MotoAmerica: The Supersport Decision Clarified

BIRMINGHAM, AL (September 22, 2019) – The following is the explanation for the decision to declare Bobby Fong the winner of Sunday’s Supersport race at Barber Motorsports Park.

Fong crashed out of the lead with four laps to go, remounted and had started to ride his motorcycle back to the pits prior to the red flag being thrown because of debris on the track from Fong’s crash.

The decision to declare Fong the winner of the race is based on regulation 1.28 Finish Of A Race And Race Results, d2, which reads:

“In the case of a race interrupted after two thirds distance completed (art. 1.26 f), be actively participating at the time of the red flag is displayed. For the purposes of these regulations “actively competing” is defined as the rider riding on track, or attempting to repair/restart the machine, or to rejoin the track or return to pit lane. Race Direction will be sole judge of whether a rider is actively competing.”

Both Richie Escalante’s and PJ Jacobsen’s teams filed protests, and both were denied. Escalante’s team protested that Fong “exceeded the track limits.” The protest was denied based on the following:

“It was determined that bike #50 did not exceed track limits, as the rider crashed into the grass while avoiding lapped traffic and did not gain a time advantage as per the Competition Bulletin #1.”

Jacobsen’s team protested that Fong should not be classified as a finisher. That protest was denied based on the following:

“According to the 2019 AMA FIMNA MotoAmerica 2019 Rulebook Section 1.28 D2, it was determined that bike #50 should be classified as a finisher as when the red flag was shown he was actively competing. Since the race was 2/3 completed, it could not be restarted.”

About MotoAmerica

MotoAmerica is the North American road racing series created in 2014 that is home to the AMA Superbike Championship. MotoAmerica is an affiliate of KRAVE Group LLC, a partnership that includes three-time 500cc World Champion, two-time AMA Superbike Champion, and AMA Hall of Famer Wayne Rainey, ex-racer and former manager of Team Roberts Chuck Aksland, motorsports marketing executive Terry Karges, and businessman Richard Varner. For more information on MotoAmerica, visit www.MotoAmerica.com. Also make sure to follow MotoAmerica on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.