Mladin and Cardenas Sweep AMA Pro Road Racing Weekend at Honda Superbike Classic Carter Scores AMA Pro SuperSport presented by Shoei East Win in First Start BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Both Mat Mladin and Martin Cardenas turned in successful encore performances in the Honda Superbike Classic at Barber Motorsports Park on a wild weather day in central Alabama. The day’s three races were delayed by two hours and each race was shortened five laps from its scheduled distance as a band of severe storms swept through the area and tornado warnings were issued in the early afternoon. However, not even the weather could stop Mladin’s run of dominance in 2009 AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike presented by Parts Unlimited competition on a weekend when sevens were wild for Mladin. Mladin fittingly rode the No. 7 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 to his seventh consecutive victory to open the season and extended his lead in the point standings as he looks for his seventh career American Superbike championship. Mladin leads teammate Tommy Hayden by 77 points, 220-143, after seven of 20 rounds in the 2009 championship. Just as he did in Saturday’s first race of the Honda Superbike Classic doubleheader, Mladin started from pole and surrendered the lead heading into the first turn. A lap-and-a-half later, however, the Australian muscled past leader Josh Hayes in Turn 5 and led the rest the way en route to a 2.745-second victory over Aaron Yates. It was Mladin’s 79th career AMA Pro victory and moved him to within seven of Miguel Duhamel’s record of 86 career wins. “I’ve had seven in a row, and obviously nobody has had any more than seven before so we’ll see if we can go to Infineon and get another one,” said Mladin, who earned his fifth consecutive Barber Motorsports Park victory and ninth overall. “The bike worked great today, we found some stuff out this morning in the warm up. I had a completely different motorcycle this afternoon and very similar lap times to what I did this morning even with the condition of the track. It was pretty good. I’m pretty happy with the bike. We definitely made some progress this week.” The runner-up result was the best of the season for Yates on the No. 23 Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000, topping a previous best ride of fifth in the second race of the Road Atlanta doubleheader last month. Mladin, Yates and Hayden were three of the six riders utilizing the 2009 Suzuki GSX-R1000 for the first time this weekend and were joined on the new bikes by Blake Young (No. 79 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki), Geoff May (No. 54 National Guard Jordan Suzuki) and Chris Ulrich (No. 18 Roadracingworld.com Suzuki). “It’s been an up-and-down year for us,” said Yates. “We got the ’09 Suzuki a couple of weeks ago, did some riding on it and got a few things sorted out. I’m really feeling good about the bike; it’s running pretty good. We had a good package in yesterday’s race also, I just kind of messed up the start on that and it put us way back. It really feels good to get up here, back on the podium and show that the Jordan Suzuki guys are working hard and the new GSX-R1000 is going good.” One day after earning his first AMA Pro American Superbike podium of the season with a third-place run, Ben Bostrom duplicated that effort on the No. 2 Yamaha Motor Corp. USA Yamaha R1. The performance moved Bostrom to fifth in the American Superbike point standings and he now trails Young by just one championship marker. “The boys are doing a great job,” said Bostrom. “They definitely built a winning bike today and the rider didn’t put it all together. That’s rider error. The R1 is fantastic. These guys just out-rode us today so congratulations to Suzuki, Aaron and Matt. I look forward to a great race at Infineon. The bike is great, a big thanks to the crew. I always enjoy being up here. It’s a lot more fun when you’re racing at the front so we’re going to do our best. We were hoping to move up the ladder one step today and Aaron just beat us to it. That’s all right, we have more races to go.” Bostrom finished one spot ahead of his teammate, Hayes, who came home in fourth place on the No. 4 Yamaha Motor Corp. USA Yamaha R1. Just as he did in Saturday’s first race of the American Superbike doubleheader, Hayes also led the first lap in today’s final. It was his fourth consecutive top-five result. May made it two Jordan Suzuki riders in the top five with a fifth-place run on the No. 54 National Guard bike for his fifth top-five performance in his last six American Superbike starts. Larry Pegram came home sixth on the No. 72 Foremost Insurance/Pegram Racing Ducati 1098R, and Jake Holden was seventh on the No. 100 Corona Extra Honda CBR1000RR. Holden once again stood in for the injured Neil Hodgson in both races of the Honda Superbike Classic. While battling for third place on the second lap of the race, Young crashed at the exit of Turn 5, sending his No. 79 Suzuki cartwheeling down the track. He quickly made his way to a nearby ambulance and was taken to the track medical center. According to UAB Medical Center Coordinator Drew Ferguson at the track, Young was transferred to UAB Medical Center in Birmingham for further evaluation. He was awake and alert and more information will be provided as it becomes available. Young’s incident brought out the safety car from Laps 6-9. Next up for AMA Pro American Superbike is a doubleheader at the Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. on the weekend of May 15-17. Cardenas Takes Third Win in Four Tries in AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL In the AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL final at the Honda Superbike Classic, Cardenas made a race-winning pass on the penultimate lap for the second straight day to record his third AMA Pro Daytona SportBike victory in the last four races. Riding the No. 36 Team M4 Suzuki GSX-R600, Cardenas stalked leader Jamie Hacking throughout the race before making his move in Turn 5 on the Lap 15 of the 16-lap event. After making the pass, Cardenas put his head down and pulled away to win by 2.204 seconds over Hacking. “The conditions weren’t very good, and I got to him by Lap 4 or 5,” said Cardenas, who moved to third in the Daytona SportBike point standings with the victory. “I knew there were 16 laps, so I didn’t want to pass him and crash trying to get away, (because) maybe he would sit behind me and do the same thing that I did to him. I was going to wait until the last lap or maybe until two laps to the end, try to make a pass and then try to make a good lap and finish the race in first position. That’s what I did and this time it worked out, so I ended up winning the race but it was really tough because of the conditions. My M4 Suzuki worked awesome and I want to thank everybody, the sponsors and the whole team.” In nearly a carbon copy of his start in Saturday’s Daytona SportBike race, Hacking motored the No. 88 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R into the lead heading into Turn 1 on the opening lap. Unlike Saturday’s race, however, when he nearly crashed at the end of Lap 2, Hacking held the lead until Cardenas’ pass on Lap 15. Hacking wound up second, putting it on the box for the second consecutive race and the fourth time in seven races. Despite the fact that he hasn’t recorded a Daytona SportBike victory yet, Hacking has finished seventh or better in every race thus far and those consistent performances have moved him to the top of the point standings by three points, 146-143, over Danny Eslick. Cardenas trails Eslick by just one point. “I managed to glance up at the board and noticed that Martin was in P2, and I tried a couple times to put a pretty good brake on him and kick down the lap times,” Hacking said. “But, obviously, he was able to do the same thing and match me. I couldn’t ever put anything on him and I knew there was a good possibility that I could maybe hold him off, but just gauging off yesterday’s comments where he could figure out where Jason (DiSalvo) was stronger, and he decided to wait on him, I figured that’s probably what he would do with me and it ended up turning out that way. “He managed to step the pace up a pretty good bit when he passed me and I just wasn’t able to match it today. Martin rode a great race and we pulled a pretty good gap on the rest of the field. It feels good, the Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki was working great this weekend and we got two solid podium finishes. We’re really looking forward to going to the Infineon race in a couple of weeks.” Charging from 11th on the starting grid, Eslick rode his No. 9 Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Racing/RMR Buell 1125R to a third-place result. Eslick gained two positions on the final lap of the race as Dane Westby (No. 213 Westby Racing/Kneedraggers.com Yamaha YZF-R6) and Chris Peris (No. 10 Erion Honda CBR600RR) tangled while battling for the final podium spot in the final series of turns. It was Eslick’s fifth podium result from the first seven races of the season. “It was definitely a surprise,” Eslick said. “I was running just a little better than the top 10 and picked a couple of guys off, and was stuck in about fifth going back and forth with Chaz (Davies). That was the pace that I was comfortable at and that was pushing it. We were all over the place, so I didn’t want to crash and give a whole bunch of points away, I just wanted to finish and get through this weekend without losing too many points and move on. Third is awesome.” Davies picked up his best result of the season to date with a fourth-place ride on the No. 57 Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies Team Aprilia RSV1000R. Michael Barnes made it two Buells in the top five with a fifth-place performance on the No. 34 GEICO Powersports/RMR/Buell Racing Buell 1125R. The last-lap incident sent Westby to the track medical facility and later to UAB Medical Center in Birmingham for further evaluation. No. 32 Roadracingworld.com/Suzuki GSX-R600 rider Santiago Villa was also transferred to Birmingham’s UAB Medical Center for evaluation after an incident in Turn 1 just after taking the checkered flag. According to Ferguson, both riders were awake and alert before being transported to the hospital, and further updates will be provided as they are available. Carter Takes AMA Pro SuperSport presented by Shoei East Win in First Start In his first-ever AMA Pro SuperSport presented by Shoei start, Garrett Carter earned a convincing victory over polesitter Russ Wikle in the 12-lap AMA Pro SuperSport East final under conditions that were wet at the start of the race and got progressively drier throughout. Riding the No. 31 Ridersdiscount.com/Woodcraft Yamaha YZF-R6, Carter chased down Wikle on Lap 4 and claimed the lead from the Suzuki rider on the short straightaway between Turns 6 and 7. Carter set sail from there, cruising to a 4.291-second victory in the race, which was shortened by five laps due to weather delays. Immediately after celebrating his SuperSport victory, Carter jumped back on his No. 31 Garrett Carter Racing Yamaha YZF-R6 and competed in the AMA Pro Daytona SportBike final. “It was a really good race,” said Carter. “It was pretty wet at the start of the race. I think we were all still getting our feel for it, so I wasn’t out there right at the start, but I got a pretty good feel for it halfway through the race, put my head down and got by quite a few guys. Wikle was running at a really good pace and I thought that once I got by him I was going to show him some stuff and he was going to hang with me, but luckily I pulled a gap on him. Within five or six laps I saw an eight-second lead so I cooled it down a little bit and brought it home. It was definitely a really good race. Wikle was definitely on pace and I think if he would have gotten going pretty good, he would have been with me the whole race. Luckily, I got away from him and got the win.” Wikle, who hails from nearby Huntsville, Ala., earned his best SuperSport result of the season with a second-place run aboard the No. 5 Roadracingworld.com Suzuki GSX-R600. It was Wikle’s second trip to the podium in the season’s first three races, as he also finished third in the season-opener at Daytona in March. He is now third in the AMA Pro SuperSport East point standings with three of nine races complete. “Well I knew that starting from pole, I was definitely going to have an advantage over everybody and I was able to get a real good start,” said Wikle. “Since everyone was behind me, I knew that everyone was going to have to get by so I just made myself wide. I think I led the first lap or two, maybe. When Garrett got by me, he was really flying, so I was able to learn a couple of things from him. It was just a good race, I tried to keep my head smart and came out second.” Finishing third was Huntley Nash on the No. 15 Arai/Racing Sport Services Yamaha YZF-R6. It was also a season-best result for Nash, whose previous best run this season was a fifth-place outing in Daytona. After winning last time out at Road Atlanta, Leandro Mercado finished fourth in the Honda Superbike Classic aboard the No. 92 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-R6. Mercado is now second in the SuperSport East championship standings. Joey Pascarella completed the top five with a fifth-place ride on the No. 25 Shoei/Shift/TCX/LTD Racing Yamaha YZF-R6. Pascarella leads the point standings by 13 points, 62-49, over Mercado. AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. From its Daytona Beach headquarters, the organization operates and manages AMA Pro Road Racing, which includes AMA Pro American Superbike, AMA Pro Daytona SportBike, AMA Pro SuperSport and AMA Pro SunTrust Moto-GT. AMA Pro Racing also manages and works closely with the day-to-day operational organizations of the AMA Pro Flat Track Championship and the AMA Pro Supermoto Championship Series in addition to other two-wheel and ATV series. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com. More, from a press release issued by American Suzuki: Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Mladin Wins 7th Consecutive AMA Superbike Race at Barber Jordan Suzuki’s Yates brings home second place Round 4 AMA Superbike Series, Race II Birmingham, Alabama Barber Motorsports Park May 1-3, 2009 Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Mat Mladin won his seventh AMA Superbike race of the season on Sunday afternoon at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama. Despite lengthy delays in the racing program due to heavy rain and tornado warnings, an abbreviated, 16-lap AMA Superbike race was run at the end of the day and six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mladin picked up his 79th career AMA Superbike win. Jordan Suzuki’s Aaron Yates followed Mladin home in second place and picked up his best result of the season. Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammate Tommy Hayden struggled with the track’s semi-wet conditions and finished up in eighth place, while Rockstar Makita Suzuki’s Blake Young crashed early on and was unable to finish the race. Mat Mladin: “It’s good to get seven AMA Superbike wins in a row. Now we’ll go to Infineon and see if we can get another one. The Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 worked great today. We found some stuff out this morning in the warm-up and I had a completely different motorcycle in the afternoon. I was able to run some lap times that were very similar to this morning, even with the wet conditions of the track and that’s pretty good. I feel like we’ve made a lot of progress with the new 2009 bike this weekend.” Aaron Yates: “It’s great to be on the podium again, it’s been a while. This weekend has been up and down for us. We only got the 2009 Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000 a few weeks ago and we’re still getting it sorted out. But I’m feeling pretty good about the bike, and it’s running pretty good. It just feels great to get back up on the podium and show how hard the Jordan Suzuki guys are working.” Tommy Hayden: “It was just an awkward day today. Once we got out on the track, it was a struggle with all the wet spots and I had a hard time feeling comfortable. It felt very slippery and I couldn’t get into a good rhythm. It was getting a little better as the race went on, but not good enough. It was unfortunate, but at the end of the day, I think I’m in a pretty similar position in the points as far as the gap behind me, so that’s a positive. Also, I did learn a lot with the new Suzuki that I think we can put to use in the next race.” Rockstar Makita Suzuki Factory Racing will race next at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, on the weekend of May 15-17, 2009. More, from another press release issued by American Suzuki: M4 Suzuki’s Cardenas Sweeps both AMA Daytona SportBike Races at Barber M4 Suzuki’s DiSalvo cards 2nd place in Saturday’s race Round 4 AMA Daytona Sportbike Series Birmingham, Alabama Barber Motorsports Park May 1-3, 2009 In spite of tornado threats and torrential downpours, M4 Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas celebrated an impressive race weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama, over the past few days. The Colombian rider swept his first double-header race weekend by winning both Saturday’s and Sunday’s AMA Daytona SportBike races. This double victory means that Cardenas now has three AMA Daytona SportBike victories under his belt. M4 Suzuki teammate Jason DiSalvo also had a strong showing over the weekend. DiSalvo started the weekend by capturing pole position for both races and then finished up in second place behind his teammate in Saturday’s race. DiSalvo went on to finish in seventh place on Sunday. Martin Cardenas 1st place, Race 1 (Saturday) & Race 2 (Sunday): “I think Saturday’s win was really tough because the track here at Barber is very demanding physically. I had a huge battle with Jason for 10 laps or maybe more. At the beginning I tried to get a gap but I could see I wasn’t doing much, so I just tried to keep a good rhythm. Then, he passed me and I tried to look at where he was stronger than I was, and at the end, I was able to make a move on him. Then, I just put my head down and tried to ride as fast as I could. I got a little bit of a gap and was able to hold onto it until the end. “On Sunday, the conditions were not great so it was a tough race. I caught up to the leader after about four laps but because it was so wet I didn’t want to pass him and risk crashing trying to get away. Or maybe he would get behind me and try to do to me what I was trying to do to him. I was going to wait to the end and try to make a good pass and then make a good lap and try to finish the race in first position. That’s what I did and this time it worked out so I am happy with the outcome of the race. But it was pretty tough, like I said, because of the conditions.” Jason DiSalvo 2nd place, Race 1 (Saturday): “Martin and I had such a fantastic race. He led for a bit and I think was trying to pull a gap and then he settled into a rhythm. Then I made a move on him and I put my head down for a lap or two but I don’t think there was anything I could do because we’re so close in speed. All I could do was sit in front and try to figure out where he was going to come by me and ride defensively once he did. When he passed me, it was a great pass and I didn’t think he was going to be able to make it stick but he did. We hung in there pretty good for the last lap, but there was just nothing we could do. Tomorrow we’ve just got to get out in the lead and stay there.” M4 Suzuki Racing will race next at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, over the weekend of May 15-17, 2009. More, from a press release issued by Team M4 Suzuki: ANOTHER SPECTACULAR VICTORY FOR MARTIN CARDENAS AND TEAM M4 SUZUKI Team M4 Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas backed up Saturday’s Daytona SportBike victory at Barber Motorsports Park by claiming his third win in four races on Sunday and putting the finishing touches on the weekend sweep. The Colombian showed incredible skill negotiating the day’s very trying conditions, swiftly racing up to second place on the damp but drying racecourse. Once in the runner-up position, Cardenas stalked race leader Jamie Hacking, studying his strengths and weaknesses while biding his time for a pass. On lap 15 of the shortened 16-lap final, Cardenas made his move, slotting his GSX-R600 up the inside of his rival’s machine on the brakes entering the Hairpin. He then quickly put a pair of slower riders between himself and Hacking and posted a blistering lap to eliminate any chance of retaliation en route to the checkered flag. Cardenas’ double victory now sees him ranked third in the season’s point tally with 142 points, just four out of the championship lead. “The conditions were difficult,” Cardenas admitted. “I got to Jamie after a few laps and I knew the race was 16 laps so I didn’t rush to pass him and maybe risk crashing or allow him to learn from me. I decided to wait until the end to make my move. With just over a lap to go, I decided to try to make a pass and put my head down and hopefully pull a gap and it worked out. I ended up winning the race but it was really tough. It took a little while to get the first win but now I have three. We’ll see how it goes from here but I’ll try my best every race. “My M4 Suzuki was awesome again today and I want to thank all of our sponsors and the whole team.” Pole winner Jason DiSalvo was unable to replicate Saturday’s 1-2 for the team as the changeable conditions took its toll on his race effort. The New Yorker managed to hold on for seventh in the end and is currently ranked in fourth place, just one position behind teammate Cardenas, in the Daytona SportBike points standings. Up-and-comer Kris Turner saw a promising start to the SuperSport contest quickly turn to disappointment. Running third in the early stages of the wet race, the Chattanooga, TN resident was thrown off the side of his machine exiting the slick final corner and entering the front straight. He clung on for several tense moments before ultimately falling in the grass. Turner didn’t give in, however, and remounted his GSX-R600 and carried on to claim 16th position in the end. Team M4 Suzuki will look to continue their win streak when the AMA Pro Road Racing series picks up again at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA on May 15-17. More, from a press release issued by Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki: RUSS WIKLE EARNS THE PODIUM FOR ROADRACINGWORLD.COM SUZUKI IN ALABAMA Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki came away from the Barber Motorsports Park round of the 2009 AMA Pro Road Racing championship with a pole position, a podium finish, and having earned a great deal of vital experience. Chris Ulrich worked to learn the nuances of the all-new and radically revised 2009 GSX-R1000 in American Superbike, Russ Wikle starred in SuperSport and impressed in Daytona SportBike, and Santiago Villa once again proved his grit and courage. Putting in his very first laps on the new GSX-R1000 on Friday, Ulrich qualified 13th for the twin American Superbike finals with a fast lap of 1:27.494. The Californian’s inexperience with the machine cost him mightily in Saturday’s race when a gamble on the bike’s set-up didn’t pay off and he finished 14th. Improvements were made for Sunday’s race, allowing Ulrich to claim 11th and feel confident that he knows what direction he needs to take the new bike in order to tap its vast potential. He explained, “We had some setting problems in qualifying with the new bike and wanted to go one direction but per one of our experts we were told to go in another direction but that turned out to be completely wrong. We went back to the stuff we needed and this morning it was quite good. “The bike is a lot different compared to the ’08. Everything you know about it you’ve got to chuck out the window. We got out of here with an okay finish — I don’t want to say great because I think we should have been in the top ten as always. “We’ve learned tons and we’ve got a good direction. We know what it likes now. We’ll be ahead of the curve when we show up at Infineon. All the other guys racing ’09s had at least one test before we showed up. We came in here ‘cold turkey’ and kind of paid the price for it, but that happens sometimes.” Wikle put in another tremendous performance, claiming the pole position for Sunday’s SuperSport by posting the quickest lap in practice on Friday at 1:31.659 as Saturday’s scheduled qualifying session was canceled due to track conditions. The teenager charged into the lead at the start of Sunday’s race, which was held under extremely challenging wet conditions, and posted the fastest lap of the race. Racing in front of his home fans, the Huntsville, Alabama resident pushed his GSX-R600 to a runner-up finish, his second podium result of the season. Immediately following the SuperSport race, Wikle took on the Daytona SportBike final and improved from his 22nd-place run on Saturday to earn a fantastic top-ten result in Sunday’s contest, picking up ninth place despite a very deep and talented field of competitors. “I knew starting from pole I would have an advantage and I got a real good start,” Wikle remarked about the SuperSport race. “I just made myself wide and I led a couple laps. It was a good race. I just tried to keep my head smart and ended up second. “Finishing in the top ten in the SportBike race was awesome. I was comfortable coming right off the SuperSport bike and jumping on the SportBike. I put my head down right at the beginning and tried to pick up as many positions as I could.” Ulrich said, “Russ is holding up team honors. He’s doing a great job and showed maturity beyond his years. He just keeps impressing me. He was thrown into a difficult situation but kept it up and turned the fastest lap of the race. In SportBike, he just kept his head down and did a great job.” Villa finished 24th in Saturday’s Daytona SportBike race and was hoping to show further improvement on Sunday. Unfortunately, the he crashed on the damp circuit on the opening lap of Sunday’s race, but he managed to pick up his GSX-R600 and soldier on despite breaking two bones in his left wrist. The Colombian put in a courageous ride to finish 33rd. After taking the checkered flag, Villa had to park his bike on the side of the track because he was in so much pain. The valiant effort to finish did not go unnoticed by his team and fellow competitors. Ulrich commented, “Santiago broke his wrist and he’s kind of iffy for Infineon. I hope he gets better soon, because he is continuing to progress. He spent a couple days with his Crew Chief, James Lickwar, at Utah and learned a lot and it showed in his lap times. It’s unfortunate he has to deal with another injury, but we’ll get him some milk and get him back on that horse. He showed us a lot today.” Team Roadracingworld.com Suzuki will be back in action at Infineon Raceway as the championship heads to Sonoma, CA on May 15-17. More, from a press release issued by Honda: Weather: Warm Saturday, overcast Sunday Temperature: 27-degree ambient Saturday, 23-degree ambient Sunday PAIR OF TOP TENS FOR HOLDEN AT STORM-STRUCK BARBER Corona Extra Honda’s Jake Holden improved on Saturday’s eighth place finish to score a closing seventh in Sunday’s rain-delayed and shortened American Superbike race in the Honda Superbike Classic at Barber Motorsports Park outside of Birmingham, Alabama. Sunday’s race was delayed by two hours by fierce thunderstorms and a tornado warning that forced the evacuation of the pit lane prior to the start of an earlier support race. Once the weather front passed, Sunday’s three races were shortened and run back to back. The final race of the afternoon was the seventh round of the American Superbike championship, which was run on a mostly dry track, though with wet patches in a number of critical areas. The race was cut to 16 laps from 21. Holden didn’t improve on his eighth place starting position at the start of the race, but moved up one position on lap two. The Washington native was in that spot when the safety car was brought out to control the field while an ambulance crossed the track with an injured rider. After the mandatory three laps behind the safety car, the field was given the green light and the pack thundered into turn one. Holden lost a spot on the re-start before reclaiming it on the 12th of 16 laps. Then Holden began to close on Ducati rider Larry Pegram, but time wasn’t on his side and he missed out on sixth by .303s. Saturday’s race had little drama, with the order of the top eight set from the seventh of 21 laps. Holden slotted into eighth off the start and wasn’t able to gain any ground. He was bedeviled by side grip issues on the picturesque track where considerable time is spent at maximum lean angle. Mat Mladin (Suzuki) won both races to run his season-starting consecutive win streak to seven. On Saturday he beat teammate Blake Young, while Aaron Yates (Suzuki) finished second on Sunday. Ben Bostrom (Yamaha) finished third both days. The series has a one weekend break before traveling to the wine country north of San Francisco for the fifth championship round at Infineon Raceway where former World Superbike Champion Neil Hodgson is hopeful of returning. Hodgson suffered a punctured lung, separated shoulder, and other injuries in a motocross accident in mid-March. “I’m doing everything I can do to get ready for Infineon,” Hodgson said. “And right now, Infineon looks very probable.” Jake Holden 8th, 7th Just grip, side grip was my problem (Saturday). We softened it up and made second gear a little easier to ride out of some of the tight corners. Wasn’t spinning up the tires much, so overall was conserving the tire better. Today I ended up a little better than yesterday, but I expected more out of myself for this weekend. Given the weather and the conditions, it was kind of tough to really excel and go where I wanted to. With the new parts and set-up from the Corona Extra Honda crew, it’s totally different stuff than what I’ve used before. So I kind of had them move it back to what I’m used to, more towards the Superstock stuff like the Honda CBR1000RR I rode last year. And I picked up the pace a little bit more today. I didn’t end up where I wanted to. At the end I was closing on (Larry) Pegram. I should’ve got a better start to the race. And I got held up by (Taylor) Knapp for a couple laps there and finally got by him. The race was so short today that I really didn’t have enough time to get around Pegram and catch (Geoff) May. But with a better start I think I could’ve hung with May up with that group. I had a lot of confidence in the bike today. Team Principal Tim Saunders Saturday Jake (Holden) really didn’t show his potential and we got back and looked at a lot of data and saw where we needed to make some improvements. And this morning’s practice, obviously was in the wet; those things happen. But today with the shortened program we were actually wishing it would’ve been a longer race, because we think we could’ve moved up a couple more spots. He started to feel more comfortable. Kind of started to put laps in like he had in Friday’s qualifying session. So overall, not where we want to be, but not a bad day either. Neil (Hodgson) is doing everything he can to be ready for Infineon. Obviously, Jake’s been doing a great job for us, but Neil wants to be back and knows that in order to race with the guys now that have another three races under their belts, he needs to be 100%. And he knows where he wants to be and that’s up front, and to do that he has to be physically ready to go. And we’re anticipating at Infineon it will be a return for Neil, but he’s the one who makes the ultimate decision. Sunday Superbike: 1. Mat Mladin (Suzuki) 2. Aaron Yates (Suzuki) 3. Ben Bostrom (Yamaha) 4. Josh Hayes (Yamaha) 5. Geoff May (Suzuki) 6. Larry Pegram (Ducati) 7. Jake Holden (Honda) 8. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) 9. Taylor Knapp (Suzuki) 10. David Anthony (Suzuki) Saturday Superbike: 1. Mat Mladin (Suzuki) 2. Blake Young (Suzuki) 3. Ben Bostrom (Yamaha) 4. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) 5. Josh Hayes (Yamaha) 6. Larry Pegram (Ducati) 7. Geoff May (Suzuki) 8. Jake Holden (Honda) 9. Taylor Knapp (Suzuki) 10. Aaron Yates (Suzuki) Championship Standings: 1. Mat Mladin (Suzuki) 220 2. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) 143 3. Geoff May (Suzuki) 122 4. Blake Young (Suzuki) 114 5. Ben Bostrom (Yamaha) 113 6. Josh Hayes (Yamaha) 111 7. Aaron Yates (Suzuki) 98 8. Larry Pegram (Ducati) 94 9. David Anthony (Suzuki) 69 10. Taylor Knapp (Suzuki) 68 More, from a press release issued by Paradigm Racing: TOP TEN FINISH HIGHLIGHTS DEBUT OF NEW RIDER Birmingham, AL – It was a successful weekend for Paradigm Racing with the debut of new rider Damian Cudlin. A solid top ten finish underscored a weekend of highs and lows. New rider Damian Cudlin adapted rapidly to the bike and maintained a fast pace throughout the weekend. His Paradigm Racing teammate, Barrett Long, also was fast throughout the weekend, but had a low-side crash in Sunday’s race that brought his day to an early end. Both riders meshed quickly and worked together in Friday’s practice and qualifying sessions to get the bike optimized for the weekend’s two races. Volatile weather conditions throughout the weekend, including a tornado in the immediate vicinity of the track on Sunday, complicated matters and left many teams guessing as to what the best setup may be. However, Crew Chief Perry Melnecuic, was able to ready two Paradigm Racing Yamaha R6s’ that were competitive and versatile in the constantly changing conditions. “I’m really proud of the way the Damian and Barrett rode this weekend. It was a tough pair of races and the conditions complicated things greatly. The team really pulled together as we welcomed a new rider to the team and earned the results that we are coming away with. A number of factors contributed to our successes this weekend and if any one of them had not worked out how they did it would have been a very different situation. It took a group effort to overcome the weather, the situations, and not least of all the competition. I want to thank the whole team for really pulling together and getting the job done.” # 51 Damian Cudlin-Damian earned his first ever SuperPole appearance after quickly coming up to speed on the new bike. Race one started with him falling several positions as traffic bunched up and slowed around him. He pushed hard though and began to make his way through the field. He turned consistently fast laps and battled hard with several riders who presented a tremendous challenge. On lap 19 a lapper got in the way and allowed a few riders to pass. Cudlin then put his head down and made a mad dash forward securing a hard fought 12th place finish in his debut race for Paradigm Racing. Race two’s start was more successful and allowed him to push hard from the beginning. His pace was tremendous and earned Damian his first top ten with an 8th place finish. Additionally, it was the team’s second top ten result since the Daytona 200 in March. “I really want to thank the team for giving me this opportunity. It’s a great team and I’m thrilled with the bike and its level of performance this weekend. I couldn’t have asked for more from the bike. I had a couple situations occur in the two races that slowed me up, but we overcame a lot of adversity to bring the Paradigm Racing Yamaha R6 home where we did. Again, I just want to thank my team and sponsors for everything and I’m really looking forward to Infineon!” #29 Barrett Long-The weekend started off strong for Long by qualifying in 11th position for the weekend’s races. Saturday’s race one saw Barrett pushed down several spots during the rolling start as riders boxed in around him and slowed initially. His pace was fast though and he was able to make up several positions before grip issues began to slow his march forward. Despite the tire issues he brought the bike home in 16th position. Race two began with a better start and Long was able to capitalize on the wet conditions. However, as the track dried out tire grip again became an issue and resulted in a low-side that knocked him out of contention. “All in all it was a pretty tough weekend. We struggled with grip in race one and it was a battle to finish where we did. Race two was equally difficult, if not more so, in terms of grip as the track condition changed dramatically. The rain tires are great in the wet and I generally have a really good pace in the rain, but on a dry or semi-dry track it can get a little dicey.” Infineon Raceway is the next stop for Paradigm Racing as the team returns to the track on May 15-17 in Sonoma, CA. For more information on Paradigm Racing, please visit www.paradigmracing.net. More, from a press release issued by Buell: Eslick and Buell on the Podium Again at Barber ‘Slick Sits Second in AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Standings East Troy, Wis. (May 4, 2009) Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Racing/RMR/GEICO Powersports rider Danny Eslick overcame difficult weather conditions and his worst qualifying position of the season to finish the AMA Pro Racing double-header weekend at Barber Motorsports Park with 3rd and 8th place finishes. Rapidly changing track conditions led to limited setup time in both wet and dry conditions, and in Saturday’s first leg of the double-header, Eslick finished eighth following an 11th place starting position on the grid. He was followed home closely by Latus Motors’ Taylor Knapp in ninth and GEICO Powersports/RMR teammate Michael Barnes in 11th. In Sunday’s rain-delayed Race Two, Eslick charged from an 11th place start up to third on the final lap, crossing the start/finish line just 0.027-second ahead of Millennium Technologies’ Aprilia rider Chaz Davies and less than two tenths ahead of Barnes to take the final spot on the podium after Dane Westby and Chris Peris crashed out of the race ahead of him on the final lap. It was Eslick’s fifth podium finish of the season. “It was definitely a surprise,” Eslick said. “I was running just a little better than the top 10 and picked a couple of guys off, and was stuck in [a battle for] fifth going back and forth with Chaz (Davies). That was the pace that I was comfortable at and that was pushing it. We were all over the place, so I didn’t want to crash and give a whole bunch of points away, I just wanted to finish and get through this weekend without losing too many points and move on. Third is awesome.” The championship points leader coming into Barber, Eslick heads into Round 5 of the season at Infineon Raceway trailing Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jamie Hacking by just three points in the Daytona SportBike standings and one point ahead of Team M4 Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas, who won both SportBike races at Barber. Eslick’s teammate Michael Barnes converted his 10th place slot in Friday’s Superpole into an 11th place finish on Saturday and 5th place on Sunday, his highest finish of the season and a signal that the veteran rider has fully recovered from a pre-season hand injury. “I’m excited with my first top five finish,” Barnes said. “I would have to say my hand has been 100 percent since Atlanta, but I have gotten a late start to the season. We’re making progress with the setup and I’m looking forward to getting more development time, especially after Infineon as we head back to some of the east coast tracks, especially Road America.” In other AMA Pro Barber results, the James Gang/Hoban Brothers team of Paul James and Jeff Johnson finished fifth in the Moto-GT1 class aboard their H-D/Buell of Appleton 1125R. The championship-leading Liberty Waves Racing team crashed out and was disqualified and fined for reentering Saturday’s shortened Moto-GT endurance race with a damaged bike which oiled the track late in the race. Bilansky Rides to ASRA Pro Thunderbike Win at Road America Hal’s H-D/Buell/Hal’s Speed Shop rider Dan Bilansky rode a Buell Firebolt XB12R to win the Thunderbike National at the ASRA Michelin Pro Series event at Road America. It was the second Thunderbike National win of the season for Bilansky, who leads the series in championship points. “I messed up last weekend so I’ve been a little anxious to get back on the track,” said Bilansky, who crashed on a wet course at the ASRA Michelin Pro Series race at Topeka on April 26. “I’m riding a little beat up but once you get on the bike the adrenalin takes over.” Bilansky was the top qualifier for the Thunderbike National, with a 2:33.795-second lap of the four-mile Road America course. Bilansky took the lead at the start of the seven-lap race with Suzuki rider Ed Key just two bike-lengths back. Key dropped out on lap four with a mechanical problem, and Bilansky was not challenged for the duration of the race. Hal’s H-D/Buell/Hal’s Speed Shop rider Joel Spalding was second on a Buell XB12R, followed by Ducati 749 rider Greg Langman. Buell riders Jay Smith (Kegel H-D/Buell) and Robert Pirog (Illinois H-D/Buell) finished fourth and fifth. “This is a big track with a couple of long straights, and it puts as much stress on the motorcycle as Daytona,” said Bilansky. “But the Buell ran strong through five races this weekend. Hal’s gives me a good motor and it’s a really reliable motorcycle.” After three events on the 2009 ASRA Michelin Pro Series Thunderbike schedule, Bilansky leads with 92 points, followed by Spalding with 75 points, Joe Rozynski (Soundwaves.com/H-D/Buell of Frederick) with 53 points, and Sam Rozynski (Soundwaves.com/H-D/Buell of Frederick) with 51 points. The next event on the 10-race ASRA Michelin Pro Series schedule is May 23-25 at Summit Point Motorsports Park, Summit Point, W.V. Buell Riders Win Motorsports.com CCS Sprint Races Jay Smith rode a Buell XB12R to win the Amateur Lightweight Grand Prix and Amateur Lightweight F40 classes in Motorsports.com CCS sprint competition at Road America. Bilansky won Expert Thunderbike. Founded by visionary motorcycle designer and former privateer racer Erik Buell in 1983, Buell Motorcycle Company, a subsidiary of Harley-Davidson, Inc., produces sport motorcycles, motorcycle parts, accessories and apparel, including the 1125R superbike, 1125CR café racer, and air-cooled XB-series Ulysses, Firebolt, and Lightning. To learn more about Buell motorcycles, or to locate the dealer nearest you, log onto www.buell.com. More, from a press releae issued by Kawasaki: Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki’s Hacking Retakes Points Lead in Birmingham Birmingham, Ala. Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki’s Jamie Hacking rode to his second podium finish of the weekend and took back the points lead during the second AMA Pro Daytona SportBike race of the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park. Consistent finishes all weekend helped Hacking build a three-point advantage in the points standings. Teammate Roger Hayden pulled in early in the race, finishing 37th. The AMA Pro SuperSport class raced on a wet track with Leandro Mercado finishing just off the podium in fourth. Another Great Run After an incredible finish during Saturday’s AMA Pro Daytona SportBike race, Hacking was determined to improve on his third place finish. Right away Hacking jumped into the lead and looked to pull a gap. With pressure coming up behind and his rain tires giving way as the track continued to dry, Hacking played it smart and brought his Kawasaki Ninja® ZX™-6R home in second. “I’m obviously looking for the win, but I didn’t want to push it too hard and lose valuable points if I crashed,” said Hacking. “We moved forward a lot in the championship this weekend and that is our main goal. (Martin) Cardenas rode a great race and I know we were running a pace out there that no one could match.” Point for Laps Led Hacking’s speed kept him in front for most of the race and also helped him score another point in the championship standings. In a title chase this close, one point can go a long way. “Its great to leave here with the points lead,” said Hacking. “That is our main goal and I think it’s important to remember every last point, especially when things come down to the wire at the end of the season.” Moving Up in SuperSport After the track’s staff and spectators had taken cover from tornado warnings and severe storms, the weather broke and the supersport riders were up for their 12-lap race. Mercado got off to a great start, but wasn’t able to find his groove right away. Once everything came together, he was able to catch up and finish fourth. Mercado’s finish moved him into second overall in the AMA Pro SuperSport Eastern Region point standings. “I was mainly concerned with finishing the race,” said Mercado. “The points and the overall championship were on my mind and I didn’t want to do anything stupid. The beginning of the race my rear was moving a lot, but I got familiar with it and was able to push forward. It was a fun race and also my first race in the rain. I’m very happy to finish in fourth.” Roger Finishes Weekend After a strong finish in Saturday’s race, Hayden was forced to come in during the opening laps. His windshield and helmet shield were covered with a substance and he didn’t feel comfortable continuing. “My safety is a big issue for me here,” said Hayden. “After getting some liquid on the front of my bike, I didn’t want to risk my safety. I wasn’t sure what it was and I felt better not doing anything unwise.” Really Bad Weather To say that Barber Motorsports Park was hit with weather could have been an understatement. Just as the AMA Pro Daytona SportBike class was getting ready to start their race, a tornado warning was issued for the area and the teams and spectators were forced to take cover. After two hours, the racing was able to commence and at the end of the day all scheduled events were completed. Without a Win Consistency has been the name of the game this year for Hacking. Even without a win, Hacking has been able to lead the points twice during the season. “It would definitely be nice to get a win,” said Hacking. “I mean it’s about time. But we do have to look at the overall picture and that is to win a championship. I’ve been very close a few times and hopefully soon it will be my turn.” Results AMA Pro Road Racing Series Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, Ala. May 3, 2009 AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Results 1. Martin Cardenas, Miami, Fla., Suzuki 2. JAMIE HACKING, DENVER, N.C., MONSTER ENERGY ATTACK KAWASAKI 3. Daniel Eslick, Broken Arrow, Okla., Buell 4. Chaz Davies, Carlsbad, Calif., Aprilla 5. Michael Barnes, Boca Raton, Fla., Buell 6. Ben Thompson, Austin, Texas, Aprilla 7. Jason DiSalvo, Las Vegas, Nev., Suzuki 8. Damian Cudlin, Australia, Yamaha 9. Russ Wikle, Huntsville, Ala., Suzuki 10. Dane Westby, Tulsa, Okla., Yamaha 37. ROGER HAYDEN, OWENSBORO, KY., MONSTER ENERGY ATTACK KAWASAKI AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Point Standings 1. JAMIE HACKING, DENVER, N.C., MONSTER ENERGY ATTACK KAWASAKI, 146 2. Daniel Eslick, Broken Arrow, Okla., Buell, 143 3. Martin Cardenas, Miami, Fla., Suzuki, 142 4. Jason DiSalvo, Las Vegas, Nev., Suzuki, 117 5. Josh Herrin, Clovis Calif., Yamaha, 114 6. Chaz Davies, Carlsbad, Calif., Aprilla, 90 7. Jake Zemke, Paso Robles, Calif., Honda, 74 8. Steve Rapp, Hawthorne, Calif., Yamaha, 67 9. Chris Peris, Calgary, Canda, Honda, 64 10. Michael Barnes, Boca Raton, Fla., Buell, 64 15. LEANDRO MERCADO, LODI, CALIF., MONSTER ENERGY ATTACK KAWASAKI, 39 18. ROGER HAYDEN, OWENSBORO, KY., MONSTER ENERGY ATTACK KAWASAKI, 32