AMA Pro Road Racing Recap: Triumph
Superbike Classic at Barber Motorsports Park
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.
(July 3, 2012) - While reigning series king Josh Hayes only further
solidified his iron grip on the AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike class with
another perfect points weekend at Barber Motorsports Park, a rising challenge to
his authority was also on display.
Following three consecutive
weekends in which no rider had the measure of Hayes in terms of sheer pace, the
Mississippian was a bit hesitant to predict more of the same at the Triumph
SuperBike Classic presented by America's First Federal Credit Union.
Sure, the '12 Yamaha YZF-R1
had shown increased top-end power, allowing him to escape at Road America and
Miller Motorsports Park this year in contrast to being defeated by Blake Young
on his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 following close races in 2011, but the
characteristics of the Alabama circuit might make for different
outcome.
Or not. Hayes once again
scorched to pole in the weekend's blistering heat (his eighth in a row) and
followed that up by leading every lap in both races and taking the checkered
flag with seconds to spare.
Hayes' Barber Motorsports Park
double win weekend ups his 2012 season win tally to eight, topping his previous
best marks of seven, posted in 2009 and 2010. And there are still nine races
remaining on '12 slate, meaning Hayes is well positioned to make an assault on
Mat Mladin's single season record of 12 (2007).
Hayes also increased his
career National Guard SuperBike win total to 25 and is threatening to move into
third place on the all-time SuperBike win list (Ben Spies, 28), and possibly
even second (Miguel DuHamel, 32), before the year is out. The Yamaha star now boasts an
imposing 37-point advantage over second ranked Young (320-283).
Josh Hayes #1 takes the inside line on team mate Josh Herrin #2 during one of the AMA Superbike Championship Series races at Barber Motorsports Park in June 2012. AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Asked about the possibility of
equaling or bettering Mladin's single-season mark, Hayes said, "I don't know...
Is it attainable? Yes. I think every track that we go to I can be competitive
at. Attainable, yes, but I think it's a pretty big ask. Things are going really
well right now and if I can maintain this, that would be great. But I don't
expect these guys to let it go on for long. Fortunately for me, things are going
good. Hopefully, I can keep it that way and the pressure is on them to turn
around their thing and catch up to me. I'm pretty lucky -- four years with the
same crew and the bike feels like home. I can get up to speed very quickly, like
I have at the past several races, and then go about working on taking things to
another level."
However, more than the hint of
a serious challenge was presented in Alabama, and it didn't come from expected
challenger Young. While the '11 National Guard SuperBike runner-up continues to
search for a way to find equal footing on his #79 GSX-R that he guided to seven
wins a year ago, Hayes was pushed and pushed hard in qualifying and Saturday's
race by the only other man piloting a works Yamaha R1 -- SuperBike freshman Josh
Herrin.
Herrin proved he could just
about match Hayes' pace so long as he had the experienced pilot to lead him
around in qualifying, dramatically lowering his time while grabbing a tow in
behind the #1 machine and leaping up the leaderboards to qualify
second.
The youngster then proved he
could do the same in the race, clinging onto Hayes' rear wheel and running just
inches behind his teammate for the bulk of Saturday's race before the heat took
its toll and Herrin backed off to claim an impressive second-place
result.
"I was learning every lap,"
Herrin said. "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."
Hayes has taken notice of
Herrin's rise, and said with a smirk, "I think (Josh) is learning way too many
of my tricks." Herrin's hopes of one-upping
that performance on Sunday were foiled by an early mistake, as he ran off course
in a bid to keep Hayes in sight. The former AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike star
dropped to the bottom of the top ten during his foray into the grass, but sliced
right back up through the field before arriving on Young's rear wheel in
second.
Young made a similar charge
earlier after dropping down to ninth on the race's opening lap. Having finished
a distant third on Saturday, the Wisconsin defended the position heavily and the
two went back and forth as Herrin survived a couple more minor mistakes to press
Young. However, the Suzuki's leading
rider was ultimately rewarded for his steadier ride and the two swapped podium
positions from the day before on Sunday.
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 said, "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."
It's now long past the time
when a strong showing by the EBRs seemed like a fluke. Team Amsoil/Hero's Geoff
May continued his march to stake his claim for 'best of the rest' status and did
well in that campaign again at Barber Motorsports Park.
May was actually second quick
in Friday's provisional qualifying session on the #99 EBR 1190RS before proving
that he and his machine were the fourth-best man/machine combo in Alabama. He
qualified just off the front row in fifth, but raced his way forward ahead of
National Guard Jordan Suzuki's Roger Hayden to claim fourth in both
races. Those results also saw May
displace Hayden for fourth in the '12 championship order by a single point
(159-158).
Fifth-ranked Hayden,
meanwhile, is still seeking the same feeling he had on the #54 Suzuki GSX-R1000
at the tail-end of 2011, which allowed him to race at the front and fight for
wins. He also admitted that he had been riding tentatively as of late after
suffering a handful of crashes in recent weekends.
After picking up a pair of
fifths at Barber Motorsports Park, the Kentuckian reported, "I got a good start
on Saturday. And I settled into a rhythm and got up to fifth. I'm still trying
to get my comfort level back after I had a few crashes one weekend, so I'm not
as aggressive on the bike as I can be. But I got a better start on Sunday and I
felt like I was riding better overall. We're going to Mid-Ohio next and that
track has been good to me. I got my first Superbike podium there, so I'm looking
forward to it."
Teammate Ben Bostrom finished
sixth on Sunday on the Jordan Suzuki, winning back some points after crashing
out of third on the opening lap of Saturday's SuperBike contest. "I was pretty disappointed on
Saturday," said Bostrom. "The Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000 was working great and I
know it was capable of a podium. On Sunday, I got a good start but it was really
slick out there. I know I couldn't have gone any quicker than I did. I raced as
hard as I could for every lap."
Foremost Insurance Pegram
Racing's Larry Pegram enjoyed a pair of solid outings in Birmingham. The
four-time National Guard SuperBike race winner came away with sixth and eighth
place rides as he whittles away the gap separating him from the lead pack on the
BMW S1000RR. Fellow veteran pilot, Steve
Rapp, racked up similar results on the Attack Performance Kawasaki ZX-10R,
finishing in ninth and seventh. Meanwhile,
Kneedraggers.com/Motul/Fly Racing's David Anthony was the last man to collect a
pair of top tens at BMP (tenth and ninth).
Team Hero EBR's Danny Eslick
(seventh and 19th), second Yosh runner Chris Clark (eighth and 17th), M4
Suzuki's Chris Ulrich (18th and tenth), and KTM/HMC Racing's Stefan Nebel (20th
and 11th) had mixed weekends for a variety of reasons. German Nebel was on his own on
the KTM RC8R after teammate Chris Fillmore crashed and broke his hand in the
weekend's opening practice session.
Year-end Award Update:
Sean Dwyer
clinched the weekend's MotoBatt "Hard Charger Award" by
improving his position a cumulative 10 positions during the weekend's races. The
MotoBatt Hard Charger Award is a $500 award that is given to the rider who
improves the most positions combined from each of the weekend's race
sessions.
Josh Hayes
continues to lead the Sunoco "Go the Distance" Award chase,
having completing 571 laps and logging 1,591.6 miles over second place Larry
Pegram with 547 laps and 1,511.98 miles.
Next up is a visit
to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, OH on July 13-15. The round should
be a major test of Hayes' current run of dominance; the title leader missed out
on pole for the one and only time last season when the series stopped at
Mid-Ohio. He also finished fourth in one of the races, the only time all season
long he failed to finish on the podium in the dry.
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AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Recap
Daytona Beach, FL.-July 3, 2012-AMA Pro GoPro
Daytona SportBike at Barber Motorsports Park saw Cameron Beaubier of
YES/Graves/Yamaha have his breakthrough event as the 19-year-old won his first
class pole and both races. Beaubier simply swept the weekend and put in a
masterful performance in what was a physically challenging weekend with the heat
and the twisty nature of the Birmingham, Ala. circuit.
After running
up front in this year's races following his recovery from a broken knee cap
resulting from a scooter crash, which sidelined him at Road Atlanta and one of
the Sonoma races, it certainly looked like Beaubier winning a race this season
was inevitable. He fulfilled the promise in Alabama and earned Yamaha's first
GoPro Daytona SportBike win since Joey Pascarella won the season-opening DAYTONA
200 in March.
"It feels
awesome to get my first win and then back it up the next day," Beaubier
said. "I'm super
happy."
And the young
standout did it despite some remaining surgical metal in his leg that irritates
him when he rides and causes swelling. The wire won't come out until
August.
Tommy Hayden #22 leads the rest of the field during one of the AMA Pro Go Pro Daytona SportBike Serie races at Barber Motorsports Park in June 2012. AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
"That's the
biggest thing bothering me right now," he continued. "It's hard to keep the
swelling down."
In the first
race, Beaubier battled with another rider having a breakout weekend, Dane Westby
of the M4 Suzuki team. Westby had been showing good form this season, but bad
starts kept him from really cashing in. Between Road America and Barber, Westby
prepped hard by spending a day with drag racer Ricky Gadsen working on his
starts as well as honing his skills leaning off the bike at a riding school. He
was able to quickly apply what he learned, as good racers do, and earned two
second place results.
Beaubier was
able to hold him off both days, though. On Saturday, the end came down to a
fight between Westby, Beaubier and his Yamaha teammate Tommy Hayden. With a
couple of laps to go, Beaubier retook the lead from Hayden, who was also passed
by Westby. The Oklahoman took a shot in turn four on the last lap, but couldn't
make the move stick. Beaubier won by 0.241.
"I felt
really comfortable leading today. I tried to stay out in front as long as I
could," Beaubier said. "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. Westby said
he made a slight mistake on the last lap that kept him from getting one more
chance to make a pass in the final corner.
"It was
pretty slick out there and the guys were riding well," Westby said. "The M4
Suzuki was going really good for me. It was getting the traction even though it
was really greasy out there. We decided to go with the soft tire at the last
minute by group decision and it turned out to be the right decision. I think
they would have got away in the beginning and I don't think there was enough
time in the medium tire to catch back up once their tires went off, so that was
a good decision." Hayden was
back on the podium on Saturday. "It felt good to lead the race and I thought,
with three or four laps to go there, I had a pretty good chance to win," he
said. "I just need to get a little bit more of an edge."
Jason DiSalvo
(Latus Motors Racing Triumph) was fourth, less than six seconds back after
running in the lead pack early on. He was well clear of points leader Martin
Cardenas (GEICO Suzuki) who had rear brake issues and couldn't make his patented
charge to the front. Bobby Fong
(Meen Motorsports) was sixth, just ahead of Benny Solis on the Kneedraggers.com
Yamaha. Jake Zemke (Ducshop Ducati) had a lonely ride to eighth. He was well
clear of J.D. Beach (RoadRace Factory/Red Bull), who started from the fourth row
but moved up to ninth. Michael Beck (Team Beck Racing) just pipped Cory West
(Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki) for the final spot in the top ten.
On Sunday,
Beaubier was able to clear out over Westby late to back up his Saturday win with
a 2.163 second win after 21 laps.
"It was kind
of weird because my first lap wasn't very good at all," Beaubier said of his
Sunday win. "Then I 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." Westby made
his bid a little too early, he thought. He tried to take the lead with four laps
to go but couldn't hold it. "The
racetrack was hot and greasy," Westby said. "I just tried to carve through a
couple guys and get to the front. I just didn't quite have what was required to
win this one. I got in front for a bit but they studied where I was strong and
weak and made the most of it. I fried the tire up in the beginning stages when I
was pushed back a little so I didn't have a real good tire to make a charge at
the end. That's just how the cards played out." Westby moved
into a tie with DiSalvo for second place in the GoPro Daytona SportBike
points. Cardenas
rebounded to take third, but said he was playing catch-up all weekend and never
could quite get over the hump.
"I did what I could this weekend," Cardenas said. "It was an okay result. Third place is enough to make me happy. I finished ahead of DiSalvo today so we made back the points there and that was the most we could ask for. I didn't have the speed to catch Dane (Westby) and Cameron (Beaubier) towards the end of the race. The bike was just a little off all weekend. We tried some new things Friday and Saturday and they didn't work the way we had hoped, so they switched back to what we knew today and it was better. Not perfect, but better. In the end, we gained points so we are pleased."
Hayden
finished right on Cardenas, the GoPro Daytona SportBike points leader, tailpiece
to take fourth. Bobby Fong
scored another fifth in what has been a very good season for the Stockton,
Calif. rider on a smaller team. Fong was able to handle DiSalvo and relegate him
to sixth. Beach
improved on Sunday to earn seventh, ahead of Zemke, Solis, and Jake Gagne
(RoadRace Factory/Red Bull).
Next up is
Mid-Ohio, a similar tight, twisty course. Cardenas will surely be back to form
and it will be interesting to see if Beaubier and Westby can keep up their
momentum, too.
Year-End
Awards Update:
Benny Solis
currently leads the Saddlemen "Rookie of the Year" points chase
over fellow GoPro Daytona SportBike riders Jake Gagne and Jeff
Wrobel.
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