SASSAMAN ON THE PODIUM AT TALLADEGA Macon, GA (April 14, 2010) — Payton Sassaman earned another podium finish at the Talledega WERA National last weekend. Sassaman and co-rider Zach Herrin finished second in the WERA Mediumweight endurance race. Additionally, Sassaman finished fifth in 600cc Superbike and sixth in 600cc Superstock. After finishing on the 600cc Superstock podium at the opening round at Roebling Road, the Graves Motorsports/H-D of Macon-sponsored rider looked to earn more solid results in the second WERA National of the season. After sitting out most of 2009, Sassaman has placed his emphasis on getting up to speed in the first 2010 events. “The first round at Roebling was great, finishing on the podium in my first National race in a year really raised my confidence,” said Sassaman, who has finished inside the top six in each of his 2010 races. “I want to at least repeat those results this season and push to the top step of the podium, first place.” Sassaman dropped two seconds from his lap times on Sunday, turning in his best laps of the weekend on his Graves Motorsports/H-D of Macon Yamaha R6 when it counted the most. “I learned a lot this weekend. Talladega proved to be very beneficial to me in all areas; from finishing second behind two great riders like Dane Westby and Clint Seller on the Zyvax bike, to all the help and wise words from Chuck Graves and his crew, to really improving my lap times for the first race on Sunday,” said Sassaman. “We will work to keep the momentum going and I will use the knowledge I’ve gained at the next WERA National at Miller Motorsports Park. I’ve never been to Miller before, so I am looking forward to my debut there and a new racetrack to learn.” The Miller round will be held May 22-23. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: The Worx Crescent Suzuki team heads to round two of the British Superbike Championship at Thruxton this weekend with the championship lead to defend. Tommy Hill took a win and a second from the first round at Brands Hatch, to build a four-point buffer at the top of the table, and will be looking for more of the same this weekend. The Hampshire circuit is renowned for its fearsome speed. A former WWII RAF base, it offers an open sweeping course which allows lap speeds in excess of 112mph average – far and away the fastest circuit on the BSB schedule – and yet it’s also a circuit that makes for incredibly close racing. So while the team is well-prepared and confident, to a man they remain cautious. Tommy Hill: “The last time I raced at Thruxton back in 2007, I took the BSB pole position, so I like it there! It’s a track where the rider really has to be on top of his game – with so many bumps you’ll struggle to find the perfect set-up, so instead the rider needs to get his head around how to get the best from his bike and the circuit. Part of it is compromise, part of it is aggression. “I am confident heading to Thruxton, especially after the win at Brands Hatch but it pays not to be too confident with such a long season ahead. I’ll be happy to come away from there with a good stash of points and hopefully the championship lead still intact.” Yukio Kagayama: “I haven’t raced at Thruxton for so long, in fact I only ever came here the once in 2003. It’s an amazing circuit, I don’t think there’s anywhere in the world where you ride so fast while leant to the limit – for so long – while also riding over so many bumps! But it is the same for everyone. “Brands Hatch was just one meeting, with some bad luck, but I know I still have the feeling for the GSX-R and can make the speed that took me to fastest time at Cartegena in winter testing. Better results will come.” Jack Valentine – Team Manager: “We’ve got every reason to be confident coming into this round. Last year stand-in rider Michael Rutter rode Sylvain Guintoli’s bike here without the opportunity to make any personal changes and he put it on the front row and took two top-five finishes. So we know the Suzuki suits the circuit well – and this year we’ve got a much better chassis package so we should be very competitive. “We do, though, need to stay on our toes. Some of our competitors suffered similar bad luck to Yukio at Brands, so we can expect them to come back strong this weekend. As well, the new rules for this season have already shown how they can upturn the running order. So it pays never to be complacent.” More, from a press release issued by TwoThree Public Relations: Talented Victorian brothers Brodie and Nicholas Waters enjoyed a successful second round of the 2010 Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship at Hidden Valley in the Northern Territory last weekend, Brodie claiming second overall in Supersport and Nicholas fourth in Superstock 600. The Mildura-based siblings continued their rapid development in the Top End, where the Superbikes visited Darwin for the first time in 11 years marking the first time that the Waters Racing brothers and teammates have visited the technical 2.9-kilometre circuit. In just his second season of national Supersport racing, Brodie clinched his first ever race victory in race two on Sunday afternoon, claiming second overall for the round after finishing third in the opening race of the weekend. Brodie was the revelation of the weekend on his Sunstate Racing-supported GSX-R600, upstaging factory Team Suzuki rider and current series points leader Troy Herfoss after an epic dual in race two by just 0.373sec after 14 nail-biting laps. The result has boosted Waters to second overall in the championship and top privateer, sitting just eight points behind Herfoss and putting himself within striking distance of the 2010 championship. Youngest Waters brother Nicholas also impressed at Hidden Valley in the Superstock 600 category, racing to fourth overall after 6-7-4 results in the trio of eight lap races contested throughout the weekend. Nicholas rode his production-based GSX-R600 to a consistent weekend of finishes during the Darwin event, now sitting fourth overall in the championship standings after the second round, just eight points in arrears of round winner and new series leader Matthew Walters. Oldest brother and reigning Australian Superbike Champion Josh Waters capped off the weekend for the racing trio, winning the Superbike round in a clean-sweep, also excited at his younger brothers’ results over the weekend. The series will now move on to Queensland Raceway, near Ipswich in Queensland, on 3-6 June. Brodie Waters Supersport #25: Heading into the round I wanted to go well at Hidden Valley, but I wasn’t sure what the track was going to be like, or how quick I could adapt to the new track up there. I knew that Troy [Herfoss] was going to be the man to beat. After practice and qualifying I thought that I could be in with a chance for the round win, but I made a mistake in the first race with my rear suspension settings. I made some changes for race two, the bike was heaps better and I was able to get my first race win. The Suzuki has been really good this year, I felt comfortable on it straight away, so getting my first race win is a big confidence booster heading into Queensland I think I can go well there. Coming into this year I would have been happy with top three in the series, but now I’m close in the championship I need to try to be consistent, but win races when I can for the rest of the season. Nicholas Waters Superstock 600 #21: I was happy with fourth at Hidden Valley, but I’ll be happier if I can win at Queensland at the third round! I can’t complain though, it’s my first full year of racing in Superstock 600 and I’m learning heaps. The track at Hidden Valley was pretty cool, something different for us and another new track to learn here in Australia. Hopefully I will be able to get it on the front row at Queensland and get on the podium in the races, but we’ll just see what happens when we get up there. The GSX-R600 is the best bike that I’ve ridden so far, it suits the Superstock 600 class and is really fast, so I’m having a lot of fun right now. HIDDEN VALLEY SUPERSPORT RESULTS: 1. Troy Herfoss 2. Brodie Waters (Sunstate/Waters Racing Suzuki GSX-R600) 3. Christan Casella 4. Ben Burke 5. Mitchell Carr 2010 SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after round two): 1. Troy Herfoss 89 points 2. Brodie Waters (Sunstate/Waters Racing Suzuki GSX-R600) 81pts 3. Christan Casella 80pts 4. Ben Burke 61pts 5. Mitchell Carr 56pts HIDDEN VALLEY SUPERSTOCK 600 RESULTS: 1. Matthew Walters 2. Jesse Austin 3. Aaron Morris 4. Nicholas Waters (Sunstate/Waters Racing Suzuki GSX-R600) 5. Carew Dickinson 2010 SUPERSTOCK 600 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after round one): 1. Matthew Walters 103 points 2. Carew Dickinson 102pts 3. Aaron Morris 102pts 4. Nicholas Waters (Sunstate/Waters Racing Suzuki GSX-R600) 95pts 5. Jesse Austin 92pts More, from a press release issued by TwoThree Public Relations: Gobert Motorsports rider Aaron Gobert has claimed sixth overall at the second round of the 2010 InsureMyRide Australian Supersport Championship at Hidden Valley in the Northern Territory last weekend. After returning to Australian competition after nine seasons in the United States, Gobert was a big improver at the second round of this year’s title chase in Darwin, racing to sixth overall via 4-8 results and boosting himself to sixth in the championship standings. Gobert qualified sixth on the grid in the hot and humid weather that greeted the ASBK series in the Top End, his 1:11.890 slotting him in for a second row start in the 20-rider Supersport field. Come race time, the 29-year-old put in an impressive performance, battling through the field on the opening lap to put himself in a battle for the podium throughout the opening 17-lap race of the weekend. Gobert eventually crossed the line fourth, narrowly missing his first race podium of the season, however drastically improving his result from the Phillip Island season opener back in February. The opening race of the weekend also saw Gobert post his fastest lap of the round, his 1:11.223 coming on lap five of the race. Race two saw Yamaha YZF-R6-mounted rider Gobert off to a slow start, working hard to move into sixth position before losing two places in the closing stages of the race and crossing the finish line in eighth after the reduced 14-lap outing. It was a positive round for Gobert and the Gobert Motorsports team, continuing to develop the privateer R6 and gaining three positions in the championship hunt as the series now moves on to Queensland Raceway, near Ipswich in Queensland, on 3-6 June. Aaron Gobert Supersport #96: All in all we finished up with a good weekend at Hidden Valley. Things came together at the last minute before the Phillip Island season opener, so after that round we had a good idea of what we needed to change for round two and it worked well. The results at Hidden Valley were strong and I’m looking forward to continuing to progress at Queensland Raceway’s third round. I feel that racing at the pointy end of the field is where I belong, so it was good to do that in race one last weekend and we should only get stronger from this point on. Hidden Valley was a great addition to the calendar, I had a lot of fun there and it was a great facility with a technical track layout I’m definitely looking forward to going back up there in the future. Gobert Motorsports is proudly supported by: Yamaha Motor Australia, YRD, Graves Motorsports, Bell Helmets, Alpinestars, Hotbodies Racing, Galfer, Bel-Ray and D.I.D. HIDDEN VALLEY SUPERSPORT RESULTS: 1. Troy Herfoss 2. Brodie Waters 3. Christan Casella 4. Ben Burke 5. Mitchell Carr 6. Aaron Gobert (Gobert Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R6) 2010 SUPERSPORT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after round two): 1. Troy Herfoss 89 points 2. Brodie Waters 81pts 3. Christan Casella 80pts 4. Ben Burke 61pts 5. Mitchell Carr 56pts 6. Aaron Gobert (Gobert Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R6) 51pts