Yoshimura Suzuki’s Roger Hayden was the fastest rider in Thursday’s wet MotoAmerica Superbike/Superstock 1000 practice session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS).
Riding a GSX-R1000 adorned in special livery to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the GSX-R line of sportbikes, Hayden lapped the 2.6-mile infield road course in 1:49.895 to lead the combined field of 30 riders.
“Always when you’re quickest it’s a good start to the weekend,” Hayden told Roadracingworld.com. “We’re excited about that, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to rain tomorrow or Saturday. So we’ll be starting over tomorrow in the dry.”
Hayden rode as a wild card in the FIM Moto2 World Championship race at IMS in 2010, but he said there was still a lot to learn Thursday, like how the track was in the wet.
“I’ve been here before, but it’s been five years,” said Hayden. “So I’m just trying to relearn the track and get used to the new sections they put in and stuff like that. I’ve been struggling in the wet [this season], and I wanted to come out and start pushing right away to try to be quicker in the wet, and it felt amazing in the beginning.
“I’ve for sure never been to a track that had that much grip in the wet. I could not believe it. I was knee-down every corner. I’ve never felt that good in the wet in my life. But then it started raining pretty hard there at the end and a puddle developed down in Turn One that a bunch of guys were crashing in. That’s one to watch if it does rain again this weekend, because that was pretty sketchy.”
Hayden’s teammate Jake Lewis crashed in the puddle Hayden referred to, but Lewis walked away from the crash uninjured.
Another unlucky Superbike rider was returning veteran Jake Zemke, who lost most of the session when his TPL Racing/Desmo Veloce Ducati 1199 Panigale R encountered a clutch problem.
Yamalube/Westby Racing’s Josh Day was the quickest Superstock 1000 competitor with a time of 1:53.988 on his Yamaha YZF-R1.
The MotoAmerica Superbike/Superstock 1000 riders are back on track at 11:55 a.m. Friday for a 30-minute qualifying session followed by a 25-minute qualifying session only for the combined top 12 riders.
MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North America Road Racing Series
Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Indianapolis, Indiana
August 6, 2015
Combined Superbike/Superstock 1000 Free Practice One Results (Wet conditions, all on Dunlop tires):
1. Roger Hayden (Suzuki), SBK, 1:49.895
2. Josh Hayes (Yamaha), SBK, 1:52.123
3. Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha), SBK, 1:52.942
4. Josh Day (Yamaha), STK, 1:53.988
5. Jake Gagne (Yamaha), STK, 1:54.266
6. Tyler O’Hara (Yamaha), STK, 1:55.191
7. Barrett Long (Yamaha), STK, 1:55.453
8. Sheridan Morais (Aprilia), STK, 1:55.619
9. Garrick Schneiderman (Yamaha), STK, 1:55.920
10. Steve Rapp (BMW), STK, 1:57.329
11. Jake Lewis (Suzuki), SBK, 1:57.621, crash
12. Chris Ulrich (Suzuki), SBK, 1:57.642
13. Shane Narbonne (Yamaha), STK, 1:57.687
14. Taylor Knapp (Yamaha), STK, 1:58.202
15. Mark Heckles (Yamaha), STK, 1:59.004
16. Elena Myers (Suzuki), SBK, 2:00.010
17. Brad Burns (Suzuki), STK, 2:01.419
18. Matt Carr (Ducati), STK, 2:02.673
19. Jeremy Cook (BMW), STK, 2:02.694
20. Kyle Wyman (Yamaha), STK, 2:03.607
21. Ron Cole (Yamaha), STK, 2:05.363
22. Max Flinders (Yamaha), STK, 2:07.732
23. Eddie Thornton (Aprilia), STK, 2:09.681
24. Jake Zemke (Ducati), SBK, 2:09.873
25. Lindsay McGregor (Yamaha), STK, 2:16.207
26. Josh Chisum (Yamaha), STK, no time recorded
27. Stefan Dilipski (BMW), STK, no time recorded
28. Greg Fryer (Yamaha), SBK, no time recorded
29. Gene Burcham (Yamaha), STK, no time recorded
30. Chad Swain (Suzuki), STK, no time recorded
Superbike Free Practice One Results:
1. Roger Hayden (Suzuki), 1:49.895
2. Josh Hayes (Yamaha), 1:52.123
3. Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha), 1:52.942
4. Jake Lewis (Suzuki), 1:57.621, crash
5. Chris Ulrich (Suzuki), 1:57.642
6. Elena Myers (Suzuki), 2:00.010
7. Jake Zemke (Ducati), 2:09.873
8. Greg Fryer (Yamaha), no time recorded
Superstock 1000 Free Practice One Results:
1. Josh Day (Yamaha), 1:53.988
2. Jake Gagne (Yamaha), 1:54.266
3. Tyler O’Hara (Yamaha), 1:55.191
4. Barrett Long (Yamaha), 1:55.453
5. Sheridan Morais (Aprilia), 1:55.619
6. Garrick Schneiderman (Yamaha), 1:55.920
7. Steve Rapp (BMW), 1:57.329
8. Shane Narbonne (Yamaha), 1:57.687
9. Taylor Knapp (Yamaha), 1:58.202
10. Mark Heckles (Yamaha), 1:59.004
11. Brad Burns (Suzuki), 2:01.419
12. Matt Carr (Ducati), 2:02.673
13. Jeremy Cook (BMW), 2:02.694
14. Kyle Wyman (Yamaha), 2:03.607
15. Ron Cole (Yamaha), 2:05.363
16. Max Flinders (Yamaha), 2:07.732
17. Eddie Thornton (Aprilia), 2:09.681
18. Lindsay McGregor (Yamaha), 2:16.207
19. Josh Chisum (Yamaha), no time recorded
20. Stefan Dilipski (BMW), no time recorded
21. Gene Burcham (Yamaha), no time recorded
22. Chad Swain (Suzuki), no time recorded