JD Beach (95), Hayden Gillim (69) and Valentin Debise (53) racing for the lead during Supersport Race One. – Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
MotoAmerica Championship Of Alabama
MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Series
Barber Motorsports Park
Birmingham, Alabama
September 22, 2018
Provisional Supersport Race One Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Hayden Gillim (Yam YZF-R6), 10 laps, Total Race Time 14:47.782, Best Lap Time 1:28.147
2. JD Beach (Yam YZF-R6), -0.098 second, 1:27.804
3. Valentin Debise (Suz GSX-R600), -0.960, 1:28.114
4. Braeden Ortt (Yam YZF-R6), -7.629 seconds, 1:28.754
5. Bryce Prince (Yam YZF-R6), -9.359, 1:28.830
6. Nick McFadden (Suz GSX-R600), -14.181, 1:29.311
7. Jason Aguilar (Yam YZF-R6), -16.813, 1:29.595
8. Anthony Mazziotto III (Yam YZF-R6), -17.175, 1:29.724
9. Michael Gilbert (Yam YZF-R6), -18.417, 1:29.691
10. Miles Thornton (Suz GSX-R600), -18.642, 1:29.694
11. Wyatt Farris (Yam YZF-R6), -28.581, 1:30.620
12. Jaret Nassaney (Suz GSX-R600), -33.604, 1:31.222
13. Cory Burleson (Yam YZF-R6), -34.062, 1:31.287
14. Lucas Silva (Yam YZF-R6), -34.226, 1:31.259
15. Benjamin Smith (Suz GSX-R600), -34.613, 1:31.323
16. Richie Escalante (Yam YZF-R6), -35.566, crash, 1:28.492
17. Caroline Olsen (Yam YZF-R6), -38.875, 1:31.528
18. Garrett O’Brien (Yam YZF-R6), -52.434, 1:32.670
19. Daniel Paine (Yam YZF-R6), -52.539, 1:33.112
20. Fernando Silva (Yam YZF-R6), -53.122, 1:33.018
21. Mauricio Roque (Yam YZF-R6), -59.556, 1:33.473
22. Robert Pierce (Yam YZF-R6), -59.871, 1:32.988
23. Alan Phillips (Yam YZF-R6), -60.115, 1:33.385
24. Daytona Anderson (Suz GSX-R600), -124.974, crash, 1:29.651
25. Nolan Lamkin (Yam YZF-R6), DNF, 1:31.320
26. Andrew Bowen (Tri Daytona 675), DNF, 1:33.914
27. Max Angles (Yam YZF-R6), DNS, crashed in second portion of restarted race
28. Jordan Pence (Yam YZF-R6), DNS, crashed in second portion of restarted race
29. JC Camacho (Yam YZF-R6), DNS, crashed in first portion of restarted race
30. Joseph Giannotto (Yam YZF-R6), DNS, crashed in first portion of restarted race
31. Ashton Yates (Yam YZF-R6), DNS
More, from a press release issued by Team Hammer:
DEBISE RETURNS TO THE PODIUM IN ALABAMA
Team Hammer returned to its trophy-winning ways on Saturday at Barber Motorsports Park’s 2018 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing season finale.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Valentin Debise returned to action after missing time due to a concussion and immediately picked up where he left off. Debise qualified second on the grid for the MotoAmerica Supersport race and then ran up front throughout the twice-red flagged contest aboard his GSX-R600.
The Frenchman took the checkered flag in a close third and accomplished exactly what he set out to do after not knowing whether he’d even be able to compete this weekend.
The result was Debise’s eighth podium on the season despite missing extended time during two separate stretches. He heads into Sunday’s season finale ranked third in the MotoAmerica Supersport championship standings.
After the race, Debise said, “It’s good because when you hit your head twice in the same year, it’s never good. I wasn’t sure how I would feel in the race. I had to try in New Jersey, but I wasn’t able to ride. I went to California and thanks to the great doctor who saw me, I was feeling better coming here. I decided to give it a go this weekend just to see how I felt. Yesterday I felt pretty good; my body was so-so, but my head was good so I decided to race today.
“To be back on the podium is good, and my pace was good too — I was able to stay with the two front guys. But honestly, I didn’t have anything to try with them. My goal was just to stay there, be smooth, and work on my body position, and everything worked out good. I’m very happy. Thanks to my M4 ECSTAR Suzuki team. They gave me a great bike as always. I can’t wait to race again tomorrow.”
M4 medAge Suzuki’s Nick McFadden finished a relatively lonely sixth in the race. It was the ninth time in 2018 he’s finished sixth or better. Like Debise, he’s still fighting for third in the title race. With just one race to go, the Kentuckian is ranked fifth, only six points back of Debise in third.
Team Hammer very nearly put three riders in the top 10 in Saturday’s Supersport race. M4 RiCK! Suzuki’s Daytona Anderson was embroiled in an intense fight for seventh position before crashing out of contention on the race’s final lap.
Meanwhile, in Superbike class action, M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Jake Lewis battled his way forward throughout the race after getting a less-than-ideal start and then running off the track on the second lap. By the time he took the checkered flag, the talented Lewis flashed podium-capable speed while working his way to yet another top-five finish.
Saturday’s fifth was Lewis’ 12th top-five of 2018 with one more opportunity left to push that number even higher before the year is out.
Team Hammer will wrap up what’s been an eventful and historic 2018 MotoAmerica season Sunday afternoon at Barber Motorsports Park.
About Team Hammer
The 2018 season marks Team Hammer’s 38th consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won 70 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums 201 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.