MotoAmerica: How To Watch Round Eight MotoAmerica Superbikes at New Jersey
It’s All Here: How To Not Miss A Bit Of The Action
Everything you need to know for round eight of the 2021 MotoAmerica Series to keep you up to date with what’s happening in New Jersey.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Impeccable: Bagnaia battles Marquez for stunning maiden win at MotorLand
The Ducati rider repels the full Marquez armoury in Aragon, taking a hard-fought first MotoGP™ class win
Sunday, 12 September 2021
He’s been close before, but Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) is now a MotoGP™ race winner. In a true all-time classic at the Gran Premio TISSOT de Aragon, the Italian went toe-to-toe with Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) in a stunner of a duel, finding an answer for every attack as the eight-time World Champion tried, tried and tried again. Repelling the final assault as the number 93 headed through but wide, Bagnaia was able to cross the line with just over half a second in hand to take his first premier class win in impeccable style. Marquez nevertheless got back on the podium for the second time this year and gave us an incredible show, with reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) locking out the rostrum in third.
As the lights went out, polesitter Bagnaia got away well and held on for the holeshot, with teammate Jack Miller going in a bit deep at Turn 1 and that allowing Marc Marquez to grab P2 after a lightning start for the number 93. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) was up to P4, with Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) losing out and down to fifth 5th. Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) then crashed at Turn 5, rider ok.
As Bagnaia and Marc Marquez led the train away, Quartararo was struggling. Both Mir and Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) passed the Frenchman next as he slipped towards the clutches of eighth place Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), but nobody in the early stages was showing their cards, with only 2.2 seconds covering the top six.
Just outside that top six remained Quartararo, however. By now, the Frenchman had the rapid starting Iker Lecuona (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing) climbing all over him, and at the end of Lap 6, the number 27 was through. A couple of laps later, another KTM was ahead as Binder followed Lecuona after the Spaniard had despatched him too, and Quartararo was suddenly down to P9.
With eight laps gone, the cards were beginning to appear on the table. Bagnaia and Marquez were just over a second clear of Miller in third, and that advantage was soon up to nearly two with 13 to go. Miller headed wide at Turn 16 not long after too, allowing Aleix Espargaro and Mir to cut through. The reigning World Champion then managed to despatch the Aprilia to take over in third, but the gap to Pecco and Marquez was now nearly three and a half seconds.
To compound the gap, the pace was far from slowing. The two leaders were exchanging 1:48s lap after lap, with the rest in the 1:49s and below. They’d carved out a 4.3s lead over Mir and Aleix Espargaro with nine laps to go, but then it was into tyre life territory. Would that play a role? With five to go though, there was no change, with both riders still in the 1:48s… and it seemed it was going to the finish.
With four laps left, the pressure from Marquez was ramping up. Getting closer and closer until he was glued on, a lap later the first move finally came. The Honda rider went for a lunge into Turn 5, but he was in a little hot and slightly wide, Pecco replying unflustered to get back into the lead. So Marquez next shoved his RC213V up the inside at Turn 15, but again, the Italian got the cutback and held P1. Two down, how many to go?
On the penultimate lap, another. An exact copy and paste at Turn 5, Marquez again lunged late and again got a quick reply. The exact same thing happened at Turn 15 too, and again, Bagnaia carved back past. And so it was going down to some final lap fireworks…
This time, Marquez tried his luck at Turn 1, but that didn’t stick either. So, of course, Turn 5 saw another lunge for the third lap in a row, with the exact same result. That made six attempts from the number 93, each of which had been on to try but each of which had been greeted with a swift reply.
Marquez is Marquez though, so a seventh attempt then came at Turn 12. The number 93 got a great run out of his own namesake Marc Marquez Corner and was up the inside at the downhill left-hander, not a move he’d tried yet but ultimately one that wasn’t going to work either. Struggling to get it hooked up to the apex, Marquez was wide and onto the green, and Pecco needed no second invitation to sweep back past, keep it pinned and finally gain a few metres of breathing space.
From there the Italian made no mistake and crossed the line to complete a perfect weekend: pole position to maiden MotoGP™ victory, the eighth winner of 2021, defeating Marc Marquez on his home turf. His victory is also the 250th for Italy in the premier class, adding Francesco Bagnaia next to a little chapter of a rich history. Emotional in parc ferme, Bagnaia was just sublime on Sunday at Aragon.
Marquez threw absolutely everything at it as he sought that seventh win at MotorLand though, coming up just six tenths short. Still, it’s another podium and a leading role in an all-time classic, as well 20 points to add to his tally – and he’ll likely sleep rather well knowing he left it all out there, seven times.
Behind, Mir kept it tidy in third to take his fifth rostrum of 2021, in some space alone as he escaped Aleix Espargaro but couldn’t get onto terms with Bagnaia and Marquez. Aleix Espargaro’s P4 is another excellent ride from the Spaniard though, and he’s the top Independent Team rider. Miller couldn’t recover ground later on and finished a lonely fifth.
Reigning Moto2™ World Champion Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama) claims sixth for his best premier class result, putting the cherry on top of an impressive weekend. The rookie beat Binder by just 0.3s, and both escaped Quartararo by a good margin. A tricky day at the office for the World Championship leader and his second worst result of the season sees his lead cut, but it’s still a healthy 53 points with five races to go.
Martin took P9 less than a tenth behind Quartararo too, with Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) 10th in the same pack as Bastianini, an earlier sparring partner, was able to break away from the Japanese rider. Lecuona made a mistake with a handful of laps to go that saw the Spaniard slip outside the top 10, but it was nevertheless a great ride from the 21-year-old and a stunning early charge.
Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) pocketed P12 from P20 on the grid, gaining some ground, and it was a quieter day for Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) in P13, just ahead of Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and 15th place Danilo Petrucci (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing).
Cal Crutchlow (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) were P16 and P17 respectively, with Maverick Viñales taking P18 on his Aprilia Racing Team Gresini debut. Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and Luca Marini (Sky VR46 Avintia) were the final finishers, with Jake Dixon (Petronas Yamaha SRT) joining Alex Marquez in the DNFs, crashing out on Lap 2 and rider also ok.
So, a magnificent MotorLand battle sees Bagnaia finally claim that illustrious first MotoGP™ win. Next up: his home race at Misano. Remember that time he disappeared in the lead and then crashed? The Italian will be looking for a replay of the first half, and has never seemed less likely to recreate the second… save the date as MotoGP™ gets ready to take on the Riviera di Rimini.
MotoGP™ podium
1 Francesco Bagnaia – Ducati Lenovo Team – Ducati – 41:44.422
2 Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda Team – Honda – +0.673
3 Joan Mir – Team Suzuki Ecstar – Suzuki – +3.911
Top Independent Team rider
4 Aleix Espargaro – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini – Aprilia – +9.269
Francesco Bagnaia: “A lot of emotion today. I’m so happy. We worked a lot to achieve this result, every time we were close, something happened and this dream to take my first victory, every time it was far. So to win today is a great liberation. I’m so happy, I have to say thanks to all the team, my family, my fantastic girlfriend, who are with me every day. It’s difficult to say something now, but it was not easy. I knew it wasn’t easy to stay in front of Marc at this track. His body isn’t at 100% but I think today with the hunger to win he was very, very competitive, and… I just tried to do my best and finish first. It’s a dream come true.”
Raul Fernandez storms MotorLand
Surgery to victory? No problem. The number 25 flies high to equal Marquez as a Moto2™ rookie, with Gardner doing good damage limitation in second
Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) pulled another sensational win out of the hat at Aragon, despite a crash at Silverstone leaving him on the back foot and a crash cycling for which he needed surgery on his hand just before the race weekend. Nevertheless, he dominated to equal Marc Marquez’ record of five wins as a Moto2™ rookie, with teammate and Championship leader Remy Gardner taking second. With that, Red Bull KTM Ajo wrapped up the Teams’ Championship, and the win was also their hundredth too. Augusto Fernandez (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) completed the podium for another rostrum finish as he shows more good 2021 form, storming through from 12th on the grid.
Off the line it was Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) who held firm from pole from Gardner and Raul Fernandez, opening up an advantage of 0.6 on the opening lap as Raul Fernandez then passed title rival Gardner for second at Turn 12. Just behind, Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) grabbed P4 from Hector Garzo (FlexBox HP 40). The fastest lap of the race on Lap 2 for Raul Fernandez saw him cut Lowes’ lead to just 0.2, with Gardner sitting twice that down on his teammate, in third.
The number 25 then decided to attack for the lead at the beginning of Lap 4, with Gardner exchanging P3 with Ogura just behind. The Australian was having a scrappy opening handful of laps, wide at Turn 12 and once again conceding P3 to Ogura. Soon after, Garzo was also ahead of Gardner. It was a fascinating scrap the Aussie found himself in, but in getting caught up with the likes of Ogura and Garzo – who crashed at Turn 8 on Lap 5 – the gap to Lowes and Fernandez was up to 1.9s. By 10 laps down, Raul Fernandez was still holding Lowes at bay by just over a second and Gardner was over three seconds down on them, with Jorge Navarro (+EGO Speed Up) and Aron Canet (Kipin Energy Aspar Team) in hot pursuit.
On Lap 12, the first drama for a frontrunner: Marco Bezzecchi’s (Sky Racing Team VR46) quiet weekend came to a premature end at Turn 8, putting a dent in his standings. And then, after seeing Raul Fernandez stretch his lead to nearly one and a half seconds, a gift was handed to both Red Bull KTM Ajo riders as Lowes was the next to slide out. Rider ok, the Brit stacked it at Turn 7 with nine laps to go, leaving Raul Fernandez with a huge, six-second lead over Gardner.
Despite the pain barrier, the number 25 was unstoppable. Keeping that gap to the end, Raul Fernandez took his fifth win to take back to the top step in style, with the deficit to Gardner in the Championship down to 39 points as they swept the Teams’ title too.
In even more good news for Aki Ajo, future Red Bull KTM Ajo rider Augusto Fernandez took the final place on the podium. After starting 12th the Spaniard make good progress to slice his way up to the fight for the rostrum, with Navarro his final obstacle. The two had a good duel before the number 37 was able to just pull away to take that third.
Navarro nevertheless took another strong result in fourth, with Canet finishing three seconds down on the rostrum fight in P5. P6 went the way of Fabio Di Giannantonio (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2), as newly crowned Moto2™ European Champion Fermin Aldeguer (+EGO Speed Up) claimed a stunning P7 – his best yet despite already having made quite an impression. Ogura faded slightly and took P8, with fellow rookie Tony Arbolino (Liqui Moly Intact GP) finishing P9 in a much improved race day for the Italian.
The experienced Simone Corsi (MV Agusta Forward Racing) rounded out the top 10, the Italian beating Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP), Marcos Ramirez (American Racing), Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team), Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) and Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) as they locked out the remaining point scoring positions.
That’s a wrap on MotorLand as the paddock packs up and heads to Misano for another showdown next weekend. Can Bezzecchi and Lowes bounce back? Will Raul Fernandez show the same incredible form? Or will it be another win for Gardner as he enjoys that 39-point lead? We don’t have to wait long to find out!
Moto2™ podium:
1 Raul Fernandez – Red Bull KTM Ajo – Kalex – 39:49.990
2 Remy Gardner – Red Bull KTM Ajo – Kalex – +5.408
3 Augusto Fernandez – Elf Marc VDS Racing Team – Kalex – +6.824
Raul Fernandez: “It was really difficult race, all this weekend. At the end I’m really happy, the race was really strong, I couldn’t do more with my hand, I couldn’t brake the last five laps. It was really difficult for me but I’m really happy to be here. I want to thank Dr Mir, his team, the Clinica, Alpinestars, my team and family I’m here because of them. Thanks everyone, and this victory is special because it’s my first one here in Spain, with the fans here and my friends. But especially because Hugo Millan’s family is here, this is for him. I’m really happy and this is for his family.”
Foggia gains big as Aragon brings the drama
The Italian just defeats Öncü, with Sasaki taking the final step on the podium to gain back some momentum
Moto3™ brought the serious drama at MotorLand, with three Championship contenders all finding bad luck or trouble on race day. The first was for Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) as he was forced into the gravel, then Championship leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) crashed and, right as he seemed set to make huge gains, so did second overall Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team). But one contender held firm and avoided it all, with Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) pulling off a tactical masterclass to take his third win of the year and move back into third overall.
The Italian just defeated another stunner from Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3), the Turkish rider impressing once again but forced to wait for that first win. Completing the podium was Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3), the Japanese rider digging deep and taking an emotional second rostrum after a difficult few months of injury, bad luck and more.
Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) kept the lead initially as the South African held on for the holeshot, but Garcia was quick to attack. As ever though, the moves came thick and fast and a leading freight train formed. Öncü took over at the front, with Acosta, Garcia and Binder shadowing in the early stages.
Drama hit on Lap 5 for Silverstone winner Fenati. Front row starter Gabriel Rodrigo (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) suddenly crashed in front of the Italian, and he was forced to take avoiding action into the gravel – rejoining well down the order, a postcode off the points.
There was also an early touch between Xavier Artigas (Leopard Racing) and Acosta but no harm done. Meanwhile Öncü rolled on at the front, able to stay ahead down the back straight too as a group of nine formed at the front followed by SIC58 Squadra Corse duo Lorenzo Fellon and Tatsuki Suzuki.
After chipping away at it, they tagged onto the back to make it 11 riders fighting for the win, but it was a costly push for Fellon as the French rookie then got a Long Lap penalty for track limits. Taking it dropped him back in behind the chasing trio of Niccolo Antonelli (Avintia VR46 Academy), double 2020 winner at the track Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Stefano Nepa (BOE Owlride).
Antonelli and Nepa were next to tag on, but then drama whittled the group down again… and key drama. After a season of history making, Acosta made his first big race day error of the year, heading up the inside of Artigas and then losing it, skittling both out. And he couldn’t rejoin, leaving Garcia with an open goal…
Starting the final lap, Foggia led Öncü led the two GASGAS machines of Garcia and Izan Guevara (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team). Öncü then hit the front, the Turk digging in on the search for that elusive first victory, and even more drama soon hit just behind. Despite the huge chance to home in on Acosta, it just wasn’t to be. Garcia suddenly slid out as he fought to gain more ground, rider ok and able to rejoin but no points coming his way.
Meanwhile, Öncü remained ahead and the Turk led heading onto the back straight – as he had a good few times during the race, able each time to keep it too. But this time, Foggia had the legs and the incredible straight-line speed of the Leopard Honda struck, the number 7 slicing past. Öncü tried to reply on the drag to the line and almost did, but he’s forced to settle for another second, just 0.041 off the win.
After a weekend of more muted timesheets at times from Sasaki, the Japanese rider played his cards to perfection on race day. Making moves through the group late on, the number 71 took his second Grand Prix podium by just 0.064, denying Guevara as the Spanish rookie was forced to wait for that first podium once again, just as at Silverstone.
Antonelli stormed the latter stages the come home in fifth, able to pull out a few tenths on compatriot Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team), who nevertheless bounced back after a tough-to-take technical DNF at Silverstone. Binder took seventh nearly a second further back, with Nepa half a second behind him. Suzuki lost out to the Italian by 0.101 as he took ninth, with Masia completing the top ten a couple of seconds off the front group, not finding his 2020 MotorLand magic this time around.
Ryusei Yamanaka (CarXpert PrüstelGP) took P11 with a little breathing space ahead of Adrian Fernandez (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team), with Syarifuddin Azman (Petronas Sprinta Racing) only a tenth and a half off the number 31 by the flag. No mean feat, and the Malaysian impressively scores points on his Grand Prix debut.
Rather stunningly, behind him came Fenati. The veteran Italian dug in to try and gain ground back after being forced wide, and gain ground he did. Making up the gap to the next riders, passing them, and then rinsing and repeating, the number 55 took 2 points for 14th.
Riccardo Rossi (BOE Owlride) just pipped Kaito Toba (CIP Green Power) to the final point, with a late crash seeing Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) and Fellon both fail to make the flag.
A dramatic day several times over comes to a close at MotorLand with zero change in the Championship standings when it comes to the top two. But behind, Foggia moves into thirs just ahead of home turf at Misano – now only 58 points off the top. What will the Riviera di Rimini bring? We’ll find out next weeked…
Moto3™ podium
1 Dennis Foggia – Leopard Racing – Honda – 37.53.710
2 Deniz Öncü – Red Bull KTM Tech3 – KTM – +0.041
3 Ayumu Sasaki – Red Bull KTM Tech3 – KTM – +0.644
This weekend’s results are brought to you by 6D Helmets.
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Championship Point Standings (after 15 of 18 races):
More, from a press release issued by MotoAmerica:
Lewis, De Keyrel Crowned On Day One At NJMP
Jake Lewis And Kaleb De Keyrel Win MotoAmerica Championships
MILLVILLE, NJ (September 11, 2021) – Altus Motorsports’ Jake Lewis wrapped up the 2021 MotoAmerica Stock 1000 title with a relatively stress-free victory while Robem Engineering’s Kaleb De Keyrel finished second later on a sunny Saturday to earn the 2021 MotoAmerica Twins Cup Championship at New Jersey Motorsports Park.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly, meanwhile, took a giant step toward capturing the 2021 Supersport title with a .001 of a second victory over his championship rival Richie Escalante.
SportbikeTrackGear.com Junior Cup Championship leader Tyler Scott also scored a victory on Saturday to turn his nine-point lead over Benjamin Gloddy into a 21-point lead going into Sunday’s race two.
Stock 1000: Lewis Crowned
Ask any motorcycle road racer, and pretty much all of them will say that the best way to wrap up a championship is to win the race when you clinch. And that’s exactly what happened for Altus Motorsports Suzuki rider Jake Lewis in the weekend’s only Stock 1000 race.
Lewis had the best day of his MotoAmerica career with the win and the championship, but his closest rival Corey Alexander unfortunately had one of his worst days. Aboard his “Engine 23” HONOS HVMC Racing Kawasaki – which featured special fire engine-inspired livery in remembrance of the 20th anniversary of 9/11 – had a technical issue with his bike on the grid and was unable to start the race.
Second place went to Jones Honda’s Ashton Yates, who led a large portion of the 15-lap race until Lewis ultimately passed him and went on to the get the win. Meanwhile, the surprise of the day was third-place finisher Mike Selpe, who put his Markbilt Racing Yamaha on the podium in his first-ever MotoAmerica race.
“I wanted to get it done at this round and go out with a win, but, unfortunately, I didn’t get to race with (Corey Alexander),” Lewis said. “Hats off to Ashton (Yates). I honestly wasn’t expecting that at all. I think he had some problems with his bike overheating yesterday and this morning he was fast, but I didn’t know what his pace was going to be like. I just let him do the lead. It’s tough to lead around here. It was kind of a longer race. I wanted to see how he managed his tires. He actually had a pretty good little gap there midway. I made a mistake going into turn seven and ran a little bit wide, but then after that I was like, ‘I’m not going to let him win.’ I wanted to go out and get the championship up on top of the step, so that’s what we did. Hats off to the whole Altus Motorsports team for giving me the opportunity this year. Like I said on the podium, I was sitting on the couch last year, was over 200 pounds, and kind of hit a tough spot. Thought about quitting racing. They gave me the opportunity and I worked my ass off to get back in shape. I went out and got my butt kicked at the first round. I was off the podium both races. I was like, ‘It’s time to get going now,’ and I’ve been on the podium ever since. Like you said, five wins and three in a row. So, in a good spot right now. It feels good to get the championship this weekend.”
Supersport: Kelly On The Verge Of Title
In Supersport race one, the expected battle between points leader Sean Dylan Kelly aboard his M4 ECSTAR Suzuki and defending champion Richie Escalante aboard his HONOS HVMC Racing Kawasaki manifested itself in a big way during the 19-lap event. But, before that, it was Kelly’s teammate Sam Lochoff who had the best race of his MotoAmerica career so far. The South African led the race multiple times and mixed it up with both Kelly and Escalante. On the final lap, Kelly and Escalante established themselves at the front, and the battle was on. The season-long rivals swapped the lead at least four times on the final go-around, and Kelly ultimately prevailed by a scant .001 of a second to notch his 11th win of the season thus far and move even closer to clinching the season championship.
“It’s been a special weekend,” said Kelly. “Coming in with the chance to win the championship without even having to win a race, it goes through your mind. A lot of people have been talking to me about the weekend and what I have to do, what I don’t have to do. At the end of the day, I’ve done I think the right thing all season long, so why change it? I focused on not overthinking, coming here, and doing the same job as every other weekend. I’m really happy with today’s job. It was honestly on the harder side of those races, really tough. It was awesome to see Sam (Lochoff) up there. He’s really competitive and a new rider to fight with throughout the race. I tried to play it a little smart, not get too crazy with him and do unnecessary moves. I had to do some thinking in the middle of the race and just leave it for the end and it played out well. I knew Richie (Escalante) was going to be there towards the end as well. It worked out well. Fought until the end. I think I made a little dumb mistake. I actually thought it was the last lap with two to go, so I celebrated for a second until I realized that it wasn’t the last lap. So, that was a first. I had to gather myself up in about five seconds once Richie went by me again. I’m really glad that I was able to do some close moves. Richie was definitely closing the door in some places, but I still did it. The door was still big enough. It was a close one, but happy with the job and just focus on tomorrow.”
SportbikeTrackGear.Com Junior Cup: Scott In Control
In SportbikeTrackGear.com Junior Cup race one, Scott Powersports KTM rider Tyler Scott and Landers Racing Kawasaki’s Ben Gloddy were expected to continue their season-long fight for the championship, but a fractured wrist suffered by Gloddy a couple of weeks ago prevented Gloddy from finishing higher than fourth, and he was more than eight-and-a-half seconds behind race-winner Scott when the 13-lap event concluded.
While Scott tallied his eighth win of the season, the rest of the podium was a battle between Rodio Racing Kawasaki’s Gus Rodio and Bauce Racing/Cybersafe Solutions/JL62 Racing Kawasaki’s Joe LiMandri Jr. At the finish line, Rodio prevailed in second place by just .024 of a second over third-place finisher LiMandri Jr.
“I tried to break away early thinking there was going to be a pack of riders, definitely these two,” Scott said. “I thought Ben (Gloddy) was going to be there. I broke away and I saw on my pit board two seconds, so I just tried to keep it at two seconds because I was really pushing the limit the first couple laps. I got kind of close to the track record. I just stayed at the pace I was going and did what I needed to do to win.”
Twins Cup: It’s Title Time For De Keyrel
The Twins Cup class has seen an influx of new riders all season long, and for round eight of the championship, Aprilia test rider Tommaso Marcon raced for Robem Engineering, while Cory Ventura, who podiumed twice in Supersport at Laguna Seca in his only other appearance this season, competed for Veloce Racing.
It was a case of bad news/good news for the pair of Aprilia RS 660 riders as Marcon crashed out of the 14-lap event, while Ventura won the race. And while Ventura celebrated on the top step of the podium, second-place finisher Kaleb De Keyrel celebrated the class championship that he clinched aboard his Robem Engineering Aprilia. Also celebrating was De Keyrel’s teammate Max Toth, who got his first Twins Cup podium finish in only his second race in the class.
After his race win, Ventura said, “All weekend long I’ve been facing issues with my shifter. I’m not good when it comes to downshifting. I’ve had years in the past where it’s been a huge struggle of mine, and once I got on (a Kawasaki in Supersport), I didn’t have that issue anymore. Here we are again. It kind of caught me by surprise. As soon as I go to focus on racing and what’s in front of me, I forget about making positive shifts. So, tomorrow I need to make sure I get that dialed in and figured out. But to be honest, I don’t think I was riding too well. I think there was a lot of time out of the racetrack and so a lot of battles to be had. Tomorrow we’ve got to come back swinging because there’s no way what I did today is going to win tomorrow’s race.”
“Half of me wanted to win and half of me wanted to play it safe,” said championship winner De Keyrel. “I was definitely going for the win. Cory was riding awesome. Max got by me, and he was riding really good. Definitely stepped it up from last weekend, so that was cool to see. All three Robem Engineering bikes were up front, so that was really good for us. There were definitely some points in the race where I was like, I really want to win, but we’re pushing really hard here. Then Tommaso threw it away. Something happened to Mazziotto, I think. I was like, okay, there’s a lot on the line here, so I was kind of trying to plan my move where I could. I really did want to win. Like I said, the whole race, half of me wanted to win, half of me wanted to just play it safe, but I gave it everything I had out there. Cory was riding awesome, so congrats to him. We’ll hopefully work on the setup a little bit and come out swinging for tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by Team Hammer:
KELLY WINS SUPERSPORT PHOTO FINISH IN NEW JERSEY
Team Hammer enjoyed a sensational Saturday of the penultimate round of the 2021 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship at New Jersey Motorsports Park.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly showed his ability to keep the pressure on his opponents once again in the MotoAmerica Supersport contest, pulling off yet another final-lap victory in jaw-dropping fashion.
The series points leader was forced to work very hard yet again, dicing it up with teammate Sam Lochoff over the first half of the contest before settling into a one-on-one duel with the defending class champ in the race’s decisive laps.
The final of five lead changes that took place over the race’s last-lap-and-a-half came courtesy of ‘SDK’ leveraging the extreme agility of his GSX-R600 to unexpectedly slot into first position in the middle of the chicane.
That maneuver set up a drag race to the checkered flag that was only decided once officials reviewed the start/finish line camera. Kelly was officially credited with a 0.001-second margin of victory.
The win was his 11th of the season and improved SDK’s chance to lock down the title early. Kelly needs a finish of just seventh or better on Sunday to clinch the title even if his closest challenger were to win out in the remaining races.
“Clearly, I was willing to risk quite a bit,” Kelly said. “I went out there to win. Everyone’s talking about my chances to win the championship, and how I possibly didn’t even have to win to clinch this weekend. That doesn’t matter. I come here because I work hard to win, so I’m going to do that every single weekend. We’ve been doing that all season long, so why not keep doing it?
“This is amazing. I’m really happy, but we still have tomorrow, and that’s going to be an important day for us.”
Lochoff registered arguably his most impressive ride yet in middleweight competition. The South African secured provisional pole on Friday and proved his competitiveness by leading multiple laps while pushing the class’ established powers before settling into a secure third.
The result was the fourth podium of the rookie’s maiden Supersport campaign. He said, “Riding with the fastest guys, I was learning every lap. I made a couple mistakes, especially on the long left. But we’re going to go back and make a couple changes for tomorrow. Leading some laps, it felt like a win. But I think if we make the right changes, maybe we can be even more competitive tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Altus Motorsports Suzuki’s Jake Lewis already completed his ultimate goal for the 2021 season by claiming the Stock 1000 crown a race early.
Lewis put the finishing touches on his championship with a dramatic victory, executing a final-lap pass aboard his Team Hammer-built GSX-R1000R to claim the championship in ideal fashion.
“I wanted to go out and get the championship from the top step to reward my team and that’s what we did,” Lewis said. “Last year, I was out of the paddock, sitting on the couch, over 200 pounds, and in a tough spot. I thought about quitting racing, but I’ve been traveling the country in a van with my mom and dad since I was four years old, chasing a dream. I worked hard to get back in shape. After I got my butt kicked at the first round, I knew it was time to get going, and we’ve been on the podium pretty much ever since.
“Big thanks to Altus Motorsports for the opportunity and to Team Hammer as well for the amazing technical package.”
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Superbike teammates, Bobby Fong and Cameron Petersen, put up a strong fight as well on Saturday. Fong battled it out for a podium throughout aboard his Suzuki GSX-R1000R, coming up 0.132 seconds short of the box in fourth. Petersen, meanwhile, engaged in a three-way scrap for fifth before ultimately finishing in seventh.
Wyatt Farris added another top-ten finish to the team’s tally by finishing tenth aboard his M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R in the Stock 1000 contest.
Sunday will be another big day at the track for Team Hammer at NJMP with Kelly and Lochoff going for victory in Supersport and the premier Superbike class racing not once, but twice.
About Team Hammer
The 2021 season marks Team Hammer’s 41st consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won 124 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums 325 times and have won ten AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships (in Superbike and Supersport.) The team has also won 137 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 Overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running “Methanol Monster” GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.
This weekend’s results are brought to you by 6D Helmets.
21_11_NJMP_SBK_R1_res
Superbike Championship Point Standings (after 15 of 20 races):
Superbike Cup Championship Point Standings (after 15 of 20 races):
More, from a press release issued by MotoAmerica:
Gagne Has One Hand On The 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Title
Jake Gagne Needs Just Two Points To Take First Superbike Crown
MILLVILLE, NJ (September 11, 2021) – If Jake Gagne manages to get out of bed tomorrow and make it to the grid for the first of two HONOS Superbike races at New Jersey Motorsports Park, he will be crowned as the 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Champion. Nuff said.
In HONOS Superbike race one on Saturday afternoon, Gagne and his Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha again made a mockery of the rest of the field as he led all 20 laps in winning his 14th straight race by 7.6 seconds. After 15 races, Gagne leads the championship point standings by a whopping 98 points. If he scores two points in race one on Sunday, he will start race two as the 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Champion – his second MotoAmerica title to go with his 2015 Superstock 1000 title.
Only a brave man would bet against Gagne winning his 15th and 16th straight races tomorrow and the Californian doesn’t seem to be willing to let someone else win.
“I wish I could,” Gagne said. “I just have to do my job. This bike is this good. I’ve got to ride it as hard as I can every lap. We made some good improvements throughout the weekend, throughout yesterday and this morning, and so got a little bit more comfortable. We were happy with our race pace. We knew kind of what we could do. It was a little slicker even than I thought this afternoon. I’m sure with the heat it got into the track, got into the tires. It was a little slicker than I thought, for sure. But I’m happy. I got off to a good start. I saw Mat (Scholtz) coming around the outside of me in one right there. I know these guys are going to try to stick it up in there, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow. We’ve got two long races, so I’m sure it will be a battle. We’ll just keep clicking away at it. I’ve got nothing to do but ride the thing as hard as I can every lap, and whatever happens, happens.”
Second place on Saturday went to Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz, the South African taking the runner-up spot for the fifth time on the season as he solidifies his stranglehold on second in the championship.
“Second place, I kind of have to be happy,” Scholtz said. “Obviously, we would like to win, but Jake (Gagne) is on form now. It’s kind of nice to be the next-best guy after the Attack Yamaha. At this point it’s pretty clear to see that they have the best package. So, it’s always good to be up there. I think Jake beat us by seven or eight seconds, which is a little bit far, so I’m just going to go back to the briefing room now and just try to figure out what we can do better. The first five or six laps I felt good. We did a 21.2, 21.3 and I felt comfortable. Then I got to lap five or six and I was just pushing the front and sliding out of almost every single right-hand corner, so got to try to figure out something how we can kind of hook up better. Obviously, if you’re going to do something, you’ve got to pass Jake early on because once he kind of settles into his own groove and he’s gone, he definitely has a better pace than everyone else. So, hopefully, tomorrow I’ll be able to get a decent jump and try to do something out of the first couple corners. For now, just got to be happy with this second place. I had a decent battle with Toni (Elias). It’s always good to see him back up here. Happy with the Yamaha sweep of the podium. Just a big shoutout to the Westby team. We’ve been working hard. We completely changed the motorcycle about four or five rounds back, and I feel like we’ve been making steady progress forward. So, I’ve just got to keep on working at it and just chip away a couple tenths, and we should be right there.”
Toni Elias had his third outing on the Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha and he put it on the podium for the second time, the Spaniard ending up third, some four seconds adrift of Scholtz and just .132 of a second ahead of M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Bobby Fong.
“This is the best bike and the best team,” Elias said. “We were a little bit limited at Pittsburgh. Maybe the track was a little bit better for me. This one is more difficult. They bring me something for the front that means I felt instantly much comfortable on the brakes. Let’s say, I come back to my riding style, to hard brakes and on braking areas. But I’m still missing rear contact, rear grip on entry, on exit. We are working so hard. We did small improvements, but I need something big. We are getting closer, because the possibilities of things were two things and we have no time, but every time we’re getting closer and closer, more close to the solution. That’s the goal. Today I had a really good start. I tried to follow him (Gagne) for six, seven laps. At the end, I couldn’t. Then Mathew (Scholtz) was having better pace than me. I decided to let him go and just he helped me to continue, and at the end I couldn’t either. I just was trying to not lose the rear too much. Also, Bobby (Fong) was faster than me, but I just closed the doors and pushed the last few laps and the last three corners and saved the podium. Thanks to the team, Attack Yamaha, to continue giving me opportunities. Tomorrow we have to work. I will keep pushing, working and let’s see what we can do.”
Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati New York’s Loris Baz finished fifth and some 10 seconds behind Fong after topping the third Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha ridden by the returning Josh Herrin by just .051 of a second.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Cameron Petersen was seventh, well clear of One Cure Ducati’s Kyle Wyman who was less than a second ahead of Superbike Cup winner Jake Lewis and his Altus Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000. FLY Racing ADR Motorsports’ Bradley Ward rounded out the top 10.
More, from a press release issued by Westby Racing:
Scholtz Notches 11th Superbike Podium And Fifth Runner-Up Result Of The Season
Millville, NJ – September 11, 2021 – On Saturday at New Jersey Motorsports Park, Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz not only finished on the Superbike podium for the 11th time in this year’s MotoAmerica Championship, his second-place result was the fifth time he has finished as runner-up this season.
And, while winning races is obviously the number-one objective of Mathew and the team, the consistency, which includes their current six-race podium streak, has given them a stone-cold lock on second place in the point standings, with a gap of nearly 60 points to the third-ranked rider with five races left in the season.
Starting from the middle of the front row, Mathew got a good jump off the line and tried to overtake Jake Gagne on the opening lap, but he ran out of room. After that, Toni Elias overtook Mathew, but Mathew had good pace and got past Toni as the race approached the halfway point. From there, Mathew maintained second place all the way to the checkered flag.
“Second place, I kind of have to be happy,” Mathew said. “Obviously, we would like to win, but Jake (Gagne) is on form now. It’s kind of nice to be the next-best guy after the Attack Yamaha. At this point it’s pretty clear to see that they have the best package. So, it’s always good to be up there. I think Jake beat us by seven or eight seconds, which is a little bit far, so we’re just going to go back to the briefing room now and try to figure out what we can do better. The first five or six laps, I felt good. We did a 21.2, 21.3, and I felt comfortable. Then, I got to lap five or six, and I was just pushing the front and sliding out of almost every single right-hand corner, so we’ve got to try to figure out how we can kind of hook up better. Obviously, if you’re going to do something, you’ve got to pass Jake early on because once he settles into his own groove and he’s gone, he definitely has a better pace than everyone else. So, hopefully, tomorrow I’ll be able to get a decent jump and try to do something out of the first couple corners. For now, just got to be happy with this second place. I had a decent battle with Toni. It’s always good to see him back up here. Happy with the Yamaha sweep of the podium. Just a big shout-out to the Westby Racing team. We’ve been working hard. We completely changed the motorcycle about four or five rounds back, and I feel like we’ve been making steady progress forward. So, we’ve just got to keep on working at it and just chip away a couple tenths, and we should be right there.”
Ed Sullivan, Westby Racing Crew Chief said, “Solid race for Mathew and our team today. Another strong second place. We have some changes ready for Sunday morning warm up, and I’m confident we will make the step needed to get Mathew up fighting with Jake.”
Chuck Giacchetto, Westby Racing Team Manager, added, “Today was the best day of our 2021 effort, in my opinion. I am so pleased and proud of our team. The guys found a very nice rhythm of late, and it’s all coming together. With regard to Mathew, he’s worked very hard to change not only his riding style but he has also found a much calmer approach to addressing his needs, which, in turn, gives Ed and the crew much more precise feedback.
“I know there is only a small mathematical chance to win the championship at this point, but I’m so ready to address the improvements that the team wants and needs because we still have room to improve. To be as close as we are and realize that there’s still room for improvement is very exciting as we look forward to the 2022 season.”
Sunday’s Superbike race two is at 11 a.m. ET, and Superbike race three is at 3 p.m. ET. Both races will be broadcast live on FOX Sports 2 (FS2), as well as streamed on MotoAmerica Live+.
For more updates about Westby Racing, including news, photos, and videos, visit http://www.WestbyRacing.com
Also, follow “Westby Racing” on your favorite social media sites.
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Gagne Inches Closer to MotoAmerica Superbike Crown with 14th-Straight Win
Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne scored another dominant victory in today’s race one of the MotoAmerica Superbike tripleheader at the New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, New Jersey. His impressive 14th-straight win moves him closer to his first title in the premier class. Toni Elias joined him on the podium in third. After two months away, Josh Herrin had a solid first race back, coming just shy of a top-five finish in sixth.
Gagne set the pace early, leading every session to maintain his perfect qualifying record this season. The Colorado rider got a great start from pole position and led every lap to take his 14th win of the season by a 7.6-second margin. With 100 points left on the table and five races remaining, Gagne’s 98-point lead in the championship puts him just two points away from clinching the title a week early.
Elias got a great start from the second row of the grid to third and quickly moved into the runner-up spot. He then found himself in a three-way battle for the podium and on Lap 7, he was passed by fellow Yamaha rider Mathew Scholtz. The Spaniard kept pushing but then had a moment after the halfway mark and lost some ground. With another rider on his heels, Elias kept cool under pressure and held off the competition to secure third for his second podium finish in three tries aboard the Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha R1.
After being sidelined from the previous two rounds with Covid-19, Herrin had a solid return to racing. Qualifying fifth, he started on the second row next to Elias and was fifth after the start. The Californian was able to close the gap to the riders ahead, but started to lose some time five laps in and found himself locked in an intense three-rider battle for fifth. Herrin exchanged positions a few times and fought all the way to the finish line, coming short of the top-five finish by just .051 of a second.
The Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing Team returns tomorrow for two more races to complete the MotoAmerica Superbike tripleheader at the championship’s penultimate round at the New Jersey Motorsports Park.
Richard Stanboli – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“Today was a fun day at NJMP. Jake rode a great race and won from the front. We told him not to worry about the championship and do what he has been doing, and everything else will fall into place.
“It was also good to have Toni on the bike. He has a wealth of knowledge in addition to being a great rider. It was good to see him race at the front and finish on the podium. He is really enjoying his time on the Yamaha R1.
“We also welcome Josh back after recovering from Covid, and he is quickly getting back up to speed. We will have a look at our data tonight and make some further improvements for tomorrow. It would be good to see all three riders on the podium, and we will work hard to give them that opportunity.”
Jake Gagne – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“It was another great day for the team. We had a productive practice, and we were able to understand how the bike was going to work over the race distance. I got off to another good start and just clicked off the laps until the end for another win. We’ve got two twenty-lap races tomorrow, which will be a lot, but I’m ready for it.”
Toni Elias – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“I’m very happy to be on the podium. This track is difficult, but we have made some improvements since Pittsburgh. I’ve been struggling a bit with rear grip, and this hurt me a little bit today. I had a really great start, and for seven or eight laps, I followed Jake and kept that one-second gap, but at the end, I started to slide and lost touch with him and then fought with Mat (Scholtz). I think we can make another step tomorrow. I want to say thank you again to the team for working so hard and bringing me back to the podium.”
Josh Herrin – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“I’m so happy to be back. It wasn’t the result we wanted, but being off the bike for two months made it hard. I was a little too far back and knew I wasn’t going to catch those guys once (Loris) Baz was there with me. We had a great battle; I think we probably had fifteen passes there at the end of the race. I’m sure that we’ve got a lot to look at when we get back to the truck. It’s been a long road climbing back to where we’re at right now, but we’re going to keep working as hard as we can to get back on the podium.”
Aragón Race 1 to Holgado – Rookies Cup to Alonso
Dani Holgado, David Muñoz and David Alonso flashed across the line at the end of a fabulously intense Race 1 at Aragon. Third place gave the 2021 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup to Alonso.
The Colombian 15-year-old had fought for the race win all the way in what distilled into a 5 KTM lead battle but Pole man Holgado, the 16-year-old Spaniard, had the edge on the final lap. Going into the penultimate race only Muñoz could challenge Alonso for the Cup and he put everything into it but Alonso only really needed a handful of points to take the title.
David Muñoz has locked out second place in the title chase, the same position he finished last season. Holgado is secure in third, he was 5th last year and Alonso 4th.
Holgado happy for himself and Alonso
“I am very happy for my race and my second victory of the season. I did a good job yesterday and today the race was amazing for me.”
“It was a very fast race and I am happy to be the winner. Thanks to my team and to my family for the support. Congratulations to my team mate David (Alonso) for winning the Cup, thanks to all.”
“Pole yesterday, a win today and I hope another one tomorrow, it’s possible.”
Alonso takes the Cup
“I feel so surprised, finally we did it. This second year, after one year of learning, this year to win the championship and that is what we did.”
“About the race, it was a difficult race because all the weekend I was strong but today, maybe because of the pressure, I was a little bit less strong. I managed as best as I can and I could win the championship.”
“It’s amazing, all the effort that I made and also winning it today is very good because tomorrow I can enjoy the race.”
“Nothing much more to say really, I think that tonight I will be very happy.”
Muñoz second in race and Cup
“Second place is very good for me. I am also second in the championship and that is also good.”
“Thanks to the Rookies Cup and everyone who supports me. One more race tomorrow and I will go for the win.”
Broadcast
This weekend’s Rookies Cup races can be seen live on www.redbull.tv and on TV stations around the world.
Race 2 is on Sunday at 15:30, the show starts 10 minutes before the race.
Race Classification for ARA RookiesCup RAC1
Sacramento Mile I/American Flat Track
Sacramento, California
September 11, 2021
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Davis Fisher (Ind), 38.055
2. Jared Mees (Ind), 38.392
3. Briar Bauman (Ind), 38.427
4. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 38.591
5. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 38.667
6. JD Beach (Yam), 39.046
7. Brandon Price (Ind), 39.166
8. Bryan Smith (Ind), 39.203
9. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 39.272
10. Robert Pearson (Ind), 39.731
11. James Rispoli (Har), 40.422
12. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 50.544
AFT Singles Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Dallas Daniels (Yam), 40.432
2. Kody Kopp (Hon), 40.576
3. Trent Lowe (Suz), 40.581
4. Tanner Dean (Hon), 40.601
5. Cole Zabala (Hon), 40.638
6. Michael Rush (Yam), 40.664
7. Max Whale (KTM), 40.676
8. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), 40.677
9. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 40.700
10. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), 40.735
11. Morgen Mischler (KTM), 40.737
12. Tyler Raggio (Hon), 40.756
13. Kevin Stollings (Hon), 40.867
14. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), 40.875
15. Ryan Wells (Hon), 41.134
16. Damon Ream (KTM), 41.343
17. Andrew Luker (Yam), 41.622
18. Travis Petton IV (Hon), 41.667
19. Grant Holmes (Suz), 41.690
20. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), 41.767
21. Hunter Bauer (KTM), 41.785
22. Andre Ochs (KTM), 42.333
23. Jacob Cascio (Yam), 42.713
24. Jared Lowe (Hon), 42.715
25. Clayton Williams (Hon), 42.801
26. Michael Hill (Yam), 43.070
27. Noah Miller (Hon), 43.809
28. Ezra Brusky (Hon), no time recorded
AFT Production Twins Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Chad Cose (Har), 39.965
2. Jesse Janisch (Har), 39.983
3. Cory Texter (Yam), 40.047
4. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 40.253
5. Ben Lowe (Har), 40.473
6. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 40.508
7. Patrick Buchanan (Har), 40.542
8. Dan Bromley (Yam), 40.543
9. Tanner Dean (Kaw), 40.577
10. Morgen Mischler (Har), 40.580
11. Michael Hill (Yam), 41.619
12. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), 41.675
13. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 42.825
14. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), no time recorded
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Free Practice 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 38.474
2. Briar Bauman (Ind), 38.523
3. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 38.595
4. Davis Fisher (Ind), 39.073
5. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 39.098
6. JD Beach (Yam), 39.129
7. James Rispoli (Har), 39.164
8. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 39.189
9. Bryan Smith (Ind), 39.357
10. Brandon Price (Ind), 39.400
11. Robert Pearson (Ind), 39.415
12. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 39.432
AFT Singles Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), 39.810
2. Dallas Daniels (Yam), 39.812
3. Tanner Dean (Hon), 39.851
4. Michael Rush (Yam), 39.902
5. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), 39.921
6. Max Whale (KTM), 39.962
7. Cole Zabala (Hon), 40.021
8. Kody Kopp (Hon), 40.082
9. Trent Lowe (Suz), 40.093
10. Kevin Stollings (Hon), 40.157
11. Morgen Mischler (KTM), 40.173
12. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 40.184
13. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), 40.215
14. Ryan Wells (Hon), 40.235
15. Grant Holmes (Suz), 40.268
16. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), 40.275
17. Tyler Raggio (Hon), 40.302
18. Travis Petton IV (Hon), 40.304
19. Andrew Luker (Yam), 40.375
20. Hunter Bauer (KTM), 40.479
21. Andre Ochs (KTM), 40.524
22. Michael Hill (Yam), 40.791
23. Damon Ream (KTM), 40.954
24. Clayton Williams (Hon), 41.071
25. Jared Lowe (Hon), 41.277
26. Jacob Cascio (Yam), 42.245
27. Noah Miller (Hon), 42.281
28. Ezra Brusky (Hon), no time recorded
AFT Production Twins Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 38.607
2. Jesse Janisch (Har), 38.703
3. Morgen Mischler (Har), 38.886
4. Chad Cose (Har), 38.896
5. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 39.044
6. Dan Bromley (Yam), 39.075
7. Patrick Buchanan (Har), 39.214
8. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 39.345
9. Ben Lowe (Har), 39.384
10. Michael Hill (Yam), 39.566
11. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), 39.783
12. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), 40.518
13. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 40.865
14. Tanner Dean (Kaw), 47.368
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 37.101
2. Davis Fisher (Ind), 37.180
3. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 37.218
4. Briar Bauman (Ind), 37.377
5. Bryan Smith (Ind), 37.631
6. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 37.642
7. Robert Pearson (Ind), 37.662
8. James Rispoli (Har), 37.701
9. JD Beach (Yam), 37.735
10. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 37.865
11. Brandon Price (Ind), 37.921
12. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 38.069
AFT Singles Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Dallas Daniels (Yam), 38.243
2. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), 38.349
3. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 38.443
4. Tanner Dean (Hon), 38.520
5. Michael Rush (Yam), 38.568
6. Trent Lowe (Suz), 38.579
7. Max Whale (KTM), 38.614
8. Cole Zabala (Hon), 38.620
9. Kody Kopp (Hon), 38.650
10. Morgen Mischler (KTM), 38.777
11. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), 38.834
12. Kevin Stollings (Hon), 38.918
13. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), 38.935
14. Andrew Luker (Yam), 38.954
15. Ryan Wells (Hon), 38.982
16. Hunter Bauer (KTM), 39.193
17. Damon Ream (KTM), 39.281
18. Tyler Raggio (Hon), 39.416
19. Andre Ochs (KTM), 39.452
20. Jared Lowe (Hon), 39.458
21. Grant Holmes (Suz), 39.489
22. Travis Petton IV (Hon), 39.672
23. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), 39.713
24. Clayton Williams (Hon), 39.833
25. Michael Hill (Yam), 39.921
26. Jacob Cascio (Yam), 40.962
27. Noah Miller (Hon), 41.046
AFT Production Twins Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 37.106
2. Chad Cose (Har), 37.881
3. Morgen Mischler (Har), 37.899
4. Jesse Janisch (Har), 37.899
5. Ben Lowe (Har), 37.972
6. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 38.139
7. Dan Bromley (Yam), 38.213
8. Patrick Buchanan (Har), 38.265
9. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 38.313
10. Michael Hill (Yam), 38.446
11. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), 39.098
12. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), 39.110
13. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 39.960
14. Tanner Dean (Kaw), no time recorded
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 35.969
2. Briar Bauman (Ind), 36.255
3. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 36.499
4. Davis Fisher (Ind), 36.593
5. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 36.669
6. Bryan Smith (Ind), 36.695
7. James Rispoli (Har), 36.703
8. Robert Pearson (Ind), 36.712
9. JD Beach (Yam), 36.818
10. Brandon Price (Ind), 36.963
11. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 37.266
12. Brandon Robinson (Ind), no time recorded
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 8 laps
2. Sammy Halbert (Ind), -05.065 seconds
3. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), -05.106
4. James Rispoli (Har), -05.603
5. JD Beach (Yam), -06.145
6. Kolby Carlile (Yam), -10.304
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Briar Bauman (Ind), 8 laps
2. Davis Fisher (Ind), -00.026 seconds
3. Brandon Robinson (Ind), -02.120
4. Robert Pearson (Ind), -02.508
5. Bryan Smith (Ind), -03.337
6. Brandon Price (Ind), -04.633
Provisional AFT Production Twins Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 8 laps
2. Jesse Janisch (Har), -05.250 seconds
3. Ben Lowe (Har), -09.442
4. Dan Bromley (Yam), -09.641
5. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), -14.518
6. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), -27.635
Provisional AFT Production Twins Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Chad Cose (Har), 8 laps
2. Morgen Mischler (Har), -02.492 seconds
3. Nick Armstrong (Yam), -03.975
4. Patrick Buchanan (Har), -06.185
5. Michael Hill (Yam), -17.333
6. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), -1 lap
Provisional AFT Singles Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 8 laps
2. Michael Rush (Yam), -00.055 seconds
3. Max Whale (KTM), -00.167
4. Dallas Daniels (Yam), -00.171
5. Kody Kopp (Hon), -00.223
6. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), -00.297
7. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), -01.141
8. Damon Ream (KTM), -02.762
9. Ryan Wells (Hon), -02.812
10. Andre Ochs (KTM), -06.947
11. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), -07.030
12. Grant Holmes (Suz), -07.174
13. Michael Hill (Yam), -6 laps
Provisional AFT Singles Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cole Zabala (Hon), 8 laps
2. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), -00.023 seconds
3. Tanner Dean (Hon), -00.037
4. Morgen Mischler (KTM), -00.162
5. Kevin Stollings (Hon), -00.478
6. Trent Lowe (Suz), -00.751
7. Andrew Luker (Yam), -03.107
8. Tyler Raggio (Hon), -04.743
9. Travis Petton IV (Hon), -04.761
10. Clayton Williams (Hon), -10.389
11. Jared Lowe (Hon), -10.398
12. Hunter Bauer (KTM), -7 laps
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Mission Challenge Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 4 laps
2. Briar Bauman (Ind), -00.093 seconds
3. Jared Mees (Ind), -00.117
4. Davis Fisher (Ind), -01.459
Provisional AFT Production Twins Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 18 laps
2. Chad Cose (Har), -05.197 seconds
3. Jesse Janisch (Har), -12.405
4. Ben Lowe (Har), -12.450
5. Morgen Mischler (Har), -12.520
6. Dan Bromley (Yam), -15.576
7. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), -20.107
8. Nick Armstrong (Yam), -20.996
9. Patrick Buchanan (Har), -25.103
10. Michael Hill (Yam), -25.337
11. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), -1 lap, -11.333
12. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), -1 lap, -31.504
Provisional AFT Singles Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 18 laps
2. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), -00.024 seconds
3. Dallas Daniels (Yam), -00.041
4. Michael Rush (Yam), -00.094
5. Kevin Stollings (Hon), -00.216
6. Morgen Mischler (KTM), -00.386
7. Max Whale (KTM), -00.526
8. Tanner Dean (Hon), -00.827
9. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), -00.859
10. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), -01.132
11. Kody Kopp (Hon), -02.953
12. Trent Lowe (Suz), -02.972
13. Ryan Wells (Hon), -03.049
14. Andrew Luker (Yam), -06.703
15. Tyler Raggio (Hon), -11.657
16. Damon Ream (KTM), -11.944
17. Cole Zabala (Hon), -1 lap
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 25 laps
2. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), -04.611 seconds
3. Briar Bauman (Ind), -04.710
4. Sammy Halbert (Ind), -04.730
5. JD Beach (Yam), -04.966
6. Brandon Robinson (Ind), -05.405
7. Brandon Price (Ind), -06.571
8. Davis Fisher (Ind), -06.581
9. Robert Pearson (Ind), -13.244
10. James Rispoli (Har), -13.281
11. Kolby Carlile (Yam), -22.323
12. Bryan Smith (Ind), -18 laps
More, from a press release issued by American Flat Track (AFT):
Mees Steamrolls Sacramento Mile I
Texter clinches 2021 AFT Production Twins title; Brunner races to the front in AFT Singles.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (September 11, 2021) – Progressive American Flat Track legend Jared Mees (No. 9 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) continued to perform at his vintage best, notching up yet another blowout victory in Saturday evening’s Law Tigers Sacramento Mile I presented by Knauf Insulation at Cal Expo in Sacramento, California.
Mees replicated the Springfield Mile II escape plan he executed just a few days prior. He eked out some breathing space in the opening minutes of the Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S Cycle Main Event and then effectively rendered the race one for second place as he continually added to that advantage, lap after lap.
Never seriously challenged, Mees had more than six seconds in hand when the clock hit 0:00 and still boasted a 4.611-second margin of victory at the checkered flag despite coasting all the way down the final straight.
Mees said, “My heart rate was low around there today, and the track was so smooth it wasn’t too physical. The challenge was mental, trying to put it all together. I was a little bit frustrated after making a mistake in the Dash for Cash. I was starting to second think… ‘Am I losing the mojo? Am I losing the momentum?’
“But I got the holeshot in the Main and started picking ‘em up and putting ‘em down, honestly. The bike was phenomenal. A huge shout out to Kenny Tolbert, Bubba Bentley, and Jimmy Wood. Every session all throughout the day, we tweaked the bike to make it that much better.”
Mees’ dominant night was made that much easier when his rival, defending double Mission SuperTwins Champion Briar Bauman (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750), became embroiled in a race-long multi-rider melee for second.
While the lead-up to the Main suggested that Bauman just might have had the pace to run with Mees, he was never able to show it when it mattered. Bauman struggled both to draft past Sammy Halbert (No. 69 Coolbeth-Nila Racing Indian FTR750) and keep him behind him on the straights, while getting held up in the corners by him at the same time.
All the while, Davis Fisher (No. 67 BMC Racing/Dick Wall 60 Indian FTR750), was mixing it up with Bauman and Halbert, which further allowed Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750), JD Beach (No. 95 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) and, finally, Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750), to join the fray and turn it into a six-rider slugfest for second.
At one point, Fisher slipped the groove following a near-miss with Bauman and fell well back. He made a determined charge back up the order and arrived just in time to get his revenge with less than two laps remaining. That dropped the champ back to fifth and put his championship lead at serious risk.
The rapidly evolving battle next saw Vanderkooi pull off a last-lap move on Fisher that again knocked him off the groove just as Bauman finally found a way past Halbert. Ultimately, Vanderkooi crossed the stripe in second with Bauman earning his 12th podium of the season in third.
Despite that consistent excellence, Mees now sits just four points behind Bauman in the title chase (271-267), which puts him within striking distance of taking the outright lead should he add to his three-race win streak tomorrow.
Halbert finished fourth, followed by Beach and Robinson. Brandon Price (No. 92 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) took full advantage of Fisher’s repeat misfortune to edge him for seventh by 0.009 seconds at the stripe.
Robert Pearson (No. 27 Rackley Racing/John Franklin Indian FTR750) and James Rispoli (No. 43 Latus Motors Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R Rev X) rounded out the top ten.
AFT Singles
It’s hard to imagine a scenario more intimidating for a prospective AFT Singles star than to lead coming out of Turn 4 on the final lap of a Mile with both the class’ defending champion and its all-time winningest rider breathing down their neck. That’s exactly the predicament Trevor Brunner (No. 21 American Honda/Progressive Insurance CRF450R) found himself in at the conclusion of a frenetic race-long pack war.
Still, even though Dallas Daniels (No. 1 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) and Shayna Texter-Bauman (No. 52 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-FFE) did all they could to add to their impressive respective wins tallies, Brunner skillfully made a perfect launch out of the corner to overcome their attempts to draft by him at the stripe, edging Texter-Bauman by 0.024 seconds and Daniels by 0.041.
After claiming his second career Progressive AFT victory, Brunner said, “This was very important. I was a little let down (following a controversial clash with Daniels last weekend at Springfield), but I answered the call for my whole team. They deserved it so much.”
While the win came down to those three, the race featured a lead group that numbered into the double digits all the way to the checkered flag. As tight as the field was, the primary players throughout were those representing the powerhouse factory-backed teams; Cole Zabala (No. 51 American Honda/Progressive Insurance CRF450R) and Mikey Rush (No. 15 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) each took several turns turns at the front with title hopeful Max Whale (No. 18 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-FFE) lurking in sixth pretty much the entire way.
That all changed late when Whale went off the groove and dropped several positions and Zabala suffered a mechanical while still in with a shot at victory. Rush did manage to come home in third, just 0.094 seconds off the win, but the final-lap chaos allowed Kevin Stollings (No. 99 Mission Roof Systems Honda CRF450R) to slip into the top five.
Whale, meanwhile, did well to claw his way back to seventh, finishing just one position behind third-ranked Morgen Mischler (No. 13 Mission Roof Systems KTM 450 SX-F). Even still, Daniels expanded his title advantage, which now stands at 12 (248-236) with just two races remaining.
AFT Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines
11th-place was all he needed, but Cory Texter (No. 65 G&G Racing/Yamaha Racing MT-07) instead preferred to celebrate his dominant 2021 AFT Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines title triumph with a more representative victory.
Texter lined up on pole with three Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson XG750Rs alongside, piloted by Chad Cose (No. 49 Voodoo Ranger/Roof Systems Harley-Davidson XG750R), Jesse Janisch (No. 96 Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson XG750R) and Morgen Mischler (No. 13 Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Harley-Davidson XG750R).
Any chance that talented trio had of teaming up on Texter evaporated after the ‘19 class champ took his customary holeshot as wild cards Mischler and Janisch limped off the line and dropped to seventh and eighth, respectively.
A motivated Cose pulled in behind Texter and sat in his draft over the race’s opening half. But Texter’s torrid pace and trademark consistency ultimately broke the challenge of the “California Kid ” as well.
Texter left no doubt en route to reclaiming possession of the #1 plate, winning by 5.197 seconds. With two races still remaining, Texter is once again the AFT Production Twins king on the strength of six wins and ten podiums.
He said, “This class is super talented this year. It was hard work versus talent. I have a lot of respect for the guys I race against, and this (championship) was earned. The grind it took this season… The injuries I had to work through this summer, and the training, and the studying notes, and losing it last year and coming back this year, and working for it and winning it. It all means so much to me.
“You don’t have to be the most talented guy out there. You can work super hard and achieve your goals.”
Cose took a popular runner-up in front of the home fans, which also propelled him into second in the championship, moving him one point ahead of sixth-place finisher Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Vinson Construction Yamaha MT-07).
Meanwhile, Janisch fought his way back up to come out on top of a last-lap drafting contest for the podium with Ben Lowe (No. 25 Mission Roof Systems Harley-Davidson XG750R) (fourth) and Mischler (fifth). The result was Janisch’s third top-three in four starts in place of the injured Dalton Gauthier (No. 79 D&D Cycles/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson XG750R).
The Law Tigers Sacramento Mile I & II presented by Knauf Insulation will premiere back-to-back on NBCSN on Sunday, September 26, starting at 11:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. PT, including exclusive features and cutting-edge aerial drone and onboard footage.
Next Up:
Sunday’s Law Tigers Sacramento Mile II presented by Knauf Insulation isn’t just the second-half of this weekend’s Legendary Sacramento Mile doubleheader, it also represents the penultimate round of the 2021 Progressive AFT season. Tickets are available for purchase online at https://www.etix.com/ticket/v/15860/sacramento-mile. For those viewing from home, live coverage will be available on any device for only $1.99 a month via TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.
For more information, please visit http://www.americanflattrack.com.
To score the latest gear for the Progressive American Flat Track fan, visit our official merchandise store at https://store.americanflattrack.com.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Walker wins a dramatic Race 1 at Silverstone
Mounsey and Crosby complete the podium as Saturday sees a huge shake-up, with drama from start to finish
Saturday, 11 September 2021
The penultimate round of the Honda British Talent Cup promised it could be pivotal, and after a dramatic Race 1 at Silverstone that may already be proved half true. As drama hit for key contenders for the crown, it was Ollie Walker (Moto Rapido / SP125 Racing) who came through to take his first win, getting some deserved reward for running at the front after late heartbreak in a few recent rounds. Second was another first as Sullivan Mounsey (iForce Lloyd & Jones) stood on the rostrum for the first time after another standout ride, with Harrison Crosby (Banks Racing) taking his second podium in third place once the dust settled in the wake of the shake-up.
It started with what’s become the standard at lights out as Johnny Garness (City Lifting by RS Racing) took the holeshot from pole, with Casey O’Gorman (Microlise Cresswell Racing) slotting into second and an early breakaway forming as the duo were joined by Mounsey, points leader Evan Belford (City Lifting by RS Racing), Carter Brown (City Lifting by RS Racing), James Cook (Wilson Racing) and Jamie Lyons (C&M Motors Ltd / Tooltec Racing).
It didn’t take long for that first bout of huge drama though. Heading into Maggots, Lap 3 saw Belford suffer a moment and the points leader tagged closest competitor O’Gorman as, shockingly, both the top two in the standings went down. Riders ok, but the door suddenly wide open for those on the chase to capitalise.
So then there were five, with Garness leading with a small margin by the next lap around. But he wasn’t allowed to escape and the chasers soon closed in, with someone else closing in too: Walker. He and Crosby were on a charge and well in the mix in the front group by a third of race distance run.
On Lap 8, more drama. Cook overcooked it right after taking the lead, the number 34 sliding out and losing his shot at glory. The group that had gone from seven to five to seven again had become a six-rider freight train – with Mounsey in the lead.
Lap by lap, so it remained. A classic group battle between the six looked set to roll on right to the end and that it almost did, although Lyons and Crosby lost a little touch with the front four in the last few laps. but even more drama was to come, with Saturday delivering an absolute rollercoaster.
Heading over the line to start the final lap, it was Garness in the lead and Brown fighting off both Walker and Mounsey. But Brown was able to tag back onto the leader and by Luffield, he was close enough to attack – and went for the outside. Locked together initially, there was then contact as the number 74 tagged Garness and it was Garness was forced to sit it up and run on, the number 57 out of the race.
In the aftermath of that, Walker and Mounsey swept through to finish 1-2, both putting in their best races yet and hitting some impressive milestones – having been right there in the battle throughout. Brown crossed the line in third after that final drama of the race, seemingly having made some big gains, but the final final drama of the day was still to come for the number 74. For the incident with Garness, he was given the equivalent of a Long Lap penalty, a three-second time penalty, and drops to fifth – losing the chance to gain a much bigger chunk of points.
The duel between Crosby and Lyons went all the way to the wire and became the fight for third after the penalty for Brown, and the number 15 just took it by 0.075. So Lyons is forced to settle for fourth, and Brown completes the top five in the classification.
Sixth saw Troy Jeffrey (Stiggymotorsport) hold off Harley McCabe (MLav VisionTrack Academy) by half a second, but both impressing and Kiyano Veijer (Microlise Cresswell Racing) likewise as the Dutch rookie took P8. Josh Bannister (Dunsley Heat Racing) took his best finish by far in ninth, beating Harrison Dessoy (Thorneycroft56 Racing) by just 0.046 as he, in turn, held off Lucas Brown (Amphibian Scaffolding / SP125 Racing).
That’s a wrap on an incredibly dramatic day at the Silverstone National office, with Belford still ten points ahead of O’Gorman in the standings – but Brown now just a single point further back in third. Will Sunday be another rollercoaster for the BTC? Find out at 14:20 (GMT +1) as the lights go out for Race 2!
This weekend’s results are brought to you by 6D Helmets.
21_11_NJMP_TWN_R1_res
Championship Point Standings (after 12 of 14 races):
More, from a press release issued by Robem Engineering:
De Keyrel crowned 2021 MotoAmerica Twins Cup Champion Saturday at New Jersey Motorsports Park
Robem Engineering Aprilia rider cliches first MotoAmerica class title, puts Italian marque on top in its first year competing in Twins Cup
MILLVILLE, N.J. — Kaleb De Keyrel was on the verge of clinching his first MotoAmerica No. 1 plate at the start of this weekend’s MotoAmerica Superbikes at New Jersey, and the Aprilia rider wasted no time wrapping up the 2021 MotoAmerica Twins Cup title on Saturday at New Jersey Motorsports Park. The Minnesotan piloted his Aprilia RS 660 to a podium finish that also secured Aprilia’s first MotoAmerica crown in its maiden year competing in the Twins Cup.
The weekend also marked the MotoAmerica debut of Aprilia test rider Tommaso Marcon aboard a Robem Engineering Aprilia RS 660, and 15-year-old Max Toth returned for the New Jersey round after making his debut with the team at Pittsburgh International Race Complex last month. Saturday saw Marcon claim the Twins Cup pole in his first time racing on NJMP’s 2.25-mile Thunderbolt circuit and Toth score his first Twins Cup podium.
De Keyrel started the weekend with a 53-point lead over second place in the Twins Cup standings and needed to finish Saturday’s race with at least a 50-point advantage to secure the championship. Marcon and De Keyrel took part in a test day at NJMP of Sept. 3, which helped the team develop good setups for its Aprilias — something that has been a struggle with campaigning a newly-homologated-for-2021 motorcycle this year.
All three of the team’s riders were near the top of the time sheets in Friday Twins Cup practice. Marcon led the team’s efforts when he posted the second-fastest time of the session. Toth finished the session third fastest and De Keyrel was fifth fastest. Later Friday, all three riders finished in the top five in the weekend’s first qualifying session. Marcon was again the second fastest rider, and his best lap time was within 0.2 seconds of the session leader and two seconds faster than his best practice time. De Keyrel finished the session in third, and Toth was fifth.
Qualifying concluded early Saturday afternoon with Marcon having claimed pole position and De Keyrel having secured third on the starting grid. Toth finished qualifying in seventh place.
The first of two Twins Cup races slated for the event got underway late Saturday afternoon with Marcon getting the holeshot and De Keyrel holding onto third place into Turn 1. De Keyrel fell as far back as fifth place on Laps 2-4 with his chief championship rival ahead of him in the running order. Marcon was battling for the lead on Laps 4 and 5 with another rider, but lost grip with the rear tire and unfortunately crashed as he exited Turn 1 on Lap 6. With Marcon dropping out of the race, De Keyrel moved up to third place and into a position to win the title after his championship rival dropped to ninth place on Lap 5.
Another front runner dropped out of the race on Lap 6, leaving De Keyrel and Toth in a three-way battle for the race lead. Though the championship was on the line, De Keyrel and Toth put on a great show of close racing – swapping positions twice– and brought their RS 660s home in second and third place, respectively. De Keyrel’s runner-up finish was enough for him to clinch the 2021 Twins Cup title, having secured an unassailable 62-point advantage in the standings.
All three Robem Engineering riders will be back in action Sunday for the second and final Twins Cup race of the weekend. The race is scheduled to start at 4:10 p.m. and is to be broadcast on Facebook Live.
Kaleb De Keyrel (No. 51)
“My Robem Engineering Aprilia RS 660 felt really good from the start of the weekend. We made very minor changes from the setup we were running at the test day, but I knew I had some things to work on to find a little more time. It was a crazy race today, especially with the title on the line. I was on the fence about whether I should push hard to get the win or play it safe. There was a lot of craziness going on, but I’m a racer and I really wanted to go for the win. And we almost had it. I’ll do my debrief with the team tonight and will see if we can come out swinging tomorrow. Winning this championship feels amazing. I’ve been working hard at the go-kart track and my girlfriend, Marissa, has been working extremely hard behind the scenes with my training. It’s just incredible to finally get the No. 1 plate this season. It’s really tough to put together a good, full season of racing, regardless of what class you’re in. A national championship is a life-long ambition of mine, and it’s humbling to have won it.”
Tommaso Marcon (No. 70)
“I’m starting to get used to American race tracks, and yesterday we had a couple issues with the bike during qualifying and couldn’t finish the session. This morning in Qualifying 2, we made pole position, which was very good. In the race, I had a good rhythm going and my plan was to get away from the field. However, I crashed on Lap 6 after touching the paint with a little too much lean angle. I was pushing very hard, but the guys behind me were catching up to me with the slip stream. Tomorrow is another race, and we will focus on continuing to improve tomorrow.”
Max Toth (No. 58)
“Yesterday, we had a lot of work to do after missing the test day. We had to make sure we had the bike dialed in from the first session, and I think we did a good job with that — and it showed in our race result. This is a big step for us from my first round at Pittsburgh, where we had trouble getting a clean lap in practice and qualifying. I was pretty confident in the bike from the first session all the way through the race.”
Robem Engineering’s technical partners for 2021 include Aprilia Racing, Piaggio Group Americas, The Center for Plastic Surgery, Velocity Calibrations, Bitubo Suspension, Dunlop, Woodcraft Technologies, Dymag, Vesrah, DNA Filters, Magura USA, Sara Chappell Photos, NGK/NTK, Blud Lubricants, Millennium Technologies, Suter Racing and SC-Project.
MotoAmerica: How To Watch Round Eight MotoAmerica Superbikes at New Jersey
It’s All Here: How To Not Miss A Bit Of The Action
Everything you need to know for round eight of the 2021 MotoAmerica Series to keep you up to date with what’s happening in New Jersey.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Impeccable: Bagnaia battles Marquez for stunning maiden win at MotorLand
The Ducati rider repels the full Marquez armoury in Aragon, taking a hard-fought first MotoGP™ class win
Sunday, 12 September 2021
He’s been close before, but Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) is now a MotoGP™ race winner. In a true all-time classic at the Gran Premio TISSOT de Aragon, the Italian went toe-to-toe with Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) in a stunner of a duel, finding an answer for every attack as the eight-time World Champion tried, tried and tried again. Repelling the final assault as the number 93 headed through but wide, Bagnaia was able to cross the line with just over half a second in hand to take his first premier class win in impeccable style. Marquez nevertheless got back on the podium for the second time this year and gave us an incredible show, with reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) locking out the rostrum in third.
As the lights went out, polesitter Bagnaia got away well and held on for the holeshot, with teammate Jack Miller going in a bit deep at Turn 1 and that allowing Marc Marquez to grab P2 after a lightning start for the number 93. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) was up to P4, with Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) losing out and down to fifth 5th. Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) then crashed at Turn 5, rider ok.
As Bagnaia and Marc Marquez led the train away, Quartararo was struggling. Both Mir and Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) passed the Frenchman next as he slipped towards the clutches of eighth place Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), but nobody in the early stages was showing their cards, with only 2.2 seconds covering the top six.
Just outside that top six remained Quartararo, however. By now, the Frenchman had the rapid starting Iker Lecuona (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing) climbing all over him, and at the end of Lap 6, the number 27 was through. A couple of laps later, another KTM was ahead as Binder followed Lecuona after the Spaniard had despatched him too, and Quartararo was suddenly down to P9.
With eight laps gone, the cards were beginning to appear on the table. Bagnaia and Marquez were just over a second clear of Miller in third, and that advantage was soon up to nearly two with 13 to go. Miller headed wide at Turn 16 not long after too, allowing Aleix Espargaro and Mir to cut through. The reigning World Champion then managed to despatch the Aprilia to take over in third, but the gap to Pecco and Marquez was now nearly three and a half seconds.
To compound the gap, the pace was far from slowing. The two leaders were exchanging 1:48s lap after lap, with the rest in the 1:49s and below. They’d carved out a 4.3s lead over Mir and Aleix Espargaro with nine laps to go, but then it was into tyre life territory. Would that play a role? With five to go though, there was no change, with both riders still in the 1:48s… and it seemed it was going to the finish.
With four laps left, the pressure from Marquez was ramping up. Getting closer and closer until he was glued on, a lap later the first move finally came. The Honda rider went for a lunge into Turn 5, but he was in a little hot and slightly wide, Pecco replying unflustered to get back into the lead. So Marquez next shoved his RC213V up the inside at Turn 15, but again, the Italian got the cutback and held P1. Two down, how many to go?
On the penultimate lap, another. An exact copy and paste at Turn 5, Marquez again lunged late and again got a quick reply. The exact same thing happened at Turn 15 too, and again, Bagnaia carved back past. And so it was going down to some final lap fireworks…
This time, Marquez tried his luck at Turn 1, but that didn’t stick either. So, of course, Turn 5 saw another lunge for the third lap in a row, with the exact same result. That made six attempts from the number 93, each of which had been on to try but each of which had been greeted with a swift reply.
Marquez is Marquez though, so a seventh attempt then came at Turn 12. The number 93 got a great run out of his own namesake Marc Marquez Corner and was up the inside at the downhill left-hander, not a move he’d tried yet but ultimately one that wasn’t going to work either. Struggling to get it hooked up to the apex, Marquez was wide and onto the green, and Pecco needed no second invitation to sweep back past, keep it pinned and finally gain a few metres of breathing space.
From there the Italian made no mistake and crossed the line to complete a perfect weekend: pole position to maiden MotoGP™ victory, the eighth winner of 2021, defeating Marc Marquez on his home turf. His victory is also the 250th for Italy in the premier class, adding Francesco Bagnaia next to a little chapter of a rich history. Emotional in parc ferme, Bagnaia was just sublime on Sunday at Aragon.
Marquez threw absolutely everything at it as he sought that seventh win at MotorLand though, coming up just six tenths short. Still, it’s another podium and a leading role in an all-time classic, as well 20 points to add to his tally – and he’ll likely sleep rather well knowing he left it all out there, seven times.
Behind, Mir kept it tidy in third to take his fifth rostrum of 2021, in some space alone as he escaped Aleix Espargaro but couldn’t get onto terms with Bagnaia and Marquez. Aleix Espargaro’s P4 is another excellent ride from the Spaniard though, and he’s the top Independent Team rider. Miller couldn’t recover ground later on and finished a lonely fifth.
Reigning Moto2™ World Champion Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama) claims sixth for his best premier class result, putting the cherry on top of an impressive weekend. The rookie beat Binder by just 0.3s, and both escaped Quartararo by a good margin. A tricky day at the office for the World Championship leader and his second worst result of the season sees his lead cut, but it’s still a healthy 53 points with five races to go.
Martin took P9 less than a tenth behind Quartararo too, with Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) 10th in the same pack as Bastianini, an earlier sparring partner, was able to break away from the Japanese rider. Lecuona made a mistake with a handful of laps to go that saw the Spaniard slip outside the top 10, but it was nevertheless a great ride from the 21-year-old and a stunning early charge.
Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) pocketed P12 from P20 on the grid, gaining some ground, and it was a quieter day for Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) in P13, just ahead of Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and 15th place Danilo Petrucci (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing).
Cal Crutchlow (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) were P16 and P17 respectively, with Maverick Viñales taking P18 on his Aprilia Racing Team Gresini debut. Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and Luca Marini (Sky VR46 Avintia) were the final finishers, with Jake Dixon (Petronas Yamaha SRT) joining Alex Marquez in the DNFs, crashing out on Lap 2 and rider also ok.
So, a magnificent MotorLand battle sees Bagnaia finally claim that illustrious first MotoGP™ win. Next up: his home race at Misano. Remember that time he disappeared in the lead and then crashed? The Italian will be looking for a replay of the first half, and has never seemed less likely to recreate the second… save the date as MotoGP™ gets ready to take on the Riviera di Rimini.
MotoGP™ podium
1 Francesco Bagnaia – Ducati Lenovo Team – Ducati – 41:44.422
2 Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda Team – Honda – +0.673
3 Joan Mir – Team Suzuki Ecstar – Suzuki – +3.911
Top Independent Team rider
4 Aleix Espargaro – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini – Aprilia – +9.269
Francesco Bagnaia: “A lot of emotion today. I’m so happy. We worked a lot to achieve this result, every time we were close, something happened and this dream to take my first victory, every time it was far. So to win today is a great liberation. I’m so happy, I have to say thanks to all the team, my family, my fantastic girlfriend, who are with me every day. It’s difficult to say something now, but it was not easy. I knew it wasn’t easy to stay in front of Marc at this track. His body isn’t at 100% but I think today with the hunger to win he was very, very competitive, and… I just tried to do my best and finish first. It’s a dream come true.”
Raul Fernandez storms MotorLand
Surgery to victory? No problem. The number 25 flies high to equal Marquez as a Moto2™ rookie, with Gardner doing good damage limitation in second
Raul Fernandez (Red Bull KTM Ajo) pulled another sensational win out of the hat at Aragon, despite a crash at Silverstone leaving him on the back foot and a crash cycling for which he needed surgery on his hand just before the race weekend. Nevertheless, he dominated to equal Marc Marquez’ record of five wins as a Moto2™ rookie, with teammate and Championship leader Remy Gardner taking second. With that, Red Bull KTM Ajo wrapped up the Teams’ Championship, and the win was also their hundredth too. Augusto Fernandez (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) completed the podium for another rostrum finish as he shows more good 2021 form, storming through from 12th on the grid.
Off the line it was Sam Lowes (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) who held firm from pole from Gardner and Raul Fernandez, opening up an advantage of 0.6 on the opening lap as Raul Fernandez then passed title rival Gardner for second at Turn 12. Just behind, Ai Ogura (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) grabbed P4 from Hector Garzo (FlexBox HP 40). The fastest lap of the race on Lap 2 for Raul Fernandez saw him cut Lowes’ lead to just 0.2, with Gardner sitting twice that down on his teammate, in third.
The number 25 then decided to attack for the lead at the beginning of Lap 4, with Gardner exchanging P3 with Ogura just behind. The Australian was having a scrappy opening handful of laps, wide at Turn 12 and once again conceding P3 to Ogura. Soon after, Garzo was also ahead of Gardner. It was a fascinating scrap the Aussie found himself in, but in getting caught up with the likes of Ogura and Garzo – who crashed at Turn 8 on Lap 5 – the gap to Lowes and Fernandez was up to 1.9s. By 10 laps down, Raul Fernandez was still holding Lowes at bay by just over a second and Gardner was over three seconds down on them, with Jorge Navarro (+EGO Speed Up) and Aron Canet (Kipin Energy Aspar Team) in hot pursuit.
On Lap 12, the first drama for a frontrunner: Marco Bezzecchi’s (Sky Racing Team VR46) quiet weekend came to a premature end at Turn 8, putting a dent in his standings. And then, after seeing Raul Fernandez stretch his lead to nearly one and a half seconds, a gift was handed to both Red Bull KTM Ajo riders as Lowes was the next to slide out. Rider ok, the Brit stacked it at Turn 7 with nine laps to go, leaving Raul Fernandez with a huge, six-second lead over Gardner.
Despite the pain barrier, the number 25 was unstoppable. Keeping that gap to the end, Raul Fernandez took his fifth win to take back to the top step in style, with the deficit to Gardner in the Championship down to 39 points as they swept the Teams’ title too.
In even more good news for Aki Ajo, future Red Bull KTM Ajo rider Augusto Fernandez took the final place on the podium. After starting 12th the Spaniard make good progress to slice his way up to the fight for the rostrum, with Navarro his final obstacle. The two had a good duel before the number 37 was able to just pull away to take that third.
Navarro nevertheless took another strong result in fourth, with Canet finishing three seconds down on the rostrum fight in P5. P6 went the way of Fabio Di Giannantonio (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2), as newly crowned Moto2™ European Champion Fermin Aldeguer (+EGO Speed Up) claimed a stunning P7 – his best yet despite already having made quite an impression. Ogura faded slightly and took P8, with fellow rookie Tony Arbolino (Liqui Moly Intact GP) finishing P9 in a much improved race day for the Italian.
The experienced Simone Corsi (MV Agusta Forward Racing) rounded out the top 10, the Italian beating Marcel Schrötter (Liqui Moly Intact GP), Marcos Ramirez (American Racing), Joe Roberts (Italtrans Racing Team), Cameron Beaubier (American Racing) and Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) as they locked out the remaining point scoring positions.
That’s a wrap on MotorLand as the paddock packs up and heads to Misano for another showdown next weekend. Can Bezzecchi and Lowes bounce back? Will Raul Fernandez show the same incredible form? Or will it be another win for Gardner as he enjoys that 39-point lead? We don’t have to wait long to find out!
Moto2™ podium:
1 Raul Fernandez – Red Bull KTM Ajo – Kalex – 39:49.990
2 Remy Gardner – Red Bull KTM Ajo – Kalex – +5.408
3 Augusto Fernandez – Elf Marc VDS Racing Team – Kalex – +6.824
Raul Fernandez: “It was really difficult race, all this weekend. At the end I’m really happy, the race was really strong, I couldn’t do more with my hand, I couldn’t brake the last five laps. It was really difficult for me but I’m really happy to be here. I want to thank Dr Mir, his team, the Clinica, Alpinestars, my team and family I’m here because of them. Thanks everyone, and this victory is special because it’s my first one here in Spain, with the fans here and my friends. But especially because Hugo Millan’s family is here, this is for him. I’m really happy and this is for his family.”
Foggia gains big as Aragon brings the drama
The Italian just defeats Öncü, with Sasaki taking the final step on the podium to gain back some momentum
Moto3™ brought the serious drama at MotorLand, with three Championship contenders all finding bad luck or trouble on race day. The first was for Romano Fenati (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) as he was forced into the gravel, then Championship leader Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Ajo) crashed and, right as he seemed set to make huge gains, so did second overall Sergio Garcia (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team). But one contender held firm and avoided it all, with Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) pulling off a tactical masterclass to take his third win of the year and move back into third overall.
The Italian just defeated another stunner from Deniz Öncü (Red Bull KTM Tech3), the Turkish rider impressing once again but forced to wait for that first win. Completing the podium was Ayumu Sasaki (Red Bull KTM Tech3), the Japanese rider digging deep and taking an emotional second rostrum after a difficult few months of injury, bad luck and more.
Darryn Binder (Petronas Sprinta Racing) kept the lead initially as the South African held on for the holeshot, but Garcia was quick to attack. As ever though, the moves came thick and fast and a leading freight train formed. Öncü took over at the front, with Acosta, Garcia and Binder shadowing in the early stages.
Drama hit on Lap 5 for Silverstone winner Fenati. Front row starter Gabriel Rodrigo (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) suddenly crashed in front of the Italian, and he was forced to take avoiding action into the gravel – rejoining well down the order, a postcode off the points.
There was also an early touch between Xavier Artigas (Leopard Racing) and Acosta but no harm done. Meanwhile Öncü rolled on at the front, able to stay ahead down the back straight too as a group of nine formed at the front followed by SIC58 Squadra Corse duo Lorenzo Fellon and Tatsuki Suzuki.
After chipping away at it, they tagged onto the back to make it 11 riders fighting for the win, but it was a costly push for Fellon as the French rookie then got a Long Lap penalty for track limits. Taking it dropped him back in behind the chasing trio of Niccolo Antonelli (Avintia VR46 Academy), double 2020 winner at the track Jaume Masia (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Stefano Nepa (BOE Owlride).
Antonelli and Nepa were next to tag on, but then drama whittled the group down again… and key drama. After a season of history making, Acosta made his first big race day error of the year, heading up the inside of Artigas and then losing it, skittling both out. And he couldn’t rejoin, leaving Garcia with an open goal…
Starting the final lap, Foggia led Öncü led the two GASGAS machines of Garcia and Izan Guevara (Gaviota GASGAS Aspar Team). Öncü then hit the front, the Turk digging in on the search for that elusive first victory, and even more drama soon hit just behind. Despite the huge chance to home in on Acosta, it just wasn’t to be. Garcia suddenly slid out as he fought to gain more ground, rider ok and able to rejoin but no points coming his way.
Meanwhile, Öncü remained ahead and the Turk led heading onto the back straight – as he had a good few times during the race, able each time to keep it too. But this time, Foggia had the legs and the incredible straight-line speed of the Leopard Honda struck, the number 7 slicing past. Öncü tried to reply on the drag to the line and almost did, but he’s forced to settle for another second, just 0.041 off the win.
After a weekend of more muted timesheets at times from Sasaki, the Japanese rider played his cards to perfection on race day. Making moves through the group late on, the number 71 took his second Grand Prix podium by just 0.064, denying Guevara as the Spanish rookie was forced to wait for that first podium once again, just as at Silverstone.
Antonelli stormed the latter stages the come home in fifth, able to pull out a few tenths on compatriot Andrea Migno (Rivacold Snipers Team), who nevertheless bounced back after a tough-to-take technical DNF at Silverstone. Binder took seventh nearly a second further back, with Nepa half a second behind him. Suzuki lost out to the Italian by 0.101 as he took ninth, with Masia completing the top ten a couple of seconds off the front group, not finding his 2020 MotorLand magic this time around.
Ryusei Yamanaka (CarXpert PrüstelGP) took P11 with a little breathing space ahead of Adrian Fernandez (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team), with Syarifuddin Azman (Petronas Sprinta Racing) only a tenth and a half off the number 31 by the flag. No mean feat, and the Malaysian impressively scores points on his Grand Prix debut.
Rather stunningly, behind him came Fenati. The veteran Italian dug in to try and gain ground back after being forced wide, and gain ground he did. Making up the gap to the next riders, passing them, and then rinsing and repeating, the number 55 took 2 points for 14th.
Riccardo Rossi (BOE Owlride) just pipped Kaito Toba (CIP Green Power) to the final point, with a late crash seeing Jeremy Alcoba (Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3) and Fellon both fail to make the flag.
A dramatic day several times over comes to a close at MotorLand with zero change in the Championship standings when it comes to the top two. But behind, Foggia moves into thirs just ahead of home turf at Misano – now only 58 points off the top. What will the Riviera di Rimini bring? We’ll find out next weeked…
Moto3™ podium
1 Dennis Foggia – Leopard Racing – Honda – 37.53.710
2 Deniz Öncü – Red Bull KTM Tech3 – KTM – +0.041
3 Ayumu Sasaki – Red Bull KTM Tech3 – KTM – +0.644
This weekend’s results are brought to you by 6D Helmets.
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Championship Point Standings (after 15 of 18 races):
More, from a press release issued by MotoAmerica:
Lewis, De Keyrel Crowned On Day One At NJMP
Jake Lewis And Kaleb De Keyrel Win MotoAmerica Championships
MILLVILLE, NJ (September 11, 2021) – Altus Motorsports’ Jake Lewis wrapped up the 2021 MotoAmerica Stock 1000 title with a relatively stress-free victory while Robem Engineering’s Kaleb De Keyrel finished second later on a sunny Saturday to earn the 2021 MotoAmerica Twins Cup Championship at New Jersey Motorsports Park.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly, meanwhile, took a giant step toward capturing the 2021 Supersport title with a .001 of a second victory over his championship rival Richie Escalante.
SportbikeTrackGear.com Junior Cup Championship leader Tyler Scott also scored a victory on Saturday to turn his nine-point lead over Benjamin Gloddy into a 21-point lead going into Sunday’s race two.
Stock 1000: Lewis Crowned
Ask any motorcycle road racer, and pretty much all of them will say that the best way to wrap up a championship is to win the race when you clinch. And that’s exactly what happened for Altus Motorsports Suzuki rider Jake Lewis in the weekend’s only Stock 1000 race.
Lewis had the best day of his MotoAmerica career with the win and the championship, but his closest rival Corey Alexander unfortunately had one of his worst days. Aboard his “Engine 23” HONOS HVMC Racing Kawasaki – which featured special fire engine-inspired livery in remembrance of the 20th anniversary of 9/11 – had a technical issue with his bike on the grid and was unable to start the race.
Second place went to Jones Honda’s Ashton Yates, who led a large portion of the 15-lap race until Lewis ultimately passed him and went on to the get the win. Meanwhile, the surprise of the day was third-place finisher Mike Selpe, who put his Markbilt Racing Yamaha on the podium in his first-ever MotoAmerica race.
“I wanted to get it done at this round and go out with a win, but, unfortunately, I didn’t get to race with (Corey Alexander),” Lewis said. “Hats off to Ashton (Yates). I honestly wasn’t expecting that at all. I think he had some problems with his bike overheating yesterday and this morning he was fast, but I didn’t know what his pace was going to be like. I just let him do the lead. It’s tough to lead around here. It was kind of a longer race. I wanted to see how he managed his tires. He actually had a pretty good little gap there midway. I made a mistake going into turn seven and ran a little bit wide, but then after that I was like, ‘I’m not going to let him win.’ I wanted to go out and get the championship up on top of the step, so that’s what we did. Hats off to the whole Altus Motorsports team for giving me the opportunity this year. Like I said on the podium, I was sitting on the couch last year, was over 200 pounds, and kind of hit a tough spot. Thought about quitting racing. They gave me the opportunity and I worked my ass off to get back in shape. I went out and got my butt kicked at the first round. I was off the podium both races. I was like, ‘It’s time to get going now,’ and I’ve been on the podium ever since. Like you said, five wins and three in a row. So, in a good spot right now. It feels good to get the championship this weekend.”
Supersport: Kelly On The Verge Of Title
In Supersport race one, the expected battle between points leader Sean Dylan Kelly aboard his M4 ECSTAR Suzuki and defending champion Richie Escalante aboard his HONOS HVMC Racing Kawasaki manifested itself in a big way during the 19-lap event. But, before that, it was Kelly’s teammate Sam Lochoff who had the best race of his MotoAmerica career so far. The South African led the race multiple times and mixed it up with both Kelly and Escalante. On the final lap, Kelly and Escalante established themselves at the front, and the battle was on. The season-long rivals swapped the lead at least four times on the final go-around, and Kelly ultimately prevailed by a scant .001 of a second to notch his 11th win of the season thus far and move even closer to clinching the season championship.
“It’s been a special weekend,” said Kelly. “Coming in with the chance to win the championship without even having to win a race, it goes through your mind. A lot of people have been talking to me about the weekend and what I have to do, what I don’t have to do. At the end of the day, I’ve done I think the right thing all season long, so why change it? I focused on not overthinking, coming here, and doing the same job as every other weekend. I’m really happy with today’s job. It was honestly on the harder side of those races, really tough. It was awesome to see Sam (Lochoff) up there. He’s really competitive and a new rider to fight with throughout the race. I tried to play it a little smart, not get too crazy with him and do unnecessary moves. I had to do some thinking in the middle of the race and just leave it for the end and it played out well. I knew Richie (Escalante) was going to be there towards the end as well. It worked out well. Fought until the end. I think I made a little dumb mistake. I actually thought it was the last lap with two to go, so I celebrated for a second until I realized that it wasn’t the last lap. So, that was a first. I had to gather myself up in about five seconds once Richie went by me again. I’m really glad that I was able to do some close moves. Richie was definitely closing the door in some places, but I still did it. The door was still big enough. It was a close one, but happy with the job and just focus on tomorrow.”
SportbikeTrackGear.Com Junior Cup: Scott In Control
In SportbikeTrackGear.com Junior Cup race one, Scott Powersports KTM rider Tyler Scott and Landers Racing Kawasaki’s Ben Gloddy were expected to continue their season-long fight for the championship, but a fractured wrist suffered by Gloddy a couple of weeks ago prevented Gloddy from finishing higher than fourth, and he was more than eight-and-a-half seconds behind race-winner Scott when the 13-lap event concluded.
While Scott tallied his eighth win of the season, the rest of the podium was a battle between Rodio Racing Kawasaki’s Gus Rodio and Bauce Racing/Cybersafe Solutions/JL62 Racing Kawasaki’s Joe LiMandri Jr. At the finish line, Rodio prevailed in second place by just .024 of a second over third-place finisher LiMandri Jr.
“I tried to break away early thinking there was going to be a pack of riders, definitely these two,” Scott said. “I thought Ben (Gloddy) was going to be there. I broke away and I saw on my pit board two seconds, so I just tried to keep it at two seconds because I was really pushing the limit the first couple laps. I got kind of close to the track record. I just stayed at the pace I was going and did what I needed to do to win.”
Twins Cup: It’s Title Time For De Keyrel
The Twins Cup class has seen an influx of new riders all season long, and for round eight of the championship, Aprilia test rider Tommaso Marcon raced for Robem Engineering, while Cory Ventura, who podiumed twice in Supersport at Laguna Seca in his only other appearance this season, competed for Veloce Racing.
It was a case of bad news/good news for the pair of Aprilia RS 660 riders as Marcon crashed out of the 14-lap event, while Ventura won the race. And while Ventura celebrated on the top step of the podium, second-place finisher Kaleb De Keyrel celebrated the class championship that he clinched aboard his Robem Engineering Aprilia. Also celebrating was De Keyrel’s teammate Max Toth, who got his first Twins Cup podium finish in only his second race in the class.
After his race win, Ventura said, “All weekend long I’ve been facing issues with my shifter. I’m not good when it comes to downshifting. I’ve had years in the past where it’s been a huge struggle of mine, and once I got on (a Kawasaki in Supersport), I didn’t have that issue anymore. Here we are again. It kind of caught me by surprise. As soon as I go to focus on racing and what’s in front of me, I forget about making positive shifts. So, tomorrow I need to make sure I get that dialed in and figured out. But to be honest, I don’t think I was riding too well. I think there was a lot of time out of the racetrack and so a lot of battles to be had. Tomorrow we’ve got to come back swinging because there’s no way what I did today is going to win tomorrow’s race.”
“Half of me wanted to win and half of me wanted to play it safe,” said championship winner De Keyrel. “I was definitely going for the win. Cory was riding awesome. Max got by me, and he was riding really good. Definitely stepped it up from last weekend, so that was cool to see. All three Robem Engineering bikes were up front, so that was really good for us. There were definitely some points in the race where I was like, I really want to win, but we’re pushing really hard here. Then Tommaso threw it away. Something happened to Mazziotto, I think. I was like, okay, there’s a lot on the line here, so I was kind of trying to plan my move where I could. I really did want to win. Like I said, the whole race, half of me wanted to win, half of me wanted to just play it safe, but I gave it everything I had out there. Cory was riding awesome, so congrats to him. We’ll hopefully work on the setup a little bit and come out swinging for tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by Team Hammer:
KELLY WINS SUPERSPORT PHOTO FINISH IN NEW JERSEY
Team Hammer enjoyed a sensational Saturday of the penultimate round of the 2021 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship at New Jersey Motorsports Park.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly showed his ability to keep the pressure on his opponents once again in the MotoAmerica Supersport contest, pulling off yet another final-lap victory in jaw-dropping fashion.
The series points leader was forced to work very hard yet again, dicing it up with teammate Sam Lochoff over the first half of the contest before settling into a one-on-one duel with the defending class champ in the race’s decisive laps.
The final of five lead changes that took place over the race’s last-lap-and-a-half came courtesy of ‘SDK’ leveraging the extreme agility of his GSX-R600 to unexpectedly slot into first position in the middle of the chicane.
That maneuver set up a drag race to the checkered flag that was only decided once officials reviewed the start/finish line camera. Kelly was officially credited with a 0.001-second margin of victory.
The win was his 11th of the season and improved SDK’s chance to lock down the title early. Kelly needs a finish of just seventh or better on Sunday to clinch the title even if his closest challenger were to win out in the remaining races.
“Clearly, I was willing to risk quite a bit,” Kelly said. “I went out there to win. Everyone’s talking about my chances to win the championship, and how I possibly didn’t even have to win to clinch this weekend. That doesn’t matter. I come here because I work hard to win, so I’m going to do that every single weekend. We’ve been doing that all season long, so why not keep doing it?
“This is amazing. I’m really happy, but we still have tomorrow, and that’s going to be an important day for us.”
Lochoff registered arguably his most impressive ride yet in middleweight competition. The South African secured provisional pole on Friday and proved his competitiveness by leading multiple laps while pushing the class’ established powers before settling into a secure third.
The result was the fourth podium of the rookie’s maiden Supersport campaign. He said, “Riding with the fastest guys, I was learning every lap. I made a couple mistakes, especially on the long left. But we’re going to go back and make a couple changes for tomorrow. Leading some laps, it felt like a win. But I think if we make the right changes, maybe we can be even more competitive tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Altus Motorsports Suzuki’s Jake Lewis already completed his ultimate goal for the 2021 season by claiming the Stock 1000 crown a race early.
Lewis put the finishing touches on his championship with a dramatic victory, executing a final-lap pass aboard his Team Hammer-built GSX-R1000R to claim the championship in ideal fashion.
“I wanted to go out and get the championship from the top step to reward my team and that’s what we did,” Lewis said. “Last year, I was out of the paddock, sitting on the couch, over 200 pounds, and in a tough spot. I thought about quitting racing, but I’ve been traveling the country in a van with my mom and dad since I was four years old, chasing a dream. I worked hard to get back in shape. After I got my butt kicked at the first round, I knew it was time to get going, and we’ve been on the podium pretty much ever since.
“Big thanks to Altus Motorsports for the opportunity and to Team Hammer as well for the amazing technical package.”
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Superbike teammates, Bobby Fong and Cameron Petersen, put up a strong fight as well on Saturday. Fong battled it out for a podium throughout aboard his Suzuki GSX-R1000R, coming up 0.132 seconds short of the box in fourth. Petersen, meanwhile, engaged in a three-way scrap for fifth before ultimately finishing in seventh.
Wyatt Farris added another top-ten finish to the team’s tally by finishing tenth aboard his M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R in the Stock 1000 contest.
Sunday will be another big day at the track for Team Hammer at NJMP with Kelly and Lochoff going for victory in Supersport and the premier Superbike class racing not once, but twice.
About Team Hammer
The 2021 season marks Team Hammer’s 41st consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won 124 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums 325 times and have won ten AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships (in Superbike and Supersport.) The team has also won 137 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 Overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running “Methanol Monster” GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.
This weekend’s results are brought to you by 6D Helmets.
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Superbike Championship Point Standings (after 15 of 20 races):
Superbike Cup Championship Point Standings (after 15 of 20 races):
More, from a press release issued by MotoAmerica:
Gagne Has One Hand On The 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Title
Jake Gagne Needs Just Two Points To Take First Superbike Crown
MILLVILLE, NJ (September 11, 2021) – If Jake Gagne manages to get out of bed tomorrow and make it to the grid for the first of two HONOS Superbike races at New Jersey Motorsports Park, he will be crowned as the 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Champion. Nuff said.
In HONOS Superbike race one on Saturday afternoon, Gagne and his Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha again made a mockery of the rest of the field as he led all 20 laps in winning his 14th straight race by 7.6 seconds. After 15 races, Gagne leads the championship point standings by a whopping 98 points. If he scores two points in race one on Sunday, he will start race two as the 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Champion – his second MotoAmerica title to go with his 2015 Superstock 1000 title.
Only a brave man would bet against Gagne winning his 15th and 16th straight races tomorrow and the Californian doesn’t seem to be willing to let someone else win.
“I wish I could,” Gagne said. “I just have to do my job. This bike is this good. I’ve got to ride it as hard as I can every lap. We made some good improvements throughout the weekend, throughout yesterday and this morning, and so got a little bit more comfortable. We were happy with our race pace. We knew kind of what we could do. It was a little slicker even than I thought this afternoon. I’m sure with the heat it got into the track, got into the tires. It was a little slicker than I thought, for sure. But I’m happy. I got off to a good start. I saw Mat (Scholtz) coming around the outside of me in one right there. I know these guys are going to try to stick it up in there, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow. We’ve got two long races, so I’m sure it will be a battle. We’ll just keep clicking away at it. I’ve got nothing to do but ride the thing as hard as I can every lap, and whatever happens, happens.”
Second place on Saturday went to Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz, the South African taking the runner-up spot for the fifth time on the season as he solidifies his stranglehold on second in the championship.
“Second place, I kind of have to be happy,” Scholtz said. “Obviously, we would like to win, but Jake (Gagne) is on form now. It’s kind of nice to be the next-best guy after the Attack Yamaha. At this point it’s pretty clear to see that they have the best package. So, it’s always good to be up there. I think Jake beat us by seven or eight seconds, which is a little bit far, so I’m just going to go back to the briefing room now and just try to figure out what we can do better. The first five or six laps I felt good. We did a 21.2, 21.3 and I felt comfortable. Then I got to lap five or six and I was just pushing the front and sliding out of almost every single right-hand corner, so got to try to figure out something how we can kind of hook up better. Obviously, if you’re going to do something, you’ve got to pass Jake early on because once he kind of settles into his own groove and he’s gone, he definitely has a better pace than everyone else. So, hopefully, tomorrow I’ll be able to get a decent jump and try to do something out of the first couple corners. For now, just got to be happy with this second place. I had a decent battle with Toni (Elias). It’s always good to see him back up here. Happy with the Yamaha sweep of the podium. Just a big shoutout to the Westby team. We’ve been working hard. We completely changed the motorcycle about four or five rounds back, and I feel like we’ve been making steady progress forward. So, I’ve just got to keep on working at it and just chip away a couple tenths, and we should be right there.”
Toni Elias had his third outing on the Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha and he put it on the podium for the second time, the Spaniard ending up third, some four seconds adrift of Scholtz and just .132 of a second ahead of M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Bobby Fong.
“This is the best bike and the best team,” Elias said. “We were a little bit limited at Pittsburgh. Maybe the track was a little bit better for me. This one is more difficult. They bring me something for the front that means I felt instantly much comfortable on the brakes. Let’s say, I come back to my riding style, to hard brakes and on braking areas. But I’m still missing rear contact, rear grip on entry, on exit. We are working so hard. We did small improvements, but I need something big. We are getting closer, because the possibilities of things were two things and we have no time, but every time we’re getting closer and closer, more close to the solution. That’s the goal. Today I had a really good start. I tried to follow him (Gagne) for six, seven laps. At the end, I couldn’t. Then Mathew (Scholtz) was having better pace than me. I decided to let him go and just he helped me to continue, and at the end I couldn’t either. I just was trying to not lose the rear too much. Also, Bobby (Fong) was faster than me, but I just closed the doors and pushed the last few laps and the last three corners and saved the podium. Thanks to the team, Attack Yamaha, to continue giving me opportunities. Tomorrow we have to work. I will keep pushing, working and let’s see what we can do.”
Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati New York’s Loris Baz finished fifth and some 10 seconds behind Fong after topping the third Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha ridden by the returning Josh Herrin by just .051 of a second.
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Cameron Petersen was seventh, well clear of One Cure Ducati’s Kyle Wyman who was less than a second ahead of Superbike Cup winner Jake Lewis and his Altus Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000. FLY Racing ADR Motorsports’ Bradley Ward rounded out the top 10.
More, from a press release issued by Westby Racing:
Scholtz Notches 11th Superbike Podium And Fifth Runner-Up Result Of The Season
Millville, NJ – September 11, 2021 – On Saturday at New Jersey Motorsports Park, Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz not only finished on the Superbike podium for the 11th time in this year’s MotoAmerica Championship, his second-place result was the fifth time he has finished as runner-up this season.
And, while winning races is obviously the number-one objective of Mathew and the team, the consistency, which includes their current six-race podium streak, has given them a stone-cold lock on second place in the point standings, with a gap of nearly 60 points to the third-ranked rider with five races left in the season.
Starting from the middle of the front row, Mathew got a good jump off the line and tried to overtake Jake Gagne on the opening lap, but he ran out of room. After that, Toni Elias overtook Mathew, but Mathew had good pace and got past Toni as the race approached the halfway point. From there, Mathew maintained second place all the way to the checkered flag.
“Second place, I kind of have to be happy,” Mathew said. “Obviously, we would like to win, but Jake (Gagne) is on form now. It’s kind of nice to be the next-best guy after the Attack Yamaha. At this point it’s pretty clear to see that they have the best package. So, it’s always good to be up there. I think Jake beat us by seven or eight seconds, which is a little bit far, so we’re just going to go back to the briefing room now and try to figure out what we can do better. The first five or six laps, I felt good. We did a 21.2, 21.3, and I felt comfortable. Then, I got to lap five or six, and I was just pushing the front and sliding out of almost every single right-hand corner, so we’ve got to try to figure out how we can kind of hook up better. Obviously, if you’re going to do something, you’ve got to pass Jake early on because once he settles into his own groove and he’s gone, he definitely has a better pace than everyone else. So, hopefully, tomorrow I’ll be able to get a decent jump and try to do something out of the first couple corners. For now, just got to be happy with this second place. I had a decent battle with Toni. It’s always good to see him back up here. Happy with the Yamaha sweep of the podium. Just a big shout-out to the Westby Racing team. We’ve been working hard. We completely changed the motorcycle about four or five rounds back, and I feel like we’ve been making steady progress forward. So, we’ve just got to keep on working at it and just chip away a couple tenths, and we should be right there.”
Ed Sullivan, Westby Racing Crew Chief said, “Solid race for Mathew and our team today. Another strong second place. We have some changes ready for Sunday morning warm up, and I’m confident we will make the step needed to get Mathew up fighting with Jake.”
Chuck Giacchetto, Westby Racing Team Manager, added, “Today was the best day of our 2021 effort, in my opinion. I am so pleased and proud of our team. The guys found a very nice rhythm of late, and it’s all coming together. With regard to Mathew, he’s worked very hard to change not only his riding style but he has also found a much calmer approach to addressing his needs, which, in turn, gives Ed and the crew much more precise feedback.
“I know there is only a small mathematical chance to win the championship at this point, but I’m so ready to address the improvements that the team wants and needs because we still have room to improve. To be as close as we are and realize that there’s still room for improvement is very exciting as we look forward to the 2022 season.”
Sunday’s Superbike race two is at 11 a.m. ET, and Superbike race three is at 3 p.m. ET. Both races will be broadcast live on FOX Sports 2 (FS2), as well as streamed on MotoAmerica Live+.
For more updates about Westby Racing, including news, photos, and videos, visit http://www.WestbyRacing.com
Also, follow “Westby Racing” on your favorite social media sites.
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Gagne Inches Closer to MotoAmerica Superbike Crown with 14th-Straight Win
Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne scored another dominant victory in today’s race one of the MotoAmerica Superbike tripleheader at the New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, New Jersey. His impressive 14th-straight win moves him closer to his first title in the premier class. Toni Elias joined him on the podium in third. After two months away, Josh Herrin had a solid first race back, coming just shy of a top-five finish in sixth.
Gagne set the pace early, leading every session to maintain his perfect qualifying record this season. The Colorado rider got a great start from pole position and led every lap to take his 14th win of the season by a 7.6-second margin. With 100 points left on the table and five races remaining, Gagne’s 98-point lead in the championship puts him just two points away from clinching the title a week early.
Elias got a great start from the second row of the grid to third and quickly moved into the runner-up spot. He then found himself in a three-way battle for the podium and on Lap 7, he was passed by fellow Yamaha rider Mathew Scholtz. The Spaniard kept pushing but then had a moment after the halfway mark and lost some ground. With another rider on his heels, Elias kept cool under pressure and held off the competition to secure third for his second podium finish in three tries aboard the Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha R1.
After being sidelined from the previous two rounds with Covid-19, Herrin had a solid return to racing. Qualifying fifth, he started on the second row next to Elias and was fifth after the start. The Californian was able to close the gap to the riders ahead, but started to lose some time five laps in and found himself locked in an intense three-rider battle for fifth. Herrin exchanged positions a few times and fought all the way to the finish line, coming short of the top-five finish by just .051 of a second.
The Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing Team returns tomorrow for two more races to complete the MotoAmerica Superbike tripleheader at the championship’s penultimate round at the New Jersey Motorsports Park.
Richard Stanboli – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“Today was a fun day at NJMP. Jake rode a great race and won from the front. We told him not to worry about the championship and do what he has been doing, and everything else will fall into place.
“It was also good to have Toni on the bike. He has a wealth of knowledge in addition to being a great rider. It was good to see him race at the front and finish on the podium. He is really enjoying his time on the Yamaha R1.
“We also welcome Josh back after recovering from Covid, and he is quickly getting back up to speed. We will have a look at our data tonight and make some further improvements for tomorrow. It would be good to see all three riders on the podium, and we will work hard to give them that opportunity.”
Jake Gagne – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“It was another great day for the team. We had a productive practice, and we were able to understand how the bike was going to work over the race distance. I got off to another good start and just clicked off the laps until the end for another win. We’ve got two twenty-lap races tomorrow, which will be a lot, but I’m ready for it.”
Toni Elias – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“I’m very happy to be on the podium. This track is difficult, but we have made some improvements since Pittsburgh. I’ve been struggling a bit with rear grip, and this hurt me a little bit today. I had a really great start, and for seven or eight laps, I followed Jake and kept that one-second gap, but at the end, I started to slide and lost touch with him and then fought with Mat (Scholtz). I think we can make another step tomorrow. I want to say thank you again to the team for working so hard and bringing me back to the podium.”
Josh Herrin – Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“I’m so happy to be back. It wasn’t the result we wanted, but being off the bike for two months made it hard. I was a little too far back and knew I wasn’t going to catch those guys once (Loris) Baz was there with me. We had a great battle; I think we probably had fifteen passes there at the end of the race. I’m sure that we’ve got a lot to look at when we get back to the truck. It’s been a long road climbing back to where we’re at right now, but we’re going to keep working as hard as we can to get back on the podium.”
Aragón Race 1 to Holgado – Rookies Cup to Alonso
Dani Holgado, David Muñoz and David Alonso flashed across the line at the end of a fabulously intense Race 1 at Aragon. Third place gave the 2021 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup to Alonso.
The Colombian 15-year-old had fought for the race win all the way in what distilled into a 5 KTM lead battle but Pole man Holgado, the 16-year-old Spaniard, had the edge on the final lap. Going into the penultimate race only Muñoz could challenge Alonso for the Cup and he put everything into it but Alonso only really needed a handful of points to take the title.
David Muñoz has locked out second place in the title chase, the same position he finished last season. Holgado is secure in third, he was 5th last year and Alonso 4th.
Holgado happy for himself and Alonso
“I am very happy for my race and my second victory of the season. I did a good job yesterday and today the race was amazing for me.”
“It was a very fast race and I am happy to be the winner. Thanks to my team and to my family for the support. Congratulations to my team mate David (Alonso) for winning the Cup, thanks to all.”
“Pole yesterday, a win today and I hope another one tomorrow, it’s possible.”
Alonso takes the Cup
“I feel so surprised, finally we did it. This second year, after one year of learning, this year to win the championship and that is what we did.”
“About the race, it was a difficult race because all the weekend I was strong but today, maybe because of the pressure, I was a little bit less strong. I managed as best as I can and I could win the championship.”
“It’s amazing, all the effort that I made and also winning it today is very good because tomorrow I can enjoy the race.”
“Nothing much more to say really, I think that tonight I will be very happy.”
Muñoz second in race and Cup
“Second place is very good for me. I am also second in the championship and that is also good.”
“Thanks to the Rookies Cup and everyone who supports me. One more race tomorrow and I will go for the win.”
Broadcast
This weekend’s Rookies Cup races can be seen live on www.redbull.tv and on TV stations around the world.
Race 2 is on Sunday at 15:30, the show starts 10 minutes before the race.
Race Classification for ARA RookiesCup RAC1
Sacramento Mile I/American Flat Track
Sacramento, California
September 11, 2021
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Davis Fisher (Ind), 38.055
2. Jared Mees (Ind), 38.392
3. Briar Bauman (Ind), 38.427
4. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 38.591
5. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 38.667
6. JD Beach (Yam), 39.046
7. Brandon Price (Ind), 39.166
8. Bryan Smith (Ind), 39.203
9. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 39.272
10. Robert Pearson (Ind), 39.731
11. James Rispoli (Har), 40.422
12. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 50.544
AFT Singles Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Dallas Daniels (Yam), 40.432
2. Kody Kopp (Hon), 40.576
3. Trent Lowe (Suz), 40.581
4. Tanner Dean (Hon), 40.601
5. Cole Zabala (Hon), 40.638
6. Michael Rush (Yam), 40.664
7. Max Whale (KTM), 40.676
8. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), 40.677
9. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 40.700
10. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), 40.735
11. Morgen Mischler (KTM), 40.737
12. Tyler Raggio (Hon), 40.756
13. Kevin Stollings (Hon), 40.867
14. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), 40.875
15. Ryan Wells (Hon), 41.134
16. Damon Ream (KTM), 41.343
17. Andrew Luker (Yam), 41.622
18. Travis Petton IV (Hon), 41.667
19. Grant Holmes (Suz), 41.690
20. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), 41.767
21. Hunter Bauer (KTM), 41.785
22. Andre Ochs (KTM), 42.333
23. Jacob Cascio (Yam), 42.713
24. Jared Lowe (Hon), 42.715
25. Clayton Williams (Hon), 42.801
26. Michael Hill (Yam), 43.070
27. Noah Miller (Hon), 43.809
28. Ezra Brusky (Hon), no time recorded
AFT Production Twins Provisional Free Practice 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Chad Cose (Har), 39.965
2. Jesse Janisch (Har), 39.983
3. Cory Texter (Yam), 40.047
4. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 40.253
5. Ben Lowe (Har), 40.473
6. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 40.508
7. Patrick Buchanan (Har), 40.542
8. Dan Bromley (Yam), 40.543
9. Tanner Dean (Kaw), 40.577
10. Morgen Mischler (Har), 40.580
11. Michael Hill (Yam), 41.619
12. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), 41.675
13. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 42.825
14. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), no time recorded
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Free Practice 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 38.474
2. Briar Bauman (Ind), 38.523
3. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 38.595
4. Davis Fisher (Ind), 39.073
5. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 39.098
6. JD Beach (Yam), 39.129
7. James Rispoli (Har), 39.164
8. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 39.189
9. Bryan Smith (Ind), 39.357
10. Brandon Price (Ind), 39.400
11. Robert Pearson (Ind), 39.415
12. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 39.432
AFT Singles Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), 39.810
2. Dallas Daniels (Yam), 39.812
3. Tanner Dean (Hon), 39.851
4. Michael Rush (Yam), 39.902
5. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), 39.921
6. Max Whale (KTM), 39.962
7. Cole Zabala (Hon), 40.021
8. Kody Kopp (Hon), 40.082
9. Trent Lowe (Suz), 40.093
10. Kevin Stollings (Hon), 40.157
11. Morgen Mischler (KTM), 40.173
12. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 40.184
13. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), 40.215
14. Ryan Wells (Hon), 40.235
15. Grant Holmes (Suz), 40.268
16. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), 40.275
17. Tyler Raggio (Hon), 40.302
18. Travis Petton IV (Hon), 40.304
19. Andrew Luker (Yam), 40.375
20. Hunter Bauer (KTM), 40.479
21. Andre Ochs (KTM), 40.524
22. Michael Hill (Yam), 40.791
23. Damon Ream (KTM), 40.954
24. Clayton Williams (Hon), 41.071
25. Jared Lowe (Hon), 41.277
26. Jacob Cascio (Yam), 42.245
27. Noah Miller (Hon), 42.281
28. Ezra Brusky (Hon), no time recorded
AFT Production Twins Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 38.607
2. Jesse Janisch (Har), 38.703
3. Morgen Mischler (Har), 38.886
4. Chad Cose (Har), 38.896
5. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 39.044
6. Dan Bromley (Yam), 39.075
7. Patrick Buchanan (Har), 39.214
8. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 39.345
9. Ben Lowe (Har), 39.384
10. Michael Hill (Yam), 39.566
11. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), 39.783
12. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), 40.518
13. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 40.865
14. Tanner Dean (Kaw), 47.368
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Qualifying 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 37.101
2. Davis Fisher (Ind), 37.180
3. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 37.218
4. Briar Bauman (Ind), 37.377
5. Bryan Smith (Ind), 37.631
6. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 37.642
7. Robert Pearson (Ind), 37.662
8. James Rispoli (Har), 37.701
9. JD Beach (Yam), 37.735
10. Brandon Robinson (Ind), 37.865
11. Brandon Price (Ind), 37.921
12. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 38.069
AFT Singles Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Dallas Daniels (Yam), 38.243
2. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), 38.349
3. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 38.443
4. Tanner Dean (Hon), 38.520
5. Michael Rush (Yam), 38.568
6. Trent Lowe (Suz), 38.579
7. Max Whale (KTM), 38.614
8. Cole Zabala (Hon), 38.620
9. Kody Kopp (Hon), 38.650
10. Morgen Mischler (KTM), 38.777
11. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), 38.834
12. Kevin Stollings (Hon), 38.918
13. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), 38.935
14. Andrew Luker (Yam), 38.954
15. Ryan Wells (Hon), 38.982
16. Hunter Bauer (KTM), 39.193
17. Damon Ream (KTM), 39.281
18. Tyler Raggio (Hon), 39.416
19. Andre Ochs (KTM), 39.452
20. Jared Lowe (Hon), 39.458
21. Grant Holmes (Suz), 39.489
22. Travis Petton IV (Hon), 39.672
23. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), 39.713
24. Clayton Williams (Hon), 39.833
25. Michael Hill (Yam), 39.921
26. Jacob Cascio (Yam), 40.962
27. Noah Miller (Hon), 41.046
AFT Production Twins Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 37.106
2. Chad Cose (Har), 37.881
3. Morgen Mischler (Har), 37.899
4. Jesse Janisch (Har), 37.899
5. Ben Lowe (Har), 37.972
6. Nick Armstrong (Yam), 38.139
7. Dan Bromley (Yam), 38.213
8. Patrick Buchanan (Har), 38.265
9. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), 38.313
10. Michael Hill (Yam), 38.446
11. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), 39.098
12. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), 39.110
13. Gary Ketchum (Kaw), 39.960
14. Tanner Dean (Kaw), no time recorded
AFT Mission SuperTwins Provisional Qualifying 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 35.969
2. Briar Bauman (Ind), 36.255
3. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), 36.499
4. Davis Fisher (Ind), 36.593
5. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 36.669
6. Bryan Smith (Ind), 36.695
7. James Rispoli (Har), 36.703
8. Robert Pearson (Ind), 36.712
9. JD Beach (Yam), 36.818
10. Brandon Price (Ind), 36.963
11. Kolby Carlile (Yam), 37.266
12. Brandon Robinson (Ind), no time recorded
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 8 laps
2. Sammy Halbert (Ind), -05.065 seconds
3. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), -05.106
4. James Rispoli (Har), -05.603
5. JD Beach (Yam), -06.145
6. Kolby Carlile (Yam), -10.304
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Briar Bauman (Ind), 8 laps
2. Davis Fisher (Ind), -00.026 seconds
3. Brandon Robinson (Ind), -02.120
4. Robert Pearson (Ind), -02.508
5. Bryan Smith (Ind), -03.337
6. Brandon Price (Ind), -04.633
Provisional AFT Production Twins Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 8 laps
2. Jesse Janisch (Har), -05.250 seconds
3. Ben Lowe (Har), -09.442
4. Dan Bromley (Yam), -09.641
5. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), -14.518
6. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), -27.635
Provisional AFT Production Twins Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Chad Cose (Har), 8 laps
2. Morgen Mischler (Har), -02.492 seconds
3. Nick Armstrong (Yam), -03.975
4. Patrick Buchanan (Har), -06.185
5. Michael Hill (Yam), -17.333
6. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), -1 lap
Provisional AFT Singles Semi 1 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 8 laps
2. Michael Rush (Yam), -00.055 seconds
3. Max Whale (KTM), -00.167
4. Dallas Daniels (Yam), -00.171
5. Kody Kopp (Hon), -00.223
6. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), -00.297
7. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), -01.141
8. Damon Ream (KTM), -02.762
9. Ryan Wells (Hon), -02.812
10. Andre Ochs (KTM), -06.947
11. Jacob Lehmann (Hon), -07.030
12. Grant Holmes (Suz), -07.174
13. Michael Hill (Yam), -6 laps
Provisional AFT Singles Semi 2 Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cole Zabala (Hon), 8 laps
2. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), -00.023 seconds
3. Tanner Dean (Hon), -00.037
4. Morgen Mischler (KTM), -00.162
5. Kevin Stollings (Hon), -00.478
6. Trent Lowe (Suz), -00.751
7. Andrew Luker (Yam), -03.107
8. Tyler Raggio (Hon), -04.743
9. Travis Petton IV (Hon), -04.761
10. Clayton Williams (Hon), -10.389
11. Jared Lowe (Hon), -10.398
12. Hunter Bauer (KTM), -7 laps
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Mission Challenge Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Sammy Halbert (Ind), 4 laps
2. Briar Bauman (Ind), -00.093 seconds
3. Jared Mees (Ind), -00.117
4. Davis Fisher (Ind), -01.459
Provisional AFT Production Twins Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Cory Texter (Yam), 18 laps
2. Chad Cose (Har), -05.197 seconds
3. Jesse Janisch (Har), -12.405
4. Ben Lowe (Har), -12.450
5. Morgen Mischler (Har), -12.520
6. Dan Bromley (Yam), -15.576
7. Jeremiah Duffy (Kaw), -20.107
8. Nick Armstrong (Yam), -20.996
9. Patrick Buchanan (Har), -25.103
10. Michael Hill (Yam), -25.337
11. Kasey Sciscoe (Kaw), -1 lap, -11.333
12. Jimmy McAllister (Kaw), -1 lap, -31.504
Provisional AFT Singles Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Trevor Brunner (Hon), 18 laps
2. Shayna Texter-Bauman (KTM), -00.024 seconds
3. Dallas Daniels (Yam), -00.041
4. Michael Rush (Yam), -00.094
5. Kevin Stollings (Hon), -00.216
6. Morgen Mischler (KTM), -00.386
7. Max Whale (KTM), -00.526
8. Tanner Dean (Hon), -00.827
9. Michael Inderbitzin (Hon), -00.859
10. Aidan RoosEvans (Hon), -01.132
11. Kody Kopp (Hon), -02.953
12. Trent Lowe (Suz), -02.972
13. Ryan Wells (Hon), -03.049
14. Andrew Luker (Yam), -06.703
15. Tyler Raggio (Hon), -11.657
16. Damon Ream (KTM), -11.944
17. Cole Zabala (Hon), -1 lap
Provisional Mission SuperTwins Main Event Results (all on Dunlop tires):
1. Jared Mees (Ind), 25 laps
2. Jarod Vanderkooi (Ind), -04.611 seconds
3. Briar Bauman (Ind), -04.710
4. Sammy Halbert (Ind), -04.730
5. JD Beach (Yam), -04.966
6. Brandon Robinson (Ind), -05.405
7. Brandon Price (Ind), -06.571
8. Davis Fisher (Ind), -06.581
9. Robert Pearson (Ind), -13.244
10. James Rispoli (Har), -13.281
11. Kolby Carlile (Yam), -22.323
12. Bryan Smith (Ind), -18 laps
More, from a press release issued by American Flat Track (AFT):
Mees Steamrolls Sacramento Mile I
Texter clinches 2021 AFT Production Twins title; Brunner races to the front in AFT Singles.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (September 11, 2021) – Progressive American Flat Track legend Jared Mees (No. 9 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750) continued to perform at his vintage best, notching up yet another blowout victory in Saturday evening’s Law Tigers Sacramento Mile I presented by Knauf Insulation at Cal Expo in Sacramento, California.
Mees replicated the Springfield Mile II escape plan he executed just a few days prior. He eked out some breathing space in the opening minutes of the Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S Cycle Main Event and then effectively rendered the race one for second place as he continually added to that advantage, lap after lap.
Never seriously challenged, Mees had more than six seconds in hand when the clock hit 0:00 and still boasted a 4.611-second margin of victory at the checkered flag despite coasting all the way down the final straight.
Mees said, “My heart rate was low around there today, and the track was so smooth it wasn’t too physical. The challenge was mental, trying to put it all together. I was a little bit frustrated after making a mistake in the Dash for Cash. I was starting to second think… ‘Am I losing the mojo? Am I losing the momentum?’
“But I got the holeshot in the Main and started picking ‘em up and putting ‘em down, honestly. The bike was phenomenal. A huge shout out to Kenny Tolbert, Bubba Bentley, and Jimmy Wood. Every session all throughout the day, we tweaked the bike to make it that much better.”
Mees’ dominant night was made that much easier when his rival, defending double Mission SuperTwins Champion Briar Bauman (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle/Progressive Insurance FTR750), became embroiled in a race-long multi-rider melee for second.
While the lead-up to the Main suggested that Bauman just might have had the pace to run with Mees, he was never able to show it when it mattered. Bauman struggled both to draft past Sammy Halbert (No. 69 Coolbeth-Nila Racing Indian FTR750) and keep him behind him on the straights, while getting held up in the corners by him at the same time.
All the while, Davis Fisher (No. 67 BMC Racing/Dick Wall 60 Indian FTR750), was mixing it up with Bauman and Halbert, which further allowed Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750), JD Beach (No. 95 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) and, finally, Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750), to join the fray and turn it into a six-rider slugfest for second.
At one point, Fisher slipped the groove following a near-miss with Bauman and fell well back. He made a determined charge back up the order and arrived just in time to get his revenge with less than two laps remaining. That dropped the champ back to fifth and put his championship lead at serious risk.
The rapidly evolving battle next saw Vanderkooi pull off a last-lap move on Fisher that again knocked him off the groove just as Bauman finally found a way past Halbert. Ultimately, Vanderkooi crossed the stripe in second with Bauman earning his 12th podium of the season in third.
Despite that consistent excellence, Mees now sits just four points behind Bauman in the title chase (271-267), which puts him within striking distance of taking the outright lead should he add to his three-race win streak tomorrow.
Halbert finished fourth, followed by Beach and Robinson. Brandon Price (No. 92 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) took full advantage of Fisher’s repeat misfortune to edge him for seventh by 0.009 seconds at the stripe.
Robert Pearson (No. 27 Rackley Racing/John Franklin Indian FTR750) and James Rispoli (No. 43 Latus Motors Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R Rev X) rounded out the top ten.
AFT Singles
It’s hard to imagine a scenario more intimidating for a prospective AFT Singles star than to lead coming out of Turn 4 on the final lap of a Mile with both the class’ defending champion and its all-time winningest rider breathing down their neck. That’s exactly the predicament Trevor Brunner (No. 21 American Honda/Progressive Insurance CRF450R) found himself in at the conclusion of a frenetic race-long pack war.
Still, even though Dallas Daniels (No. 1 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) and Shayna Texter-Bauman (No. 52 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-FFE) did all they could to add to their impressive respective wins tallies, Brunner skillfully made a perfect launch out of the corner to overcome their attempts to draft by him at the stripe, edging Texter-Bauman by 0.024 seconds and Daniels by 0.041.
After claiming his second career Progressive AFT victory, Brunner said, “This was very important. I was a little let down (following a controversial clash with Daniels last weekend at Springfield), but I answered the call for my whole team. They deserved it so much.”
While the win came down to those three, the race featured a lead group that numbered into the double digits all the way to the checkered flag. As tight as the field was, the primary players throughout were those representing the powerhouse factory-backed teams; Cole Zabala (No. 51 American Honda/Progressive Insurance CRF450R) and Mikey Rush (No. 15 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) each took several turns turns at the front with title hopeful Max Whale (No. 18 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-FFE) lurking in sixth pretty much the entire way.
That all changed late when Whale went off the groove and dropped several positions and Zabala suffered a mechanical while still in with a shot at victory. Rush did manage to come home in third, just 0.094 seconds off the win, but the final-lap chaos allowed Kevin Stollings (No. 99 Mission Roof Systems Honda CRF450R) to slip into the top five.
Whale, meanwhile, did well to claw his way back to seventh, finishing just one position behind third-ranked Morgen Mischler (No. 13 Mission Roof Systems KTM 450 SX-F). Even still, Daniels expanded his title advantage, which now stands at 12 (248-236) with just two races remaining.
AFT Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines
11th-place was all he needed, but Cory Texter (No. 65 G&G Racing/Yamaha Racing MT-07) instead preferred to celebrate his dominant 2021 AFT Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines title triumph with a more representative victory.
Texter lined up on pole with three Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson XG750Rs alongside, piloted by Chad Cose (No. 49 Voodoo Ranger/Roof Systems Harley-Davidson XG750R), Jesse Janisch (No. 96 Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson XG750R) and Morgen Mischler (No. 13 Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Harley-Davidson XG750R).
Any chance that talented trio had of teaming up on Texter evaporated after the ‘19 class champ took his customary holeshot as wild cards Mischler and Janisch limped off the line and dropped to seventh and eighth, respectively.
A motivated Cose pulled in behind Texter and sat in his draft over the race’s opening half. But Texter’s torrid pace and trademark consistency ultimately broke the challenge of the “California Kid ” as well.
Texter left no doubt en route to reclaiming possession of the #1 plate, winning by 5.197 seconds. With two races still remaining, Texter is once again the AFT Production Twins king on the strength of six wins and ten podiums.
He said, “This class is super talented this year. It was hard work versus talent. I have a lot of respect for the guys I race against, and this (championship) was earned. The grind it took this season… The injuries I had to work through this summer, and the training, and the studying notes, and losing it last year and coming back this year, and working for it and winning it. It all means so much to me.
“You don’t have to be the most talented guy out there. You can work super hard and achieve your goals.”
Cose took a popular runner-up in front of the home fans, which also propelled him into second in the championship, moving him one point ahead of sixth-place finisher Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Vinson Construction Yamaha MT-07).
Meanwhile, Janisch fought his way back up to come out on top of a last-lap drafting contest for the podium with Ben Lowe (No. 25 Mission Roof Systems Harley-Davidson XG750R) (fourth) and Mischler (fifth). The result was Janisch’s third top-three in four starts in place of the injured Dalton Gauthier (No. 79 D&D Cycles/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson XG750R).
The Law Tigers Sacramento Mile I & II presented by Knauf Insulation will premiere back-to-back on NBCSN on Sunday, September 26, starting at 11:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. PT, including exclusive features and cutting-edge aerial drone and onboard footage.
Next Up:
Sunday’s Law Tigers Sacramento Mile II presented by Knauf Insulation isn’t just the second-half of this weekend’s Legendary Sacramento Mile doubleheader, it also represents the penultimate round of the 2021 Progressive AFT season. Tickets are available for purchase online at https://www.etix.com/ticket/v/15860/sacramento-mile. For those viewing from home, live coverage will be available on any device for only $1.99 a month via TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold.
For more information, please visit http://www.americanflattrack.com.
To score the latest gear for the Progressive American Flat Track fan, visit our official merchandise store at https://store.americanflattrack.com.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Walker wins a dramatic Race 1 at Silverstone
Mounsey and Crosby complete the podium as Saturday sees a huge shake-up, with drama from start to finish
Saturday, 11 September 2021
The penultimate round of the Honda British Talent Cup promised it could be pivotal, and after a dramatic Race 1 at Silverstone that may already be proved half true. As drama hit for key contenders for the crown, it was Ollie Walker (Moto Rapido / SP125 Racing) who came through to take his first win, getting some deserved reward for running at the front after late heartbreak in a few recent rounds. Second was another first as Sullivan Mounsey (iForce Lloyd & Jones) stood on the rostrum for the first time after another standout ride, with Harrison Crosby (Banks Racing) taking his second podium in third place once the dust settled in the wake of the shake-up.
It started with what’s become the standard at lights out as Johnny Garness (City Lifting by RS Racing) took the holeshot from pole, with Casey O’Gorman (Microlise Cresswell Racing) slotting into second and an early breakaway forming as the duo were joined by Mounsey, points leader Evan Belford (City Lifting by RS Racing), Carter Brown (City Lifting by RS Racing), James Cook (Wilson Racing) and Jamie Lyons (C&M Motors Ltd / Tooltec Racing).
It didn’t take long for that first bout of huge drama though. Heading into Maggots, Lap 3 saw Belford suffer a moment and the points leader tagged closest competitor O’Gorman as, shockingly, both the top two in the standings went down. Riders ok, but the door suddenly wide open for those on the chase to capitalise.
So then there were five, with Garness leading with a small margin by the next lap around. But he wasn’t allowed to escape and the chasers soon closed in, with someone else closing in too: Walker. He and Crosby were on a charge and well in the mix in the front group by a third of race distance run.
On Lap 8, more drama. Cook overcooked it right after taking the lead, the number 34 sliding out and losing his shot at glory. The group that had gone from seven to five to seven again had become a six-rider freight train – with Mounsey in the lead.
Lap by lap, so it remained. A classic group battle between the six looked set to roll on right to the end and that it almost did, although Lyons and Crosby lost a little touch with the front four in the last few laps. but even more drama was to come, with Saturday delivering an absolute rollercoaster.
Heading over the line to start the final lap, it was Garness in the lead and Brown fighting off both Walker and Mounsey. But Brown was able to tag back onto the leader and by Luffield, he was close enough to attack – and went for the outside. Locked together initially, there was then contact as the number 74 tagged Garness and it was Garness was forced to sit it up and run on, the number 57 out of the race.
In the aftermath of that, Walker and Mounsey swept through to finish 1-2, both putting in their best races yet and hitting some impressive milestones – having been right there in the battle throughout. Brown crossed the line in third after that final drama of the race, seemingly having made some big gains, but the final final drama of the day was still to come for the number 74. For the incident with Garness, he was given the equivalent of a Long Lap penalty, a three-second time penalty, and drops to fifth – losing the chance to gain a much bigger chunk of points.
The duel between Crosby and Lyons went all the way to the wire and became the fight for third after the penalty for Brown, and the number 15 just took it by 0.075. So Lyons is forced to settle for fourth, and Brown completes the top five in the classification.
Sixth saw Troy Jeffrey (Stiggymotorsport) hold off Harley McCabe (MLav VisionTrack Academy) by half a second, but both impressing and Kiyano Veijer (Microlise Cresswell Racing) likewise as the Dutch rookie took P8. Josh Bannister (Dunsley Heat Racing) took his best finish by far in ninth, beating Harrison Dessoy (Thorneycroft56 Racing) by just 0.046 as he, in turn, held off Lucas Brown (Amphibian Scaffolding / SP125 Racing).
That’s a wrap on an incredibly dramatic day at the Silverstone National office, with Belford still ten points ahead of O’Gorman in the standings – but Brown now just a single point further back in third. Will Sunday be another rollercoaster for the BTC? Find out at 14:20 (GMT +1) as the lights go out for Race 2!
This weekend’s results are brought to you by 6D Helmets.
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Championship Point Standings (after 12 of 14 races):
More, from a press release issued by Robem Engineering:
De Keyrel crowned 2021 MotoAmerica Twins Cup Champion Saturday at New Jersey Motorsports Park
Robem Engineering Aprilia rider cliches first MotoAmerica class title, puts Italian marque on top in its first year competing in Twins Cup
MILLVILLE, N.J. — Kaleb De Keyrel was on the verge of clinching his first MotoAmerica No. 1 plate at the start of this weekend’s MotoAmerica Superbikes at New Jersey, and the Aprilia rider wasted no time wrapping up the 2021 MotoAmerica Twins Cup title on Saturday at New Jersey Motorsports Park. The Minnesotan piloted his Aprilia RS 660 to a podium finish that also secured Aprilia’s first MotoAmerica crown in its maiden year competing in the Twins Cup.
The weekend also marked the MotoAmerica debut of Aprilia test rider Tommaso Marcon aboard a Robem Engineering Aprilia RS 660, and 15-year-old Max Toth returned for the New Jersey round after making his debut with the team at Pittsburgh International Race Complex last month. Saturday saw Marcon claim the Twins Cup pole in his first time racing on NJMP’s 2.25-mile Thunderbolt circuit and Toth score his first Twins Cup podium.
De Keyrel started the weekend with a 53-point lead over second place in the Twins Cup standings and needed to finish Saturday’s race with at least a 50-point advantage to secure the championship. Marcon and De Keyrel took part in a test day at NJMP of Sept. 3, which helped the team develop good setups for its Aprilias — something that has been a struggle with campaigning a newly-homologated-for-2021 motorcycle this year.
All three of the team’s riders were near the top of the time sheets in Friday Twins Cup practice. Marcon led the team’s efforts when he posted the second-fastest time of the session. Toth finished the session third fastest and De Keyrel was fifth fastest. Later Friday, all three riders finished in the top five in the weekend’s first qualifying session. Marcon was again the second fastest rider, and his best lap time was within 0.2 seconds of the session leader and two seconds faster than his best practice time. De Keyrel finished the session in third, and Toth was fifth.
Qualifying concluded early Saturday afternoon with Marcon having claimed pole position and De Keyrel having secured third on the starting grid. Toth finished qualifying in seventh place.
The first of two Twins Cup races slated for the event got underway late Saturday afternoon with Marcon getting the holeshot and De Keyrel holding onto third place into Turn 1. De Keyrel fell as far back as fifth place on Laps 2-4 with his chief championship rival ahead of him in the running order. Marcon was battling for the lead on Laps 4 and 5 with another rider, but lost grip with the rear tire and unfortunately crashed as he exited Turn 1 on Lap 6. With Marcon dropping out of the race, De Keyrel moved up to third place and into a position to win the title after his championship rival dropped to ninth place on Lap 5.
Another front runner dropped out of the race on Lap 6, leaving De Keyrel and Toth in a three-way battle for the race lead. Though the championship was on the line, De Keyrel and Toth put on a great show of close racing – swapping positions twice– and brought their RS 660s home in second and third place, respectively. De Keyrel’s runner-up finish was enough for him to clinch the 2021 Twins Cup title, having secured an unassailable 62-point advantage in the standings.
All three Robem Engineering riders will be back in action Sunday for the second and final Twins Cup race of the weekend. The race is scheduled to start at 4:10 p.m. and is to be broadcast on Facebook Live.
Kaleb De Keyrel (No. 51)
“My Robem Engineering Aprilia RS 660 felt really good from the start of the weekend. We made very minor changes from the setup we were running at the test day, but I knew I had some things to work on to find a little more time. It was a crazy race today, especially with the title on the line. I was on the fence about whether I should push hard to get the win or play it safe. There was a lot of craziness going on, but I’m a racer and I really wanted to go for the win. And we almost had it. I’ll do my debrief with the team tonight and will see if we can come out swinging tomorrow. Winning this championship feels amazing. I’ve been working hard at the go-kart track and my girlfriend, Marissa, has been working extremely hard behind the scenes with my training. It’s just incredible to finally get the No. 1 plate this season. It’s really tough to put together a good, full season of racing, regardless of what class you’re in. A national championship is a life-long ambition of mine, and it’s humbling to have won it.”
Tommaso Marcon (No. 70)
“I’m starting to get used to American race tracks, and yesterday we had a couple issues with the bike during qualifying and couldn’t finish the session. This morning in Qualifying 2, we made pole position, which was very good. In the race, I had a good rhythm going and my plan was to get away from the field. However, I crashed on Lap 6 after touching the paint with a little too much lean angle. I was pushing very hard, but the guys behind me were catching up to me with the slip stream. Tomorrow is another race, and we will focus on continuing to improve tomorrow.”
Max Toth (No. 58)
“Yesterday, we had a lot of work to do after missing the test day. We had to make sure we had the bike dialed in from the first session, and I think we did a good job with that — and it showed in our race result. This is a big step for us from my first round at Pittsburgh, where we had trouble getting a clean lap in practice and qualifying. I was pretty confident in the bike from the first session all the way through the race.”
Robem Engineering’s technical partners for 2021 include Aprilia Racing, Piaggio Group Americas, The Center for Plastic Surgery, Velocity Calibrations, Bitubo Suspension, Dunlop, Woodcraft Technologies, Dymag, Vesrah, DNA Filters, Magura USA, Sara Chappell Photos, NGK/NTK, Blud Lubricants, Millennium Technologies, Suter Racing and SC-Project.
