SUZUKI DOMINATES AMA SUPERBIKES AT CALIFORNIA SPEEDWAY: MLADIN PLAYS KEY ROLE Since 1996, there has been no motorcycle manufacturer that has dominated the AMA Superbike circuit quite like Suzuki; and it would be safe to say that since Mat Mladin has jumped onto a Suzuki GSX-R in 1996, there has been no rider who has taken over the sport quite like him. Within the last decade, Mat Mladin has brought 40 winning trophies back to Team Yoshimura Suzuki, the most by any rider in the class, ever. He has also brought the team an unprecedented six championships. Mladin has almost single-handedly proven that Suzuki makes one of the best motorcycles on the market with the GSX-R. When asked, Mladin will attribute all of his success to Suzuki and his team: “I’ve had a great team over the years, and I’ve been able to win a lot of races,” said Mladin about his crew and Suzuki. Since 1996, team Yoshimura Suzuki riders have collected an unmatched 50 Superbike wins; and although most of the success is had by Mat Mladin, two other riders have contributed wins as well. Aaron Yates has taken home nine wins and Ben Spies scored one at California Speedway last year during the Suzuki Superbike Challenge. And, when you ask around the paddock, riders will say they have to get around the Suzuki trio to win, especially at the Southern California course. “For whatever reason the Suzuki guys, all of them, are strong everywhere,” said Miguel Duhamel, rider of the No. 17 American Honda. “At (California Speedway), you cannot ignore the success that they had there, and especially Mat had there. For (the Suzuki Superbike Challenge) weekend, Mat is going to be high on our list. Ben has been showing a lot of speed there, and hopefully Aaron will be fully recovered from the accident he had while testing [at Daytona]. They always go really fast, so it’s going to be hard challenging those guys for the win.” The Suzuki riders will take on the entire AMA Superbike Championship at the 2006 Suzuki Superbike Challenge at California Speedway, April 28-30. Tickets are $10 for Friday and $30 for Saturday or Sunday. Two and three-day ticket packages are also available. For more information, call 800-944-RACE [7223] or log on to www.racetickets.com. More, from a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing: 2006 AMA SUPERMOTO CHAMPIONSHIP KICKS OFF AT CALIFORNIA SPEEDWAY PICKERINGTON, Ohio (April 24, 2006) — On April 29 the 2006 AMA Supermoto Championship presented by Parts Unlimited will take the green flag at California Speedway in Fontana. This is the fourth year of AMA Pro Racing’s newest championship series and it promises to be the best yet. Team Red Bull KTM HMC’s Jurgen Kunzel will be back to defend his 2005 championship. Other pre-season favorites include Troy Lee Honda’s Jeff Ward, the 2004 series champ, and Graves Yamaha teammates Doug Henry and Mark Burkhart. Kunzel took last year’s title in a dramatic down-to-the-wire final round in Reno. The German stole away the title after rival Ward crashed leaving the door open for Kunzel’s surprising comeback. It was a breakthrough year in 2005 for Kunzel. After being one of the fastest Supermoto riders in the AMA championship since its inception, he finally earned his first victory in Nashville, Tenn. Then lady luck smiled on Kunzel again at Reno helping him win the title. “I could not believe that I won the championship,” Kunzel said after placing second in the final race at Reno last October. “I felt very bad for Jeff (Ward). He had a great season and it was a tough way for him to lose the championship. At the same time I’m overjoyed for my team. They put so much work into this. I’ve worked hard for three years to get to this point. I had so much bad luck in my racing career over here, perhaps I was due for a little good luck.” Ward, of Newport Beach, Calif., will turn 45 this season, but the former AMA Motocross and Supercross star still thinks he has what it takes to beat riders half his age. “I’m looking forward to this season,” said Ward, who, in spite of his age, is still one of the most aggressive riders in the series. “It should be good with Kunzel trying to hold on to the title and Doug Henry coming back healthy. And then you have guys like Mark Burkhart and my teammate Chris Fillmore coming on strong. I think the positive thing about racing at my age is my knowledge of how to quickly get a bike set up and knowing how and when to make my move in the races.” Doug Henry was the fastest rider in the championship early on last year winning three straight rounds before suffering injury. The Graves Yamaha rider is a veteran motocross champ like Ward and comes back in 2006 healthy and eager to get back in competition. “I feel just about 100 percent and am looking for a good season,” Henry said. “I’m really pumped about the new Yamaha YZF450. In stock form I went faster than I’ve ever gone on my practice track. My goal is to come out of Fontana with some good points. We have a break in the series after that race to correct any problems we might encounter in the first round, but hopefully we’ll be competitive from the start.” While Supermoto’s version of the “Big Three” is Kunzel, Ward and Henry, many people, including his fellow competitors, see Graves Yamaha’s Mark Burkhart making it the “Fab Four” in 2006. Burkhart, who totally dominated AMA Supermoto Lites last year, shocked the established stars by moving up from Lites and dominating the main Supermoto class in the Reno Red Bull finale last year. In addition to the two rounds of the premier AMA Supermoto class, fans at California Speedway will also get to see a round of the AMA Supermoto Unlimited and Supermoto Lites support classes. Brandon Currie will try to keep the Supermoto Lites title in the Graves Yamaha camp. After riding a Kawasaki in ’05 and finishing runner up to Burkhart last year, Currie now gets the opportunity to ride for a proven championship team. Currie is expected to be the rider to beat, but there are a host of others hoping to fill the void left in Burkhart’s absence. Old scores may be settled in the Supermoto Unlimited class this year. Last year’s championship ended in a remarkable and controversial finish in the final round. Two title contenders Micky Dymond and Darryl Atkins came together on the last corner of the last lap. Atkins went down and with it his hopes of the title. Some called Dymond’s pass an aggressive, but perfectly acceptable racing move, while others saw it as overly forceful. The two are slated to resume their rivalry at California Speedway. This year Atkins is expected to race the new Aprilia SXV550 twin-cylinder machine. The opening AMA Supermoto Championship runs Saturday in conjunction with the Suzuki Superbike Challenge AMA Superbike Championship doubleheader. All the final Supermoto events will take place after the end of Saturday’s road racing action, giving fans the opportunity to see two major championship events in a single day. OLN will telecast the series. Look for updated information and a complete broadcast schedule to be released soon. For ticket information call 1-800-944-RACE (7223) or visit www.californiaspeedway.com More, from another, subsequent press release issued by California Speedway: Spies Heads to California with Points Lead Ben Spies swept the doubleheader AMA Superbike events in Alabama over the weekend. The Yoshimura Suzuki rider gained his first career AMA Superbike pole position and his second and third series wins. Spies first career AMA Superbike win came at California Speedway one year ago. Spies sweep started when he captured his first AMA Superbike pole position after posting a 1:24.830 lap time. Teammate Mladin was right behind him followed by Tommy Hayden, Roger Lee Hayden and Aaron Yates started third through fifth, respectively. In Saturday afternoon’s 28-lap race, Spies got the holeshot and Mladin was right on his tail. Spies led for the first several laps, but then Mladin got by him and took the lead. Then, Spies got around Mladin and took the lead and never relinquished it. Mladin, meanwhile, got caught up with a lapper and ran briefly off the track but recovered quickly and finished second. Jake Zemke finished third followed by Miguel Duhamel and Tommy Hayden. Early in Sunday’s race six-time champ Mladin appeared to be on his way to getting his revenge for Saturday’s defeat, pulling out an early second-plus advantage. However, the Aussie shockingly lost it on the brakes entering Turn 5 while working the race’s fifth lap and was sent sliding into the gravel. Following the incident, Spies, Tommy Hayden and Duhamel found themselves in a three-way fight for the lead. After a number of circulations an order was finally established and Spies looked set to take his third win. DuHamel was clear in second, and Hayden seemed all but assured of his first Superbike podium several seconds back in third. An accident involving Roger Hayden and James Kerker while trying to challenge fourth place Yates brought out the red flag on lap 21 of 28. Adding to the drama was the fact that Mladin, who had remounted and charged up to 14th from outside the top 30 by that time, would be allowed to make repairs and get a second chance, starting from just a few rows behind his rivals. On the restart, Spies gained more than a second advantage by the completion of lap 21. From there it was smooth sailing to complete his pole/win/win weekend. As the Texan cleared off to grab his second checkered flag in as many days, a huge fight for the runner-up spot broke out involving Duhamel, Tommy Hayden, Yates and Mladin. DuHamel finished second with Mladin close on his heals for third. Yates finished fourth, followed by Neil Hodgson in fifth. The weekend sweep positioned Spies on top of the points hunt as they head to California Speedway for the Suzuki Superbike Challenge April 28-30. Mladin is second (-8) followed by Duhamel (-19) in third, Hodgson (-29) in fourth with Yates (-31) and Tommy Hayden (-31) in a tie for fifth. Bostrom (-36), Jason Pridmore (-43), Zemke (-55) and Larry Pegram (-56) wrap up the top 10 in points. Be sure to catch all the two-wheeled racing action at California Speedway during the Suzuki Superbike Challenge on April 28-30. Tickets are on sale now. In addition to individual tickets, three and two-day ticket packages are available and children 12 and under are free with each paid adult admission. To purchase your tickets today, call 800-944-RACE [7223] or visit www.racetickets.com.