Yamaha bLU cRU Road Racers Beaubier & Gerloff Top The Charts At MotoAmerica Preseason Test At Circuit of The Americas
Cypress, CA – Defending MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier faced a formidable onslaught of competitors from the U.S. and Europe at the MotoAmerica Preseason Test powered by Dunlop Motorcycle Tires, and he emerged as the fastest rider overall on the 3.426-mile, 20-turn Circuit of The Americas (COTA) road course in Austin, TX.
Cameron and his Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha Factory Racing team worked methodically and diligently through eight 50-minute sessions over two days, testing Dunlop tires and laying down consistently fast laps. At the end of the test, the current Superbike Champ was the only rider to lap the COTA track in under two minutes and nine seconds. In fact’s Cameron’s lap of 2:08.764 was faster than his MotoAmerica Superbike pole-setting lap at COTA during last year’s opening round of the Championship.
Four-time AMA Superbike Champion Josh Hayes, who is Cameron’s Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha Factory Racing teammate, finished the test fourth-fastest overall aboard his #4 R1.
“It was great to be back with my team again, and pick up right where we left off last season,” Cameron said. “We tested a lot of tires for Dunlop, got some great seat time on my #1 R1, and we were also able to do a race simulation. I feel good for the race here in two weeks. I went out on Dunlop’s softer (race) tire and did (a lap of 2:08.771), and then, I matched it on the Q (qualifying tire with a lap of 2:08.764), so I was really happy about that.”
In Supersport testing at COTA, Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha rider Garrett Gerloff led the majority of the eight, 50-minute test sessions aboard his #31 Yamaha YZF-R6, and he ended up the fastest Supersport rider overall with a blistering lap of 2:11.987. Defending MotoAmerica Supersport rider JD Beach was nipping at teammate Garrett’s heels during virtually all of the test sessions, and the rider of the #1 Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha R6 ended the two-day test at COTA as the second-fastest rider.
“Everything feels good,” Garrett commented. “It feels good to be where I’m at, but the race in two weeks is what really counts. But, I definitely feel really comfortable with where the bike’s at. The weather was better here this year, so we were able to do a lot more laps at this track compared with last year. Our off-season program–from training, to testing, to my team working hard on the bike–all contributed to this result. I’m concentrating on being smooth and consistent.”
The 2016 MotoAmerica season begins on April 8-10 when the stars of U.S motorcycle road racing return to COTA to join the MotoGP stars at the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas.
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More, from a press release issued by Yamalube/Westby Racing:
Yamalube/Westby Racing Completes Successful MotoAmerica Test At Circuit of The Americas
Tulsa, OK – March 26, 2016 – Yamalube/Westby Racing and Josh Day, the rider of their #00 Yamaha YZF-R1 Superstock 1000 motorcycle, successfully participated in the MotoAmerica Preseason Test powered by Dunlop Motorcycle Tires, which was held at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA) in Austin, TX.
Josh, who had never turned a wheel at COTA, acclimated quickly to the 3.426-mile, 20-turn road course, and he and the team tested several sets of Dunlop tires through eight separate 50-minute sessions on track. Overall, Josh ended up in the top ten and was the ninth-fastest rider at the test, turning a quickest lap of 2:11.820.
He was the fastest Superstock 1000 rider on track in the two morning practice sessions on the second day of the test, and the second day-two morning session is the one in which he posted his fastest overall lap.
“I’m really glad with where we finished up here at the COTA test,” Josh commented. “It was good to get some seat time on this track since it was my first time here. I really like the flow of the track, and I cannot wait until race weekend! Our last few tests have gone really well, and I am confident that our momentum will carry over to our race weekends this year. I can’t thank the whole Yamalube/Westby Racing team enough for all the time and effort they’ve put into this off-season to make the bike so much better from where we finished up last year. I’m glad the season is finally here. So, now it’s time to get down to business!”
Yamalube/Westby Racing will return to COTA on April 8-10 for the opening round of the 2016 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship.
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