AMA Pro Racing Announces Harley-Davidson as Title Sponsor for 2015 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship GNC1 Series

AMA Pro Racing announced mid-week last week that Harley-Davidson had come back on board as the series' title sponsor for the now new/renamed GNC1 (Expert) Series class for the current season. The new sponsorship includes a $100K point fund as well as an additional $25K that will be made available to riders and teams competing with the series long standing machine of choice with the XR750.

This is great news for the series, which has been operating without a major title sponsorship in the premier class for the last couple of seasons. Harley-Davidson Insurance (Progressive) had been the last title sponsorship for the formerly known as Expert class.

In the shot above, bikes sit at the ready in preparation for the 2012 Springfield Mile II at the Illinois State Fairgrounds over the delayed running of the series usual Labor Day weekend classic, which was postponed due to inclement weather to September 16.

Kenny Coolbeth, Jr.'s #2 Screamin' Eagle/Harley-Davidson Motor Co/Fox-sponsored factory XR750 and Jake Johnson's #1 Zanotti Racing/Schaeffer's H-D/Boughner Racing-backed XR await their time to roll out for rider intros at the mecca of speed held at the Illinois State capitol mile oval.

A big tip of the helmet and a huge 'thanks!' to Harley-Davidson for coming back on board to help out The Rolling Thunder Show and head up the title sponsorship of the greatest racing series on two wheels in the world. You guys rock!

Check out the full details below in the press release from AMA Pro Racing.

Harley-Davidson named title sponsor of AMA Pro Flat Track's premier GNC1 class

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 18, 2015) - AMA Pro Racing is pleased to announce Harley-Davidson Motor Company as the new entitlement sponsor of AMA Pro Flat Track's premier GNC1 class for the 2015 season.   The best flat track racers in the world will compete for the title of Grand National Champion, an illustrious distinction dating back to 1954, in the Harley-Davidson GNC1 class presented by Vance & Hines.   The agreement includes a $100,000 bonus fund which will be available to all riders in the Harley-Davidson GNC1 presented by Vance & Hines class and paid out on a per-race basis. An additional $25,000 bonus fund has also been established for riders utilizing Harley-Davidson equipment.    "Harley-Davidson is an iconic brand and represents the tradition, history and lifestyle that has been synonymous with dirt track racing for decades," said Michael Gentry, Chief Operating Officer of AMA Pro Racing. "We are focused on growing AMA Pro Flat Track while honoring the long tradition of the sport, and Harley-Davidson is a company we want to be associated with as we continue our journey. Their support is greatly appreciated, and we expect this to be a successful relationship for years to come."   Harley-Davidson has roots dating back to 1903 and is one of the most iconic brands in America, let alone motorcycles and motorcycle racing. It is also the most successful brand of motorcycle in the AMA Pro Flat Track series, with 668 GNC1 main event wins to its credit. Current GNC1 champion, Jared Mees, piloted a Harley-Davidson XR750 in 2014 and will try to repeat aboard the same machine in 2015.   "Stemming from our deep roots in the history of flat track racing, Harley-Davidson is excited to step up our involvement this year as the GNC1 title sponsor," said Harley-Davidson Racing Manager Kris Schoonover. "The loyal flat track fans coupled with our success on the track is all the reason we need to support the passionate racers that engage in the adrenaline of this sport, now and into the future."   Following Round 2 from DAYTONA Flat Track in Daytona Beach, Fla., on Friday March 13, AMA Pro Flat Track will head to Springfield, Ill., for the historic Springfield Mile, where the Harley-Davidson GNC1 presented by Vance & Hines riders will make their 2015 twins debut.   For more information on Harley-Davidson, please visit: http://www.harley-davidson.com/   Every round of the 2015 AMA Pro Flat Track season will be available live, in high definition and free of charge for fans to watch online at www.FansChoice.tv.   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.

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.

Team Pata Honda's Guintoli & van der Mark Score 3 Top-7 Finishes in World Superbike Thailand Round 2

Buriram - Thailand    22.03.2015                 Pata Honda riders enjoy Thailand battle Sylvain Guintoli took fifth and sixth place finishes in today’s two second-round World Superbike championship races at Buriram in Thailand after a dramatic day for the Pata Honda team.   The 32-year-old French rider had a lonely ride to his second successive fifth place after making a number of changes to his Pata Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP after this morning’s warm-up. However, a technical issue on the sighting lap for race two at the 4.554km Chang International Circuit forced Guintoli to miss the formation lap and he had to start the race from the back of the grid. After a good start he was able to move through the field, eventually enjoying a thrilling battle with his team-mate Michael van der Mark.   Van der Mark, 22, had his own technical issues which forced his retirement from the first of today’s two 20-lap outings, but the Dutch rider enjoyed more success in race two.   The battle between him and Guintoli for sixth place came down to the final corner with van der Mark attempting a bold manoeuvre around the outside of his team-mate, which forced him outside the track boundaries. Race direction deducted one position dropping him back to seventh.   After the opening two flyaway rounds of the series, the Pata Honda team will now re-group at its Dutch workshop before heading for Spain and round three at Aragon Motorland on 10-12 April.   Sylvain Guintoli  - 5th and 6th In race one I did my best, of course, but we were just too far away from the pace of the front group. I did everything I could, but it turned out to be a bit of a lonely race for fifth. But race two was much more fun, even though we had a small technical problem which meant I had to start last. I had a great start and a great first two corners but then I got a bit over-excited and braked too late in turn five and lost three places. Finally I had a great battle with my team-mate which was more entertaining. Towards the end of the race I did my best lap time which was probably faster than my qualifying time, and that felt perfect, but it was difficult to be consistent. It’s only my second race on the bike and I’m still suffering from the neck injury in these dehydrating conditions. But we’ve now been to t wo different tracks with different characteristics and we can see that our pace is not as good as our rivals. So that gives us a base to work from and try to improve in key areas. Even though we’re not fighting for wins at the moment we’re still working to find solutions in the team and that will get the results we want.  Michael van der Mark  - DNF and 7th In race one we had a little technical problem which ended the race for us but unfortunately these things can happen. It was a shame though because at that point in the race I was going faster and faster. In race two I felt really good but the start was not so good. I also made some mistakes in the first couple of laps and ran wide at one point so I had to fight back again. At the end I had a good fight with Sylvain and felt I was faster than him but not fast enough to get away. So I decided to stay behind and try to pass him on the final lap. We had a nice and fair fight and even though I crossed the finish line first, they put me one place back because I went outside the track in trying to get past at the final corner. But I enjoyed raced two and I think we have a lot of positives to go back to Europe with for the next round.  Pieter Breddels  - technical co-ordinator It has not been an easy weekend for the team. We managed to improve Sylvain’s bike a lot after warm-up and he was able to get a lonely fifth which, considering the problems that we have had here in Thailand, was a respectable result. In race two he had to start from last position but he had a great start and fought up to sixth in the end. Michael had a DNF in race one but in race two he spent a long time behind Sylvain. They had a great battle to the finish which saw Michael running off the track a little bit and he was put back one position. But the guys had fun having that battle together. Although the weekend has been quite tough we have managed to close the gap to the competition and Sylvain is still fourth in the championship which we’ll take to Aragon and hopefully do a bit better there.                       Weather Sunny Intervals Air 33°C Track 50°C Humidity 46%   Race 1 Results   1   Jonathan Rea 31m33.852s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team 2   Leon Haslam +6.329s GBR APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils 3   Tom Sykes +8.183s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team 4   Jordi Torres +8.513s ESP APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils 5   Sylvain Guintoli +20.502s FRA HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team 6   Matteo Baiocco +26.118s ITA DUCATI Althea Racing 7   Alex Lowes +26.149s GBR SUZUKI Voltcom Crescent Suzuki 8   David Salom +27.925s ESP KAWASAKI Team Pedercini 9   Troy Bayliss +28.174s AUS DUCATI Aruba.it Racing-Ducati Superbike Team 10   Leandro Mercado +32.610s ARG DUCATI BARNI Racing Team Weather Sunny Intervals Air 32°C Track 48°C Humidity 46%   Race 2 Results   1   Jonathan Rea 31m31.173s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team 2   Leon Haslam +4.946s GBR APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils 3   Alex Lowes +8.701s GBR SUZUKI Voltcom Crescent Suzuki 4   Jordi Torres +10.628s ESP APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils 5   Tom Sykes +14.326s GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team 6   Sylvain Guintoli +21.060s FRA HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team 7   Michael van der Mark +21.246s NED HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team 8   Matteo Baiocco +23.868s ITA DUCATI Althea Racing 9   David Salom +25.744s ESP KAWASAKI Team Pedercini 10   Leandro Mercado +29.692s ARG DUCATI BARNI Racing Team   Championship Standings   1   Jonathan Rea 95 pts GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team 2   Leon Haslam 85 pts GBR APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils 3   Tom Sykes 50 pts GBR KAWASAKI Kawasaki Racing Team 4   Sylvain Guintoli 41 pts FRA HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team 5   Jordi Torres 39 pts ESP APRILIA Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils 6   Chaz Davies 38 pts GBR DUCATI Aruba.it Racing-Ducati Superbike Team 7   Alex Lowes 32 pts GBR SUZUKI Voltcom Crescent Suzuki 8   Matteo Baiocco 30 pts ITA DUCATI Althea Racing 9   Nicolas Terol 26 pts ESP DUCATI Althea Racing 10   Leandro Mercado 21 pts ARG DUCATI BARNI Racing Team 11   Michael van der Mark 20 pts NED HONDA Pata Honda World Superbike Team   Copyright-free images for editorial use only © 2015 Pata Honda

Team Drive M7 Aspar's Hayden & Laverty Wrap-Up 2nd Day of Final MotoGP Pre-Season Tests in Qatar

15/03/2015. MOTOGP TEST LOSAIL

DRIVE M7 Aspar pair make strong progress on second day of Losail test Nicky Hayden improves by almost a second from yesterday, Eugene Laverty by more than a second, as both riders cut the gap to the top The second night of testing at Losail took place today, with just one more night tomorrow evening for the MotoGP teams and riders to complete their preparations for the 2015 season. Similar conditions continued from yesterday, with the track again open from four to eleven, althoughmost riders waited until sunset before heading out onto the track. The Ducati riders continue to surprise in Qatar and whilst Andrea  Iannone was fastest yesterday, today was the turn of his team-mate Andrea Dovizioso with a time just inside the circuit record (1.55.153, Casey Stoner, 2008). After a Honda / Yamaha duopoly in recent seasons, it looks like the Italian factory will have a say in some races this year. Equally positive is the fact that the first fourteen riders were separated by less than a second, showing how close the premier class promises to be in 2015. This second day in Qatar has been tremendously positive for DRIVE M7 Aspar riders Nicky Hayden and Eugene Laverty, who have gained confidence and significantly lowered their lap times. Both Hayden and Laverty have worked on the geometry of their Honda for stability, and have also done some electronics testing. The American improved by almost a second from yesterday, lapping a little more than a second off the best time of the day, which is a narrow margin considering the length of the Losail circuit. Similarly Eugene improved by over a second from yesterday, also with excellent feeling on board his machine. Tomorrow they will continue working in the same direction in order to be completely ready for the first race of the new season. Nicky Hayden 1.56.104 (44 laps) "The conditions were quite stable today and we could find a couple of improvements. Our times have dropped considerably. Our consistency, feeling... everything has been noticeably better, the team has done a great job. In some areas the feeling with the bike has really improved. We varied the geometry and the changes have been successful. We are preparing for the first race and today we have taken a big step forward. To finish 1.1 seconds back at a circuit where you need about two minutes a lap, is not a big difference, so it is a good result. We're seeing that this year in MotoGP it's going to be very tight and interesting. I hope we can take another big step tomorrow and finish strong. Tomorrow we will try to eliminate some chatter in the fast corners. We have a lot of data, so try to learn from that and keep improving." Eugene Laverty 1.56.342 (54 laps): "The bike works much better here than in Sepang, so yesterday I only had to adapt myself to the circuit without making major changes. Our work, both yesterday and today, has focused on the chassis to find the best possible balance. We have also done some electronics testing, but we still have things to do tomorrow. I'm happy with my feeling and also because today we could go faster than yesterday and set some positive lap times. I'm happy with this bike, it is stable and the tyre gives me confidence and allows me to brake hard. I hope tomorrow we can still improve a little more to finish the test on a high.”

Photos courtesy of teamaspar.com for media use only.