Chris Clark hailed ‘rider of both races’ by many in the WorldSBK paddock after sensational Spanish display at Aragon.
Chris Clark put in another double front running performance in the penultimate round of the 2025 R3 BLU CRU World Cup at the Motorland Aragon circuit in Spain this past weekend – narrowly missing the race wins in both nine lap encounters.
A solid start to the weekend on Friday morning set the tone for what would be remembered as two of the most impressive and memorable on track performances by a rider this season.
Fourteenth on the grid for Saturday’s opening race, Chris was leading by half race distance after displaying some brave overtakes on the brakes and some equally audacious passes around the outside of his rivals at the final corner of the 3.3-mile circuit.
Sunday was even more spectacular. His sixth-place finish at the flag should have been his second podium finish of the weekend after the #5 Accolade Smrz BGR Racing rider once showed race craft far beyond his eighteen years of age. Leading from the front, Chris responded to every challenge made by his rivals and had it not been for a rear wheel slide at the final corner – which meant he had to roll off the throttle – a top three finish and a possible win would have been his.
His #AragonWorldSBK results elevate him into second place in the overall championship standings with two races remaining at Estoril in Portugal in a fortnight. Chris will arrive there full of optimism and belief that he can once again be in contention for glory.
Chris Clark:“Overall I am happy with the weekend. I am going to Estoril second in the championship after fighting for the win in both races at Aragon. It was fun in race one to work my way through the pack from fourteenth on the grid into the lead and I was unlucky to miss the podium on Saturday. I had a plan but unfortunately, I couldn’t execute it. On Sunday, my plan was to lead on the final lap. I was able to do that, but unexpected things can happen in racing, and I had a huge slide at the final corner. I was able to save it but that cost me the drive to the line and the chance to win. I have proved that I have the potential to fight at the podium and so I am going to Portugal confident of ending my year on a high. I want to thank my team and everyone who is supporting me. See you all in Estoril!”
More from a press release issued by Ducati Lenovo Team:
A perfect Sunday for the Ducati Lenovo Team: Marc Márquez beyond the records is MotoGP World Champion. Francesco Bagnaia takes the race win.
Aboard the Desmosedici GP, an unstoppable ride made of success, six years from his previous Premier Class title
A title that celebrates hard work, passion, effort and resilience by a Champion capable of going beyond numbers, wins and pain
A day crowned also by Francesco Bagnaia’s race win
For the third time in four years, the Ducati Lenovo Team secures the ultimate prize in the Riders’ Championship
Marc Márquez is the 2025 World Champion with the Ducati Lenovo Team. #MoreThanANumber, for a season beyond records, numbers and wins. In the Grand Prix of Japan, a day filled with emotions to celebrate a Champion who was able – thanks to Ducati and its Desmosedici GP – to bounce back and return to the highest of levels. An unprecedented comeback in the modern era of motorcycle racing.
Thanks to the second-place finish scored today at the Mobility Resort Motegi, Marc clinches his seventh MotoGP title, the first with Borgo Panigale’s red machine. Behind the win, on one side, lies an invaluable human value, while on the other, a series of impressive numbers. A total domination in the 17 Grand Prix undertaken so far: 11 race victories, 14 Sprint wins, 31 overall podium finishes, 8 pole positions and 18 fastest laps of the race (across Sprint and Sunday races) for a total of 541 points scored out of the 629 available.
Marc’s title is the third Riders’ World Championship for the Ducati Lenovo Team in the last four seasons, the fourth-consecutive and fifth all-time for a Ducati rider in MotoGP (2007 by Stoner, in 2022 and 2023 by Bagnaia and in 2024 by Martín).
The race at Motegi saw Francesco Bagnaia taking the win from pole position. Marc Márquez was second at the flag, for another incredible one-two by the Ducati Lenovo Team after the one claimed yesterday in the Sprint, to complete a memorable day for Ducati.
Francesco Bagnaia on the podium after his victory at Motegi. Photo courtesy Ducati Lenovo Team.
“This has been the first weekend in which I felt myself again out on track, and we really put together and excellent performance. After what has been a challenging season so far, it was hard to imagine that we would have squared the circle, but better late than never! I went back to enjoying riding the bike since the Misano test and I had fun today. This is wonderful, but also a pity that it happened only now, but we can only look forward and try to continue this way until the end of the season. I never stopped believing in myself and the team. I’m very proud of it, especially on a day like today. Obviously I’d like to congratulate Marc for his incredible season and I hope we’ll able to give all Ducatisti some more excitement in this last leg of the season.” – Francesco Bagnaia
Marc Marquez after claiming the 2025 MotoGP World Championship. Photo courtesy Ducati Lenovo Team.
“It’s hard to find the words to describe the emotions I’m feeling right now. After the challenges and the injuries of 2020, I continued to fight and I can now say I’m at peace with myself. This has been the biggest challenge for me: since I joined MotoGP, I was straight away very competitive and won a lot, before going from glory to years of hardships marked by injuries, crashes and results that were surely not exciting. I never gave up and stayed focused on myself, following my instincts and making important – yet not simple – decisions. This is why this world title is the best way to close the circle. Obviously, to make it back to the top I had to embrace the most competitive project and ride the best bike designed by the most winning manufacturer in recent years – Ducati. This surely helped a lot. There’s the work of so many people behind the curtain – too many to be named one by one – whom I thank with my heart. It was without a doubt the perfect decision.” – Marc Márquez
Photo courtesy Ducati Lenovo Team.
“The story continues, and what a story we’re writing! We’re World Champions for the fourth year in a row, showing that when talent, competence and dedication meet, the line between possible and extraordinary disappears. It may look easy on the track, especially when results come with continuity, but behind every success there’s relentless teamwork: months of designing and simulations, hours dedicated to data analysis, engine changes calibrated to the tiniest of details, race strategies planned out with precision. All of this remains invisible to the eyes of those watching, but it is behind the curtain that we build our victories. It is there that every little detail makes the difference and becomes the decisive element that enables the champion to perform at his very best out on track. With Marc, this process has been natural: he immediately found the perfect sync with the Desmosedici GP. From the opening race, he confirmed what we were expecting of him, and in many cases, he even exceeded our expectations, showing how an extraordinary talent like him and the meticulous work by a passionate and competent team like ours can mutually strengthen each other. My thank you goes to all women and men in Ducati Corse: once again we did it, and we did it together. It’s a clockwork that only works perfectly if each part gives their very best, and today it is working flawlessly with Gigi Dall’Igna coordinating and inspiring every move. A special thank you goes to Lenovo, our partners and suppliers, for their contribution in making these achievements possible. Last year I promised all Ducatisti that we wouldn’t have settled, that we would have continued to work towards more wins… and today we showed that our passion and our commitment are not just words, but tangible results that put us always one step ahead.” – Claudio Domenicali (Ducati CEO)
“With today’s result, we crowned a season whose human significance goes beyond numbers. We’re celebrating the talent and the motivation of a Champion capable of returning to the highest of levels aboard the Desmosedici GP. Before embracing the Ducati project in its entirety, Marc was among the strongest of rivals. The value of this win goes hand in hand with a message connected to effort and the true passion for motorcycling and recognises the skills of a work group who in the last six seasons rewrote part of MotoGP history. A thank you goes to all riders, to the people who work at the track and at Borgo Panigale, as well as to our partners who support and share the value of this project. A special thanks to Pecco, who this weekend was back fighting for the positions he deserves to be in. His riding and human skills are a staple for everyone. Let’s enjoy this moment and this streak of positive results, without forgetting to think about the future and the constant search for speed and performance.” – Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“Congratulations to World Champion Marc Márquez and the entire team on this outstanding victory, crowning an unforgettable season. Moments like this are why we partnered with Ducati Corse. They show how passion, innovation and performance can inspire millions around the world. At Lenovo, we believe technology is at its best when it helps people and teams achieve extraordinary things, and this MotoGP season has been a perfect example of that. We’re proud to be a part of the Ducati Lenovo Team as champions, and we’re even more excited about what we can achieve together in the future.” – Luca Rossi (President of Intelligent Devices Group, Lenovo)
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More from a press release issued by Honda HRC:
Determination pays off: Honda home podium for Mir.
For the first time since the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix, the factory Honda HRC team stepped onto the premier class podium as Joan Mir’s years of hard work and focus were rewarded with third place on Sunday in Motegi. Luca Marini suffered his first DNF of the year.
A fantastic day in Motegi saw Joan Mir and Honda HRC Castrol deliver on the ever-growing potential they have shown not just this season, but since the 2020 MotoGP World Champion joined the factory team in 2023. As in the Sprint, Mir fought for every position and quickly overcame an early mistake to close down Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta. The trio would give no quarter as they battled until the middle of the race, Mir getting the better of Acosta and easily holding off a late run from Marco Bezzecchi.
Cheers erupted inside the Honda HRC Castrol garage as Joan Mir returned the factory team to the podium, his first as a rider since the Algarve Grand Prix in 2021. With a multitude of Honda Motor and HRC management and staff in attendance for Honda’s home race, the podium could not have come at a better time. The result is another welcome boost for both the #36 and the entirety of Honda HRC, a tangible reward for the efforts put in. This is the first Japanese GP podium of Mir’s Grand Prix career.
Luca Marini’s Japanese GP would unfortunately follow a very different trajectory as a technical issue ruled him out after just a few laps when he returned to the pits. Honda HRC engineers will confirm the issue ahead of the Indonesian Grand Prix next week. The DNF brings Marini’s perfect race start to point-scoring finishes ratio to an end. He remains positive and focused on returning to where the Honda RC213V has shown it can be in the coming races.
The MotoGP World Championship now travels directly to Lombok, Indonesia for the Indonesia Grand Prix at the Mandalika Circuit.
Honda HRC would like to extend their most enthusiastic congratulations to Marc Marquez on winning the 2025 MotoGP World Championship. The result cements an incredible return from a multi-year injury ordeal, highlighting his truly unique mentality and approach to racing.
Joan Mir on the podium at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda HRC.
“What a weekend! A perfect one, honestly. I was so close to the pole position yesterday, I was so close to the podium yesterday but missed both – today I had to take the chance to get the podium! I knew it would be hard because the long race you have to control everything perfectly. I was attacking under brakes a lot to save the tyres and then in the second half of the race I was able to open a gap and manage, even closing down Marc in front. Just fantastic, super happy for myself and for Honda. After what we have been through, to get this first podium especially here in Japan, it is really special. It has been a long time for myself and Honda to have a moment like this and sometimes you struggle a bit with motivation but this confirms that everything we do is worth it and I am really excited to go to Lombok now – we need to continue this moment.” – Joan Mir
Luca Marini (10) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda HRC.
“From the start I could feel something was not working correctly with the bike. The situation did not improve so I had to return to the garage and unfortunately finish the race. It’s a shame because I think that we could have been up there at the front fighting. It’s a great day for Honda, Joan was able to show the potential of the bike and it’s a big boost for everyone who is involved in this project. With this result for him and this result for me, the best thing we can do is go straight to Mandalika and get back to work immediately. I am really looking forward to the rest of the year and continuing what we have shown.” -Luca Marini
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More from a press release issued by Aprilia Racing:
Two RS-GP25 in the points: Marco Bezzecchi fourth after fightback, Raúl Fernández of Trackhouse MotoGO team seventh. Jorge Martín absent through injury.
Aprilia Racing concluded the race weekend at the Mobility Resort Motegi circuit with a strong performance by Marco Bezzecchi, who finished fourth.
Starting from ninth on the grid, Bezzecchi handled a demanding race with maturity, steadily climbing through the field and earning valuable championship points, despite not being in peak physical condition after Saturday’s sprint crash.
Jorge Martín was absent after suffering a displaced fracture of his right collarbone during the sprint. The Spanish rider has returned to Spain for surgery on Monday.
Raúl Fernández from the Trackhouse MotoGP Team also stood out, finishing seventh and scoring points as the second RS-GP25.
Marco Bezzecchi on the grid at the JapaneseGP. Photo courtesy Aprilia Racing.
“It was a good race. Unfortunately, the weekend became more challenging on Saturday. During the second time-attack, something happened that we still need to analyse, and we were unable to set a good lap time or match Friday’s performance. Starting from ninth makes everything harder, especially on a track like this. I nevertheless gave everything I had.” – Marco Bezzecchi
“Given Marco’s speed since Friday, expectations were even higher, but fourth place remains an excellent result, considering his starting position. However, it was a weekend tinged with regret because of what happened on Saturday. Aprilia, moreover, lined up with only two of its four bikes, so naturally, our best wishes go to Jorge and Ai for a quick recovery. It was also good to see Raúl deliver a solid performance. I would once again highlight Marco’s mindset – he never lets up from start to finish, and we will tackle the coming races with this same determination.”
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More from a press release issued by Monster Energy Yamaha:
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Complete Motegi Race in P8 & P18.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team pushed hard in the Grand Prix of Japan Race. Quartararo was riding on the defence for most of the 24-lap outing and secured 8th place. Álex Rins had ups and downs and ultimately crossed the finish line in 18th position.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team was determined to show the local fans their fighting spirit in the Grand Prix of Japan Race. Fabio Quartararo managed the gap to chasing rivals again and rode to an 8th-place result. Álex Rins gained positions in the early stages but gradually lost ground and ended the 24-lap contest in P18.
Quartararo had a good start from P5 and completed the first lap in fourth place. However, the Frenchmen fell back to ninth due to a lack of grip, and soon a gap started to form to the riders ahead. A charging Johann Zarco was trying to get close enough to Quartararo to overtake, but the Yamaha rider managed the gap well. With Pedro Acosta running wide on lap 19, El Diablo moved up to eighth and held the position to the finish line, crossing it 21.160s from first.
Rins also started well from P17 and this time safely negotiated Turn 1 of the Motegi Circuit. He started to make strides and climbed as high as P14 on lap 3. He held the position until lap 7 when Enea Bastianini and Jack Miller snuck through. The Spaniard stayed closely behind Miller until Takaaki Nakagami overtook him on lap 16. The number-42 rider wanted to fight, but fell back to 19th place instead. As the race progressed, Nakagami crashed, Jack Miller retired from the race, and Rins was overtaken by Acosta. It resulted in the Yamaha man ending the race in 18th position, 34.792s from first.
After today’s results, Quartararo is 8th place in the overall standings with 149 points, and Rins holds 19th position with 45 points. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP are 6th in the team championship with 194 points, and Yamaha remain in 5th position in the constructor championship with 180 points.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team extend their congratulations to Marc Marquez and Ducati Lenovo for securing the World Championship Title.
MotoGP will be back in action next week time for the Grand Prix of Indonesia, held at the Mandalika Circuit from 3-5 October.
MASSIMO MEREGALLI – Team Director, Monster Energy Yamaha
“We already expected that it was going to be a tough race, but we did all we could to make the most of the level of our package at this moment. Fabio had a good start but then lost some ground because of the low grip levels at this track, which always affect us more than the others. He managed the pressure from Zarco all the race through and secured P8. Álex also had a promising start and climbed several positions, which allowed him to battle midpack in the early stages. But seven laps in, he started to lose some ground. Overall, it was certainly not an easy weekend, and the results are not where we want to be, but we did make an improvement compared to last year, and we will continue to work hard to better our competitiveness in the upcoming round in Indonesia next weekend.”
Fabio Quartararo (20) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Yamaha Monster Energy.
“This was not the best race for me. I gave my maximum at the beginning and made a great start, but our level of grip was not great and it was difficult to fight with other riders.
“I’m super happy for Marc Marquez. I’m sure he deserves this title win. Congratulations to him.” – Fabio Quartararo
Alex Rins (42) on the grid at Motegi. Photo courtesy Yamaha Monster Energy.
“I felt quite good during the first part of the race. This time, I had a proper start, I recovered some positions on the first laps, and then I was behind Aldeguer, which disturbed my rhythm a bit. As soon as I overtook him, I had a massive stoppie in corner 11, so I went wide and lost some positions. I tried to manage the drop of the tyres, but I couldn’t do more than I did. Overall, it was a better weekend than the previous one: we’re a bit closer and I could get in some overtakes.
“Congratulations to Marc Marquez on winning the title here in Motegi. He’s had a very impressive season.” – Alex Rins
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More from a press release issued by LCR Honda:
Strong race for Johann Zarco in Motegi.
CASTROL Honda LCR rider Johann Zarco has finished 9th in Sunday’s race at Motegi.
Starting from 11th on the grid, Zarco once again made a strong start and placed himself in the battle for the top 10.
He managed the race smartly, avoiding mistakes, overtaking rivals, and maintaining a consistent rhythm.
Zarco eventually crossed the line in 9th, securing valuable points for the championship.
Johann Zarco (5) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda LCR.
“I’m very pleased with this result! Finishing ninth is a real relief because we needed these points after some difficult races. I made a strong start and had the pace to fight for the top 10. I was just missing a bit of speed to get closer to the top 8, but overall it was a solid race and that’s what matters. I could defend my position, make some good overtakes, and really enjoy riding. We now head to Indonesia with confidence and strong motivation.” –Johann Zarco
Somkiat Chantra finishes 15th in Motegi.
IDEMITSU Honda LCR rider Somkiat Chantra finished 15th in Motegi after a strong weekend.
Thai rider Somkiat Chantra enjoyed his best weekend of the season so far, showing speed and strength at a circuit he has always liked.
Starting from 22nd on the grid, he faced a comeback race, overtaking several rivals to reach the points zone.
He fought hard to cross the line in 15th, scoring points once again and leaving Japan satisfied as he heads to Indonesia.
Somkiat Chantra (35) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda LCR.
“Today’s race was really good. I enjoyed it and I’m happy because I felt comfortable with the bike’s setup and managed to be in the fight. I wanted to catch and overtake Oliveira, but at the same time I didn’t want to take risks and lose the points. It’s been a really positive weekend for me, and I want to thank the team for their hard work!” – Somkiat Chantra
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More from a press release issued by Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP:
Difficult Sunday in Japan for Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP: Oliveira 14th, Miller Forced to Retire.
It was a bitter Sunday at the Japanese GP, Round 17 of the MotoGP World Championship, for the Prima Pramac Yamaha team. Miguel Oliveira crossed the line in 14th place, while Jack Miller was forced to retire just three laps from the end due to a chain failure on his YZR-M1. The team will look for redemption next weekend at the Indonesian GP, the second of four consecutive flyaway races.
The 2025 Japanese GP proved to be a complicated one for Prima Pramac Yamaha, with the team leaving Motegi with fewer points than expected. Following a challenging Sprint Race, the 24-lap Grand Prix also offered little relief. Starting 15th on the grid, Miguel Oliveira managed to salvage a points finish, crossing the line 14th and extending his streak to four consecutive point-scoring races. For Jack Miller, however, it was a bitter end. Running in 14th place, he was betrayed by a broken chain just three laps from the finish, forcing him into retirement.
With today‘s two points, Oliveira climbs to 26 in the standings, sitting 21st overall. Miller, meanwhile, remains stuck at 58 points and drops to 18th place. The Prima Pramac Yamaha team sits 10th in the Team Championship with 96 points. There‘s little time to dwell on Motegi: Miller and Oliveira will be back on track in just a few days for Round 18 at Mandalika, as MotoGP continues its overseas run with the Indonesian GP.
GINO BORSOI – Team Director, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP
“It has been a challenging weekend. Like in the Sprint, today we just couldn‘t find the race pace that looked to be within our grasp during the various practice sessions. We need to understand why we‘re unable to carry that speed into Sunday. There‘s work ahead, especially because starting further back always makes everything a lot tougher.”
Miguel Oliveira (88) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha team.
“I pushed as hard as I could in what turned out to be a very tough race, especially with the tire management, both front and rear, with the rear dropping off quite a lot. Corner exits were particularly challenging. Still, I managed to bring home two points, and that‘s the positive I‘ll take away from this weekend.” – Miguel Oliveira
Jack Miller (43) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha team.
“Not an easy weekend, but we will move forward. I was pretty conservative with the map from the beginning and felt we could have had a little bit more. Talking with Fabio (Quartararo), it seems he experienced similar problems. The drop came early in the race; I tried to save the tire on corner exits, but it was still there. I was closing in on Diggia, but with three laps to go the chain snapped, and that was the end. It was a weekend where I felt I had good potential but was unable to exploit it, especially since being stuck in Q1 always makes things tougher.” – Jack Miller
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More from a press release issued by BK8 Gresini Team:
Alex bounces back to sixth place, Fermin also in the top ten.
Raceday – JapaneseGP
6th – ALEX MARQUEZ #73
10th – FERMIN ALDEGUER #54
World Championship Standings
2nd – ALEX MARQUEZ #73 (340 points)
9th – FERMIN ALDEGUER #54 (147 points)
Alex Marquez (73) at Motegi. Photo courtesy BK8 Gresini Racing Team.
“We gave it all and surely the key – in a negative way – was an underwhelming Friday. We came here with the idea to delay Marc’s celebrations, but we didn’t manage to do so. Congratulations to him, he deserves it. I struggled out on track, the feeling wasn’t incredible today either and we’ll need to start with a different approach.” – Alex Marquez
Fermin Aldeguer (54) at Motegi. Photo courtesy BK8 Gresini Racing Team.
“I was hoping for something a little better today result-wise. I’m leaving Japan with a little bitterness as we surely had a better potential than what we were able to show on track. Qualifying obviously made our weekend more challenging, and maybe I couldn’t have done better than this. The pace was good and we’ll not continue to work towards a great end to the season.” – Fermin Aldeguer
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More from a press release issued by Red Bull KTM Tech3 :
The 2025 edition of the Motul Grand Prix of Japan is a wrap for us, as we leave Motegi with a returning king, in the name of Marc Marquez, crowned 2025 MotoGP™ World Champion on Sunday, as he became the first rider in MotoGP™ to regain a title after a five year drought. The whole Red Bull KTM Tech3 team would like to congratulate both Marc Marquez and his team for an outstanding campaign! On Tech3’s side, Enea Bastianini made his way through the 11th place in Japan, after a P19-start, and Maverick Viñales finished at the doors of the points, in P16.
Race Results:
11. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +23.616
16. Maverick Viñales (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +31.712
Championship Standing
14. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, 89pts
16. Maverick Viñales (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, 72pts
At lights out, it was pole sitter Francesco Bagnaia who kept his advantage to never look back, to grab his second win of the season. Meanwhile, Enea Bastianini remained in his grid position at the first turns, but then found a way to move past both Takaaki Nakagami and Miguel Oliveira to exit lap 1 in P17. He was then in P16th after 3 laps with Luca Marini retiring on Honda’s home turf. Bastianini settled into his early pace, closely following Jack Miller, until he found a way to move past the Australian on lap 6, into the top 15. Soon enough, he was 14th with Alex Rins making a mistake, and after 10 laps of racing, Fermin Aldeguer was just 0.263 seconds ahead. Six laps to the checkered flag, Enea sat in P12 on the chase for teammate Brad Binder. The Bestia provided the extra effort to close the gap on the South African, until the battle for 11th was on, entering the final lap. Both made moves on each other, but eventually, it was the Tech3 rider who came out on top at the checkered flag! 8 positions gained from the grid and 5 points earned, bringing a positive end to a challenging weekend in Japan. Well done Enea, on to the next one!
From P21 on the grid, Maverick Viñales was expecting a tough race following a difficult qualifying and sprint race. Somehow since the start of the weekend, the number 12 has been feeling quite uncomfortable on the bike, as he claimed wanting to return to his pre-injury setting in Sachsenring. At the race start, ‘Top Gun’ could overtake Somkiat Chantra to P20 to settle behind Takaaki Nakagami. Fighting through some shoulder pain, Viñales struggled a bit with his pace, and was overtaken back by rookie Chantra on lap 20. A regain of energy saw Maverick increase a bit the pace towards the end of the race, and hold his ground over the riders behind who had made mistakes. In the end, he crossed the line in P16, just at the doors of the points.
That’s it for our adventure in Japan, as always, the fans have been incredible with us, it is always a great pleasure to come racing in Motegi. Next for us, Lombok island for the Grand Prix of Indonesia, on October 3-4-5.
Enea Bastianini (23) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Red Bull KTM Tech3.
“Very tough race for us. When you start from the back, you have to spend at least 7/8 laps to try going through the riders ahead, and you can’t push like your rivals. You can’t brake where you want, especially us KTM riders as we have different references, and you lose time. Anyway, with 10 laps to go, I had a bit more, so I gave more to finish the race in better conditions, but P11 is not a position I want to be fighting for.” – Enea Bastianini
Maverick Viñales (12) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Red Bull KTM Tech3.
“It was a very tough race but we kept going, which is good. I felt a lot of pain at some stage, but then I relaxed a bit to smooth things down, and I could push again for the last 5/6 laps. It was a good experience and good training for the next races. However, the way the bike is working does not feel right. I think that we are not pushing the tires in the correct way, which is why we couldn’t be fast in Japan. On paper, the KTM is meant to be super competitive on this track, but this weekend has actually been one of our slowest races, which is not normal, so we have a lot of work to do.” –Maverick Viñales
“The Red Bull KTM Tech3 team is leaving Japan on a much more positive note after a tough weekend for us. A P11 for Enea Bastianini is obviously not our target, but we can consider it as a good reward looking at the overall weekend. His feeling improved today, his performance with the new tires at the beginning of the race was probably not the best, but he managed better the second half, to finish on a solid 11th place, so I would like to thank his never give up attitude, as we hope that things will be better next week in Mandalika. On Maverick Viñales’ side, the weekend was tricky. The shoulder is still a bit weak, and he couldn’t really ride the bike as he wanted all weekend. P16 is not what we were looking for, but he finished the race in better conditions, so it is one further step made towards the full recovery. Time to back, and head to Lombok for the next round at the Grand Prix of Indonesia, next week!” – Nicolas Goyon, Team Manager
Australia’s Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders has clinched the 2025 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship after yet another masterful performance at the penultimate round in Portugal.
The 32-year-old Victorian’s fourth successive victory in 2025 – including, for the first time, the iconic Dakar Rally – saw him clinch the silverware with a round to spare.
He’s now the second Australian after Toby Price in 2018 to win the FIM World Rally-Raid Championship, completing the feat in Portugal after coming out hard in the prologue and then topping three of the five stages on his factory KTM.
“It’s a dream come true to win the world championship,” said Sanders.
“You think about it when you’re a kid no matter what sport you do, but I chose motorbikes, and it worked out really well. The race here has gone so well, and the bike has been perfect, so a massive thank you to the team for all the hard work they put in.
“It’s very rare to have this sort of consistency in rally as it’s often so unpredictable. But up to now, we’ve put in a perfect season, and we’ll still be aiming to carry that into (the final round in) Morocco.
“It’s still all sinking in really. I’m happy to get the world championship here in Portugal and hopefully, there’s a lot more to come.”
‘Chucky’ Sanders is now the 2025 FIM rally-raid world champion. Photo courtesy Motorcycling Australia.
Sanders’ rally-raid success comes four years after he made the transition from enduro legend –
multiple Australian championships as well as individual and team honours in the International Six Days Enduro – to full-time desert racer.
His conversion was seamless, too, producing an extraordinary fourth as a rookie in the 2021 Dakar Rally. He then finished top-10 in two other editions of the event before his landmark victory in January this year.
His Dakar victory set the tone for what has been a flawless 2025 season of pace, precision and single-minded determination – a major achievement in a brutal discipline which doesn’t have much of a soft side.
After Dakar, Sanders’ 2025 blitz continued in Abu Dhabi and South Africa, which set him up for his first tilt at the championship in Portugal.
And the rider from Three Bridges (Vic) took full advantage, defeating Tosha Schareina (Honda) by three minutes and forty seconds, with his teammate Luciano Benavides (KTM) third. For all the results from Portugal, click here.
After four rounds of five rounds, Sanders is now on a maximum 113pts in the rally-raid title ahead of Benavides (69pts) and Schareina (66pts). For the current standings, click here.
The final round will be held in Morocco from October 10-17, as Sanders attempts to become the first rider to go through a season undefeated.
The Superbike Race Three podium was a reunion of sorts for 2025 MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier, race winner, and Sean Dylan Kelly, who finished second after a last-lap pass on Josh Herrin. Beaubier and Kelly were teammates in the Moto2 World Championship in 2022 on the American Racing team. After not achieving the goals they had set for themselves in International competition, both came back to the U.S. to race Superbike, and each has had success. Kelly is a race winner and has visited the podium frequently, three times a runner-up this season, and Beaubier added a sixth MotoAmerica Superbike title to the five he won with Yamaha in 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
Mathew Scholtz (1). Photo by Michael Gougis.
Mathew Scholtz won the final Supersport race of the season by a margin, then on the podium, Strack Racing owner Peter Strack said, “I’m making an official announcement: This man will be racing Superbike next year.” In the Supersport news conference, Scholtz said he was thrilled to be re-joining the Superbike class in 2026. Scholtz is a multi-time winner in MotoAmerica Superbike and finished runner-up in the class in 2021. When Scholtz lost his Superbike ride with Westby Racing at the end of 2023 and dropped back to Supersport, “It killed me slightly,” he said. But Scholtz took the ride with Strack and won the Supersport title in 2024 on a Yamaha YZF-R6 and on the YZF-R9 in 2025. Scholtz said he was grateful for another opportunity to demonstrate that he belonged in Superbike, and that he was looking forward to a long relationship with Strack Racing. Scholtz’ chief title rival in the 2025 Supersport Championship, PJ Jacobsen, will also move up to the Superbike class with Rahal Ducati Moto in 2026.
Hank Vossberg (131). Photo by Michael Gougis.
Hank Vossberg had a very good Sunday, winning the Talent Cup race and the Twins Cup race, adding to his Talent Cup win from Saturday.
Tyler O’Hara (29). Photo by Michael Gougis.
Tyler O’Hara looked like a samba dancer as he wiggled and gyrated, trying to describe what it was like to pilot an Indian King of The Baggers racebike to a new AMA land speed record on the Bonneville Salt Flats. O’Hara said the surface was bumpy and that the ride was akin to ripping across a lake on a speedboat, that the bike was floating and weaving and sliding and that the tighter he hung on, the more unstable it became. And at terminal velocity, the aerodynamic drag was so great that the rear wheel was spinning because the bike made enough power to go faster but didn’t have the traction to use that power. “It was never going in a straight line,” O’Hara said in the paddock at New Jersey. “You had to just put your chest on the tank and be as loose as you could. I had to ride it the whole way.” Nevertheless, O’Hara said the 194.384 mph mark that he set left him anxious to go back and crack 200 mph. “I want a red hat,” he said, referring to the headgear reserved for those who have set records at the Salt Flats in excess of 200 mph.
Sean Dylan Kelly (40) rides past a soft barrier protecting the end of the pit wall at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Photo by Michael Gougis.
New Jersey Motorsports Park requires several sections of soft barriers to make the track suitable for professional-level motorcycle road racing. Sections were placed in numerous locations around the track, and fully inflated spare sections were positioned in high-impact areas, ready to be swapped out in case an impact damaged one of the sections in use.
More, from a news release issued by MotoAmerica:
Josh Herrin (1) leads Bobby Fong (50), Jake Gagne (32), Hayden Gillim (69) with Richie Escalante (54) in the background in Superbike Race Two at New Jersey Motorrsports Park. Fong crashed, Herrin won and Escalante finished third. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
As improbable as it seemed just 24 hours earlier, Cameron Beaubier emerged from a suspenseful Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park with the 2025 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship – the sixth of his illustrious career.
It was a Sunday chock-full of shocking Superbike action with Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Beaubier somehow coming out of it all with the title, despite going into the final day of the season on the outside looking in and 13 points behind Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Bobby Fong. Overhauling Fong was going to be a difficult proposition. After all, he was having a career year, scoring points in every round, and winning his sixth race of the year in race one on Saturday at NJMP.
Then came Sunday. In the second of the three races, Fong was in a battle with championship rivals Beaubier and Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin. The trio were at the front of the field and battling for victory and championship points. Herrin led Fong and Beaubier on the final lap with the trio together. Then it all went wrong for Fong as he crashed out of second and could only watch as Herrin won with Beaubier second.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante had caught the lead trio as they battled, watched as Fong crashed, and earned his third podium of the year after an impressive ride.
Real Steel Honda’s Hayden Gillim was fourth, a few seconds clear of Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly. Fong’s teammate Jake Gagne was sixth, well clear of OrangeCat Racing’s Jayson Uribe, who had his hands full with Jones Honda’s Ashton Yates. Real Steel Honda’s JD Beach and BPR Racing Yamaha’s Bryce Kornbau rounded out the top 10.
And, just like that, it had all changed at the top. The order was flipped, and it was Beaubier who was seven points ahead of Fong and 13 clear of Herrin. To take the title, Fong would have to win with Beaubier third or worse.
On to race three and more mayhem. This time, it was Fong out front with Beaubier, and his points lead, tucked in behind. Herrin didn’t have the pace of the top two and was instead being hassled by Kelly and Gillim for third.
On the eighth lap, the fight for the championship ended with Fong crashing for a second time and allowing Beaubier to race unmolested to victory. And a sixth title.
Herrin, meanwhile, ran a bit wide on the final lap, and Kelly didn’t waste any time in passing him up the inside. The gap was suddenly wide and Gillim liked what he saw and followed Kelly’s lead to move into third. The pair crossed the line in formation with Kelly second and Gillim third for his first-career Superbike podium.
Herrin was fourth with Uribe fifth, a tick ahead of Escalante. Gagne was seventh with Beach, BPR Racing’s Deion Campbell and Flo4Law’s Benjamin Smith completing the top 10.
The final championship standings have Beaubier on top with 371 points, 25 more than Herrin’s 346 and 32 more than Fong’s 339. Gagne and Kelly rounded out the top five with Escalante, Beach, Gillim, Yates, and Kornbau rounding out the top 10.
Superbike Race 2
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Sean Dylan Kelly (Suzuki)
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
Jayson Uribe (BMW)
Ashton Yates (Honda)
JD Beach (Honda)
Bryce Kornbau (Yamaha)
Superbike Race 3
Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Sean Dylan Kelly (Suzuki)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Jayson Uribe (BMW)
Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
JD Beach (Honda)
Deion Campbell (Yamaha)
Benjamin Smith (Yamaha)
Richie Escalante – Third Place
“All weekend I felt really good with the bike. The problem is the lap times are so close over the weekend, so I’m starting P9. Normally, I’m not a super-good start, so I lose a couple of positions, but my pace is good. I think the front group started battling, so helped to recover the gap. My Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki is working amazing. I feel really good with the bike. I’m every lap closing the gap, and then finally super close to the podium. We got a little bit lucky with Bobby’s (Fong) crash, so I finished on the podium. For me, the most happy is I’m super close to the podium, so I think we have the pace to fight for the win later. We’ll see.”
Cameron Beaubier – Second Place
“I got a good start but wasn’t very aggressive in the first corner. Then I ran wide on the paint in the second corner. In the back of my head, I was like, ‘It rained pretty good last night’ and I didn’t want to take too many chances out there. Got passed again going in there. I got slotted back to seventh or eighth, and then my race started from there. I was able to pick off some guys. Honestly, at the beginning of the race, I felt a lot better than I did yesterday. I found myself in the lead. Still, I’ve just been fighting my bike a little bit this weekend. I feel like I can run with the guys at the front, but it’s taking a lot of risk. It’s a little tough right now. Everyone has got their issues they’re dealing with. We’re going to see what we can do for race three. It’s probably going to be just as crazy as race two. Hats off to Josh (Herrin). He rode awesome. Bob (Fong) was riding great, too. That incident, to me, I didn’t even see Josh in front of me because of the way when you flick it left to right, it’s hard to see what really happened. I think it was just a racing incident. It sucks for Bob. I’m bummed for Bob. Somehow, we’re back in the championship lead, and we’ve got a race to go. So, it should be interesting.”
Josh Herrin – Winner
“I didn’t even know (that Bobby Fong had crashed). Honestly, that left, right, these guys click third, and I stay in second there, so I am constantly slower mid-corner speed than they are. He hit me earlier in the race in that same spot, I think. I felt something the first time I went around him. I don’t know. Honestly, I have no clue what happened. I just know that he was freaking out. I stopped on the side of the track, and he was already going like this to me. I was just trying to figure out what happened, and he just kept saying, “I’m going to F’ing kill you.” So, I don’t know what happened. In my book, he’s got a huge lead on us. I wouldn’t have been up there with us. I just would have cruised around in third knowing that’s all I had to do. All year, I’ve been saying to my guys, Cam (Beaubier) has had unlucky races. I’ve had unlucky races, and he (Fong) hasn’t had any yet. That’s all we can do is just do our best and hope that everybody has their unlucky day. I’m glad that he’s all right, but there were no ill intentions on my side. All I can assume is that he ran into the back of me, I don’t know, I’m just happy we got the win. We’ve got an exciting race three for all the fans. It’s coming down to the wire, which is awesome. It makes those times where I got up and finished the race whenever we had something go wrong worth it. I just wish that I would have got those last couple points in Ohio and not had that incident, but it is what it is. I’m just happy and grateful to be up here. All three of us had a chance for a championship today, so I don’t remember the last time that happened. Just excited.”
Quotes – Superbike Race 3
Cameron Beaubier – Winner
“I don’t even know what to say. This year has been one of the craziest Superbike years I’ve ever had, with the speed Bob (Fong) had at the beginning, and middle of the season, and then (Josh) Herrin coming on strong. Coming into this weekend, we struggled really bad here last year. We weren’t on the podium one day. I showed up with some confidence after COTA and went and fell down twice Friday and was scratching my head. I just have to thank my team for continuing to believe in me and making adjustments to the bike literally all weekend to get to where we were that last race. I felt awesome in the race. Bob had a great pace at the beginning. It sucks he fell over. Then after he did, I just kept nailing those laps, those high 20s, low 21s. My bike felt the best it’s felt all weekend. I just can’t believe it. Like I said, Bob rode incredible this year. His pace has been untouchable at times. We were able to get there this weekend, which we didn’t see that happening Friday. Shout out to the team, Bell, Alpinestars, the man above, my parents, family for coming out, Shelby and Brody for just everything they do for me. Brody is like the light of my life right now. He’s so fun. It’s so fun to be a dad. I don’t really know what else to say. I’m stoked.”
Sean Dylan Kelly – Second Place
“Honestly, I definitely had to think about that yesterday. Yesterday everything was wide open. There were still three races to go. I was behind the three championship guys yesterday. I finished tenths off of them. Not that I didn’t try to do it, I just knew that I couldn’t do anything stupid, because I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep or someone wouldn’t let me sleep if I did something stupid. That hurt a little bit, just not being able to give all my potential yesterday in race one. Today, in race two, I had a big issue and fell back even though I knew that I had more in the pocket. Definitely the best I felt with the Suzuki this race three. I felt way more confident and consistent. It was the last race of the season. It was pretty clear that it was between Bobby and Cam halfway through the race. Herrin was kind of catching, but kind of not. I was just sitting there behind him. Again, being smart. Once Bobby was out and I saw Cam was sitting there, I was like, ‘That means that I can fight. I can pull out the knife. I did exactly that with a few laps to go. I did a few passes on Josh (Herrin), and he would always get me back. Definitely got it done in the last lap. It felt pretty amazing to just get it done like that, finish on the podium, which was exactly the objective. Not just for the weekend, but the objective for the whole year. Super challenging year for me, but I didn’t stop believing. I didn’t stop fighting. I worked, I think, the hardest I’ve ever worked. I think it showed bringing some speed and some results that haven’t really been seen too much on this thing. It was nice also that Richie (Escalante) got on the podium earlier today, so the team atmosphere was pretty amazing. Huge thank you to the whole Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki, to my crew who worked extremely hard, all my sponsors. Still no contract for next year, so let’s see what happens.”
Hayden Gillim – Third Place
“I got lucky. I’ve had a lot of fourth places this year. The majority of them have been a little bit of luck – guys crashing or running off or something. This one isn’t any different, but it is my first Superbike podium, so it was really cool. Sean (Dylan Kelly) made his move on Josh (Herrin) and ended up running wider than even I was expecting him to. I figured he would get me back with the power that that thing’s got under it. I figured he’d be able to get me back before we got down into turn six. Whenever he didn’t, I was just like, ‘All right. Sean had already gone. I was struggling the first half of that lap, up to the point and they had got a little bit of a gap on me. It’s frustrating because with being back-to-back Superbike and Baggers, I’ve been dreading today because I know I’m not going to get to enjoy it as much as I feel like I want to. I didn’t get to go stand up on the box or anything. But it’s cool. I’ve got a big bucket list of racing stuff I have left to do, and today I finally got to check one of those off. It was really cool. Luckily, I think it actually might have helped a little bit for the Bagger race. I had a pretty big boost of adrenaline going into it, where normally I’m a little worn down before the start, and it takes me a couple laps to get going. It was just really good. I’ve got two really good teams and two really good crews. Both sides are super supportive. It’s really cool to have the guys I’ve got around me. Just can’t thank everybody enough.”
More, from a news release issued by MotoAmerica:
Cameron Petersen (45) won his first-career Mission King Of The Baggers race on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim and SDI Racing’s Cameron Petersen renewed their battle from the day prior in Sunday afternoon’s Mission King Of The Baggers season finale, with Petersen turning the tables on Saturday’s winner Gillim.
Petersen’s win, by .208 of a second over Gillim, was the perfect ending for an imperfect season for the SDI team and its South African rider. Plagued by mechanical issues for much of the season, Petersen and the team have started to hit their stride in the closing stages, and winning the season finale was the perfect finish for the squad.
The victory was Petersen’s first in the Mission King Of The Baggers Championship,
Coincidentally, Gillim and his V&H crew also started slowly to the season only to turn things around towards the three-quarter mark. Gillim’s podium finish was his fourth of the season, with three of those podiums coming via victories.
The third rider on Sunday’s podium was defending series champion Troy Herfoss, with the Australian also suffering through a mostly miserable season on the S&S Indian Challenger.
All three ended on a high, however, and all three are likely returning to the King Of The Baggers class in 2026.
Fourth place went to Herfoss’ teammate Loris Baz, with the Frenchman just a bit under a second ahead of newly crowned Mission King Of The Baggers Champion Kyle Wyman. Wyman’s Harley-Davidson x Dynojet Factory Racing teammate James Rispoli was sixth. The battle for seventh went the distance with S&S Indian Motorcycle’s Tyler O’Hara narrowly defeating Bradley Smith.
TAB Performance Racing’s Kyle Ohnsorg and Saddlemen Race Development’s Jake Lewis rounded out the top 10.
With Wyman a runaway championship winner, Baz ended up second, 11 points ahead of teammate Herfoss. Gillim and O’Hara rounded out the top five.
“Honestly, I think I got a little bit lucky,” Petersen said. “Hayden (Gillim) made the mistake coming out of turn five there and just opened the door just enough for me to think about it. At that point, I knew I had to go for it no matter what. It was pretty close. As soon as I got on the gas and came out the corner, I was pretty happy. Going in there when I was underneath him the front was making all kinds of shapes and was pretty close to going down and taking both of us out. Just so stoked. Like Hayden said, we were kind of in the same boat. A couple races into the season already we were ready to give up on the Bagger racing. Such a tough season. I think up until Ohio, I finished two races and just was lacking a lot of seat time. I think it’s pretty massive for the team to finish off the season like this and at least give them a taste of what it’s like and where the program should have been all season. I think it’s very, very capable. The bikes good. The crew that works on the bike and gets everything going are unbelievable. So, it’s just nice to finish off like we did for those guys. Hopefully it gives them some motivation to come back next year and keep pushing at this thing.
“Got off to a pretty good start again and just got smart going into turn one. Got stuck behind Kyle (Wyman) in the beginning there. The Harley, at least that bike, it’s got some legs on it, so I struggled to get by in the first couple laps. Once I did, Hayden had a pretty big gap. I thought I wasn’t going to be able to catch him. We’d been pretty damn similar all weekend. I just hit my marks, put my head down and slowly but surely, I got onto the back of him. I’m so stoked to get this done, especially after tipping off early on the Supersport bike. I didn’t want to end the season off like that. I would have had to think about it for a while. This kind of takes it out of my head. I can go enjoy this feeling. Just stoked to get a win. I think I said yesterday that this would have been the first season since 2020 that I hadn’t won a race. So, to get it done in the last race of the season, I’m pumped. Keep the streak going and then look forward to next year. Hopefully, we can come back and hit the ground running, kind of start off where we finished this season.”
SC-Project Twins Cup – Good Morning!
Robem Engineering’s Hank Vossberg scored his first-career SC-Project Twins Cup victory on Sunday morning at NJMP, with the 15-year-old coming out on top of a four-rider battle that went to the bitter end. The win also vaulted Vossberg to third in the final championship point standings.
The four riders – Vossberg, Karns/TST Industries’ Levi Badie, Bad Boys Racing’s Avery Dreher, and RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki’s Matthew Chapin – battled for all 11 laps of the race and the foursome crossed the line with just .665 of a second covering all four, with Vossberg .439 of a second ahead of Badie.
Vossberg crossed the line just .038 of a second ahead of Badie.
The four all took turns at leading at some point in the race with Saturday’s winner Chapin doing most of the leading. Vossberg got the lead late and Chapin got the worst of the four in the exchange with lapped riders on the last lap. Vossberg rode an intelligent last few laps and his first victory in the class was his.
“It means a lot to me,” Vossberg said. “Going into this season, I didn’t think I’d have a contention in the top three of the championship. Getting on the box my first weekend at the Ridge was more than a dream come true. I just can’t give it up to the team enough for giving me such an amazing bike to ride, and Aprilia Americas for bringing it out. We go ride for them tomorrow (an Aprilia track day). Everyone else that’s helped me. HJC Helmets, and Alessandro Di Mario for being such a great teammate. It was just an amazing ride. Thank you, everyone.”
Robem’s Alessandro Di Mario, who wrapped up the Twins Cup title at Circuit of The Americas, finished seventh in the season finale.
Di Mario ended up 97 points ahead of Chapin with Vossberg snatching third in the title chase from Dreher by six points. Badie rounded out the top five in the championship.
Parts Unlimited Talent Cup By Motul – Vossberg x 2
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Hank Vossberg had a very good Sunday at NJMP with the teenager winning the finales of both the SC-Project Twins Cup and the Parts Unlimited Talent Cup By Motul.
Yamaha BLU CRU Estenson Racing’s Sam Drane made Vossberg work for the victory, with the Australian pressuring the Wisconsinite for the full 13 laps, only to come up .039 of a second short.
Bettencourt Racing’s Nathan Bettencourt was third with Royalty Racing’s Carson King just behind him in fourth.
Australian Jake Paige ended his first weekend of Talent Cup racing by rounding out the top five on the Team Roadracingworld.com Krämer. Paige’s older brother, Bodie, was 10th after crashing and remounting.
With Alessandro Di Mario wrapping up the title two weeks ago at Circuit of The Americas, second place ended up going to Vossberg by just a point over Drane. Bodie Paige ended up fourth with MP13 Racing’s Ella Dreher rounding out the top five.
“Off the start, there was like five of us going at it,” Vossberg said. “I’ve got to give props up to Sam (Drane) He was keeping me honest the whole race, pushing. Had a couple moments out there and just had to remind myself it’s the last race of the season. Don’t want to go total a bike. Can’t thank the team enough, the whole Tytlers Cycle Racing crew gave me an amazing bike to ride. Dunlop Tires, HJC Helmets for all the help. See if we can go and do it in Spain.”
Motovation Supersport – Scholtzy Again!
Strack Racing’s Mathew Scholtz completed his perfect weekend in the Motovation Supersport class with his second win in two days. This one was pure domination by Scholtz, with the South African winning by some 14 seconds.
The newly crowned two-time Supersport Champion was rewarded with the announcement from his team owner Peter Strack that the team will field Scholtz in the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship in 2025.
Second place on Sunday at NJMP went to Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott, who got the better of Scholtz’s teammate Blake Davis by .013 of a second.
Rahal Ducati Moto w/XPEL’s PJ Jacobsen concluded his 2025 season with a fifth-place finish. Jacobsen topped 3D Motorsports’ Brandon Paasch by just .031 of a second.
BPR Racing Yamaha’s Josh Hayes was also in the battle for fourth, with the four-time AMA Superbike Champion .064 of a second behind Paasch.
Bauce BARTCON Racing’s Joseph LiMandri Jr., Rahal Ducati Moto w/Roller Die’s Corey Alexander, Altus Motorsports’ Jake Lewis and his teammate Torin Collins rounded out the top 10.
When all was said and done, Scholtz won the championship by 58 points over Jacobsen with Davis third, Scott fourth and Cameron Petersen, who crashed out of second place today, was fifth.
“No, I didn’t drink anything last night but I’m going to aggressively smash some beers now. It’s been a brilliant season,” Scholtz said. “The (Dunlop) R7 definitely slowed us down slightly. I think I did a 21.5. In the high 21s pretty consistently. I think I could have stayed there for all 19 laps if I really, really had to. The R7 tire definitely wasn’t nearly as good as the R4 on the side. I just kind of figured out where you had to push, where you had to kind of slow down. I think if you tried to get on the gas too quick, too soon, you lost grip very, very quickly out there. So, I just learned to slow the throttle down. Whether it’s the Japanese or the U.S. tire, I think it kind of proved that we were the quickest people here so I’m very happy. Just Peter (Strack) telling me that we got a Superbike ride next year makes me feel great. Obviously, losing my ride at the end of ’23 and moving down to the Supersport class, that kind of killed me slightly, but I think I’ve proven that I deserve to be back up there. So, I’m just super happy. Now just celebrate, go smash some beers and get ready for ’26.”
More, from a news release issued by MotoAmerica:
Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Bobby Fong had a disastrous final day of the Superbike season, and emotions were high for the championship contender. After some time to think about what happened and how he reacted, a calmer Fong gave his heartfelt thoughts on what transpired.
The following is from an interview with Fong post-race…
“Saturday was great. We had a good race, great battle with my competitors. We got the job done and I felt really good on the bike. The team provided a really good bike and there was some close racing. It was good leading into Sunday and getting an extra points gap for Sunday for myself, but I knew I had my work cut out for me in the next two races on Sunday.”
Race 2 – Sunday
“Usually, I just like to go out there and put my head down and try to be as fast as I can from lap one to the end of the race. One of my competitors, I just don’t like the style of one of my competitors and how he races. I think it’s dangerous and brake checking is not my style and slowing down the overall pace, so I did everything I could. Obviously, I was the second guy in line so you can’t really blame the rider in front on why someone crashed. I just wanted to set the record straight. I did everything I could, and he was the better man. He purposely didn’t get on the gas when he should have and I ran into the back of him, which was my fault. I wanted to apologize to all my fans, the team, and everybody because it looked like I was a sore loser and making hand gestures. The people who are closest to me know I’m not going to hurt anybody. It was just heat of the moment.”
“The hand gesture to me, you can take it a lot of different ways, but the people closest to me know that I’m not going to go and physically hurt one of my competitors. That’s not what we are here for. It’s a high-stakes situation and I felt like it was better giving that gesture than flipping someone off on live television. You can take it a lot of different ways. I personally meant it as he was done to me, and I’d lost all respect to him and how he races. That’s what I meant by it and all these other people saying otherwise, I just wanted to give you my two cents.”
SDI Racing’s Cameron Petersen won the MotoAmerica Mission King of The Baggers race on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park ahead of RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim and S&S/Indian Motorcycle’s Troy Herfoss. S&S/Indian Motorcycle’s Loris Baz was fourth and Harley-Davidson x Dynojet Factory Racing’s Kyle Wyman rounded out the top five.
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier won the final MotoAmerica Superbike race of the 2025 season and seized his sixth MotoAmerica Superbike National Championship. Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly finished second, ahead of Real Steel Honda’s Hayden Gillim, Warhorse HSBK Ducati’s Josh Herrin and OrangeCat Racing’s Jayson Uribe.
Strack Racing’s Mathew Scholtz won the MotoAmerica Motovation Supersport race at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday ahead of Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott and Strack Racing’s Blake Davis. Rahal Ducati Moto w/ XPEL’s PJ Jacobsen and 3D Motorsports’ Brandon Paasch completed the top five.
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Hank Vossberg won the MotoAmerica Parts Unlimited Talent Cup race at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday. Vossberg finished ahead of Yamaha BLU CRU Estenson Racing’s Sam Drane and Bettencourt Racing’s Nathan Bettencourt, with Royalty Racing’s Carson King and Team Roadracingworld.com’s Jake Paige rounding out the top five.
Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin won the MotoAmerica Superbike race at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday. Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier was second, with Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante, Real Steel Honda’s Hayden Gillim and Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly completing the top five.
Hank Vossberg won the SC-Project Twins Cup race on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park. He was followed by Robem Engineering’s Levi Badie, Bad Boys Racing’s Avery Dreher, RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki’s Matthew Chapin, and Giaccmoto Yamaha Racing’s Dominic Doyle.
Chris Clark on his BGR Smrz Racing Yamaha R3 at MotorLand Aragon. Photo courtesy Chris Clark Racing.
Chris Clark hailed ‘rider of both races’ by many in the WorldSBK paddock after sensational Spanish display at Aragon.
Chris Clark put in another double front running performance in the penultimate round of the 2025 R3 BLU CRU World Cup at the Motorland Aragon circuit in Spain this past weekend – narrowly missing the race wins in both nine lap encounters.
A solid start to the weekend on Friday morning set the tone for what would be remembered as two of the most impressive and memorable on track performances by a rider this season.
Fourteenth on the grid for Saturday’s opening race, Chris was leading by half race distance after displaying some brave overtakes on the brakes and some equally audacious passes around the outside of his rivals at the final corner of the 3.3-mile circuit.
Sunday was even more spectacular. His sixth-place finish at the flag should have been his second podium finish of the weekend after the #5 Accolade Smrz BGR Racing rider once showed race craft far beyond his eighteen years of age. Leading from the front, Chris responded to every challenge made by his rivals and had it not been for a rear wheel slide at the final corner – which meant he had to roll off the throttle – a top three finish and a possible win would have been his.
His #AragonWorldSBK results elevate him into second place in the overall championship standings with two races remaining at Estoril in Portugal in a fortnight. Chris will arrive there full of optimism and belief that he can once again be in contention for glory.
Chris Clark:“Overall I am happy with the weekend. I am going to Estoril second in the championship after fighting for the win in both races at Aragon. It was fun in race one to work my way through the pack from fourteenth on the grid into the lead and I was unlucky to miss the podium on Saturday. I had a plan but unfortunately, I couldn’t execute it. On Sunday, my plan was to lead on the final lap. I was able to do that, but unexpected things can happen in racing, and I had a huge slide at the final corner. I was able to save it but that cost me the drive to the line and the chance to win. I have proved that I have the potential to fight at the podium and so I am going to Portugal confident of ending my year on a high. I want to thank my team and everyone who is supporting me. See you all in Estoril!”
Francesco Bagnaia on the left and Marc Marquez on the right. Photo courtesy Ducati Lenovo Team.
More from a press release issued by Ducati Lenovo Team:
A perfect Sunday for the Ducati Lenovo Team: Marc Márquez beyond the records is MotoGP World Champion. Francesco Bagnaia takes the race win.
Aboard the Desmosedici GP, an unstoppable ride made of success, six years from his previous Premier Class title
A title that celebrates hard work, passion, effort and resilience by a Champion capable of going beyond numbers, wins and pain
A day crowned also by Francesco Bagnaia’s race win
For the third time in four years, the Ducati Lenovo Team secures the ultimate prize in the Riders’ Championship
Marc Márquez is the 2025 World Champion with the Ducati Lenovo Team. #MoreThanANumber, for a season beyond records, numbers and wins. In the Grand Prix of Japan, a day filled with emotions to celebrate a Champion who was able – thanks to Ducati and its Desmosedici GP – to bounce back and return to the highest of levels. An unprecedented comeback in the modern era of motorcycle racing.
Thanks to the second-place finish scored today at the Mobility Resort Motegi, Marc clinches his seventh MotoGP title, the first with Borgo Panigale’s red machine. Behind the win, on one side, lies an invaluable human value, while on the other, a series of impressive numbers. A total domination in the 17 Grand Prix undertaken so far: 11 race victories, 14 Sprint wins, 31 overall podium finishes, 8 pole positions and 18 fastest laps of the race (across Sprint and Sunday races) for a total of 541 points scored out of the 629 available.
Marc’s title is the third Riders’ World Championship for the Ducati Lenovo Team in the last four seasons, the fourth-consecutive and fifth all-time for a Ducati rider in MotoGP (2007 by Stoner, in 2022 and 2023 by Bagnaia and in 2024 by Martín).
The race at Motegi saw Francesco Bagnaia taking the win from pole position. Marc Márquez was second at the flag, for another incredible one-two by the Ducati Lenovo Team after the one claimed yesterday in the Sprint, to complete a memorable day for Ducati.
Francesco Bagnaia on the podium after his victory at Motegi. Photo courtesy Ducati Lenovo Team.
“This has been the first weekend in which I felt myself again out on track, and we really put together and excellent performance. After what has been a challenging season so far, it was hard to imagine that we would have squared the circle, but better late than never! I went back to enjoying riding the bike since the Misano test and I had fun today. This is wonderful, but also a pity that it happened only now, but we can only look forward and try to continue this way until the end of the season. I never stopped believing in myself and the team. I’m very proud of it, especially on a day like today. Obviously I’d like to congratulate Marc for his incredible season and I hope we’ll able to give all Ducatisti some more excitement in this last leg of the season.” – Francesco Bagnaia
Marc Marquez after claiming the 2025 MotoGP World Championship. Photo courtesy Ducati Lenovo Team.
“It’s hard to find the words to describe the emotions I’m feeling right now. After the challenges and the injuries of 2020, I continued to fight and I can now say I’m at peace with myself. This has been the biggest challenge for me: since I joined MotoGP, I was straight away very competitive and won a lot, before going from glory to years of hardships marked by injuries, crashes and results that were surely not exciting. I never gave up and stayed focused on myself, following my instincts and making important – yet not simple – decisions. This is why this world title is the best way to close the circle. Obviously, to make it back to the top I had to embrace the most competitive project and ride the best bike designed by the most winning manufacturer in recent years – Ducati. This surely helped a lot. There’s the work of so many people behind the curtain – too many to be named one by one – whom I thank with my heart. It was without a doubt the perfect decision.” – Marc Márquez
Photo courtesy Ducati Lenovo Team.
“The story continues, and what a story we’re writing! We’re World Champions for the fourth year in a row, showing that when talent, competence and dedication meet, the line between possible and extraordinary disappears. It may look easy on the track, especially when results come with continuity, but behind every success there’s relentless teamwork: months of designing and simulations, hours dedicated to data analysis, engine changes calibrated to the tiniest of details, race strategies planned out with precision. All of this remains invisible to the eyes of those watching, but it is behind the curtain that we build our victories. It is there that every little detail makes the difference and becomes the decisive element that enables the champion to perform at his very best out on track. With Marc, this process has been natural: he immediately found the perfect sync with the Desmosedici GP. From the opening race, he confirmed what we were expecting of him, and in many cases, he even exceeded our expectations, showing how an extraordinary talent like him and the meticulous work by a passionate and competent team like ours can mutually strengthen each other. My thank you goes to all women and men in Ducati Corse: once again we did it, and we did it together. It’s a clockwork that only works perfectly if each part gives their very best, and today it is working flawlessly with Gigi Dall’Igna coordinating and inspiring every move. A special thank you goes to Lenovo, our partners and suppliers, for their contribution in making these achievements possible. Last year I promised all Ducatisti that we wouldn’t have settled, that we would have continued to work towards more wins… and today we showed that our passion and our commitment are not just words, but tangible results that put us always one step ahead.” – Claudio Domenicali (Ducati CEO)
“With today’s result, we crowned a season whose human significance goes beyond numbers. We’re celebrating the talent and the motivation of a Champion capable of returning to the highest of levels aboard the Desmosedici GP. Before embracing the Ducati project in its entirety, Marc was among the strongest of rivals. The value of this win goes hand in hand with a message connected to effort and the true passion for motorcycling and recognises the skills of a work group who in the last six seasons rewrote part of MotoGP history. A thank you goes to all riders, to the people who work at the track and at Borgo Panigale, as well as to our partners who support and share the value of this project. A special thanks to Pecco, who this weekend was back fighting for the positions he deserves to be in. His riding and human skills are a staple for everyone. Let’s enjoy this moment and this streak of positive results, without forgetting to think about the future and the constant search for speed and performance.” – Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“Congratulations to World Champion Marc Márquez and the entire team on this outstanding victory, crowning an unforgettable season. Moments like this are why we partnered with Ducati Corse. They show how passion, innovation and performance can inspire millions around the world. At Lenovo, we believe technology is at its best when it helps people and teams achieve extraordinary things, and this MotoGP season has been a perfect example of that. We’re proud to be a part of the Ducati Lenovo Team as champions, and we’re even more excited about what we can achieve together in the future.” – Luca Rossi (President of Intelligent Devices Group, Lenovo)
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More from a press release issued by Honda HRC:
Determination pays off: Honda home podium for Mir.
For the first time since the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix, the factory Honda HRC team stepped onto the premier class podium as Joan Mir’s years of hard work and focus were rewarded with third place on Sunday in Motegi. Luca Marini suffered his first DNF of the year.
A fantastic day in Motegi saw Joan Mir and Honda HRC Castrol deliver on the ever-growing potential they have shown not just this season, but since the 2020 MotoGP World Champion joined the factory team in 2023. As in the Sprint, Mir fought for every position and quickly overcame an early mistake to close down Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta. The trio would give no quarter as they battled until the middle of the race, Mir getting the better of Acosta and easily holding off a late run from Marco Bezzecchi.
Cheers erupted inside the Honda HRC Castrol garage as Joan Mir returned the factory team to the podium, his first as a rider since the Algarve Grand Prix in 2021. With a multitude of Honda Motor and HRC management and staff in attendance for Honda’s home race, the podium could not have come at a better time. The result is another welcome boost for both the #36 and the entirety of Honda HRC, a tangible reward for the efforts put in. This is the first Japanese GP podium of Mir’s Grand Prix career.
Luca Marini’s Japanese GP would unfortunately follow a very different trajectory as a technical issue ruled him out after just a few laps when he returned to the pits. Honda HRC engineers will confirm the issue ahead of the Indonesian Grand Prix next week. The DNF brings Marini’s perfect race start to point-scoring finishes ratio to an end. He remains positive and focused on returning to where the Honda RC213V has shown it can be in the coming races.
The MotoGP World Championship now travels directly to Lombok, Indonesia for the Indonesia Grand Prix at the Mandalika Circuit.
Honda HRC would like to extend their most enthusiastic congratulations to Marc Marquez on winning the 2025 MotoGP World Championship. The result cements an incredible return from a multi-year injury ordeal, highlighting his truly unique mentality and approach to racing.
Joan Mir on the podium at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda HRC.
“What a weekend! A perfect one, honestly. I was so close to the pole position yesterday, I was so close to the podium yesterday but missed both – today I had to take the chance to get the podium! I knew it would be hard because the long race you have to control everything perfectly. I was attacking under brakes a lot to save the tyres and then in the second half of the race I was able to open a gap and manage, even closing down Marc in front. Just fantastic, super happy for myself and for Honda. After what we have been through, to get this first podium especially here in Japan, it is really special. It has been a long time for myself and Honda to have a moment like this and sometimes you struggle a bit with motivation but this confirms that everything we do is worth it and I am really excited to go to Lombok now – we need to continue this moment.” – Joan Mir
Luca Marini (10) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda HRC.
“From the start I could feel something was not working correctly with the bike. The situation did not improve so I had to return to the garage and unfortunately finish the race. It’s a shame because I think that we could have been up there at the front fighting. It’s a great day for Honda, Joan was able to show the potential of the bike and it’s a big boost for everyone who is involved in this project. With this result for him and this result for me, the best thing we can do is go straight to Mandalika and get back to work immediately. I am really looking forward to the rest of the year and continuing what we have shown.” -Luca Marini
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More from a press release issued by Aprilia Racing:
Two RS-GP25 in the points: Marco Bezzecchi fourth after fightback, Raúl Fernández of Trackhouse MotoGO team seventh. Jorge Martín absent through injury.
Aprilia Racing concluded the race weekend at the Mobility Resort Motegi circuit with a strong performance by Marco Bezzecchi, who finished fourth.
Starting from ninth on the grid, Bezzecchi handled a demanding race with maturity, steadily climbing through the field and earning valuable championship points, despite not being in peak physical condition after Saturday’s sprint crash.
Jorge Martín was absent after suffering a displaced fracture of his right collarbone during the sprint. The Spanish rider has returned to Spain for surgery on Monday.
Raúl Fernández from the Trackhouse MotoGP Team also stood out, finishing seventh and scoring points as the second RS-GP25.
Marco Bezzecchi on the grid at the JapaneseGP. Photo courtesy Aprilia Racing.
“It was a good race. Unfortunately, the weekend became more challenging on Saturday. During the second time-attack, something happened that we still need to analyse, and we were unable to set a good lap time or match Friday’s performance. Starting from ninth makes everything harder, especially on a track like this. I nevertheless gave everything I had.” – Marco Bezzecchi
“Given Marco’s speed since Friday, expectations were even higher, but fourth place remains an excellent result, considering his starting position. However, it was a weekend tinged with regret because of what happened on Saturday. Aprilia, moreover, lined up with only two of its four bikes, so naturally, our best wishes go to Jorge and Ai for a quick recovery. It was also good to see Raúl deliver a solid performance. I would once again highlight Marco’s mindset – he never lets up from start to finish, and we will tackle the coming races with this same determination.”
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More from a press release issued by Monster Energy Yamaha:
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Complete Motegi Race in P8 & P18.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team pushed hard in the Grand Prix of Japan Race. Quartararo was riding on the defence for most of the 24-lap outing and secured 8th place. Álex Rins had ups and downs and ultimately crossed the finish line in 18th position.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team was determined to show the local fans their fighting spirit in the Grand Prix of Japan Race. Fabio Quartararo managed the gap to chasing rivals again and rode to an 8th-place result. Álex Rins gained positions in the early stages but gradually lost ground and ended the 24-lap contest in P18.
Quartararo had a good start from P5 and completed the first lap in fourth place. However, the Frenchmen fell back to ninth due to a lack of grip, and soon a gap started to form to the riders ahead. A charging Johann Zarco was trying to get close enough to Quartararo to overtake, but the Yamaha rider managed the gap well. With Pedro Acosta running wide on lap 19, El Diablo moved up to eighth and held the position to the finish line, crossing it 21.160s from first.
Rins also started well from P17 and this time safely negotiated Turn 1 of the Motegi Circuit. He started to make strides and climbed as high as P14 on lap 3. He held the position until lap 7 when Enea Bastianini and Jack Miller snuck through. The Spaniard stayed closely behind Miller until Takaaki Nakagami overtook him on lap 16. The number-42 rider wanted to fight, but fell back to 19th place instead. As the race progressed, Nakagami crashed, Jack Miller retired from the race, and Rins was overtaken by Acosta. It resulted in the Yamaha man ending the race in 18th position, 34.792s from first.
After today’s results, Quartararo is 8th place in the overall standings with 149 points, and Rins holds 19th position with 45 points. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP are 6th in the team championship with 194 points, and Yamaha remain in 5th position in the constructor championship with 180 points.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team extend their congratulations to Marc Marquez and Ducati Lenovo for securing the World Championship Title.
MotoGP will be back in action next week time for the Grand Prix of Indonesia, held at the Mandalika Circuit from 3-5 October.
MASSIMO MEREGALLI – Team Director, Monster Energy Yamaha
“We already expected that it was going to be a tough race, but we did all we could to make the most of the level of our package at this moment. Fabio had a good start but then lost some ground because of the low grip levels at this track, which always affect us more than the others. He managed the pressure from Zarco all the race through and secured P8. Álex also had a promising start and climbed several positions, which allowed him to battle midpack in the early stages. But seven laps in, he started to lose some ground. Overall, it was certainly not an easy weekend, and the results are not where we want to be, but we did make an improvement compared to last year, and we will continue to work hard to better our competitiveness in the upcoming round in Indonesia next weekend.”
Fabio Quartararo (20) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Yamaha Monster Energy.
“This was not the best race for me. I gave my maximum at the beginning and made a great start, but our level of grip was not great and it was difficult to fight with other riders.
“I’m super happy for Marc Marquez. I’m sure he deserves this title win. Congratulations to him.” – Fabio Quartararo
Alex Rins (42) on the grid at Motegi. Photo courtesy Yamaha Monster Energy.
“I felt quite good during the first part of the race. This time, I had a proper start, I recovered some positions on the first laps, and then I was behind Aldeguer, which disturbed my rhythm a bit. As soon as I overtook him, I had a massive stoppie in corner 11, so I went wide and lost some positions. I tried to manage the drop of the tyres, but I couldn’t do more than I did. Overall, it was a better weekend than the previous one: we’re a bit closer and I could get in some overtakes.
“Congratulations to Marc Marquez on winning the title here in Motegi. He’s had a very impressive season.” – Alex Rins
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More from a press release issued by LCR Honda:
Strong race for Johann Zarco in Motegi.
CASTROL Honda LCR rider Johann Zarco has finished 9th in Sunday’s race at Motegi.
Starting from 11th on the grid, Zarco once again made a strong start and placed himself in the battle for the top 10.
He managed the race smartly, avoiding mistakes, overtaking rivals, and maintaining a consistent rhythm.
Zarco eventually crossed the line in 9th, securing valuable points for the championship.
Johann Zarco (5) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda LCR.
“I’m very pleased with this result! Finishing ninth is a real relief because we needed these points after some difficult races. I made a strong start and had the pace to fight for the top 10. I was just missing a bit of speed to get closer to the top 8, but overall it was a solid race and that’s what matters. I could defend my position, make some good overtakes, and really enjoy riding. We now head to Indonesia with confidence and strong motivation.” –Johann Zarco
Somkiat Chantra finishes 15th in Motegi.
IDEMITSU Honda LCR rider Somkiat Chantra finished 15th in Motegi after a strong weekend.
Thai rider Somkiat Chantra enjoyed his best weekend of the season so far, showing speed and strength at a circuit he has always liked.
Starting from 22nd on the grid, he faced a comeback race, overtaking several rivals to reach the points zone.
He fought hard to cross the line in 15th, scoring points once again and leaving Japan satisfied as he heads to Indonesia.
Somkiat Chantra (35) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Honda LCR.
“Today’s race was really good. I enjoyed it and I’m happy because I felt comfortable with the bike’s setup and managed to be in the fight. I wanted to catch and overtake Oliveira, but at the same time I didn’t want to take risks and lose the points. It’s been a really positive weekend for me, and I want to thank the team for their hard work!” – Somkiat Chantra
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More from a press release issued by Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP:
Difficult Sunday in Japan for Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP: Oliveira 14th, Miller Forced to Retire.
It was a bitter Sunday at the Japanese GP, Round 17 of the MotoGP World Championship, for the Prima Pramac Yamaha team. Miguel Oliveira crossed the line in 14th place, while Jack Miller was forced to retire just three laps from the end due to a chain failure on his YZR-M1. The team will look for redemption next weekend at the Indonesian GP, the second of four consecutive flyaway races.
The 2025 Japanese GP proved to be a complicated one for Prima Pramac Yamaha, with the team leaving Motegi with fewer points than expected. Following a challenging Sprint Race, the 24-lap Grand Prix also offered little relief. Starting 15th on the grid, Miguel Oliveira managed to salvage a points finish, crossing the line 14th and extending his streak to four consecutive point-scoring races. For Jack Miller, however, it was a bitter end. Running in 14th place, he was betrayed by a broken chain just three laps from the finish, forcing him into retirement.
With today‘s two points, Oliveira climbs to 26 in the standings, sitting 21st overall. Miller, meanwhile, remains stuck at 58 points and drops to 18th place. The Prima Pramac Yamaha team sits 10th in the Team Championship with 96 points. There‘s little time to dwell on Motegi: Miller and Oliveira will be back on track in just a few days for Round 18 at Mandalika, as MotoGP continues its overseas run with the Indonesian GP.
GINO BORSOI – Team Director, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP
“It has been a challenging weekend. Like in the Sprint, today we just couldn‘t find the race pace that looked to be within our grasp during the various practice sessions. We need to understand why we‘re unable to carry that speed into Sunday. There‘s work ahead, especially because starting further back always makes everything a lot tougher.”
Miguel Oliveira (88) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha team.
“I pushed as hard as I could in what turned out to be a very tough race, especially with the tire management, both front and rear, with the rear dropping off quite a lot. Corner exits were particularly challenging. Still, I managed to bring home two points, and that‘s the positive I‘ll take away from this weekend.” – Miguel Oliveira
Jack Miller (43) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha team.
“Not an easy weekend, but we will move forward. I was pretty conservative with the map from the beginning and felt we could have had a little bit more. Talking with Fabio (Quartararo), it seems he experienced similar problems. The drop came early in the race; I tried to save the tire on corner exits, but it was still there. I was closing in on Diggia, but with three laps to go the chain snapped, and that was the end. It was a weekend where I felt I had good potential but was unable to exploit it, especially since being stuck in Q1 always makes things tougher.” – Jack Miller
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More from a press release issued by BK8 Gresini Team:
Alex bounces back to sixth place, Fermin also in the top ten.
Raceday – JapaneseGP
6th – ALEX MARQUEZ #73
10th – FERMIN ALDEGUER #54
World Championship Standings
2nd – ALEX MARQUEZ #73 (340 points)
9th – FERMIN ALDEGUER #54 (147 points)
Alex Marquez (73) at Motegi. Photo courtesy BK8 Gresini Racing Team.
“We gave it all and surely the key – in a negative way – was an underwhelming Friday. We came here with the idea to delay Marc’s celebrations, but we didn’t manage to do so. Congratulations to him, he deserves it. I struggled out on track, the feeling wasn’t incredible today either and we’ll need to start with a different approach.” – Alex Marquez
Fermin Aldeguer (54) at Motegi. Photo courtesy BK8 Gresini Racing Team.
“I was hoping for something a little better today result-wise. I’m leaving Japan with a little bitterness as we surely had a better potential than what we were able to show on track. Qualifying obviously made our weekend more challenging, and maybe I couldn’t have done better than this. The pace was good and we’ll not continue to work towards a great end to the season.” – Fermin Aldeguer
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More from a press release issued by Red Bull KTM Tech3 :
The 2025 edition of the Motul Grand Prix of Japan is a wrap for us, as we leave Motegi with a returning king, in the name of Marc Marquez, crowned 2025 MotoGP™ World Champion on Sunday, as he became the first rider in MotoGP™ to regain a title after a five year drought. The whole Red Bull KTM Tech3 team would like to congratulate both Marc Marquez and his team for an outstanding campaign! On Tech3’s side, Enea Bastianini made his way through the 11th place in Japan, after a P19-start, and Maverick Viñales finished at the doors of the points, in P16.
Race Results:
11. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +23.616
16. Maverick Viñales (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +31.712
Championship Standing
14. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, 89pts
16. Maverick Viñales (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, 72pts
At lights out, it was pole sitter Francesco Bagnaia who kept his advantage to never look back, to grab his second win of the season. Meanwhile, Enea Bastianini remained in his grid position at the first turns, but then found a way to move past both Takaaki Nakagami and Miguel Oliveira to exit lap 1 in P17. He was then in P16th after 3 laps with Luca Marini retiring on Honda’s home turf. Bastianini settled into his early pace, closely following Jack Miller, until he found a way to move past the Australian on lap 6, into the top 15. Soon enough, he was 14th with Alex Rins making a mistake, and after 10 laps of racing, Fermin Aldeguer was just 0.263 seconds ahead. Six laps to the checkered flag, Enea sat in P12 on the chase for teammate Brad Binder. The Bestia provided the extra effort to close the gap on the South African, until the battle for 11th was on, entering the final lap. Both made moves on each other, but eventually, it was the Tech3 rider who came out on top at the checkered flag! 8 positions gained from the grid and 5 points earned, bringing a positive end to a challenging weekend in Japan. Well done Enea, on to the next one!
From P21 on the grid, Maverick Viñales was expecting a tough race following a difficult qualifying and sprint race. Somehow since the start of the weekend, the number 12 has been feeling quite uncomfortable on the bike, as he claimed wanting to return to his pre-injury setting in Sachsenring. At the race start, ‘Top Gun’ could overtake Somkiat Chantra to P20 to settle behind Takaaki Nakagami. Fighting through some shoulder pain, Viñales struggled a bit with his pace, and was overtaken back by rookie Chantra on lap 20. A regain of energy saw Maverick increase a bit the pace towards the end of the race, and hold his ground over the riders behind who had made mistakes. In the end, he crossed the line in P16, just at the doors of the points.
That’s it for our adventure in Japan, as always, the fans have been incredible with us, it is always a great pleasure to come racing in Motegi. Next for us, Lombok island for the Grand Prix of Indonesia, on October 3-4-5.
Enea Bastianini (23) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Red Bull KTM Tech3.
“Very tough race for us. When you start from the back, you have to spend at least 7/8 laps to try going through the riders ahead, and you can’t push like your rivals. You can’t brake where you want, especially us KTM riders as we have different references, and you lose time. Anyway, with 10 laps to go, I had a bit more, so I gave more to finish the race in better conditions, but P11 is not a position I want to be fighting for.” – Enea Bastianini
Maverick Viñales (12) at Motegi. Photo courtesy Red Bull KTM Tech3.
“It was a very tough race but we kept going, which is good. I felt a lot of pain at some stage, but then I relaxed a bit to smooth things down, and I could push again for the last 5/6 laps. It was a good experience and good training for the next races. However, the way the bike is working does not feel right. I think that we are not pushing the tires in the correct way, which is why we couldn’t be fast in Japan. On paper, the KTM is meant to be super competitive on this track, but this weekend has actually been one of our slowest races, which is not normal, so we have a lot of work to do.” –Maverick Viñales
“The Red Bull KTM Tech3 team is leaving Japan on a much more positive note after a tough weekend for us. A P11 for Enea Bastianini is obviously not our target, but we can consider it as a good reward looking at the overall weekend. His feeling improved today, his performance with the new tires at the beginning of the race was probably not the best, but he managed better the second half, to finish on a solid 11th place, so I would like to thank his never give up attitude, as we hope that things will be better next week in Mandalika. On Maverick Viñales’ side, the weekend was tricky. The shoulder is still a bit weak, and he couldn’t really ride the bike as he wanted all weekend. P16 is not what we were looking for, but he finished the race in better conditions, so it is one further step made towards the full recovery. Time to back, and head to Lombok for the next round at the Grand Prix of Indonesia, next week!” – Nicolas Goyon, Team Manager
Sanders in full flight on his factory Red Bull KTM. Photo courtesy Motorcycling Australia.
Australia’s Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders has clinched the 2025 FIM World Rally-Raid Championship after yet another masterful performance at the penultimate round in Portugal.
The 32-year-old Victorian’s fourth successive victory in 2025 – including, for the first time, the iconic Dakar Rally – saw him clinch the silverware with a round to spare.
He’s now the second Australian after Toby Price in 2018 to win the FIM World Rally-Raid Championship, completing the feat in Portugal after coming out hard in the prologue and then topping three of the five stages on his factory KTM.
“It’s a dream come true to win the world championship,” said Sanders.
“You think about it when you’re a kid no matter what sport you do, but I chose motorbikes, and it worked out really well. The race here has gone so well, and the bike has been perfect, so a massive thank you to the team for all the hard work they put in.
“It’s very rare to have this sort of consistency in rally as it’s often so unpredictable. But up to now, we’ve put in a perfect season, and we’ll still be aiming to carry that into (the final round in) Morocco.
“It’s still all sinking in really. I’m happy to get the world championship here in Portugal and hopefully, there’s a lot more to come.”
‘Chucky’ Sanders is now the 2025 FIM rally-raid world champion. Photo courtesy Motorcycling Australia.
Sanders’ rally-raid success comes four years after he made the transition from enduro legend –
multiple Australian championships as well as individual and team honours in the International Six Days Enduro – to full-time desert racer.
His conversion was seamless, too, producing an extraordinary fourth as a rookie in the 2021 Dakar Rally. He then finished top-10 in two other editions of the event before his landmark victory in January this year.
His Dakar victory set the tone for what has been a flawless 2025 season of pace, precision and single-minded determination – a major achievement in a brutal discipline which doesn’t have much of a soft side.
After Dakar, Sanders’ 2025 blitz continued in Abu Dhabi and South Africa, which set him up for his first tilt at the championship in Portugal.
And the rider from Three Bridges (Vic) took full advantage, defeating Tosha Schareina (Honda) by three minutes and forty seconds, with his teammate Luciano Benavides (KTM) third. For all the results from Portugal, click here.
After four rounds of five rounds, Sanders is now on a maximum 113pts in the rally-raid title ahead of Benavides (69pts) and Schareina (66pts). For the current standings, click here.
The final round will be held in Morocco from October 10-17, as Sanders attempts to become the first rider to go through a season undefeated.
The Superbike Race Three podium was a reunion of sorts for 2025 MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier, race winner, and Sean Dylan Kelly, who finished second after a last-lap pass on Josh Herrin. Beaubier and Kelly were teammates in the Moto2 World Championship in 2022 on the American Racing team. After not achieving the goals they had set for themselves in International competition, both came back to the U.S. to race Superbike, and each has had success. Kelly is a race winner and has visited the podium frequently, three times a runner-up this season, and Beaubier added a sixth MotoAmerica Superbike title to the five he won with Yamaha in 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
Mathew Scholtz (1). Photo by Michael Gougis.
Mathew Scholtz won the final Supersport race of the season by a margin, then on the podium, Strack Racing owner Peter Strack said, “I’m making an official announcement: This man will be racing Superbike next year.” In the Supersport news conference, Scholtz said he was thrilled to be re-joining the Superbike class in 2026. Scholtz is a multi-time winner in MotoAmerica Superbike and finished runner-up in the class in 2021. When Scholtz lost his Superbike ride with Westby Racing at the end of 2023 and dropped back to Supersport, “It killed me slightly,” he said. But Scholtz took the ride with Strack and won the Supersport title in 2024 on a Yamaha YZF-R6 and on the YZF-R9 in 2025. Scholtz said he was grateful for another opportunity to demonstrate that he belonged in Superbike, and that he was looking forward to a long relationship with Strack Racing. Scholtz’ chief title rival in the 2025 Supersport Championship, PJ Jacobsen, will also move up to the Superbike class with Rahal Ducati Moto in 2026.
Hank Vossberg (131). Photo by Michael Gougis.
Hank Vossberg had a very good Sunday, winning the Talent Cup race and the Twins Cup race, adding to his Talent Cup win from Saturday.
Tyler O’Hara (29). Photo by Michael Gougis.
Tyler O’Hara looked like a samba dancer as he wiggled and gyrated, trying to describe what it was like to pilot an Indian King of The Baggers racebike to a new AMA land speed record on the Bonneville Salt Flats. O’Hara said the surface was bumpy and that the ride was akin to ripping across a lake on a speedboat, that the bike was floating and weaving and sliding and that the tighter he hung on, the more unstable it became. And at terminal velocity, the aerodynamic drag was so great that the rear wheel was spinning because the bike made enough power to go faster but didn’t have the traction to use that power. “It was never going in a straight line,” O’Hara said in the paddock at New Jersey. “You had to just put your chest on the tank and be as loose as you could. I had to ride it the whole way.” Nevertheless, O’Hara said the 194.384 mph mark that he set left him anxious to go back and crack 200 mph. “I want a red hat,” he said, referring to the headgear reserved for those who have set records at the Salt Flats in excess of 200 mph.
Sean Dylan Kelly (40) rides past a soft barrier protecting the end of the pit wall at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Photo by Michael Gougis.
New Jersey Motorsports Park requires several sections of soft barriers to make the track suitable for professional-level motorcycle road racing. Sections were placed in numerous locations around the track, and fully inflated spare sections were positioned in high-impact areas, ready to be swapped out in case an impact damaged one of the sections in use.
More, from a news release issued by MotoAmerica:
Josh Herrin (1) leads Bobby Fong (50), Jake Gagne (32), Hayden Gillim (69) with Richie Escalante (54) in the background in Superbike Race Two at New Jersey Motorrsports Park. Fong crashed, Herrin won and Escalante finished third. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
As improbable as it seemed just 24 hours earlier, Cameron Beaubier emerged from a suspenseful Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park with the 2025 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship – the sixth of his illustrious career.
It was a Sunday chock-full of shocking Superbike action with Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Beaubier somehow coming out of it all with the title, despite going into the final day of the season on the outside looking in and 13 points behind Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Bobby Fong. Overhauling Fong was going to be a difficult proposition. After all, he was having a career year, scoring points in every round, and winning his sixth race of the year in race one on Saturday at NJMP.
Then came Sunday. In the second of the three races, Fong was in a battle with championship rivals Beaubier and Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin. The trio were at the front of the field and battling for victory and championship points. Herrin led Fong and Beaubier on the final lap with the trio together. Then it all went wrong for Fong as he crashed out of second and could only watch as Herrin won with Beaubier second.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante had caught the lead trio as they battled, watched as Fong crashed, and earned his third podium of the year after an impressive ride.
Real Steel Honda’s Hayden Gillim was fourth, a few seconds clear of Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly. Fong’s teammate Jake Gagne was sixth, well clear of OrangeCat Racing’s Jayson Uribe, who had his hands full with Jones Honda’s Ashton Yates. Real Steel Honda’s JD Beach and BPR Racing Yamaha’s Bryce Kornbau rounded out the top 10.
And, just like that, it had all changed at the top. The order was flipped, and it was Beaubier who was seven points ahead of Fong and 13 clear of Herrin. To take the title, Fong would have to win with Beaubier third or worse.
On to race three and more mayhem. This time, it was Fong out front with Beaubier, and his points lead, tucked in behind. Herrin didn’t have the pace of the top two and was instead being hassled by Kelly and Gillim for third.
On the eighth lap, the fight for the championship ended with Fong crashing for a second time and allowing Beaubier to race unmolested to victory. And a sixth title.
Herrin, meanwhile, ran a bit wide on the final lap, and Kelly didn’t waste any time in passing him up the inside. The gap was suddenly wide and Gillim liked what he saw and followed Kelly’s lead to move into third. The pair crossed the line in formation with Kelly second and Gillim third for his first-career Superbike podium.
Herrin was fourth with Uribe fifth, a tick ahead of Escalante. Gagne was seventh with Beach, BPR Racing’s Deion Campbell and Flo4Law’s Benjamin Smith completing the top 10.
The final championship standings have Beaubier on top with 371 points, 25 more than Herrin’s 346 and 32 more than Fong’s 339. Gagne and Kelly rounded out the top five with Escalante, Beach, Gillim, Yates, and Kornbau rounding out the top 10.
Superbike Race 2
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Sean Dylan Kelly (Suzuki)
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
Jayson Uribe (BMW)
Ashton Yates (Honda)
JD Beach (Honda)
Bryce Kornbau (Yamaha)
Superbike Race 3
Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Sean Dylan Kelly (Suzuki)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Jayson Uribe (BMW)
Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
JD Beach (Honda)
Deion Campbell (Yamaha)
Benjamin Smith (Yamaha)
Richie Escalante – Third Place
“All weekend I felt really good with the bike. The problem is the lap times are so close over the weekend, so I’m starting P9. Normally, I’m not a super-good start, so I lose a couple of positions, but my pace is good. I think the front group started battling, so helped to recover the gap. My Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki is working amazing. I feel really good with the bike. I’m every lap closing the gap, and then finally super close to the podium. We got a little bit lucky with Bobby’s (Fong) crash, so I finished on the podium. For me, the most happy is I’m super close to the podium, so I think we have the pace to fight for the win later. We’ll see.”
Cameron Beaubier – Second Place
“I got a good start but wasn’t very aggressive in the first corner. Then I ran wide on the paint in the second corner. In the back of my head, I was like, ‘It rained pretty good last night’ and I didn’t want to take too many chances out there. Got passed again going in there. I got slotted back to seventh or eighth, and then my race started from there. I was able to pick off some guys. Honestly, at the beginning of the race, I felt a lot better than I did yesterday. I found myself in the lead. Still, I’ve just been fighting my bike a little bit this weekend. I feel like I can run with the guys at the front, but it’s taking a lot of risk. It’s a little tough right now. Everyone has got their issues they’re dealing with. We’re going to see what we can do for race three. It’s probably going to be just as crazy as race two. Hats off to Josh (Herrin). He rode awesome. Bob (Fong) was riding great, too. That incident, to me, I didn’t even see Josh in front of me because of the way when you flick it left to right, it’s hard to see what really happened. I think it was just a racing incident. It sucks for Bob. I’m bummed for Bob. Somehow, we’re back in the championship lead, and we’ve got a race to go. So, it should be interesting.”
Josh Herrin – Winner
“I didn’t even know (that Bobby Fong had crashed). Honestly, that left, right, these guys click third, and I stay in second there, so I am constantly slower mid-corner speed than they are. He hit me earlier in the race in that same spot, I think. I felt something the first time I went around him. I don’t know. Honestly, I have no clue what happened. I just know that he was freaking out. I stopped on the side of the track, and he was already going like this to me. I was just trying to figure out what happened, and he just kept saying, “I’m going to F’ing kill you.” So, I don’t know what happened. In my book, he’s got a huge lead on us. I wouldn’t have been up there with us. I just would have cruised around in third knowing that’s all I had to do. All year, I’ve been saying to my guys, Cam (Beaubier) has had unlucky races. I’ve had unlucky races, and he (Fong) hasn’t had any yet. That’s all we can do is just do our best and hope that everybody has their unlucky day. I’m glad that he’s all right, but there were no ill intentions on my side. All I can assume is that he ran into the back of me, I don’t know, I’m just happy we got the win. We’ve got an exciting race three for all the fans. It’s coming down to the wire, which is awesome. It makes those times where I got up and finished the race whenever we had something go wrong worth it. I just wish that I would have got those last couple points in Ohio and not had that incident, but it is what it is. I’m just happy and grateful to be up here. All three of us had a chance for a championship today, so I don’t remember the last time that happened. Just excited.”
Quotes – Superbike Race 3
Cameron Beaubier – Winner
“I don’t even know what to say. This year has been one of the craziest Superbike years I’ve ever had, with the speed Bob (Fong) had at the beginning, and middle of the season, and then (Josh) Herrin coming on strong. Coming into this weekend, we struggled really bad here last year. We weren’t on the podium one day. I showed up with some confidence after COTA and went and fell down twice Friday and was scratching my head. I just have to thank my team for continuing to believe in me and making adjustments to the bike literally all weekend to get to where we were that last race. I felt awesome in the race. Bob had a great pace at the beginning. It sucks he fell over. Then after he did, I just kept nailing those laps, those high 20s, low 21s. My bike felt the best it’s felt all weekend. I just can’t believe it. Like I said, Bob rode incredible this year. His pace has been untouchable at times. We were able to get there this weekend, which we didn’t see that happening Friday. Shout out to the team, Bell, Alpinestars, the man above, my parents, family for coming out, Shelby and Brody for just everything they do for me. Brody is like the light of my life right now. He’s so fun. It’s so fun to be a dad. I don’t really know what else to say. I’m stoked.”
Sean Dylan Kelly – Second Place
“Honestly, I definitely had to think about that yesterday. Yesterday everything was wide open. There were still three races to go. I was behind the three championship guys yesterday. I finished tenths off of them. Not that I didn’t try to do it, I just knew that I couldn’t do anything stupid, because I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep or someone wouldn’t let me sleep if I did something stupid. That hurt a little bit, just not being able to give all my potential yesterday in race one. Today, in race two, I had a big issue and fell back even though I knew that I had more in the pocket. Definitely the best I felt with the Suzuki this race three. I felt way more confident and consistent. It was the last race of the season. It was pretty clear that it was between Bobby and Cam halfway through the race. Herrin was kind of catching, but kind of not. I was just sitting there behind him. Again, being smart. Once Bobby was out and I saw Cam was sitting there, I was like, ‘That means that I can fight. I can pull out the knife. I did exactly that with a few laps to go. I did a few passes on Josh (Herrin), and he would always get me back. Definitely got it done in the last lap. It felt pretty amazing to just get it done like that, finish on the podium, which was exactly the objective. Not just for the weekend, but the objective for the whole year. Super challenging year for me, but I didn’t stop believing. I didn’t stop fighting. I worked, I think, the hardest I’ve ever worked. I think it showed bringing some speed and some results that haven’t really been seen too much on this thing. It was nice also that Richie (Escalante) got on the podium earlier today, so the team atmosphere was pretty amazing. Huge thank you to the whole Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki, to my crew who worked extremely hard, all my sponsors. Still no contract for next year, so let’s see what happens.”
Hayden Gillim – Third Place
“I got lucky. I’ve had a lot of fourth places this year. The majority of them have been a little bit of luck – guys crashing or running off or something. This one isn’t any different, but it is my first Superbike podium, so it was really cool. Sean (Dylan Kelly) made his move on Josh (Herrin) and ended up running wider than even I was expecting him to. I figured he would get me back with the power that that thing’s got under it. I figured he’d be able to get me back before we got down into turn six. Whenever he didn’t, I was just like, ‘All right. Sean had already gone. I was struggling the first half of that lap, up to the point and they had got a little bit of a gap on me. It’s frustrating because with being back-to-back Superbike and Baggers, I’ve been dreading today because I know I’m not going to get to enjoy it as much as I feel like I want to. I didn’t get to go stand up on the box or anything. But it’s cool. I’ve got a big bucket list of racing stuff I have left to do, and today I finally got to check one of those off. It was really cool. Luckily, I think it actually might have helped a little bit for the Bagger race. I had a pretty big boost of adrenaline going into it, where normally I’m a little worn down before the start, and it takes me a couple laps to get going. It was just really good. I’ve got two really good teams and two really good crews. Both sides are super supportive. It’s really cool to have the guys I’ve got around me. Just can’t thank everybody enough.”
More, from a news release issued by MotoAmerica:
Cameron Petersen (45) won his first-career Mission King Of The Baggers race on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim and SDI Racing’s Cameron Petersen renewed their battle from the day prior in Sunday afternoon’s Mission King Of The Baggers season finale, with Petersen turning the tables on Saturday’s winner Gillim.
Petersen’s win, by .208 of a second over Gillim, was the perfect ending for an imperfect season for the SDI team and its South African rider. Plagued by mechanical issues for much of the season, Petersen and the team have started to hit their stride in the closing stages, and winning the season finale was the perfect finish for the squad.
The victory was Petersen’s first in the Mission King Of The Baggers Championship,
Coincidentally, Gillim and his V&H crew also started slowly to the season only to turn things around towards the three-quarter mark. Gillim’s podium finish was his fourth of the season, with three of those podiums coming via victories.
The third rider on Sunday’s podium was defending series champion Troy Herfoss, with the Australian also suffering through a mostly miserable season on the S&S Indian Challenger.
All three ended on a high, however, and all three are likely returning to the King Of The Baggers class in 2026.
Fourth place went to Herfoss’ teammate Loris Baz, with the Frenchman just a bit under a second ahead of newly crowned Mission King Of The Baggers Champion Kyle Wyman. Wyman’s Harley-Davidson x Dynojet Factory Racing teammate James Rispoli was sixth. The battle for seventh went the distance with S&S Indian Motorcycle’s Tyler O’Hara narrowly defeating Bradley Smith.
TAB Performance Racing’s Kyle Ohnsorg and Saddlemen Race Development’s Jake Lewis rounded out the top 10.
With Wyman a runaway championship winner, Baz ended up second, 11 points ahead of teammate Herfoss. Gillim and O’Hara rounded out the top five.
“Honestly, I think I got a little bit lucky,” Petersen said. “Hayden (Gillim) made the mistake coming out of turn five there and just opened the door just enough for me to think about it. At that point, I knew I had to go for it no matter what. It was pretty close. As soon as I got on the gas and came out the corner, I was pretty happy. Going in there when I was underneath him the front was making all kinds of shapes and was pretty close to going down and taking both of us out. Just so stoked. Like Hayden said, we were kind of in the same boat. A couple races into the season already we were ready to give up on the Bagger racing. Such a tough season. I think up until Ohio, I finished two races and just was lacking a lot of seat time. I think it’s pretty massive for the team to finish off the season like this and at least give them a taste of what it’s like and where the program should have been all season. I think it’s very, very capable. The bikes good. The crew that works on the bike and gets everything going are unbelievable. So, it’s just nice to finish off like we did for those guys. Hopefully it gives them some motivation to come back next year and keep pushing at this thing.
“Got off to a pretty good start again and just got smart going into turn one. Got stuck behind Kyle (Wyman) in the beginning there. The Harley, at least that bike, it’s got some legs on it, so I struggled to get by in the first couple laps. Once I did, Hayden had a pretty big gap. I thought I wasn’t going to be able to catch him. We’d been pretty damn similar all weekend. I just hit my marks, put my head down and slowly but surely, I got onto the back of him. I’m so stoked to get this done, especially after tipping off early on the Supersport bike. I didn’t want to end the season off like that. I would have had to think about it for a while. This kind of takes it out of my head. I can go enjoy this feeling. Just stoked to get a win. I think I said yesterday that this would have been the first season since 2020 that I hadn’t won a race. So, to get it done in the last race of the season, I’m pumped. Keep the streak going and then look forward to next year. Hopefully, we can come back and hit the ground running, kind of start off where we finished this season.”
SC-Project Twins Cup – Good Morning!
Robem Engineering’s Hank Vossberg scored his first-career SC-Project Twins Cup victory on Sunday morning at NJMP, with the 15-year-old coming out on top of a four-rider battle that went to the bitter end. The win also vaulted Vossberg to third in the final championship point standings.
The four riders – Vossberg, Karns/TST Industries’ Levi Badie, Bad Boys Racing’s Avery Dreher, and RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki’s Matthew Chapin – battled for all 11 laps of the race and the foursome crossed the line with just .665 of a second covering all four, with Vossberg .439 of a second ahead of Badie.
Vossberg crossed the line just .038 of a second ahead of Badie.
The four all took turns at leading at some point in the race with Saturday’s winner Chapin doing most of the leading. Vossberg got the lead late and Chapin got the worst of the four in the exchange with lapped riders on the last lap. Vossberg rode an intelligent last few laps and his first victory in the class was his.
“It means a lot to me,” Vossberg said. “Going into this season, I didn’t think I’d have a contention in the top three of the championship. Getting on the box my first weekend at the Ridge was more than a dream come true. I just can’t give it up to the team enough for giving me such an amazing bike to ride, and Aprilia Americas for bringing it out. We go ride for them tomorrow (an Aprilia track day). Everyone else that’s helped me. HJC Helmets, and Alessandro Di Mario for being such a great teammate. It was just an amazing ride. Thank you, everyone.”
Robem’s Alessandro Di Mario, who wrapped up the Twins Cup title at Circuit of The Americas, finished seventh in the season finale.
Di Mario ended up 97 points ahead of Chapin with Vossberg snatching third in the title chase from Dreher by six points. Badie rounded out the top five in the championship.
Parts Unlimited Talent Cup By Motul – Vossberg x 2
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Hank Vossberg had a very good Sunday at NJMP with the teenager winning the finales of both the SC-Project Twins Cup and the Parts Unlimited Talent Cup By Motul.
Yamaha BLU CRU Estenson Racing’s Sam Drane made Vossberg work for the victory, with the Australian pressuring the Wisconsinite for the full 13 laps, only to come up .039 of a second short.
Bettencourt Racing’s Nathan Bettencourt was third with Royalty Racing’s Carson King just behind him in fourth.
Australian Jake Paige ended his first weekend of Talent Cup racing by rounding out the top five on the Team Roadracingworld.com Krämer. Paige’s older brother, Bodie, was 10th after crashing and remounting.
With Alessandro Di Mario wrapping up the title two weeks ago at Circuit of The Americas, second place ended up going to Vossberg by just a point over Drane. Bodie Paige ended up fourth with MP13 Racing’s Ella Dreher rounding out the top five.
“Off the start, there was like five of us going at it,” Vossberg said. “I’ve got to give props up to Sam (Drane) He was keeping me honest the whole race, pushing. Had a couple moments out there and just had to remind myself it’s the last race of the season. Don’t want to go total a bike. Can’t thank the team enough, the whole Tytlers Cycle Racing crew gave me an amazing bike to ride. Dunlop Tires, HJC Helmets for all the help. See if we can go and do it in Spain.”
Motovation Supersport – Scholtzy Again!
Strack Racing’s Mathew Scholtz completed his perfect weekend in the Motovation Supersport class with his second win in two days. This one was pure domination by Scholtz, with the South African winning by some 14 seconds.
The newly crowned two-time Supersport Champion was rewarded with the announcement from his team owner Peter Strack that the team will field Scholtz in the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship in 2025.
Second place on Sunday at NJMP went to Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott, who got the better of Scholtz’s teammate Blake Davis by .013 of a second.
Rahal Ducati Moto w/XPEL’s PJ Jacobsen concluded his 2025 season with a fifth-place finish. Jacobsen topped 3D Motorsports’ Brandon Paasch by just .031 of a second.
BPR Racing Yamaha’s Josh Hayes was also in the battle for fourth, with the four-time AMA Superbike Champion .064 of a second behind Paasch.
Bauce BARTCON Racing’s Joseph LiMandri Jr., Rahal Ducati Moto w/Roller Die’s Corey Alexander, Altus Motorsports’ Jake Lewis and his teammate Torin Collins rounded out the top 10.
When all was said and done, Scholtz won the championship by 58 points over Jacobsen with Davis third, Scott fourth and Cameron Petersen, who crashed out of second place today, was fifth.
“No, I didn’t drink anything last night but I’m going to aggressively smash some beers now. It’s been a brilliant season,” Scholtz said. “The (Dunlop) R7 definitely slowed us down slightly. I think I did a 21.5. In the high 21s pretty consistently. I think I could have stayed there for all 19 laps if I really, really had to. The R7 tire definitely wasn’t nearly as good as the R4 on the side. I just kind of figured out where you had to push, where you had to kind of slow down. I think if you tried to get on the gas too quick, too soon, you lost grip very, very quickly out there. So, I just learned to slow the throttle down. Whether it’s the Japanese or the U.S. tire, I think it kind of proved that we were the quickest people here so I’m very happy. Just Peter (Strack) telling me that we got a Superbike ride next year makes me feel great. Obviously, losing my ride at the end of ’23 and moving down to the Supersport class, that kind of killed me slightly, but I think I’ve proven that I deserve to be back up there. So, I’m just super happy. Now just celebrate, go smash some beers and get ready for ’26.”
More, from a news release issued by MotoAmerica:
Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Bobby Fong had a disastrous final day of the Superbike season, and emotions were high for the championship contender. After some time to think about what happened and how he reacted, a calmer Fong gave his heartfelt thoughts on what transpired.
The following is from an interview with Fong post-race…
“Saturday was great. We had a good race, great battle with my competitors. We got the job done and I felt really good on the bike. The team provided a really good bike and there was some close racing. It was good leading into Sunday and getting an extra points gap for Sunday for myself, but I knew I had my work cut out for me in the next two races on Sunday.”
Race 2 – Sunday
“Usually, I just like to go out there and put my head down and try to be as fast as I can from lap one to the end of the race. One of my competitors, I just don’t like the style of one of my competitors and how he races. I think it’s dangerous and brake checking is not my style and slowing down the overall pace, so I did everything I could. Obviously, I was the second guy in line so you can’t really blame the rider in front on why someone crashed. I just wanted to set the record straight. I did everything I could, and he was the better man. He purposely didn’t get on the gas when he should have and I ran into the back of him, which was my fault. I wanted to apologize to all my fans, the team, and everybody because it looked like I was a sore loser and making hand gestures. The people who are closest to me know I’m not going to hurt anybody. It was just heat of the moment.”
“The hand gesture to me, you can take it a lot of different ways, but the people closest to me know that I’m not going to go and physically hurt one of my competitors. That’s not what we are here for. It’s a high-stakes situation and I felt like it was better giving that gesture than flipping someone off on live television. You can take it a lot of different ways. I personally meant it as he was done to me, and I’d lost all respect to him and how he races. That’s what I meant by it and all these other people saying otherwise, I just wanted to give you my two cents.”
SDI Racing’s Cameron Petersen won the MotoAmerica Mission King of The Baggers race on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park ahead of RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim and S&S/Indian Motorcycle’s Troy Herfoss. S&S/Indian Motorcycle’s Loris Baz was fourth and Harley-Davidson x Dynojet Factory Racing’s Kyle Wyman rounded out the top five.
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier won the final MotoAmerica Superbike race of the 2025 season and seized his sixth MotoAmerica Superbike National Championship. Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly finished second, ahead of Real Steel Honda’s Hayden Gillim, Warhorse HSBK Ducati’s Josh Herrin and OrangeCat Racing’s Jayson Uribe.
Strack Racing’s Mathew Scholtz won the MotoAmerica Motovation Supersport race at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday ahead of Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott and Strack Racing’s Blake Davis. Rahal Ducati Moto w/ XPEL’s PJ Jacobsen and 3D Motorsports’ Brandon Paasch completed the top five.
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Hank Vossberg won the MotoAmerica Parts Unlimited Talent Cup race at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday. Vossberg finished ahead of Yamaha BLU CRU Estenson Racing’s Sam Drane and Bettencourt Racing’s Nathan Bettencourt, with Royalty Racing’s Carson King and Team Roadracingworld.com’s Jake Paige rounding out the top five.
Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin won the MotoAmerica Superbike race at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday. Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier was second, with Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante, Real Steel Honda’s Hayden Gillim and Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Sean Dylan Kelly completing the top five.
Hank Vossberg won the SC-Project Twins Cup race on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park. He was followed by Robem Engineering’s Levi Badie, Bad Boys Racing’s Avery Dreher, RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki’s Matthew Chapin, and Giaccmoto Yamaha Racing’s Dominic Doyle.
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Cognitive Disability Mode
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This mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode
Reduces distractions and improve focus
This mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode
Allows using the site with your screen-reader
This mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
Online Dictionary
Readable Experience
Content Scaling
Default
Text Magnifier
Readable Font
Dyslexia Friendly
Highlight Titles
Highlight Links
Font Sizing
Default
Line Height
Default
Letter Spacing
Default
Left Aligned
Center Aligned
Right Aligned
Visually Pleasing Experience
Dark Contrast
Light Contrast
Monochrome
High Contrast
High Saturation
Low Saturation
Adjust Text Colors
Adjust Title Colors
Adjust Background Colors
Easy Orientation
Mute Sounds
Hide Images
Hide Emoji
Reading Guide
Stop Animations
Reading Mask
Highlight Hover
Highlight Focus
Big Dark Cursor
Big Light Cursor
Cognitive Reading
Virtual Keyboard
Navigation Keys
Voice Navigation
Accessibility Statement
www.roadracingworld.com
October 24, 2025
Compliance status
We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone, and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience,
regardless of circumstance and ability.
To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level.
These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible
to all people: blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.
This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific
disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.
Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML,
adapts Its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by the blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.
If you’ve found a malfunction or have ideas for improvement, we’ll be happy to hear from you. You can reach out to the website’s operators by using the following email
Screen-reader and keyboard navigation
Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with
screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive
a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements,
alongside console screenshots of code examples:
Screen-reader optimization: we run a background process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website.
In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels;
descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups),
and others. Additionally, the background process scans all the website’s images and provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag
for images that are not described. It will also extract texts that are embedded within the image, using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology.
To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on
as soon as they enter the website.
These adjustments are compatible with all popular screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA.
Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML, and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.Additionally, keyboard users will find quick-navigation and content-skip menus, available at any time by clicking Alt+1, or as the first elements of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, and not allow the focus drift outside it.
Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.
Disability profiles supported in our website
Epilepsy Safe Mode: this profile enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
Visually Impaired Mode: this mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
Cognitive Disability Mode: this mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode: this mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode: this mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
Keyboard Navigation Profile (Motor-Impaired): this profile enables motor-impaired persons to operate the website using the keyboard Tab, Shift+Tab, and the Enter keys. Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.
Additional UI, design, and readability adjustments
Font adjustments – users, can increase and decrease its size, change its family (type), adjust the spacing, alignment, line height, and more.
Color adjustments – users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds, with over seven different coloring options.
Animations – person with epilepsy can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
Content highlighting – users can choose to emphasize important elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
Audio muting – users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
Cognitive disorders – we utilize a search engine that is linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
Additional functions – we provide users the option to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.
Browser and assistive technology compatibility
We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers).
Notes, comments, and feedback
Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs. There may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to
“Given Marco’s speed since Friday, expectations were even higher, but fourth place remains an excellent result, considering his starting position. However, it was a weekend tinged with regret because of what happened on Saturday. Aprilia, moreover, lined up with only two of its four bikes, so naturally, our best wishes go to Jorge and Ai for a quick recovery. It was also good to see Raúl deliver a solid performance. I would once again highlight Marco’s mindset – he never lets up from start to finish, and we will tackle the coming races with this same determination.” 
MASSIMO MEREGALLI – Team Director, Monster Energy Yamaha
GINO BORSOI – Team Director, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP
