Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies Cup Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Monterey, California September 27, 2008 Provisional Qualifying Results (all on KTM RC125s and Dunlop tires): 1. Leandro Mercado, Argentina, 1:34.878 2. Austin Medrano, USA, 1:36.167 3. Jacob Gagne, USA, 1:36.265 4. Tomas Puerta, Colombia, 1:36.430 5. Joey Pascarella, USA, 1:36.575 6. Austin DeHaven, USA, 1:36.581 7. Huntley Nash, USA, 1:36.819 8. Hayden Gillim, USA, 1:36.826 9. Bryce Prince, USA, 1:36.841 10. Corey Rech, USA, 1:36.872 11. Jesse Stevens, USA, 1:36.921 12. Benny Solis, Jr., USA, 1:37.005 13. Otavio Lucchini, Brazil, 1:37.065 14. Emerson Connor, Canada, 1:37.113 15. Cameron Gish, USA, 1:37.448 16. Frankie Lee Gillim, USA, 1:38.093 17. Corey Alexander, USA, 1:38.441 18. Jacob Cunningham, USA, 1:39.213 19. Garet Tomlinson, USA, 1:39.432 20. Jacob Morman, USA, 1:39.853 21. Travis Wyman, USA, 1:40.578 More, from a press release issued by Red Bull: Leandro Mercado Dominates Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies Cup Qualifying at Laguna Seca “Tati” Takes Pole With Championship and Red Bull Riders Cup Slots Up For Grabs Monterey, Calif. (September 27, 2008) — Leandro Mercado of Argentina won pole for the Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies Cup race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on Saturday. The 16-year-old qualified more than a second in front of his closest rival during the final qualifying session of the 2008 season for the hottest young racing talent in North and South America. Joining Mercado on the front row for tomorrow’s race are Austin Medrano of Mustang, Okla., Jake Gagne of Ramona, Calif., and Tomas Puerta of Colombia. Leandro’s quick time was 1:34.878 on a beautiful fall day at Laguna Seca. Apart from Mercado, no other rider able to break into the one minute, 35 second range in the 30-minute session. Mercado challenged for the win in both Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies Cup races held at the 2.238-mile track in July during the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix, and the winner of the Elkhart Lake race looks to be in position to run at the front once again based on his qualifying performance. “I’m very happy because I qualified on the pole position again and tomorrow I want to win this race,” said Mercado. “I am quite pleased. The track was good and the bike, the suspension, and tires worked well for me and I am looking forward to tomorrow.” Second place Medrano pulled into the pits before the end of the session and nervously watched as his time set earlier in the session held up. “It’s my first time ever on the front row,” said Austin. “It surprised me how good I was doing. I’m really excited for the last race of the season and I want to get up on the podium.” Gagne has two wins in a row and will start tomorrow’s season finale on the front row, too. Jake said his goal is to get a better start and to cut the gap to Mercado. “The track was pretty cold today and I didn’t feel that comfortable,” explained Gagne. “I got one quick one in when I was chasing Tomas. I didn’t feel like I should push late because the track was getting colder, so we’ll see what’s happening tomorrow. Tati’s going really fast and we have some ground to make up.” Puerta was able to earn the fourth spot in qualifying. The Colombian racer injured his hand at Indianapolis but said he has recovered and his Saturday form proved it. “I’m happy. The race will be good and very tight for the riders. I want to race hard and push hard because it is the last one of the season. I want to win but it will be difficult.” The championship battle saw the two contenders qualify surprisingly deep in the field. Hayden Gillim earned the eighth starting spot and championship leader Benny Solis, Jr., was 12th. Both riders said they had less than ideal settings for qualifying and their mechanics were changing the settings on their KTM RC 125 machines for tomorrow’s warm-up. “I couldn’t quite get through the turns the way I would have liked,” said Solis, who lives in North Hollywood, Calif., and leads the points standings by 14 over Gillim with just tomorrow’s race left to go. He won both Laguna Seca races in July and has for victories this year. Gillim will start the race from the second row. “It was okay today, I was just trying to figure out the bike,” said the Owensboro, Ky., racer, who has two wins this season. “We had some issues with the grip but we made some adjustments and I can get up toward the front.” Joey Pascarella of Vacaville, Calif., was fifth quickest on Saturday. Austin Dehaven of Los Angeles, Calif., will start sixth, next to Huntley Nash of Marietta, Ga., and Gillim. Bryce Prince of Bakersfield, Calif., and Cory Rech of Ellijay, Ga., rounded out the top ten. Tomorrow’s race will also determine the ten berths in the Red Bull Riders Cup race, which will take place in Valencia, Spain, on October 25, where the Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies will take on the top ten Red Bull MotoGP Rookies. Huntley Nash currently holds the tenth position in the championship and final slot on the U.S. Riders Cup team. Nash leads Jake Morman (Loganville, Georgia) by four points, Rech by five, and Cameron Gish (Shingle Springs, Calif.) by seven points. The Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies Cup season finale is scheduled for tomorrow at 11:15 a.m. Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies Cup Qualifying From Laguna Seca 1. 36 Leandro Mercado, Cordoba, Argentina 1:34.878 2. 7 Austin Medrano, Mustang, Oklahoma 1:36.167 3. 32 Jake Gagne, Ramona, California 1:36.265 4. 12 Tomas Puerta, Medellin, Colombia 1:36.430 5. 25 Joey Pascarella, Vacaville, California 1:36.575 6. 56 Austin DeHaven, Los Angeles, California 1:36.581 7. 75 Huntley Nash, Marietta, Georgia 1:36.819 8. 69 Hayden Gillim, Owensboro, Kentucky 1:36.826 9. 74 Bryce Prince, Bakersfield, California1:36.841 10. 34 Corey Rech, Ellijay, Georgia 1:36.872 11. 13 Jesse Stevens, Lawrenceville, Georgia 1:36.921 12. 35 Benny Solis, North Hollywood, California 1:37.005 13. 82 Otavio Lucchini, Jundiai, SP, Brazil 1:37.065 14. 50 Emerson Connor, Burlington, Ontario 1:37.113 15. 31 Cameron Gish, Shingle Springs, California 1:37.448 16. 95 Frankie Lee Gillim, Owensboro, Kentucky 1:38.093 17. 23 Corey Alexander, Ossining, New York 1:38.441 18. 94 Jacob Cunningham, Kimberly, Wisconsin 1:39.213 19. 22 Garet Tomlinson, Aledo, Texas 1:39.432 20. 66 Jake Morman, Loganville, Georgia 1:39.853 21. 3 Travis Wyman, Macedon, New York 1:40.578 Red Bull AMA U.S. Rookies Cup Points (after nine races) 1. 35 Benny Solis, North Hollywood, California 156 points 2. 69 Hayden Gillim, Owensboro, Kentucky 142 3. 36 Leandro Mercado, Cordoba, Argentina 131 4. 32 Jake Gagne, Ramona, California 123 5. 12 Tomas Puerta, Medellin, Colombia 86 6. 56 Austin DeHaven, Los Angeles, California 76 7. 25 Joey Pascarella, Vacaville, California 75 8. 50 Emerson Connor, Burlington, Ontario 60 9. 74 Bryce Prince, Bakersfield, California 50 10. 75 Huntley Nash, Marietta, Georgia 42 11. 26 Toriano Wilson, St. Davids, Bermuda 40 12. 66 Jake Morman, Loganville, Georgia 38 13. 34 Corey Rech, Liverpool, New York 37 14. 31 Cameron Gish, Shingle Springs, California 35 15. 13 Jesse Stevens, Lawrenceville, Georgia 31 16. 7 Austin Medrano, Mustang, Oklahoma 31 17. 95 Frankie Lee Gillim, Owensboro, Kentucky 28 18. 94 Jacob Cunningham, Kimberly, Wisconsin 28 19. 3 Travis Wyman, Macedon, New York 22 20. 23 Corey Alexander, Ossining, New York 18 21. 11 Luciano Ribodino San Francisco, Cordoba, Argentina 6 22. 22 Garet Tomlinson, Aledo, Texas 4 23. 82 Otavio Lucchini, Jundiai, SP, Brazil 1