Loris Baz Steals Race 3 Victory In VIR Thriller After Bobby Fong Controls Pace in Quad Lock Superbike Race 2.

Sunday’s double-header of the Quad Lock Superbike Championship at VIRginia International Raceway delivered one of the most unpredictable and action-packed days in MotoAmerica history. Warhorse HSBK Ducati Flo4Law’s Loris Baz snatched a breathtaking victory in a restarted Race 3, following a masterclass performance by Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Bobby Fong in Race 2 earlier in the day.

• Race 2: Fong Rallies From Seventh For Victory

Race 2 began with immediate drama as Race 1 winner, Fong, suffered a poor start, dropping back to seventh position in the opening stages of the first lap. At the front, JD Beach (Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing) led Mathew Scholtz (Strack Racing), Sean Dylan Kelly (OrangeCat Racing), and Richie Escalante (M4 ECSTAR Suzuki). Meanwhile, further back in the pack, Hayden Gillim (Real Steel Honda) ran off track from 11th, and Benjamin Smith’s race ended early with a crash on Lap 4.

Fong quickly mounted a fierce recovery. By the end of Lap 5, he sliced past Baz into fifth, and on Lap 7, he made a decisive move on Escalante. At this stage of the 20-lap race, a tight trail of seven superbikes was separated by less than two seconds. Fong continued his march, overtaking championship leader SDK for third just as Scholtz slipped past Beach for the lead.

On Lap 8, Fong dispatched his teammate Beach to take second. With eight laps remaining, Scholtz held a narrow lead with Fong hounding his rear tire, while a gap of over 1.8 seconds opened to the battling trio of Beach, SDK, and Escalante. With just two laps to go, Fong capitalized on a misstep from Scholtz, gaining the lead. Fong held his lead and pushed on to cross the finish line 2.044 seconds ahead of Scholtz. SDK rounded out the podium in third, leading a frantic trio, where Escalante finished fourth (0.195 seconds behind SDK), and Beach (0.133 seconds from Escalante).

• Race 2 Superbike Cup: A 0.015-Second Photo Finish

In the Superbike Cup class, BPR Racing Yamaha’s Deion Campbell led Danilo Lewis (Team Brazil) and Andrew Lee (Real Steel Honda) by Lap 5. Lee steadily mounted a charge, and by Lap 16, he had fought his way into the lead of the Superbike Cup field.

The battle came down to an absolute photo finish on the final lap. In an incredibly tight dash to the stripe, Campbell managed to edge out championship leader Lee by a mere 0.015 seconds to claim the victory, with Lewis finishing third in class.

• Race 3: Red Flag And Turn 1 Restart Chaos

Race 3 initially saw Fong secure a much better start, but PJ Jacobsen (Rahal Ducati Moto with XPEL) made a stellar launch to jump into third behind Scholtz and SDK. On the front straight of Lap 2, Scholtz experienced a violent headshake and rattle, compressing the pack. On Lap 3, Kelly overtook Scholtz for the lead, and Jacobsen pushed past Scholtz on Lap 4 to claim second.

While Jacobsen nipped at the tire of SDK on Lap 7 of 20, Escalante suffered a high-speed crash into the air fence. The impact dislodged the safety barrier, forcing an immediate red flag to repair the fence.

• Race 3: Baz Lunges To The Front

Following seven laps of the initial 20-lap Race 3, which included another look at Fong, Scholtz and SDK, and now Jacobsen, Escalante suffered a high-speed crash into the air fence. The impact dislodged the safety barrier, forcing an immediate red flag to repair the fence.

The race was restarted at an abbreviated 11-lap distance. As the pack roared into Turn 1 on the restart, the holeshot went three-wide, resulting in a massive, multi-rider pile-up. Fong entered the corner from the inside, losing space and ultimately control, resulting in a chain reaction that had collected Cameron Petersen (Wrench Motorcycles), Scholtz, SDK, and Benjamin Smith (Warhorse HSBK Ducati Flo4Law). While Fong, Petersen, and Smith were forced to retire, both SDK and Scholtz remounted their damaged machines to rejoin the race. Scholtz was ultimately forced to pull over due to mechanical issues, while SDK rode a lap down to salvage a single championship point in 15th.

With five top riders out of the equation, Jacobsen inherited the lead ahead of Jayson Uribe (OrangeCat Racing) and Beach. As Jacobsen began to lose pace with seven laps to go, Uribe closed the gap. Behind them, Loris Baz made his late-race charge, passing Beach for third, continuing to catch the leading duo, as the top four riders were within two seconds.

Baz sliced past Uribe into second. At Turn 1 on the penultimate lap, Baz executed a daring lunge on Jacobsen to take the lead. Despite the pressure from Jacobsen on the final half-lap, Baz held off his fellow Ducati rider to take victory by just 0.155 seconds. Uribe crossed the line in third (+0.801) on his OrangeCat Racing BMW, securing a brilliant podium finish, and his first Superbike podium of his career.

• Race 3 Superbike Cup: Post-Race Penalty Decides The Winner

The Superbike Cup class saw further high-stakes drama. Campbell crossed the finish line first among the Cup competitors, ninth overall, apparently securing his third Cup win of the weekend. Post-race technical scrutiny revealed that Campbell had passed under a yellow flag, resulting in a devastating four-position penalty.

The penalty demoted Campbell to 13th overall (sixth in class), handing the official Superbike Cup Race 3 victory to Lee, who was promoted to ninth overall. Lewis claimed second (10th overall), and Carl Soltisz (Super Carl Racing 57 Rider Development) took third (11th overall). The victory extends Lee’s commanding lead in the Superbike Cup Championship standings.

Quad Lock Superbike Race 2 Results

1. Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
2. Mathew Scholtz (Yamaha)
3. Sean Dylan Kelly (BMW)
4. Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
5. JD Beach (Yamaha)
6. Loris Baz (Ducati)
7. PJ Jacobsen (Ducati)
8. Cameron Petersen (Ducati)
9. Jayson Uribe (BMW)
10. Brandon Paasch (Suzuki)

Superbike Cup Race 2 Results

1. Deion Campbell (Yamaha)
2. Andrew Lee (Honda)
3. Danilo Lewis (Honda)

The following quote is from Quad Lock Superbike Race 2 Winner, Bobby Fong: “Man, honestly, I’m stoked to get two wins this weekend. We rode good. I mean, we made a big step with the bike, I’m back to being comfortable on the thing for a few rounds.
I was struggling there for a little bit, so big kudos to Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha. A bummer what happened in race three. I like to end a weekend on a good note. I don’t want to take anybody out. You know, it just got super tight in there and I ended up tucking the front and taking out the championship leader. So, I’m sorry to Sean (Dylan Kelly) and the whole OrangeCat team. Like, that’s not cool. I’m sorry about that, but I’m looking forward to COTA. 
We do good at COTA. I like that place. The test there, and the beginning of the season was really good. 
So, I know it’s going to be hot and slippery, and lately, I think we got our form at the end of these races. So, it might play into our favor.”

The following quote is from Superbike Cup Race 2 Winner, Deion Campbell: “I definitely have some great momentum. We’ve been working hard with Chris (Weiand) and had a new mechanic, Russ (Proctor), come on, and he’s been definitely a blessing. So yeah, we’re definitely going in the right direction, making big headway with the bike, and I’m pretty excited for COTA now.”

Quad Lock Superbike Race 3 Results

1. Loris Baz (Ducati)
2. PJ Jacobsen (Ducati)
3. Jayson Uribe (BMW)
4. JD Beach (Yamaha)
5. Hayden Gillim (Honda)
6. Brandon Paasch (Suzuki)
7. Ashton Yates (Honda)
8. Max Flinders (BMW)
9. Andrew Lee (Honda)
10. Danilo Lewis (Honda)

Superbike Cup Race 3 Results

1. Andrew Lee (Honda)
2. Danilo Lewis (Honda)
3. Carl Soltisz (Honda)

The following quote is from Quad Lock Superbike Race 3 Winner, Loris Baz: “I’m going to start dedicating that win to two of my really good friends and my first mechanic that passed away in the last month. Unfortunately, I was here racing and I was not with their family. So, Denis, Franc, that’s for you. I promised when I knew the bad news that I was going to win a race before I have to give back the bike to Cam (Beaubier). So really proud to do it. I want to thank Bobby (Shek). I want to thank Warhorse and all the crew. Cyle (Winkler), Simone (Toso), Danny (Anderson), Lee (Vaughan). I’m going to forget a lot of people, but all the sponsors. Not easy to jump on a bike mid-season. We’ve been lucky. Broke my shoulder after ten minutes on the bike. Simone did a really good job. Flo, thanks for everything. I’m so proud. The race, I’ve been lucky, but that’s for the unlucky last race in Mid-Ohio. I could be here talking for half an hour. So proud to do it in front of my dad again. Let’s celebrate. Let’s go fishing and drink some tequila.”

The following quote is from Superbike Cup Race 3 Winner, Andrew Lee: “We got a bit lost on the setup Friday and spent the weekend trying to work back into the right spot. I never felt 100%, but thankful for my team behind me working through everything. We will be back and stronger in COTA”

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More, from another press release issued by MotoAmerica:

Race 2 was pushed back due to inclement weather and lightning in the area. Riders were given a 10-minute wet-familiarization session to test the track on rain tires and gauge setup before the race — now declared wet and shortened to 14 laps from the scheduled 18.

With the weather clearing quickly and no further rain in the forecast, tire choice split the grid. Dry patches around the Virginia road course complicated the call: some riders opted for rain tires, others gambled on slicks, and most notably, the two championship front-runners missed their starting positions entirely.

Polesitter Darryn Binder (Celtic/Economy Lube + Tire/Warhorse) missed the sighting lap outright, while Josh Herrin (Rahal Ducati Moto with Desnuda Organic Tequila) left pit lane on rain tires with the rest of the field. But on his out lap, Herrin noticed most of the grid was playing the long game, fitting slicks in anticipation of a drying track. He made a last-second call to skip the grid, return to pit lane, and swap to slick rubber.

Binder’s miscue sent him to the back of the grid; Herrin’s forced him to start from pit lane and wait for the full field to pass before beginning his recovery.

The 51-year-old four-time Superbike champion Hayes checked out in the frantic opening laps and took the uncontested win by more than 26 seconds over a charging Binder.

Binder authored a remarkable comeback, slicing from 18th to second in 14 laps and salvaging crucial championship points over Herrin. He’d reached fourth by lap four; on that same lap, Herrin was still mired in 17th.

Hayes’ teammate, Brenden Ketelsen, capitalized on the chaotic start and rode a smart, measured race to finish third — holding off a charging Herrin in the closing laps to capture his first career MotoAmerica Supersport podium. Tyler Scott (M4 ECSTAR Suzuki) finished fourth, with Kayla Yaakov (Rahal Ducati Moto with Droplight) rounding out the top five.

Binder now leads Herrin by 33 points while Yaakov sits 129 points back with only 100 marks remaining this season — leaving the title fight to the two Ducati riders at the top of the standings.

The following quote is from Supersport Race 2 winner Josh Hayes: “I’ve been in this situation a few times before and I’ve come out pretty good each time, so I felt pretty confident when the race started that I could do good work and I would be in the fight at least. It went way better than I hoped. I hate that my last two wins were in these conditional-type races, but at the same time I’m racing against warriors, and I don’t give any away, so I know they’ll never give me one. So, I’m really happy — you don’t know if you’re ever going to get another one of these wins, so I’m so thankful to steal another one from these guys. I want one in the dry. I was looking forward to the race today. I get a couple more chances with those guys in the dry. But thank you to Yamaha, thank you to Bryce Kornbau, BPR, Matty, my crew, for giving me this opportunity, for helping me make good decisions, having confidence in me. Here we are. Thank you. Thank you, everybody.”

• Talent Cup

Talent Cup action mirrored Saturday’s result, with local favorite Nathan Gouker (Quarterley Racing) completing a dominant sweep of the weekend. The Lexington, North Carolina, native took Race 2 by five and a half seconds over Sam Drane (Yamaha BLU CRU Estenson Racing). Championship leader Kensei Matsudaira (Team Roberts) finished third, 19 seconds back. 

Despite a crash in morning warmups, Drane made a heroic effort on a clearly sore right leg. He stayed within reach of Gouker for the first four laps before losing touch, after which the gap only widened. Further back, a fierce battle erupted for the final podium spot. Matsudaira and Jake Paige (Team Hammer) swapped positions repeatedly before Matsudaira claimed third by just 0.206 seconds, leaving Paige in fourth.

The results tighten the Talent Cup championship picture heading into the season’s final two rounds. Gouker clawed back 18 points on Matsudaira over the weekend and now trails by just five. With 100 points remaining this season, Paige still holds a slim mathematical chance in third, 73 points behind.

Nathan Gouker, Talent Cup Race 2 winner: “Yeah, it was a great race. I can’t thank the whole Quarterley Racing powered by Warhorse supported by Wrench Crew enough. They had the bike going fantastic all weekend. It started to be a little iffy before the race because it was a little raining. The track was fine. The Dunlop tires held up great. I can’t thank my whole family for coming out. My Mimi, my Papa Scott, my dad, my mom, my sisters, her boyfriend, Nanny, Bob, Paul, Larry, Ferracci. Thank you for coming out and watching all my races. It was a good race. I led all the laps and I had a much better start than I did yesterday. I kind of just put my head down from the start, and I was putting in pretty much 35s the whole race. Sam was a good bit behind me. I think three seconds, two seconds. We were kind of about the same the whole race. I can’t thank KYT Americas, VO2 Leathers, CP Motorsports, Quarterley Racing, Level 11 Motorsports, Accossato, Precision Track Days, mom, dad, Cornerspin for keeping me physically and mentally fit on the bike. I’ve spent so many years at Cornerspin. So, thank you.”

• Twins Cup

Hank Vossberg (Robem Engineering) closed out his Virginia weekend with a win in a red-flag-shortened Twins Cup Race 2. The first segment ran five laps, with Bodie Paige (M4 ECSTAR Suzuki) leading Vossberg in a tight five-rider group that also included Sam Drane (Yamaha BLU CRU Estenson Racing) in third, Kevin Olmedo (Karns/TNT Industries Racing) fourth, and Paige’s teammate Matthew Chapin fifth.