KWR team scores solid points in Atlanta to open 2021 MotoAmerica season

TUCSON, Ariz. (May 5) — The KWR/Panera Bread Ducati Team competed in the first round of the MotoAmerica Superbike series this past weekend at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Kyle Wyman finished 5th and 6th in races one and two respectively while also finishing 2nd place in the King of the Baggers race on his Factory Harley-Davidson Screamin’ Eagle Road Glide.

Friday’s qualifying practice day was filled with hiccups for the Ducati team as they sorted through some electronics gremlins that kept them in pit lane for most of the day. Wyman was able to complete 11 solid laps at the end of QP2 that would place him 6th on the day. Saturday’s final qualifying session saw Wyman put his Panera Bread Ducati 7th on the grid for race one later that afternoon, after being unable to utilize the Dunlop qualifying rear tire due to a clutch issue.

“Going into the Road Atlanta weekend we had less than ten laps on our new Ducati Superbike,” Wyman said. “I was really looking forward to putting a solid day together on Friday to acquaint myself with the new package, but some small issues prevented us from really putting in the time needed to get that done.”

“Truly it’s hard to find anything on the new bike that hasn’t been changed or improved over 2020,” Wyman added. “‘We’ve moved over to Accossato brakes which is a big deal, and the new factory fuel tank and tail unit seen on the current WSBK spec Ducati machines overseas. We’ve done everything possible this winter to align our motorcycle with the world championship bikes so that we can have a better comparison with our peers in Bologna. We’ve added Racebolt with KATO Thread Inserts to every corner of the machine to ensure its reliability. We’ve moved to a vastly improved SC-Project Exhaust system that uses a double undertail outlet. This is by far the highest level spec we’ve been able to produce at KWR, and I know that the ceiling his high with this new machine.”

In Saturday’s King of the Baggers qualifying, Wyman was able to put his Harley-Davidson Road Glide in P2 on the grid, just .050 of a second behind series rival Tyler O’Hara on his Factory Indian Motorcycle. This qualifying would set the grid for Sunday’s race, but Saturday afternoon would host the debut of the Panera Bread Ducati in Superbike Race One.

In Superbike race one Wyman got off to a strong start and settled into a lonely 6th position, running the full 19 lap race distance with no battle. He was the benefactor of some late race attrition that would put him in 5th spot by race-end.

“Race one I spent a lot of time just getting familiar with the new machine and trying to adjust myself to the SBK coming off the Bagger, which was more difficult than I had originally thought it would be going into the weekend,” Wyman said. “5th place is a good result considering the time on the bike but the top guys are quite a way up the road. We needed to try a few things for the Sunday warm-up to be better prepared for race two.”

On Sunday Wyman would pull double duty, and race the Harley-Davidson Road Glide in the King of the Baggers main event before SBK race two. In the baggers race Wyman got off to a hole shot lead that would put him with a 1 second gap over rival O’Hara. Wyman relinquished the lead on lap 4 after a two-lap scrap that saw the leaders swap positions. In the end, Wyman finished 2nd in the race just a half second behind in his King of the Baggers debut, and 25 seconds clear of 3rd.

“On the Harley I knew it was going to be between Tyler and I when the race started,” Wyman said. “My plan in the race was to manage the pace the best I could so I could look after my equipment, as we had had some cooling issues with the bike throughout the race weekend. My goal was to bring it home no worse than second but if I had a chance at the win, I would take it. When Tyler got a bad start I decided to put my head down and pull a gap. I was able to do that but toward the middle of the race I had to start looking after the engine and make sure I could bring it home. I was able to stay with him through the last lap but we just didn’t have the steam to bring home the win.”

“All told I’m happy with our debut and we learned a ton about our Road Glide, which is still in its early stages of development. With round one of three now in the books, we need to win the last two races at Road America and Laguna Seca to take this championship. That’s our focus.”

Next up was Superbike race two, and Wyman got off to a stronger start than race one, but found himself in the same lonely position falling short of the race pace in the front group. Wyman would bring home the Panera Bread Ducati in 6th place. With loads of data and experience that was missed in the abbreviated pre-season, the KWR team now has a plan for the upcoming round two at Virginia International Raceway in three weeks time.

“The first round is in the books now and I’m happy to have scored points in both races, but not satisfied with our pace or results overall. We’ve got some work to do in order to get more comfortable with the bike but I know the KWR team will be able to put out a runner for the rest of the season. It’s up to me as a rider to start maximizing the potential of our bike so with our few mechanicals sorted out I look forward to pounding out laps in Virginia and figuring it out.”

Round two at Virginia International Raceway will not feature the King of the Baggers but is set for a Superbike double-header May 21-23, 2021.

For more information about Panera Bread, visit www.panerabread.com.

Stay tuned for news and updates on KWR at www.kylewyman.com

More, from a press release issued by Scott Powersports KTM:

Tyler Scott Wins at MotoAmerica Junior Cup Debut

Tyler Scott, aboard his Scott Powersports KTM RC 390 R, won the opening race of MotoAmerica’s SportbikeTrackGear.com Junior Cup.  Scott backed the win up with a second place in the race two on Sunday.  The performance has him tied for the championship lead going into the second round at Virginia International Raceway.

“We had a lot of unknowns coming into this race.  Tyler hasn’t raced this KTM at all prior to this, and the Ninja 400’s have been consistently developed for a couple of years,” team owner Mike Scott said.  “And while the results are impressive, what’s also impressive is the outpouring of support from the MotoAmerica paddock, the fans, and specifically fans of the KTM brand.  Tyler was even asked to sign a fan’s bike in the pits after his win!”

“I’m not usually the nervous type, but coming in here not knowing if our package could be competitive definitely had me thinking,” Tyler added. “Once we got going, and I could see that the bike could hang in the draft, I knew it would just come down to my riding and using the KTM’s strengths.  Racing with a bunch of my friends was really fun.  The first win was awesome, but the second place in race two stung a little.  We’ll head to VIR even stronger using everything we learned this first weekend.”

The team is incredibly thankful to the companies that have helped them along the way, including KTM North America, Arai helmets and Scott Powersports.  Special thanks also go out to Bob Robbins, Dave Loikits, Dale Quarterley and Eraldo Ferracci for their help and mentorship.

The next MotoAmerica SportbikeTrackGear.com Junior Cup round is at Virginia International Raceway on 5/21.

More, from a press release issued by Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati New York:

Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati Team Recaps Road Atlanta MotoAmerica

The Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati Team and rider Loris Baz had their ups and downs during the opening round of the 2021 MotoAmerica HONOS Superbike Championship at Road Atlanta.

The 28-year-old Frenchman Baz had never ridden the track previously but went straight to work during Friday practice and qualifying aboard his Ducati V4 R. Baz and finished third overall. The team had another round of qualifying Saturday morning, and Baz remained as fast, qualifying third.

Baz got off to a strong start during Saturday’s Race 1 but crashed while battling for the lead with five laps remaining. The crash led to an 11th place starting position on Sunday’s grid for Race 2. Baz quickly worked his way to the fourth position before a DNF due to a technical problem aboard the V4 R.

“For sure, it was not the weekend we wanted,” Baz said. “But we will keep the head up. The guys in the team did a strong job. I needed a better start in race two than on I did on Saturday and got it, but I still don’t have a good feeling on the new tire. But once the tire started to drop, I felt so good. The feeling was awesome on the Ducati. I went P3 but then we had a technical issue, so I had to come in and change the part. I am disappointed, but once again, I will keep the head up because there is still 450 points in this championship on offer. We’re alive and we’re going make it up. We will work harder and we will come to VIR stronger than ever.”

With 450 championship points remaining in the nine-race MotoAmerica HONOS Superbike Championship, the team will regroup and prepare for the challenge at Virginia International Raceway, which is set for May 21-23.

For ongoing race season updates, subscribe to HSBK Racing on:

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More, from a press release issued by HONOS HVMC Racing:

Mixed Results For HONOS HVMC Racing During Atlanta Season Opener

Braselton, Georgia ( May 5th, 2021 ) – Honos HVMC Racing leaves Road Atlanta with mixed results from riders Corey Alexander and Richie Escalante over the weekend.

Riding his all new 2021 Graves Spec Kawasaki ZX-10RR for the first time ever, Corey Alexander showed good pace in practice and qualifying sessions immediately running within the top 8. Ultimately he would have to settle for a P6 starting position whilst getting caught out by a red flag in the final minutes of Q2. Stock 1000cc Race 1 resulted in a 6th place finish with a failed mid-race charge to the front after Corey miscalculated a pass through lapped traffic. Race two added to the frustration with a ride through penalty after a jumped start, compounded by another penalty for pit lane speeding. Despite this, Corey managed to rally to a P13 finish.

In Superbike Race 1 the #23 machine was forced to start from the back of the grid after missing the sighting lap. Corey managed to work his way up through the field into 8th position and in the lead of Superbike Cup class only to have a mechanical issue force him out of the race. Sunday’s Superbike race 2 saw Corey wrap up his weekend with a solid 11th place finish and 3rd in the Superbike Cup class amongst fellow Stock 1000cc competitors.

Corey commented “This weekend was trying for the entire team with Richie and I both having to swap to a backup chassis after big crashes. After virtually no testing we had hoped for the best but things did not go 100% according to plan. Overall I am super pumped with our program for 2021 and how everything has come together. I want to thank all of our sponsors for getting us here. We will come back to fight even harder at VIR.”

Richie Escalante had a better weekend than his teammate aboard his HONOS HVMC Graves Spec Kawasaki ZX-6R, challenging for the lead through practice and both qualifying sessions. In race one Richie was able to keep close to the eventual race winner and finish second, without any challengers from behind – a full thirty seconds clear of the pack. Race two proved to be a bit more difficult after an early race mistake distanced him from the leader but again resulted in a second place finish twenty seconds clear of the rest of the field.

Richie was overall happy with his results and stated “After a big crash Saturday I am happy to come away from the weekend healthy and with 40 points. Our whole team worked really well together and I am very thankful to them for their hard work. I am eager to get to Virginia, one of my favorite tracks!”.

The Honos HVMC Racing team heads to Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia for round 2 of the MotoAmerica Championship May 21-23. You can purchase tickets to the event via MotoAmerica.com or in person at the race track.

About WE ARE HONOS®

Founded in 2018, HONOS is a Los Angeles based performance gear and fashion apparel brand that promotes talent within the adrenaline sports realm. With worldwide partnerships ranging from the American Racing team in Moto2 to title sponsorship of the HONOS Superbike class in MotoAmerica, HONOS has heavily invested it’s brand into motorsports. Follow @wearehonos or visit wearehonos.com to shop now.

About Hudson Valley Motorcycles

Hudson Valley Motorcycles is a family owned and operated motorcycle dealership that has been serving New York’s Hudson Valley and Westchester County as well as Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New England region. HVMC has offered Kawasaki, Ducati, Scrambler Ducati, Suzuki, Energica and ATV, motorcycle or UTV Sales, Parts, and Service for over 50 years. For more info visit hudsonvalleymotorcycles.com, call (914)-762-2722 or follow @hvmotorcycles on social media.

More, from a press release issued by Ethan Cook Racing:

Floor to the Top 8 for Ethan in Atlanta

Ethan Cook leaves the opening round of the 2021 MotoAmerica Twins Cup championship at Road Atlanta with eight points after an eighth-place finish in Sunday’s second race.

He missed the season opener on Saturday following a crash in qualifying which saw his team working flat out to get him back on track.

For Cook, a ‘rookie’ in the category, Sunday’s race result is a confidence builder for the rest of the season which continues at Virginia International Raceway in a couple of weeks.

Ethan Cook: “It was a pretty tough weekend, the first together as a new team for an actual racing event. On Friday I missed the opening Free Practice session as we were still working through some things with the electronics and then in Q1 I rode half the session and unfortunately crashed at Turn 10. It was my fault, but my Wrench Motorsports crew did a great job to get me back out for Q2. I kept it upright and made the grid which was the target. When it came to the race the bike had another small issue, so we weren’t able to ride. The guys stayed up late and we switched the ECU and wiring harness and luckily, we were able to get it all sorted for Sunday. The bike felt good in Warm-Up and finally I felt confident. The race was really enjoyable, I made an average start, and I was able to improve my lap times, but then there was a red flag. On the restart I worked my further up the field and eventually finished eighth. All in all, considering all the frustrations, and all the challenges we faced I am happy. We move to VIR with points on the board and we will be in great shape from the off there.”

For more information go to EthanCookRacing.com

More, from a press release issued by Landers Racing:

After a winter full of training on the ice, supermoto, motocross, and road racing, Ben Gloddy came into the 2021 Sportbiketrackgear.com MotoAmerica Junior Cup Season more prepared than in the past and with a new team, Landers Racing. The first round at Road Atlanta seemed to prove that his hard work and off-season training paid off.

In race one after a red flag restart, Gloddy had a decent start and was able to work his way into second place where he swapped positions a few times with the leader. On the final lap, Gloddy was trying to close the gap to the leader but was not able to make up enough ground to make a pass for the lead. Finishing the race in second place, Gloddy logged the fastest lap of the race with a 1:41.513.

In race two after another red flag, Gloddy had a good start and was in the lead group exchanging positions throughout the race. On the final lap, it was obvious he was trying to set himself up for a strong move. On the back straight away, he was able to draft for the lead and held on through the final few corners and onto straight to capture his first MotoAmerica victory. On the final lap, Gloddy again logged the fastest lap of the race and weekend with a 1:41.130, three-tenths off the lap record.

Ben had this to say, “Coming away from Road Atlanta with second and first place finishes was a great way to kick off the 2021 season. I cannot thank the Landers Racing crew; Stoney, Tarl, Will, Thomas, Lees Cycle Service, Ohlins USA, KFG Motorsports, CJR Performance, Evol Technology, enough for putting together such a competitive bike. After a great test at COTA and then this past weekend at Road Atlanta, I am feeling very confident in our ability to be a championship contender. Thank you to my team, The Big S, Freedom Cycle, American Supercamp, Penguin Racing, REB Graphics/Innovative Motorsports, Atlantic Cruising Yachts, Arai Helmets, Dunlop, Scott Stump, Roche Realty Group, Sportbike Track Gear, Fast by Ferracci, Barnett Clutches and Cables, Tyrant Designs CNC and all of my team and personal sponsors for all of the support, as well as my parents, family, friends, and fans! I am excited for round two at VIR in a few weeks!”

Team owner Stoney Landers had this to say about Ben’s breakout performance, “Ben showed last year that he had the consistency and speed to be on the podium, but this year, it seems Ben has risen to a new level.  It has been a very rewarding experience thus far to work with another talented and focused racer.  Ben just does everything right, he knows when to push and when to be a bit more conservative, he sits down and writes his notes after every session, gives great feedback, and then he gives it his all on the track.  I am very impressed with him.  Saturday he did a great job giving Tyler and some of the other kids a run for their money and ended up with a solid 2nd place.  He and I knew directly after the race we could make the bike a little better for Sunday’s race.  When it came time for Sunday’s race, we talked about a strategy for the race and Ben implemented it absolutely perfectly.  On the last lap, his run out of turn 7, his riding technique from turn 10 to the final corner was brilliant.  He rode a perfect race and ended up on top of the box finally.  He was so happy on the podium, it was really cool.  His mechanic, Tarl, his teammate Rocco, the rest of our crew, and his family that was in attendance, were so happy for him!

Rocco Landers lands on the podium in his first-ever weekend racing in the ultra-competitive 600ss class

After 2 stunning seasons, 38 wins, 3 championships, and multiple broken records, it finally came time for Rocco Landers to graduate to the stacked 600ss class.  With so little time to test on his new Yamaha YZF-R6, it really was an unknown as to what to expect coming into the Atlanta Round.

Saturday’s race ended early for Rocco as he was involved in a turn one incident and hit the deck.  His mechanics Thomas and Will worked hard to get the bike back together and ready for Sunday’s warm-up and race 2.

Rocco had this to say, “After Saturday’s crash and dealing with the traction control issue in race two, I never thought I would be as happy as I was to get 3rd in race two. I felt like it was a big accomplishment to get on the box after such a difficult weekend. We are going to get several technical issues sorted out for VIR and of course, we are always pushing for the win. I would like to thank my mechanics, Thomas and Will, my mom, and dad for all their all  of their hard work, and all of my sponsors who push to support me.”

Stoney Landers had this to say, “Race 2 started with some interruption as a red flag stopped the action after only a couple laps.  For the re-start, Rocco did not get the best start and ended up roughly 8th in turn 1.  He lost some ground and had to work his way back up to the 3rd-6th place group.  He got by 6th, then was kind of dangling back behind Stefano Mesa and Benjamin Smith who were holding the 3rd and 4th positions down.  He noticed in the race that the bike felt a bit flat and didn’t have a great drive out of the corners.  With roughly 3 laps to go, he noticed that his traction control indicator showed “level 4″.  It must have gotten accidentally bumped up while he was racing.  As he doesn’t really mess with traction control on the 600, he turned it back down as he was heading into turn 6.  Immediately his Yamaha started to pull off the corners better and he was able to get back up to the Mesa and Smith battle.  We have not seen coverage of the pass yet, but on the final lap, heading into turn 10, he was able to out-brake both Mesa and Smith in one maneuver, then hold that position to get a well-deserved 3rd place!”

Stoney continued by saying, “I really cannot thank my team enough, which includes but is not limited to Thomas, Will, Tarl, my wife, Barry and all of the guys at Ohlins, Steve with Evol Technology, Philipe with Beringer Brakes, Chuck and the guys at Westby Racing, Cameron with CJR Performance, Tige and all of the MotoAmerica Crew, Thomas with Tyrant CNC, Tony, Cory and all of the crew at Dunlop, Reese and Scott with REB Graphics, Tom Halverson and Jim Roach at Yamaha USA/Yamalube, Jody and Eric at Lees Cycle, Barnett Clutches and Cables, California Superbike School, HJC Helmets, Mithos Leathers, Chuckwalla Raceway, Vortex/EK, and SBS Brakes, Track Daz, American Racing Team, Brian and Jimmy with Sportbike Track Gear, Mike Welch and all of our other sponsors. Without everyone’s contribution, none of this would be possible.”

Individual and Team Sponsorship Opportunities are still available for the 2021 MotoAmerica Season, please contact:

Christina Day, [email protected]

Stoney Landers, [email protected]

Rider Connection:

Ben Gloddy, [email protected]

bengloddyracing.com

More, from a press release issued by Altus Motorsports:

MotoAmerica: Round 1 Results from Road Atlanta for the Altus Motorsports Tucker Environmental Service Solutions Team

(Braselton, GA) Since their first participation in a MotoAmerica event back in 2015, Altus Motorsports has been committed to the sport and developing talent. In 2020, the team took home the Stock 1000 and Superbike Cup championships. Every year they put in an impressive team effort from both riders and crew and this year is no different. The 2021 MotoAmerica season kicked off at Road Atlanta and Altus showed up ready to begin where they left off.

Honos Superbike & Stock 1000:

Jake Lewis came back to racing after a year off and took the reins of the Altus Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000 in both Stock 1000 and Superbike Cup classes.

The Stock 1000 races were extremely exciting and hard-fought racing. Jake started both races from the front row in third. Race One turned into a seven-bike battle for the podium for the entire race. In the end, Lewis finished just off the podium in fourth place. An amazing start to Race Two saw Jake take the holeshot and then run a close second in a two bike breakaway at the front. An unfortunate incident in Turn Seven put him back to eighth. He spent the remainder of the race fighting his way back up to fourth.

In the Superbike Class, Jake started the first race from 13th and finished 11th place overall. Sunday, in Superbike Race Two, Lewis crossed the line in ninth place overall and as the second-fastest Stock 1000 bike.

Supersport 600:

Round One of the MotoAmerica Series was Jaret Nassaney’s first time back on his Suzuki GSX-R600 after several months off recovering from an injury to his arm sustained during off-season training. Nassaney was progressively faster each session and qualified 16th for Race One. He finished the race in an impressive eighth place. He started from 15th in Race Two and spent most of the race fighting for ninth. Ultimately, he took the checkered flag in 12th position.

“Overall it was a good weekend. It took me a bit to reacclimate to the bike after the crash a couple of months ago. I wanted to improve every time I went out and I did,” said Jaret Nassaney. “It was great to get back to racing at the national level. My arm definitely is not up to full strength and endurance but I have three weeks before VIR to get it back to 100%.”

Cooper McDonald stepped in for the injured Kevin Olmedo for Round One of the MotoAmerica season. McDonald has spent the last few years racing in the Twins Class. As a result, he had to spend the weekend learning the bike and how to ride Road Atlanta with significantly more horsepower. He started the first Supersport race from 18th. A first corner incident ahead of him broke the back field up. As a result he could not latch onto the faster pack and spent much of the race circulating in a lonely 10th. Unfortunately, a last corner mistake put him back a few spots to finish in 16th place. On Sunday, he started from 17th. Cooper spent most of the race in great battles and fought his way forward to finish in 13th place. Impressive results for his first weekend on a 600.

“What a great weekend. I was on quite the learning curve with the bike. It’s very different from riding a Twin. I was adapting every lap of every session. In Race One, there was an incident in Turn One that caused the pack to break up a bit. As a result, I couldn’t go with the pack I wanted to run with. Race Two was better. I had a good battle,” said Cooper McDonald. “I can’t thank the Altus team enough for thinking of me. They are a great group of people and made the weekend super easy. I just had to show up and ride.”

In spite of his inability to ride, Kevin Olmedo came to the event to support the team and show off his scars from shoulder surgery. Olmedo will meet with his doctors this week to evaluate his chances to make VIR. He is hopeful he can make Round Two but if not, he will definitely be at Road America for Round Three.

Liqui Moly Junior Cup: 

2021 is Hayden Bicknese’s first season in the Junior Cup and, as a result, most of the tracks are new to him. At Road Atlanta, Bicknese impressed early by ranking third on the charts during first practice. He spent the weekend getting used to the Altus Factory Racing Kawasaki Ninja 400 and learning the technical Road Atlanta track. In the first Junior Cup race of the weekend, Hayden started ninth and finished seventh in a close, three-bike battle for 6th place. He spent Sunday’s race in another multi-bike battle, this time for eighth. In the end, he crossed the line in ninth place. His pace showed his capabilities. As the season goes on he will only get stronger.

“Overall I’d say it was a good weekend. We started strong and finished strong. We consistently improved as a team which gave me confidence. I still have some learning to do on how to ride the Altus bike fast. I don’t know VIR so I will be learning that track as well,” said Hayden Bicknese.

“I think the weekend was a success!  New riders, new mechanics and by Sunday everyone was working together. We really appreciate Suzuki stepping up to help and I’m excited to get the season underway and get our riders on the Box!” said team-owner, George Nassaney.

The Altus Motorsports team is supported by our great family of sponsors: Altus Motorsports, Environmental Service Solutions, Suzuki Motor Corporation, Creative Sports Concepts, Tucker Powersports, Schaefer Engineering, Hot Bodies Racing, M4 Exhausts, Vortex EK, Motion Pro, Barnett, VP Lubricants, SBS Brakes,Galfer USA, Moto-D Racing, Bonamici, Ohlins, K-Techs, RS Taichi, Arai, Law Tigers Oklahoma, and Altus Factory Racing.