Suzuki SuperBike Showdown – AMA Pro SuperSport Day Three Report

BRASELTON, GA (April 18, 2010) – After the dramatic action in yesterday’s AMA Pro SuperSport race, it seemed that there was no way these talented group of young riders could possibly top it, but once again, J.D. Beach and his Rockwall Yamaha teammate Cameron Beaubier put on a display of skill and finesse that thrilled the sun baked crowds around the 2.56-mile Road Atlanta road course during the Suzuki SuperBike Showdown weekend.

Beach, in winning his second race in two days and taking home an extra $3,000.00 from ProRacing Sports Marketing for accumulating the most points over the course of both Road Atlanta races, stamped his mark on the series that so far has been dominated by LTD Yamaha Racing’s star rider, Joey Pascarella. Unfortunately for Pascarella, he sustained an injury to his right shoulder in yesterday’s race warm-up and wasn’t able to compete in today’s final. Fortunately, however, he is registered to accumulate points in the Western Division of the Young Guns category and therefore didn’t lose any overall points in his quest for the divisional championship.

Huntley Nash and Tomas Puerta, Pascarella’s LTD Yamaha teammates, carried the flag today in Pascarella’s absence and Nash continues to shine as he took another podium finish, one better than yesterday, in second. Beaubier took third ahead of Puerta.

Today’s race began under clear blue skies and at the start, Elena Myers on her Richie Morris Racing Roadracingworld.com Suzuki, still sore from her unfortunate problem in yesterday’s warm-up, made a perfect launch and led into and up the hill in turn one. Beach, Nash and Beaubier were all right behind Myers and by the time the group got to the turn two-three section, they had all swept by her in a big group draft. Beaubier was all over the back of Nash’s Yamaha and he swept by and took up station right behind Beach.

The young riders then put on a display of riding that was almost poetic in nature as they rode in perfect synchronization, banking left and right for each corner but all the while riding as if it was the last lap of qualifying. Nash gamely tried to hang, and slightly back, Myers and Puerta were battling with Travis Wyman on his Wyman Racing Yamaha in their own battle. But the front three were gone and Beach and Beaubier had turned this race into their own private affair.

On lap five, Beaubier pulled out in the draft as the two headed off the back straight and down into the turn ten complex that had been the scene of so many passing moves all weekend long. As the two Rockwell bikes dove down the hill, Beaubier braked as hard and as late as he possibly could, to the point where he did a masterful job of maintaining control. He almost had to put his left foot down to steady himself and as a result of this brave passing attempt, Beach was forced out to the edge of the track and had to give way. Beaubier now actually had a bit of a gap back to Beach after this moment, but the race was far from over.

On lap seven, Puerta got by Myers but she re-passed him into turn ten before the end of the lap. They went back and forth over the next couple of laps as one would pass the other, only to have the favor returned before the end of the very same lap. At this point the race was interrupted by an unfortunate fall by Sam Nash, Huntley’s brother, who was riding another LTD Yamaha.

The race was stopped to attend to Nash, who was transported to the infield medical center for examination. The race was quickly restarted and this gave Beach the chance to take another shot at Beaubier, who again got a great start, this time with Nash behind him as they went into turn one. Nose to tail, the three ran as one and as they once again ran down into turn ten, Beach made a strong move from third to first and led down the front straight, even pulling a slight gap back to a furiously battling Nash and Beaubier.

How this would all play out was again unfortunately disrupted by a major mechanical problem for another rider back in the pack which necessitated what was determined to be a lengthy track clean-up for spilled fluids. The race was declared final and Beach completed a hard fought and well deserved double win weekend. Nash took second ahead of a disappointed Beaubier. Puerta held on to fourth in a solid showing with the brave Myers taking fifth ahead of Wyman.

Rounding out the top ten was James Rispoli in seventh on his Suzuki, followed by Eric Stump in eighth on his Stump Racing Honda and David Gaviria taking Top Gun honors on his Kawasaki. Miles Thornton was tenth on his Thornton Racing Yamaha.

It was another great race, even with the interruptions, and the AMA Pro SuperSport Young Guns continue to show the way to the future and in the process deliver some of the most exciting racing of the AMA Pro Road Racing weekends.

Highlights from this today’s AMA Pro SuperSport race can be in seen in a same-day delay broadcast Sunday evening on SPEED. Check your local listings for broadcast times.

Up next for AMA Pro SuperSport will be the Western Division at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California on the weekend of May 14-16.

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

Suzuki SuperBike Showdown – AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL Day Three Report

BRASELTON, GA (April 18, 2010) – As the afternoon sun shone on the beautiful Road Atlanta road course, the second of two AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL took to the track to see if they could improve on what was a spectacular show on Saturday. For the many fans in attendance, the field of 31 Daytona SportBikes did not disappoint. And at the end of another spellbinding race it was yesterday’s winner, Martin Cardenas, who took the win on his M4 Monster Energy Suzuki.

At the start, it was Steve Rapp on his Team Latus Motorsports Ducati that shot into the lead, but it was hard to tell as the pack behind scrambled for any opening they could find on the opening lap. In a blink of an eye, Cardenas was by Rapp into first but Rapp repaid the favor on lap two. Behind Rapp and Cardenas was a complete line of 10 to 15 motorcycles, literally on a string running up and down the hills of the 2.56-mile natural road course.

Over the next ten laps, Cardenas and Rapp traded the lead with any number of riders behind them, poised to make a move as well. Team Graves Yamaha teammates Josh Herrin and Tommy Aquino took up station behind the first two and Danny Eslick riding his GEICO Powersports Suzuki, Vesrah Suzuki rider Cory West, again showing excellent form, and Project 1 Atlanta Yamaha teammates Clinton Seller and Dane Westby were all part of the action. A number of riders took turns leading, Herrin was up front for a lap, and then, in the move of the race, Cory West made a dive through the pack as they flared out for the turn ten complex and went from sixth to the lead.

Prior to that incredible move, lap after lap, the riders would go three and four wide down into the first part of turn ten, how they all made it work is a testament to the skill of the riders one and all. Things really started to heat up as the perennial charger Eslick now put himself in contention for the win by moving up from running outside of the top five to fourth position with three laps to go. In a big move up to second with one lap to go, it looked like Eslick could challenge for the win, but it wasn’t to be and he slipped to fourth at the flag.

A big shuffle occurred as the group came down to the wire and Herrin was forced wide in turn twelve with three laps to go but he fought back to take another well deserved second place to keep his lead in the overall points standings. West slipped back to third but he wasn’t disappointed with his second podium finish of the weekend and Eslick was fourth.

Pole position winner Aquino on his Team Graves Yamaha was fifth ahead of the early leader Rapp on his Team Latus Motorsports Ducati with Seller seventh on the Project 1 Atlanta Yamaha. Chris Fillmore took eighth on the other Vesrah Suzuki, Jake Holden was ninth on the Ducshop Racing Ducati and rounding out the top ten was Bobby Fong, who was the victim Saturday of a freak mishap when he actually fell after riding over a wayward hat on the track, which caused considerable damage to his DNA Energy Drink CNR Motorsports Ducati.

It is hard to pick which of the three AMA Pro Road Racing series provides the most excitement, but this talented, interesting and fun group of riders are doing their best to win the award! Visit www.amaproracing.com for full results and points.

Flag-to-flag coverage of today’s AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL racing action can be seen tonight at midnight ET (9 p.m. PT) on SPEED.

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

Suzuki SuperBike Showdown – AMA Pro National Guard American SuperBike Weekend Report Part I – Recap from Saturday, April 17, 2010

BRASELTON, GA (April 17, 2010) – After Saturday morning’s exciting qualifying session that saw Blake Young really put a tremendous couple of quick laps together to take the pole position from overnight pole winner Jake Zemke, the AMA Pro National Guard American SuperBike race looked all set to be another thrilling race.

Young, riding his Rockstar Makita Suzuki, lined up next to Daytona double winner Zemke on his National Guard Jordan Suzuki. Team Graves Yamaha rider Josh Hayes was next up with Auto Club Speedway winner Tommy Hayden on his Rockstar Makita Suzuki completing the front row. The fireworks started early as Josh Hayes started rolling slightly before the start and was deemed to have gained a competitive advantage by leading into turn one. Hayden had a great start and was second going up the hill into turn one, followed by Young, Zemke, Larry Pegram on his Foremost Insurance Pegram Racing Ducati and an impressive Tray Batey, making his return to AMA Pro Racing on his Vesrah Suzuki.

The first four quickly broke away but it was determined that Hayes and also fifth starting Taylor Knapp on his RidersDiscount.com Suzuki had violated the jump start rule and were to be assessed a penalty. Hayes came into pit lane for his penalty and unfortunately, the fast running Batey suffered a fall at the turn six area of the track. Batey was in a dangerous situation and the red flag was immediately shown to the competitors.

Unfortunately, Hayes was in the process of serving his penalty and Knapp hadn’t made his way to pit lane to serve his ride through penalty. Batey was transported to the infield care center and then airlifted to Gwinnett Medical Center for further evaluation.

After a delay, the field resumed racing with 17 laps remaining. At the restart, Hayes lined up in his previous position and he, Young, Hayden and Zemke resumed their intense battle at the front of the field. Young, really riding well this weekend, took the lead and as his teammate dropped back, it looked like Young was going to follow Hayden’s example from the last round and take his first AMA Pro American SuperBike win. But both Hayes and Zemke were going to do all they could to prevent this from happening.

Hayes looked like he had the measure of Young, but then it was Zemke that was putting on a charge and he rode up to second place. Behind this battle, it was a somewhat lonely Ben Bostrom on his Pat Clark Motorsports Yamaha ahead of a very solid John Hopkins riding his M4 Monster Energy Suzuki ahead of his teammate, Chris Ulrich on his M4 Monster Energy Suzuki, who continues to run very nicely in 2010.

The sidelined Aaron Yates watched from the Jordan Team pit as young Brett McCormick rode Yates’ regular Jordan Suzuki, but misfortune struck McCormick as he fell off at turn six on lap eight. Zemke had a slight bobble and Hayes was by in an instant, now pressuring Young as the race wound down.

Hayden had made a late charge and he was now attacking Zemke and at the finish, Hayden did end up third. But it was Josh Hayes who made a strong pass into the turn ten complex and held the lead to the line to take the win on the track. Young had given it his all and he was a disappointed second, his first win almost in his grasp.

After the race, two separate protests were filed with AMA Pro Racing officials and after careful deliberation and detailed information from Timing and Scoring, it was determined that Hayes hadn’t actually completed his penalty prior to the red flag period and he was given a time penalty of 21.4 seconds which dropped him down to sixth place. This gave the win to Young and Hayden was now second with Zemke third and Bostrom fourth followed by Hopkins in fifth.

Hayes was the aforementioned sixth ahead of Ulrich in seventh, the first rider’s standing that was unaffected by the penalty. Taylor Knapp recovered from his completed ride through penalty to finish eighth ahead of Pat Clark Motorsports Yamaha rider Chris Clark and Barrett Long flew the flag for Ducati on his Longevity Racing Ducati, finishing tenth after Larry Pegram suffered mechanical issues which forced him to make a pit stop early and finish 14th.

Part II – Recap from Sunday, April 18, 2010

BRASELTON, GA (April 18, 2010) -In what could be termed as destiny, Blake Young on his Rockstar Makita Suzuki took an extremely hard fought and popular win in race two of the Suzuki SuperBike Showdown at Road Atlanta on Sunday. Josh Hayes on the Team Graves Yamaha passed Young’s Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammate Tommy Hayden on lap four and Young and Hayes put on a display of clean, hard fought motorcycle racing of the highest possible quality all the way to the end of the 20 lap AMA Pro National Guard American SuperBike race.

After the difficult situation surrounding Saturday’s AMA Pro American SuperBike race where AMA Pro officials made an error enforcing a penalty to Hayes for a jumped start, it was determined after a thorough examination of various factors and information that a time penalty was given to Hayes, which moved him from first place in Saturday’s race to sixth. Young was declared the winner, his first in AMA Pro American SuperBike competition but everyone, fans and participants would have liked to have seen Young take the checkers outright for his first victory.

On Sunday, both Young and Hayes set out to give the fans another great race and this time each wanted to win it in style. The two did not disappoint, once Hayes got past Hayden, he put on a demonstration of why he is a champion as he fought every inch of the way in battling only inches behind Young lap after lap. Those two just plain disappeared into the distance and only Hayden could even keep in touch with the battling duo.

Jake Zemke riding his National Guard Jordan Suzuki tried hard to stay with the first three but he and the others behind had nothing for the very determined first two riders. Larry Pegram on his Foremost Insurance Pegram Racing Ducati fought hard all day with first Taylor Knapp on his RidersDiscount.com Suzuki and then also a rejuvenated John Hopkins on his M4 Monster Energy Suzuki.

Hopkins’s M4 Monster Energy Suzuki teammate Chris Ulrich also had another strong ride and he fought the good fight with Hopkins. Ben Bostrom had a tough day on his Pat Clark Motorsports Yamaha and he pitted early to check for a mechanical problem and then, after rejoining, showed his class by moving over smartly for the leaders before pulling back in to the pits for good to end his day.

It really was just a two man show and Hayes tried everything he could, even falling back just slightly for a few laps but then as the race wound down, he made another valiant charge to get by Young. Hayes had the slightest wobble coming out of turn seven on the last lap and that was all Young needed as he dove down into the turn ten complex for the final time, Hayes just wasn’t close enough to try a pass.

Coming out from under the bridge down to the last corner, Young braked as late as he could, the Yoshimura Suzuki twitching under the strain of his later than late braking but he held it together nicely and took the flag for what is officially his second AMA Pro National Guard American SuperBike win. But today he celebrated it in style with a high five from Daytona SportBike rider Danny Eslick on his way into Victory Lane and with a smoky burnout once he arrived.

AMA Pro Racing long time official starter Bobby Lemming presented Young with the traditional honor of the actual race checkered flag to commemorate the well deserved win. Hayes was a classy second and is now back at the pace that brought him seven wins in 2009. Hayden took third, completing a strong weekend for him and the Rockstar Makita Suzuki team. Zemke took fourth ahead of Hopkins (fifth), Pegram (sixth) Knapp was seventh with Ulrich eighth. Chris Clark on the second Pat Clark Motorsports Yamaha was ninth and Barret Long on the Longevity Racing Ducati finished tenth.

Another great race for the series with Zemke holding a four point lead in points over the solid Hayden, 145-141. The battle will be rejoined next at Infineon Raceway in California, May 14-16. Visit www.amaproracing for the full results and points standings and make sure to watch the races on SPEED, late tonight at 1 a.m. ET (10 p.m. PT).

More, from a press release issued by Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki:

DOUBLE VICTORY FOR CARDENAS AND M4 MONSTER ENERGY SUZUKI

Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas was in spectacular form again on Sunday, orchestrating a virtual repeat of Saturday’s triumph to complete the AMA Pro Daytona SportBike doubleheader sweep with another win today at Road Atlanta.

Despite Saturday’s success, Cardenas and his crew put their heads together and improved his GSX-R600 for Sunday, bettering his machine over the front section of the course while retaining its capabilities on the back straight and into the hard-braking Turn 10 chicane.

If anything, Sunday’s race was even more thrilling, with close to ten riders challenging at the front and positions being swapped multiple times per lap. Despite the constant shuffling, the Colombian managed to stay in a position of strength throughout. Cardenas led early, settled into the fight during the middle stages of the race, and then once again made an epic escape over the final two laps.

He took full advantage when his rivals slowed up one another disputing second. The Colombian broke free at the tail end of the race to claim his third win of the 2010 season with a 1.683-second margin of victory at the checkered flag.

After scoring his tenth career AMA Pro win, Martin said, “Today we made a change on the bike to make it more agile and I was feeling much, much stronger. At the beginning of the race until the middle I tried to push as hard as I could and thought maybe I could break away. But when I saw that it wasn’t possible and all the guys were still on my tail, I decided to slow the pace a little and try to see what was going on.

“The battle with a few of the guys was really good and two laps from the end I made a move. I was a little bit lucky because the guys behind me had a little bit of an issue with each other and I was able to get a gap. I maintained it for the last two laps and won again. It was a great race.”

Cardenas’ double victory sees him jump into third in the championship standings with 103 points.

As was the case in SportBike, Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki’s Sunday in the American Superbike class was similar to Saturday’s effort. John Hopkins made yet another spirited charge up through the field and Chris Ulrich secured another solid top-ten result.

Hopkins didn’t get an ideal start, dropping to eighth following the opening lap and then running off course in Turn 10 on the following circulation. However, he didn’t give up, putting his head down and slicing his way back up the order.

Coming from several seconds back, Hopkins closed in on the scrap for fifth with just four laps remaining and quickly worked past both riders to claim the position at the checkered flag.

Ulrich registered another measured ride, settling into eighth early and holding the spot for the remainder of the 20-lap final. Chris now sits sixth in the championship standings with 76 points on the strength of five top-ten rides in six races while Hopkins is ninth at 62.

“I think I rode pretty well this weekend but we got behind from the get-go,” Ulrich admitted. “We got it a bit wrong on the first day and we really didn’t catch up until today. We made a big gearing change and a little chassis change for the race and kind of rolled the dice because my pace just wasn’t there yesterday or this morning. It paid off in the race and we were quite a bit better, but we needed to be where we ended up today on Friday morning and then refine it from there.

“But to struggle a little bit like we did this weekend and get out of here with two top tens is a good performance and we gained some points and moved up in the championship.”

Team M4 Monster Energy Suzuki will next head to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA on May 14-16 for Round 4 of the 2010 AMA Pro Road Racing season.

More, from a press release issued by LTD Racing:

NASH SECOND IN ROAD ATLANTA SUPERSPORT FOR LTD RACING

Braselton, GA (April 18, 2010) Huntley Nash finished second in the final AMA Pro SuperSport race from Road Atlanta on Sunday. For Nash, the result was his fourth straight podium finish in AMA Pro’s class for up-and-coming roadracing stars. His teammate Tomas Puerta took a solid fourth place in the LTD Racing team’s home event.

Nash ran third in the early laps and had solidified the position before the first of two red flags. On the restart, Nash got an effective launch and improved to second place off the line as he scrapped with Cameron Beaubier and J.D. Beach. When the race was stopped a second time, Nash was classified in second place when the race was called complete after 11 laps.

“It was a good race for sure and we’re happy to be on the box again,” said Nash. “At this point, we are looking to win. We were a couple of tenths off at some of the more important corners but it didn’t really add up until a few laps had passed. I was able to hang at the front for a while. After the restart, I had a chance to stick with them again and we ended up with a second place out of it. At Fontana, I got third on Saturday and second on Sunday, then the same thing here. Now I just need to move up one more spot. Big thanks go to the team for everything this weekend. We’ve been working toward putting together momentum and improving our results and I feel like I am learning a lot.”

LTD Racing now has 11 AMA Pro podium finishes this season.

Tomas Puerta earned fourth place, just 0.785 from the leaders. Puerta improved his fortunes in the final race of the weekend, coming up just short of his goal of a podium result but earning more valuable points. “We had some issues this weekend,” said Puerta. “Fourth place is a good result but I am not happy unless I am on the podium or fighting for the win.”

Sam Nash placed as high as seventh in the running order before crashing out with six laps to go. “I was having a good race with Miles Thornton and I took a look back coming down the straight and then when I downshifted, I went down in to first and it spit me off,” said Nash. Sam broke the fourth metacarpal in his right hand but is expected to race in his next scheduled event at Mid-Ohio.

Polesitter Joey Pascarella missed the race with a shoulder injury from his crash on Saturday. Pascarella, who is officially entered in the West Coast championship and leads the points, hopes to return to action at Infineon Raceway.

“All of the boys are riding well and improving,” said LTD’s director of racing Gary Medley. “Huntley was able to go fast again and he’s got himself a nice little podium streak going. With Tomy, we’re still working on some solutions. He’s close to being up there with the front group, too. When the guys are going this fast, the setup is a little different for each rider and the team will come up with some answers for the next race. Sam was going fast before his little mistake. It’s too bad Joey got hurt but we’ll find out more about his condition this week.”

More, from a press release issued by Michael Jordan Motorsports:

MICHAEL JORDAN MOTORSPORTS SCORES A PODIUM AT ROAD ATLANTA

National Guard Jordan Suzuki’s Jake Zemke Maintains the Championship Points Lead

BRASELTON, GA (April 18, 2010) Michael Jordan Motorsports (MJM) scored a podium and maintains the championship points lead after completing races five and six of the 2010 AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike Championship held at Road Atlanta in Braselton, GA this weekend. National Guard Jordan Suzuki’s Jake Zemke scored a third place podium finish on Saturday and finished fourth in Sunday’s race. Aaron Yates’ replacement rider, Brett McCormick, had a tough first weekend, crashing out of Saturday’s race and experiencing a mechanical issue on Sunday after nine laps.

National Guard Jordan Suzuki’s Zemke found himself involved in a four-man battle at the front for the entire 20-lap race on Saturday. Zemke had slipped into second in the final stages but was unable to hold off the pack as he crossed the line in fourth. Zemke was later awarded a third place podium finish after the race winner, Graves Yamaha’s Josh Hayes, was assessed a 21.4 second penalty. On Sunday, Zemke was slightly off the pace, maintaining a fourth place position throughout most of the race and finishing fourth. Zemke heads to the next event at Infineon Raceway with a four point lead in the championship.

“Saturday wasn’t horrible,” Zemke said. “We got out there in the race and the pace was quite a bit slower than what we’d been running in practice and with the guys in front of us, we just couldn’t seem to get off the corners. Today, it seemed like I was getting yanked off the slower corners, so we changed quite a bit on the bike – changed the gearing, changed everything to try and fix that problem and we just ended up shooting ourselves in the foot a little bit. Every time we’re going out, we’re learning and unfortunately we learned a hard one this weekend. We’ve definitely got to get our act together if we’re going to win this championship, so we’ll put our heads together and see what we can come up with for Infineon. I’m still leading the points, but it’s not even worth saying I’m leading right now. Tommy’s running good right now and obviously Josh and Blake this weekend, they were definitely running real strong as well, so it’s going to be a fight to the end and that’s why we got to get on our game and make sure we’re there every week.”

This weekend’s event was particularly significant for Georgia Army National Guard’s 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. Jake Zemke’s National Guard Suzuki GSX-R1000 was sporting the state patch in honor of the historic combat brigade. The corresponding National Guard state patches will be placed on Zemke’s Suzuki for the remainder of the 2010 season.

The 2010 Michael Jordan Motorsports team’s next event will be at the West Coast Moto Jam at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA on May 14-16, 2010.

More, from a press release issued by Ridersdiscount.com:

Knapp Declares Success at Road Atlanta

Taylor Knapp found himself off to a good start when he put his RidersDiscount.com Suzuki GSX-R1000 in the first spot on the second row of the starting grid in the Suzuki Superbike Showdown at Road Atlanta. Despite a ride-through penalty at the start of Saturday’s AMA Superbike race, the 22 year old Michigan native worked his way up from dead last to finish eighth in the field, almost thirty seconds ahead of ninth place and less than four seconds behind seventh.

Sunday proved even more exciting for Team RidersDiscount.com, with Taylor getting a good start and then running down and battling with Larry Pegram for the latter part of the race. Taylor put his Yoshimura-prepared Suzuki GSX-R1000 through its paces over the first section of Road Atlanta’s undulating course to get past Pegram and build a comfortable gap on the Italian bike. All was going to plan until Taylor was balked by a lapper – allowing first Pegram and then also John Hopkins to make their way past on the closing laps of the race, leaving Taylor with no time to mount a counterattack.

“I knew Pegram’s bike was fast from following him, but I was faster than him in the first section of the track so, when I got by him I put my head down and built a little gap on him” Knapp said. “But then I hit a lapper just enough to check me up and Pegram caught my draft and passed me on the straightaway. I had him set up where I wanted but then Hopkins came from nowhere. I’m happy with the way I rode, and we’re happy with the way the bike was set up. We made tons of progress over the weekend.”

Despite the events on the last few laps, Taylor finished a very respectable seventh place in Sunday’s race. Coming away from Atlanta, Taylor holds seventh place in the overall Championship Points Standings and looks forward to building on his results at Infineon Raceway in three weeks time.

About RidersDiscount.com:

RidersDiscount.com is an online retailer of quality powersports gear, apparel and accessories. A company formed and owned by motorcycle racers, RidersDiscount.com ships equipment for every riding style to customers worldwide, backed by a knowledgeable sales team and excellent customer service.

The following brands have partnered with Riders Discount to support Taylor Knapp throughout the 2010 American Superbike season: Suzuki – Yoshimura – Ohlins USA – Alpinestars – Arai Helmets – RK Chain – Renthal – Motion Pro – Smith Optics – Sharkskinz – ChickenHawk – Pit Bull Products

More, from a press release issued by Infineon Raceway:

Zemke, Herrin Head to Sonoma Atop AMA Pro Road Racing Standings SONOMA, Calif. (April 19, 2010) Riders Jake Zemke and Josh Herrin enter the West Coast Moto Jam at Infineon Raceway, May 14-16, narrowly atop the AMA Pro Road Racing point standings.

Zemke (National Guard Jordan Suzuki), a San Francisco native, has posted two victories so far this season, and will enter the weekend with a slim four-point lead over Tommy Hayden (Rockstar Makita Suzuki) in American SuperBike. There have been four different SuperBike winners in six races so far this year, as well as some of the closest finishes in recent history.

Zemke will look for his first SuperBike victory at Infineon Raceway, but he’ll likely be tested by Josh Hayes (Graves Yamaha), who claimed his first SuperBike win at Infineon Raceway in 2009 and posted the fastest time during a test session in Sonoma earlier this month.

“We’ve definitely got to get our act together if we’re going to win this championship, so we’ll put our heads together and see what we can come up with for Infineon,” said Zemke, who has two Formula Xtreme victories in Sonoma (2008, ’05).

Zemke enters Sonoma with 145 points, just four better than Hayden (141), with Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Blake Young third (130). Young earned his first SuperBike victory and swept both races in Road Atlanta this past weekend. Hayes sits in fourth with 107 points.

Graves Yamaha’s Josh Herrin enters Sonoma with the Daytona SportBike points lead, but it’s Martin Cardenas (M4 Monster Energy Suzuki) who enters the weekend with momentum after sweeping the doubleheader at Road Atlanta. Cardenas also swept both races at Infineon Raceway last year.

Herrin (117 points) is just six points ahead of Danny Eslick (GEICO Powersports Suzuki) in second (111), followed by Cardenas in third (103). Oakland native Steve Rapp (Team Latus Motorsports) is sixth (86).

Vacaville’s Joey Pascarella (LTD Yamaha) continues to lead the SuperSport West class after posting three wins this season. He has 122 points, with Scott Gilbert second (46). Discovery Bay’s Elena Myers (Roadracingworld.com Suzuki) is fourth (46).

The race weekend will feature a full slate of motorcycle action, including Supermoto USA, motocross and flat track. Infineon Raceway will also host the first zero carbon motorcycle race on U.S. soil with the TTXGP U.S. Championships.

For tickets to the weekend, call 80-870-RACE or visit www.infineonraceway.com.

More, from a press release issued by Penny Nicolai on behalf of DNA Energy Drink CNR Motorsports:

ROAD ATLANTA PROVED TO BE A TOUGH WEEKEND FOR THE CROZIER ROBERSON MOTORSPORTS TEAM

Braselton, GA – The AMA Pro Daytona SportBike event at Road Atlanta proved to be a tough weekend for DNA Energy Drink pilots Bobby Fong and Mark Crozier and the entire Crozier Roberson Motorsports Team.

“This was definitely one of those times that things didn’t go according to plan,” explains team manager and co-owner Mark Crozier. “Qualifying went off without a hitch, putting Bobby on the Grid in 9th and me in 16th. When the green flag waved, we both took off looking to move up, but then the plan began to fall apart. A spectator’s hat flew onto the track due to the wind and Bobby hit it which caused him to fall off. While he wasn’t hurt, he was out of the race for the day. He was really bummed, but it wasn’t his fault. It was just something completely out of our control.”

Round 5 on Sunday proved to be a little better and Fong rebounded to put his DNA Energy Drink Ducati in tenth place.

Crozier struggled throughout the weekend and just couldn’t get the results he wanted.

“This was only our third weekend of racing,” continues Crozier. “We started off at Daytona with a new crew, new bikes, a new sponsor and a new rider. Everyone has been working really hard and we are making improvements each time out. We are definitely all about winning and everyone on the team is determined to put us out in front. With their hard work and determination, it won’t be long before we get the DNA Energy Drink/Crozier Roberson Motorsports name in victory lane.”

Crozier Roberson Motorsports is sponsored by: DNA Energy Drink, Quality Brands, Inc., Arai Helmets, Race Tech, Motion Pro, Pit Bull, EBC Brakes, Leo Vince Exhaust Systems, EK, Melillimoto Ducati, Moto-Heaven.com, XES, Thrust Company, HEL, Woodcraft, Armour Bodies, Puma, Held Gloves, GP Tech, Active, Zero Gravity and Christopher Bean Coffee.

More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:

Yamaha Road Racers Strong at Road Atlanta

Yamaha R6s and R1s raced to two wins and six other podium finishes in a hard-fought third round of the 2010 AMA Superbike series at Road Atlanta in Georgia on Saturday and Sunday, April 17-18. J.D. Beach led a swarm of YZF-R6s that swept the SuperSport podium on both days, while on Sunday Team Graves Yamaha’s Josh Hayes finished second in the premier Superbike race on his YZF-R1 and teammate Josh Herrin also took second in an especially competitive Pro Daytona SportBike race on his R6. After the weekend, Hayes now lies fourth in Superbike points, Herrin leads Daytona SportBike, and Beach sits second in SuperSport points (with fellow R6 pilot Cameron Beaubier in first).

Saturday’s Superbike and Daytona SportBike contests threw plenty of challenges at the Graves Yamaha squad. In Superbike, a fantastic ride earned Hayes the win, but he later received a time penalty that demoted him from the winner’s circle to sixth place along with a corresponding loss of points. Herrin experienced a another challenge, battling as high as third before running off the track and winding up only eighth at the finish. Nevertheless, the R6s of Dane Westby, Tommy Aquino, Clinton Seller and Herrin still occupied four of the top eight positions overall.

The mark of a great team is its ability to rebound, and the Graves crew did just that on Sunday. In Superbike, Hayes and rival Blake Young smoked the rest of the field throughout the entire race. Though Young eventually prevailed, Hayes finished just 0.136 sec. behind. Then in the second Daytona SportBike race, less than two seconds cloaked the first eight riders. Herrin, Martin Cardenas, Steve Rapp and Cory West all took turns in front only to slip back as the pack surged. On the last crazy lap, Herrin raced from fifth to second in an astonishing charge, taking the flag just behind Cardenas. “Both Joshes rode with a lot of heart today,” said Yamaha road race team manager Tom Halverson. “Josh Herrin fought hard to the bitter end, and Josh Hayes put yesterday’s disappointment behind him to get right up front again and fight for the win.”

More, from a press release issued by the Elena Myers Project:

TOP FIVE FOR MYERS AT ROAD ATLANTA

RMR Roadracingworld.com Suzuki’s Lucas Oil-sponsored Elena Myers displayed her speed, toughness, and determination again this weekend at Road Atlanta as she continued her impressive AMA Pro SuperSport campaign. Myers earned fifth place on Sunday as the talented teen continues to show speed in her AMA Pro rookie season.

For the second consecutive race weekend, Myers qualified on the front row of the grid for the weekend’s twin SuperSport finals. Elena circulated with a quick lap of 1:32.130 during Saturday morning’s final qualifying session to secure the outside position on Row 1.

However, similar to her misfortune at Auto Club Speedway, her Saturday race ended before it even got started, as she was cruelly taken out of contention prior to even lining up at her hard-earned grid position. Fluid on the track caused three frontrunners to crash during the sighting lap, including Myers, who was unable to take part in the race as a result.

Despite suffering an injury to her foot in the spill, Elena came out swinging on Sunday. She raced up front, earning a second top-five result of the young AMA Pro SuperSport season. She was ultimately awarded fifth in the twice red-flagged race and was confident she could have made a strong bid for fourth had the race been run to full distance.

Reflecting on the Road Atlanta weekend, Elena said, “I was able to hook up with a fast rider in qualifying and drop my time a few tenths. I was glad I got the opportunity to start on the front row. However, Saturday’s race was a bummer because on the sighting lap there was an incident with water or something down on the track. I highsided on that and my foot got pretty messed up. Walking around it’s okay, but riding, it’s pretty painful.

“Today I tried my absolute best and the bike was working really well. Before the restart I was in fourth but I had to start the restart from fifth, and that was unfortunate and I got pinched off at the start. Those guys got a little bit of a lead on me and just when I caught back up to fourth place we were red flagged again.”

16-year-old Myers will resume her hunt for a first-career AMA Pro podium result and the AMA SuperSport West Division championship when the series resumes on May 14-16 at Infineon Raceway.

“I’ll get my foot all healed up and be ready for Infineon,” Elena said. “I actually only live an hour away from the track and I’m definitely looking forward to that race. I’ve only ridden the place a couple times but I really enjoy it and it will be good to ride in front of my home crowd.”

More, from a press release issued by Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki:

GUEVARA AND LONDONO RACE ROAD ATLANTA FOR TEAM ROADRCINGWORLD.COM SUZUKI

Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki endured a weekend of learning at Road Atlanta, host of the third round of the 2010 AMA Pro Road Racing championship. With team regular Santiago Villa still on the mend, SuperSport East Division contender Daniel Guevara and SportBike substitute rider Andres “Futuro” Londono spent the weekend picking up the tricky circuit and quickly putting that knowledge to good use.

20-year-old Guevara got his weekend off to a solid start, qualifying his GSX-R600 in ninth position with a fast lap of 1:33.530. However, Saturday’s race did not go to plan as the Caracas, Venezuela-native now living in Florida crashed out at mid-distance, bringing out the red flag.

Guevara bounced back on Sunday and picked up valuable points for the SuperSport East Division title race with a 14th-place finish.

In his first weekend on the team’s GSX-R600 SportBike machine, 30-year-old Londono qualified 22nd with a quick time of 1:33.529 and then broke into the top 20 in Saturday’s final, finishing in 19th. The Colombian just missed out on repeating the feat on Sunday, finishing 21st.

Londono said, “We were able to get into the top 20 on Saturday and we were really happy about that. I have enjoyed working with the team and the bike is really good — very fast and stable. I had a lot of fun.”

Team manager Chris Ulrich summed up the weekend, stating, “Danny is new to the AMA game and this was his first visit to Road Atlanta. It’s a very difficult track to learn in the amount of time the SuperSport class is given. He had an off in yesterday’s race and I think his confidence took a hit this weekend, but I have no doubt when he gets to a couple of these tracks that he knows his results will come back and he’ll be top ten and pushing towards the top five. He’s got good equipment and his crew guys are really behind him and really support him. He had a tough weekend but sometimes that happens in racing.

“I think Andres did a good job filling in for Santiago. He didn’t have that much time to learn the bike and the tires and the team, but we were happy to have him for a weekend. We were pleased to get his input and feedback on our motorcycle, and we’re glad we were able to help Andres live the AMA dream this weekend.”

Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki will return to action with Santiago Villa back in his usual seat on the #32 GSX-R600 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA on May 14-16.

More, from a press release issued by Kris Turner:

Road Atlanta

Team Turner’s Cycle Racing’s Kris Turner completes a successful weekend in the AMA Daytona Sportbike class at Road Atlanta.

Friday proved to provide a lot of work getting set up on a new tire introduced by Dunlop, but Turner put his head down in qualifying and scraped a second off his lap time from practice. After making his way through the first segment and dropping three tenths of a second, then finding another three tenths in the next segment, it appeared Kris would find even more time late in the session. Braking deep into turn 10a and getting an excellent drive out of 10b, Turner’s best lap was cut short when he ran out of gas in turn 11.

He ended the qualifying session in 14th, but a bad choice to keep the same tires for the next morning qualifying session set Kris back to 18th, placing him on the 5th row on the grid.

After a bad start in race one, Kris started to make his way through the pack. He crossed the line in 23rd on the first lap. While battling his way through a pack of eight, Turner finally put his moves on Russell Wikle to secure his place in 13th. After Wikle made a daring pass on the entrance of turn one, Kris got back on the throttle earlier and held his place beside Wikle up the hill and through turn two before Russell surrendered his position going into the bus stop of turn three.

Turner would make his way up to 11th and continue to drop his lap times. Catching a lap rider in turn three on the last lap would allow Wikle and Dominic Jones to get back by. He wouldn’t be close enough for redemption on the back straight and finished 13th at the end.

“We tried the soft rear tire for the race and it went up a couple pounds in pressure hindering my drive off of turns. I think with a few changes I could find a little more time to drop and be a little faster for tomorrow,” Turner says.

Sunday morning practice was cut short after burning up a clutch.

Sunday’s race had a similar start. Trying the outside line instead of inside through turn one, Kris got held up in turn two and was again left with a pack to work through. Turner got around Wikle but Russell would find a way back around him. Kris worked into 16th place after battling with Fernando Amantini and started to pull a gap. With just a few laps left, Kris couldn’t close in on Wikle and ended the race in the 16th position.

Turner talks about his weekend, “We had trouble figuring out which tire worked better on the rear all weekend so going back to the medium rear for race two was just a wrong tire choice again. The soft worked better and was faster even at the end of the race. If I would have had better lines through one on the starts I would have been a lot better off, by time I would get through a group of riders holding me up I would start to lost traction off the turns. So it was a good learning weekend with no damage done. Kept it on two all weekend and had a couple good races. I need to get back and start preparing for Road America in June so I can chase after a pair of top ten finishes.”

Turner’s Cycle Racing would like to thank all their sponsors, Arai, Mjmotogear.com, Moto Liberty, Muscle Milk, SYD, and also would like to thank Mark Junge from Vesrah for his help during the weekend.