AMA Pro Road Racing to Share World Stage with MotoGP this Weekend at Red
Bull U.S. Grand Prix
Full Weekend Includes AMA Pro American Superbike, Daytona SportBike,
SuperSport Races
MONTEREY, Calif. (July 1, 2009) - Highlighted by back-to-back races for
AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike presented by Parts Unlimited
and AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL that will cap three
full days of action at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, AMA Pro Road Racing
will share the world-stage spotlight this weekend with MotoGP at the Red
Bull U.S. Grand Prix, July 3 - 5.
A pair of 23-lap/50-mile sprints for AMA Pro Road Racing's top divisions
will follow Sunday's MotoGP main. The Daytona SportBike race is
scheduled to go off at 3:30 p.m. local time and will be immediately
followed by the American Superbike race that will be the finale of the
Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix weekend at 4:15 p.m. Also on the card is a
sprint for the West division riders of the AMA Pro SuperSport presented
by Shoei class. That 18-lap/40-mile race is scheduled to start at 5:30
p.m. on Saturday. The AMA Pro Road Racing action from the 2.238-mile
Mazda Raceway circuit can be seen in same-day coverage on SPEED on
Sunday, July 5 at 9 p.m. PT (late Sunday/early Monday, July 6 at
Midnight ET).
American Superbike points leader Mat Mladin (No. 7 Rockstar/Makita
Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) remains the rider to beat heading to
California and took just his second loss of the season one race ago at
Road America. Mladin has amassed an AMA Pro Road Racing series-leading
total of nine wins so far in 2009, including a streak of seven in a
row to open the season. Mladin is also six-for-six in qualifying for
the pole and leads the American Superbike class in every possible
statistical category. He has a monstrous 110 point championship lead,
325 - 215, over Yoshimura Suzuki teammate and nearest challenger Tommy
Hayden (No. 22 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000).
Hayden will be racing on the same event weekend as his younger brothers
Nicky Hayden and Roger Hayden for the first time in 2009, but his focus
will likely be firmly set on scoring his first career American Superbike
victory. He has hit the podium in six of the year's first 11 races and
also led the most laps in Race 1 at Auto Club Speedway in March before
finishing second to Mladin.
Blake Young (No. 79 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) is the
third Yoshimura Suzuki rider and shook off severe injuries to his left
pinkie and ring finger in an accident at Barber Motorsports Park to
finish fifth in his first race back at Road America. His season-best
results came in the last two races before his incident and included
seconds in Race 1 at Barber, the day before his spill, and the Sunday
finale at Road Atlanta in early April.
Yamaha's American Superbike riders Ben Bostrom (No. 2 Yamaha Motor
Corp. USA Yamaha R1) and Josh Hayes (No. 4 Yamaha Motor Corp. USA
Yamaha R1) have both factored into the points races after some strong
results in the last several races. Hayes broke both Mladin's 2009 win
streak and Suzuki's multi-year lock on the American Superbike division
with a breakout victory in Race 1 at Infineon Raceway. The win was
part of a six-race run of top-five finishes and Hayes ranks fifth in
the championship standings with 164 points heading to Mazda Raceway.
Bostrom is third in the championship rankings after a strong run of four
podium finishes in the last six races. The highlight was a second-place
finish in Race 2 at Infineon and Bostrom heads to his native state of
California with 187 points.
Splitting the Yamaha duo in the championship is the year's only
other American Superbike race winner. Larry Pegram (No. 72 Foremost
Insurance/Pegram Racing Ducati 1098R) out-raced Mladin and the rest of
the field one race ago at Road America for his first win in 10 years. He
has finished in the top five in the last four races and also finished
on the podium in Race 2 at Auto Club Speedway. Pegram is fourth in the
championship standings with 180 points.
Geoff May (No. 54 National Guard Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000) and his
Jordan Motorsports teammate Aaron Yates (No. 23 Brand Jordan Suzuki
GSX-R1000) rank sixth and seventh, respectively, in the American
Superbike standings. May's best finishes were three third-place showings
in the year's first five races while Yates visited victory lane for
the first time this year one race ago at Road America with his own
third-place showing.
Young is eighth in points and a pair of competitive privateers round out
the top-10 in the American Superbike standings. David Anthony (No. 25
Aussie Dave Racing Suzuki GSX-R1000) is ninth in points on the strength
of eight top-10 finishes in 11 starts, including the last five races.
Taylor Knapp (No. 44 Taylor Knapp Racing Suzuki GSX-R1000) ranks 10th
and his season has been anchored by seven finishes of ninth or better.
Neil Hodgson (No. 100 Corona Extra Honda CBR1000RR) has recovered
from an early-season motocross training injury and scored a strong
sixth-place finish in the Sunday final at Road America. It was the
former World Superbike Champion's best showing since taking second in
the Daytona opener, and he has made just five starts this season. Jake
Holden (No. 59 Holden Racing Honda CBR1000RR) filled in capably for
Hodgson and is continuing to race now on under his own team name but
flying Corona colors. Another rider in the Honda camp is Aaron Gobert
(No. 96 Team Trifoglio Racing Honda CBR1000RR).
Other riders to keep an eye on this weekend at Mazda Raceway include
Chris Ulrich (No. 18 Roadracingworld.com Suzuki GSX-R1000), Anthony's
teammate Hawk Mazzotta (No. 121 Aussie Dave Racing Suzuki GSX-R1000) and
Scott Jensen (No. 61 Moto Garage Racing Suzuki GSX-R1000). The weekend
also marks the return of California-based rider Reno Karimian (No. 48
Team Reno Suzuki GSX-R1000) who will be making his first start since
recovering from right arm and shoulder injuries sustained in the Auto
Club event. Karimian broke four bones in his right shoulder, fractured
his upper right arm and completed three months of physical therapy after
surgery in preparation for his return.
A total of 37 entries are set for the AMA Pro American Superbike class
which is scheduled to run a single race this weekend for just the second
time this year. The season-opening race at Daytona was also a single
final format.
Daytona SportBike Back on the Big Stage
As the featured class of the Daytona 200 By Honda, AMA Pro Daytona
SportBike presented by AMSOIL competitors have already stepped into the
international spotlight once this season. The Daytona opener marked
Bostrom's only Daytona SportBike start of the year and he promptly went
out and scored his first victory in America's premier motorcycle road
race.
Both Bostrom and teammate Hayes will be moonlighting in Daytona
SportBike again this weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca as Team
Graves Yamaha has prepared a pair of its YZF-R6 bikes for the American
Superbike regulars. Bostrom (No. 1s Team Graves Yamaha YZF-R6) and
Hayes (No. 4 Team Graves Yamaha YZF-R6) will join Yamaha's primary
Daytona SportBike riders Josh Herrin (No. 8 Team Graves Yamaha YZF-R6)
and 16-year-old teammate Tommy Aquino (No. 6 Team Graves Yamaha
YZF-R6). Herrin finished second to Bostrom in Daytona and earned
another runner-up showing in Race 2 at Road Atlanta. Aquino turned in a
season-best finish of fourth in the Sunday final at Infineon.
Yamaha's ramped up assault will no doubt be targeting Daytona SportBike
championship leader Martin Cardenas (No. 36 Team M4 Suzuki GSX-R600)
who has won six of the last eight races to lead the series. He has 255
points atop the standings, a full 51 points clear of Jamie Hacking (No.
88 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R) and 56 points ahead of
third-ranked rider Danny Eslick (No. 9 GEICO Powersports/RMR Buell
1125R).
Cardenas' impressive run includes four wins in a row, which he did by
sweeping both the Infineon and Barber weekends. His victory in Race 1 at
Road Atlanta was the first Daytona SportBike victory of his career and
he also won the most recent race in the Sunday final at Road America.
Although still looking for a 2009 win, Hacking may be one of the most
consistent riders in AMA Pro Road Racing and has finished out of the top
five just four times in 11 races this season. Hacking's teammate Roger
Hayden (No. 95 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R) - Tommy and
Nicky Hayden's younger brother - made his first start of the year at
Road Atlanta and promptly went out and finished second to Cardenas in
Race 1. He scored another runner-up showing in Race 1 one event ago at
Road America and is worth watching at Mazda Raceway. The third Monster
Energy Attack Kawasaki rider is young Argentinean talent Leandro Mercado
(No. 92 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R), who is also a top
threat in AMA Pro SuperSport competition.
The year's only other race winners are Eslick and Canadian rider Chris
Peris (No. 10 Erion Racing Honda CBR600RR). Eslick has three victories
after sweeping the Auto Club weekend and winning the Sunday final at
Road Atlanta. His teammate is veteran rider Michael Barnes (No. 34 GEICO
Powersports/RMR Buell 1125R) who scored a season-best finish of fifth in
the Sunday final at Barber. Peris won Race 1 in the rain at Road America
and also has a third-place finish at Road Atlanta to his credit. Peris
teams with top California rider Jake Zemke (No. 1x Erion Racing Honda
CBR600RR) who helped make Erion's Road America weekend a memorable one
in total with a season-high finish of second in the Sunday final. It was
Zemke's first podium finish of the season.
Cardenas teams with the equally quick Jason DiSalvo (No. 40 Team M4
Suzuki GSX-R600) who has won the pole at the last four races. He
finished third in the Daytona 200, Race 1 at Auto Club and one race
ago in the Sunday final at Road America in addition to season-high
second-place finishes behind Cardenas in the Saturday final at Barber
and the Sunday race at Infineon. DiSalvo is fourth in the championship
with 179 points while Herrin rounds out the top five with 152 points.
Chaz Davies (No. 57 Factory Aprilia /Millennium Technologies Team
Aprilia RSV1000R) is the main Aprilia threat and a pair of fourth-place
showings at Barber and Infineon has kept the former Daytona 200 winner
in the championship top 10. Steve Rapp (No. 48 Bazzaz/Pat Clark
Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R6) is another past Daytona 200 winner who is
hitting his stride after taking his first podium of the year at Infineon
with a third-place finish in the Saturday final.
A solid entry of 51 Daytona SportBikes is heading to Mazda Raceway and
it includes the debuting No. 394 Tri-Valley Moto KTM 990 Super Duke
of Eric Gulbransen. The Austrian-built KTM was recently approved for
Daytona SportBike competition and the all California combination of
Gulbransen and Tri-Valley will be the first to run such a bike in top
level AMA Pro Road Racing competition.
SuperSport Showcase
The emerging riders of the AMA Pro SuperSport presented by Shoei
division will have the opportunity to impress a paddock full of
international onlookers at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix weekend. The
class is divided into East and West Championships and the Mazda Raceway
Laguna Seca event is Round 5 of the Western division.
Tyler Odom (No. 46 Erion Racing/Pro Honda Oils & Chemicals Honda
CBR600RR) won Daytona's season-opening dual division race and finished
fourth in Round 2 at Auto Club to stay on top of the standings all
season. He heads to Mazda Raceway with 74 points, 17 ahead of nearest
challenger Clint Shobert (No. 26 American Honda/Pro Honda Oils &
Chemicals Honda CBR600RR), who has a season-best finish of third at Auto
Club. Shobert is the son of AMA Hall of Famer Bubba Shobert.
It appeared early in the season that SuperSport West would be decided
between Odom and Shobert, but that was before Ricky Parker (No. 96 Team
Graves Yamaha YZF-R6) won in his West debut at Infineon. Parker backed
it up with a second-place finish in the dual division event one race
ago at Road America and now prominently factors into the championship
despite missing half of the year's first four Western races. He is 18
points behind Odom and just one point back from Shobert.
Bryce Prince (No. 74 Clawson Motorsports/Arai/NJK Leathers/Cycle Gear
Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R) is fourth in the championship with 49 points and,
after missing the Daytona opener, has three straight top-ten finishes
including fifth at Auto Club, fourth at Infineon and sixth at Road
America.
Chris Clark (No. 48 Bazzaz/Pat Clark Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R6) and
Garrett Willis (No. 80 Mach 1 Motorsports/Arai Yamaha YZF-R6) could
also mount SuperSport West title bids but need to put on dominant
performances this weekend. Clark is fifth in the championship with a
pair of sixth-place finishes in the opening rounds while Willis - who
has also made only two starts - is sixth in points after finishing
second at Auto Club and fifth at Infineon.
Several riders who are not officially competing in the SuperSport
West championship could be among the favorites for the victory at
Mazda Raceway. Mercado (No. 92 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja
ZX-6R) leads the SuperSport East standings with a pair of victories
at Road Atlanta and one race ago at Road America. Russ Wikle (No. 5
Roadracingworld.com Suzuki GSX-R600) is another interloper from the East
who could be in the hunt for the win at Laguna Seca. Wikle is second
in the SuperSport East standings behind Mercado. California rider Joey
Pascarella (No. 25 LTD Racing Yamaha YZF-R6) is yet another SuperSport
East entrant who could factor into this weekend's race.
A true spoiler on all fronts could be stalwart AMA Pro Flat Track
crossover James "The Rocket" Rispoli (No. 71 Roadracingworld.com
Suzuki GSX-R600) who is making a one-off appearance with the proven
Roadracingworld.com team. Riding for another group, Rispoli finished
fourth at Road America in his only previous SuperSport start of the
year. In addition to being a top AMA Pro Grand National Singles
Championship rider, Rispoli also showed his road racing talent in
SunTrust Moto-GT competition last year.
A proving ground series, SuperSport is reserved strictly for
up-and-coming riders between the ages of 16 and 21 who compete on
600cc sport bikes that are only minimally modified from what you will
find at your local Suzuki, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Honda or other motorcycle
dealerships.
-credit: ama
