AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Lexington, Ohio July 9 Provisional Race One Results (all on Dunlop tires): 1. Dane Westby (Suz GSX-R600), 21 laps 2. Josh Herrin (Yam YZF-R6), -0.139 second 3. Danny Eslick (Suz GSX-R600), -0.217 4. Jason DiSalvo (Duc 848), -0.356 5. Tommy Aquino (Yam YZF-R6), -2.284 seconds 6. Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R6), -6.539 7. Cory West (Suz GSX-R600), -21.308 8. Taylro Knapp (Suz GSX-R600), -43.905 9. Kyle Wyman (Yam YZF-R6), -44.519 10. Tyler O’Hara (Yam YZF-R6), -45.602 11. Josh Galster (Yam YZF-R6), -56.696 12. Huntley Nash (Yam YZF-R6), -59.755 13. Fernando Amantini (Kaw ZX-6R), -59.855 14. Paul Allison (Yam YZF-R6), -64.185 15. Santiago Villa (Suz GSX-R600), -73.145 16. Michael Morgan (Suz GSX-R600), -73.647 17. Christian Cronin (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap 18. Sam Rozynski (Yam YZF-R6), -1 lap 19. Melissa Paris (Yam YZF-R6), -3 laps, pitted 20. Raul Alzate (Yam YZF-R6), -4 laps, DNF, retired 21. P.J. Jacobsen (Duc 848EVO), -7 laps, DNF, mechanical 22. Emerson Connor (Duc 848), -10 laps, DNF, mechanical 23. Kris Turner (Suz GSX-R600), -10 laps, DNF, retired 24. Jake Holden (Duc 848EVO), -16 laps, DNF, retired 25. Kenny Riedmann (Tri Daytona 675), -17 laps, DNF Provisional Championship Point Standings (after 9 races): 1. TIE, Eslick/Herrin, 183 points 3. DiSalvo, 159 4. West, 151 5. Aquino, 142 6. Beaubier, 128 7. Westby, 126 8. Knapp, 95 9. Jacobsen, 90 10. O’Hara, 82 More, from a press release issued by Geiger Media on behalf of GEICO: Eslick takes third place in first of two Daytona SportBike races at Mid-Ohio LEXINGTON, Ohio (July 9) — GEICO Suzuki rider Danny Eslick arrived at the Honda Supercycle Weekend at Mid-Ohio riding high after recently assuming the points lead in the cutthroat AMA Daytona SportBike class. The 2009 class champion then rode that wave of momentum to a solid third-place finish Saturday afternoon in the first of two races taking place this weekend. It was Eslick’s sixth podium finish of the season. “I knew it was going to be hot and that was going to be an issue so when we started I just fell into third and waited for the opportunity to make my move,” Eslick said. “I did that when I had the chance and I was hoping to kind of get away from the pack but it didn’t happen. We were all so close the whole race.” Eslick and three other riders fell into a terrific back-and-forth battle for the lead during the last handful of circuits, making Saturday’s race one of the most exciting of the 2011 season. “With three or four laps to go here all of a sudden Dane (Westby) came up beside me. I had no idea he was even that close to the front,” Eslick said. “We were going back and forth the last couple laps and it was just as exciting to race as it was to watch, I’m sure.” The 2009 class champ lead most of the way but with just a few turns to go, Westby and Josh Herrin were able to slingshot past him. Although Eslick was hoping to add another win to his 2011 season, he was happy that Westby was the one to win the race. “I’m so happy for Dane,” Eslick said. “He’s been working hard and has been well deserving of a win for a while now. I remember my first win a few years back and it’s a feeling he’ll never forget.” Unfortunately for Eslick, he was not able to maintain his points lead. With Herrin’s second-place finish, he pulled even in the points, but due to Herrin having four wins and Eslick one, Herrin is now the official leader. The second Daytona SportBike race of the weekend starts at 2:15 p.m. EST on Sunday. More, from a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: LEXINGTON, OH (July 9, 2011) – The AMA Pro Daytona SportBike class saw a brand-new winner today at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, as M4 Suzuki’s Dane Westby staged a brilliant, aggressive ride that took him from ninth to first through some of the toughest riders in the series. For Westby, it marked his career first AMA Pro sprint race victory and a whole new chapter in premier-class-level competitiveness. “I’ve never really led at the end before,” said Westby after the race, “so it was kind of gnarly the last couple laps. These are the big dogs, so I knew Danny would be right there on the last lap, coming on the braking zones, and he’s not playing around. I just tried to be conservative on the inside, and it just barely worked out; I was able to cut him off there at the end on a right-hander and pull it off. This is great,” Westby continued, shaking his head and smiling. “At the beginning of year we had some bugs to shake out, but we got some stuff worked out and the bike will pretty much go wherever I want. I could just carve right up the inside.” Carve he did — after finally getting by Vesrah Suzuki’s Cory West, Westby set off after Latus Motors Racing’s Jason DiSalvo (then the last rider of the lead pack), faced with the task of making up several seconds. Through a series of deep-braking maneuvers and what Westby himself labeled “a couple of hairball moves, but with no contact,” he spun a mediocre start into an unforgettable race. The rest of their pack, too, did more than their fair share of adding to the gasp-worthy excitement of the overall contest, DiSalvo getting things started off the line by blasting past Josh Herrin (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) to take the holeshot and early lead. While Herrin systematically tested the inside and outside of DiSalvo’s lines, he was himself hunted by a hard-charging Danny Eslick (GEICO Powersports/RMR Suzuki), Tommy Aquino (Y.E.S./Pat Clark/Graves Yamaha), and JHR/RidersDiscount.com’s Cameron Beaubier. Within a handful of laps it was Eslick who’d moved taken over the lead, kicking off some of the most intense passing, re-passing, position shuffling, and door slamming the class has seen yet, Eslick, Herrin, DiSalvo, and Westby each desperately determined to claw their way to the top of the Race 1 podium. Herrin and DiSalvo were both resurgent in the final laps after seeming to slip back somewhat in intensity, but the last corners of the last lap were all about Oklahoma boys Westby and Eslick. “I just kind of got settled in at the start,” said Eslick; “Jason had a good pace and I knew it was going to be hot and that tire wear would be an issue, so I stepped back a bit and tried to just get in the groove of things. I got into the lead and put my head down, hoping to get away there, but everybody’s so close when they’re dialed in — there’s always four or five guys right there. “We went back and forth a couple times,” Eslick continued, “and for four or five laps no one stuck a wheel on me, but then Josh would come by or Jason would stick a wheel in. And then, with three of four to go, here comes Dane. I thought, ‘Whoa — where’d he come from?’ I never saw Dane until that moment, and it kind of threw me a curveball; I wasn’t ready for him. I made a countermove after a while and passed him, and then you saw a bunch of stuff that doesn’t usually happen [at this track]. It was good, fun racing.” Herrin, who appeared to be sticking to the watch-and-wait strategy that’s served him well in recent races, may have stuck to it a little too well in today’s contest. “I was just trying to sit back there and see how the pace was going to be,” he said, “and what everybody else was doing, and the bike was working good. I just waited too long to make a move, I think. I made an error there on the last two laps, and I need to pay a little more attention to what we’re doing and make sure those things don’t happen again. Tomorrow should be a little bit better. Dane rode a really good race, and congratulations to him on his first win.” The overall AMA Pro Daytona SportBike points chase continues to tighten, with Herrin and Eslick now tied in points. DiSalvo, West, and Aquino round out the top five. TV coverage of today’s racing begins tonight at 10 p.m. EST on SPEED. For a complete broadcast schedule, visit www.speedtv.com/schedule. For ticket and event information, visit www.midohio.com. To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit amaproracing.com and join us on facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing and twitter.com/AMAProSBK. More, from a press release issued by Team M4 Suzuki: DANE WESTBY AND M4 SUZUKI WIN AT MID-OHIO M4 Suzuki’s Dane Westby made a heroic charge through the field on Saturday at Mid-Ohio that ultimately culminated in his first-career AMA Pro Daytona SportBike victory. Starting from the outside of the second row after qualifying in eighth position earlier in the day, Westby fell back to seventh position a couple seconds behind a five-rider tussle for the lead. On lap five, Dane began to race down the leaders, moving into sixth and slowing closing on the front group. Once he had closed the gap, Westby thrilled the crowd with a number of remarkable late-braking maneuvers as he dropped one competitor after the next, moving his way up through the ranks. Dive-bombing up the inside at the end of the back straight on three successive laps to finally take control of the race on lap 18 of 21, Westby then fought hard to hold the position by answering each attempt with a counterattack. Dane slashed through the final corner and wheelied his GSX-R600 across the stripe to take the checkered flag in the dramatic contest by 0.139 seconds. After scoring his momentous victory, Westby said, “I was a little off the pace in the beginning. Finally I was able to get back up there and I pulled a couple of moves up the inside and just stuck it up in there. I just had to pull some demon-braking maneuvers there at the end. “But these guys weren’t about to take that lying down and I knew they were right behind me checking me out. I’ve never really led at the end, so it was kind of gnarly the last few laps trying to calm myself down and just be cool. These are the big dogs and they weren’t playing around. I just tried to be conservative and defend my lines and I pulled it off. “This is great. At the beginning of the year we had a few bugs to shake out and now it seems like we’ve got some stuff worked out and the bike is going fast and it just seems to go wherever I want. Like I said, in some of those moves it might have looked ‘hairy’ but I was just able to carve right up the inside because the bike was so good.” Martin Cardenas registered a courageous ride of his own in a grueling once-stopped AMA Pro Superbike race. Unable to match his Friday pace in qualifying after getting banged up in yesterday’s high-speed crash, Cardenas was relegated to the third row after being pushed down to ninth position. The Colombian opened the race in that same position but systematically worked his way forward. In the end, the Superbike rookie race winner fought his way into the top five, winning out in a close three-way scrap for fifth position. Meanwhile, Superbike teammate Chris Ulrich withdrew from the weekend after his injuries proved not sufficiently healed to allow him to compete. Ulrich said, “This weekend provided us a good opportunity to gauge exactly where we are at with our recovery. Mentally I’m good. I was happy with that but physically we’ve still got a little ways to go. We’re going to take a couple days to recover and then get back to training and head to Laguna Seca. That’s a short weekend with less track time and just one race so hope to be ready to go there.” Santiago Villa finished 15th in the SportBike race. The Colombian qualified in 16th position before falling back to 21st on the opening lap and battling back up to the top 15. M4 Suzuki will look to add to their trophy haul on Sunday as the Mid-Ohio AMA Pro Road Racing weekend concludes. More, from a press release issued by Vesrah Suzuki: CONSISTENT FINISHES FOR THE VESRAH SUZUKI TEAM AT THE MID OHIO SUPERCYCLE WEEKEND PRESENTED BY DUNLOP. Vesrah Suzuki’s Cory West and Taylor Knapp finished 7th and 8th in the AMA Pro Racing Daytona Sportbike Race 1 at Mid Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, OH after qualifying in 7th and 9th place respectively. Cory remains in 4th place in the 2011 Daytona Sportbike championship and Taylor is now in 8th place. Corey Alexander qualified in 5th position for the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport race 1. After a bad start Corey was able to push through to regain 5th place by the end of the race. Mark Junge Team Owner Vesrah Suzuki “With this only being the second time for the team to race at Mid-Ohio, we’re still learning what set-up is required for this track. We are making progress and will be making changes tonight to try and push further to the front tomorrow” Cory West Vesrah Suzuki #57 “My start was good but I got held up in a few spots and didn’t quite get away with the top 5 guys. I pushed hard early and tried to close the gap but couldn’t make it happen. From the halfway point to the finish, I ran a lonely 7th place. I’m disappointed that I couldn’t run in the lead pack today, but we’ll try to come up with a fix for tomorrow.” Taylor Knapp Vesrah Suzuki #44 “Unfortunately we started from row 3 because we had a little problem in qualifying which made things tough for the first laps of the race. Once I settled in everything was working well and I could see that I was slowly catching the lead pack. About halfway through the race I had a tire go off mainly due to the abrasive surface and the heat. I was trying to just stay consistent and finish up the race when another rider made contact with me and went down. When I saved the bike from crashing it ran me wide and onto the pit entrance so I had to ride through pit lane at 50mph. I had a big enough gap on the rider behind me that it did not effect my finishing position but it was frustrating. We learned a lot today so the bike will only be better tomorrow.” Corey Alexander Vesrah Suzuki #5 “Today’s race went decent starting from the inside of the second row of the grid. I struggled on the first lap and got pushed back. I had a lot of work to do to make it up to where I finished. I learned quite a bit today so I have confidence going into tomorrow that we can put my Vesrah Suzuki up front. My mechanics Barry and Tim have been working really hard all weekend so I look forward to giving them better results and I appreciate their help.” Vesrah Suzuki wants to thank all of their sponsors for their support for the 2011 season Vesrah, American Suzuki, Rockstar Energy Drink, Nielsen Enterprises Suzuki, Penske Racing Shocks, Traxxion Dynamics Fork Components, Yoshimura, Catalyst Racing Composites, Sudco Int., Bazzaz, Factory Pro, Maxima Racing Oils, Vortex, DID Chain, GPR Stabilizers, Trek Bicycles, GP Tech, Active, Pilot, Suzuka Tire Warmers, Pit Bull & Road Rage Designs