TT Master Henry Wiles Takes 25th Overall AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Win at the Castle Rock TT

 

2-Time AMA Grand National Singles Champion and 9-Time Peoria TT winner Henry Wiles came through late in the race last night to take his 25th-overall Grand National win in round 9 of the 2014 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship. Wiles and his #17 Don's Kawasaki worked his way around early race leader Mikey Rush to make the pass and lead the final eight go-arounds to take the win by over 4.2 seconds.

Hammerin' Hank has made a big name for himself on the 450cc-based Singles Series machines since the class was restructured several seasons ago, taking the 2009-2010 Singles Championship and now owning the all-time win record in-a-row at Peoria and now-defunct Springfield TT and Short Track Nationals. He will look to better his record in just two short weeks as the series will head back to Peoria on Sunday, August 17.

In the shot above, Wiles, on the #17 Don's Kawasaki/Ramspur Winery/DPC Racing-sponsored KX450F makes the inside pass on Stevie Bonsey on the #80 Zanotti Racing/RGR/Arai-backed Honda CRF450R during his romp through the field at the Peoria TT in round 7 of the 2013 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship on August 11. Wiles went on to take his record-breaking ninth win in-a-row at the track he has owned since his first win inThunder Valley in 2004.

There were some changes in the points battle last night with Bryan Smith finishing in the 10th-place spot and Jared Mees taking home a 4th-place. Mees leads the championship again over Smith (165-159 points) with last night's 7th-place finisher Jake Johnson hanging onto 3rd-place in the points standings (154 points.)

2013 AMA Grand National Champion Brad Baker rounded out the podium (his first of what has been a very rough season for the Washington State resident) and local boy and favorite Sammy Halbert finishing in the 8th-place spot to move ahead of Kenny Coolbeth, Jr. for 4th-place in the championship (134 points) after KC (129 points) failed to make his second TT event in-a-row (Coolbeth missed last year's Peoria as well.) And Brandon Robinson parlayed a provisional start to take a 14th-place finish to remain in the 6th-place slot in the championship hunt (115 points.)

Full results here thanks to AMA Pro Flat Track.

And you can watch the race from Castle Rock here thanks to AMA Pro Flat Track and FansChoice.TV.

The series has what is one of the shortest breaks between races in some time as it winds it's way out of the Northwest towards Badlands country as it makes it's first appearance in several years at the Black Hills Speedway for Tuesday night's round 10 at the Black Hills Half-Mile as part of the Sturgis bike week festivities, before heading to the Indy Mile on Friday, August 8 for round 11 of the 2014 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship season as part of the 7th Annual Red Bull Indianapolis MotoGP weekend of speed in and around the Indianapolis area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Henry Wiles uses late pass to earn Castle Rock TT victory

CASTLE ROCK, Wash. (August 2, 2014) - Henry Wiles was running in second place for the majority of Saturday night's AMA Pro Flat Track Castle Rock TT before he made a move that would prove to pay off immensely. As he was coming onto the corner that led onto the backstretch on lap 17, Wiles rode the high line up on the berm and was able to get enough speed coming off of it to catch Mikey Rush and beat him to the corner. Once he captured the lead, Wiles only built on it, as he eventually crossed the finish line 4.272 seconds faster than second-place finisher Rush.   With the win, Wiles picked up his 25th GNC victory aboard his Don's Kawasaki and is the second winningest rider in the history of the series. Wiles now sits seventh in the points. "I passed Mikey (Rush) once and he passed me back," said Wiles. "I tell you what, I like coming here. This crowd is great here they make you feel so good. They are so hardcore. It's awesome and it's an honor to be able to win the Castle Rock TT.   "There's been times that we've been really far away here but we had something going tonight. I have to give a special thanks to my team for getting my bike ready. This was actually my backup bike coming into today. We planned on riding a different bike tonight but it's funny how things work out. This means so much to me. I've gotten smoked here a lot so it just feels so good to me."           Henry Wiles took his #17 Don's Kawasaki KX450F to his 25th overall AMA Grand National Championship win last night at the Castle Rock TT in round 9 of the 2014 season. Wiles led the final eight laps after passing early leader and eventual 2nd-place finisher Mikey Rush in the 25-lap National main event. AMA Pro Flat Track photo by Dave Hoenig.         Rush's second place finish, aboard his Cascio Rush Racing Honda, had to be bittersweet, as he started from pole position and had the race all but won. However, his mishap on lap 17 proved costly for the Gilroy, Calif., product. Though obviously disappointed, Rush did walk away with by far his most impressive performance of 2014, as he will look to build momentum heading into Round 10, slated to take place this Tuesday, Aug. 5, at  Black Hills Speedway in Black Hills, S.D.   Coming in third place by a wheel was the defending Grand National Champion, Brad Baker, aboard his Brothers Powersports Honda. Baker closed out the podium for first time this season and his performance has to feel good, as he's certainly struggled by his standards so far in 2014. Jared Mees, riding his Montgomeryville Cycle Honda and JD Beach, mounted on his Van's Yamaha rounded out the top five, respectfully.   AMA Pro Flat Track Pro Singles Dominic Colindres has clearly taken a liking to Castle Rock Race Park over the years, as he's done nothing but excel at the Washington state venue over the course of his career. Colindres walked away with his second Castle Rock AMA Pro Flat Track Pro Singles main event victory in as many seasons Saturday night, winning by an astonishing 6.12 seconds.   "It was a perfect night," said Colindres. "We rolled my motorcycle off the truck today and didn't change a thing. I felt great all day and came out first in practice and set the fastest time. I can't thank my dad and mom enough for all of their support and for sticking with me through all these races." After starting from pole position, Colindres got the holeshot and never looked back aboard his Motorcycle Superstore Honda. He even lapped several riders on his way to his first victory of the 2014 season.   Coming in second was Davis Fisher mounted on his TJ Burnett Farms Honda. Fisher's second place finish came about as easy as Colindres's win did, as he beat third-place finisher Dan Bromley to the finish line by almost four full seconds. Bromey, aboard his Bromley Brothers KTM Racing KTM, finished third for his best finish of 2014. Cole Frederickson, aboard his Ride Motorsports Honda, and Rodney Spencer, Jr. riding his GP Sports Honda, rounded out the top five finishers, respectfully.   Next Up  The stars of AMA Pro Flat Track will head to Rapid City, S.D., for the Black Hills Half-Mile by Dunlop at Black Hills Speedway on August 5, 2014.   Footage of the Castle Rock TT will be available to view on AMA Pro Racing's YouTube portal at www.youtube.com/amaprovids in the coming days.   How to Watch  FansChoice.tv will be the official home for live streaming coverage of AMA Pro Flat Track and AMA Pro Road Racing events in 2014. The site will also provide coverage of IMSA's development and single-make series, and NASCAR's touring and weekly series.   About AMA Pro Flat Track AMA Pro Flat Track is a national motorcycle racing series in North America and is considered one of the oldest forms of motorcycle racing. Sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, the Series is highly regarded as the most competitive form of dirt track racing in the world. The 2014 schedule consists of 16 rounds on the country's finest flat track courses. For more information on AMA Pro Flat Track, please visit www.amaproracing.com/ft.

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