From a press release:

PIRELLI ENDS ’04 SEASON WITH AMA DRAG-RACING RECORD AND 15 F-USA AND WERA GNF CHAMPIONSHIPS

(Rome, GA) For Pirelli, the season’s ending has been one for the books, literally. Among the numerous championships captured by Pirelli road racing tires during the 2004 season was one that had nothing to do with road racing, but which probably says a lot about Pirelli tires’ functionality. Factory Kawasaki-backed Ryan Schnitz set a new AMA/ProStar drag-racing record for the 1000cc SuperSport class on Pirelli’s DOT Supercorsas. Schnitz’s 2004 Muzzy Kawasaki ZX-10 became the first SuperSport bike to make an official 8-second pass for the quarter mile at the Memphis Motorsports Park early this month. The new record time is a 8.90 seconds – on a Pirelli’s 180/55ZR17 SC2 Supercorsa rear and 110/70ZR17 front. Along with his new record, Schnitz also captured the 2004 class championship. “I was one of first guys to use road racing tires for Supersport drag racing, ” Schnitz said in a phone interview from his home in Decatur, Indiana. “I’ve been using Supercorsas for about four or five years now. Most guys use either specific drag racing tires or other types. But with the Supercorsas in Supersport, you get good grip, but yet the tires still retain the same shape without tire growth, so we can get the horsepower to the track.”

As for the job for which they’re intended, Pirelli slicks and DOT Supercorsa race tires also racked up an impressive number of road racing championships at the recent F-USA/CCS and WERA GNF finals. 16 of them, to be exact. Geoff May, the Hot Bodies/Prieto Racing/Arai/Teknic/Dennis The Plumber-sponsored privateer who stunned the AMA Superbike class with his fifth-place championship ranking on Pirelli slicks, set a new lap record during the F-USA/CCS weekend at the Homestead-Miami Speedway this past weekend with a lap of 1:24.373 on 16.5″ Pirelli slicks. He also took the CCS Unlimited GP race victory.

Pirelli tires and Buell also won both the F-USA Thunderbike race and championship, thanks to the talents of Dave Estok and his Harding H-D/Buell XB9R, who won the Homestead-Miami race, and his Harding’s teammate Bryan Bemisderfer, who captured the class championship on his own XB9R.

At the WERA GNF at Road Atlanta the previous weekend, Pirelli riders and tires captured 11 National Challenge championships. Giovanni Rojas and his Joe Rocket/Arai/Vortex/VP Yamaha R-6, won 600cc Superbike Expert, with Pirelli riders taking six of the top-10 positions. Brandon Parrish, also on an R-6, led five Pirelli racers across the line in the 600 Superbike Novice final, following that up with wins in both 600 Superstock Novice and in the inaugural Pirelli Diablo Corsa Challenge (covered in depth below), and a second in 750 Superstock Novice. We’re presuming Mr. Parrish didn’t need a plane for his flight home to Louisville, KY. He is sponsored by TAG/Crosley/ Finish Line Motorsports/VP/Pirelli/Vesrah/Vortex/Pit Bull.

Taylor Knapp led a Pirelli sweep down to fourth place in winning the 750 Superbike Expert class on his Ray C’s/Wintex/Vesrah/Pit Bull/Barker’s Bars, Pirelli/Pirelli Trackside R-6. In 750 Superstock Expert, Vesrah Suzuki’s Tray Batey took the first of his two GNF championships, the second coming in HWT Superstock Expert, while Ross Ryals, on a Pirelli/Pit Bull/Vesrah/VP/Collegiate Bookstores/Adams MS SV-650 led a Pirelli one-two finish in HWT Superstock Novice.

Geoff May, who seems to be everywhere, won the GNF Formula 1 championship on his Pirelli/Ti-Force/Arai/Teknic/VP/Vortex/HotBodies/SBS/Ohlins/GMD/Palmetto Motorsports/Dennis The Plumber-sponsored GSX-R1000. Again, six of the top ten riders were Pirelli mounted. Daniel Parkerson won Formula 2 Novice on his Action Motorsports Suzuki/RRR Cycles/Glass Surgeon/Pirelli SV-650. And in LWT Superstock, it was a wave of Pirelli-shod Suzuki SV-650s: David Yaakov (CAD Cycles/CAD Racing/Suzuki/Vanson/Pit Bull/Sharkskinz/Vortex/EBC/Silkolene/Vesrah/VP) captured the Expert, leading a Pirelli sweep down to fourth place, and eight of the top 10 finishers. Ross Ryals again led a Pirelli one-two in the Novice championship, and again, as in the HWT Novice final, Tim Birdsong, on his Sloans/Pirelli/Pit Bull/Vesrah/LP/Hot Bodies SV was second.

The GNF also saw the inaugural running of the Pirelli Diablo Corsa Challenge. A unique series created by Pirelli’s North American Country Manager, Mark Wilhelm, the Challenge was open to 2004 WERA novice racers, and rewarded the top five Pirelli Diablo Corsa Challenge finishers at the GNF with Pirelli racing contracts for 2005, as well as contracts from each of the participating companies: Arai Helmets, Motul Oil, Pit Bull Motorcycle Stands, Vesrah brakes, and Hot Bodies bodywork.

The main objective of the Challenge, according to Wilhelm, was to give novice racers a special opportunity to get “the credit they deserve, and to let us demonstrate just how good a tire the Diablo Corsa is in helping a novice rider build the confidence needed to break into the higher skill levels of racing without going broke.” The idea for Pirelli’s Diablo Corsa Challenge grew from the “street” radial’s unique blend of construction, features, and benefits which seem tailor-made for racers on a budget in entry to mid-level classes: DOT rubber with better durability than race tires, which saves tire money; very fast, even warm-up over a wide ambient temperature range, which can save tire-warmer money; and a tread pattern and compounding that work in the rain, which can eliminate the need for rain tires.

The top six Diablo Corsa Challenge racers in each region were invited to the GNF Diablo Challenge Final. They even received funds from the sponsors to contribute toward their travel costs to the GNF. And when all was said and done, the five racers who won all of those 2005 sponsorships were: 1: Brandon Parrish; 2: Troy Meikle; 3: Trevor Fortner; 4: Calvin Barnett; and
5: Dean Black.

The WERA National Endurance Championships saw longtime Pirelli team, Vesrah Suzuki take its third straight overall championship by winning Road Atlanta’s Round #10 season finale. They were followed home by Pirelli’s Team Velocity Racing in second place, Eagle Race Team in fourth, and B&S Endurance in fifth, giving Pirelli four of the top five positions. The wins cemented Vesrah’s championships for both Overall and Heavyweight Superbike. Team Velocity wound up second Overall, also winning the Heavyweight Superstock class championship.