Steve Nace Racing/AMA Pro Flat Track All-Star National Flat Track Series Heads East for Independence Day & Night Before Hagerstown

Jared Mees on his #9 Montgomeryville Cycle Center/Lucas Oil/Rogers Lake Racing/Saddlemen-sponsored Honda CRF450R leads Sammy Halbert on the #7 Woody Kyle Racing/Fredericktown Yamaha/AGV/Kings Kustoms-backed Yamaha YZF450F during their battle for the 2nd spot on the box in the Dash for Cash event at the Springfield TT in May.  Round 6 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series was postponed from 48 hours earlier when torrential rains and hail decimated the Rodeo Arena's facilities approximately 45 minutes before practice was due to start. 

However, the 'slight' delay in the program didn't make for any less interesting or exciting racing as The Jammer and Slammin Sammy took their battle on the track right to the wire, with Mees getting the second spot on the podium behind Dash winner JR Schnabel on the #33 Werner-Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki.  Mees would go on to prevail over Schnabel and Halbert in the main event, taking 2nd place behind event winner Jake Johnson on the #1 Zanotti Racing Honda.  Schnabel would round out the podium in the main while Halbert would fight back from a red-flagged, last row restart to net 5th on the day.




Mees and Halbert will lead a contingent of AMA Pro Flat Track regulars to the east coast over the weekend as the Steve Nace Racing/AMA Pro Flat Track All-Star National Flat Track Series heads to Frederick, MD. on Independence Day for the Barbara Fritchie Classic, one of, if not THE oldest flat track races in the country.  With Mees leading the point standings in the Steve Nace Series, in both the Twins and Singles classes, look for his 'man on fire' routine of late to shine through once The Rolling Thunder Show touches down on the 4th of July!

Frederick is the home of Slammin Sammy's main sponsor in the Singles Series, so that in itself should provide that much more motivation for the man in charge in the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series.  And other then Mees, there probably isn't any one other racer that races more during the off-season or between Grand National events, and with the roll that Sammy has been on this year should make for some extra exciting competition amongst the ranks of the best from The Rolling Thunder Show.  The Barbara Fritchie Classic takes place at the Great Frederick Fairgrounds with the first practice session scheduled to roll off at 0930 EDT on July 4.

After wrapping up the 1st of a 2-race east coast swing, the AMA Pro Flat Track regulars then will head to Winchester, VA. for the July 8 running of the Winchester Speedway Half-Mile event as part of the Steve Nace/AMA All-Star Series.  This race should be a major stopping point for even a few more of the AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series regulars, especially so since it is the night before round 10 on the calendar at the Hagerstown Half-Mile event on Saturday, July 9.  For anyone in the area for Saturday night's Grand National event, this round is a must-see event since it is only approximately 45 miles from Saturday night's race.  First practice hits the track at 1700 EDT on Friday, July 8.

Steve Nace Racing Promotions, based out of Paducah, KY., has been running the All-Star Series the last couple of years for the AMA folks.  The series replaced what used to be known as the Hot Shoe Series of non-National series of regional races across the country, and Steve and Kelly do a super job in putting on these races.  They also put on the DuQuoin Indoor Short Track back on April 16, round 3 of the Grand National Series, and excelled at putting on a first-rate show.  When not running the show in the All-Star Series you can also find Steve and Kelly helping out Steve Morehead and the AMA Pro Flat Track Series crews at the National events.
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This is the event poster for the Barbara Fritchie Classic at Frederick, MD. on July 4, which includes the Al Wilcox Memorial Race.  Wilcox was an AMA flag man legend who passed away earlier this year, and had flagged races for literally decades in the sport.  Event poster courtesy of Steve Nace Racing/Barbara Fritchie Classic.
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Barbara Fritchie Classic and Winchester Speedway event info courtesy of Steve Nace Racing/AMA Pro Flat Track All-Star National Flat Track Series.
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Winchester Speedway event poster courtesy of Winchester Speedway and Steve Nace Racing/AMA Pro Flat Track All-Star National Flat Track Series.
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You can check out Steve Nace's official site here to get an idea of where the point standings are after six of 11 scheduled events on the 2011 season.  Question-can ANYONE stop either Jared Mees OR Sammy Halbert in these upcoming events?

http://www.stevenaceracing.com/AllstarResults.htm

The official website of the Barbara Fritchie Classic Motorcycle Race, July 4:

http://www.barbarafritchieclassic.com/

I found a little video of some action in Frederick from the 2008 races:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etT6AALJvGA

Wincester Speedway official website:

http://winchestervaspeedway.com/
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AMA Flat Track: Jared Mees & Blue Springs H-D Get You Up to Date With Some Video Action in Grand National Racing



2009 AMA Flat Track Grand National Twins Champion Jared Mees is seen talking to Cycle News.com's Larry Lawrence (through wheel, in sunglasses) during the program delay at the Springfield Mile on May 29, round 6 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series, and the first Twins Series event on the year.  Mees' immaculately prepped stable of #9 Rogers Lake/Blue Springs H-D/Lucas Oil/Saddlemen-sponsored XR-750s sit at the ready behind him in his pit area as the fans stream by and peek at the action off the track.

Jammin Jared's win at the Memorial Day classic on the Illinois State Fairgrounds was the stuff legends are made of, especially when those legends contest the tracks on the AMA Grand National Championship calendar.  Springfield, besides having the distinction of having the series only double-double rounds for some time now, also is known for it's own legendary status amongst the sport's elite over the decades.  With the return to the winner's spot on the top of the box for the first time in almost four years, Mees also now adds his name to the list of greats who have achieved that goal at the fastest mile on the circuit's schedule.

Mees and his Rogers Lake/Blue Springs Racing team also backed up the first 2011 Twins Series event win with another some 12 days later at the Hartford Half-Mile in Michigan.  In between Grand National weekends, he visited Peoria Speedway and the Peoria TT as part of the Steve Nace Racing/AMA All-Star Racing Series, and won both of those events, probably just to keep fresh.  (Yeah, right!)  Of course, in both the Singles and Twins Series events on the Steve Nace schedule, he is running away with and leading the point standings after 6 of 11 scheduled rounds.  (And I believe he is running the Independence Day event in Maryland as well as the Virginia event the day before the Hagerstown National.) 

Mees has more then proven that he is a racer's racer.  During the off-season, he regularly races several West Coast events (Gene Romero's and Eddie Mulder's Series) and regularly wins, and he also runs the ICE Speedway Championship Series, where over this last off-season he won the championship, again.  And with his extremely strong run of solid finishes, especially over the course of the last 2 1/2 years on the Grand National circuit, he has racked up solid, good point-paying results  He was the first Twins Champion in the sport to ever win the championship without a series win on the year.  The man who rides the Brent Armbruster-prepped Rogers Lake machines knows how to bring it home, and bring it home solid.  The two wins at Springfield and Hartford were the true icing on the cake in terms of finishing off those solid results over the course of the last three seasons (and we still have 13 scheduled events left in 2011!)

Mees left last weekend's event at Lima, where he finished a very strong 5th on the day, 3rd in the overall championship standings in the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series, behind series leader Sammy Halbert and runner-up Jake Johnson, where he now sits 31 points behind Slammin Sammy (186 points) and just 6 points behind Johnson (161 points.)  With a weekend off to go play in the All-Star Series, they will all roll in to Hagerstown, MD. on July 9, unload, and do it again for the first of 13 more races this year.  And you can pretty much bet (if you are the betting type, of which I'm not, just sayin.....) that The Jammer and the Rogers Lake/Blue Springs team will be there, and ready to go with the #9 machines, to bring home more of those rock hard results.  And maybe another step, or two, atop the box along the way.

Just like The Rolling Thunder Show, this train is coming fast and it's not going to slow down for anyone!
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We want to take the time to thank Jared Mees, Rogers Lake/Blue Springs H-D and The Fast and Dirty.com for bringing us this great action from two of the great events this year on the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series schedule.

For those of you not familiar with Will Fulford and Yve Assad, they are some of the hardest working people at an AMA Pro Flat Track event.  Between the wonderful photos and videos they bring to the table to showcase the great sport of The Rolling Thunder Show, these folks put a truckload of work into the quality of their products.  If you aren't checking out their stuff, you are missing the action!

In this video we see and hear from Jared and the Rogers Lake/Blue Springs crew about Springfield:

http://www.youtube.com/user/BlueSpringsHD1#p/a/u/0/kNy_yUkaVaY

And in this video, we see the team again go to town at the Hartford Half-Mile:

http://www.youtube.com/user/BlueSpringsHD1#p/a/u/1/WlqdkMdwMds

And for some great action wrap-up from the 2010 season, you can review this 'fist fight in a phone booth' full of highlights for the year:

http://www.youtube.com/user/BlueSpringsHD1#p/a/u/2/4o6dAB831xk
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And you can catch some of Yve and Will's other work here on their site, The Fast and Dirty.com.  Well worth the visit!

http://thefastanddirty.com/flat-track-racing/
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AMA Flat Track: Sammy Halbert Slays 'Em in Round 9 at Lima Half-Mile

Sammy Halbert #7 gets the check for the win at the Springfield Mile Dash for Cash event, as 3rd place finisher Brad Baker #12 and runner-up Bryan Smith #42 reflect on the race at the end of the day in round 6 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series over the Memorial Day Weekend on May 29.  The same three men were in the Dash event again last Saturday at the Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, OH., but with different end results.  Smith grabbed the win on his #42 Moroney's Fasthog.com/American H-D/Rockyonline.com/Boughner Racing-sponsored XR while Halbert and Baker followed him home.

For round 9 last Saturday's main event on the pea gravel/limestone cushion track, Sammy Halbert on the #7 Kings Kustoms/LZ Racing/KK Supply/Nelson Racing-sponsored H-D XR-750 followed early leader Smith, and then went on to pass him and pull off his 3rd win of the season over eventual 2nd place finisher and cushion track specialist, Matt Weidman #20 (more on Matt below.)  Smith secured 3rd in the main while holding off Brad Baker on the #12 Lloyd Brothers Motorsports/TeamHurtbyAccident.com/Foremost Insurance/ENI USA-backed Ducati.  Jared Mees, on the #9 Rogers Lake Racing XR rounded out the top 5.  Defending '10 AMA Grand National Champion Jake Johnson had an 'off-night' by his normal standards, but still brought his #1 Zanotti Racing Harley-Davidson XR-750 home in the 8th spot. 

It was definitely Slammin Sammy's night at Lima, and except for his 2nd place in the Dash event, he had a perfect night in qualifying fastest, winning the fastest heat to garner the pole for the main, and going on to win over Weidman by 1.183 seconds and take his 3rd overall win of the year (and first since the Daytona season-openers in March.)  Sammy stretched his lead in the overall standings on runner-up Johnson by 16 more points after his Lima win (186-161), with Jared Mees (the winner of both previous Twins Series events on the year at Springfield & Hartford) now a solid 3rd in the standings with 155 points.

Former 3-Time Grand National Twins Champ (and '07 Singles Series Champ) Kenny Coolbeth, Jr., brought his #2 Screamin Eagle Factory Harley-Davidson XR-750 home in the 6th spot at Lima to help secure 4th in the overall standings after 9 rounds with 136 points.  Rookie of the Year candidate Baker, showing the guts and glory that took him to the '09 Pro Singles Championship and runner-up in last year's Pro Singles standings, still sits a solid 5th in the overall picture with 119 points.  Baker was making the cushion work for him and the big Ducati according to those on the scene at Lima, and his lap times on the AMA Live Timing & Scoring were right there with the leaders.  It's just a matter of time before he puts the LBM Ducati on the top of the box!

The series has a break in the schedule over the Independence Day Holiday-although the Steve Nace All-Star/AMA Racing Series will be in Frederick, MD. on July 4-and returns to action at the Hagerstown, MD. Half-Mile for round 10 on Saturday, July 9.
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Bryan Smith gets his #42 Moroney's Fasthog.com/American H-D/Rockyonline.com/Boughner Racing-sponsored H-D XR-750 fired up and ready to go during the race weekend at the Springfield Mile on May 29, as Matt Weidman ponders the moment along with his Dad, Guy, before the he rolls out on his #20 White's Harley-Davidson/SNIP/Shoei/Silkolene-sponsored XR for round 6 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series.

Smith, who just after the Daytona season openers split from his last-year's team, the Werner-Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki, is now calling the shots for his Moroney's-backed team after spending the 2010 season riding the Big Green Machine.  Sporting new colors and new versions of his own equipment at Springfield, Smith broke in the main after winning his heat, and then came back to 2nd in the Dash at the end of the rain-delayed program on May 29. 

Things have seemed to come together for this hard charger from Michigan as he now has two, 3rd-place finishes in the last two rounds, as well as his Dash win from last Saturday at Lima.  He's moved himself into the 11th spot in the overall standings with 60 points.  It may be too late to go for the championship at this point, but don't be surprised to see Flyin Bryan on top of the box before too long.

With everyone on the box at Lima having moved up one spot from their previous year's event finishes ('10 Lima winner Henry Wiles #17 is still out and looking to return by Peoria in August), Matt Weidman is one rider who probably wishes he had had a few more laps to race at Lima last Saturday.  Turning some of the fastest laps of the night towards the end of the main, Matt didn't let his 2nd row start deter him in getting to the front.  This fine hard-charger has Lima figured out, and with his cushion track background, maybe 2012 will move him up another spot. 

With his 11th at Springfield and 7th at Hartford to go along with Saturday's runner-up at Lima, Matt's season is starting to fall into place for him and he sits in the 8th position in the overall standings with 79 points.  Great job Matt, and we hope you see that top spot on the box before another 12 months passes!
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Halbert Owns the Lima Limestone
at AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Round 9

LIMA, OH (June 27, 2011) - Near-perfect weather greeted the large crowd gathered at the Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, Ohio, on Saturday for Round 9 of the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship. The return of the limestone to the fairgrounds oval translated to intense racing all night long, as one already dominant rider became more so.

Despite being forced to come from behind in every race he lined up for at Lima, the night belonged to Sammy Halbert. The King's Kustoms/LZ Racing rider kicked off the event by setting the fast time in qualifying, and after overcoming a terrible start to win the first heat, he posted the quickest time yet again.

The 25-lap National was red-flagged on Lap 3 after Digger 57/Dick Ford-backed Luke Gough fell in Turn 2 (Gough was able to join the staggered restart on his backup bike), and while defending Grand National Champion Jake Johnson (Zanotti Racing) repeated his holeshot on the restart, fasthog.com/American Harley-Davidson's Bryan Smith blasted around on the outside to retake the point on Lap 5. Smith extended his lead and looked to be on his way to repeating his 2009 victory at the track, but Halbert was on the move.

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Sammy Halbert celebrates his 3rd win of the season on the podium at the Lima Half-Mile on Saturday, June 25.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.
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"I was finally able to catch Bryan, and he really gave me a good battle," said Halbert. "I really needed to get out front because I pulled all my tear-offs off at once, and it was hard to ride behind anyone. I saw someone coming, but I was able to hold on."

The rider Halbert saw was another come-from-behinder, White's Harley-Davidson's Matt Weidman, who was in catch-up mode all night after problems in his heat. "We had problems all night," said Weidman. "When we came out for the heat [for which Weidman held pole], we found out I had a broken swingarm and I had to go to my backup bike. I missed a shift on the start and came off dead last."

Weidman was able to claw his way up through the field and claim the last direct transfer spot, which still left him with a second-row starting position. Once again, Weidman worked his way to the front, taking second from Smith on Lap 17 and closing on Halbert for the lead. Despite the valiant effort, Weidman's charge stalled out with about five laps to go and the podium was set, Weidman and Smith following Halbert across the line.

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Sammy Halbert on his #7 Kings Kustoms H-D XR-750 is shown in action on his way home to the top spot on the box at the Lima, OH. half-mile event from Saturday, June 25.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.
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Smith was perhaps lucky to claim the final step on the roster, as his drift back to more than six seconds behind Halbert nearly delivered him into the clutches of Rookie of the Year candidate Brad Baker (Lloyd Brothers Motorsports/Team HurtbyAccident.com). The only blemish on Halbert's night, meanwhile, came in the Dash for Cash. It was Smith who topped the four-lap race, though Halbert earned second over Baker and Gough.

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Zakk Palmer on the #81C Western Hills Honda battles with Chaz Springsteen #29J Parkinson Bros Honda en route to their 1-2 finishes on the evening in the AMA Pro Flat Track Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles main event at Lima.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.
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Earlier in the evening, Western Hills Honda's Zakk Palmer captured his second win of 2011 in the Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Championship. Palmer and Parkinson Brothers/Arai-backed Chas Springsteen traded the front spot several times before Palmer was able to pull out a nearly one-second lead by the finish of the 16-lap race. Bob Weirbach Racing's Booby DeScenna, who was making his first start of the year, came home third.

Halbert, who'd maintained the overall AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship points lead throughout 2011, did further damage to the hopes of other championship contenders via his third victory of the year. The win at Lima pushed Halbert's lead to 25 points over Jake Johnson, and a whopping 31 over Rogers Lake Racing's Jared Mees. Mees was able to finish fifth, while Johnson faded to an eighth-place finish.

Despite an eighth-place finish in Lima's Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles race, SDI Insulation's Mikey Avila maintained his overall Pro Singles points lead. Avila's main challengers, Vortex Sprockets' Gerit Callies and Weirbach Racing's Mikey Martin, finished sixth and tenth, respectively.

The AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship next heads for Round 10 at Maryland's Hagerstown Half-Mile. For tickets to the July 9 event, visit www.hagerstownspeedway.com or call (301) 582-0640.

To be a part of the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship, visit us at www.amaproracing.com/ft and join us on facebook.com/AMAProFlatTrackSeries and twitter.com/AMAProFlatTrack.

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

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Stories of the race at Lima

Here's Larry Lawrence's coverage of the action at Lima over at Cycle News.com:

http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/flat-track/2011/06/25/halbert-takes-lima/

(Added Tues. 6/28/11 1555 EDT)

And here is the link to the full story of the race at Lima, again thanks to Larry Lawrence and Cycle News.com:

http://cyclenews.coverleaf.com/cyclenews/20110628#pg65

Bryan Harley was on the scene at Lima and posted this story of the race for Motorcycle-USA.com:

http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/504/10393/Motorcycle-Article/Lima-Half-Mile-Flat-Track-Results-2011.aspx
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Results

Here's the link to the results for round 9 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series from Lima, OH. (standard versions):

http://amaproracing.com/ft/events/results.cfm?eid=2011021135

And thanks again to AMA Pro Flat Track for this link to the complete event results from Saturday's Lima Half-Mile event (PDF versions):

http://results.amaproracing.com/live/results/pdfresults/ft/2011/F1135/default.aspx
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Pictures

Jim Grant has been following AMA Flat Track racing for years, and if you haven't checked out his stuff, now is the time to do so (he also does a SUPER job of shooting the races!)  Here's the link to Jim's JGPhotowerx site with his event shots from Lima:

http://www.smugmug.com/gallery/17758294_5jfBf8#1355956491_gTwHV45

Jim's official website is here, and you can check out his catalog from other AMA Pro Flat Track Series events:

http://jgphotowerx1.smugmug.com/

You can take a look at the event photos here, thanks to AMA Pro Flat Track and official photographer, Dave Hoenig:

http://amaproracing.com/ft/multimedia/gallery.cfm?gid=6525

And here's Dave's official site, Flat Trak Fotos.com, which has the complete event results as well as his extensive catalog of shots from Lima (Dave usually posts his photos several days after each event):

http://www.flattrakfotos.com/2011%20Results/RESULTS%2006-25-11.html

While on the scene at Lima for Cycle News.com, Larry Lawrence shot this great pic of 2nd place man Matt Weidman #20.  LL has this one on his great site, The Rider Files.com:

http://www.theriderfiles.com/?p=11623

Mia Moore and Kevin 'Chew' Larcom shot some awesome stuff at Lima for their part in being the best Fans in the Stands at FlatTrack.com.  Check 'em out:

http://s730.photobucket.com/albums/ww307/naturegirlmia/Lima%202011/?start=all
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Ben Spies Takes Maiden MotoGP Win at Assen TT

Ben Spies on the #1 Rockstar/Makita/Yoshimura American Suzuki-sponsored GSX-R1000 heads into the carousel towards the end of lap 1 of race 2, leading the pack during the Wiseco 100 Superbike Doubleheader at Mid Ohio in August of 2008, the premier event of the Honda Super Cycle Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire round of the AMA Superbike Championship presented by Parts Unlimited.  Following closely on his heels is team mate and then 6-Time AMA Superbike Champion Mat Mladin on his #6 like-sponsored GSXR.  Mladin would go on to win the battle, but Spies would go on to win the war and at the end of the year capture his 3rd AMA Superbike Championship, adding to his '07 AMA Superstock Championship earned in AMA Pro Road Racing over the course of the previous three years.

Just behind Mladin (and partially obscured) is Jamie Hacking on the #2 Monster Energy Kawasaki ZX-10R, Neil Hodgson on the #100 Honda/Parts Unlimited/Suomy-backed CBR1000RR, with team mate Miguel Duhamel on the #17 American Honda/Shark/Joe Rocket-sponsored CBR.  Aaron Yates on the #20 Jordan Brand/American Suzuki-sponsored GSX-R1000 tries to keep the front pack in sight as he just comes into the shot on far left.



Spies control and mastery in all-types of competition over the course of the last seven years of premier-class racing has seen him accomplish things we mortals can only dream of in the sport of high-speed road racing around the world.  After leaving the AMA Series after the end of the '08 season, Elbowz arrived on the World Superbike Championship Series (WSBK) scene, and immediately let everyone know his lack of knowledge of race circuits was not going to leave him deterred.  By the end of the '09 season, he had won the WSBK Championship in a route, winning half the races on the season and 11 of 14 poles on the year.  Spies then left the Yamaha World Superbike team to ride alongside fellow-Texan and Mr. Popularity in the MotoGP Championship, Colin Edwards, on the Tech 3 Yamaha satellite team, winning the Rookie of the Year Award along the way and scoring podiums and a pole position at one of his home events, the RedBull Indianapolis MotoGP round last August, less then six miles down the road from the home of Stu's Shots.

Now riding alongside of 2010 MotoGP World Champion Jorge Lorenzo on the Yamaha Factory team, the Texas Terror has had a rough start to the 2011 campaign, with three DNF's in the first six rounds.  Today at Assen, however, in what were described as 'treacherous conditions' by journalists throughout the world, the quiet man from Texas made a steep leap in the learning curve process by winning his maiden MotoGP race in The Netherlands, a track Spies noted was very special to him 'after having watched all his heroes' race and win there over the years. 



Today, Spies added to his hero status to us mere mortals by winning his first of what are sure to be MANY more race wins in the premier road racing series in the world.  And probably left even a few of us tearing up seeing him get that first big win in the process.  Congrats Ben for a job well done!
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Ben Spies took the top spot on the box earlier today for his first win in the MotoGP World Championship at the Assen TT round in The Netherlands, breaking his cherry in the premier road racing series in the world after only 28 events.  The Yamaha Factory Racing pilot took his 50th Annivesary-laiden YZF-M1 #11 machine home to the victory over 2011 season dominator Casey Stoner on the #27 Repsol Honda by over 7.6 seconds, setting the fastest lap of the race on the 12th of 26 laps along the way.  Rounding out the podium at the Iveco Assen TT was the #4 Repsol Honda of Andrea Dovizioso another 20-some seconds back from team mate Stoner.

Spies caught the break he needed less then half a lap into the race.  After coming off the middle of the front row, 2010 MotoGP World Champion (and team mate to Spies) Jorge Lorenzo tried to make the pass on Elbowz, only to run wide in the first turn, allowing Spies the margin necessary to stay ahead of the mayhem that was to befall his team mate and allow him to gap the field almost immediately into the event.  Polesitter Marco Simoncelli on the San Carlo Honda highsided his #58 machine shortly thereafter just in front of Lorenzo's #1 machine, causing both to go down while the pack snaked by.  Both remounted, and in a ride that champions are made of, Lorenzo blasted back through the field to eventually finish in the 6th position, just over a second behind 5th place finisher Nicky Hayden on the #69 Marlboro Ducati. 

7-Time MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi overcame his 11th starting spot to garner 4th place, only his second time on the season inside the top 4.  Rossi's struggles with the Ducati GP11 have been well-documented on the year, and after receiving chassis updates for this round seems to be coming to grips with the needed-changes after an up-and-down weekend at Assen, and on the year overall.  Colin Edwards on the #5 Tech 3 Yamaha brought it home 7th, and Hiroshi Aoyama, filling in for injured Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda, came home in the 8th spot.  Simoncelli managed to come up through the field after his first lap get-off to bring it home in 9th, and Toni Elias on the #24 LCR Honda rounded out the top 10.

Congratulations go out to Ben Spies for his maiden win in the MotoGP World Championship.  The man from Texas has now gotten that first win in his pocket and we, along with all of his fans around the world, are glad to help him celebrate.  Great ride today Ben!
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Round 7 Assen TT stories and picture links of the race, in the 2011 MotoGP World Championship Series in The Netherlands

Here's the summary to the race as well as the results from the Assen round of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship, thanks to David Emmett and his great MotoMatters.com site:

http://motomatters.com/results/2011/06/25/2011_assen_motogp_race_result_first_lap_.html

Matt Beer at Autosport.com filed this report of the race with some quotes from Assen winner, 3-Time AMA Superbike Champion, '09 WSBK Champion, and '10 MotoGP Rookie of the Year, Ben Spies:

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/92622

BBC Sport.com has this great article, with a very nice shot of Spies on the Yamaha 50th Anniversary #11 YZF-M1 at Assen:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motogp/13914777.stm

GP Update.net has some great photos from the weekend at the Dutch TT in Assen, as well as their event wrap-up here:

http://www.gpupdate.net/en/race-editions/1582/2011-dutch-motogp-grand-prix/
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Results from the Iveco TT Assen, round 7 of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship

MotoGP.com's link to most recent results here (standard versions):

http://www.motogp.com/en/Results+Statistics

Round 7 Assen results here (PDF version):

http://resources.motogp.com/files/results/2011/NED/MotoGP/RAC/Classification.pdf?v1_facb3226

2011 MotoGP World Championship point standings, after round 7 at Assen (PDF version):

http://resources.motogp.com/files/results/2011/NED/MotoGP/RAC/worldstanding.pdf?v1_bbdf240c
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AMA Road Racing: Barber Fan Walk Helped Raise Money for Storm Victims in Alabama

Fans and Racers Team Up for Tornado Track Walk Fundraiser
at Barber Motorsports Park

DAYTONA BEACH, FL (June 23, 2011) - While every spectator was treated to phenomenal racing in all four AMA Pro classes at last weekend's Barber SuperBike Classic, one very special group walked away with a unique understanding of the Birmingham facility, and helped raise more than $1,000 for local tornado victims in the process.

The Tornado Track Walk -- a shared project between AMA Pro Racing, Zoom Motorsports, and Barber Motorsports Park -- wrapped up Saturday's action at the circuit and featured the very best kind of student-teacher ratio: joining the 100-plus fan participants were more than twenty AMA Pro racers. Competitors such as Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Hayes and Josh Herrin, Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Blake Young and Tommy Hayden, National Guard Jordan Suzuki's Roger Hayden, M4 Suzuki's Dane Westby, SuzukiScoopFans Racing's Elena Myers, Vesrah Suzuki's Cory West and Taylor Knapp, and many more spent roughly an hour and a half leading fans through corners at a considerably slower pace than usual.

As participants talked strategy and technique under the hot Alabama sun, they were simultaneously supporting local victims of the devastating tornadoes that hit Alabama and other areas of the South in late April. All proceeds from Tornado Track Walk ticket sales went directly to the Christian Service Mission, a local non-profit that connects resources with community needs.

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Josh Hayes takes part in the track walk with some of the racing fans at Barber Motorsports Park, to help raise money to help storm victims in the Birmingham, AL. area, on Saturday, June 18.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
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AMA Pro Racing would like to thank all the fans who participated, as well as riders Jason DiSalvo (Latus Motors Racing), PJ Jacobsen (Celtic Racing/Fast by Ferracci), Tommy Aquino and Chris Clark (Y.E.S./Pat Clark/Graves Yamaha), JD Beach (Cycle World/Attack Performance KawasakI), Melissa Paris (HT Moto Yamaha), Cameron Beaubier (Jake Holden Racing), Huntley Nash (LTD Racing Y.E.S. Yamaha), Reese Wacker (Wacker Racing), and SPEED announcer Greg White.

The AMA Pro Road Racing Championship heads next to Lexington, Ohio's Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the July 8-10 weekend, Round 6 on the series calendar. For tickets and information, visit www.midohio.com or call (419) 884-4000.

To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us on facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing and twitter.com/AMAProSBK.

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

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AMA Flat Track: MavTV Coverage of Springfield Rounds Begins June 23

Jake Johnson on the #1 Zanotti Racing/Schaeffer's H-D/MotionPro/Arai-sponsored H-D XR-750 leads Chris Carr #4 on the American Motorcyclist Assoc/DFW Honda/Arai/Phoenix Racing-backed XR-750 on lap 1 of the 25 lap main event at the Springfield Mile on May 29.  Keeping the two close at-hand is Sammy Halbert on the #7 Kings Kustoms/LZ Racing/KK Supply/Nelson Racing-sponsored XR in 3rd place.  The event was won by Jared Mees on his #9 Rogers Lake Racing XR, with Halbert coming home 2nd and Johnson in 3rd, while Carr hung on to finish in the 7th position in round 6 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series.

The Rolling Thunder Show heads to Lima, OH. for this Saturday's round 9 at the Allen County Fairgrounds Half-Mile.  Halbert leads the current overall point standings (159 points), with Johnson a close 2nd (149 points) just eight points behind, and both riders having won 2 events on the year.  Jared Mees sits in the 3rd spot (141 points/2 wins), in the middle of a RED-hot streak on wins/podiums in the last three events.  Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. sits in the 4th spot (123 points/1 win), and Brad Baker rounds out the top 5 (101 points.) 
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MAVTV Springfield Broadcasts Kick Off in One Week!

DAYTONA BEACH, FL (June 21, 2011) - The free-flying Springfield TT and the legendary oval action of the historic Springfield Mile -- Rounds 6 and 7 of the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship -- begin airing Thursday, June 23, at 8 p.m. EST on MAVTV.

Featuring all the can't-miss action from the Illinois State Fairgrounds, the broadcasts will be shown periodically through June 30, allowing anyone who missed the rain-strewn but ultimately triumphant Illinois event to join in the fun.

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Brad Baker on the #12 Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Ducati leads Chris Carr #4 and Bryan Smith #42 during main event action on the Springfield Mile, round 6 of the 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship Series, on May 29.  Baker led for 9 of 25 laps in his first race as an Expert Twins rider after having won the '09 AMA Pro Flat Track Pro Singles Championship, and finishing runner-up to '10 Pro Singles Champ, Jeffrey Carver, Jr.  AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.
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The dates and times for MAVTV's Springfield TT and Springfield Mile broadcasts are as follows:

Thursday, June 23 - Springfield TT, 8:00 pm EST

Friday, June 24 - Springfield TT, 2:00 am EST

Sunday, June 26 - Springfield TT, 10:00 am EST

Sunday, June 26 - Springfield TT, 3:00 pm EST

Tuesday, June 28 - Springfield TT, 12:00 pm EST

Tuesday, June 28 ­- Springfield TT, 5:00 pm EST

Thursday, June 30 - Springfield Mile, 8:00 pm EST

MAVTV is a 24/7 national network that broadcasts in both SD and HD. The network features programming targeting men 18 to 54 including sports, gaming, comedy, health and fitness, gadgets, and more. MAVTV is an irreverent destination channel for men, with a decidedly original programming edge. The network is now available in over 35 million homes and carried on most major cable, telco, and satellite providers, as well as mobile television platforms. MAVTV currently carries popular series like The ADRL Racing Tour, The Art of Fighting, the AMA Pro Harley-Davidson Insurance Flat Track Championship, American Tailgater, Bikini AllStars, Ultimate Combat Experience, I Love this Bartender, and Lucas Oil Motorsports.

For more information, please visit www.mavtv.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.  For additional information contact: AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com

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You can check out MavTV's website here to see if/where it is offered in your area.  If you are a DirecTV subscriber like I am, unfortunately, they DO not offer MavTV as of yet (but I do keep on e-mailing them to let them know I and others want it!):

http://www.mavtv.com/mavtv-coverage
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AMA Road Racing: Read About Thomas Stevens' 1st Win in AMA Road Racing in Larry Lawrence's Archives on Cycle News.com

Thomas Stevens wrestles the #7 Vance & Hines/Parts Unlimited/Dunlop/SBS-sponsored Ducati 916 through turn 6 at the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course round of the AMA Superbike Championship Series in July 1998.  The '91 AMA Superbike Champion won his one and only AMA Superbike race at the track in August of '91, and that win, along with his consistent finishes throughout the eight-round season, would springboard him to his championship.  Stevens won his championship while also riding for the Vance & Hines team, but when the team fielded YZF-750 Yamahas, and was team mates in those days with '90 Daytona 200 winner Dave Sadowski and '89 AMA Superbike Champion Jamie James.

Stevens left the high-profile V&H Yamaha team after the end of the '91 season, taking the #1 plate with him to the Muzzy Kawasaki team, as a team mate to future AMA and World Superbike Champion Scott Russell.  After riding for the Yoshimura Suzuki team in the '93-'95 seasons, Stevens found himself riding for the Kinko's Kawasaki team in AMA 600 and 750 Supersport competition during the '96 season, and parlayed his success with the team to a return to the AMA Superbike Championship Series and to Vance & Hines for the '97-'98 seasons, the team's first in running the Ducati franchise in AMA Pro Road Racing.  In '98 the team also brought in new recruit, Australian rider Anthony Gobert, to ride alongside Stevens.
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One of the all-time greats in AMA Superbike Championship Series racing history, Thomas Stevens, is profiled in this week's 'Archives' column by Larry Lawrence, over at Cycle News.com.  The '91 AMA Superbike Champion started out riding endurance racing in the WERA series, and took his first AMA Road Racing win in one of the most popular road racing series in America back in the late '80s. 

Larry has a great look back on the history of AMA Road Racing and the stars who have made it what it is over the years, in this week's 'Archives' column, which you can find here.  Thanks LL and CN for this step back in time!

http://cyclenews.coverleaf.com/cyclenews/20110621#pg124
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AMA Road Racing: Blake Young Wins SBK R2 and Herrin Takes DSB R2 at Barber

Young Takes Revenge on Sweltering SuperBike Race
at Barber Motorsports Park

BIRMINGHAM, AL (June 19, 2011) - After settling for third in yesterday's rain-soaked AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike contest, Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Blake Young demanded a swap from Race 1 winner Martin Cardenas (M4 Suzuki) and went right through Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Hayes to get it. With all three riders visibly exhausted after the extremely hot race, Young -- who started from the second row -- said, "I just kept thinking to myself, 'If I'm hurting this bad and this tired, he's gotta be hurting too, so just keep after it.'"

As sapped as the podium trio felt post-race, however, a pair of Hayden bothers -- Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Tommy and National Guard Jordan Suzuki's Roger -- undoubtedly felt worse. Tommy, who got the holeshot off the start and lead through the first third of the race, was handed sudden misfortune when his bike began spewing smoke and flames, sidelining the eldest Hayden.

Roger, who'd been running a very strong fourth before a ride through the grass relegated him to a much more distant sixth, had been making up impressive ground on the frontrunners -- closing the gap from over two seconds to less than a half-second -- when a crash ended his race with seven laps to go. Although the Jordan rider walked away shaking his head, however, one thing his Barber runs have made clear is that the SuperBike class could soon see a new contender for front-runner status. 

Hayes and Young, meanwhile, continued to trade the lead while testing each other's lines, often running just inches apart and swapping spots in consecutive corners. With six laps left in the race, Young took back the lead and tried desperately to shake the Yamaha rider off, and he was able to eek out just enough of a margin to keep himself safe while the pair made their final charge up the front straight.

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AMA Superbike Championship Series race 2 winner at Barber Motorsports Park, Blake Young gives the teams, fans and sponsors a smokey treat after taking home the win on a hot and humid afternoon in Leeds, AL.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
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"I knew he'd be there," said Hayes -- "he always is. Blake knew the areas where I was fast, and I really thought maybe the end would come my way a little bit because it seemed like he was having to use his bike more defensively than me. But at the end, I think we were both in hot water: pretty hot, pretty tired, and the bikes were getting extremely hot. I made the best run I could at him, but he rode a smart race, and he beat me."

"Today conditions were very extreme, very hot," Cardenas agreed, "and I think today's race was even tougher than yesterday's because we were sliding even a bit more than yesterday, so it was very difficult to maintain the pace. Roger and Tommy and Josh and Blake were running very fast and gaining some time over me in Turn 2 every lap, so I had to push very hard each lap to close the gap. But at the end I was just exhausted, and the last eight laps were very difficult for me to move on the bike because I was very tired and dehydrated. But third is a very good result, and we were closer than ever to the frontrunners, so I am very happy.

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Blake Young #79 leads Josh Hayes #1 and Martin Cardenas #36 in AMA Superbike Championship Series race 2 action at Barber Motorsports Park.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
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Behind Cardenas, Steve Rapp (San Diego BMW), Ben Bostrom (Jordan Suzuki), Larry Pegram (Foremost Insurance/Pegram Racing), Geoff May (Amsoil EBR Racing), Chris Clark (Y.E.S./Pat Clark/Graves Yamaha), Chris Peris (Iron Horse BMW), and JD Beach (Cycle World Attack Kawasaki) rounded out the top ten.

The points race has tightened considerably, with Young trailing Hayes, 233 to 235. Tommy Hayden sits third with 182 as the AMA Pro Road Racing Championship next heads to Lexington, Ohio's Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the July 8-10 weekend, Round 6 on the series calendar. For tickets and information, visit www.midohio.com or call (419) 884-4000.

To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us on facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing and twitter.com/AMAProSBK.

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

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Herrin Takes Sunday Daytona SportBike Victory,
Eslick Takes Points Lead

BIRMINGHAM, AL (June 19, 2011) - Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Herrin had something to prove -- and points to regain -- in today's AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Race 2, and when the light went green at Sunday's Barber Motorsports Park contest, that's exactly what he did. After stalking GEICO Powersports/RMR Suzuki's Danny Eslick through the majority of the hard-fought race, Herrin turned the misery of yesterday's DNF into a very sweet .022-second margin of victory, then celebrated by scaling an enormous fence to cheers from fans.

"I consider this my home race, and I was really excited," said Herrin. "I did the Track Walk yesterday and told a couple fans I'd climb the fence, and they were pretty excited about it. So, I thought I would be nice to the fans," added the rider who'd just taken a win in 96-degree heat, "to get them out of the shade up there."

Saturday's seized engine may come back to haunt Herrin in the overall points chase, but for today, the Yamaha rider -- followed across the line by Eslick and Jake Holden Racing's Cameron Beaubier -- is back on top. Only on top of the Barber podium, however, as it's Eslick who's taken over the championship points lead now, becoming the fourth rider to do so this year.

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Danny Eslick, Josh Herrin and Cameron Beaubier celebrate on the podium at Barber Motorsports Park after race 2 in the Daytona SportBike Series.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
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For Celtic Racing/Fast by Ferracci's PJ Jacobsen, today's event was eerily and unpleasantly similar to yesterday's, in which he crashed out early in the race after leading briefly. In today's contest, he lost that lead to a string of other riders before sliding out, but he was far from the only front-runner to suffer sideline fate: M4 Suzuki's Dane Westby followed suit after running as high as third, with former points-leader Cory West (Vesrah Suzuki) ran off just minutes later while trying to move up from fourth. (West was able to reenter, ultimately finishing 20th.)

As Herrin put steadily increasing pressure on Eslick while clearly planning a last-minute attack, it was Y.E.S./Pat Clark/Grave Yamaha's Tommy Aquino who grabbed the spotlight, putting on a performance unlike anything the 19-year-old's shown the paddock this year. Though Beaubier ultimately got him at the last minute -- "It was a little close," said Beaubier, "but I had to do it" -- Aquino demonstrated he's still got what it takes to land on the box.

When the white flag flew and the last lap unspooled, Herrin's attack, which he later labeled part of a "just I hope I can get it, and hope it'll stick" strategy, let loose on the string of final corners, delivered Herrin to the finish-line less than three tenths ahead of Eslick. "I can say I got beat," Eslick said later, laughing. "There's not much else to it. I led every lap down to the last corner pretty much, and he was definitely in a good position. After following me for 20 laps, he knew exactly where I was going on every lap. He definitely had options, and I didn't know where [the attack] was going to come from, but at that point I knew it was coming pretty quick."

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Josh Herrin #8 leads Danny Eslick #69 in race 2 action in the AMA Pro Road Racing Daytona SportBike Series Championship at Barber Motorsports Park.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
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When asked how the riders handled today's heat, Eslick quipped, "The same as we do whenever it's cold -- we're not the smartest people out here."

Third-place finisher Beaubier later described his strategy as "just trying not to make any mistakes at the beginning. I knew if I didn't charge hard enough at beginning, I wouldn't be there at end," he continued. "It was a really tough race. I had a couple hard moments trying to keep up, but it was an awesome race."

Behind Beaubier, Aquino, Taylor Knapp (Vesrah Suzuki), Jason DiSalvo (Latus Motors Racing), Kris Turner (Turner's Cycle Racing), Tyler O'Hara (GP Bike Parts Racing), Barrett Long (Longevity Racing), and Tyler Odom (Don Odom Racing) rounded out the top ten.

The AMA Pro Road Racing Championship next heads to Lexington, Ohio's Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the July 8-10 weekend, Round 6 on the series calendar. For tickets and information, visit www.midohio.com or call (419) 884-4000.

To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us on facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing and twitter.com/AMAProSBK.

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

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Complete results (PDF versions) can be found, for the entire weekend's events at the Barber Motorsports Park round of the 2011 AMA Pro Road Racing Series, here:

http://results.amaproracing.com/live/results/pdfresults/rr/2011/R1125/default.aspx
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