PIETRI LEADS AT FONTANA, FINISHES FOURTH IN SUPERSTOCK Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki backed up their first-ever AMA Superstock podium finish a week earlier at Barber Motorsports Park with another tremendous showing this weekend at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA. Robertino Pietri scored his best finish of the season and equaled the best of his AMA career by finishing fourth in the AMA Superstock race aboard his Pirelli-shod GSX-R1000. Meanwhile, teammate Chris Ulrich fought up from outside the top ten to take seventh in the race and hold down third in the 2008 points race. Venezuelan Pietri demonstrated his speed in qualifying, securing his first-career AMA front row grid position by clocking the fourth best time of the session at 1:25.744. He elevated his game another notch in the 16-lap, red-flagged race, taking control of the contest on lap 2 and leading until lap 14, earning the bonus point paid for most laps led. Pietri was ultimately shuffled back to fourth in the late stages of the race but made his mark with a breakthrough, confidence-building ride. After the race he explained that this result was even sweeter than his fourth place taken last year at Miller Motorsports Park. “This time I earned the fourth because I really had to fight for it. Before this weekend, I never earned a front row start and I never led a lap in the AMA and today I led the most laps, which was great. And nobody crashed ahead of me or anything so I was the fourth fastest guy in the race, which I’m very proud of. “I want to thank my dad for believing in me, John Ulrich for giving me a chance, and my mechanics for working so hard. The first couple races this year have been pretty tough for me. I’ve always been fast but for some reason something always happened but this time everything went great. “I asked my guys to believe in me and they did. This is a real confidence booster; now we know we can run up front with these guys.” Following a restart due to a red flag brought out by teammate Santiago Villa’s early race crash, Ulrich didn’t get the opening lap he was looking for coming off his Alabama podium result, running off course momentarily and falling well down the order. However, the Californian battled his way up through the field, ultimately climbing to seventh position and holding off Scott Jensen for the position at the flag by less than two tenths of a second. “We had a pretty good run back up from as low as 14th place,” Ulrich said. “I had a great launch but I ran off the track. From there, I was just working my way back up. We’ll take the points and that will go towards our season’s goal. “It was a great day for the team with ‘Tino leading most of the race. I could see what was happening in the lead pack ahead of me and as you might imagine it was fantastic to see our bike out front. We’re always working hard to improve as a team and today was a great day for us.” Unfortunately, after qualifying on the fourth row with the 16th best time of qualifying at 1:30.143, Villa’s early-race crash brought out a red flag, and the Colombian was transported to a local hospital for further treatment. Thanks to another consistent run, Ulrich now sits third in the points at 80 while Pietri is ranked sixth at 63. Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki will head to Infineon Raceway on May 16-18 for the fourth round of the 2008 AMA Superstock Championship. More, from a press release issued by M4 EMGO Suzuki: THIRD PLACE FOR BLAKE YOUNG IN FONTANA SUPERSTOCK Team M4 EMGO Suzuki came away from Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA on Sunday with another trophy-winning performance from Blake Young in Superstock and a career-best ride from Cory West in Supersport. Young bolted into the lead from his second-row starting position aboard his Pirelli-shod GSX-R1000 Superstock bike but his lead was short lived when the race was stopped due to a red flag. The Wisconsin native got another strong launch in the restart, taking control of third and running in a four-rider fight for the win throughout the majority of the contest. Young ran off track momentarily late in the race, costing him a shot at victory, but he recovered quickly enough to claim third, his second career AMA podium finish. Young said, “We made a mistake in the back section and ended up going off. I kind of checked up and let everybody by and made sure that I wasn’t docked or anything. I got back on course and really from there, I decided whatever tires I had left, I was going to use it up and ride as hard as I possibly could. “We ended up with third today. My guys worked really hard for me this weekend so I’d like to thank them. This is a hard track for the Pirelli guys so I think to get on the box for them is great. The M4 EMGO Suzuki guys are well respected around this paddock and they’ve got their stuff together. They’re just a great bunch of guys over there and they’re obviously teaching me a lot. “I’m definitely looking forward to Infineon Raceway.” Cory West enjoyed a memorable weekend as well, claiming career-best marks in qualifying and the race in the Supersport class aboard his GSX-R600. West qualified on the inside of the second row in the postponed qualifying session on Sunday morning with the fifth best time of the session (1:26.584). He then charged into third in the race before an early stoppage. He got another fine launch in the restart and ultimately finished fifth after a fight with Josh Hayes for fourth. West said, “Qualifying went pretty well, bright and early in the morning. I put in a good lap on my race tire that put me fourth but after everyone put in laps on ‘Q’s I ended up fifth which was still my best qualifying result to date. “Before the red flag I was running real well,” added West. “I was in third but there was the big accident behind me, which brought out the red flag. When we got going again I didn’t get quite as good of a start but I was still fourth. Things went pretty well — I lost touch with leaders and was having a little bit of a lonely race until Josh caught me. I tried to hang with him but when he passed me I pulled off a tearoff and when I put my hand back down on the handlebar I accidentally hit the kill switch. I was quick and got it turned back on but it was just enough to lose track of Josh. “All-in-all, it went together pretty well. It’s my best finish ever and hopefully we can carry this on to Infineon Raceway.” Young finished seventh in the Supersport race after qualifying sixth (1:26.598). He edged Chaz Davies by 0.015 seconds at the flag for the position. Despite the terrific pair of top-five results on the day, the team’s spirits were dampened by Martin Cardenas’ crash early in the Supersport contest, which brought out the red flag on the race’s opening lap. Both Martin and Rockstar Makita Yoshimura Suzuki pilot Tommy Hayden were transported to a local hospital for further treatment. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki will release more info on Martin’s condition when it becomes available. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki will be back in action for the fourth round of the 2008 AMA roadracing series on May 16-18 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA. More, from a press release issued by Keith Amor’s publicist: Amor sets Cookstown alight Falkirk’s Keith Amor set the Cookstown 100 road races alight on Saturday with some scintillating performances on his 600cc Wilson Craig Honda around the 2.1-mile Orritor circuit. Race day saw ideal conditions for the traditional curtain raiser to the Irish road race season and despite only having the use of his 600cc Honda, Amor opened his account with 3rd place in the Open 1000cc race. When the Supersport 600cc race came to the line though, it was a different matter and the Scotsman put in a brilliant performance to not only lead the race from start to finish but also to better the old class lap record by over 2 seconds. Even more remarkably, he also bettered the outright lap record for the circuit, going quicker than the times set by the Superbike machine of Cameron Donald in 2007. Keith took the chequered flag at the end of the ten laps to win by a comfortable 3.848seconds and he came to the line for the feature Cookstown 100 Open race in confident mood. Fifth at the end of the opening lap, he soon began to move forward and by half race distance he was up to third and just a few tenths behind Ryan Farquhar and Martin Finnegan. Try as he might though, the Superbikes continued to hold sway with the extra speed along the straights proving crucial and Keith crossed the line in 3rd place, albeit just 2.34seconds adrift. However, a lap of 1m24.927s on the 8th lap meant he did have the consolation of leaving with the outright lap record Speaking after his day’s work, Keith commented: ‘It’s been a good day and to win the 600cc race and take the outright lap record is obviously a great way to start the road race season. I’m really happy with the times I was doing on the 600cc bike but I can’t help feel a little bit frustrated as I’m sure that if I’d have been on the Superbike it would have been a different story in the Open races. We tested it a couple of days prior to the race but it developed a problem and we had to make do with the smaller bike.’ ‘The boys have done a great job with the 600 though and with some new tyres from Dunlop, that were simply awesome, I was able to be right at the sharp end. The 600cc race went perfectly and once I settled into my rhythm and relaxed, I was able to pull away steadily. I was getting unbelievable grip all day and it was only on straight line speed where Ryan and Martin had an advantage in the Superbike races but I’m happy enough with a win and two third places. Hopefully, the Superbike will be ready for next week and we’ll be even stronger.’ Keith’s next outing will be at the Tandragee 100 road races which take place on Saturday May 3rd. More, from a press release issued by LeoVince Foremost Insurance Ducati: LeoVince Foremost Insurance Ducati on the Podium Again at Auto Club Speedway Pegram Places Third – Two Podiums in Three Races Fontana, CA (April 28, 2008) – Larry Pegram, of the LeoVince Foremost Insurance Ducati Team finished third overall in the third race of the season at a windy and newly named Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA. Pegram started the race on the first row after qualifying in third with a lap time of 1:25.605. He took third at the start and was in a tight race with the riders in first and second for the entire race until some lapped traffic pulled him off his pace. At the finish line, Pegram was only 2.245 seconds behind the leader. After the third round of the Formula Xtreme series Pegram is currently tied for third place overall with 85 points. Last year, this race was the first podium of the season for Pegram and his team. He finished third, but instead of closing on the leaders, he was swapping positions with Celtic Racing’s Chaz Davies in a heated battle on the final lap. “What can I say, except that I am very pleased with the result this weekend. Sure I would have loved to win the race, but that wasn’t in the cards this time. We are running at the leaders’ pace and I am very confident that we will win races this year. My team has done an awesome job and is making huge strides with the new Ducati 848. The 848 is amazing. The FX class has stepped up the pace and we are right there. Having the financial support and resources from Ducati, LeoVince and Foremost Insurance is making all the difference,” commented Pegram. The Formula Xtreme race will be televised on SPEED Channel tomorrow Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 12:00 PM ET (noon). The next race for the LeoVince Foremost Insurance Ducati Team will be May 17, 2008 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California (www.infineonraceway.com). More, from a press release issued by Damian Cudlin’s publicist: CUDLIN 2ND IN GERMAN SSP OPENER Australian Damian Cudlin has burst onto the German IDM Supersport scene with double podium finishes at the series opener at Lausitzring in Germany on the weekend. Starting from the 6th on the grid, Cudlin made a terrible start in the first race of the 2008 IDM Championship, languishing in 12th place on the opening lap before begining his charge through the field. In a clinical display, Cudlin sliced through the pack one by one aboard his Dunlop shod Yamaha R6 to eventually reach the final step on the podium in 3rd place. “žWhen I´m not racing, I´m teaching race schools and I show people how to get off the line all the time, but all I showed today was how NOT to start a race.” Cudlin joked. “žI made things a lot harder for myself with that slow first lap but I made up for it later on. I just felt really strong on the bike, particularly when the others were fading and I was so determined to get onto that podium. It was a nice reward for all the hard work I´ve been putting in.” Cudlin´s second race on Sunday proved to be better still as he showed he was in no mood to hang around, moving from 5th to 3rd on the second lap of the race. Reigning Supersport Champion Sebastian Diss was next in Cudlin´s sights as the pair exchanged blows for the next series of laps. Losing ground on the leader all the time, Cudlin made a pass that stuck on Diss as he began chasing Triumph´s Arne Tode. However Tode was too fast on the Lausitzring complex and held his advantage over the next 5 laps. Cudlin then came under fire from team mate Rico Penzkopfer as the fight for 2nd became a hotly contested affair. Trailing Penzkopfer on the final lap, Cudlin made a stunning last lap pass to take 2nd at the flag. “žThat really was a lot of fun” Cudlin beamed. “žI tried to get to the front as quickly as I could in the hope of chasing down Tode but he was just too quick today. By the time I got into 2nd he was already away with it, so I focussed on staying in front of the rest until the finish. I had a real fight with Penz in the last couple of laps that was really a lot of fun. Finally I made my move on the last lap which worked and I managed to hold it until the flag.” With his 3rd and 2nd place finishes, Cudlin now sits 2nd in the title chase as the series moves to Oschersleben, a circuit Cudlin knows well from his 24 hour World Endurance Championship experience. “žI´m really happy with this weekend and also happy I could re-pay my SKM Bike Promotion Yamaha Team back with these results for having the faith to run with me this year. I´m really excited about the year ahead and can´t wait to get to Oschersleben for the next round.” The next round of the IDM series will be on the 17/18th of May. More, from a press release issued by Honda: Hodgson Fights for Podium in Sunny Southern California American Honda’s Neil Hodgson fought for podium positions in both rounds of the AMA Superbike Championship at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, but a mistake in the same corner in both races prevented him from finishing on the box. Still, he came away from the wind-blown, sun-baked weekend with a pair of fourth place finishes, his best since joining the American Honda team. Teammate Miguel Duhamel turned in his best laps of the weekend late in Saturday’s Superbike race. But he’d put himself in a hole early in the race which didn’t allow him to challenge as strongly as he might have. On Sunday, an engine problem put a premature halt to his race as he was making a run on the trio contesting fourth, one that included his teammate. Saturday’s race saw Hodgson moving into third place on the ninth lap of Saturday’s 28-lap affair and holding it until the 23rd lap. That’s when Tommy Hayden, the older brother of Repsol Honda’s Nicky Hayden, made a pass for the final podium position. Hodgson was making a run at Hayden when he overshot the transition from the banking into the infield. It didn’t cost him a position, just time that he wasn’t able to recover. On Sunday he didn’t start as well and had to come from behind, which he did. Again he found himself chasing Tommy Hayden. And although he was able to shrink the deficit, he wasn’t able to gain the position. And again he mistimed the infield approach. “In general I’m pleased,” he said before heading back to his home on the Isle of Man for a quick visit. “Daytona we qualified tenth and finished seventh. Barber we qualified sixth and had two fifths. So we qualified sixth here and had two fourths. We have got a new motorcycle. No excuses. We’re definitely making steps forward and we know where we need to improve the bike.” Duhamel finished seventh on Saturday, improving his lap times as his fuel load decreased. Changes to the machine improved his confidence on Sunday, but an engine problem dropped him from the field on the 10th of 28 laps. The teams now have just over a week’s rest before a test at Miller Motorsports Park, site of the American round of the World Superbike Championship in early June. From there they head to the wine country for the fourth round of the championship at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California on May 18. Neil Hodgson 4th, 4th We’re getting definitely better with the bike settings and it’s helping me ride a bit harder. Yesterday, as I was trying to pass Tommy, I hit the brakes going to my favorite corner. I instantly lost the front slightly. I released the brakes and knew I was not going to make the corner. Luckily there, you can kill a lot of speed by turning right up the banking. So I did that and it worked pretty good. Obviously, it didn’t help my position. Tommy (Hayden) was better than me through that flip-flop and accelerating out of there, so I was always making it up on the brakes. But this time I think it was just a little more lean angle. The bike worked better today than yesterday. It was easier to change direction (and easier on the tires with just some geometry changes. No excuses. It’s so different to a Ducati and I’ve got that much experience on one. The way the Ducati felt to me, this bike feels different. And I’m building confidence in it. I’m starting to enjoy myself now. Miguel Duhamel 7th, DNF Just a little bit of bad luck; that’s racing. The engine was maybe running a little hot and I think something in the engine got a little tight and didn’t like that. And it’s unfortunate because we had a better start than yesterday and I was pretty calm and composed there, staying behind Matt (Lynn). I figured when he started losing some ground then I passed him and I saw Jamie (Hacking) was struggling, so I said, ‘OK, I’m going to get up to Jamie.’ I really felt confident, I thought I could get back up to around Neil (Hodgson) and Eric (Bostrom) and Jason DiSalvo, because it wasn’t that far and I felt quite comfortable. So they picked up the pace, so it would have been hard to do. Before we could execute the plan we had that problem. Yesterday we went with a different set-up for the bike and when we had the full fuel load it was diving the front end too quickly. And I had no feedback from the front, so as the fuel load got lighter I got faster and the bike balance came back and then I was able to do those good laps at the end. But at the beginning it was impossible. It was overloading the front so much that if I just touched the front it wanted to tuck the front a bit. So I just survived through that knowing that if I get the fuel load, and the fuel load’s going to get light, it should come back, and it came back quite good and I was able to put in a charge at the end. American Honda Road Race Manager Ron Heben Actually, a pretty encouraging weekend for our guys. Got back from Barber (Motorsports Park) and only had a really short week, but listened to the comments that Neil (Hodgson) and Miguel (Duhamel) had about the bike and looked at what we did here for the test. I think it shows how hard the team’s working, it shows how hard Neil and Miguel are working. They don’t like being where they’re at and they want to keep working at it; it’s the same with the team. So we go to Miller (Motorsports Park) for a test here in a couple of weeks and hopefully when we get to Infineon (Raceway) we can take the next step and start challenging a little bit more. It’s a good weekend. We’re pretty happy with what we’ve got. Obviously, we wanted to be on the box. We know we’ve got more work to do, but we’re at least moving in the right direction. Saturday Superbike: 1. Ben Spies (Suzuki) 2.Mat Mladin (Suzuki) 3. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) 4. Neil Hodgson (Honda) 5. Eric Bostrom (Yamaha) 6. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki) 7. Miguel Duhamel (Honda) 8. Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha) 9. Matt Lynn (Honda) 10. Jake Holden (Honda) Sunday Superbike: 1. Ben Spies (Suzuki) 2. Mat Mladin (Suzuki) 3. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) 4. Neil Hodgson (Honda) 5. Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha) 6. Eric Bostrom (Yamaha) 7. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki) 8. Scott Jensen (Suzuki) 9. Matt Lynn (Honda) 10. Dean Mizdal (Suzuki) Championship Standings: 1. Mat Mladin (178) 2. Ben Spies (158) 3. Tommy Hayden (143) 4. Jason DiSalvo (137) 5. Neil Hodgson (130) 6. Jamie Hacking (112) 7. Eric Bostrom (106) 8. Matt Lynn (95) Geoff May (84) 9. Miguel Duhamel (91) 10. Scott Jensen (89) More, from a press release issued by VIR: Bosch Engineering 250 Returns Chip Ganassi Racing to Grand-Am Rolex Series Victory Lane DANVILLE, VA. – Chip Ganassi Racing, after a disappointing and crash-filled race at Mexico City just last Sunday, returned to Victory Lane for the third time this season in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 Daytona Prototype race held Sunday at VIRginia International Raceway. After post qualifying inspection revealed an infraction concerning the team’s wing, the No.01 TELMEX car had to start at the rear of the Daytona Prototype pack, along with No. 99 car, which suffered a similar fate. In the 77-lap race, drivers Memo Rojas and Scott Pruett moved steadily up through the field to take the lead in the race on lap 58, leading for the final 20 rounds of VIR’s scenic rolling hills, twists and turns before eventually making this the third victory celebration for the team this year. In a race slowed by only three cautions, and those merely for disabled cars to be removed from the side of the track, there was still some significant action, most of it between competitors in the same class. When all the action finished, Rojas and Pruett held a lead of just over a half second ahead of second place runners Ryan Dalziel and Henri Zogaib. In the production-based GT cars, things were no less stirring, as Andrew Davis and Ryan Dalziel combined to take their Stevenson Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R to victory over Tim George Jr and Spencer Pumpelly in their TRG Porsche GT. Local favorite Pumpelly admits that without the track at VIR, he might not exist, as his parents met here at a race before the track closed in 1974. His mother met a young man there, asked him to contact her, never expecting the call to be made, but he did and the rest is history, much to the dismay of numerous of Pumpelly’s competitors. His affection for the track extends beyond that to an appreciation of the technical challenges of VIR, with its assortment of high and low-speed turns, uphill and downhill sections and personable staff, “starting with the first person you meet at the gate, driving in,” he commented. The weekend’s action was not limited to the Rolex Sports Car Series, as on Sunday morning before the feature race, the SunTrust MOTO-ST motorcycles took to the track, with the No. 1 Aprilia USA/Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Aprilia Tuono 1000R ridden by Ty Howard and Mike Himmelsbach surge from a lap down to win the VIR 500k, the second round of the SunTrust M The win was the second straight this year for the No. 1 Aprilia, which also claimed last year’s title in the Buell Motorcycle Company SuperSport Twins (SST) class. Howard put the bike on pole on Saturday in the first qualifying session in SunTrust MOTO-ST Series history. “I don’t know what happened, the front end just folded under me,” said Howard after the crash. “I rode for six laps with no shifter then I brought it into the pits.” After the team replaced the shifter but left a bent clutch lever, Howard and Himmelsbach worked their way back to the front. The only full-course caution of the race bunched the field when they were running third in the SST class and fifth overall. The caution neutralized a 40-second deficit to the leader. Fourth overall and first in the Sport Twins (ST) class was the No. 86 SpeedWerks.com Suzuki SV650 of local ace Brian Kcraget of Danville, Va. and Chesterfield, Va.’s Ben Walters. The pair finished almost 30 seconds ahead of the No. 67 M4 Avteq Racing Suzuki SV650 of Kyle Martin of Dallas and Newalla, Okla.’s Dominic Dominguez. “Ben Walters kind of saved us,” said Kcraget, who also won the ST class at VIR last season. “He drove in from Richmond Friday morning. We had a great race with the M4 Avteq bike. They were improving and we were fortunate to bring it home.” Third in ST and sixth overall was the No. 9 Pair-A-Nines Kawasaki EX650 of defending class champions Jay Springsteen from Lapeer, Mich. and Jimmy Filice of Daytona Beach, Fla., which lost second to the No. 67 Suzuki near the finish when Filice ran off the track. One more position back was the winner in BMW GrandSport Twins (GST): the No.7 Richie Morris Racing Buell XB12R of Mike Smith of Canton, Ga. and Clint Brotz from Elkhart Lake, Wis. Exciting road racing action takes up residence again at VIR in two weeks, with the Al Fairer Memorial Double SARRC sports car races, staged by the NC Region, Sports Car Club of America. This popular event attracts a wide variety of sedans, formula cars, sports racers and sports cars ranging from basic Hondas and Chevy Cobalts to thundering Corvettes, Mustangs and even a collection of Late Model Stock Cars running on VIR’s historic road course, rain or shine. Following the Double SARRC races, VIR will host an open stock car test day on Tuesday, June 3. Last year’s stock car test drew nearly a full starting grid of NASCAR drivers and this year’s looks equally strong. The crown jewel for VIR’s summer schedule is the June 6-8 Heacock Classic Gold Cup Historic Races. Celebrating “All American Muscle” this year, the Gold Cup will feature Grand Marshal Lee Holman, plus cars powered by American V8 engines. Not content to keep everything on the track and on the ground, the Gold Cup brings the excitement of Wings and Wheels car and air show to VIR. With static displays of hot rods, airplanes and muscle cars, Wings and Wheels alone is enough to draw a car enthusiast’s attention. The AMA Big Kahuna Superbike National on August 15-17 brings America’s best Superbike racers to VIR’s North Course; GT Live and the KONI Challenge bring a combination of motorcycle stunts, drifting, track attack and endurance sports car races; all combined with a wide variety of amateur and vintage road racing throughout the year. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Hacking Inside Top-10 in Fontana Fontana, Calif. Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jamie Hacking rode to a steady seventh-place finish during an extremely gusty AMA Superbike race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. The Attack Kawasaki team rode the final race of the weekend with Chaz Davies and Steve Rapp finishing eighth and ninth. Under the Kawasaki Tent Workin’ It Out Hacking got a good start in the second superbike race of the doubleheader weekend, but with the hot track conditions he found himself sliding more than he wanted. Playing it smart, he got into a comfortable pace and brought it across the finish line in seventh. Staying Positive A hard weekend could often get a rider down but Hacking has an extremely optimistic attitude about the progress of the Kawasaki ZX™-10R. “It’s easy to get down and complain, but that’s not what we should do,” said Hacking. “We are looking better than we did at this point last year and I know we will find what we need to make it work. We did last year and I know we can this year.” Team Battle Davies, who started ninth, worked his way up to his teammate Rapp and started a friendly battle for the eighth spot. When the two came across the finish, Rapp was only a half second behind Davies. “The track conditions were a little bit slick,” said Rapp. “I did my best to keep it on two wheels, but push it the best I could. Chaz and I had a good battle at the end.” Cooling Off A little perk that the riders of Alpinestars get to enjoy is a cooling fan that fits perfectly into the hump on the back of their suit. Davies was able to stay cool as he waited for his race to begin. Blowing the Umbrellas The teams and spectators were met on Sunday with the same conditions they saw on Saturday; hot and windy. The riders had to keep cool and fight the gusts on the track, while the umbrella girls had to test their strength, as holding an umbrella in the wind presented a slight challenge. AMA Superbike Series Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, Ala. April 20, 2008 AMA Supersport Results 1. Ben D. Bostrom, Malibu, Calif., Yamaha 2. Jake P. Zemke, Paso Robles, Calif., Honda 3. Josh Herrin, Dublin, Ga., Yamaha 4. Josh Hayes, Gulfport, Miss., Honda 5. Cory West, Eureka Springs, Ark., Suzuki 6. Danny C. Eslick, Broken Arrow, Okla., Suzuki 7. Blake R. Young, Waunakee, Wisc., Suzuki 8. CHAZ DAVIES, KNIGHTON, UK, ATTACK KAWASAKI 9. STEVE RAPP, MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIF., ATTACK KAWASAKI 10. Shae Fouchek, Georgetown, Texas, Honda AMA Supersport Class Points Standings 1. Ben Bostrom, Malibu, Calif., Yamaha, 107 2. Josh Herrin, Dublin, Ga., Yamaha, 99 3. Jake Zemke, Paso Robles, Calif., Honda, 85 4. Blake Young, Waunakee, Wisc., Suzuki, 77 5. STEVE RAPP, MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIF., ATTACK KAWASAKI, 72 6. CHAZ DAVIES, KNIGHTON, UK, ATTACK KAWASAKI, 71 7. Danny Eslick, Broken Arrow, Okla., Suzuki, 69 8. Josh Hayes, Gulfport, Miss., Honda, 65 9. Cory West, Eureka Springs, Ark., Suzuki, 60 10. Aaron Gobert, Murrieta, Calif., Honda, 53 AMA Superbike Class 1. Ben Spies, Longview, Texas, Suzuki 2. Matthew Mladin, Henderson, Nev., Suzuki 3. Tommy Hayden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki 4. Neil Hodgson, Isle of Man, UK, Honda 5. Jason Disalvo, Stafford, N.Y., Yamaha 6. Eric Bostrom, Malibu, Calif., Yamaha 7. JAMIE HACKING, DENVER, N.C., MONSTER ENERGY KAWASAKI 8. Scott Jensen, Longmont, Colo., Suzuki 9. Matt Lynn, Ball Ground, Ga., Honda 10. Dean Mizdal, Huntington Beach, Calif., Suzuki AMA Superbike Points Standings 1. Matthew Mladin, Henderson, Nev., Suzuki, 178 2. Ben Spies, Longview, Texas, Suzuki, 158 3. Tommy Hayden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki, 143 4. Jason Disalvo, Stafford, N.Y., Yamaha, 137 5. Neil Hodgson, Isle of Man, UK, Honda, 130 6. JAMIE HACKING, DENVER, N.C., MONSTER ENERGY KAWASAKI, 112 7. Eric Bostrom, Malibu, Calif., Yamaha, 106 8. Matt Lynn, Ball Ground, Ga., Honda, 95 9. Miguel Duhamel, Las Vegas, Nev., Honda, 91 10. Scott Jensen, Longmont, Colo., Suzuki, 89 More, from a press release issued by Gary Johnson/Uel Duncan Racing: Johnson shines on Cookstown debut Gary Johnson’s excellent start to the 2008 season continued at the weekend when he made his debut at the Cookstown 100 road races, the season opener in the Irish Road Race Championship. Riding the Robinson Concrete Honda’s, the Broughton rider took a fourth and two fifths in his three races, also lapping inside the circuit lap record. With practice held in wet conditions, it wasn’t ideal preparation for Gary’s debut around the Orritor circuit as he only got a handful of laps around the public roads circuit. However, he once again showed his application for learning new circuits and he qualified on the front row for all of his races. Fortunately, race day was dry although this presented a new challenge as the course changed dramatically with the increase in speeds. Gary made a brilliant start in the Open race and had opened up a terrific lead of almost 3 seconds going onto the second lap but, as he approached the first road end, he misjudged his braking point and overshot. As he rejoined the course, he had to avoid the fallen Adrian Archibald, losing more time but despite having dropped down the field he soon began to make his way through the pack and, with the second fastest lap of the race, he finished the 10-lap race in 4th, just 0.3s off the podium. It was a similar story in the Supersport race and with another strong ride, which saw him lap comfortably inside the old class lap record, he was rewarded with fifth place. That just left the feature race, the Cookstown 100, and the Uel Duncan Racing rider immediately slotted into second place. He soon got past Ryan Farquhar but the road ends were proving his downfall and he over ran once more, dropping back to 4th. Nevertheless, with some superb lap times, Gary was part of a four man battle for the lead and with a lap of 1m25.351s he took his second fourth place of the day, only six seconds adrift of the race winner, Farquhar. Reflecting on his day’s racing and on his Cookstown debut, Gary commented: ‘All in all, it’s been a good weekend and although I haven’t got any spectacular results, I was there or thereabouts in all of the races and if it wasn’t for my lack of experience, I reckon a few podiums would have been the end result. Having practiced in the wet, it was really difficult to judge where the braking points were in the dry and in practically every race I overshot. That made life difficult but I got my head down and put in some very competitive times so I’ve got to be pleased.’ ‘I didn’t want to push too hard and do something silly with the International races on the horizon so I feel like I rode with a bit in reserve but if I hadn’t have made those mistakes, a win wouldn’t have been far away. I opted to stick with the Superstock bike as it was tried and tested and the Dunlop tyres were awesome again so thanks to everyone in the team for all their efforts. We’ve built up a nice bit of momentum and we can look forward to the North West 200 knowing we’re fully prepared and ready to give our maximum.’ Gary and the team have opted out of this weekend’s Tandragee races in order to focus their efforts on the International North West 200, which takes place from May 13-17. More, from a press release issued by Jordan Suzuki: MICHAEL JORDAN MOTOR SPORTS RETURNS TO THE WINNER’S CIRCLE Yates earns Second at Auto Club Speedway Fontana, CA (April 28, 2008) – Michael Jordan Motor Sports Suzuki rider Aaron Yates rode his Suzuki GSX-R1000 to a second place finish in Sunday’s AMA Superstock race. This is Yates’ third podium finish for the Jordan Suzuki team this season, and his second podium finish at the 2.3 mile California race track. Yates qualified for Sunday’s event with a 1:24.279 time, earning a front row start with teammate Geoff May, who started from third place with a qualifying time of 1:25.338. Both riders got off to a good start before the race was red flagged after a rider crashed on lap one. On the restart, Yates rode strongly in second place for eight laps, momentarily dropping to fourth, before regaining the second spot. Anticipating the green flag, teammate May jumped the start. After serving a pit lane penalty, May crossed the finish line in ninth place. In the AMA Superbike races, both Yates and May qualified with 1:25.228 and 1:26.239 times respectively. Yates completed race one of the two race doubleheader in 11th eighth place with May finishing in 12th place. In Sunday’s second Superbike race, Yates, who started the race from the second row, ended the event in 14th place, earning valuable points in the series championship. May’s race ended on the 4th lap, giving the racer a 16th place finish. AMA Superbike Championship points standings, after three rounds. AMA Superstock Points: Aaron Yates, 1st place (106) Geoff May, 4th place (75) AMA Superbike Points: Geoff May, 11th place (84) – production-based Superstock Suzuki GSX-R1000 Aaron Yates, 12th place (80) The Jordan Suzuki riders and crew will return to racing action May 16-18, 2008 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA. For more information on the Jordan Suzuki team, visit the race team website at www.23race.com. Fans can watch the AMA Superbike Championship series on SpeedTV. More, from a press release written by Mike Solis for AFM: AFM Round 2 at Infineon Raceway In the Kal-Gard Formula Pacific race, James Randolph put in his best ride of the weekend to take the win on his Pirelli-shod Santa Cruz Cycle Imports Suzuki. Despite a relatively slow start to the day with a 3rd place finish in Open Superbike and a 4th in Open Production, Randolph looked strong in Formula Pacific, taking the lead from Cory Call early in the race before winning by a margin of over three seconds. Call went on to finish second, with defending AFM number one David Stanton in third. “There were a couple of hairy moments, there might have been something on the track in Turn 2,” said Randolph. “First time I went through there, I lost the front end. Later, I lost the back end. I thought I’d just try a different line after that! It’s been a while since I’ve won, and it’s great, you know? We came close at Buttonwillow and would have liked to have done it there, but some things happened and all we could get was second. The bike was working really good, Richard of Cycle Imports and Charlie have been working hard on it. We were tuning it all weekend, and it just kept getting better and better. I really wanted to thank my girlfriend Christie as well as all my sponsors. Cory’s riding really good, and so is Dave. Both those guys kept me honest, and made me work for it!” Call’s runner up finish was his third of the event, having scored a pair of 2nd place finishes earlier in the day on his MDK Motorsports Suzuki. “I tried my best, I guess I need to just practice more – good thing there’s a Pacific Tracktime trackday tomorrow!” said Call. “I wouldn’t be able to do this without Michael (Earnest), Pat (Blackburn), and all the crew.” Despite winning two races earlier in the day, Stanton seemed happy with his third place finish on his Mach 1 Motorsports Yamaha. “My engine blew up in the second session yesterday, so I ran home and got a stock engine out of my garage that had just over 200 miles on it,” said Stanton. “My mechanic Kenny Norman worked his butt off. This thing was just a frame and a swingarm yesterday, and to be up here is just fantastic.” Stanton was just one of several riders with multiple first place finishes. Lenny Hale took three wins on his Skunk Racing Yamaha R6, with first place finishes in the Pacific Tracktime 600 Superbike, Keigwins@theTrack 600 Production, and Scuderia West Formula 1 races. Dan Sewell took a pair of wins on his Twin Works Factory SV650 in the 650 Twins and Amsoil Formula 4 races. Gregory Grouleff rode his Matsushima Performance prepared GSX-R600 to a pair of wins as well, with first place finishes in the R-Tech Racing Fuels 750 Superbike and 750 Production races despite a nasty crash in practice. “Oh man, I totaled that 750 this morning just look at that thing!” said Grouleff, as he pointed to the heavily damaged 750 that was tied down in his trailer. “I lost the front in the fast right hander before the Carousel, and ended up doing the stomach slide, hoping I wasn’t going to hit the wall. I ended up stopping about five feet from it!” With the AMA national taking place the same weekend in Fontana, a number of AFMers rushed to cram both races into their schedules. The top finisher of the AFM contingent that attended both races on the weekend was Tom Montano, the former AMA Pro Thunder national champion. On Saturday, he finished 14th in Formula Xtreme on a Desmoto Sport Ducati 749. On Sunday, he had a number of strong finishes on his Munroe Motors Ducati 1098, with a win in the Desmoto Sport Open Twins race. Brian Parriott finished second on his San Jose BMW R1200S after running wide trying to outbrake Montano in the last turn on the last lap. “It was a long weekend, and all started on Thursday,” said Montano. “I had to get used to Fontana again, since I hadn’t been there in a while. I rode the Desmoto 749 down there, and today I’m on the Munroe Motors 1098 I’m batting for both teams, so to speak! Open Twins was a good race, but there was just too much traffic we started catching lappers at the beginning of the second lap. Me and Brian were laughing I’d get slowed down and he’d catch up, then he’d get slowed down and I’d catch up. On that last lap, I knew he was gonna do it it didn’t happen in 9, so I knew he’d try in 11. He said he went one gear too low, but I still think I would have had him since I knew he was going to try.” The next round of the AFM championship is scheduled to take place on May 24th and 25th at Infineon Raceway. AFM Round 1 April 27-28, 2008 Infineon Raceway Unofficial Results Kal-Guard Formula Pacific 1. James Randolph (Suz 1000) 2. Cory Call (Suz 1000) 3. David Stanton (Yam 1000) 4. Leonardo Bagnis (Suz 1000) 5. Michael Earnest (Suz 1000) 6. David Bell (Suz 1000) Open Superbike 1. David Stanton (Yam 1000) 2. Cory Call (Suz 1000) 3. James Randolph (Suz 1000) 4. Martin Szwarc (Suz 1000) 5. Ken Hill (Suz 1000) 6. David Kunzelman (Suz 1000) R Tech Racing Fuels 750 Superbike 1. Gregory Grouleff Jr (Suz 750) 2. Lenny Hale (Yam 600) 3. Neil O’Reilly (Suz 600) 4. Peter O’Sullivan (Suz 750) 5. Brian Parriott (BMW 1170) 6. Billy Scott (Yam 600) Pacific Track Time 600 Superbike 1. Lenny Hale (Yam 600) 2. Brant Wiwi (Yam 600) 3. Gregory Grouleff Jr (Suz 600) 4. Garrett Willis (Hon 600) 5. Jimmy Wood (Yam 600) 6. Christopher Clark (Yam 600) Alpine RV 450 Superbike 1. Michael Lohmeyer (Hon) 2. Erick Crabtree (Yam 400) 3. Mark Elrod (Hon 400) 4. Jonathan Forman (Suz 500) 5. Ed Haazer (Hon 400) 6. David Wallis (Hon 400) 250 Superbike 1. Martin Ayala (Hus) 2. Jim Hoogerhyde (Hon) 3. Joe Rust (Yam 250) 4. Johnny Radavero (Yam 250) 5. Mohammed Kahium (Kaw 250) The Track Club Open Production 1. David Stanton (Yam 1000) 2. Cory Call (Suz 1000) 3. Leonardo Bagnis (Suz 1000) 4. James Randolph (Suz 1000) 5. Ken Hill (Suz 1000) 6. Martin Szwarc (Suz 1000) 750 Production 1. Gregory Grouleff Jr (Suz 600) 2. Christopher Clark (Yam 600 3. Brian Parriott (BMW 1170) 4. David Glenn (Suz 600) 5. Sam Verderico (Suz 750 6. Blaise Camp (Suz 750) 650 Production Twins 1. David Raff (Suz 650) 2. Mark Elrod (Hon) 3. Alex Florea (Suz 650) 4. Rick Williams (Suz 650) 5. Ari Henning (Suz 650) 6. David wallis (Hon) Keigwin@theTrack 600 Production 1. Lenny Hale (Yam 600) 2. Garrett Willis (Hon 600) 3. Brant Wiwi (Yam 600) 4. Jimmy Wood (Yam 600) 5. Scott Gilbert (Yam 600) 6. Christopher Clark (Suz 600) 250 Production 1. Kelly Winkelbauer (Kaw 250) 2. Daniel Lucero (Kaw 250) 3. Lisa Mazurkiewicz (Kaw 250) 4. Brendan Hanley (Suz 400) 5. Jason Duggin (Suz 400) 6. Rich Weidenbach (Kaw 250) GP Frame and Wheel Open Grand Prix 1. Martin Szwarc (Suz 1000) 2. Mike Thompson (Suz 1000) 3. Justin Mastalka (Suz 1000) 4. Harley Barnes (Suz 1000) 5. Craig Smith (Suz 1000) 6. Jose Flores (Yam 1000) Scuderia West Formula 1 1. Lenny Hale (Yam 600) 2. Peter O’Sullivan (Suz 750) 3. Billy Scott (Yam 600) 4. Liko Miles (Suz 750) 5. Matt Eccleston (Suz 600) 6. Ryan Teixeira (Kaw 600) Formula 2 1. Carlos Neves (Hon 250) 2. Michael Altamirano (Yam 250) 3. Brian Hoffman (Hon 250) 4. Erik Kolstoe (Yam 250) 5. Kelly Winkelbauer (Yam 250) 6. Leonardo Mercado (Yam 125) Formula 3 1. Leandro Mercado (Yam 125) 2. Michael Aron (Hon 125) 3. John Kreidle (Hon 125) 4. Peter Le Duc (Hon 125) 5. Peter Watson (Yam 125) 6. Gwyn Lewis (Hon 125) Race-Oil.com Formula 4 1. Dan Sewell (Suz 650) 2. Brian Harp (Suz 650) 3. William Fox (Suz 650) 4. David Raff (Suz 650) 5. Michael Lohmeyer (Hon) 6. Jason Lauritzen (Suz 650) Desmoto Sport Open Twins 1. Thomas Montano (Duc 1098) 2. Brian Parriott (BMW 1170) 3. Matthew Green (Duc 749) 4. Craig McLean (Duc 1098) 5. Patrick Blackburn (Duc 1098) 6. Scott Schwanbeck (Duc 749) 650 Twins 1. Dan Sewell (Suz 650) 2. Brian Harp (Suz 650) 3. William Fox (Suz 650) 4. David Raff (Suz 650) 5. Jason Lauritzen (Suz 650) 6. Rick Ford (Suz 650) 500 Twins 1. Jonathan Forman (Suz 500) 2. Joe Sickle (Suz 500) 3. Robert Clifford (Kaw 500 4. Mohammed Kahium (Kaw 250) 5. Michael Hickey (Kaw 500) 6. Daniel Lucero (Kaw 250) Formula Singles 1. Robert Black (Hon 450) 2. Martin Ayala (Hus) 3. Michael Altamirano (KTM) 4. Jeff Graham (Yam 450) 5. Mike Lawrence (Hon 450) 6. Edward Lloyd (Hus) Super Dinosaur 1. Michael Boyer (Hon) 2. Guy Hyder (Hon) 3. Dave Grace (Hon) 4. Michael Nishita (Yam) 5. Ed Haazer (Hon) 6. Noe Pulido (Yam) Teresa McKinney Realtor Formula 40 1. Ken Hill (Suz 1000) 2. Mike Thompson (Suz 1000) 3. Peter O’Sullivan (Suz 750) 4. Jeff Hagan (Suz 1000) 5. Gary Jaehne (Kaw 1000) 6. Ron Bunten (Suz 1000) Vintage 1. Ron Melton 2. Richard Haas (Duc) 3. Timothy Silva (Yam) 4. Charles Sexton (Bul) 5. Jennifer Bromme (Hon) Clubman Middleweight 1. Wyatt King (Suz 750) 2. Gustavo Arriaza (Duz 750) 3. Jamie LeBlanc (Hon 600) 4. Ameen Sajjadi (Hon 600) 5. Tom Wilbert (Suz 750) 6. Chris Rees (Hon 600) Clubman Lightweight 1. Mithc Joseph (Suz 650) 2. Stephan Babuljak (Suz 650) 3. Brian Paoletti (Suz 650) 4. Christie Cooley (Suz 650) 5. Zoe Rem (Suz 650) 6. Mohammed Mahium (Kaw 250) More, from a press release issued by Foothills Triumph: DAYTONA 675 TRIUMPHS IN FIRST WEEK-END OF THE ULTRA FAST MRA The FOOTHILLS TRIUMPH Daytona 675 piloted by Brad Hendry (#616) had an excellent debut to the ultra fast Motorcycles Racing Association (MRA) during their opening weekend at the Pueblo Motorsports Park road race course in Pueblo Colorado. The Middleweight Superbike event saw the Triumph Daytona 675 on the MRA circuit for the first time. Starting from 24th position in a field of 40 riders saw the Triumph triple into 8th position by turn one and then start moving through the field of well experienced and fast riders. During the event the Triumph 675 set the fastest lap, came within .04 seconds of breaking the fastest lap record and claimed the podium 3rd spot at the end of the race. In the feature Race of the Rockies GTU the Triumph 675 had an excellent start from 15th in a field of 35 riders and into 5th position at the first turn. Quickly the 675 was behind the Graves Motorsports race prepared Yamaha R6 of Josh Graham. For the next 13 laps close racing was experienced between these two machines as they swapped leads and managed the lapped traffic. In the last lap Brad executed an excellent pass in turn 1 and opened up a 4 bike lead on the Graves Yamaha. In the pen-ultimate turn a lapper took the 675 wide allowing Josh to pass into the corner. However, in the final turn the Daytona 675 set-up on the outside of the Yamaha R6 and it was a race for the finish line with the Daytona 675 taking the #1 spot by half a wheel. The Daytona 675 also claimed the fastest lap record for this event breaking Shane Turpin’s long standing record. The Heavyweight Superbike race saw the Daytona 675 starting from 14th in a field of 20 competitors quickly by midway through the first lap claim first position and open up a significant lead on the rest of the field. During the event the Daytona 675 again set the fastest lap record and claimed the #1 podium. With 3 podium finishes the Triumph Daytona 675 clearly established that it can compete with the fastest 600cc machines in the country. “This Foothills Triumph race prepared Daytona 675 certainly showed its’ capabilities today. The top contenders were pretty equal on horsepower as seen on the long front straight” said pilot Brad Hendry. “The real difference was in the corners where the superior torque delivery of the Daytona 675 coupled with the excellent tire grip of the Dunlop NTec tires gave me the advantage that I needed to beat some really fast riders and gain those podiums. A special thanks to all my sponsors too, when you approach lap record times, your parts are really tested, and I was comfortable every lap. ” For more information, results, and photos, visit www.bradhendry.com