The inaugural 2018 MotoAmerica Twins Cup Championship is coming down to a two-rider contest between Ghetto Customs Suzuki SV650 rider Chris Parrish and Syndicate/AP MotoArts Yamaha FZ-07 rider Jason Madama. Both riders have taken multiple victories, finished near the front in most of the other races, and had their share of bad luck and self-inflicted wounds during the eight rounds run so far.
Heading into the ninth and final round this coming weekend at Barber Motorsports Park, the two men are separated by just two points with Parrish holding the small advantage at the top of the standings.
At first glance, it appears that the Championship will end up going to whoever beats the other in the final race, but it may not be that simple. That’s because the 2018 Twins Cup finale has attracted the largest (by a significant margin) and the most-talented group of riders this season.
In addition to Parrish and Madama, the field includes Kris Turner, the winner of the Twins Cup race in New Jersey, and Chris Bays, Justin Filice, Darren James, and Curtis Murray – all of whom have finished on the podium in Twins Cup races this season.
In addition, the entry list at Barber Motorsports Park includes: Daniel Adams, who won the 2017 CMRA overall Championship while riding his Suzuki SV650; Draik Beauchamp, who won the 2015 WERA National Challenge Lightweight Twins Superstock Championship on a Suzuki SV650; Robert Fisher, a veteran Suzuki SV650 racer who has finished in the top six in Twins Cup twice this season; four-time ASRA ThunderBike Champion Ray Hofman; former AMA Pro Supersport rider Rob McLendon III, who will be riding an Altus Motorsports Yamaha FZ-07; successful long-time Suzuki SV650 racer Darrell Ricks; and Walt Sipp, another former ASRA ThunderBike Champion and AMA Pro regular.
“It definitely complicates things,” Parrish told Roadracingworld.com. “All these guys, I’ve raced with them before. I don’t think we’ll have a problem.
“The first thing is I want to finish the race, like always, and I want to do well. This is my home track, so I shouldn’t have a problem doing well, but I believe with having some other fast guys here they could potentially get in between us and maybe slow Jason down a little bit. Or at least that’s what I’m hoping for.”
“Even though there are a couple of ringers who know the track well, I think I can run with that front group of guys,” said Madama. “And as far as the Championship is concerned, all I have to do is beat Chris. I don’t have to win.
“So I’m kind of on the fence. Do I push real hard to win the race? Or do I just stay with Chris? But Chris is also very fast here.
“I don’t really have anything to lose. If I crash or something happens and I don’t finish I still get second in the Championship. So it’s kind of all or nothing for me.
“Then on his side he has everything to lose. Yeah, he’s really fast here, and yeah, he has the potential to win the race, but if he’s smart he doesn’t want to push that hard and get caught up in something that costs him the Championship. So I’m going to play it by ear and see how it goes.”
Madama and Parrish both told Roadracingworld.com that regardless of whether they win the 2018 Championship or not they will both be back to race in the MotoAmerica Twins Cup in 2019.
The 13-lap final Twins Cup race is scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m. Central Time on Saturday, September 22. Video coverage of the race will be streamed live on Facebook.