From a pair of press releases issued by Proforma:

LEE ACREE BATTLES TO 17TH PLACE IN DAYTONA SUPERSPORT EVENT

Lee Acree finished in 17th position today at Daytona in the shortened AMA 600 Supersport event. Acree rode an Arclight Suzuki GSX-R600 in a one-race deal that includes a GSX-R750 for the AMA Superstock event as well.

Acree started from the outside of the fifth row, slotting in well and working his way to the back of the lead group.

“At the beginning of the race we were up there with the lead pack,” said Acree. “I mean, Chuck
(Warren, team owner) builds great Suzukis, but I couldn’t even stay in the draft of the new Hondas and Yamahas. It ended up being me and Tony Meiring and Andrew Nelson dicing, I’m not sure how long Doug Chandler was behind us. I ended up battling with Chandler a little at the end”.

A waving yellow flag in the chicane on the last lap kept Acree from moving around Meiring and Alex Gobert.

“There was a waving yellow and a group of three lappers,” said Acree. “At that point we were closing on Alex Gobert, and Tony got by the three guys before we got into the chicane. That just
put too much of a gap to be able to draft up to those guys. All in all, I’m pretty pleased with how the race went. The Suzuki’s been a great bike, but unfortunately this was the year that they didn’t bring out a new bike, and we were at a disadvantage because everyone else has new product.”

Lee Acree will also compete in the AMA 750 Superstock race, which has now been re-scheduled for 1:30pm on Monday the 10th, directly after the Daytona 200 by Arai.


CONNELL CRASHES OUT OF DAYTONA SUPERSPORT RACE

Craig Connell crashed out of the AMA 600 Supersport race at Daytona today on his Annandale Honda CBR600RR, after getting away with the lead group and running in 12th place. Connell fell on the seventh of 15 laps, after tucking the front end entering turn six.

“I got a good start and got in with the lead group,” said Connell, who had qualified on the fifth row. “We were all riding hard, but I was comfortable with the pace. We went into turn six and Aaron (Yates) checked up, braked early. I was tipped in already trail-braking, just squeezed a bit more to keep from running into him and lost the front.”

Craig’s teammate Ty Howard finished 24th in the event, battling with a slipping clutch throughout the event.


More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing:

Honda CBR600RR Wins Daytona Supersport Race

Erion Honda’s Kurtis Roberts gave the new Honda CBR600RR a glorious American debut, winning the Pro Honda Oils 600 Supersport race at Daytona International Speedway on a cloudy, overcast Florida morning.

American Honda’s Miguel DuHamel finished third with Erion Honda’s Jake Zemke taking fourth. Both chose gearing that wasn’t optimal. American Honda’s Ben Bostrom finished a dispiriting 10th. The former World Superbike star found it difficult to hold on to the handlebars after a vibration developed early in the race.

Roberts, 24, the youngest son of three-time 500cc World Champion Kenny Roberts made a crucial gearing change before the race that allowed him to control the pace of the race from the outset. He led a furious pack of 600’s at the start and for nine of the 15 laps. On the final tour of the high-banked speedway, Roberts exited the last corner, a chicane on the back straight, in second place, then powered to victory by 0.118 seconds.

“I can’t say enough about the CBR600RR,” Roberts, who will only race selected Supersport events, said. “It was perfect. I don’t think I put a wheel out of place. It was definitely the most patient, smoothest Daytona 600 in a while.”

Helping propel Roberts to victory was a gearing change he and crew chief Dave McGrath made prior to the race. While the other riders were on the limit crossing the finish line, Roberts had power to spare.

The win was Honda’s 11th in the 600cc Supersport race at Daytona. Four of the previous wins were delivered by French-Canadian Miguel DuHamel, today’s third place finisher.

Erion Honda’s Kurtis Roberts-First Place
“It wasn’t the fastest pace we could have done. That’s why I kept Jamie (Hacking) and all them guys behind me, because they don’t have to race later on in the day and we had to. I kept them right where I wanted to and it was really easy. The bike was perfect. On the last lap I went back to third where I needed to be. The lapper got in the way and made Jake (Zemke) get a little antsy and jump on the throttle a little bit. It gave Jamie (Hacking) the gap to where I let him go down the straightaway that far and I passed Jake.”

American Honda’s Miguel Duhamel-Third Place
“The bike was running good. I was out there really composed and really relaxed. My bike, when I got in the draft, hit the rev limiter a little bit and that’s not good. I was having a little trouble with that. I could see Jamie and Jake (Zemke) up there (and thinking) as long as they didn’t get away from me. I was just keeping that in mind and trying to figure out a way to get up there. I was hoping more guys in front of me the better because that would help me get a draft. I was so happy just to see how good my bike is. We’re definitely in there the whole rest of the season and Kurtis (Roberts) won’t be there at all.”

Erion Honda’s Jake Zemke-Fourth Place
“It was going pretty good until that last lap. We kind of had to roll the dice on the gearing because it seemed like to gear it for the front straightaway we were losing out on the infield, but we put the gearing on that we thought was going to win the race for us. I’m pretty sure I had the fastest bike out there. I didn’t have any trouble drafting past anyone at the line. It seemed like when I’d lead out of the chicane I’d tow them around almost all the way to the start-finish. I knew we were looking good. I was having a little bit of a grip problem. With our gearing, it wouldn’t really come off the corners the way we wanted on the infield.”

American Honda’s Ben Bostrom-10th Place
“The bike was fantastic. The only mistake I made on the bike was the gearing was a little short and I was on the limiter for probably a good five seconds going across the stripe. That wasn’t the only problem. On the third lap, I don’t know from the high vibration, I couldn’t feel my hands. It started happening on the second lap and by the third lap I couldn’t feel my hands any more. So I was just shaking off the left one but I couldn’t let go of the throttle hand. So I couldn’t grab the front brakes. I could feel the throttle opening but not so smooth and I couldn’t feel the brakes at all. It only happened once before and that was on a Supersport bike.”



More, from a press release issued by Mat Mladin’s publicist, Steve Reeves:

RAIN FORCES POSTPONEMENT OF DAYTONA 200

Daytona Beach, Florida, USA (Sunday, March 9) – Continued rain has forced officials to postpone the start of the 62nd Daytona 200, with the race now being scheduled for 11:15 a.m. tomorrow Monday (American east Coast time.

The weather turned bad on Friday afternoon, disrupting the final Superbike qualifying session with the grid for the race being determined by times set in the opening qualifying session on Thursday.

Australia’s Mat Mladin will start the race from the front row of the grid after posting the third fastest time aboard his Team Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000. Pole position went to American Honda’s Ben Bostrom, with Kurtis Roberts splitting the pair aboard his Erion Honda RC51.

“At this moment all we can do is sit and wait for the weather to clear and for the AMA to tell us when it’s time to go racing,” said Mladin. “With the amount of rain that they’ve had here I’m not sure when it could be run. In 1996 the race was run on the following weekend due to the rain, but we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.”

The Daytona 200 is the first of 18-races that will make up this years AMA Chevy Trucks US Superbike Championship. Mladin is a three times winner of the championship (1999, 2000 & 2001) and is a two-times winner of the prestigious Daytona 200 with victories in 2000 and 2001.


More, from a press release issued by American Honda:

Kurtis Roberts and Honda CBR600RR Win Daytona Supersport Race

Honda’s new CBR600RR makes a dominating debut by winning the race and taking three of four top spots at Daytona

In a race delayed from Friday to Sunday due to rainy weather, Honda Erion Racing’s Kurtis Roberts proved the mettle of the brand-new Honda CBR600RR by capturing the Pro Honda Oils U.S. Supersport opener in fine style at Daytona International Speedway. Roberts was never alone, as Team Honda’s Miguel Duhamel and Honda Erion Racing’s Jake Zemke also rode their CBR600RRs to the front of the pack several times during the thrilling race. But in the end, it was a classic Daytona drafting move, superbly timed right at the finish line, that brought Roberts his second career 600 win at Daytona. Duhamel also executed a tremendous drafting move to cross the line just a tick behind to take a spot on the podium, in third place. Jamie Hacking finished in the runner-up position, while Zemke took a well-earned fourth. Ben Bostrom suffered from numbness in both hands that made it difficult for him to modulate the throttle and front brake. “I could shake out my left hand, but my right hand was so bad I couldn’t feel the front brake.”

The Daytona Supersport race win was historic for Honda for several reasons. First, it marked Honda’s eleventh 600 Supersport win at Daytona, more wins than all other manufacturers combined. Second, every year Honda has introduced a new CBR600, the bike has won at Daytona. This tradition started with the original 1987 Hurricane, and continued through the CBR600F2, CBR600F3, CBR600F4 and CBR600F4i models. Now the new CBR600RR carries on this winning tradition by claiming victory in its first AMA 600 national.

Sunday dawned with misty skies, temperatures just below 70 degrees and humidity at exactly 100 percent. With the morning dampness clinging tenaciously to the asphalt, the already-packed practice schedule was delayed, then shortened yet again, leaving the 600-class riders with barely enough time to squeeze in five or six laps. However, the revised scheduling worked to near perfection as the Supersport race launched on time.

Duhamel made the most of his polesitter position as he catapulted his CBR600RR to the holeshot, followed by a snarling mass of 600s. In typical 600cc action at Daytona, the abbreviated 15-lap race featured constant lead changes all around the ultra-fast track, with a closely packed freight train of more than a dozen riders pressing toward the front in the early going.

By the end of the first lap Roberts had surged to the lead, a position he held often while swapping off the lead with four other riders, including Duhamel and Zemke.

“This is the most patient and smooth 600 race I can remember in a long time,” Roberts said after the race. But this race has way too many laps; at Daytona it always comes down to the last two laps anyway, so they might as well make the race just five laps long and get it over with quicker.”

Roberts may have felt confident, but the eager spectators were treated to a world-class demonstration in close-formation racing. As the race began to wind down, a pack of six lead riders, including Roberts, Duhamel and Zemke, gapped the rest of the field. All six would be in contention for the win as the race came down to the critical last lap. The ultra-high speeds at Daytona provide a graduate-level course in slipstreaming. You definitely do not want to lead the crowd coming through the back-straight chicane; doing so invariably invites a last-corner pass as one or more riders sail by, taking advantage of the hole you’ve punched in the air.

But this time, Jamie Hacking made a break after the chicane, with the thought of taking advantage of a lapped rider who he thought would balk the other five lead riders. But his gamble failed. He passed the backmarker too soon, and Roberts jumped on the opportunity.

“This new Honda CBR600RR works so well; we changed the gearing last night, making it just a little taller, which gave me a real top-speed advantage on everyone else. So I just played the Daytona game by staying with the other guys on the infield. I knew I could take them on the banking and get across the finish line first.”

Miguel Duhamel explained, “My new CBR600RR felt really good and it was working so well. And I felt relaxed and composed. However, we were a little short on our gearing selection; I was hitting the rev limiter in top gear while we were drafting, so I had to be careful and plan ahead. We could have made a different decision in gearing, but when I was out there in practice this morning I was the fastest Honda. Obviously, after finishing third I can look back and wish I had pushed a little harder. But I didn’t want to take too many chances. Daytona is important, but the championship is more important. I didn’t want to take all the hard work my crew has done and stick it in the mud.”

Jake Zemke reflected on his fourth-place finish by saying, “I geared my bike to be fast right at the finish line and it looked like it was going to work. I felt like I had the fastest bike out there because I could draft past everybody. It was so easy to get across the stripe first, and I wanted to lead and control the pace.

“I thought I was sitting pretty, but then we pulled up on a lapped rider and Kurtis was close enough to Hacking to catch a draft from him. But the lapper pulled those guys away from me, and the guys behind me were sucking me back. At that point I was a sitting duck. But it still ended up fine, with three Hondas in the top four at Daytona!”