From a press release issued by American Honda:

AMA Chevrolet Superbike Series
Round 6: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
June 5, 2004

Duhamel Claims his 29th Superbike Victory at Road America

The lush, green 4.048-mile Road America circuit in Wisconsin played host to round six of the AMA Superbike series, and for the Red Riders, it was an historic event. After breaking the track record by nearly a second and a half in qualifying, Miguel Duhamel would rocket to the lead on lap seven of the race, and cross the finish line with a huge win margin to claim his 29th career Superbike victory. Erion Honda’s Jake Zemke, who made a great recovery after going wide in turn five, took third for the day ahead of Ben Bostrom in fourth.

The super fast Road America circuit was perfectly suited to the mighty CBR1000RR, and the Red Riders wasted no time establishing their dominance on the front row. After claiming the provisional pole on Friday with a new track record, Duhamel came back on Saturday and set an even faster pole time of 2:13.346-more than a second quicker than the previous lap record. “Basically, we just went back to the bike we had yesterday,” said Duhamel on Saturday morning. “It was definitely good enough and I’m really happy. The CBR1000RR is working really well.” Not far behind Duhamel was teammate Zemke, who claimed the starting spot next to him with a lap time of 2:13.707, also well under the previous track record. “The only real lap I did was that last lap and I think we’ll be OK. I think what we’ve got will be good enough for the race,” said Zemke. Ben Bostrom filled in the third spot on the front row. “I think we’re ready to go,” said Ben. “I’m not going to gamble today. We set some good times this morning and we’re just going to try and run that in the race.”

When the flag dropped it was Bostrom who got away with the best start. Duhamel and Zemke started fifth and sixth respectively. Duhamel immediately began picking off riders, with Zemke in tow. “When Miguel started going I figured I better get going too,” said Zemke. It took Miguel seven laps to take the lead, and once he did he immediately dropped the hammer, peeling off consecutive laps in the 2:14 range, and gapping the field but nearly two seconds to establish a comfortable lead. Zemke made a minor mistake in the closing stages of the race and overshot turn five. “I was starting to make up some ground there on Miguel and I cooked it in there a little too hot and missed the corner,” said Jake. With less than three laps to go, Zemke would work his way back up to finish third, one position ahead of Bostrom.

After a masterful display of his race craft, Duhamel crossed the finish line with a three second margin over second place Mat Mladin. “The bike was working really great,” said Miguel. “Those guys were running really good up there and I said ‘let’s see if I can get up there and do something’ and it just worked out really good. The CBR1000RR is fast, turns good and we’re getting this bike dialed in now. I am pretty excited. The guys have been doing a lot of hard work on it.”

It was Miguel’s third victory of the season, the 29th of his career, and the 109th time a Honda has won an AMA Superbike race. It was also, as it turned out, a mere prelude to what would be an historic second Superbike race on Sunday.

AMA Superbike Overall Results
1. Miguel Duhamel – Honda
2. Mat Maldin-Suzuki
3. Jake Zemke-Honda
4. Ben Bostrom-Honda

AMA Superbike Point Standings
1. Mat Maldin-Suzuki-300
2. Miguel Duhamel-Honda-283
3. Jake Zemke-Honda-278
4. Eric Bostrom-Ducati-210
5. Geoff May-Suzuki-198
7. Ben Bostrom-Honda-158


AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship
Round 7: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
June 6, 2004

Duhamel Makes History at Road America, Zemke takes Second

Team Honda’s Miguel Duhamel re-wrote the history books at round seven of the AMA Superbike Championship. Duhamel became the only rider in AMA history to win both Superbike events and a support race on the same weekend. After leading for 14 of 16 laps, Zemke finished second to Duhamel, with teammate Ben Bostrom in fifth.

Duhamel’s accomplishment was impressive for lots of reasons. Not since 1985, when Honda rider Freddie Spencer pulled off a hat-trick at Daytona by winning the 250, 500 and Superbike races has any rider won three AMA national races on a weekend. With his second Superbike win of the weekend, Miguel also went to the top of the Superbike win list with 30 victories. The win also put Duhamel even farther ahead of his rivals as the AMA’s winningest rider in history, with 75 overall career wins. For Honda, it marked the 110th AMA Superbike win.

Unlike Saturday’s race, however, where Duhamel clearly set the pace from the early laps, Sunday’s event was a nail-biter. This time, Zemke jumped to an early lead with a much improved start from Saturday, while Duhamel again had to claw his way up from a fifth place start. By the time Miguel broke through, Zemke was gone, having built up a whopping four second lead in only four laps. Then a multi-rider incident brought out the red flag, and Jake’s hard-earned lead was gone. To make matters worse, Zemke would head back out with problems after the restart. “The red flag hurt us quite badly,” stated the solemn Zemke after the race. “Not just in the time, but after we came back in for the restart we had a pretty serious problem with our bike.”

Regardless, Zemke once again took the lead at the restart, this time followed by Duhamel. With less than two laps to go, a braking problem that had hounded him all race forced him to go wide into turn one, opening the door for Duhamel to take the lead. “He just got sideways,” explained Duhamel in the post-race press conference. “He got into that drift mode, the next thing you know he kept going wider and wider and that’s where I made the pass. I put my head down and I registered my fastest lap, a 2:14:00. I was just trying to ride as hard as I could.”

“Miguel rode great and we got hurt pretty bad by that red flag,” stated Zemke. “I was just out there doing the best I could with it, I am just happy to finish.”

In the campaign for third, Bostrom had run a precise race and was in close contention for the last podium spot, but ran out of grip in the closing stages. On the last lap, both Mladin and Yates would move past, relegating Bostrom to fifth.

It was Duhamel who had the last word on the weekend. “Very excellent weekend,” said Miguel. “Only my Dad would point out that I didn’t get the pole in the Xtreme race. Obviously for myself and my team, I am very happy. I feel great about what we pulled off. You need a bit of luck to go your way and a great team behind you to do it. This was just on of those weekends where everything went well.”

With his double-header win and additional point for pole position, Duhamel now moves within 10 points of first place in the championship, followed by Zemke in third as the battle for the 2004 AMA Superbike championship heats up.

AMA Superbike race results
1. Miguel Duhamel-Honda
2. Jake Zemke-Honda
3. Mat Mladen-Suzuki
4. Aaron Yates-Suzuki
5. Ben Bostrom-Honda

AMA Superbike Overall Points
1. Mat Mladin-Suzuki-329
2. Miguel Duhamel-Honda-319
3. Jake Zemke-Honda-311
4. Eric Bostrom-Ducati-235
5. Geoff May-Suzuki-220
6. Ben Bostrom-Honda-184


AMA Formula Xtreme
Round 6: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
June 5, 2004

Duhamel, Zemke and Gobert Sweep FX at Road America

With barely any time to savor the 29th career Superbike race win he earned on Saturday afternoon at Road America, Team Honda’s Miguel Duhamel quickly took to the track once again, this time aboard his Formula Xtreme CBR600RR. And once again he took command of the race, which he won in yet another heart-stopping photo finish, adding to the nonstop drama in 2004. At the line, he just barely nipped past fellow Red Rider Jake Zemke, winning by less than an eye blink, a margin of only 0.030 seconds. Zemke’s Erion Honda teammate, Alex Gobert, followed the two lead riders to the checkered flag, thereby ensuring a full Honda podium.

Amidst the towering trees and abundance of green foliage surrounding the picturesque Road America circuit, the action began early in round six of the Lockhart-Phillips Formula Xtreme series. Jake Zemke seized the pole position on Friday with a qualifying time of 2:18.851, while the canny French-Canadian Duhamel qualified just a tick behind with a fast lap of 2:19.041-times that presaged the upcoming epic battle.

When the field waved off, everyone was in for a big surprise as young Alex Gobert outfoxed his elders and immediately snared the lead. “I got a really good start off the line and got the holeshot into turn one,” a grinning Gobert said after the race. “That’s the first time I’ve seen clear track in a long time.” But unfortunately for the rapidly improving Aussie, the clear view would soon end as Duhamel steamed past to take over the lead, followed closely by teammate Zemke.

Duhamel proceeded to lead the entire field for almost three-quarters of the race despite Zemke’s best efforts. Duhamel later said, “Jake was all over me. He rode a great race. I was braking as deep as I could in the corners, trying to give him fewer choices to get around me.”

>From the trailing seat, Zemke was taking stock of the #17 bike. “Early on I could tell that Miguel definitely had power on us,” Zemke said. “I’d be in his draft and he was pulling away.”

However, Jake Zemke is hardly one to roll over and give up. Instead, he managed to close up on Duhamel, and on lap eight he pulled off an unconventional pass in the area of the track known as the carousel. Zemke made a masterful move to take the lead as he entered the carousel on the outside and forcefully swooped around Duhamel.

As the laps counted down, the racing heated up between the two Honda riders as they passed and re-passed each other, giving the appreciative fans more than their money’s worth. Clearly, yet another nail-biting finish would soon be in the offing.

As the white flag flew and the final lap wound down the crafty Duhamel, trailing Zemke, reached deep into his bag of tricks to find that one extra edge that would make the winning difference. As he said after the race, “I was on him and whatever I did, I had to make sure I got a decent drive to the finish line. Once we started going up the hill, my bike was so strong, I got in fast-forward, and got the draft.” Instead of upshifting from fifth to six gear, Duhamel took advantage of the CBR600RR’s ultra-high rev limit to gain an extra-strong drive to the finish line-a move that he timed with masterful precision: “Just when I hit the line it hit the rev limiter,” he explained. Perfect timing for the perfect win, with a bare 0.030 of a second to spare.

Meanwhile, young gun Alex Gobert found himself in his own tough battle for third place with another knowledgeable veteran, Doug Chandler. “With about three laps to go, Chandler came past on the brakes in turn one,” Gobert explained after the race. “I knew if I pushed really hard and stayed on him, by the time we got back to the front straight I figured I’d get him again. Sure enough, I got past him there and never saw him again. It worked out really good.” From there, Gobert pushed forward to claim the final podium position aboard his Erion Racing CBR600RR.

This year’s event at Road America marked Honda’s 43rd win in the Formula Xtreme class, counting the former big-bore series as well as this new revised 600cc format. The Red Riders head next to The Colonel’s Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota for round 7 of the Formula Xtreme series.


AMA Formula Xtreme Results
1. Miguel Duhamel-Honda
2. Jake Zemke-Honda
3. Alex Gobert-Honda
4. Doug Chandler-Ducati
5. Steve Crevier-Suzuki

AMA Formula Xtreme Overall Points
1. Miguel Duhamel-Honda-213
2. Jake Zemke-Honda-202
3. Alex Gobert-Honda-166
4. Vincent Haskovec-Suzuki-133
5. Jacob Holden-Suzuki-121


More, from a press release issued by RoadracingGirl PR:

JESSICA ZALUSKY HOLDS ON AT ROAD AMERICA

Dark Dog’s Suzuki’s Jessica Zalusky made her first AMA appearance for 2004 at Road America. After a few days of struggling with the set-up for Road America, Jessica was able to gain focus for her qualifying for Repsol Superstock. Aboard her Suzuki GSX-R750, she knew she would be under horsepower in a class dominated by 1000cc machines, but she was determined to qualify and race. Jessica’s confidence has been restored at Road America this year after returning to Michelin tires. In qualifying on Jessica’s last lap, she was able to put her helmet down and qualify for the race. “Qualifying was tough with Gobert and Hacking setting such a fast pace and every time I was looking for a draft, all the big bikes would just pull away,” Jessica remarked following her qualifying session.

For the race, Jessica encountered a mishap following her warm-up lap and was only able to regain focus seconds before the light went green. During the race, Jessica was consistent, having only made a few minor mistakes. Jessica finished the Repsol Superstock race respectively in 24th position.

Jessica is looking forward to the next round of AMA racing at her home track, Brainerd International Raceway. She will race in Formula Extreme aboard a Yamaha YZF R6 and Repsol Superstock aboard her Suzuki GSX-R 750.

Jessica would like to thank her crew for their relentless efforts, sponsors for their support, and her fans for their undying support.

For more information about Jessica, visit www.roadracinggirl.com


More, from a press release issued by Buell:

BUELL DEALER TEAMS FASTER AT ROAD AMERICA FORMULA XTREME

Strong Runs by Hal’s and Kosco Riders Rev Up Hometown Crowd



ELKHART LAKE, Wis. – The Hal’s Buell and Kosco Buell dealer teams ran strong in front of a partisan crowd of Buell fans during the Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme race during the AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship Series at Road America.

Hal’s rider Mike Ciccotto qualified eighth and ran as high as fifth, in a five-rider dog fight battling for the final podium spot before dropping back to seventh halfway through the race when the experimental front brake on his bike lost performance. Kosco’s Michael Barnes qualified ninth but suffered similar trouble on the first lap with the experimental front brake on his bike and battled through the race to come home in 11th position.

“We’re really proud of these dealers teams and what they’ve accomplished in such a competitive class. This is exactly the kind of grueling testing and learning that goes on in racing that you just can’t duplicate in the real world,” said Erik Buell, chairman and chief technical officer at Buell Motorcycle Company.

“We were doing great in the first half of the race,” said Ciccotto. “I’m feeling really confident on the Hal’s Firebolt, and at one point I was able to make an awesome pass of [HMC Ducati Milwaukee rider] Doug Chandler. I was right there in the fight for third.”

“It’s frustrating,” said Barnes. “But even with our problems, we were just outside the top ten. This Kosco bike has a lot of potential.”

AMA Formula Xtreme is a class open to highly-modified motorcycles with 600cc four-cylinder engines or larger-displacement V-Twin engines. The next stop on the AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship schedule is June 25-27 at the Brainerd International Raceway near Brainerd, Minn.

To learn more about Buell Motorcycles, visit your local Buell dealer today and experience the pure streetfighter attitude, style, and performance only found on board a Buell. For the Buell dealer nearest you, pull into www.buell.com.


More, from a press release issued by Corona Extra Suzuki:

CORONA EXTRA SUZUKI MOVING UP – 7TH SUPERSPORT AND 10TH SUPERSTOCK FINISHES

Corona Extra Suzuki riders Ben Attard and stand-in for the weekend, Scott Greenwood both rode excellent races at Road America to put their Corona Extra Suzuki GSX-R’s into top ten positions.

In SuperStock, Corona Extra Suzuki was to pleased to have 2003 Formula USA champion Scott Greenwood on the seat of the Team’s Suzuki GSX-R 1000. Riding a 1000 for the first time, Scott was impressed with the power, “It lights up the back tire everywhere and shakes it’s head out of corners – you really have to hang on. It’s a heck of a work out!” said Scott after his first ride. It didn’t take him long to get the “hang of it” though, getting up to speed and qualifying on the third row ahead of at least one factory bike. In the race Scott started well, quickly moving up to eleventh on lap three and up to tenth on lap six. Thereafter he rode conservatively to hold the position to the finish – a fine first time out. Scott said, “I didn’t want to throw it away so just rode steady. I was pretty much on my own for half the race so concentrated on keeping my head down and finishing. The bike ran perfect and my crew was terrific. It’s really been great fun to ride with the Corona Extra Suzuki team”.

In SuperSport, Ben Attard rode his Corona Extra Suzuki GSX-R 600 to seventh, besting the factory Yoshimura-Suzuki of Aaron Yates on the way as well a number of other factory bikes. A first timer to the four plus mile track, the longest in the AMA schedule, he quickly got down to good times and his best qualifying to date – eighth and second row on the grid. Ben said; “This is a real horsepower track and we are down a bit on the factory bikes. The front straight is uphill and they are killing me there. I reckon if I can keep up my corner speed I can stay with them around the rest of the track!” Come race day, Ben got a good start and was quickly dicing for seventh, taking it on lap two. He dropped a position in lap five but got past again on the penultimate lap and made the pass stick to the flag, netting his AMA-best finish of seventh. Post-race Ben said: “the Yamahas and Kawasaki’s are so fast. I was riding the wheels off the bike to stay up with them! They have a year of development on us (The GSXR 600 is new for 2004) but we are making the bike better every time we go out!” Ben moves up to tenth in the SuperSport points standings.

Superbike rider Marty Craggill is still recovering from his surgery and missed the event.