MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Series
Circuit of The Americas
Austin, Texas
April 13, 2019
EBC Brakes Superbike Race One Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Toni Elias (Suz GSX-R1000), 15 laps, Total Race Time 32:51.807, Best Lap Time 2:10.463
2. Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R1), -0.089 second, 2:10.591
3. Garrett Gerloff (Yam YZF-R1), -0.248, 2:10.449, started from the back of the grid
4. Josh Herrin (Suz GSX-R1000), -1.913 seconds, 2:10.483
5. JD Beach (Yam YZF-R1), -15.560, 2:11.659
6. Jake Lewis (Suz GSX-R1000), -19.165, 2:11.403
7. Mathew Scholtz (Yam YZF-R1), -35.247, crash, 2:12.332
8. David Anthony (Kaw ZX-10RR), -35.344, 2:12.637
9. Cameron Petersen (Yam YZF-R1), -35.798, 2:12.447
10. Kyle Wyman (Duc Panigale V4 R), -48.056, 2:13.233
11. Travis Wyman (BMW S1000RR), -87.821, 2:13.225
12. Sam Verderico (Yam YZF-R1), -125.130, 2:8.299
13. Max Flinders (Yam YZF-R1), -125.403, 2:18.337
14. Felipe MacLean (Suz GSX-R1000), -253.328, 2:21.389
15. Bradley Ward (Kaw ZX-10R), DNF, 2:20.745
16. Jake Gagne (BMW S1000RR), DNS
Championship Point Standings (after 3 of 20 races):
1. Elias, 70 points
2. Beaubier, 61
3. Scholtz, 42
4. Beach, 40
5. Lewis, 29
6. Anthony, 28
7. Herrin, 24
8. Gerloff, 23
9. Petersen, 20
10. Kyle Wyman, 16
11. Geoff May, 14
12. Flinders, 12
13. Verderico, 10
14. Samuel Trepanier, 9
15. Gagne, 8
16. Travis Wyman, 5
17. MacLean, 2
More, from a press release issued by MotoAmerica:
Elias Continues COTA Mastery
Sixth Win In Seven Races For Spaniard
(Above) Toni Elias (24) leads Cameron Beaubier (1), Garrett Gerloff (31), and Josh Herrin (2) during MotoAmerica Superbike Race One at Circuit of The Americas. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
AUSTIN, TX (April 13, 2019)– Yoshimura Suzuki’s Toni Elias continues to show that he is the MotoAmerica version of Marc Marquez when it comes to winning motorcycle races at the Circuit of The Americas. Elias won a scintillating battle with Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing’s Cameron Beaubier to win his sixth out of seven starts in Texas.
After 15 laps of the 3.426-mile Circuit of The Americas, Elias beat Beaubier by just .089 of a second after a battle that went to the final two corners. And Beaubier’s teammate, Garrett Gerloff, was just .248 of a second behind in third place – despite starting the race from the back of the grid.
Josh Herrin, who led at times early in the race, ended up fourth, 1.9 seconds behind his teammate Elias.
JD Beach rode the Attack Performance Estenson Racing Yamaha to fifth, some four seconds clear of fellow Kentuckian Jake Lewis on the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki.
Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz ran off the track once, crashed and remounted to finish seventh, barely besting FLY Racing/ADR Motorsports’ David Anthony and Omega Moto’s Cameron Petersen with the trio separated by just .454 of a second.
KWR Ducati’s Kyle Wyman rounded out the top 10 finishers.
Scheibe Racing BMW’s Jake Gagne didn’t make the start after crashing out of the warm-up session prior to the start of the race, tweaking his previously broken leg. Gagne has made the decision not to race tomorrow and will rejoin the series at VIRginia International Raceway, May 4-5.
With his second win of the season, Elias leads the MotoAmerica EBC Brakes Superbike Championship by nine points over Beaubier, 70-61. Scholtz is third with 42 points, two better than Beach. Lewis rounds out the top five with 29 points.
Cameron Beaubier
“Going into the last lap I felt like I had a couple spots where I was a little bit better than him and he had some spots that he was better than me. I felt pretty strong in the last section today compared to previous times here. Overall, really I felt like my R1 was working pretty good compared to the past few years here. So, hats off to my team for giving me a good bike this weekend. I tried to go up the inside of him in the second-to-last corner because I felt like I was getting through that right pretty good. He tightened up his line pretty good going in there, just because obviously it’s the last lap. Then he didn’t take the same line he did, so I kind of had to square off that corner a little bit and I just had no drive going into the last corner. He got me going into the last corner. He stood it up, played it smart. There was nothing I could really do about it. Like I said, I’m happy with where are right now with the bike and with my riding and my team. I got a really strong teammate this year. Garrett’s riding really, really good. I feel like it’s really good for both of us, just pushing each other forward and forward. It’s going to be a fun rest of the year. Looking forward to tomorrow.
Garrett Gerloff
“Just had a little bit of trouble getting the bike started. The pace car passed me so I guess by the rules I had to start from the back of the grid. Definitely a hard first lap because the first sector is all just one line, it seems like. I was getting pretty frustrated trying to get around these guys. Luckily Cameron (Beaubier), Toni (Elias) and Josh (Herrin) and whoever else, they were kind of dicing and catching each other, slowing each other up and gave me the opportunity to come back. I was fired up from having to start in the back of the grid. Kind of a slap in the face, but it was good. It gave me some motivation and I was able to come back and be close to these guys for the last couple laps. In the last corner I thought I was going to have the opportunity to get up the inside but of course I missed a shift going in there and couldn’t get the thing into second gear. So, I came out of the last corner clear and just didn’t have the drive to try to pass at least one of them. It’s good. The bike was good. Ready for tomorrow and going to go give the best I got.”
Toni Elias
“Before I arrive at COTA this year, I was pretty sure they will be there this year, because all the things happening in Atlanta was 200% they could be there. And is what happened. Every practice they’ve been there. We worked well, but still we are missing something. We have to work more to find it. Anyway, today was pretty particular. It rained a lot. The track was not the same as yesterday. Was so different. Big difference to lead the race or be in second or third position. It was much more easy just because the wind is much less. The wind made me make a couple mistakes in the last lap when I was pushing hard. I think for that, he was more close than the other laps. I didn’t expect he pass me on the bridge down there. I didn’t expect it. I tried to move quick and also I closed the door before the last corner, but he made it. So, congratulations. Is an amazing ride. I played my card. Was good. We finished and win this race. It’s amazing. I need to sit down with my team, work a little bit more, find something for tomorrow, especially with the rear grip. Anyway, we are consistent, happy. Let’s see what happens.”
More, from a press release issued by Attack Performance Estenson Racing:
Solid Top-Five Finish for JD Beach in Race One at COTA
AUSTIN, TX (April 13, 2019) – JD Beach put forth another good effort, crossing the line fifth in race one of the second round of the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship, Saturday, April 13, at the Circuit of The Americas.
Once again, Beach got off to a great start on his Attack Performance Estenson Racing Yamaha YZF-R1, going from the sixth spot on the grid to right on the heels of the leader into turn one. Unfortunately for Beach, he was struggling to find edge grip in the challenging gusty conditions and was ultimately shuffled back to fifth. The two-time MotoAmerica Supersport champ went on to knock down the laps and keep it on two wheels for another top-five finish in just his third race back on a Superbike.
(Above) JD Beach (95) leading Garrett Gerloff (31) and Jake Lewis (85) during MotoAmerica Race One at COTA. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
JD Beach — MotoAmerica Superbike #95:
“The start was great again. The bike gets off the line really well. After the first lap or so, I knew it was going to be kind of a long race with the wind and stuff. I just kind of did the best I could with the wind and tried not to make too many mistakes. We struggled a little bit with edge grip when I was at full lean and with this track that makes for a really long race. I tried to stay with the front guys as long as I could and really tried to push the whole race.
“I know we’ll learn from this race. We still ended up not finishing too far behind the front guys, which I’m happy with especially since how I felt on the bike in these tough conditions. I know we’ll go back and make a plan for race two and try to fight with the front guys tomorrow. But to get another top five is great.”
MotoAmerica Superbike race two at COTA will be aired on FS2 Sunday, April 14 at 4:30 p.m. ET. You can also stream all the action live on MotoAmerica Live+ starting at 3:30 p.m. ET and Sunday, April 14.
More, from a press release issued by Team Hammer:
SOLID RESULT FOR ENTHUSIASTIC JAKE LEWIS IN TEXAS
(Above) Jake Lewis (85). Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Jake Lewis picked right up where he left off at last weekend’s MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing season opener with a second consecutive sixth-place finish in Saturday’s MotoAmerica Superbike race at the Circuit of The Americas.
Running alongside the MotoGP World Championship, Lewis did well in the 15-lap race with the eyes of the motorsports world focused firmly on Austin, Texas, this weekend.
The Kentuckian got off to a strong start aboard his M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000 after starting on Row 3. He quickly picked up another position to take over fifth place and ran as part of the lead group early in his bid to score his first top-five of 2019.
However, Lewis’ pursuit ultimately ran out of steam as tire wear increased, and he fell into a relatively lonely ride to sixth where he would finish.
Lewis was upbeat after the race and feels there’s still room for improvement ahead of tomorrow’s rematch.
He said, “Overall, this weekend has been quite a bit better than last weekend. We struggled some in Atlanta, but the Circuit of the Americas is definitely one of the tracks that I really like, and we’re making progress with the bike and the electronics step-by-step. We’ve been working hard and the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki guys have been putting in a lot of great work and effort for me.
“I knew I had the speed to run inside the top five. I got off to a good start and learned some things. A little past halfway, I encountered a few issues as the tires wore and that made the bike harder to ride.
“We brought it home for another sixth place, which is solid. We’ve got a lot to build on for tomorrow’s race. For sure, we’ll look to close the gap on the front guys and get in the top five. Being the top privateer would be nice, but we’ve got some more work to do before then to make that a realistic possibility.”
Meanwhile, Bolivian Felipe MacLean made his 2019 MotoAmerica debut in a wild card ride on the second M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000.
MacLean put in a points-paying ride on Saturday, finishing in 14th position.
Lewis and MacLean will be back in action again on Sunday in Superbike Race 2 to conclude the combined MotoAmerica and MotoGP weekend at the Circuit of the Americas.
About Team Hammer
The 2019 season marks Team Hammer’s 39th consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won 71 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA and MotoAmerica National podiums 207 times and have won five AMA Pro National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships. The team has also won 135 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 Overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running “Methanol Monster” GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.