AMA Announces Field Meet for AMA Mid-Ohio Vintage Days

Motorcycling field meet coming to AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days

PICKERINGTON, Ohio -- June 26, 2012 -- The field meet is one of motorcycling's most iconic activities, when riders get together and display their riding skills in an organized setting. This July 20-22, the American Motorcyclist Association will feature these classic games at AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, featuring Rockers and Mods, held at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.

The AMA Classic Field Meet Challenge will take place on the infield of the roadrace course on Friday, July 20, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Saturday, July 21, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday, July 22, from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. ABATE of Ohio will oversee registration and officiating. Registration will take place on site each morning.

"The main goal of all field meets is the same: for everyone to have fun," said AMA Director of Operations and AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Jack Penton. "Activities are designed to be as entertaining as they are challenging. These aren't trials contests! You certainly don't need a particular type of motorcycle, and you don't need any special skills -- beyond a healthy confidence in your own ability to maneuver your motorcycle."

Individual events will include activities such as a barrel race, a balloon toss, a slow race, Bite the Weenie, Ride the Plank and Whack the Murphy. Other games will be included, as well. The winning riders of each event will receive a medallion for each day of competition.

A '79 Honda CB750F and two mid-'70s Honda CB400Fs sit on display at the 2011 AMA Vintage Days celebration at Mid-Ohio.  Both of these models went on to become serious racers and winners in their respective classes in WERA and AMA Road Racing events and help lead Honda back into racing in the late '70s/early '80s.  Photo courtesy of the American Motorcyclist Association's AMA Vintage Days portfolio.

"I'd like to extend a big thanks to ABATE of Ohio for managing the field meet this year," Penton said. "The AMA Classic Field Meet Challenge will be a blast for both spectators and participants. Whether you're riding in the event or just want to figure out what Whack the Murphy is all about, make sure you check out the action on the infield at AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days."

There is no extra cost to register and participate in the AMA Classic Field Meet Challenge, but a small donation to the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame is encouraged. Riders will need to ride their own motorcycle or scooter and wear appropriate gear (helmet, long pants and eye protection are mandatory). Motorcycles or scooters can be from any era; they do not need to be vintage to participate.

Questions about the field meet can be directed to AMA Road Riding Manager Dave Hembroff at dhembroff@ama-cycle.org.

With proceeds supporting the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame, AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days is the country's premier celebration of vintage motorcycles and motorcycling heritage. In addition to the AMA Classic Field Meet Challenge, the event includes amateur national championship roadracing, demo rides of current street and off-road motorcycles, motocross, hare scrambles, trials and dirt-track in vintage classes. The weekend also features North America's largest motorcycle swap meet, bike shows and seminars on a number of topics by noted motorcycling experts.

This year's AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days will celebrate the classic "Rockers and Mods" two-wheeled subculture that is experiencing a popular resurgence in America. Activities will shine a spotlight on British café-racer motorcycles and Italian metal-bodied scooters made popular by the self-described Rockers and Mods of the early 1960s.

The grand marshal this year is AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame member and noted designer Craig Vetter, whose contributions to motorcycling range from the iconic Windjammer fairings and the Triumph X-75 Hurricane to the Mystery Ship limited-production, high-performance motorcycles and a number of high-profile motorcycle fuel-economy contests.

Tickets for AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days can be purchased at www.midohio.com. More information about AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days can be found at www.amavintagemotorcycledays.com.

About the American Motorcyclist Association

Since 1924, the AMA has protected the future of motorcycling and promoted the motorcycle lifestyle. AMA members come from all walks of life, and they navigate many different routes on their journey to the same destination: freedom on two wheels. As the world's largest motorcycling rights organization, the AMA advocates for motorcyclists' interests in the halls of local, state and federal government, the committees of international governing organizations, and the court of public opinion. Through member clubs, promoters and partners, the AMA sanctions more motorsports competition and motorcycle recreational events than any other organization in the world. AMA members receive money-saving discounts from dozens of well-known suppliers of motorcycle services, gear and apparel, bike rental, transport, hotel stays and more. Through the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame, the AMA honors the heroes and the heritage of motorcycling for future generations.

For more information, please visit AmericanMotorcyclist.com.

Media contact: James Holter
Phone: (614) 856-1900, ext. 1280
E-mail: jholter@ama-cycle.org

AMA Pro Flat Track Round 5 Lima Half-Mile Preview

Round 4 of the 2012 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com season at the Springfield Mile I event on May 27 saw Sammy Halbert take a fierce tumble into the turn 1 air fence shortly after the green flag waived to start the 19-rider field on it's 25-lap National main journey.  Although not seriously injured, it did force him to sit out the event and left him and his #7 South East Harley/The South Ass/Mo Vaughn Transport/LZ Racing-sponsored XR750 team on the sidelines.

The defending winner of the Lima Half-Mile, however, is back and ready to go after racing in the Medina TT event in New York State this last weekend, winning the Grand Prix event and coming home in 2nd-place in the main event (after crashing and making a big-time dash through the field to take that runner-up spot.)  The most dominant racer at the last three events at the Allen County Fairgrounds (3rd-place 2009, 2nd-place 2010) will be ready defend his title and get back on track for the 2012 season, of which there are still 12 of 16-scheduled events left on the calendar.

2009 AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Champion and 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Rookie of the Year Brad Baker had a rough start to his 2012 Twins Series campaign at round 4 at Springfield over the Memorial Day Weekend.  After a solid 6th-place finish in the previous evening's TT event at the Multipurpose Arena, The Bullet and the #12 Kenny Tolbert Kawasaki Racing/Big Ed Beckley/Werner-Springsteen/D&D Exhaust-backed team were all set to roll out their new chassis on the mile oval, but unfortunately mechanical ills kept team owner/tuner/patriarch Kenny Tolbert working feverishly in the pit area trying to get to the bottom of the bike's errant miss. 

Baker was able to come back to run the semi, but missed the cut, and with former Rookie of the Year Matt Weidman getting the provisional for the main, Baker missed the cut.  After a strong 4th-place finish at Lima in 2011 aboard the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati (and winning the 2010 event as a Pro Singles rider) look for Baker and Company to be back fighting at the front come Saturday at Lima at a track that he is obviously comfortable on.

With a new team and new mounts in the form of GCR XR750s, '08 Rookie of the Year Matt Weidman is also looking to improve on his previous Lima results, as well as his rough weekend on the Springfield Mile in May.  After poor results kept him and the #20 GCR/White's H-D/SNIP/Fiorio Investments-backed Harley-Davidson XR750 team from from qualifying directly to the National main at the Illinois State Fairgrounds, Mighty Matt was forced to use his Twins Series provisional to nab a spot in the 19-rider main event and had to settle for a 15th-place finish.

Shown in the pits at Springfield talking with the GCR team with it's impressive stable of XRs for him and Dustin Crow #61, Matt will be ready to hit what he describes as one of his all-time favorite tracks at Lima on Saturday.  After finishes of 4th (2009), 3rd (2010) and 2nd (2011) in the previous three season, the New York State resident will be looking to improve a notch and add to his first-ever series win at Daytona in round 2 in March.

Henry Wiles gets ready to roll out for first practice at the Springfield Mile I in May in his first outing in the Twins Series events with his new-again team, on the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati 'L' twin on May 27.  The 2-Time AMA Pro Flat Track Singles Champ is back with the Ohio-based team that he almost got their first win for at Lima during the 2008 stop at the Allen County Fairgrounds while riding their Aprilia-based mount.

The Springfield event was also and up-and-down affair for Hammerin' Hank after he was forced to run the semi in order to make the National main.  After a solid and big win in the semi, Wiles had taken the #17 Foremost Insurance Group/Ramspur Winery/ENI USA/Motorcyclist Magazine-sponsored 1098-based big twin up to the 7th spot in the National when what was reported as an 'electrical problem' forced him out of the 25-lap event, and a 14th-place finish to show for his and the team's great efforts on the day.

The 2008 runner-up and 2010 main event winner, Wiles should be good to go again this Saturday after also having taken part in the Lima Test 'n Tune held back on June 14, where he was reported to be in fine shape and looking very strong, and on a track that he obviously does well at.  This just could be the man, team and event that will add to the team's Arizona Mile I win from the 2010 season with rider Joe Kopp.

In the closely-fought National main at Springfield, three brands of equipment actually made the 19-rider final after eight brands had started the day in an attempt to make the biggest show in AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship racing.

  With the majority of riders on the long-standing XR750, coupled with 12 riders entered on Kawasaki's potent Ninja 650R-based twin, two Ducatis, a Ron Wood-tuned and built Rotax/BMW, the lone Bonneville Performance Triumph, a Buell, the two KTMs and two Suzukis, the brands available to race in the greatest racing series on wheels in the world has really opened up the competition factor.

But in the end, it was five Kaws, a Duc and ten XRs that fought their way into the big show, and two of those Kawasakis left an indelible impression on the crowded house against the might of the always and still strong XR750s.

Leading at just shy of the half-way point, Bryan Smith took a big bite out of the competition at Springfield when he led the majority of laps on the day on the #42 Howerton Motorsports/Eaken Racing Kawasaki/Midwest Performance Hardware/Guts Wear-backed 650R, with 2-Time and defending AMA Grand National Champion Jake Johnson hanging close all day on the #1 Zanotti Racing/Schaeffer's H-D/Boughner Racing/Arai-backed XR750. 

The fastest XR750 earlier in the day, Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. hangs close on the #2 Screamin Eagle/Harley-Davidson Motor Co/Fox/Arai-backed factory H-D XR, with the 2nd-best Kawasaki on the day in the capable hands of Johnny Lewis on the #10 Scott Powersports/Saddlemen Seats/Wallace Trucking/AXO-sponsored 650R claiming the next-most laps led on the day.

Take your pick out of this bunch, and even if you're wrong, you won't be far off in picking the winner of this Saturday's Lima Half-Mile, as any one of these fast and furious men could be atop the box when the dust settles late at the Allen County Fairgrounds.

Jared Mees started on a roll last season at round 6 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com season by winning the Springfield Mile I event on his Brent Armbruster-tuned XR750, one that eventually led to him winning five events on the season on the #9 Rogers Lake Racing/Blue Springs H-D/Lucas Oil/Saddlemen-sponsored mount and taking him to the runner-up spot in the championship behind Jake Johnson. 

Four of last season's wins came on half-miles (Hartford, Lake Odessa, Knoxville, Brainerd) for Jammin' Jared, and the 2-Time Lima winner ('05 and '07) could just be the one to be the spoiler when the pea gravel starts flying this Saturday.  With his runner-up finish in '09, 6th-place finish in 2010, and 5th-place in last year's event, The Jammer is surely one of the people you have to add to this year's event favorites.

After winning the first heat race on the day and then coming back to win the Dash for Cash event at the Springfield Mile I event on May 27, Bryan Smith showed that there is a new sheriff in town on the uber-potent Rick Howerton-built and Skip Eaken-tuned #42 Kawasaki.  After spinning his tire on the last corner of the last lap, Flyin' Bryan realized he made a mistake by swinging low out of turn four and allowing eventual-winner Willie McCoy and runner-up Jake Johnson to take the top-two spots in the big show.

But in the Dash event, it was all Smith and his Howerton-built and prepped 650R-based machine, as is evidenced here on the podium as Dash runner-up Johnson and 3rd-place man Jared Mees laugh it up on the podium and check out the Indy-based Kawi rocketship.

Although some will say that it's a good thing that Bryan will be back on his Moroney's FastHog.com-sponsored XR for the Lima event, it was in last year's event where the Michigan resident brought home a solid 3rd-place finish on that same Moroney's H-D.  Smith also won the '09 event on a Screamin Eagle/Moroney's machine and was a strong 4th-place finisher in 2010 on the Werner-Springsteen Kawi, so he obviously knows his way around the Allen County Fairgrounds half-mile oval.  Don't count him out, either, even though he will be giving the Howerton/Eaken Racing Kawi a breather until the end of July at the Sacramento Mile.

AMA Pro Flat Track Roars Into Lima for 29th Running of Ohio Grand National

Excitement Builds Around the Unique Pea Gravel Ohio Half-Mile

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DAYTONA, BEACH, Fla. (June 25, 2012) - The arrival of summer and the last Saturday of June traditionally mean the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com and Lucas Oil will be at the Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, Ohio. June 30 will see the AMA Pro Racing stars of the premier dirt track Grand National Series descend on the "pea gravel" half-mile oval for the 29th consecutive year. Jake Johnson #1, Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. #2 (hidden), Bryan Smith #42, Luke Gough #62, Brad Baker #12 and Sammy Halbert #7 roar off from the starting line for the start of the four-lap Dash for Cash event at the Lima Half-Mile in June 2011.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig. The 2012 season has yet to see a repeat winner in the Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship. Current Grand National Championship points leader Jared Mees (Rogers Racing) has yet to post a victory in 2012, but is the only active racer with more than one win at Lima. Mees captured the first of his eleven GNC victories in 2005, then backed it up with another in 2007. Mees' consistency has rewarded him with a fourteen point lead over a log jam for second. Matt Weidman (Greg Crow Racing) is second in points and looking to be the first rider to notch their second win of the year. Weidman took his first career win at Daytona in March and his Lima history is promising. The last three years have seen the young New Yorker finish fourth, third and second. Obviously, this leaves only one place left to go. Last year's winner, Sammy Halbert (Southeast Harley-Davidson) is coming off a disastrous Memorial Day Weekend that saw his title chase take a hard hit when a turn one crash on the Springfield Mile resulted in an 18th place finish and only one point. A shoulder injury has kept him on the sidelines for a month, but the defending Lima winner is looking to make a big comeback. Henry Wiles (Lloyd Brothers Motorsports) posted a win at the Springfield TT and is also looking for his second Lima win, following his 2010 victory. In 2008 Wiles was aboard the Lloyd Brothers' Aprilia and came up just inches short, but returned on an Eddie Adkins Harley-Davidson to win in 2010. This year he will be back with the Lloyd Brothers on a Ducati and could very well become the first rider to win Lima on anything other than an XR-750 Harley-Davidson. 2009 winner Bryan Smith will be getting off the potent Kawasaki he rode in Springfield to ride the more "limestone" friendly Moroney's Harley-Davidson mount. The hard luck rider has posted top-five finishes every year since 2006. Defending AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Champion Jake Johnson (Zanotti Racing/Schaeffer's H-D) has yet to break through at Lima with a fourth place finish in his first race at Lima in 2002 being his best finish. Kenny Coolbeth (Harley-Davidson Motor Company) has fared a little better posting second and third place finishes in 2007 & 2005. Lima has contributed several first time winners as Will Davis, Dominic Beaulac, Chris Evans and Jared Mees all scored their first wins on the challenging oval, a young hoard of racers are looking to add to the list. Young guns that are in the top-15 in points, but in search of their first big win are Brad Baker (Big Ed Beckley / Tolbert Racing), Briar Bauman (USC Kawasaki), Jethro Halbert (Goodwin Racing), Jeffery Carver (Kiesow Racing) and Brandon Robinson (Werner-Springsteen Kawasaki). The AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles class is just as much up for grabs. It has been "win or nothing" for current points leader Gerit Callies (Fun Mart Cycles) has won two of the four main events (Daytona and Springfield TT), but didn't even qualify for the other two. Springfield Mile winner, Jake Cunningham (Schillers' Tree Service) holds second in points while the other Daytona winner Ryan Wells (Weirbach Racing) holds third.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.    For additional information contact: AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com

Event info for round 5 of the 2012 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com season at the Lima Half-Mile on Saturday, June 30:

http://www.amaproracing.com/ft/events/event.cfm?year=2012&eid=2012021220

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DAYTONA, BEACH, Fla. (June 25, 2012) - The arrival of summer and the last Saturday of June traditionally mean the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com and Lucas Oil will be at the Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, Ohio.

June 30 will see the AMA Pro Racing stars of the premier dirt track Grand National Series descend on the "pea gravel" half-mile oval for the 29th consecutive year.

Jake Johnson #1, Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. #2 (hidden), Bryan Smith #42, Luke Gough #62, Brad Baker #12 and Sammy Halbert #7 roar off from the starting line for the start of the four-lap Dash for Cash event at the Lima Half-Mile in June 2011.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.

The 2012 season has yet to see a repeat winner in the Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship. Current Grand National Championship points leader Jared Mees (Rogers Racing) has yet to post a victory in 2012, but is the only active racer with more than one win at Lima. Mees captured the first of his eleven GNC victories in 2005, then backed it up with another in 2007.

Mees' consistency has rewarded him with a fourteen point lead over a log jam for second. Matt Weidman (Greg Crow Racing) is second in points and looking to be the first rider to notch their second win of the year. Weidman took his first career win at Daytona in March and his Lima history is promising. The last three years have seen the young New Yorker finish fourth, third and second. Obviously, this leaves only one place left to go.

Last year's winner, Sammy Halbert (Southeast Harley-Davidson) is coming off a disastrous Memorial Day Weekend that saw his title chase take a hard hit when a turn one crash on the Springfield Mile resulted in an 18th place finish and only one point. A shoulder injury has kept him on the sidelines for a month, but the defending Lima winner is looking to make a big comeback.

Henry Wiles (Lloyd Brothers Motorsports) posted a win at the Springfield TT and is also looking for his second Lima win, following his 2010 victory. In 2008 Wiles was aboard the Lloyd Brothers' Aprilia and came up just inches short, but returned on an Eddie Adkins Harley-Davidson to win in 2010. This year he will be back with the Lloyd Brothers on a Ducati and could very well become the first rider to win Lima on anything other than an XR-750 Harley-Davidson.

2009 winner Bryan Smith will be getting off the potent Kawasaki he rode in Springfield to ride the more "limestone" friendly Moroney's Harley-Davidson mount. The hard luck rider has posted top-five finishes every year since 2006.

Defending AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Champion Jake Johnson (Zanotti Racing/Schaeffer's H-D) has yet to break through at Lima with a fourth place finish in his first race at Lima in 2002 being his best finish. Kenny Coolbeth (Harley-Davidson Motor Company) has fared a little better posting second and third place finishes in 2007 & 2005.

Lima has contributed several first time winners as Will Davis, Dominic Beaulac, Chris Evans and Jared Mees all scored their first wins on the challenging oval, a young hoard of racers are looking to add to the list. Young guns that are in the top-15 in points, but in search of their first big win are Brad Baker (Big Ed Beckley / Tolbert Racing), Briar Bauman (USC Kawasaki), Jethro Halbert (Goodwin Racing), Jeffery Carver (Kiesow Racing) and Brandon Robinson (Werner-Springsteen Kawasaki).

The AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles class is just as much up for grabs. It has been "win or nothing" for current points leader Gerit Callies (Fun Mart Cycles) has won two of the four main events (Daytona and Springfield TT), but didn't even qualify for the other two. Springfield Mile winner, Jake Cunningham (Schillers' Tree Service) holds second in points while the other Daytona winner Ryan Wells (Weirbach Racing) holds third.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com. 

 

For additional information contact:

AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com

 

 

 

eni SBK World Championship Previews MotorLand Aragon Round 8

Biaggi aiming for MotorLand Aragon breakaway

Rome (Italy), 26 June 2012 – The eni FIM Superbike World Championship came away from its mid-season point at Misano Adriatico with a double win for Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing Team) and now arrives in Spain for the start of the second half: seven rounds and 14 races still remain in the run-in for the 2012 world title battle.

The MotorLand Aragon circuit, 140 kms east of Zaragoza, is the venue for the production-based championship for the second time and the only previous edition last year saw Italians Marco Melandri, at the time on a Yamaha, and Max Biaggi share the glory. For Biaggi it was his first win of the year, but this time the five-time world champion comes to Aragon as points leader and with three wins to his name. The Aprilia rider has led the championship since the opening round in Australia and his double win at Misano, together with some errors by his chief rivals, have given the Roman Emperor a chance to increase his points lead. The RSV4 has already shown it can adapt well to the characteristics of the MotorLand circuit, and the Noale-based team has already tested twice here, once pre-season and then two weeks ago, perfecting the bike set-up for the race.

Biaggi, who celebrates his 41st birthday today, is not yet in a position to break away from the pack because with 350 points still up for grabs anything can happen from here onwards. That is the main objective of 25-year-old Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike Team), who has moved into the second place slot, 38.5 points behind Biaggi. The talented young Northern Irishman did not take part in 2011 due to an injury he picked up at the previous round but following Misano Rea has also had the chance to further develop his CBR1000RR in two days of testing at Assen.

The Spanish-based Kawasaki Racing Team is gearing up for its home round, with Tom Sykes having carried out three testing sessions in Spain. The Tissot-Superpole specialist (five wins out of seven so far) is 46 points behind Biaggi and will be aiming to repeat his win at Monza, the only one for the ZX-10R this season.

BMW Motorrad Motorsport are looking for a good result again after Misano, where Marco Melandri could only score a DNF and a fourth place, the Italian currently lying 55 points behind his rival Biaggi. The German squad also opted for Aragon as its test-track, and Melandri and team-mate Leon Haslam both put in a lot of laps there last week.

It’s home territory for Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) who has to make up for two crashes at Miller and Misano, which have set him back some 60 points from the top. The reigning world champion knows that he cannot make any errors from this point onwards if he wishes to take a second title for the Ducati team. Last year Checa crashed here while attempting to keep the pace of Melandri and Biaggi, but luckily it had no effect on his triumphant season. A few days ago at Misano, Checa tested the new Ducati 1199 Panigale for the first time, a bike he might end up by racing in the 2013 championship. All eyes will also be on his team-mate Davide Giugliano, who following a podium at Misano returns to the track where he dominated the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup round last year on his way to the title.

In the Manufacturers battle reigning champions Ducati have just a 1.5 point lead over Aprilia, with BMW 25.5 points off the top.

Points (after 7 of 14 rounds): 1. Biaggi 210.5; 2. Rea 172; 3. Sykes 164.5; 4. Melandri 155.5; 5. Checa 150.5; 6. Haslam 123; 7. Guintoli 103; 8. Laverty 95; 9. Giugliano 80; 10. Smrz 75.5; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 222.5; 2. Aprilia 221; 3. BMW 197; 4. Honda 176; 5. Kawasaki 170.5; 6. Suzuki 56.5.

World Supersport

Misano has also given a definitive shape to the World Supersport mid-sized category with a second win of the year for Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki DeltaFin Lorenzini), who now has a 22-point lead over his closest rival Jules Cluzel (PTR Honda). The Aragon round, which for Supersport is the seventh of 13, could be a decisive one for Sam Lowes, the 22-year-old Brit from the PTR Bogdanka Honda team who is always quick in races but who slipped 30 points down due to a crash at Misano that ruined his third pole position of the year. Sofuoglu, who has already won the title twice, is back on perfect form again following his early season mishaps: his rivals will now have to give twice as much, without making any mistakes, if they want to catch the Turkish champion. It’s a positive moment also for Alex Baldolini, the former Moto2 rider who at Misano gave the Power Team by Suriano its maiden podium and Triumph its first in a couple of years.

Points (after 6 of 13 rounds): 1.Sofuoglu 106; 2. Cluzel 84; 3. Lowes 76; 4. Foret 63; 5. Baldolini 54; 6. Parkes 53; 7. Tamburini 38; 8. Morais 37; 9. Quarmby 34; 10. Iannuzzo 32; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Kawasaki 131; 2. Honda 131; 3. Triumph 67; 4. Yamaha 52; 5. Suzuki 6.

Superstock 1000

Aragon will be the fifth of 10 rounds in the calendar for the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup contenders. Frenchman Sylvain Barrier has taken control at the top again by winning at Misano and thus allowing the BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet team to regain ground on Barni Racing Team Italia, which runs the new Ducati 1199 Panigale. Lorenzo Savadori and Eddi La Marra, two youngsters backed by the Italian Federation have not been able to capitalize on home advantage in the three Italian rounds so far and are 11 and 14 points respectively behind the Frenchman. This Italo-German battle could also include the young 18-year-old Markus Reiterberger of the BMW Alpha Racing team, who is yet to get onto the podium.

Points (after 4 of 10 rounds): 1. Barrier 75; 2. Savadori 64; 3. La Marra 61; 4. Reiterberger 41; 5. Baroni 40; 6. Bergman 33; 7. Baz 30; 8. Massei 30; 9. Guarnoni 26; 10. Coghlan 22; etc. Manufacturers: 1. BMW 84; 2. Ducati 74; 3. Kawasaki 60; 4. Honda 30; 5. Aprilia 15.

Superstock 600

In the Superstock category reserved for under-22s the battle is raging at the top between the 19-year-old Italian Riccardo Russo (Team Italia FMI Yamaha) and his Dutch rival of the same age Michael van der Mark (EAB Ten Kate Junior Honda Team) who closed the gap with a win at Misano. With six rounds still to go Russo and van der Mark are separated by just two points and it’s all to play for between the two of them. Russo has been limbering up by winning round 4 of the Italian CIV domestic series and is now close to the title, but he’ll have his work cut out to hold off the flying Dutchman. The other podium finishers, Nacho Calero Perez, Gaulthier Duwelz, Bastien Chesaux and Christian Gamarino have all shown potential on occasions, but have failed to string together a series of positive results.

Points (after 4 of 10 rounds): 1. Russo 81; 2. Vd Mark 79; 3. Calero Perez 50; 4. Duwelz 42; 5. Vitali 33; 6. Gamarino 27; 7. Chesaux 26; 8. Egea 24; 9. Coveña 23; 10. Schacht 18; etc.

KTM European Junior Cup

The Aragon programme will be completed with the fourth round of the European Junior Cup, the one-make trophy reserved for under-19s racing with KTM 690 machines provided directly by the Mattighofen-based manufacturer. Christian Vidal arrives at his home round as leader with 26 points to his name, but not far behind are the two race winners so far, Austrian Lukas Wimmer (Misano) and Poland’s Adrian Pasek who won the opening encounter at Assen. The race at Monza was cancelled due to appalling weather conditions.

Points (after 3 of 8 rounds): 1. Vidal 26; 2. Wimmer 25; 3. Pasek 25; 4. Demoulin 24; 5. Orellana 21; 6. Hartog 20; 7. Wielebski 20; 8. Lewis 19; etc.

 

For further information:

Julian Thomas
Press Office Associate Manager
Cell. +39 340 0993623
Email: julian.thomas@infrontsports.com

Nino Barra
Press Office & PR ItaliaCell. +39 339 4688138
Email: nino.barra@infrontsports.com

Valentina Conti
Sponsorship & Int’l PR Associate Manager
Cell. +39 388 3032059
Email: valentina.conti@infrontsports.com

In 2011 the FIM Superbike World Championship achieved the following:

- A worldwide TV audience of 462 million
- Live broadcasts on 95 television networks covering 173 countries
- 3,106 broadcast hours
- Approximately 1,000,000 race spectators
- 3,779,237 contacts on the official website www.worldsbk.com

AMA Road Racing: Hayes & Beaubier Do the Double at Barber Motorsports Park Round 6

Eight-Track Player: Yamaha's Josh Hayes Wins Again In AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike At Barber Motorsports Park

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (June 24, 2012) - Two-time defending AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike king Josh Hayes hit the quarter-century mark on Sunday at Barber Motorsports Park, registering the 25th victory of his SuperBike career. The Mississippian'sAMA Pro Road Racing double win at the Triumph SuperBike Classic presented by America's First Federal Credit Union also marked his eighth triumph of the season and his fifth in succession.  While much was made of the learning opportunity Hayes' Monster Energy Graves Yamaha teammate, Josh Herrin, enjoyed on Saturday by racing on the SuperBike champ's rear wheel, Hayes was made all the wiser by that experience as well.  Unwilling to give Herrin a chance to cling on again, Hayes raced exceptionally hard early and quickly eliminated any hope Herrin or any other rival might have entertained about sticking with him today. Hayes ultimately took the checkered flag with a 4.988-second margin of victory. "I got a decent start and slotted in right behind Josh," Hayes said. "I eased up inside of him in Turn 4 and got in there. At that point I just tried to get back into a rhythm. Things were going pretty good -- at one point I opened up a second on Josh and was kind of holding it there for a couple laps. When I saw that he took it back, I said, 'okay, don't deviate from your game plan,' because I was doing a good pace and not making mistakes. I wanted to keep up a good steady pace and see what happened and then I came around and saw a three-second gap. There you go. It's so hot and so slippery -- there was the mistake I was waiting to see if it would happen. I maintained my gap and stayed clear and had a good smooth race." Josh Hayes #1 takes the inside line on team mate Josh Herrin #2, with Ben Bostrom #23, Geoff May #99, Roger Lee Hayden #54 and the rest of the field in pursuit early in race 2 at the Barber Motorsports Park round of the AMA Superbike Championship today.  Hayes went on to win over Young and Herrin and took his 8th series win of the season and 25th of his career.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson. Despite Hayes' determination to shake free at the start and make an early escape, Herrin gave it his best effort to reel his teammate back in... and paid the price. Attempting to make up an early one-second deficit, the National Guard SuperBike freshman ran off track in Turn 4 on the race's fifth lap and was instantly dropped back to ninth.  That's the same position Yoshimura Racing Suzuki's Blake Young had held on the race's opening lap, suffering from a poor start and almost falling outside the top ten. The Wisconsin rider sliced his way up the field, however, and was in position to take control of second when Herrin made his error.  Herrin made a similar charge and by lap 11 was right on Young's rear wheel. The Suzuki and Yamaha men waged a closely-matched duel from there to the flag. Herrin reclaimed second on lap 19 but handed it back the next lap again after running wide in Turn 4. He mounted another charge and made a stab for second on the final lap, again in turn 4, but was unable to hold his line and Young dipped right back through and held on to ultimately claim the runner-up position. Young said, "Well, the start was a little bit of a struggle and I found myself quite a ways back in the pack. I just thought, 'wow, I really messed up and made a lot of work for myself that I really didn't want to have to deal with today. That's how it goes. You have a plan before the start but it never goes according to plan -- ever. I wasn't expecting that but I put my head down and felt better on my GSX-R1000 today."  Herrin admitted, "It was a crazy race. I just made way too many mistakes in the race today and lost too many positions due to it. That's the first time I've had any close moments on the 1000 all year, but luckily I was able to recover from it and come back from way back. That felt really good and I have a lot of motivation." Team Amsoil/Hero EBR's Geoff May continued his mid-season run of impressive performances, working his way past Michael Jordan Motorsports teammates Ben Bostrom (Jordan Suzuki) and Roger Hayden (National Guard Jordan Suzuki) on successive laps and then breaking away to claim a clear fourth.  Hayden stormed past Bostrom on lap 19 of 21 to steal the final position in the top five. Attack Performance's Steve Rapp ran with the freight train of heavy hitters early before fading back to a lonely seventh. Foremost Insurance Pegram Racing's Larry Pegram took his BMW S1000RR to eighth while Kneedraggers.com/Motul/Fly Racing's David Anthony and M4 Suzuki's Chris Ulrich completed the top ten. Hayes now leads the points 320 to 283 over Young. AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Cameron Beaubier pulled the perfect weekend in AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike at Barber Motorsports Park, winning pole, both races and both lap leader points for Y.E.S/Graves/Yamaha in Alabama. Beaubier cleared off in the last couple of laps to win over Dane Westby (M4 Suzuki) by 2.163 seconds in a repeat of the top two finishers from Saturday.  After a post-Daytona injury sidelined him, Beaubier has returned to competition with a vengeance. The Californian has been a factor in recent GoPro Daytona SportBike races but took his first pole and wins this weekend. Westby made a bid with four laps to go, but Beaubier was able to rally and consolidate the lead. "It feels awesome to get my first win and then back it up the next day," said 19-year-old Beaubier. "It was weird because my first lap wasn't very good at all. I then got through a few guys and got out front and I felt pretty good out front. I didn't feel very good in second because it was super easy to get shuffled back. Out front I felt really comfortable, I tried to save my tires as much as I could, and towards the end I put my head down and pushed really hard to get away."  After the race, Westby said he wished he'd waited until the final lap to make his charge but was positive about his form this weekend. Points leader Martin Cardenas took his GEICO Suzuki to third place and expanded his points margin over second place points man Jason DiSalvo (Latus Motors Racing Castrol Triumph) who finished sixth. DiSalvo now trails Cardenas by 51 and fell into a tie with Westby. Early leader Tommy Hayden of Y.E.S/Graves/Yamaha took fourth, ahead of Bobby Fong (Meen Motorsports), rewarded with a top five result.  J.D. Beach (RoadRace Factory/Red Bull), Jake Zemke (Ducshop Ducati), Benny Solis (Kneedraggers.com Yamaha) and Jake Gagne (RoadRace Factory/Red Bull) also scored in the top ten. AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport James Rispoli (Orient Express Celtic Racing) got back to his winning ways in AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport race two at Barber Motorsports Park, holding off Jake Lewis (Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki) by just 0.038 in a drag race to the line. The lead group, including third place finisher Tomas Puerta and Hayden Gillim of the RoadRace Factory/Red Bull team, outlasted the two red flags and 17 laps to make it a four-way fight to the finish.  Rispoli, the defending Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport National champ, was able to shine in the event but the final outcome was in jeopardy until Rispoli crossed the line the very last time. As the final lap began, Rispoli led over Puerta, then Lewis and Gillim. Lewis made his way past the Colombian and set out to take Rispoli's spot, but couldn't mount a successful maneuver in the favored passing area turn four or the final turn. Lewis did, however, set up a good run to the flag and nearly passed Rispoli at the line. "The red flags were pretty tough. Every time we went back out it seemed like the tires got a little bit greasier. Us dirt trackers were really sliding it around and I think I was sliding around a little bit more than anybody else. It was crazy. It went all the way down to the wire," said Rispoli. "In the end we played our cards smart. I broke hard in the places I needed to, I defended where I needed to, and we got back up on top of the box." Puerta took third, over GIllim. Suzuki On Facebook SportbikeTrackGear.com pilot Elena Myers finished fifth, ahead of Dustin Dominguez (Latus Motors Racing Triumph) who was collected in the first portion of the race by Stefano Mesa (Kneedraggers.com Yamaha). As the red flag was called because Dominguez was pinned under the air fence, the Oklahoman was forced to start at the back of the grid. Mesa took seventh, ahead of Ryan Matter (Gearzy Yamaha), Eric Stump (EyeballNYC.com Yamaha), and Corey Alexander (National Guard Fairhills Group Celtic Racing), who had an issue on the last lap and lost five spots. AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series KLR Group/Vesrah Racing's Kyle Wyman came out victorious following an 11-lap dogfight with AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series title leader Tyler O'Hara to secure his third XR1200 victory of the '12 season. The two title rivals made a rapid escape from the chasing pack and then waged an intense duel for the checkered flag over the race's waning laps.  Wyman slipped into first for good on the race's last lap and heavily defended his line in the contest's final few corners to narrowly hold off his Bartel's Harley-Davidson-backed opponent by a scant 0.047 seconds at the stripe. "It was huge to have KLR Group at the race and I really wanted to get a win for them," Wyman said. "It was a great. It was a good race at the front -- a lot of dicing and battling. There were different places on the track where he was a little bit stronger and other places where I was stronger and I just tried to make the most of those and be there at the end. It all paid off for me." Michael Barnes put the MOB Racing Harley-Davidson XR1200 on the podium in his maiden outing with the team. The result was hard earned as Barnes fronted a spirited four-man scrap for the podium ahead of David Estok (Ruthless Racing Inc.), Gerry Signorelli (Kuryakyn), and Shane Narbonne (Suburban Motors Harley-Davidson). Narbonne fell off the chase (literally) while running sixth with four laps remaining. Signorelli followed that with a crash of his own from fifth on the race's final lap.  Barnes edged Estok for third by just 0.146 seconds, while Narbonne's teammate, Ben Carlson, completed the top five. Next Event AMA Pro Road Racing will immediately pack up and head to NOLA Motorsports Park in New Orleans, LA for a two-day official series test on June 26-27. The next round of the 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing season will be the Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, in Lexington, OH on July 13-15.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com. For additional information contact:   AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com

Josh Hayes Wins 7th AMA Superbike Race of the Season in Barber Motorsports Park Race1

Lesson In The Deep End: Josh Hayes Beats Monster Energy Graves Yamaha Teammate Josh Herrin At Barber Motorsports Park

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (June 23, 2012) - Josh Hayes notched up the seventh triumph of his 2012 AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike campaign in Saturday's main event at Barber Motorsports Park for the Triumph SuperBike Classic presented by America's First Federal Credit Union. Hayes' eventual 5.136-second margin of victory doesn't come close to telling the full story of what was an intense, blue-on-blue battle at the front, however. His Monster Energy Graves Yamaha teammate, Josh Herrin, provided a serious challenge, pushing the reigning champion deep into the contest before the Mississippian's consistent effort in the Alabama heat finally broke the talented upstart.  Herrin showed patience early in the race, tailing Hayes from fractions of a second behind while showing him a wheel on multiple occasions but never attempting to make a pass. That approach allowed the works Yamaha formation to fly away from the pack early on, building up a double-digit lead over third-placed Blake Young as the race settled in.  Despite his impressive performance, Herrin finally showed signs of weakness in the brutal conditions and gave up the chase on lap 17 of 21. He dropped from two tenths to nearly two seconds back in a single lap as experience ultimately won out in the hard-fought duel. Hayes has already equaled his best-ever single-season win tally, claiming seven wins in a single season for the third time in his SuperBike career ('09, '10, '12), and he still has a full half of the year's races ahead to add to that number.  "I think (Josh) is learning way too many of my tricks," Hayes said with a laugh. "It was a fun race; it was exactly what I expected. It was extremely hot, it was very slippery.  I got to the point where I did a couple pretty good laps and I didn't get away from him. I could hear him right behind me. It probably took five or six laps before I started looking at his board, and once I realized it was just the two of us, I kind of relaxed a little bit. I figured my lines are pretty hard to pass around here and I knew grip wasn't that good. I just tried to ride smooth; I relaxed, calmed down, and got into a rhythm of '26.5s that were pretty comfortable and said we'll just have to wait and see how it goes later in the race. It worked in my favor. If he's hanging on at that pace, all it takes is one mistake and there's a half-second gap and all of a sudden he can't mimic exactly what I'm doing and maybe it gets a little tougher to hang on. Finally the gap opened up.  I'm glad I was finally able to get a win here at Barber in front of my family and friends." Josh Hayes on the #1 Graves Motorsports Monster Energy Yamaha YZF-R1 led all laps and beat his team mate Josh Herrin by over five seconds in race one yesterday at the Barber Motorsports Park round event.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson. Runner-up Herrin said, "It was an awesome race. I was learning every lap. Every time I ride this bike I learn more and more. It's starting to be an amazing bike for me. At the beginning of the year, I don't want to say I struggled, but I wasn't where I am now. I put a lot of hard work in and my crew is trying to make this bike adapt to me. The settings were Josh's and I ride a lot differently than Josh. He helps me out a ton but sometimes I just have to figure out what works best for me. I'm finally starting to get to the point where I can set up the bike where I like it and my crew is getting to know me better every weekend too." Young's race to third didn't come easily. He was separated from the Yamahas almost from the start when Jordan Suzuki's Ben Bostrom crashed from third immediately in front of him while working the race's opening lap. Then, Team Amsoil/Hero EBR's Geoff May chased him down from around three seconds back to close to within a second in the contest's late stages after the Yosh pilot was slowed considerably by a lapped rider. The Yoshimura Suzuki hero summoned up some late strength to just hold the Georgian off and claim the final spot on the podium.  Young said of his race, "It was pretty lonely. I ended up third place today, started sixth. I've obviously been struggling; I don't think I did any quicker laps in the race than I've gone all weekend long. But I feel pretty good. Yoshimura is standing behind me 100%. Race weekends like this are pretty tough and I'm just trying to keep a smile on my face and keep having fun.  I want to work hard to get back to the front. I feel that we're just as good as the Joshes and I think we need to look at today's race and get back up there tomorrow. I'm going to go back and look at the data but I'm pretty sure it's going to say more throttle, less brake." National Guard Jordan Suzuki's Roger Hayden clung onto May's rear wheel for much of the contest before the EBR man's late surge. The Kentuckian wasn't able to maintain the pace, however, and was forced to accept fifth.  Foremost Insurance Pegram Racing's Larry Pegram guided the #72 BMW S1000RR to seventh, while May's Team Hero EBR teammate, Danny Eslick, outlasted Young's teammate, Chris Clark, to finish seventh.  Attack Performance's Steve Rapp and Kneedraggers.com/Motul/Fly's David Anthony rounded out the day's top ten. AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Cameron Beaubier won his first AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike pole position and race on the same day at Barber Motorsports Park on Saturday. The 19-year-old Californian won a nail-biter over Dane Westby (M4 Suzuki) and his Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha teammate Tommy Hayden, one that ended with only 0.674 between the three riders after 21 laps. The action in GoPro Daytona SportBike has been fierce and laptimes have been falling this weekend in Birmingham. Westby set a new Daytona SportBike lap record at the track in provisional qualifying yesterday, with Hayden close behind, before both Jason DiSalvo (Latus Motors Racing Triumph) and eventual polesitter Beaubier were able to lower the mark even more in final qualifying this morning.  For the Saturday afternoon final, competitors were met with blazing conditions. Beaubier ran in the lead pack the entire race and battled with Westby, Hayden and DiSalvo for the lead at various points in the contest. With just a couple of laps to go, Beaubier took over the point from Hayden, who then fell victim to Westby. Westby tried to make a go at Beaubier in turn four on the last lap, but couldn't make the pass work. Westby made a strong bid for the victory but felt he made a slight mistake on the last lap that cost him a better shot at the win. Dane wasn't quite close enough to try a move in the final series of turns. "I felt really comfortable leading today. I tried to stay out in front as long as I could," said Cameron. "I felt like I had a little more in the first few sectors of the track than I did at the end, so I just pushed really hard. I'm at a loss for words. I was so happy to get pole position and a win. It felt really good," he said.  DiSalvo finished fourth, ahead of points leader Martin Cardenas (GEICO Suzuki) who wasn't quite as strong as normal on Saturday. Cardenas' points lead only shrunk by two to second-place man DiSalvo. Bobby Fong (Meen Motorsports) ran with the lead group in the first half of the race, but rebounded to beat out Benny Solis (Kneedraggers.com Yamaha) for sixth. Jake Zemke (Ducshop Ducati) ran clear of the competition for eighth in what was a lonely race for the veteran.  J.D. Beach (Roadrace Factory Red Bull) and Michael Beck (Team Beck Racing) rounded out the top ten in the hot race. AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki's Jake Lewis completed a come-from-behind victory over poleman Dustin Dominguez to claim Saturday'sAMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport contest at Barber Motorsports Park. Castrol-backed Dominguez executed a couple of nifty maneuvers aboard the Latus Motors Racing Triumph 675 to move from fourth to first on the race's second lap and proceeded to put some distance on front-row rivals Lewis, James Rispoli (Celtic Racing/ Orient Express Racing Suzuki) and Hayden Gillim (RoadRace Factory/Red Bull Yamaha).  However, Lewis eventually escaped from a battle for second with Rispoli to track down Dominguez. The two traded the lead back and forth five times on the penultimate lap before Lewis finally made the race's decisive pass.  "I just settled in and saw what the pace was going to be and tried to manage my tires to save them for the end," Lewis said. "Dustin ended up breaking away a little bit. I set my eyes on him and he was running really good. He had a little gap but I slowly reeled him in, bit by bit and was right there on him. With two laps to go I passed him and we had a good little battle for a bit and then on the last lap I really put my head down." Rispoli finished third, nearly 14 seconds behind the win, while Gillim DNF'd. Road America winner Stefano Mesa won out in a multi-rider battle for fourth behind the lead group. AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series The three riders that have dominated the AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series in 2012 did not disappoint in provisional qualifying on Saturday at Barber. Tyler O'Hara (Bartels Harley-Davidson) topped the charts with a best time of 1:35.683, ahead of rival Kyle Wyman (KLR Group/Vesrah). Michael Barnes (Bartlels Harley-Davidson), a 2012 winner, was third, ahead of Shane Narbonne (Suburban Motors Harley-Davidson.) Final qualifying for this weekend's Vance & Hines XR1200 Series race will be held Sunday morning. SPEED2 Live Streaming Broadcasts and Live Timing & Scoring Follow along live as the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport and AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series riders battle it out by logging onto http://www.speed2.com. SPEED2 is a broadband service available to customers of Time Warner, Bright House Networks, Cablevision, DISH and Cox. For more information and instructions on gaining access to all of the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com and AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series races, please review the SPEED2 FAQ located at http://www.speed2.com/faq. Live Timing & Scoring of all on-track sessions is available at http://live.amaproracing.com/rr/. Between the races, stay connected with AMA Pro Road Racing at www.twitter.com/AMAProSBK and www.facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing. Tickets for the Triumph SuperBike Classic start at just $15 and can be purchased at www.barbermotorsports.com. Kids 15 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult. While at Barber Motorsports Park, fans are also encouraged to visit the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum, a 144,000 square foot home to the largest private collection of motorcycles, representing 20 countries and over 200 manufacturers. Tickets to the Museum are available for an additional fee and can be purchased at the door.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com. For additional information contact:   AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com