Roadracing World has partnered with AMA Pro Racing to present the Young Gun of Year Award to the top Daytona SportBike or SuperSport rider who was under the age 19 at the start of the 2013 AMA Pro season.
In the spirit of this award, Roadracing World is featuring one 2013 Roadracing World Young Gun per week. These riders were also featured in the March 2013 print edition of Roadracing World. This week’s featured rider is Miles Thornton, who is coming off a double-podium weekend at Mid-Ohio.
Age: 19
Current home: West Point, Georgia
Current height/weight: 6’3”/165 pounds
Current school/grade: Columbus State University/Freshman
Began riding at age: 3 years
First road race: 2004, Talladega Gran Prix Raceway, Alabama, WERA, Minis, 3rd.
Current racebike: Yamaha YZF-R6
Tuner/mechanic: Richard Thornton (dad)
Races/series now competing in: AMA Pro SuperSport East
Sponsors: Arai, Sidi, Held USA, Impact Safe-T Armor, A&J Screen Printing, K-Tech Suspension, CTR racing, ACT Racing, Eyeball NYC, Orient Express, GPTech, Galfer, Gil Milligan, my parents.
Racing accomplishments (so far): 2013 season, ranked 4th in the AMA Pro SuperSport East Championship (best race finish is 3rd (twice at Mid-Ohio), on pole at Mid-Ohio, 4 top-five finishes, 7 top-10 finishes); 2012 season, finished 7th in AMA Pro SuperSport East Championship (best race finish was 5th, 6 top-10 finishes), 5 WERA race wins in 8 starts. 2013 racing goal: Make it to all AMA Pro SuperSport East rounds.
Racing career goal: Win multiple World Championships.
Racing heroes: Jamie James, Valentino Rossi, Scott Russell, Ben Spies, Josh Hayes.
Favorite tracks: Road America, Miller.
Hobbies: Playing guitar, play riding, hanging out with friends, BMX, golf.
Training methods: Dirt track, supermoto, play riding, working out, cycling, running.
If I wasn’t racing I would be: Working toward a career in marketing.
Learn more about Miles Thornton in his profile on RoadracingWorld.com at https://www.roadracingworld.com/members/milesthornton/ .
Be sure to get your own profile and join Roadracing World’s new, interactive online community for racers, riders and fans of racing and performance riding at www.roadracingworld.com/signup/. Post up your pictures, upload your results and show off your skills with your racing videos. Show off your sweet street ride and follow your favorite racers. And when you join, you get the chance to be featured on the home page of Roadracingworld.com and get a free three-month trial subscription. It’s a guaranteed win!
About the AMA Pro Roadracing World Young Gun of Year Award:
AMA Pro Racing and Roadracing World Publishing, Inc. have reached an agreement to name the Roadracing World Young Gun Of The Year for the 2013 GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing season.
The new Young Gun Of The Year Award is based on Roadracing World’s 17 consecutive years of recognizing the best young road racers in North America. The 2013 version of the annual feature recognized 30 riders–17 of them AMA Pros–and was published in the March, 2013 print edition of Roadracing World magazine. One of those riders is likely to be named the 2013 Roadracing World Young Gun Of The Year and receive a $2,500 cash award.
To be eligible for the award, riders must have been no older than 18 at the start of the 2013 GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing season. The award will go to the eligible rider with the most overall points in either the Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport or GoPro Daytona SportBike classes and a check will be presented during the 2013 GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing Awards Banquet.
Past Roadracing World Young Guns who have won AMA Pro road races include Tommy Aquino, J.D. Beach, Cameron Beaubier, Josh Day, Jason DiSalvo, Dustin Dominguez, Danny Eslick, Bobby Fong, Jake Gagne, Nicky Hayden, Roger Hayden, Tommy Hayden, Josh Herrin, Jake Holden, John Hopkins, Elena Myers, Shane Narbonne, Huntley Nash, Tyler Odom, Joey Pascarella, Chris Peris, James Rispoli, Ben Spies, Chris Ulrich and Blake Young.