Wisdom leads USGPRU Moto 3, GP 250 and Moriwaki MD250H National Championships, Alex Wisdom riding a Moriwaki MD250H has moved in to the lead of all three USGPRU National Championships. Wisdom (15) secured the top slots with dominating wins in the Moto3 and GP250 races and a 2nd place in the MD250H spec series race, during the third round of the Championship Series held at Road America, WI on May 5-6, 2012. Sunday’s racers were greeted with rain, rain and more rain. Visibility was poor and temperatures were in the low 50s as the riders took to the grid for the GP250 race. Wisdom took the lead from the start and checked out. He won the race by over 29 seconds. “It was cold out there,” said Alex Wisdom, “but I got my head down and was never challenged. Thanks to my superb Dunlop wet weather tires I really had very few moments and really enjoyed the race. The Moto 3 race had a slightly different start with Palmer Kling and Alex Wisdom pulling away from the pack on the first lap. Wisdom showed a wheel to Kling on the back straight before turn five, Wisdom commented: “I showed Palmer my front wheel to let him know I was there and tucked back in behind him as it was easier to see. The next thing I knew he crashed in a straight line, and I had a real hard time trying to miss him as he was tumbling down the track. Thankfully I did and was able to stay on the bike and win the race. “The MD250H Spec series race did not go as planned. I led the warm up lap and unfortunately hit a stream of water, and the bike hydroplaned and high sided me. I was able to remount and limp back to the pit lane. Dad had his work cut out for him, but he once again came through and repaired our Moriwaki MD250H bike, which enabled me to rejoin the race from the pit lane and 50 seconds behind the pack. Despite being 6 seconds a lap faster than the leading Moriwaki I did not have enough laps to catch him. “I would also like to say thank you to Schaeffer Oil and Ballistic Performance for their product support and to Moriwaki for making an awesome bike that matched with the Dunlop tires was a great package to be on this weekend.” Alex Wisdom Racing continues its challenge for the USA National title at Summit Point VA Memorial Day weekend May 26th, 27th and 28th May. More, from a press release issued by Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki: TOP 10 FINISHES FOR THE ENTIRE RIDERS DISCOUNT VESRAH SUZUKI TEAM ON THE FINAL DAY AT THE GREAT CLIPS WEST COAST MOTO JAM AT INFINEON RACEWAY. All of the riders for the Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki team finished up the weekend at Infineon Raceway during the Great Clips West Coast Moto Jam with top 10 finishes today. Jake Lewis and Cory West were both able to finish just off of the podium in their respective classes with both ending up in 4th place at the checkered flag. First up for the day was Kyle Wyman in the AMA Pro Road Racing Vance & Hines XR1200 class where he was able to finish on the podium in 3rd place. Next up was the AMA Pro Road Racing SuperSport Race 2 with Jake Lewis in which he held the lead in the race before multiple Red Flag situations occurred. On the final restart of the shortened race, Jake was back in 7th after the first lap but made his way up to 4th place by race end, turning the fastest lap of the race on his next to last lap which was also his fastest lap of the weekend at a 1:41.0. The final race for the day and weekend for the team was the AMA Pro Road Racing GoPro Daytona SportBike Race 2 and both Benny Solis and Cory West had good starts moving up fro their grid positions on the first lap in both the original start and Red Flag restart. Cory again had to battle competitors all the way to the end, bringing home a top 5 finish in 4th place. Benny was able to improve from yesterday with a 10th place finish today. In the 2012 Rider Point Standings, Kyle remains in 3rd place in the XR1200 class while both Cory and Benny advanced in the Daytona SportBike class with Cory moving up to 9th place and Benny into a 3-way tie for 13th. Jake remains in 1st place in the East Coast SuperSport points and the Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki team moved up one spot to 5th in the 2012 Daytona SportBike team point standings. The next event for the team is the BigM Weekend at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele Utah in 3 weeks on May 26th-28th. Jake Lewis Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki #85 “Race two didn’t go quite as planned. Before the two red flags I was feeling good up in the front pack leading. After the third restart I got a really bad start and didn’t get out front which put me pretty far back. At one time I was in ninth and just couldn’t catch the front pack. I set the fastest time of the race charging up to the front and ended up fourth, which wasn’t to bad. Overall, it was a pretty good weekend and I cannot thank the crew enough because they worked so hard throughout the weekend. Hopefully the next round will be better and I’m looking forward to getting back on my Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R 600.” Cory West Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki #57 “I chose a different plan of action than yesterday for turn two after the start and it helped me get around a lot more people right away. I had a hard time pushing my bike to the absolute limit early in the race but I could keep my lap times pretty consistent all race long so I just hoped that people would come back to me like yesterday. The leaders got away but I had three riders come back to me and I managed to get around them. I had to put up a good fight but I came out on top of my little battle and was happy to finish up 4th. I feel like we are starting to get the bike working much better so I am super pumped about Miller and Road America. Big thanks to my guys Tony, Mark, Sean and the rest of the Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki crew for a strong weekend!” Benny Solis Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki #35 “Today’s race was an improvement from Saturdays race. Still not the best results but I’m happy we had some improvement. My team seriously worked hard all weekend for me trying new set ups and many changes. I can’t thank them enough for it. After all the info we got, I know we will do better at Miller. I like that track a lot and my bike is very fast.” Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki would like to thank their sponsors for the 2012 season: Vesrah, Riders Discount, MCJ Motorsports, American Suzuki, Nielsen Enterprises Suzuki, Parts Unlimited, Penske Racing Shocks, Traxxion Dynamics Fork Components, Yoshimura, Catalyst Racing Composites, Shoei, Cortech, Sidi, Held, Motion Pro, Sudco Int., Bazzaz, Factory Pro, Maxima Racing Oils, Spiegler Brake Lines, Adjustable-levers, Vicci, Vortex, DID Chain, Zero Gravity, GPR Stabilizers, Trek Bicycles, Suzuka Tire Warmers, K&N Filters, Full Spectrum Batteries, Redbull (Benny), Oakley (Benny & Jake), Roclun (Jake), Progressive Trail Design (Cory), 509 sunglasses (Cory and team), Andrew Swenson Designs and Drippinwet. More, from a press release issued by Indianapolis Motor Speedway: INJURY SIDELINES AMERICAN MotoGP STAR EDWARDS UNTIL EARLY JUNE INDIANAPOLIS – American Colin Edwards is scheduled to return to the MotoGP World Championship at the Grand Prix of Catalunya on June 3 after undergoing successful surgery May 7 to repair a broken collarbone. He will miss the next race, the French Grand Prix, on May 20 at Le Mans. Edwards, from Houston, suffered the injury Saturday, May 5 during a crash in qualifying at the Portuguese Grand Prix at the Estoril Circuit. Randy de Puniet fell in front of Edwards, causing him to crash and miss the race Sunday. Dr. Javier Mir used 10 screws and a titanium plate during surgery in Barcelona, Spain, to rebuild Edwards’ collarbone, which was fractured in five places. Mir also operated on Edwards’ collarbone when it was broken in a crash last season. “Doctor Mir and his team have done a great job,” Edwards said Monday. “The surgery was really quick. I’m feeling great, still a little dizzy from the anesthesia, but feeling all right. “I’m here watching TV and tweeting ( @texastornado5). Just want to let everyone know I’m OK!” Two-time World Superbike champion Edwards joined the NGM Mobile Forward Racing team this season, riding a Suter-BMW machine under the new Claiming Rule Teams regulations. He has competed in MotoGP since 2003. The NGM Mobile Forward team said it will name a replacement for Edwards this week for the French Grand Prix. Edwards is tied for 14th in the MotoGP standings this season despite missing the race in Portugal. He is the third-ranking rider on CRT machinery – production-based bikes that are slower and less technologically advanced than prototype machines. The MotoGP World Championship will compete Aug. 17-19 at the fifth annual Red Bull Indianapolis GP at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 2012 tickets: Tickets for the 2012 Red Bull Indianapolis GP MotoGP event, scheduled for Aug. 17-19 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, are on sale now at www.imstix.com, by calling (800) 822-INDY or (317) 492-6700 or by visiting the IMS Ticket Office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday. Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information. Information on camping at IMS during the Red Bull Indianapolis GP is available at www.imstix.com. Hotel package information can be found at visitindy.com/redbull. More, from a press release issued by RoadRace Factory/Red Bull: Beach Leads, Finishes Fifth for RoadRace Factory/Red Bull at Infineon Raceway Sonoma, CA – This past weekend, the enthusiastic RoadRace Factory/Red Bull team competed at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA, for their third-ever AMA Pro event. The new team and their stable of fast, young riders took on the challenge of the twisting, 11-turn racetrack coming off a successful Road Atlanta event that saw the riders make their marks in the Daytona SportBike and SuperSport classes. J.D. Beach impressed with his best weekend yet for the team. He took eighth on Saturday and followed that up with a strong fifth place on Sunday after some bike improvements. Beach ran at the very front on Sunday, getting away from the line in second place, and he took the lead just before the red flag flew and the race was stopped. After the restart, J.D. stole fifth place with a smart pass on the last lap. “The Sunday race was good, and I wish we hadn’t had the red flag. I got going with the leader in the first start. The bike was working really well. Still, it was the best finish for me this year,” said Beach. “We learned a lot about the bike this weekend and made some really good improvements, so we’ll keep moving forward. I made a little bit of a mistake in the second start on Sunday. I got a little tense and got some arm pump and went backwards a little bit, but it went away and I was able to move back up. I couldn’t push too hard or the arm pump would come back again. I knew something was going to happen in the last turn by the way the other riders were riding, so I tried to put myself in the best position. It wasn’t the best position because I had to square it off so much, but when I got on the gas, it spun some. The first couple of laps were tough, and I tried to put myself in a good spot for the tight turns. Last year, I crashed hard here, so I’m glad to be walking away from this one with some good results. The team worked really hard and got the bike working well.” J.D. is now eighth and climbing in Daytona SportBike points. Jake Gagne qualified fifth and looked to be ready to contend for the podium like he did at Road Atlanta, but he had a crash in race one and a mechanical problem in race two. Jake ran as high as second place in race two, showing the excellent form he’s displayed so far in 2012. “Qualifying and practice went well, and I was fifth on the grid. The bike felt good, and I was excited for the races. On the first start, I didn’t get the launch I wanted, but I passed a couple of guys. My restart was a good one, but I got too close to someone right in front of me. I ended up clipping a curb, and it threw me down,” said Gagne, who immediately noticed his handlebar was broken. “It was a real bummer. For Sunday, I got away second behind DiSalvo, but I had a clutch issue that got worse, and I couldn’t finish. It’s not good having 2 DNFs, but I felt fast. I just had some bad luck.” Tomas Puerta led in AMA Pro SuperSport and diced at the front at Infineon Raceway. The Colombian finished a clear fourth on Saturday with a seven-second margin and, on Sunday, he had his best race of the year. He was on point for the early laps and finished a close third, just 2.063 seconds back as he kicked up the pace even more. “I am really happy about the podium and happy for the team and everyone who worked hard. I cannot thank them enough and think they deserved it,” said Puerta. “I’m really pleased about what this means for the next few races. I put my head down. The first red flag on Sunday helped me. The team changed the suspension a little and that improved the bike even more. I was disappointed a little at Daytona and Atlanta that I wasn’t at the very front because I have raced these guys before, but we led some laps and got a holeshot and that was very good.” Hayden Gillim had a drama-filled weekend in what was a points-paying event for the West SuperSport man. Gillim qualified on the front row and started race one well, but Hayden was collected when another rider crashed in front of him on Saturday. The team scrambled to repair his machine during the red flag, and Hayden came back to finish ninth despite the long odds and bent forks. He passed 37 racers on his way to the checkered flag. On Sunday, he finished a close fifth, just 2.650 seconds off the win in a group that included Puerta. “Saturday’s race started out strong but then we had the drama with the crash,” said Gillim. “We had to put the bike back together and barely made it. The team did a great job in a short amount of time, for sure. It was a really hectic couple of laps, and racing with bent forks from the crash meant it was really tough in a few of the corners. On Sunday, I was glad to be running in the top five. I made a little mistake on the last lap and ran wide in the last turn, so I couldn’t get fourth place. I had a lot of fun riding and the team did a great job. We’re all still learning but I can tell we are making a lot of progress and I can’t wait until Miller.” Gillim is now third in West SuperSport points. RoadRace Factory/Red Bull’s Danny Walker said, “The best part of the weekend for me was after Hayden’s crash on Saturday. How can you say a crash would be the best part? Seeing the team come together was awesome and spectacular, and Hayden was very determined. J.D.’s race was really inspiring, too. Jake had some clutch issues on Sunday but he was really fast all weekend. Neither one of our DSB racers really likes this track but we were really competitive. Tomas got his confidence back. He’s on the podium and fired up. We had a typical race weekend with dramas but we worked together as a group, and I am proud of our team.” RoadRace Factory/Red Bull will next compete at Miller Motorsports Park May 26-28. For additional information contact RoadRace Factory: Danny Walker, 970-227-2385, [email protected] More, from a press release issued by Speedcell: SPEEDCELL EQUIPPED RIDERS CONTINUE WINNING WAYS AT INFINEON (Las Cruces, New Mexico)– After a race weekend full of ups and downs at round three of the AMA Pro Roadracing Championships, Speedcell equipped riders win three of four premier class races and leave Sonoma with the points lead in both the American Superbike and Daytona Sportbike class. On Saturday, Monster Energy Graves Yamaha rider Josh Hayes was the class of the field on his Speedcell equipped R1. Only Yoshimura Suzuki Racing’s Blake Young showed any ability to run Hayes’ pace in the opening laps on his Speedcell equipped GSXR1000. Hayes’ pace proved too fast as he eventually gapped the field by more than ten seconds. Saturday’s Daytona Sportbike race was a race long battle for first, with the victory going to Geico Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas on his Speedcell equipped GSXR600. The Saturday Daytona Sportbike race was another show of strength for Speedcell equipped riders with Y.E.S. Graves Yamaha’s Cameron Beaubier in third, Dane Westby on his M4 Broaster Chicken Suzuki in fourth and Y.E.S. Graves Yamaha’s Tommy Hayden in fifth. Sunday’s Superbike race was a strong reminder that nothing is guaranteed in racing, when Monster Energy Graves Yamaha’s Josh Hayes low sided his R1 out of first place. With Hayes down, but not out, Yoshimura Suzuki Racing’s Blake Young assumed the lead on his Speedcell equipped GSXR1000 and never looked back, eventually crossing the stripe 3.4 seconds ahead of second place. Hayes was able to pick up his R1 and charge through the field, eventually crossing the line in seventh place and collecting valuable points for what will surely be a season long fight for the championship. Young now leads the championship with 166 points over Hayes with 162 points in second. Sunday’s Daytona Sportbike race also featured a championship altering crash when Geico Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas had a high speed tumble out of second place when mounting a charge to catch the leader. Y.E.S. Graves Yamaha’s Tommy Hayden rode to a well deserved second place on his Speedcell equipped R6. Speedcell equipped riders top the championship points table with Cardenas in first with 113 points, Hayden in second with 101 points, and M4 Broaster Chicken Suzuki’s Dane Westby in third with 94 points. About Speedcell Technologies Speedcell Technologies, a division of Navitus Group, was established in 2008 to create a lightweight lithium battery alternative to original equipment lead acid batteries. Speedcell engineers design and build all batteries in-house, in the USA. Speedcell builds OEM battery replacement and custom battery solutions for specific applications. Speedcell also works with various cell chemistries and builds battery management systems. Speedcell supplies batteries to the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy. Speedcell is a proud supplier to Monster Energy Graves Yamaha, Yoshimura Suzuki Racing, Geico Suzuki, M4 Broaster Chicken Suzuki, Y.E.S. Graves Yamaha, Roadrace Factory RedBull Yamaha, SuzukiScoopFans Suzuki. Speedcell also supplies batteries to the Factory Yamaha Snowmobile team. Dealer inquiries 575-556-9317 [email protected] More, from a press release issued by Josh Galster’s publicist: Big weekend improvements by Josh Galster at Infineon Round 3 of the AMA Pro Racing series was held at Infineon Raceway in the picturesque Sonoma Valley. Infineon is always a fan favorite, with great racing and a variety of views to be seen from different vantage points around the track. In this beautiful setting, Josh Galster battled to finish 20th and 15th. Team Gearzy brought the whole team of riders and crew to Infineon Raceway. Galster, one of four Gearzy riders for the weekend, raced in the GoPro Daytona SportBike class while the other 3 riders competed in the Motorcycle Superstore.com SuperSport class. It was a slow start to the weekend for Galster with quite a bit of testing of different chassis set-ups, but by Race 1 he was able to get up to race pace. Zach Gordon and Ryan Parker, along with Jon Cornwell and Barry Wressel, all worked their magic during practice and qualifying to make improvements to get Galster a bit more situated on the bike. With a tough field to overcome, Galster wasn’t able to get the speed or positioning he would have liked, but in Race 1 he improved his times dramatically over his practice and qualifying times. He started to feel more comfortable on the bike with the technical and demanding features of the track and toward the end of the race when other riders were starting to fall off their pace, Josh was able to put in some of his better times and catch a few of the riders that had gotten away at the start. He wasn’t quite close enough at the end to move up the field though and finished in 20th position. Red flags due to crashes with debris on the track stopped the races early both Saturday and Sunday. Sunday’s Race 2 had multiple incidences on different parts of the track during the first lap that took out several riders. Most were able to utilize the time during cleanup to make repairs and join the restart in their original positions. Once the race got underway, Galster got into a rhythm and started gaining positions. After a grueling race, Josh was able to finish 15th and again improve on his time, with his fastest time of the weekend a 1:42.505. Josh Galster had this to say at the end of the weekend, “I had a great weekend and we were able to test several things out and get some more data to take to future races. Infineon is always a physically demanding track, but I enjoy the elevation changes and technical aspects of the track. I’m looking forward to racing at Miller Motorsports in Salt Lake in a couple weeks, see you guys there.” He would like to especially thank his crew; Zach Gordon and Ryan Parker; Jon Cornwell; Barry Wressel; Keith Code; Eric Dorn; and Billy Busch, and the Gearzy crew. In addition, Gearzy, ADD Crusher, EDR Performance, Grandprix Motorsports, Perfect Motors Brazil, California Superbike School, Arai, KFG Racing, gpguns.com, Slednecks, Dunlop, GPR, and Vortex.