Safety First Racing debuts new, young gun at Infineon Raceway: Shea Fouchek #544: Safety First Racing is proud to announce the addition of their newest rider, 18 year old Shea Fouchek, who hails from Georgetown, TX. In speaking with team owner, Kevin Hanson, he related how he came upon Fouchek, who has only been road racing for 7 months. “When I was looking at new riders after Daytona, Marcus McBain, owner of Racing Performance Services, called and said he thought he had the perfect fit for me if I was still looking for a young, 600 rider.” McBain informed me that he had been grooming Fouchek in TX after he came from a 7 year motocross background. I really value McBain’s opinion and Fouchek has been everything he described, ” smart, polite, articulate, and a very smooth rider that has the potential to be a great rider. “After speaking with Fouchek and his father, he came up to Chicago and we did a NESBA trackday at Blackhawk Farms. During the day, several expert CCS riders and AMA riders were present and Fouchek was as fast as everyone except for AMA regular Matt Furtek. This was Fouchek’s first time riding a new 2005 Suzuki GSXR 600. I knew then I had made the right choice, McBain really did a great job of working with him because we’ve been able to hit the ground running and go faster every time out with Fouchek “ stated Hanson. “Originally, I had planned for him to start racing at Barber, however I wasn’t able to get his provisional license from the AMA until Infineon,” commented Hanson. “This weekend I was really pleased with how Shea rode. He kept getting faster every session and finished a very respectable 12th place in Formula Extreme for his first AMA race after qualifying 18th. In Supersport, Shea qualified 19th and was running in 16th place catching Blake Young from KWS when he low-sided, unhurt coming out of the carousel. He had just turned his fastest lap of the weekend and broke into the 42’s,” stated Hanson. Fouchek said, “Overall, I was pleased with the weekend. My goal was to go faster every session out, which I did. Unfortunately in the Supersport race I spun up the rear exiting the horseshoe and couldn’t save it and low-sided. I’m looking forward to Pikes Peak and getting more track time since every AMA track is new to me.” J.J. Roetlin #94: J.J. Roetlin came into the weekend looking to improve his results from Fontana. “I’ve never been a big fan of Fontana. However, I was really looking forward to Infineon because it’s such a physically demanding track, which helps me because of my conditioning, commented Roetlin. SATURDAY SUPERBIKE: After qualifying 26th in Superbike, Roetlin put his head down during Saturdays race and was running 17th before crashing out with 8 laps to go in the race. ” I was catching the Hooter’s guys and Jeremy Toye and cut the corner a little close going into turn 3 and drug my footpeg on the curbing. It levered the bike off the ground and there was nothing I could do at that point other than take a 100mph louge ride” joked Roetlin. “I was bummed because I felt I really could have put it inside the top 15 by the end of the race.” SUNDAY SUPERBIKE: After struggling on the start, Roetlin went on to finish 19th in race. Roetlin related, “I wish I would have gotten a better start because the guys I was running the same lap times with on the previous day got away from me.” SUPERSTOCK: Proving his true grit and superb conditioning, Roetlin immediately raced the delayed Superstock race right after the 28 lap Superbike race. After several riders sat out the Superbike race to conserve energy, Roetlin soldiered on and finished a solid 15th on his Suzuki/VoiceElipse sponsored 2005 Suzuki GSXR 1000 after battling with Blake Young during the race. Roetlin commented, “The bike was just amazing on the brakes, I was just flying by guys going into turn 7 on the brakes during the race. I’m really looking forward to Pikes Peak because it’s a track that I go really well at” added Roetlin. “SAFETY FIRST” PROGRAM: Safety First Racing continued its helmet program in the San Francisco area prior to the AMA weekend. Hanson related, “We went to the Mission YMCA in San Francisco and spent time with the kids there. It’s just awesome seeing how excited these kids get when you bring a racebike in and speak to them. J.J. and Shea did a great job spending time with the kids, autographing posters, handing out sponsor stickers and just hanging out with them They both do an excellent job with our public appearances speaking to people. I mean these kids went nuts when we brought in a bunch of new bicycle helmets to give away to them,” explained Hanson. More, from a press release issued by WMG Management: JAKE ZEMKE WINS THIRD Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme RACE AT infineon SPEEDWAY Sonoma, CA – Jake Zemke won his third consecutive race on Saturday after racing head to head with his rival Miguel DuHamel. Jake recorded the fastest qualifying time on the 2.22-mile raceway earning him pole position for the race start. DuHamel took advantage his outside starting position and jumped out to an early lead. However, Zemke was close behind looking for an opportunity to take over the lead and a chance to claim his third straight victory. With more than just the win at stake, Jake and Miguel were pushing a very fast pace in order to claim the point given out for the most laps led during the race. “We both know that the point for most laps led is really important for the overall championship and we were both going for it,” Jake explained. “Luckily I ended up getting it. I knew Miguel was going to try to pass me to get more points, and I knew it was going to be a battle until the end.” With three wins, Zemke has now moved into a seven-point lead over DuHamel in the title hunt, 142 vs. 135. Jake will be racing again May 21 22 at Pike’s Peak International Raceway in Fountain, CO. More, from a press release issued by Jason DiSalvo’s publicist: Two Hard Fought Podiums for DiSalvo The American Motorcyclist Association SuperBike Championship race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA was the fourth round in the Championship. With good weather on Saturday and Sunday, Jason was consistently fastest in the 600cc SuperSport and 1000cc SuperStock events. In qualifying on Saturday, Jason established a new track record by setting the pole with a time of 1 min 36.9 seconds (which makes Jason the second fastest motorcycle overall on the circuit, second only to the SuperBike pole position set by the SuperBike champion). In establishing pole position Jason gained another point in the Championship hunt. In the SuperSport qualifying, Jason was second fastest giving him a front row start for the race. In the 600cc SuperSport class Jason launched his Yamaha R6 to lead the first three laps of the race, challenged consistently by the two previous series champions. After a hard fought 17 laps, Jason finished second on the podium maintaining his third place position in points. The 1000cc SuperStock race was delayed due to rain and was run after the SuperBike race late Sunday afternoon. From the pole position on his R1 Yamaha Jason again got a great start and led the race for 12 laps being challenged consistently by two of the seasoned competitors. In the last 5 laps, the battle heated to a point seeing the lead change frequently and at one point Jason and his competitors running through the dirt and back on the track with some of the best racing of the day. At the checkered flag Jason finished third for the final podium position, maintaining his championship lead in the SuperStock class. With the next round just a week away Jason will spend a couple of days in Las Vegas before travelling to Colorado Springs (Pikes Peak International Raceway) for the next race. Jason is currently first in the SuperStock class and third in the Supersport class with the season approaching the half way point, Jason commented “These were two of the hardest fought races we’ve had all year”. Next race will be at Pikes Peak International Raceway in Colorado Springs, CO on May 20, 21 & 22. Speed Channel has scheduled these races to be shown on Sunday, May 22, 2005 at 4:00PM , Tuesday, May 24th at 1:00PM, and Thursday, May 26th at 4:00AM. More, from a press release issued by Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki: STEVE RAPP HAS ANOTHER STRONG RESULT FOR MICHAEL JORDAN MOTORSPORTS SUZUKI AT INFINEON RACEWAY Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki rider Steve Rapp had another great result in the Superstock class at Round 4 of the AMA Superbike Championship at Infineon Raceway on Sunday, May 15th. After qualifying 3rd, Rapp finished 4th in Sunday’s race. The day before, Rapp finished 6th in the Superbike event on his GSX-R1000, and was once again the top rider in the class on Superstock-spec machinery. Teammate Montez Stewart continued to make progress with the set-up on his Suzuki, finishing 27th in Sunday’s Superstock final. Jason Pridmore attended the race to cheer on his teammates, only a week after leaving the hospital following emergency surgery to remove his spleen following a crash at Barber Motorsports Park on Sunday, April 24th. Steve Rapp Saturday’s Superbike Final – 6th Place “I got a decent start,” said Rapp. “Larry (Pegram) got in front of me, and he was slowing me down a little bit. He was riding good, and he had a good pace, but there were a couple of sections where he was holding me up, and I finally went around him and then Eric (Bostrom). Then Josh (Hayes) passed me, and our gap stayed about the same. I caught Duhamel and then Zemke, and I figured they were having tire problems. I just rode as hard as I could for the tire conditions.” Sunday’s Superbike Final – Did Not Start Rapp opted to sit out Sunday’s Superbike event, saving his strength and his Suzuki GSX-R1000 for the more important Superstock race that AMA race officials moved to the end of the schedule on Sunday. The original Superstock race was delayed by rain showers, then re-scheduled to allow for the live television window for Superbike. Sunday’s Repsol Lubricants Superstock Final – 4th Place “I’m not disappointed, but after you finish third your goals keep getting harder,” commented Rapp, referring to his third place finish at California two weeks ago. “I think I made the wrong tire choice. I didn’t get to do a lot of long runs on that (specification) tire; it didn’t have quite as good a side grip as the other tires I’ve been using all weekend. I kind of went with the safer choice. I’m glad I stayed ahead of Tommy (Hayden) this time a little more than last weekend. I think it was an improvement over last weekend, because I had a bigger gap on the next place. My pit board was plus zero for a little bit, then I started getting one second on the gap, then two, then three for a couple of laps, then it came back to two and I just didn’t make any mistakes.” Montez Stewart Sunday’s Repsol Lubricants Superstock Final – [Kenny] 28th Place “The weekend started off kind of weird,” said Stewart. “I couldn’t get the bike to work for me, the front of the motorcycle I couldn’t get to work. When I did that race, I was just going in to learn the track and have a good time and finish the race and have a decent place. I’m trying to be top twenty. If I make top twenty I’ll feel better. Overall, it was a good weekend. I learned some things. The Suzuki is a totally different bike than I rode here last year. We’re getting there. We can go to Pikes and try to do good there and move to Road America, which is my home track.” Superstock Results – Round 4 – Infineon Raceway, Sonoma, CA 1. Aaron Yates, Yoshimura Suzuki 2. Jamie Hacking, Yamaha 3. Jason Disalvo, Yamaha 4. Steve Rapp, Jordan Suzuki 5. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki 6. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha 7. Roger Lee Hayden, Kawasaki 8. Jake Holden, Lion Racing Suzuki 9. John Haner, Lion Racing Suzuki 10. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha Superbike Results – Round 4 – Infineon Raceway, Sonoma, CA Race 1 – Saturday 1. Mat Mladin, Yoshimura Suzuki 2. Aaron Yates, Yoshimura Suzuki 3. Neil Hodgson, Ducati 4. Ben Spies, Yoshimura Suzuki 5. Josh Hayes, Kawasaki 6. Steve Rapp, Jordan Suzuki 7. Jake Holden, Lion Racing Suzuki 8. Larry Pegram, Honda 9. Marty Craggill, Mat Mladin Motorsports Suzuki 10. Eric Bostrom, Ducati Race 2 – Sunday 1. Mat Mladin, Yoshimura Suzuki 2. Aaron Yates, Yoshimura Suzuki 3. Ben Spies, Yoshimura Suzuki 4. Jake Zemke, Honda 5. Neil Hodgson, Ducati 6. Miguel Duhamel, Honda 7. Eric Bostrom, Ducati 8. Josh Hayes, Kawasaki 9. Marty Craggill, Mat Mladin Motorsports Suzuki 10. Larry Pegram, Honda Steve Rapp did not start 2005 Superstock Point Standings (After 4 Races) 1. Jason DiSalvo, 126 points 2. Aaron Yates, 121 points 3. Jamie Hacking, 120 points 4. Tommy Hayden, 113 points 5. Steve Rapp, 104 points 6. TIE, Vincent Haskovec/Jake Holden, 88 points 8. John Haner, 83 points 9. Eric Wood, 75 points 10. Aaron Gobert, 74 points 19. TIE, Jason Pridmore (injured) /Matt Lynn, 29 points 28. Montez Stewart, 17 2005 Superbike Point Standings (After 7 Races) 1. Mat Mladin, 227 2. Ben Spies, 211 3. Aaron Yates, 207 4. Neil Hodgson, 201 5. Eric Bostrom, 167 6. TIE, Miguel Duhamel/Marty Craggill, 149 8. Lee Acree, 125 9. Steve Rapp, 117 10. Larry Pegram, 116 24. Jason Pridmore, 49 (injured)