Monster Energy Attack Performance Yamaha rider Cameron Beaubier earned provisional pole position during MotoAmerica Superbike qualifying Friday at Road America, in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.
Riding his new, 2020-model YZF-R1 tuned by his new crew chief Richard Stanboli, four-time and defending Champion Beaubier lapped the four-mile-long course in 2:11.145, eclipsing the previous MotoAmerica/AMA Superbike lap record of 2:11.333 set by Josh Hayes in 2012, according to MotoAmerica.
“That’s what I was told,” said Beaubier, when questioned about the new lap record. “I honestly thought Josh Hayes did a faster lap back in the day, but I’ll take it.
“I felt good today. We made a couple of changes from the first practice to the second practice, and I started piecing things together. At first, I was being pretty inconsistent, but I think everybody was with the wind.
“Plain and simple, I’m pretty comfortable on my bike right now. My guys have given me a great package and we’ve been working great together, so far. I hope we can continue it.”
Asked how his 2020 Yamaha compared with his 2019 YZF-R1 at Road America, Beaubier told Roadracingworld.com, “We’re able to jump off the corners a little better, which is good, especially the tighter corners. So that’s really helping us right now. We’re just going to keep our heads down and keep going.”
Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz was second-best on Friday with a lap time of 2:13.685 on his new, 2020 Yamaha YZF-R1 Superbike despite the day not going as smoothly as the South African rider would have liked.
Late in Qualifying Practice One, Scholtz pushed too hard going into the chicane, lost the front and suffered what appeared to be a harmless lowside crash. Then in Qualifying Two, Scholtz said he did “three or four” laps, before pulling into the pits to let his mechanics check his bike to make sure it was 100%. During that inspection, the crew found a fluid leak from the engine, bringing Scholtz’s session to an end. That, however, didn’t curb Scholtz’s enthusiasm.
“I’ve only done two days of testing on this bike before getting here,” explained Scholtz, “and we’re already quicker than we went last year. I’m very happy with my bike and with my team, and I’m confident we’re going to be in the battle.”
Bobby Fong, the 2019 MotoAmerica Supersport Champion, chopped 1.7 seconds off his lap time between the two sessions Friday and ended up third-fastest with a 2:13.879 on his new M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R. Fong said he’s only had limited testing on his new Superbike, but he’s improving every time he gets on it.
Armed with a new Superbike-spec engine from the Barni Racing World Superbike team mounted in his Inde Motorsports Ranch KWR Ducati Panigale V4 R, Kyle Wyman tied Beaubier for the fastest trap speed of the day, 184.091 mph, and produced the fourth-best lap time, 2:14.313.
Fong’s teammate, former MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Toni Elias, finished the day fifth with a 2:14.364 on his M4 ECSTAR Suzuki. Elias wasn’t happy about his position in the order, but he was calm at the end of the day, saying he and his crew were working through chassis issues. Elias said his bike was fast but “nervous” and lacking rear grip.
Like Elias, Gagne wasn’t smiling at the end of Friday as the Californian ranked sixth in the combined qualifying order with a 2:14.599.
Scheibe Racing teammates Josh Herrin (2:15.102) and Jake Lewis (2:16.169) finished the day in seventh and eighth, respectively, on their BMW S1000RR Superbikes.
After missing the entire first session due to a broken exhaust pipe on his FLY Racing/ADR Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000R, “Aussie Dave” Anthony claimed the ninth and final spot into Superpole with a 2:16.414.
The HONOS Superbike class returns to the track at 9:50 a.m. local time Saturday for a 30-minute Free Practice, which will be followed at noon by the 15-minute Superpole qualifying session to determine the front nine grid positions.
HONOS Superbike Race One is scheduled to start at 3:00 p.m. Saturday, and Race Two is slated for 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.
MotoAmerica Superbikes at Road America
MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Series
Road America
Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
May 29, 2020
HONOS Superbike Qualifying Practice Two Results (all on Dunlop tires):
- Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R1), 2:11.145, New Lap Record
- Mathew Scholtz (Yam YZF-R1), 2:13.685
- Bobby Fong (Suz GSX-R1000R), 2:13.879
- Kyle Wyman (Duc Panigale V4 R), 2:14.313
- Toni Elias (Suz GSX-R1000R), 2:14.364
- Jake Gagne (Yam YZF-R1), 2:14.599
- Josh Herrin (BMW S1000RR), 2:15.102
- Jake Lewis (BMW S1000RR), 2:16.169
- David Anthony (Suz GSX-R1000R), 2:16.414
- Max Flinders (Yam YZF-R1), 2:18.316
- Bradley Ward (Kaw ZX-10R), 2:18.405
- Sam Verderico (Yam YZF-R1), 2:22.924
- Jeremy Coffey (BMW S1000RR), 2:23.645
- Travis Wyman (BMW S1000RR), no time recorded
- Ashton Yates (Hon CBR1000RR), no time recorded
- Corey Alexander (Kaw ZX-10R), no time recorded
- Dr. Jeffrey Purk (Yam YZF-R1), no time recorded
- Cameron Petersen (Suz GSX-R1000R), no time recorded
- Joseph Giannotto (Kaw ZX-10R), no time recorded
- Steven Shakespeare (Yam YZF-R1), no time recorded
- Danilo Lewis (BMW S1000RR), no time recorded
- PJ Jacobsen (Duc Panigale V4 R), no time recorded
HONOS Superbike Combined Qualifying Results (all on Dunlop tires):
- Cameron Beaubier (Yam YZF-R1), 2:11.145, New Lap Record
- Mathew Scholtz (Yam YZF-R1), 2:13.462
- Bobby Fong (Suz GSX-R1000R), 2:13.879
- Kyle Wyman (Duc Panigale V4 R), 2:14.313
- Toni Elias (Suz GSX-R1000R), 2:14.364
- Jake Gagne (Yam YZF-R1), 2:14.599
- Josh Herrin (BMW S1000RR), 2:15.102
- Jake Lewis (BMW S1000RR), 2:16.169
- David Anthony (Suz GSX-R1000R), 2:16.414
- Max Flinders (Yam YZF-R1), 2:18.316
- Bradley Ward (Kaw ZX-10R), 2:18.405
- Sam Verderico (Yam YZF-R1), 2:22.924
- Jeremy Coffey (BMW S1000RR), 2:23.645
- Travis Wyman (BMW S1000RR), no time recorded
- Ashton Yates (Hon CBR1000RR), no time recorded
- Corey Alexander (Kaw ZX-10R), no time recorded
- Dr. Jeffrey Purk (Yam YZF-R1), no time recorded
- Cameron Petersen (Suz GSX-R1000R), no time recorded
- Joseph Giannotto (Kaw ZX-10R), no time recorded
- Steven Shakespeare (Yam YZF-R1), no time recorded
- Danilo Lewis (BMW S1000RR), no time recorded
- PJ Jacobsen (Duc Panigale V4 R), no time recorded
More, from a press release issued by MotoAmerica:
Beaubier Starts Strong, Breaks Lap Record On Day One At Road America
No Fans But Plenty Of Action In Elkhart Lake On Opening Day
ELKHART LAKE, WI (May 29, 2020) – Monster Energy Attack Performance Yamaha’s Cameron Beaubier started the 2020 MotoAmerica HONOS Superbike Series in the best possible way at Road America, the defending four-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion leading both sessions by a comfortable margin and smashing the outright lap record on Friday afternoon.
Beaubier started strongly in the morning session with his 2:12.151 putting him 1.3 seconds clear of Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz. In the second session, Beaubier really stepped it up, doing a lap of 2:11.145, which broke his former teammate Josh Hayes’ lap record of 2:11.333 set in 2012. That put Beaubier 2.31 seconds clear of Scholtz, whose best lap came in the first session prior to his end-of-the-session crash.
“So far, so good. I felt good as soon as I hopped on the bike,” Beaubier said. “It’s obviously been a weird start to the year. I’m just so pumped to be back here at the races. My bike felt really good. We improved our lap time from how we did here last year, and everything is going well.”
M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Bobby Fong jumped up to third in the second session, the 2019 Supersport Champion lapping at 2:13.879 – almost two seconds faster than he went in the opening session. Fourth went to Inde Motorsports Ranch/KWR Racing’s Kyle Wyman, the New Yorker also taking a few seconds off in the second session to lap at 2:14.313.
Fong’s teammate Toni Elias ended the day fifth, the Spaniard ending up 3.2 seconds off his rival Beaubier’s pace on the opening day of the 2020 season.
The two men expected to be at the top of the Supersport heap in 2020 ended the first day of action in exactly those positions. M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly ended up besting HONOS Racing’s Richie Escalante after jostling over the top spot in the final session today. Dylan’s best was a 2:20.981 and that put him just .183 of a second ahead of Escalante. Celtic HSBK Racing’s Brandon Paasch ended up third on the day, another .139 of a second behind Escalante.
The biggest surprise of the day was the fact that defending Liqui Moly Junior Cup Champion Rocco Landers wasn’t the fastest in that class on opening day. Instead, that honor went to BARTCON Racing’s Dominic Doyle, the South African leading both sessions with a best of 2:41.315 – over two seconds faster than second-placed Landers.
Landers may not have been the fastest in the Liqui Moly Junior Cup class, but he was fastest in his Twins Cup debut. Looking more veteran than rookie, Landers led the way on his American Racing/SportbikeTrackGear.com Suzuki SV650 with a best lap of 2:31.283. Robem Engineering’s Jackson Blackmon, another former Junior Cup frontrunner, was second with veteran Jason Madama third on his Syndicate Racing/Apex Assassins Yamaha.
Celtic HSBK Racing’s PJ Jacobsen made the most of his Ducati and Stock 1000 debut, the New Yorker lapping at a best of 2:16.706 on his Panigale V4 R. His best lap was 1.2 seconds faster than Corey Alexander on the Ride HVMC Kawasaki ZX-10R. Michael Gilbert Racing’s Michael Gilbert ended up third on his Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1.4 seconds behind Jacobsen.
Today was the first of three days of action at Road America for MotoAmerica’s opening round of the 2020 season. This first round is being held without fans in attendance, but that will change for round two when the series returns to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, June 26-28.
FOX Sports will air both of the two HONOS Superbike races live, with FS2 showing Saturday’s race and FS1 airing Sunday’s race. MAVTV, meanwhile, will air both Supersport races live on Saturday and Sunday. All the action from all five classes can be watched on MotoAmerica’s live streaming and on-demand service, MotoAmerica Live+
