press release issued by Pirelli:

Pirelli Cleans Up, Sweeps Up Suzuki Cup Finals at WERA GNF

It was privateer’s delight at the WERA Grand National Finals at Road Atlanta, where every class in the Suzuki Cup was won by Pirelli riders, proving the truth and fairness of the Pirelli philosophy once again: We race what we sell, we sell what we race.

Following four days of the GNF, where Pirelli piled on win after win in expert and novice classes alike with its Diablo Superbike Slicks and Diablo Supercorsa DOT race tires, Sunday’s annual Suzuki Cup races were owned by Pirelli. Pirelli took its riders to the wins against all competition in all classes, winning everything and sweeping two podiums.

Listed in numerical order by count of cc’s, Michael Barnes took the win in the GSX-R600 Cup race, barely a tick or a tock in front of David Anthony, and Russell Wikle, giving Pirelli podium sweep in the 600 Cup. Ryan O’Donnell, who finished fifth in the 600 Cup, moved up five places with his win in the SV650 Cup race, leading his own Pirelli sweep of that podium, joined by Ricky Ford and Kris Wall.

In the Suzuki 750 Cup the legend himself, Tray Batey, took the title over all challengers, though it was a race all the way to the last inch. Without checking the history books one has to assume Batey holds the record for podiums and wins in the Suzuki Cup finals. Youngster Taylor Knapp rode to the win in the GSX-R1000 Cup, where Batey again added to his podium total with a third-place finish.

Adding to these sprint wins at the Road Atlanta WERA GNF is Pirelli’s endurance win on Friday, where Team Vesrah Suzuki put the cap on its perfect WERA National Endurance Championship season with another dominating win with its Pirelli Shod GSX-R1000. Riders Tray Batey, John Jacobi, and Chris Ulrich stopped the clock of the four-hour race with a two-lap advantage over the nearest competition.

Long race, short race, old racer, new racer, big bike, little bike, expert, novice, slicks, or DOTs, Pirelli won races in all conditions across the WERA GNF board, sharing its World Superbike rewards with every racer from professional to privateer. Pirelli congratulates its new champions.

Pirelli Tire North America specializes in the manufacture and marketing of high-performance tires for passenger vehicles, motorcycles and motorsports. An industry leader in technology and quality, Pirelli operates its highly advanced Modular Integrated Robotized System (MIRS) in Rome, Georgia, to better serve the North American OEM and Replacement markets. For more information please visit: www.us.pirelli.com, or www.us.pirellimoto.com.