AMA Pro SuperSport Championship Infineon Raceway Sonoma, California May 15, 2010 Provisional Race Results (red-flag-shortened, all on Dunlop tires):

1. Elena Myers (Suz GSX-R600), 9 laps 

2. Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R6), -0.338 second 

3. Tyler O’Hara (Yam YZF-R6), -1.406 seconds 

4. Scott Gilbert (Yam YZF-R6), -1.419 

5. Austin DeHaven (Yam YZF-R6), -3.790 

6. Michael Corbino (Yam YZF-R6), -8.346 

7. Matthew Sadowski (Suz GSX-R600), -8.706 

8. Travis Ohge (Yam YZF-R6), -9.003 

9. Robert Tinagero (Kaw ZX-6R), -15.032 

10. Nick Hayman (Duc 848), -15.976 

11. Vittorio Fabregas (Kaw ZX-6R), -19.338 

12. Roi Holster ((Yam YZF-R6), -19.796 

13. Jose Flores (Suz GSX-R600), -20.516 

14. Shelina Moreda (Kaw ZX-6R), -25.478 

15. Bruce Bleecker (Yam YZF-R1), -25.885 

16. Richard Colton (Kaw ZX-6R), -26.934 

17. Joy Higa (Yam YZF-R6), -27.209 

18. Joey Pascarella (Duc 848), -27.210, crash 

19. Jake Gagne (Yam YZF-R6), -3 laps, DNF, crash 

20. Huntley Nash (Yam YZF-R6), -5 laps, DNF, crash

More, from a press release issued by Infineon Raceway:

Discovery Bay’s Elena Myers Becomes First Female to win AMA Pro Road Race

SONOMA, Calif. (May 15, 2010) “” Elena Myers, a teenager from Discovery Bay, made history on Saturday at Infineon Raceway, becoming the first female in history to win an AMA Pro Road Race.

Myers, who came close to victory earlier this season in Fontana (fourth) and Daytona, Fla. (seventh), came away with the win in the SuperSport class in front of a roaring hometown crowd in the Sonoma Valley.

“I’m in another world right now,” Myers said minutes after the race. “I can’t believe it.”

Myers (Suzuki) started eighth on the grid of the scheduled 18-lap race and moved her way through the field. She passed race-leader Joey Pascarella (Vacaville) on lap 9. Pascarella lost control of his Ducati just long enough for Myers to pass on the inside entering Turn 7.

Pascarella crashed in Turn 10 on the same lap, bringing out the red flag. AMA officials declared the race final at that point, giving Myers the win. She was followed by top-qualifier Cameron Beaubier from Roseville (Yamaha) and Petaluma’s Tyler O’Hara (Yamaha). Pascarella wound up 18th.

“I’m just on another planet right now,” said Myers, who just attended her high school prom a few weeks ago and was competing in her first-ever professional race at Infineon Raceway. “The race went really good for me and some people made mistakes and I took advantage of it. It’s great to be at the top of the box. I don’t think it has quite sunk in yet.”

O’Hara understood the historical significance of Myers’ victory.

“I think it’s huge for the sport,” he said. “I think Elena just broke the barrier as a woman on a motorcycle at the top level. I’m proud of her, and happy and I like racing with her. It’s going to bring a lot more fans and some more sponsors and make everything better.”

Myers will look to make it a sweep of the race weekend as the SuperSport class runs its second main event on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at Infineon Raceway. There will also be feature races in National Guard American SuperBike and Daytona SportBike, presented by AMSOIL. Race tickets are available at the gate. Visit www.infineonraceway.com/ama for details.

West Coast Moto Jam

WHAT: Big O Tires Racing Season Presents: West Coast Moto Jam

WHEN: May 14-16

ABOUT THE WEEKEND: In addition to AMA Pro Racing, there will be Supermoto USA, Motocross and Flat Track.

NOTABLE: Infineon Raceway will also host the first zero-carbon motorcycle race in the United States with the TTXGP U.S. Championships. The event will take place on the road course.

TICKETS: $15-$35 single day/$60 weekend; 12-and-under FREE and parking FREE. Military discounts available.

INFORMATION: 800-870-RACE, infineonraceway.com

More, from a press release issued by LTD Racing:

BAY AREA BUMMER FOR LTD RACING DUO AT INFINEON RACEWAY

Sonoma, CA (May 15, 2010) — Saturday was the first disappointing contest of 2010 for LTD Racing. The perennial AMA SuperSport front-runners came up short of their high standard in the first of two races this weekend. Even though Huntley Nash got the holeshot and Jake Gagne ran in the top three, the duo saw their fortunes wane under the California sun in the race originally scheduled for 18 laps but shortened due to red flags. For the first time in 2010, LTD Racing did not earn at least one spot on the AMA Pro Racing SuperSport podium as Nash and Gagne both failed to finish at Infineon Raceway.

Nash took the lead from his first row starting position but his time at the front was short-lived. “I got the holeshot but my foot got stuck under the lever and we had a problem with it. I rode wide and then came around once and into the pits stuck in second gear,” said Nash. “We worked on it going but I was two laps down.”

Nash returned to action after repairs were made. After the race was stopped due to a red flag, Nash crashed while charging through the field and tangling with another competitor.

Jake Gagne looked impressive in the race, setting quick lap times while engaging in a conservative tire strategy the team felt would have played out well for the Californian in the final laps. Gagne was fighting for second early on but had a bike issue and crashed out. “I got off to a good start and I felt comfortable running where I was. I had a false neutral in the Carousel and I ran it wide and I lost some time. It threw me off my game a little bit and I tucked the front a little bit later,” said Gagne.

“The good thing is we have another shot at it tomorrow,” said LTD Racing’s Gary Medley. “Hunt and Jake proved they could run strong today and tomorrow we just have to put it all together. If there’s a positive to this, it is it did not really mess up our points deal since Huntley is in the East championship.”

More, from a press release issued by The Elena Project:

ELENA MYERS WINS AT INFINEON RACEWAY

RMR Roadracingworld.com Suzuki’s Lucas Oils-sponsored Elena Myers made history with a triumphant AMA Pro SuperSport effort on Saturday at Infineon Raceway.

Myers’ victory was a landmark moment for the sport, as the 16-year-old racer from nearby Discovery Bay, CA became the first female sprint race winner in AMA Pro Road Racing history.

Elena rose to the occasion in a chaotic SuperSport contest that was twice red-flagged. Myers opened the race from the outside of the second row after qualifying eighth fastest aboard her GSX-R600 with a best time of 1:44.422 but quickly moved into fifth position before the race’s first red flag flew.

Myers and her crew took full advantage of the stoppage, improving the grip of her machine and allowing her to take the fight to the frontrunners in the race’s second half, immediately moving into contention for the win.

Myers led when the race was red-flagged the second time and declared the winner as the race results were adjusted and called complete after nine laps.

After the race Myers, still somewhat stunned by the turn of events, said, “It feels amazing right now. The whole race was pretty crazy with people falling and red flags and all that. I got a little lucky this weekend but I’m super stoked for it.

“I got a pretty good start but my tire started going off a little bit on the fifth lap and it was kind of hard to stay with the guys up front, but we had the first red flag. I came in and we made a couple changes. I got a good restart off the front row and made some moves. I felt like I was getting a little bit closer to the leader with about eight or nine laps to go. He ran a little wide and I took advantage of it to take the lead. I came around the next lap and the red flag was shown again.

“We were sitting there for probably five minutes, getting prepared to go back out and then someone said, ‘They called the race and you won.’ I looked at my dad and he was crying.”

Admitting that her accomplishment still hadn’t entirely sunk in, Myers was already looking ahead to Sunday’s race. “It’s a little crazy. I’m so excited for it and I hope it’s only the start of even better things to come. It was a fun race today. Knowing those guys I was competing with had won most of the races definitely gives me a lot of confidence and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

“A special thank you goes out to Ken Hill for helping me this weekend and Lucas Oils.”

Myers is currently second in the season’s AMA Pro SuperSport West championship standings with 76 points following her Saturday win. On Sunday she’ll compete in the second half of the AMA Pro SuperSport doubleheader at Infineon Raceway.

More, from a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing:

Elena Myers takes historic first win in AMA Pro Road Racing

SONOMA, CA (May 15, 2010) – With a motorcycle racing history going back to 1934 and the formation of the AMA racing category called Class C, May 15, 2010 is the day that 16 year old Elena Myers put her name permanently in the history books with the very first AMA Pro Road Racing victory for a female rider. Myers, from nearby Discovery Bay, California, took an exciting and popular victory at Infineon Raceway during the West Coast Moto Jam AMA Pro Racing SuperSport event.

Myers has been competitive from the very first race this year at Daytona International Speedway, taking a pair of seventh place finishes aboard her Lucas Oil/RoadRacingWorld.com/RMR Suzuki. She showed further improvement at the next round at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California with a stirring fourth place finish in the second of two races, after suffering an accident moments after the start of race one.

Myers again showed her mettle at the next race at Road Atlanta, when she again had the misfortune of getting caught up in someone else’s problem on the race warm-up lap, which again prevented her from starting, but she came back to finish fifth in the second race.

Today, she again showed her ability by racing hard when it counted and took a well deserved win after battling with a number of her competitors during today’s action packed AMA Pro Racing SuperSport race at 2.32-mile, 11-turn Infineon Raceway. Myers qualified on the outside of the second row in eighth place. She jumped up to fifth place at the start and began her day mixing it up once again with the excellent field in this year’s production-based SuperSport class.

Pole position and Daytona winner Cameron Beaubier shot off into the lead and pulled out a slight gap, reflecting his outright speed during the entire weekend. Beaubier, riding out of his usual SuperSport Young Gun East Division, was consistently fastest in practice and qualifying riding his own Mazda Technologies/Intel Yamaha instead of his usual Rockwall Racing Yamaha.

A number of the other main players in SuperSport this year were right up front too, three-time winner and West Division Young Gun points leader Joey Pascarella, who this weekend was making his debut with the DNR Energy Drink/CNR Motorsports Ducati team and Pascarella’s previous teammates at LTD Racing Yamaha, Huntley Nash and Jake Gagne, were also in contention as was a local Top Gun entry, Tyler O’Hara, riding another Yamaha extremely quickly.

Things started happening fast though, as Nash had trouble early, forcing him into the pits on lap one, and Gagne suffered a fall in the turn ten complex on lap seven which necessitated a red flag since Gagne’s motorcycle was in a dangerous position on the track. The race was restarted with twelve laps remaining, and at the restart Beaubier didn’t have the clean getaway that he had hoped for and not only did O’Hara move up to first place, but Pascarella and Myers were ahead of Beaubier too as the race resumed.

Now Pascarella started to get into form and he took the lead from O’Hara. Then Myers fought her way by O’Hara with Beaubier, now battling with another impressive Top Gun entry, Scott Gilbert. Gilbert, who took a second and a third at Auto Club Speedway earlier this year, was right in the middle of the mix as Beaubier began to find his rhythm and he moved past O’Hara also and started to track down Myers.

More than once Beaubier looked like he had passed Myers, only for her to fight back and retake the position. All of a sudden, Pascarella went wide in turn seven and both Myers and Beaubier moved to the front but as quickly as this was happening, Pascarella had the rear wheel slide out and the next thing you knew, the motorcycle twitched back and literally threw Pascarella off where he landed off track unhurt.

The race was again red flagged on lap 10, this time with Myers leading Beaubier. By virtue of the rules, the running order reverts back to lap 9, the halfway point and the last completed green flag lap, which showed Pascarella leading. As he was the cause of the red flag, he was moved to the end of the running order.

An emotional and overwhelmed Myers, the first female winner in the history of AMA Pro Road Racing, celebrated with the many happy fans and industry personnel present for this historic achievement. Myers commented, “When they told me the race was called, they said, ‘You got second, but wait, Joey crashed and you got first,’ and I looked at my Dad and he was crying.”

Later on, she talked about her race, “I got a great start off the front row, which worked out really well for me. I was in second and Tyler was in first and I passed Tyler and Joey was still ahead of me…Sorry, I’m just on another planet right now.” She continued, “The race went really good for me, and some people made mistakes and I took advantage of it. I don’t think it’s quite sunk in yet. It’s crazy.”

Both Beaubier and O’Hara congratulated Myers and saluted her win. O’Hara commented, “I think it’s huge for the sport. Elena just broke the barrier as far as women on a motorcycle at the top level. I’m proud of her and happy and I like racing with her.”

After all the excitement, Gilbert again took a fine fourth place finish on his Team Graves Yamaha ahead of Austin DeHaven and another Top Gun entry Michael Corbino, both of whom were riding Yamahas.

Race two of the doubleheader Infineon Raceway AMA Pro Racing weekend will be tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. local time and all eyes will be on this exciting AMA Pro SuperSport class, but it will be hard to top the historic events that saw Elena Myers put herself firmly into the all time record books in AMA Pro Motorcycle racing.

Visit www.infineonraceway.com for schedule and ticket information for the many activities during the West Coast Moto Jam here at Infineon Raceway. Visit www.infineonraceway.com for live timing of all the qualifying and race action.

More, from a press release issued by Mojotown PR:

After taking pole position with the fastest pace all weekend the Mazda Technologies team felt if Cameron could get a great start, they could win the 600 super sport race. Cameron did not disappoint, and launched the #16 Mazda / Rockwall technologies bike from his hard-earned pole position to take the lead on the first lap, then rode beautifully gapping the field by a few seconds before the race was red-flagged on the 6th lap.

Cameron didn’t get the same stellar start on the restart, and unfortunately settled into fifth place. He started to make quick work through the field and battled closely with Elena Meyers who was riding a great race, when the race and championship points leader Joey Pascarella high-sided in turn 10. At that time the race was red-flagged for the second time, with Elena in the lead and Cameron battling to overtake her.

“When Elena and Cameron passed the start-finish line, we thought we might have this”, said Jeff Beaubier, “But the race was red flagged for a second time with Elena in the lead. After the teams got back to their pits, the race was called after only half of the race was completed.”

“Of course I’m disappointed” said Cameron, but at the same time, I’m happy for Elena and her family to have won here today, it’s a great moment for the sport. Hopefully tomorrow I can ride my own race and bring home a win.”

Shawn Herrera stated: ” We want to congratulate Elena on her historic win today. It was a tough loss for our team, but that’s racing. Overall we’re extremely happy to have done so well for the fans and team sponsors. The second red flag came a little early for us so we’ll have to bring it for Sunday’s race.”