Josh Herrin turned the fastest lap time during a crash-strewn AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Presented by AMSOIL qualifying session Friday at hot and humid VIRginia International Raceway. Herrin, the current Championship point leader, rode his Dunlop-shod Graves Yamaha YZF-R6 around the 2.25-mile North Course in 1:27.589, which is just a tick off the fastest time turned last year at VIR – Jason DiSalvo’s 1:27.551. One difference between the two riders’ laps, however, was DiSalvo’s time was recorded during a morning session that featured cooler ambient temperatures and more available grip from the racing surface and Herrin’s lap was done in the heat of the day (98 degrees F at the start, according to Dunlop) with very slippery track conditions, according to some riders. In fact, several top riders crashed during the session, including Herrin’s teammate Tommy Aquino, defending class Champion Danny Eslick and Steve Rapp, the fastest man during the first practice session. Rapp actually crashed twice during the session, once on each of his Latus Motors Racing Ducati 848s, and the veteran failed to record a lap time. Second-fastest in the 40-minute session was Martin Cardenas, who did a 1:28.135 on his Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki GSX-R600. Unlike Herrin, who only did five flying laps in the session, Cardenas did a five-lap run (which produced his quickest time) followed by a 10-lap half-race simulation for 15 laps total. In spite of his crash late in the session, Aquino ended up third-best with a time of 1:28.239. Likewise, Eslick ended up fourth on the time sheet at 1:28.411. Aquino, Eslick and Rapp were not injured in their falls. AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Presented by AMSOIL VIRginia International Raceway Alton, Virginia August 13, 2010 Qualifying Session One Results (all on Dunlop tires): 1. Josh Herrin (Yam YZF-R6), 1:27.589 2. Martin Cardenas (Suz GSX-R600), 1:28.135 3. Tommy Aquino (Yam YZF-R6), 1:28.239, crash 4. Danny Eslick (Suz GSX-R600), 1:28.411, crash 5. Chris Fillmore (Suz GSX-R600), 1:28.751 6. Cory West (Suz GSX-R600), 1:28.769 7. Paul Allison (Yam YZF-R6), 1:28.814 8. Jeff Wood (Yam YZF-R6), 1:28.828 9. Bobby Fong (Duc 848), 1:28.850 10. Michael Barnes (Yam YZF-R6), 1:28.916 11. Dane Westby (Yam YZF-R6), 1:29.017 12. Clinton Seller (Yam YZF-R6), 1:29.030 13. Michael Beck (Duc 848), 1:29.060 14. P.J. Jacobsen (Suz GSX-R600), 1:29.249, crash 15. Josh Day (Yam YZF-R6), 1:29.535 16. Kyle Wyman (Yam YZF-R6), 1:29.549 17. Fernando Amantini (Kaw ZX-6R), 1:30.876 18. Reese Wacker (Suz GSX-R600), 1:31.639, crash 19. Michael Morgan (Suz GSX-R600), 1:31.748 20. Jodi Christie (Hon CBR600RR), 1:31.784 21. Santiago Villa (Suz GSX-R600), 1:31.865 22. Melissa Paris (Yam YZF-R6), 1:32.593 23. David White (Kaw ZX-6R), 1:33.857 24. Sam Rozynski (Yam YZF-R6), 1:33.973 25. Abe Stacey (Suz GSX-R600), 1:34.092 26. Steve Rapp (Duc 848), 5:39.502, crashed twice 27. Kris Turner (Suz GSX-R600), crash More, from a press release issued by Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki: CARDENAS SECOND IN VIR QUALIFYING, HOPKINS RETURNS TO ACTION Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki got off to a hot start at a sweltering VIRginia International Raceway on Friday as Daytona SportBike title contender Martin Cardenas posted the second fastest time in the day’s qualifying session. The Colombian improved upon his second-ranked time of 1:28.369 in the free session to cut a 1:28.135 aboard his GSX-R600 in qualifying, placing him second on the provisional order. “The bike is working great,” Cardenas said. “We tried some things in the practice and based on that decided to go a certain direction in qualifying and it went really well. We did a lot of laps on the same tires so I think the set-up is going to be good for the race tomorrow. If the weather allows, we’ll try to go a little faster in qualifying and then get ready to race. “It’s going to be a tough race because of the heat and the humidity, but it’s the same for everybody. Plus, I think my fitness is quite good so it’s not going to be a problem.” Last year’s visit to VIR was one to forget for Martin, as he was injured in a crash, ultimately bringing his championship hopes to an end. The former Spanish Supersport title winner claims that fact has had no negative impact on his approach this weekend, and in fact only fuels him as this year’s title chase heads down the homestretch. Cardenas has closed to within 12 points of the championship lead on the basis of his six victories in 2010. “At the beginning I had to do some laps to get used to it again, but last year was my mistake,” he admitted. “I wasn’t concentrating enough and I made the mistake, but we’re ready to go this year. The last three races are going to be very important for the championship. I’m going to try to close the gap and we’ll see what happens.” Meanwhile, John Hopkins made a welcome return to action and impressed by proving to be immediately on the pace following an extended layoff recovering from wrist surgery. The former MotoGP star claimed the fifth fastest time of the opening AMA Pro American Superbike session at 1:26.629 and backed that up with a strong sixth-place showing in provisional qualifying, lapping at 1:26.310. Chris Ulrich rounded out a strong Friday for the squad, twice breaking into the Superbike top ten. He practiced at eighth fastest aboard his GSX-R1000 (1:27.272) and lopped almost three-tenths off that mark to qualify tenth best provisionally at 1:26.993. On Saturday morning Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki will claim their final grip positions for the weekend’s twin 23-lap Superbike and SportBike contest before opening the race action in the afternoon.