UtahSBA: Norton Nabs King Of The Mountains Victory At Round One

UtahSBA: Norton Nabs King Of The Mountains Victory At Round One

© 2023, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc. From a press release issued By Russell Carpenter on behalf of the UtahSBA Board

Round One of the Utah Motorcycle Law Masters of the Mountains races series was held on May 27 at Utah Motorsports Campus on the West track configuration. 

Per tradition, the day kicked off with qualifying for the premier King of the Mountains race. Fans and spectators wouldn’t have to wait long for the action to heat up as visiting racer and prior season race winner Anthony Norton would turn in a lap time of 1:32 on his Privateer Industries Kawasaki ZX-10R in the first qualifying session. The action would heat up even more in the second qualifying session when Norton lowered his own qualifying time to 1:31.65 before dropping even more time on the third lap of the session by running a 1:31.06 lap. The closest qualifier being local Genaro Lopez on a lap time of 1:34.19 with defending number one plate holder Dave Meyer nipping at Lopez Heels, turning in a lap time of 1:34.29.

The morning qualifying sessions turned out to be prescient of Norton’s King of the Mountain race. When the red lights went out Norton led the pack into turn one and continued to run a pace that the field couldn’t match, opening a considerable gap to the chasers behind and leading the race start to finish for an unchallenged win.

Behind the leading Norton the real race action was a four-way race for second place. Kory Cowan got a great start and was in second place on lap one with Dave Meyer, visiting racer Ty Bengford, and Genaro Lopez right behind. The four-way battle was intense with passes occurring at seemingly every corner before Kowan retired at the end of lap two, handing second place over to Lopez starting on lap three. The action continued from there with Meyer, Benford, and Lopez changing positions turn after turn for the duration of the race. By the last turn of the white flag lap Lopez was in second with Bengford in third, and Meyer in fourth. Bengford got an impressive drive out of the last corner setting up a thrilling drag race for the line where Bengford was able to edge Lopez for second place by just one tenth of a second.

When queried about his pace afterward, race winner Norton stated, “I was going as hard as I could all race. Maybe I could have pushed a bit and dropped my lap times into the 1:30 range but I was on a borrowed bike and didn’t want to risk a crash.” I love this track and it was so much fun to get out and put some laps in. I want to thank Crossbeam Builders, Pirelli Tires, and Apex Assassins,” Norton added. Second place finisher Tyler Bengford shared a similar sentiment, “What an awesome battle for second. I had such a great time and it felt so good to get out and battle with the boys, racing all the way to the line and beating Genaro (Lopez) by .1. I’d like to thank Faye Meyers Motorcycle World, Pirelli Tires, KYT Helmets, Apex Assassins, and Ethan Chapluk with Southern Pride Performance.”

In other racing, the morning’s Open Twins race saw tight racing throughout. On the first lap Jared Baird, Jason Parkinson, and Ray Vernon entered Turn Nine three wide. At the exit positions one and two would make contact. Fortunately, no one crashed. The shuffle of positions at the end of lap one meant that the running order at turn one of lap two was Baird, Parkinson, and Vernon. Parkinson retook the lead that same lap before being shuffled back to second place by Baird in Turn Ten. From that point on the top three remained steady, the final order being Jared Baird, Jason Parkinson, and Ray Vernon in third.

The front of the Open Super Stock Race proved similar to the King of the Mountains Race. Although Steven Marco got a great jump on the start, Anthony Norton led the field into Turn One, the running order on lap one Norton, Tyler Bengford, and Marco. Norton again opened a big gap on the first lap and cruised to victory by a large margin. Bengford held steady in second place for the duration of the race so the real battle this time would be for the third and final podium spot. Kory Cowan put in a furious charge from a back row start and began picking riders off one by one eventually moving past Marco for third on lap five. At this point Marco began sliding back after battling with Dave Meyer and Bill Davis. Cowan pulled off on lap six leaving third position for Davis. The final running order at the line was Norton, Bengford, Davis, Meyer, and Marco.

As always the Utah Sport Bike Association would like to thank all the people who make racing possible: the racers and their families, the volunteers, and last but not least our generous sponsors. Doing what we love wouldn’t be possible without you. We look forward to seeing you all at round two on July 8, 2023, held at Utah Motorsports Campus on the West track configuration.

 

Results:

USBA Round 1 – UMC West – May 27th, 2023

 

Motostation/Moto United KOM Overall:

1. Anthony Norton (KAW ZX-10R)

2. Tyler Bengford (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Genaro Lopez (BMW S 1000 RR)

4. David Meyer (YAM YZF-R1)

5. Bill Davis (BMW S 1000 RR)

6. Jeff Taylor (YAM YZF-R1)

 

Motostation KOM GTO:

1. Anthony Norton (KAW ZX-10R)

2. Tyler Bengford (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Genaro Lopez (BMW S1000RR)

4. David Meyer (YAM YZF-R1)

5. Bill Davis (BMW S 1000 RR)

6. Jeff Taylor (YAM YZF-R1)

 

Moto United KOM GTU:

1. Justin Delong (YAM YZF-R6)

2. Josh Fisher (KAW ZX-6R)

3. Peter Hofpointner (YAM YZF-R6)

4. Braxton Young (HON CBR600RR)

5. Scott Christensen (YAM YZF-R6)

6. Rainey Pogue (YAM YZF-R6)

 

AZ Riding Academy Combined GTO:

1. Sam Arquit (HON CBR1000RR)

2. Steven Marco (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Alex Zinaich (YAM YZF-R1)

4. Dax Davis (YAM YZF-R1)

5. John McKown (YAM YZF-R1)

6. Charlie Coffen (KAW ZX-10R)

 

Off Highway Van Combined GTU:

1. Brian Gerwe (HON CBR600RR)

2. Kirk Doyle (KAW ZX-6R)

3. Belisario Arango (KAW ZX-6R)

4. Phil O’Bryan (KAW ZX-6R)

5. Zach Jenson (YAM YZF-R6)

6. Mario Fernandez (YAM YZF-R6)

 

The Edge Powersports Deseret Dash – Expert

1. Steven Marco (YAM YZF-R1)

2. David Meyer (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Sam Arquit (HON CBR1000RR)

4. Alex Zinaich (YAM YZF-R1)

5. Alban Bonilla (BMW S 1000 RR)

6. Joshua Fisher (KAW ZX-6R)

 

The Edge Powersports Deseret Dash – Novice

1. Dax Davis (YAM YZF-R1)

2. Jordan DeJarnett (YAM YZF-R6)

3. Mario Fernandez (YAM YZF-R6)

4. Landon Mattson (SUZ GSX-R600)

5. Jared Baird (DUC 1299)

6. Cameron Holladay (YAM YZF-R1)

 

Eurosports Utah Formula 40 – GTO

1. Bill Davis (BMW S 1000 RR)

2. Jeff Taylor (YAM YZF-R1)

3. David Meyer (YAM YZF-R1)

4. Christopher Mousley (YAM YZF-R1)

5. Daniel Spurlock (YAM YZF-R1)

6. Dustin Lance (APR RSV4)

 

Eurosports Utah Formula 40 – GTU

1. Kirk Doyle (KAW ZX-6R)

2. Phil O’Bryan (KAW ZX-6R)

3. Belisario Arango (KAW ZX-6R)

4. Owen Austad (KAW ZX-6R)

5. John Carver (YAM YZF-R7)

6. Jasn Parkinson (YAM YZF-R7)

 

The Weekend Garage Middleweight Superbike

1. Kinzer Naylor (KAW ZX-6R)

2. Justin Delong (YAM YZF-R6)

3. Brian Naylor (KAW ZX-6R)

4. Joshua Fisher (KAW ZX-6R)

5. Peter Hofpointer (YAM YZF-R6)

6. Christopher Mousley (KAW ZX-6R)

 

Toxic Moto Racing Middleweight Superstock

1. Kinzer Naylor (KAW ZX-6R)

2. Brian Naylor (KAW ZX-6R)

3. Justin Delong (YAM YZF-R6)

4. Joshua Fisher (KAW ZX-6R)

5. Christopher Mousley (KAW ZX-6R)

6. Scott Christensen (YAM YZF-R6)

 

MC & Associates Modern Vintage – GTO

1. Dave Loynd (HON CBR1000RR)

2. Cameron Holladay (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Landon Mattson (SUZ GSX-R600)

 

MC & Associates Modern Vintage – GTU

1. Justin Delong (YAM YZF-R6)

2. Peter Hofpointner (YAM YZF-R6)

3. Kirk Doyle (KAW ZX-6R)

4. Belisario Arango (KAW ZX-6R)

5. Brian Gerwe (HON CBR600RR)

6. Braxton Young (HON CBR600RR)

 

Karl Malone Powersports  Moto 2

1. Kinzer Naylor (KAW ZX-6R)

2. Brian Naylor (KAW ZX-6R)

3. Joshua Fisher (KAW ZX-6R)

4. Scott Christensen (YAM YZF-R6)

5. Peter Hofpointner (YAM YZF-R6)

6. Nolan Kiiskila (KAW ZX-6R)

 

Redline Realty Moto 3

1. Timothy Nielsen (KTM RC 390)

2. Raab Gisseman (HON RS125)

3. Ian Nielsen (KTM RC 390)

 

Legion of Speed Novice GTO

1. Nolan Kiiskila (KAW ZX-6R)

2. Dax Davis (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Jordan DeJarnett (YAM YZF-R6)

4. Charlie Coffen (KAW ZX-10R)

5. Eliu Heredia (YAM YZF-R6)

6. Jared Baird (DUC 1299)

 

MC & Associates Novice GTU

1. Nolan Kiiskila (KAW ZX-6R)

2. Jordan DeJarnett (YAM YZF-R6)

3. Mario Fernandez (YAM YZF-R6)

4. Landon Mattson (SUZ GSX-R600)

5. Owen Austad (KAW ZX-6R)

6. Ray Vernon (DUC 899)

 

Vortex Racing Open Superbike

1. Genaro Lopez (BMW S 1000 RR)

2. Tyler Bengford (YAM YZF-R1)

3. David Meyer (YAM YZF-R1)

4. Gilbert Gonzalez (KAW ZX-10R)

5. Steven Marco (YAM YZF-R1)

6. Sam Arquit (HON CBR1000RR)

 

MotoUnited Open Superstock

1. Anthony Norton (KAW ZX-10R)

2. Tyler Bengford (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Bill Davis (BMW S 1000 RR)

4. David Meyer (YAM YZF-R1)

5. Steven Marco (YAM YZF-R1)

6. Jeff Taylor (YAM YZF-R1)

 

Crossbeam Builders Open Twins

1. Jared Baird (DUC 1299)

2. Jasn Parkinson (YAM YZF-R7)

3. Ray Vernon (DUC 899)

4. John Carver (YAM YZF-R7)

5. Daniel Christiani (YAM YZF-R7)

6. Chris Cramer (KTM RC 8 C)

 

Karl Malone Powersports Production 500

1. Raab Gisseman (HON RS125)

 

Monarch Powersports Sportsman

1. Owen Austad (KAW ZX-6R)

2. Miguel Alamillo (SUZ GSX-R1000)

3. Brayden Rocco (SUZ GSX-R600)

4. Michael Hicks (YAM YZF-R1)

5. Aubrey Credaroli (YAM YZF-R6)

6. David Schulz (YAM YZF-R6)

 

Trackstar Stock 1000

1. Anthony Norton (KAW ZX-10R)

2. Tyler Bengford (YAM YZF-R1)

3. Bill Davis (BMW S 1000 RR)

4. Steven Marco (YAM YZF-R1)

5. David Meyer (YAM YZF-R1)

6. Jeff Taylor (YAM YZF-R1)

 

Carbonsmith Super Street Bike

1. Alex Zinaich (YAM FZ-10)

2. Eliu Heredia (YAM YZF-R6)

3. Peter Hofpointner (KAW ZX-10R)

4. Robert Jojola (DUC 1199)

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