Cameron Petersen won MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike Race One in rainy conditions Saturday afternoon at Ridge Motorsports Park, in Shelton, Washington.
Petersen and his Attack Performance/Progressive Yamaha Racing teammate Jake Gagne were nose-to-tail all the way and even exchanged the some close passes, but when a red flag brought the race to a premature end after eight laps, Petersen was declared the winner for the third time in 2024.
The wet conditions allowed three-time and defending Champion Gagne to ride without the arm pump problems that have plagued him all season and take second place, 0.032 second behind Petersen.
Xavi Fores, riding in placed of injured Richie Escalante on a Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R, got third place and his first MotoAmerica Superbike podium finish.
Danilo Lewis was fourth on his Stock 1000-spec Team Brazil BMW.
AMD Motosport RK Racing Honda rider Richard Kerr scored fifth.
Ashton Yates was challenging Kerr but had to settle for sixth on his Jones Honda.
Hayden Gillim brought his Real Steel Motorsports Honda home in seventh.
Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Loris Baz was the top-finishing rider, eighth, known to have been on slicks.
Fores’ teammate Brandon Paasch came back from a big off-track excursion on the first lap time take ninth.
Tytlers Cycle Racing BMW’s JD Beach pitted after the warm-up lap to change from slicks to rain tires, started the race last from pit lane, and worked his way up to 10th by the finish.
24_7_RIDGE_SBK_R1_res SECOND REVISIONS
More, from a press release issued by MotoAmerica:
Splish-Splash It’s Petersen Over Gagne In Wet Ridge Race One
Cameron Petersen Tops Teammate Jake Gagne In Surprise Wet Race At Ridge Motorsports Park
SHELTON, WA (June 29, 2024) – Rain races are difficult. Rain races when you’re not quite sure if they are going to stay wet are even worse. Turns out that the surprise rain on Saturday at Ridge Motorsports Park ended up truly surprising a lot of the field – but not the Attack Performance/Progressive/Yamaha Racing and Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki teams.
The result was a runaway one-two finish for the Yamaha squad with Cameron Petersen beating his teammate Jake Gagne by just .032 of a second in the red-flag-shortened race that was already shortened because of the conditions. The two crews had fitted Dunlop rain tires to Petersen’s and Gagne’s YZF-R1s and it paid dividends.
Third place went to the other factory team that got it right with Xavi Forés earning his first-career MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike podium by splish-splashing his way to third on the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki with its full Dunlop rain tires. Forés ended up 9.5 seconds behind the Yamaha duo and some three seconds clear of Team Brazil’s Danilo Lewis with the Superbike Cup series leader also on rains.
The first of those using slick racing tires was eighth-placed Loris Baz on the Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati with the Frenchman somehow keeping the Panigale V4 upright to cross the line a minute and 13 seconds off Petersen’s winning pace.
In between Lewis and Baz came AMD Motorsport RK Racing’s Richard Kerr, the Irishman at home in the conditions. Then came Stock 1000 podium finishers Ashton Yates with his Jones Honda and Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim in seventh and eighth, respectively.
Forés’s teammate Brandon Paasch had rains fitted and came back from an off-track excursion to finish ninth. He was also given a five-second penalty for working on the bike on the grid.
Some big names who gambled with slicks paid the consequences, including Baz’s teammate Josh Herrin (11th) and Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong (14th).
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s JD Beach started from pit lane after opting to swap to rain tires after the warm-up lap. He rode through a lot of the pack to finish 10th, turning in the fifth-fastest lap of the race in the process.
Among the non-finishers were Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier and TopPro Racing’s Sean Dylan Kelly, both of whom opted out after starting on slicks and realizing it was a mistake.
With his third win of the season, Petersen jumps to third in the Steel Commander Superbike Championship with 135 points. Gagne, who has been struggling with arm-pump issues, got some reprieve with the rain, and his second-place finish moved him past Fong and into the lead, 150-138.
Ducati teammates Herrin and Baz are fourth and fifth, respectively, 124-109.
Superbike Race 1
- Cameron Petersen (Yamaha)
- Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
- Xavi Forés (Suzuki)
- Danilo Lewis (BMW)
- Richard Kerr (Honda)
- Ashton Yates (Honda)
- Hayden Gillim (Honda)
- Loris Baz (Ducati)
- Brandon Paasch (Suzuki)
- JD Beach (BMW)
Quotes
Cam Petersen – Winner
“Like Jake (Gagne) said, as a team, we kind of sat down and decided to go with the rains and it worked out. It definitely was the right choice. But it was just such a fun race. It’s really fun racing with JG (Gagne) when you know that nothing crazy is going to happen. Nobody is going to throw a shot at you that’s sketchy or dangerous. It was funny because literally, like Jake said, we locked eyes going down the straightaway. I looked into his eyes, and I just started cracking up. The team did an incredible job in the short amount of time they had, with getting the bike somewhat into a wet setting. Just a good day overall. Third win on the season. I think coming into this season, I only had three Superbike wins. So, super stoked to get that in one season. Just looking forward to tomorrow. Looking forward to a dry race. I’ve felt good all weekend here, so I think tomorrow should be a good one and a dogfight. Congrats to these two boys for being on the podium. Congrats to Xavi (Forés) on his first (MotoAmerica) Superbike podium. Let’s go get it tomorrow.”
Jake Gagne – Second Place
“The little sighting lap thing we had, it was already really sketchy. Just to kind of be safer, I thought it would be a good call. It was a tough call, but these bikes work really good in the rain. Like Xavi (Forés) said, it was only 10 aps, so even if it started drying, we could just burn up that tire. Fortunately for us, it kept raining. It got really, really tricky even on rains there at the end. Hats off to Cam (Petersen). It was fun racing him down to the wire again. Red flag caught me by surprise, too. I only saw his hand. But good day. Obviously, it’s been a tough couple races. To be back on the podium is good. One, two for the team is awesome. So, we’ll see what happens tomorrow.”
Xavi Forés – Third Place
“Honestly, when I saw the race distance was 10 laps, it was still light rain. I said, ‘We have to take the chance to go with wet.’ Also, I saw the guys (Petersen and Gagne) putting the rain tires and said, ‘Let’s do the same.’ It was not a very long-distance race. The track was a bit tricky at the beginning. If you got the chance to get the gap at the beginning with the rain tires, by the time they are catching you, the race is nearly finished. Then we had also a red flag. So, it was a little bit of a gamble, but we managed quite well. I was happy. The first part of the race, I tried to follow them, but I was taking so much risk. I was spinning a lot. We didn’t have the chance to go softer with the springs in the rear, so I said, let’s take this podium back home and get the feeling and start here. Tomorrow, maybe if it’s dry, we’re going to have another chance to stay in the top five. We made some good changes this weekend. I changed nearly the whole bike from yesterday to today. The pace is there, so I’m very happy. After Brainerd when I crashed, my shoulder is still not 100 percent. To be here on the podium is good. Pretty happy. Looking for more, for sure.”
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Petersen and Gagne Finish 1-2 at The Ridge
Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing makes championship gains, scoring a dominant 1-2 finish with Cameron Petersen and Jake Gagne in MotoAmerica Superbike Race 1 at The Ridge
MARIETTA, Ga. – June 30, 2024 – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Cameron Petersen scored his third victory of the season, closely followed by teammate Jake Gagne in yesterday’s MotoAmerica Superbike Race 1 at The Ridge Motorsports Park. Tire choice proved to be key as weather unexpectedly loomed and would ultimately descend on the 2.47-mile track in Shelton, Washington. The team shod their R1s with rain tires, and both riders took full advantage to score a dominant 1-2 finish and make gains in the hotly contested premier-class title chase, with Gagne reclaiming the points lead and Petersen advancing to third.
Petersen got the day off to a great start, qualifying second to start on the front row of the grid. When it came time to race later in the afternoon, the weather deteriorated, and it was declared a wet race. Even though the track was drying at the time, there was rain on the radar, so Petersen and his teammate lined up with rain tires. The South African got a great start in the mixed conditions to claim the lead and started to build a gap up front on the opening lap, but Gagne closed in. The Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing duo set the pace up front and rode away from the competition. Although under pressure, Petersen held off the advances from his teammate in the final laps to secure the victory in the shortened, red-flagged race. His third win of the season resulted in an important points haul to move him within 15 points of his teammate at the top.
Still not feeling 100% with arm pump issues, Gagne had a solid qualifying in fifth. He got a great start in the mixed conditions in third and then quickly moved to the runner-up spot. The defending three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion threw down some fast laps, closed in on his teammate, and made a couple of attempts to take the lead in the final laps but ultimately finished second in the red-flagged race. Gagne’s runner-up finish reclaimed the championship lead and gave the team their fourth double podium of the season. It was a 20-point gain for Gagne, who now holds a 12-point lead over fellow Yamaha rider Bobby Fong.
The Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing team looks to keep the momentum rolling in this afternoon’s second race of Round 5 of the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship at The Ridge Motorsports Park in Shelton, Washington.
Richard Stanboli – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“It was another great day for the team at The Ridge. We made the right tire choice, and our R1s were on point. Cam and Jake brought it home for another 1-2 finish, and we took back the championship lead with Jake and made gains in the championship with Cam as well. After that tough weekend at Brainerd, we came back to smash the competition as promised. We will try to repeat it tomorrow in the dry.”
Cameron Petersen – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing #45
“We had a look at the radar, and it looked like it was going to stick around for a while. The whole team put their heads together, and we decided that this was the right choice and it paid off. That was such a fun race. I started looking at Jake’s board and saw that we were pulling a gap. At that point, I just took a breath and knew we were in a good position and just tried to ride as smooth as possible. It’s so fun racing Jake. We know nothing stupid’s going to happen, so it allows us to race hard. We’re looking to keep the momentum in the championship rolling and get another win tomorrow in the dry.”
Jake Gagne – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing #1
“The rain was a surprise, so great job to the team making the right call. I had a great battle with Cam, and the Yamahas were perfect, so we had a good day! We’re ready for a shot in the dry tomorrow.”
About Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A.
Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. (YMUS), is a recognized leader in the outdoor recreation industry. The company’s ever-expanding product offerings include Motorcycles and Scooters, ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles, Snowmobiles, Personal Watercraft, Boats, Outboard Motors, Outdoor Power Equipment, Power Assist Bicycles, Golf Cars [sold, serviced, and distributed by Yamaha Golf-Car Company], Power Assist Wheelchair Systems, Surface Mount Technology and Robotic Machines, Unmanned Helicopters, Accessories, Apparel, Yamalube products, and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of distributors and dealers in the United States.
YMUS has a corporate office in California, three corporate offices in Georgia, as well as facilities in Wisconsin, Alabama, and Florida. YMUS subsidiaries Yamaha Motor Manufacturing Corporation of America (YMMC), based in Georgia, and Yamaha Jet Boat Manufacturing U.S.A. (YJBM) based in Tennessee, each assemble and manufacture selected Yamaha brand products. YMUS owns Skeeter Boats [Texas] with its division G3 Boats [Missouri]. Additional U.S.-based subsidiaries include Yamaha Marine Systems Company, Inc. (YMSC) with subsidiary Siren Marine [Rhode Island] and divisions Bennett Marine [Florida], Yamaha Marine Rotational Molders [Wisconsin] and Yamaha Precision Propeller Inc. [Indiana].
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