Remy Gardner Joins Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP for German GP Weekend
Chemnitz (Germany), 3rd July 2024
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team have travelled from The Netherlands to Germany for the Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland, Round 9 of the 2024 MotoGP World Championship, held this weekend at the Sachsenring. Álex Rins successfully underwent surgery on his right wrist and ankle and is now focusing on making a full recovery. Remy Gardner will attend the German GP in his place, joining Fabio Quartararo in the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP garage.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team will enter the final MotoGP round before the summer break with an altered rider line-up: Fabio Quartararo is joined by Remy Gardner, who replaces the injured Álex Rins.
Quartararo arrives in Germany holding joint 12th place in the championship standings. After a tough outing at the Dutch GP, the Frenchman is keen to start the weekend at the Sachsenring trying new settings in search of further improvement.
The Sachsenring has unique characteristics: it’s twisty, has steep elevation changes, and has predominately left-hand turns. It’s not for everyone, but El Diablo has known success there. A superb win in 2022 (despite feeling under the weather at the time) and a third place in 2021 on German soil underline that Quartararo certainly knows his way around the narrow track.
Following Rins’ crash at the start of the TT Assen MotoGP Race last Sunday, the Spaniard has successfully undergone surgery on his wrist and ankle on Monday evening. With the support of the team, he has decided to focus on making a full recovery in time for the British GP right after the MotoGP summer break.
In the meantime, the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team welcome Remy Gardner as a replacement rider. As the 2021 Moto2 World Champion and former premier class rider (2022), the Australian is already familiar with the MotoGP paddock and the Sachsenring track. Gardner has been riding for the GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK team since 2023, which means the seat stays within the Yamaha familiy.
The area of Chemnitz is known for its love of car and motorcycle racing. Originally, races in the area were held on closed public roads from the 1920s onward. The Sachsenring was built in 1996 for safety reasons. Two years later, the track hosted its first MotoGP event. The just 12m wide circuit has numerous tight corners (ten left, three right), making this circuit one of the slower tracks on the calendar, but there will still be plenty of action at the German GP.
MASSIMO MEREGALLI
Team Director
First of all, let me start by saying that the team is relieved that Álex’ surgery went well and that the injuries he sustained in the highside are not more serious. We all wish him a speedy recovery, and we hope to welcome him back soon.
Secondly, we are thankful to Remy Gardner and the GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK team that he can join us at the Sachsenring on such short notice. We are sure that this will be an interesting experience for him, but the team will do everything we can to make him feel welcome and supported throughout this weekend’s steep learning curve.
The Sachsenring is quite peculiar: its narrow and has a lot of left-handers. It’s difficult to overtake there, so a place in Q2 is even more valuable here than usual. We expect that this will be challenging, but we are intending to do whatever we can to collect as much data as possible before the summer break.
FABIO QUARTARARO
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
The Dutch GP was tough. I expected the Race to go a bit better, especially at the beginning. Hopefully we can find some positives in the data and improve for the next weekend. In general, I don’t think that the Sachsenring is a good track for us, especially the second and third sector will be complicated, but we have to take the positives and try to get some data in order to keep improving.
I wish Álex a speedy recovery. I hope to see him back at the track soon.
ÁLEX RINS
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
The surgery went well, and I‘m heading home now. Unfortunately I‘ll miss the next GP, but I hope to be back very soon. Despite this bump in the road, our motivation to keep working is higher than ever.
REMY GARDNER
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Replacement Rider
First of all, I hope Álex can have a fast recovery and I wish him the best.
I’m really excited about this challenge. I just want to say ‘Thank you so much’ to Yamaha for trusting me to ride this weekend. I will use it as a great experience to learn. It’s a new bike, and coming back to MotoGP for one race is always a nice experience, so I’m looking forward to enjoying this weekend, and I’m just extremely happy for this opportunity. Once again a big ‘Thank you’ to Yamaha.
Fireworks Expected as Progressive AFT Heads to DuQuoin for Independence Day Weekend
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 2, 2024) – Ten rounds into the 2024 Progressive American Flat Track season, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, the series at last prepares to do battle on a Mile racetrack – the Memphis Shades DuQuoin Mile at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in DuQuoin, Illinois, this Saturday, July 6.
The world’s elite motorcycle dirt trackers dicing it up on a Mile is widely recognized as one of the greatest spectacles in all of motorsport. A unique test of pace, courage, and strategy, Mile nationals are commonly decided by mere inches despite being waged at triple-digits speeds.
The DuQuoin Mile is considered special even inside its category. Known as the “Magic Mile,” DuQuoin has played host to a some of the most legendary and thrilling races in Grand National Championship history.
And this Independence Day weekend’s atmosphere is destined to be that much more electric, as Saturday’s Progressive AFT event will conclude a full week of competition that will also crown this year’s amateur national champions during the 2024 Mission Foods AMA Flat Track Grand Championship, sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association from June 30-July 6.
Progressive American Flat Track has its resident Mile magician in Jared Mees (No. 1 Rogers Racing/SDI Racing/Indian Motorcycle FTR750). The nine-time and reigning Mission AFT SuperTwins king has won an astonishing 17 of the most recent 24 premier-class Miles dating back over the previous five seasons.
That includes last year’s DuQuoin Mile, which saw Mees avenge his 2015 defeat to Bryan Smith in the closest race the series has ever seen, decided by an official 0.000 seconds. Last year’s contest was nearly as close, with Mees taking top honors over Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) (0.033 seconds), Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) (0.097 seconds), and Briar Bauman (No. 3 Rick Ware Racing/KTM/Parts Plus KTM 790 Duke) (0.160 seconds).
There’s a lesson in there for Estenson Racing Yamaha star Daniels, who comes in with a 21-point advantage, a perfect podium record on the season, and fresh off a dominant victory at the Lima Half-Mile. He fully understands that if he doesn’t play his cards just right this weekend, he could potentially see that hard-earned points lead eaten into and his podium streak snapped, even if he manages to finish just a fraction of a second behind the winner.
The Indian-mounted Mees and Robinson will both be looking to make that possibility a reality, while Bauman will be motivated to showcase the prodigious top-end speed of his KTM after using it to such good effect in the 2023 season finale at Springfield, the last time the field lined up for a Mile.
If a genuine pack war is to take hold, it’ll likely include some or all of the following premier-class standouts: Brandon Price (No. 92 Memphis Shades/Sody Ent/OTBR Yamaha MT-07), Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 JMC Motorsports/Fairway Ford Ohio Indian FTR750), Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing Indian FTR750), Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Vinson/Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda Transalp), and Bronson Bauman (No. 37 Fastrack Racing Mission Foods KTM 790 Duke).
It’ll also provide a high-profile stage for rookies Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Mission Foods/Zanotti Racing KTM 790 Duke) and Declan Bender (No. 70 GOMR/BriggsAuto.com/Martin Trucking Indian FTR750) to continue to prove their skills at the pinnacle of the sport.
Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER
As stunning as last year’s Mission AFT SuperTwins Main Event may have been, the Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER race at the DuQuoin Mile was even tighter. Six riders took the checkered flag within 0.262 seconds of the win, and even a tenth of a second behind first was too much for a rider hoping to finish on the box.
The winner on that day was Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F), who comes in riding high after also claiming top honors just days ago in Ohio. With big skills and light weight, Drane has immediately proven to be a monster on the Miles, a reputation he’ll only hope to enhance this weekend.
That combination will present quite the challenge for two-time defending class champion, Kody Kopp (No. 1 Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus KTM 450 SX-F). Kopp will no doubt be eager to start up another win streak after seeing his three-race run snapped this past weekend. While the bulk of Kopp’s victories have come on Half-Miles and Short Tracks, he made it his mission to win a Mile and accomplished that feat in last year’s Springfield Mile I. He’ll also be motivated by the fact that he left DuQuoin last year with just a fifth-place result despite crossing the line a mere 0.106 seconds after Drane.
Another rider seeking revenge is Chase Saathoff (No. 88 JPG Motorsports Honda CRF450R), who finished second to Drane by 0.011 seconds here a year ago. Saathoff is on something of a roll, having reeled in four consecutive podiums, along with six top threes in his last seven races. As good as his form has been, his goal remains to transform more of those seconds and thirds into firsts.
The same can be said for fourth-ranked Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R), who finished third at DuQuoin in ‘23 and earned a win in last year’s Red Mile.
James Ott (No. 19 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450) continues to head up the next group, which consists of fellow California natives Travis Petton IV (No. 82 ECG Racing/A.M Ortega KTM 450 SX-F), Tarren Santero (No. 75 Vinson Construction/P&M Motorcycles Honda CRF450R), and Tyler Raggio (No. 55 Raggio Racing/Sluggo Racing KTM 450 SX-F), along will up-and-coming Pennsylvanians Logan Eisenhard (No. 66 Hannum’s Harley-Davidson KTM 450 SX-F) and Evan Renshaw (No. 265 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R). However, if he continues at his more recent pace, Ott will find himself instead considered a member of the top group, having scooped up three top fives in his last four races.
There will be plenty to keep spectators entertained off track as well, including numerous vendors, plenty of food and beverage options, and extensive motorcycle parking.
General Admission Grandstand tickets can be purchased for $30 (kids 12 and under free with a paid adult GA ticket), while Reserved Grandstand tickets are $40 (all ages). The Pit Pass Upgrade can be added to either option for $40 ($20 for kids).
New for 2024 is the Opening Ceremonies Trackside Fan Experience ($150 all ages). This ticket option provides reserved seating with Pit Pass access, a guided tour of, and photo opportunities at, the infield podium and start/finish line, infield viewing of Opening Ceremonies and the heat races, and a track talk and photo opportunity with 2016 Grand National Champion Bryan Smith.
Gates will open for fans at 4:00 p.m. ET (1:00 p.m. PT) with Opening Ceremonies scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m. ET (5:00 p.m. PT). You can catch the livestream of all the weekend’s racing activities on FloRacing. Motorsports fans can subscribe to FloRacing to enjoy over 1,000 live motorsports events in 2024. FloSports is available by visiting https://flosports.link/aft or by downloading the FloSports app on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire and Chromecast.
FOX Sports coverage of the Memphis Shades DuQuoin Mile, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Sunday, July 14, at 12:00 p.m. ET (9:00 a.m. PT).
Longtime race announcer Larry Huffman died Monday, July 1. He was 82 and living in Big Bear City, California, at the time of his passing.
Huffman started announcing races in the 1960s and gained wide notoriety when he started doing the first Supercross races in the 1970s. He was known by some as the “Voice of Supercross” or “Supermouth,” according to the Los Angeles Times. He also co-wrote and co-produced the motion picture “On Any Sunday II.”
We will update this most with more details as they become available.
Larry Huffman combined an early career as a disc jockey and a passion for motorcycling to create a lifelong career as a race announcer.
Huffman started announcing at California’s Costa Mesa Speedway in the late 1960s. Since then, he has announced at nearly every type of motorcycle race, including Supercross, Arenacross, ice racing, drag racing, flat track, road racing, Speedway and hill climb. He has announced at motorcycle races in nearly every major city in the United States, Canada and Japan.
Huffman was the announcer at the first Superbowl of Motocross at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1972, and was soon after nicknamed “Supermouth” by the Los Angeles Times for his 300 word-per-minute delivery and his ability to excite crowds. He is credited with being an integral part of early Supercross shows and is widely recognized as the original “Voice of Supercross.”
Huffman created and produced the first motorcycle magazine television show to air on a major American network, “Motorcycle World with Larry Huffman,” which was followed by a radio version of the show that aired in many California cities.
Huffman co-wrote and co-produced the motion picture “On Any Sunday II,” and provided announcer roles for numerous TV shows, including “Charlie’s Angels,” “CHiPs,” “Miami Vice,” “Fantasy Island” and “Knight Rider.” Huffman was the announcer in the 1994 award-winning Miller Lite “Weinerdog Winternationals” commercial that aired during the Olympics, the World Series and the Superbowl.
Huffman has served as a color commentator for ABC, CBS, NBC, TNN, ESPN and Speedvision. Many racers have benefited from Huffman’s in-studio PR course, where they learned to improve their television interview skills. Graduates of the course include Hall of Famers Jeff Ward, Rick Johnson, Mark Barnett, Scott Parker, Wayne Rainey, Kent Howerton and Eddie Lawson.
At the time of his induction into the Hall of Fame, Huffman lived in Big Bear City, Calif., where he operates his PR and announcing business, Larry Huffman Enterprises.
Larry Huffman was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2008.
More, from a press release issued by AMA:
AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Larry Huffman Passes
PICKERINGTON, Ohio — AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Larry Huffman, American motorcycling’s most legendary AMA Supercross and motocross announcer and commentator, and the man behind the “Supermouth” nickname, passed away Monday, July 1. He was 82.
Huffman worked as a Southern California disc jockey during the 1960s and began announcing races at So Cal’s Costa Mesa Speedway in the late 1960s. Over the years he went on to announce just about every type of motorcycle competition, including AMA Supercross, Arenacross, ice racing, drag racing, flat track, hill climb, speedway and road racing.
Huffman was the P.A. announcer at the first Superbowl of Motocross at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1972, and was soon named “Supermouth” by the Los Angeles Times for his 300-word-per-minute delivery and his ability to excite crowds. He is credited with being an integral part of early Supercross events and is widely recognized at the original “voice of Supercross.”
Huffman also co-wrote and co-produced the motion picture On Any Sunday II, and did announcer roles for numerous TV shows, including Charlie’s Angels, CHiPs, Miami Vice, Fantasy Island, and others.
Over the years, Huffman also did motorsports-related color commentary for the likes of ABC, CBS, NBC, TNN, ESPN and Speedvision.
Huffman was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2008. He will be missed.
About the American Motorcyclist Association
Founded in 1924, the AMA is a not-for-profit member-based association whose mission is to promote the motorcycle lifestyle and protect the future of motorcycling. As the world’s largest motorcycling rights and event sanctioning organization, the AMA advocates for riders’ interests at all levels of government and sanctions thousands of competition and recreational events every year. Besides offering members money-saving discounts on products and services, the AMA also publishes American Motorcyclist, a recently revitalized and monthly full-color magazine (and digital version of same) that covers current events and motorcycle history with brilliant photography and compelling writing. American Motorcyclist is also North America’s largest-circulation magazine. Through the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in Pickerington, Ohio, the AMA honors the heroes and heritage of motorcycling. For more information, visit americanmotorcyclist.com.
More, from a press release issued by MX Sports Pro Racing:
Rest In Peace, Larry Huffman (1941-2024)
AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Announcer “Supermouth” Passes
Larry Huffman, R.I.P. Photo courtesy MX Sports Pro Racing.
In the early days of American motocross, announcer Larry Huffman could be heard everywhere: Saddleback Park, Angel Stadium, Carlsbad Raceway, Ascot Park, the LA Coliseum… It was Huffman, a radio disc jockey, who announced the first Superbowl of Motocross in 1972, instantly becoming an integral part of what we now know as supercross, and his unmistakable voice could be heard over the loudspeakers of stadiums and racetracks for many years to come. He was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2008, and deservedly so, as his voice and enthusiasm set the standard for every race announcer that’s come along ever since. He may have been nicknamed “Supermouth,” but Larry Huffman will be remembered as much for his showmanship as his voice, as much for his passion as his humor, and always for his kindness.
On Monday, July 1, Larry Huffman passed away in Big Bear City, California. He leaves behind arguably the most decorated legacy of any announcer in the history of off-road motorcycle racing, with an impact that now spans generations of current and aspiring professionals in motorsports entertainment.
Petersen Closes Gap to the Top with Podium Finish in Superbike Race 2 at The Ridge
Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Cameron Petersen made gains in the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship with a win and third-place finish at The Ridge
MARIETTA, Ga. – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Cameron Petersen continued to make forward strides in the title chase with a third-place finish in yesterday’s MotoAmerica Superbike Race 2 at The Ridge Motorsports Park in Shelton, Washington. The South African’s seventh podium finish of the season moved him to within seven points of the leader – fellow Yamaha rider Bobby Fong. Despite feeling less than 100%, Gagne finished ninth, salvaging points to leave The Ridge in the runner-up spot and within a point of the lead in the hotly contested premier class championship.
Fresh off of his third victory of the season, Petersen got another great start from the front row of the grid to take the holeshot. He led the first lap and kept the leader in his sights after being passed. Petersen ran a strong pace and was able to run with the frontrunner, but unfortunately around the halfway point, he started having arm pump issues and ultimately was shuffled to third, where he would finish. His win and third-place finish at the fifth round of the championship resulted in a healthy 21-point gain and has him leaving The Ridge seven points from the leader and completing an all-Yamaha top-three in the championship.
Gagne continued to soldier on despite feeling less than 100% with lingering arm pump issues and salvaged points on the technical 2.47-mile track in the Pacific Northwest. The defending three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion got a solid start in the top five from the second row of the grid. He maintained the position until a couple of laps before the halfway point but ultimately was shuffled to ninth. Gagne’s efforts helped keep him within a point of the championship lead as the series heads into the second half of the season.
Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing heads to the iconic WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in two week’s time for Round 6 of the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship in Monterey, California, on July 12-14.
Richard Stanboli – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“It was a good weekend overall. Once again, the team did a good job and the bikes were competitive. Unfortunately, both of our riders were unable to ride to their full potential, but Jake was able to salvage some points and Cam made up a lot of ground. We’ll come back at Laguna and get both riders back on the box.”
Cameron Petersen (45). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Yamaha.
Cameron Petersen – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing #45
“It was a frustrating race. The team gave me a bike that could win the race and I got a great start and was running a good pace up front. Unfortunately, about halfway through, I got the worst arm pump I’ve ever had in my left arm and I was just really struggling to hold on. It’s a bummer because the bike was there and we could have gone and won that thing. Looking at the big picture, getting a first and a third here at The Ridge, I’ll take that. We’re in the hunt and we’re going to keep fighting and keep climbing our way up in this championship. We’re looking forward to Laguna.”
Jake Gagne (1). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Yamaha.
Jake Gagne – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing #1
“It was a rough race today. I struggled with my hand, which was unfortunate because the bike was working great, but we’ll come out swinging at Laguna!”
About Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A.
Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. (YMUS), is a recognized leader in the outdoor recreation industry. The company’s ever-expanding product offerings include Motorcycles and Scooters, ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles, Snowmobiles, Personal Watercraft, Boats, Outboard Motors, Outdoor Power Equipment, Power Assist Bicycles, Golf Cars [sold, serviced, and distributed by Yamaha Golf-Car Company], Power Assist Wheelchair Systems, Surface Mount Technology and Robotic Machines, Unmanned Helicopters, Accessories, Apparel, Yamalube products, and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of distributors and dealers in the United States.
YMUS has a corporate office in California, three corporate offices in Georgia, as well as facilities in Wisconsin, Alabama, and Florida. YMUS subsidiaries Yamaha Motor Manufacturing Corporation of America (YMMC), based in Georgia, and Yamaha Jet Boat Manufacturing U.S.A. (YJBM) based in Tennessee, each assemble and manufacture selected Yamaha brand products. YMUS owns Skeeter Boats [Texas] with its division G3 Boats [Missouri]. Additional U.S.-based subsidiaries include Yamaha Marine Systems Company, Inc. (YMSC) with subsidiary Siren Marine [Rhode Island] and divisions Bennett Marine [Florida], Yamaha Marine Rotational Molders [Wisconsin] and Yamaha Precision Propeller Inc. [Indiana].
Yamaha Motor Finance Corporation, USA, dba Yamaha Financial Services, is an affiliate of Yamaha Motor Corporation, USA offering financing solutions to support Yamaha Dealers and loyal Yamaha Customers nationwide.
More, from a press release issued by Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.:
MULTIPLE PODIUMS FOR VISION WHEEL M4 ECSTAR SUZUKI IN WASHINGTON
Brea, CA — Suzuki Motor USA (Suzuki) and Team Hammer’s premier Superbike and Supersport entries took the spotlight with the Twins Cup contenders taking the weekend off as the 2024 MotoAmerica season resumed at Ridge Motorsports Park, in Shelton, Washington. And there they shined with Xavi Forés and Tyler Scott combining to earn a podium for the team in each class.
Race Highlights
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki
Superbike
Xavi Forés was fast in all conditions, taking the GSX-R1000R to third in the wet and seventh in the dry.
Brandon Paasch charged from outside the top 20 to finish inside the top ten.
Supersport
Tyler Scott fought back to claim a podium after missing out Saturday due to electrical issues.
Teagg Hobbs finished sixth on Saturday, less than four tenths removed from fourth.
Joel Ohman continued to learn as he measured himself against the nation’s top pro racers in the wet and dry.
Reigning Supersport champion Xavi Forés (34) demonstrated his world-class skills as he continued to adapt to the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R. On Saturday, Forés utilized his wet weather experience to secure a podium finish in third. He came back Sunday to charge as high as fifth in the dry before fading to seventh late.
Xavi Forés (34) earned his first MotoAmerica Superbike podium at “The Ridge.” Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Forés’ Saturday podium saw him become the first rider to earn podium finishes in MotoAmerica Superbike, World Superbike, British Superbike, and the IDM German Superbike championship.
“Overall, we made good steps forward with the bike this weekend,” said Forés. “I felt strong on my Suzuki in the wet and the dry. We are now much closer to the top guys, and hope to use the data we’ve gained to continue to close that gap. I used my experience in the weather to choose the tires Saturday and that paid off. I initially attempted to fight for the win, but I had to take too many risks and I wanted to bring the bike home with a podium. This is a nice achievement, and I’m happy.”
Brandon Paasch (96) ran off track on the opening lap of Saturday’s wet Superbike contest, but still managed to slash his way up from 24th to finish ninth aboard the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R in the short, eight-lap race. Paasch came back Sunday to earn a top-ten result in the dry as well, making a pass on the final lap to claim tenth.
Brandon Paasch (96) earned two top-ten results using an all-new setup. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Paasch said, “We had two top ten results and didn’t crash, so the weekend went pretty well. On Saturday, I was bumped off my line and ended up last by 30 seconds, but came back to ninth. The conditions and my lack of patience caught me out from getting an even better result. In the dry race on Sunday, we tried an all-new setup on the bike and l learned a lot about what I want from a bike. We had a good battle for tenth with a quality rider, and I feel good about the result. We’re still improving, and I want to earn a podium. It’s going to be challenging, but we can do it.”
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott (70) joined Forés in claiming a top-three finish on the weekend, racing the next-generation Suzuki GSX-R750 to the box on Sunday afternoon. The result came as vindication after leading Saturday’s Race 1 and racing in the podium mix before an issue forced him down to eighth in a contest waged in the rain. Scott fought back on Sunday to take a scrapping third under ideal, sunny conditions.
Tyler Scott (70) put the Suzuki GSX-R750 on the podium in Washington, the team’s second podium of the weekend. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Scott said, “The whole team did a great job this weekend. Honestly, I felt great on the front-end and on the brakes. I just want to give a big thanks to the whole Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki team and my amazing crew, fixing some issues we had yesterday in Race 1, and getting the bike dialed in. I’m happy to be back up here on the podium, and I’m looking forward to Laguna.”
Teammate Teagg Hobbs (79), meanwhile, enjoyed a better day on Saturday. The Supersport pilot earned a hard-fought sixth aboard his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R750 on Saturday after fighting in a three-rider battle for fourth. He came back Sunday to narrowly miss out on the top ten, losing a position on the final lap to come home in 11th.
Teagg Hobbs (79) ran hard all weekend, finishing sixth on Saturday and 11th on Sunday. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Hobbs said, “It was not good for us. Race 1 was okay, and I missed the ball on the setup today. It made for the roughest race of the year. We’ll go to Laguna and use the setup we had when I did well there last year and have a better idea.”
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s third Supersport runner, Joel Ohman (92), showed continued improvement, learning with every session both in the wet and the dry conditions.
Joel Ohman (92) continues his progression in the competitive Supersport class. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
“I think we had a positive weekend,” Ohman said. “I felt this was the best setup for me yet this season, and I did a personal best in qualifying by 0.7 at my home track. We were able to identify the areas I need to improve in to gain more speed, and we have a good direction. The team had made some crew changes before the race with some additional help, and it went well. Race 1 was what we wanted. Race 2, I didn’t have as good of a start, but I learned a lot as I got laps in. I feel we’re making forward progress.”
The Suzuki road race teams now head to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, in Monterey, California, on July 12-14, for the next round of the 2024 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship.
The 2024 season marks Team Hammer’s 44th consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won over 130 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums over 360 times, and have won 11 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships (in Superbike and Supersport). The team has also won over 130 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running “Methanol Monster” GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.
ABOUT VISION WHEEL
Founded in 1976, Vision Wheel is one of the nation’s leading providers of custom wheels for cars and trucks, and one of the first manufacturers of custom wheels and tires for ATVs, UTVs, and golf carts. Vision Wheel looks beyond the current trends and to the future in developing, manufacturing, and distributing its wheels. Vision’s lines of street, race, off-road, American Muscle, and Milanni wheels are distributed nationally and internationally through a trusted network of distributors. Vision Wheel also produces the Vision It AR app to allow users to see how their wheel of choice will look on their vehicle before purchase and installation. For more information on Vision Wheel, visit www.visionwheel.com.
More, from a press release issued by Tytlers Cycle Racing:
Double duty for Mesa, Heroic effort from Cam and JD digs deep at The Ridge Motorsports Park
It was a challenging MotoAmerica for the Tytlers Cycle Racing team this past weekend as riders Stefano Mesa, Cameron Beaubier and JD Beach took the undulating Ridge Motorsports Park circuit close to Seattle in three racing categories – Supersport, Super Hooligans and Superbike.
For Mesa, who was on double duty, it was a busy weekend combining a traditional petrol-powered Kawasaki in Supersport with the all-electric Energica machine in Super Hooligans. Qualifying well, after a much better showing on the green meanie (Kawasaki) than twelve months ago, Mesa was in the mix in both Supersport races, fighting for the podium before having to settle in fifth and seventh in the two races. He took the flag in eighth and ninth places respectively in the two Super Hooligan encounters, impressing again against a grid full of conventional motorcycles.
In the Superbike category all eyes were on the returning Cameron Beaubier, who surprised the paddock after announcing he would attempt to ride despite not being fully fit following his Road America spill. Walking around the paddock with the aid of a stick, it was a truly heroic effort from the former champion, who defied the odds to qualify on the third row of the grid, a mere 0.8s from Pole Position. He withdrew from the rain affected opening race after a tire gamble didn’t pay off before salvaging a hard fought eighth on Sunday. On the other side of the Superbike garage JD Beach got his first taste of The Ridge and made progress throughout the weekend, despite losing valuable track time on Saturday morning following a crash. He finished tenth after wet tire gamble in race one, before finishing eleventh on Sunday after a race long battle that saw him narrowly miss a second consecutive top ten finish of the weekend.
Stefano Mesa: “I am glad we had better luck being back to the ridge after a rough experience last year. The Supersport class was good. We were able to find a good set up and went much faster than last year. Race one was solid. We had some weird weather where it was sprinkling quite a bit. I had a good start and was able to go with the front pack for about eight laps. As the water started to come down a bit more, I had a few moments where I almost lost the rear so had so settle for fifth at the flag. Race two was a bit different. I had a bad start and had to work myself up through the pack on the first lap. I was able to hang on to the third-place fight for a few laps and made a few passes but ended up losing the tyre quite fast and fell back a bit, finishing seventh. We also rode the Energica in the Super Hooligans class. We made a lot of progress and where able to go two seconds faster than last year. Race one was wet. It was my first experience on an electric bike in the rain. We had some fun figuring it out and we ended up P8. For race two we had a good plan but unfortunately, we had a little issue that held us back. It was a good race with a group of four bikes and I ended up ninth. I am looking forward to Laguna Seca.”
Cameron Beaubier: “Coming into The Ridge the goal was just to score some points, but the weekend definitely tested me. I’m happy I got some seat time and some points in the bag and I’m happy the weekend is done. I want to say a big thanks to my guys for working so hard and having my back in this tough period! I am gonna keep healing up to get ready for Laguna.”
JD Beach: “My first race weekend at The Ridge was not an easy one but I am glad I got the experience. The track is a tough, especially on the 1000cc bike. There’s a lot of blind turns that are on the gas and you must really commit to it. The conditions for the first race were tricky and we made a last-minute choice for rain tyres. I was able to start from pit road after the race had already started. I fought through from last to 10th at the flag. Race two was a tough one for me after a crash Saturday morning. I lost a lot of track time. We did what we could and finished the race. We have some time to reset and come out swinging at Laguna.”
More, from a press release issued by Rahal Ducati Moto:
THE RIDGE RACE 2
WARM UP & RACE 2
Kayla Yaakov backed up her first-race success at The Ridge Motorsports Park by taking a step higher onto the podium following Race 2. Her back-to-back podium performance at the Shelton, Washington track catapulted her to sixth position in the championship with 89 points.
Corey Alexander also provided a stellar performance, taking two positions on the start. Battling for a podium spot the entirety of the race, the Code 3 Associates Ducati flipped positions back-and-forth with Yaakov and Tyler Scott, before ultimately crossing the finish in fourth.
Despite a dominating six-second lead by Lap 5 of the race, PJ Jacobsen’s day ended early with an incident on Lap 14 . Jacobsen led all 13 laps of the race and was leading on Lap 14 with gap between the the XPEL rider and championship rival Mathew Scholtz shrinking with each passing lap. Scholtz ultimately went on to win the race.
With a bittersweet ending to the team’s first run at The Ridge Motorsports Park, the crew packs the truck to head just south to Monterey, California. Rounds 11 and 12 of Supersport competition at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca will be held in two weeks, July 12 – 14.
NOTES: Rocketed four positions in the championship with only 15 points separating her from the third spot // Collected her first career Supersport double-podium collecting a valuable 26 points on the weekend
WHAT SHE’S SAYING: “The final day at the Ridge was absolutely amazing! We were able to get up onto the podium and finish the weekend off with a second place finish. Unfortunately, my teammate, PJ Jacobsen was taken out in the race, so were were kind of gifted a position in the end. But it was a really hard fought podium and I was really excited to feel like the monkey was off of my back and get the confidence that I’ve had this weekend. The bike was handling amazing and I can’t thank my team enough for all their hard work. Looking forward to do it again in a couple weeks and continue to improve in this class.”
Corey Alexander (23). Photo courtesy Rahal Ducati Moto/Stillhouse.
COREY ALEXANDER
No. 23 CODE 3 ASSOCIATES DUCATI PANIGALE V2
STARTED: 4th
FINISHED: 4th
CHAMPIONSHIP: 7th (88 pts)
NOTES: Fought for a podium finish for the entirety of the race // Made a few ergonomic changes that didn’t work as hoped
WHAT HE’S SAYING: “Overall, we had a better result than yesterday. It was unfortunate for PJ to go down because we did our best to keep [Mathew] Scholtz behind us to give PJ a bit of a gap there in the beginning. The whole team is pumped for Kayla for getting up on the podium again today – we just didn’t have enough to get up there with her. We’ll take two Rahal Ducati Moto bikes in the top five, which is great, and focus onward to Laguna.”
NOTES: Was on track to continue his podium streak before the incident with Scholtz // Is now 28 points behind the leader
WHAT HE’S SAYING: “I felt really good the entire race. I had a good start and a two-second gap in the beginning and I felt my pace was pretty good. My tire started coming off mid-race and I knew [Mathew] Scholtz was there the whole time. I was looking for a good fight at the end. I started closing my line tighter because I knew he would be coming up the inside. On the left-hander, I went even tighter than my normal line and there was no way there was any way to pass me there. Scholtz went up the inside of me and took my shoulder and my bar right out from me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t do anything at that point. I’d consider myself a pretty clean rider, and to take someone out like that in the battle for a championship is not a good way to race. I’m pretty disappointed that someone would make that move. I want to thank all of our sponsors, we appreciate XPEL for coming out to support today. It’s disappointing to not be on the podium for them. I want to thank my entire team. They always have my back and they’ve done a great job. I’m looking forward to Laguna.”
BEN SPIES
TEAM PRINCIPAL
WHAT HE’S SAYING: “It was a bittersweet race for us. PJ got off to a great start and was riding really good. With two to go, Mathew [Scholtz] rolled up on him and caught him. He made a pretty aggressive move and took him out. There wasn’t really anything PJ could do about it. It sucks for the championship points, but for Kayla to back up her third place with a second place today, beating up on the boys – that was awesome to see. She rode incredibly. Corey rode really good today as well. There was a couple little things that just had him stuck there, but he did ride a good race and showed some really good speed. We’ll take the positives from this weekend, move on to Laguna, and start clawing back up in the championship..”
More, from a press release issued by Harley-Davidson:
HARLEY-DAVIDSON PAN AMERICA 1250 RIDERS NOTCH TWO WINS IN SUPER HOOLIGAN RACING AT RIDGE MOTORSPORTS PARK
Cody Wyman and Jake Lewis Win as Pan America Riders Claim Four of Six Podium Positions
Cody Wyman (34). Photo courtesy Harley-Davidson.
MILWAUKEE – KWR/Harley-Davidson rider Cody Wyman and Team Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson rider Jake Lewis each rode race-prepared Harley-Davidson® Pan America® 1250 Special motorcycles to race victories in a Mission Super Hooligan double-header weekend at Ridge Motorsports Park in Shelton, Wash. With his win Wyman moves up to second place in series points after four of 10 scheduled races. The Mission Super Hooligan road racing championship, held in conjunction with the MotoAmerica Superbike series, features 750cc-and-up high-bar race-prepared street bikes from the world’s premier motorcycle manufacturers.
On Saturday, pouring rain created challenging racing conditions and caused the race distance to be shortened from 8 to 6 laps of the 2.47-mile, 16-turn Ridge course. On the first lap, Wyman jumped from eighth position on the starting grid to second place and took the lead on lap 2 with a pass of Team Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson rider Cory West. Wyman was leading by 1.3 seconds when the race was red flagged for a crashed bike on the track surface. West led Wyman briefly when the race was re-started, but West slid off the track in turn 3 and Wyman, in smooth control on the wet surface, sped away from the field. KWR/Harley-Davidson rider Hayden Schultz moved into second place. Wyman crossed the finish line 7.99 seconds clear of Schultz for a 1-2 finish for the KWR/Harley-Davidson team. S&S/Indian rider Tyler O’Hara finished in third place, more than 13 seconds behind Wyman.
“This was a crazy win,” said Wyman. “The team had to fix the bike after I went off the track in practice on Friday. We were down but this team never quits, and they worked all night to get us ready to race. My teammate Hayden helped me out a lot on set-up. I was feeling really good about our chances in the wet today and we finished 1-2 for the team and Harley-Davidson.”
Jake Lewis (85) leads a group of riders during Super Hooligan Race Two. Photo courtesy Harley-Davidson.
On a dry track on Sunday, West, Lewis, and O’Hara broke away from the field on lap 2, and Lewis got past West for the lead on lap 3. Lewis then pulled away, opening a gap of more than 4 seconds by lap 6 of the 8-lap race. A short off-track bobble on the final lap cost Lewis some time but he still beat O’Hara to the finish by 2.00 seconds. West finished third, 4.895 seconds back.
“I was really bummed after sliding off in the rain on the first lap yesterday,” said Lewis. “I was out to pay back the team today. The bike felt great on the warm-up lap, and once I got the lead it was just charge, charge, charge to the win.”
After 4 of 10 rounds in the 2024 Mission Super Hooligan series O’Hara leads with 69 points. Cody Wyman jumps from fourth to second place with 64 points, followed by West with 57 points, S&S/Indian rider Troy Herfoss with 49 points, Lewis with 45 points, and Schultz with 39 points.
The Mission Super Hooligan series returns to action July 12-14 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Salinas, Calif. during the MotoAmerica Superbike Speedfest at Monterey.
Mission Super Hooligan National Championships – Ridge Motorsports Park Race 1
Cody Wyman (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Hayden Schultz (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Tyler O’Hara (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
Hawk Mazzotta (IND) Roland Sands Racing
Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Jeff Lane (KTM) Lane Racing Gray Area KTM
Jordan Eubanks (KTM) Ready To Ride
Stefano Mesa (ENE) Tytlers Cycle Racing
Andrew Berkley (KTM) Underground Racing Team
Adan Mendoz (KTM) Organon Group
Kole King (TRI) King Performance
Paul Canale (BMW) Team Orthopedics
Mike Boyce (KTM) 3D Motorsports
Mitchel Stein (YAM) Team MIM
Mission Super Hooligan National Championships – Ridge Motorsports Park Race 2
Jake Lewis (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Tyler O’Hara (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
ory West (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Troy Herfoss (IND) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
Hayden Schultz (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Cody Wyman (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Hawk Mazzotta (IND) Roland Sands Design
Stefano Mesa (ENE) Tytlers Cycle Racing
Mallory Dobbs (DUC) Diva Racing
AJ Peaslee (KTM) AJ Peaslee Racing
Jordan Eubanks (KTM) Ready to Ride
Adan Mendoz (KTM) Organon Group
Kole King (TRI) King Performance
Jeff Lane (KTM) Lane Racing Gray Area KTM
Andrew Berkley (KTM) Underground Race Team
Mitchel Stein (YAM) Team MIM
Paul Canale (BMW) Team Orthopedics
Mike Boyce (KTM) 3D Motorsports
More, from a press release issued by Energica:
THE RIDGE: A REMINDER OF GOOD THINGS TO COME
Stefano Mesa (137). Photo courtesy Energica.
We may have said it already, but we will say it again: the MotoAmerica Mission Foods Super Hooligan National Championship is one of the fastest growing and competitive domestic classes in motorcycle racing. Born a mere decade ago as the brainchild of noted designer and customizer Roland Sands, in those days it was a very casual flat-track-inspired event where amateurs vied elbow-to-elbow with incognito pros in converted parking lots and indoor garages in conjunction with custom motorcycle shows like Mama Tried, Hand-Built and the One Show.
Over the years and especially with the recent involvement of MotoAmerica, Super Hooligan has shifted solely to tarmac at national racecourses like Laguna Seca, Daytona and even the Circuit of the Americas. The raw but friendly rivalry is still there, but the series has also become more polished and competitive, attracting manufacturers and pro teams that are intensifying their presence and who every year, field constantly evolving machinery.
Last year, Super Hooligan hit another milestone with the inclusion of electric into the full race series, a first for Super Hooligan (and indeed, for any other race series.) The result: a historic podium at COTA and 4th place finish overall for the year from the Energica EVA Ribelle RS piloted by Stefano Mesa and fielded by Tytlers Cycle Racing.
In this ever more intense landscape, the TCR team has made significant improvements from the previous year, while battling opponents who have undeniably made their own progress too.
2024 began with a challenging season debut in March at Daytona (a course notoriously hard on electric thanks to very long straightaways and the 31° banking) followed by this weekend at The Ridge Motorsports Park. For opposite reasons, this track is another challenging venue for electric machinery. The relatively short start/finish straight combined with a tight first chicane prevents the EV rider from exploiting the immense torque out of the gates, and the lack of long corners impedes maximizing corner speed on the EVA Ribelle.
With that said, MotoAmerica’s stopwatch was quite telling. Stefano Mesa’s fastest qualifying lap at The Ridge in 2023 was a 1:49.232, while this year he clocked in 1:47.947. We’ll do the math for you: 1.285 secs quicker. He was P6 on the grid one year ago, P7 this time around. Hence the gap to first place narrows down, however, the number of strong riders on competitive machinery grows.
And as a first-ever in Energica’s still embryonic Super Hooligan journey, the Pacific Northwest weather brought a surprise downpour not long before the start of Race One, which carried a bag full of unknowns as Mesa had never ridden the EVA Ribelle in wet conditions prior to Saturday. The encounter itself was more of a race for survival, the with 31-year-old Colombian making it to the finish line in eighth place, dodging the numerous crashes that occurred on the inundated course.
The irony of it all was a red flag situation, which led to a new, four-lap race, triggered by a crash suffered by Jeff Lane, who back in 2019 won the contest to ride the MotoE replica machine at the Circuit of The Americas – the same EGO taken for a spin by former WorldSBK champion and MotoGP star Colin Edwards that same weekend. Jeff, who right after that COTA experience bought an EGO+ RS and who regularly does track days with it, takes part in the Super Hooligan National Championship with different machinery as the powerful, all-electric sportbike by Energica clearly does not comply with Super Hooligan regulations.
Digression aside, Mesa finished a fully dry Race Two in ninth place, after battling up to the finish line with Hawk Mazzotta. As the second round of the season draws to a close, there is much more to look forward to. Next on the calendar is the WeatherTech Laguna Seca Raceway (July 12-14), which brings fond memories of the first-ever hole-shot for an EV motorcycle in closed-circuit competition as Stefano stormed to P1 at the start of Race One.
Energica, a still relatively small manufacturer of electric motorcycles, has become widely known for punching above their weight. Taking the fight to bigger, ICE manufacturers demonstrates the can-do mentality that drives the company forward into the future.
After all, every success story starts with an underdog!
We invite you to join us at Laguna Seca, as for a second year in a row, Energica makes history combatting endothermic machines head-to-head in a full-on national race series.
2024 Mission Foods Super Hooligan – Round 3
WeatherTech Laguna Seca Raceway – Thursday July 12 – Sunday July 14
Follow our Instagram account Scuderia Energica by clicking on this LINK (or on the image to the left). Plenty of content awaits – pictures, reels, live sessions – all about our most purest and competitive racing side. Keep up to date with all things racing by Energica!
More, from a press release issued by OrangeCat Racing:
OrangeCat Racing’s Uribe wins his second MotoAmerica Stock 1000 race Sunday at The Ridge Motorsports Park
Wyman scores two top-10 finishes at June 28-30 event, Uribe now a close second in points standings
SHELTON, Wash. — When the MotoAmerica Stock 1000 season started in May, Jayson Uribe was the newcomer to the class. Six weeks and three rounds later, he’s proven himself to be a championship contender. The OrangeCat Racing rider was back to winning ways Sunday at The Ridge Motorsports Park and has tightened up the gap from himself to the championship leader from 16 points to six.
The Californian qualified on the front row and took a runner-up finish Saturday before capping off the June 28-30 round with a victory Sunday afternoon.
Uribe’s teammate, Travis Wyman, collected two top-10 finishes and persevered through a challenging Race 1 on Saturday to finish eighth on Sunday.
Uribe and Wyman both had positive starts to the Ridge round. Though Friday morning practice was briefly red flagged, Uribe and Wyman finished that session as the fastest and third-fastest riders, respectively. The first of two qualifying sessions took place later Friday and featured Uribe provisionally qualifying second and Wyman sixth.
The second and final qualifying session on Saturday morning saw Uribe secure second place on the starting grid – as well as improve on his best lap time from Friday qualifying by 0.739 seconds. Wyman clinched seventh on the starting grid for the weekend’s two Stock 1000 contests after improving on his best Friday qualifying time by 0.572 seconds.
The start of the Saturday afternoon Race 1 didn’t go exactly as Uribe planned, as he experienced a bit of a wheelie as he let the clutch out on his BMW M 1000 RR. But all was well for the rest of the opening lap, as Uribe was unfazed and was still running in the same position he qualified as the field negotiated the first several corners of the 16-turn, 2.47-mile Ridge circuit. Uribe went on to finish the first lap – and all of the 12 remaining laps – in second place and netted his second podium appearance of the 2024 season. Unfortunately for Wyman, the change in weather conditions from sunny to overcast and slightly damp did not jive with his bike’s setup. He ran as high as ninth on Lap 2 before having to settle for a 10th-place result.
Sunday’s Race 2 started much the same way as Race 1 with Uribe holding onto second place through the holeshot and to the end of Lap 1. Uribe was matching the race leader’s pace for the first two laps. Then the race leader crashed near the end of Lap 3, and Uribe took over the lead. Though two other frontrunning riders were able to stay with Uribe for most of the race, the Californian’s late race pace allowed him to stretch out his lead in the closing laps to capture the victory. Wyman had a better showing in Race 2. Though he’d dropped to 10th in the running order by the end of Lap 1, Wyman ran as high as seventh place on Laps 6-9 before finishing in eighth place.
Uribe’s strong results at the two most recent rounds have helped move him into a close second place in the championship standings. He’s a mere six points behind the championship leader with four races to go this year.
The penultimate round of the 2024 MotoAmerica Stock 1000 Championship takes place July 12-14 at the Laguna Seca circuit in Monterey, Calif.
Jayson Uribe (360). Photo by Fatal Visualz, courtesy OrangeCat Racing.
Jayson Uribe / No. 360
“Overall, it was a great weekend for the OrangeCat Racing crew here at The Ridge. Race 1 was a good learning lesson for me. My goal was just to stick with the leader for as long as possible. I started running into some tire wear issues, decided to play it safe and come home in second. For Race 2 I tried to be more aggressive right off the bat. After the race leader went down, I immediately tried to slow the pace a little and just focus on being consistent and saving the tires and my body. We were able to click off fast, consistent lap times pretty much the whole race, which I’m happy about. The whole team worked hard to give me a bike that I can comfortably push on. Everyone stepped up this weekend and it showed.”
Travis Wyman (10). Photo by Fatal Visualz, courtesy OrangeCat Racing.
Travis Wyman / No. 10
“In today’s race, I got a pretty good start but was pushed wide by another rider at the first corner. I lost a bunch of ground to the lead pack but managed to battle my way past a couple riders to an eighth-place finish. We’re not where we want to be, but we’re slowly making progress in getting me more comfortable with the bike.”
OrangeCat Racing’s promotional and technical partners for the 2024 MotoAmerica season include Motoworks Chicago, Ohlins USA, and alpha Racing.
Travis Wyman’s promotional partners for the 2024 MotoAmerica season include SP Connect, Klingler Thrillers, Fast Line Motorcycle Performance, Stomp Grip, On Any Moto, Bilmola USA and Alpinestars.
Jayson Uribe’s promotional partners for the 2024 MotoAmerica season include CT Racing, 4SR, San Jose Motorsport and Red Engine Brewing.
To learn more about OrangeCat Racing, visit the team’s website at http://orangecatracing.com and follow the team on Instagram at @orangecatracing.
More, from a press release issued by Altus Motorsports:
(Shelton, WA) The MotoAmerica round at The Ridge Motorsports Park was another eventful weekend for the Altus Motorsports team.
Jake Lewis qualified 6th. In Race 1, he finished a strong 4th place. For Sundays race on lap 6 Jake’s bike started losing power. After 2 more laps Jake was able to switch to a different map setting to get the bike to work again. He was able to fight his way back to salvage a 10th place result. After the race it was determined the front wheel speed sensor wire touched the rotor and was cut.
Jake Lewis (85). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Altus Motorsports.
The Ridge is a track that Jaret Nassaney knows and likes. He showed up expecting decent results but, unfortunately, he was plagued with electronic issues all weekend. He started both races from 15th position. In Race 1, he was part of a three-rider battle for 13th, ultimately finishing 15th. He finished Race 2 in 12th place.
Jaret Nassaney (59). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Altus Motorsports.
Jaret Nassaney: “We are still fitting some electrical gremlins. So didn’t get the finishes I wanted. I know we can run farther up in the group. I just gotta build confidence in myself and in the bike! Looking forward to Laguna.”
Torin Collins started both races from 11th on the grid. He got a good start in Race 1 and was in the top 10 when he crashed and was forced to retire from the race. In Race 2, Torin was again running in the top 10 when a front tire issue forced him to pull in. Upon inspection one side of the tire was shredded after just a few laps.
Torin Collins (171). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Altus Motorsports.
Torin Collins: “Yeah, it was another difficult and frustrating weekend. It’s a shame because we obviously had the pace to be in the front group. In race 1, I misjudged the grip in the rainy-ish conditions and crashed. And in race 2, we had an issue with the front tire. After 3 laps it felt unsafe. It’s really unfortunate we didn’t get to show the race pace we had due to bad luck. On paper, there aren’t many improvements, but I think for me and the team, we were able to see that we have the potential. We’re keeping our heads high and focused on getting better together. We win together and we lose together.”
George Nassaney: “We have a great crew and talented riders. They don’t deserve the bad luck we have been having. For Jake to have a front wheel speed sensor wire damaged, Jaret having electrical issues, and Torin to have a front tire shred on one side is very unfortunate. As a team, we continue to face, and overcome, challenges. We are working with the supplier to get to the bottom of the recurring electronics issues. When those are resolved and with a bit of good luck, I know our results will improve dramatically.”
Altus Motorsports team is supported by our great family of sponsors: Altus Motorsports, WPS, Firepower, Suzuki Motor Corporation, Buy A Jet From Steve Main, Barnett, Evol Technology, Maxima Oils, Hot Bodies Racing, M4 Exhausts, Vortex EK, Motion Pro, SBS Brakes, BrakeTech USA, Inc., Pit Bull Products, GB Racing, Ohlins, Puig Racing, RS Taichi, Arai, Core Moto, Pro Bolt, Chicken Hawk Tire Warmers, Speed Cell, Law Tigers Oklahoma, and Altus Factory Racing.
Honda Racing Corporation will bolster their testing program with the addition of Aleix Espargaro as a Test Rider in 2025. With close to 250 premier class starts, the 34-year-old brings with him a wealth of experience on Grand Prix machinery as well as the pedigree of three victories and over 1,300 MotoGP points. He will join HRC stalwart Stefan Bradl in continuing the development of the Honda RC213V.
On the Front Cover: Jorge Martin led in MotoGP points for months, until he didn’t.
Frustrated in his quest for a Ducati factory ride, he’ll be on an Aprilia in 2025-2026.
Photo by Gigi Soldano/DPPI Media.
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JULY 2024 ISSUE
FEATURES
Inside Info: Aprilia RS 457 Trophy, BMW R 1300 GS, AMA Junior Cup
and FIM Supersport300 Classes Getting Replaced, and more…
Intro: 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 500 Improves On Ninja 400
Intro: 2024 Yamaha MT-09 Triple Better Than Ever
MotoGP Analysis: An Advanced Rider Warning System
Shops: Alpha Racing Is The BMW Racebike Source
RACING
MotoGP: Bagnaia Is Perfect In Assen
MotoGP: Bagnaia Takes Points Lead At Sachsenring
MotoAmerica Superbike: Fong Sweeps Into Lead At Brainerd
MotoAmerica Superbike: Championship Tightens At The Ridge
WorldSBK: Toprak Triples At Misano
COLUMNS
Letters To The Editor: MotoGP Going To 850cc, Pat Hennen Tribute, & Hydrogen Bikes
10 Years Ago, July 2014: Marc Marquez is on the July 2014 cover with the headline
“Only Marc Marquez Can Stop Marc Marquez!” AMA Superbike Champion
Josh Herrin struggled in Moto2. Melissa Paris tested the KTM RC 390 Cup
racebike. Cameron Beaubier won in Superbike at the GEICO Motorcycle
Superbike Shootout Presented by Yamaha at Sonoma, and more…
The Crash Page: Jorge Martin Crashes Out Of German Grand Prix
Racing, School, & Track Day Calendar: Where & When To Ride
Classified Ads/Advertiser Index
High Performance Parts & Services Directory
Chris Ulrich: Adventures Of An Ex-Racer: Looking Ahead On The Racetrack
Gresini Racing Films, in collaboration with Nadia Padovani, is pleased to announce two new seasons of ‘Better Call Alex’ for the years 2025 and 2026.
#FACCIAMOUNCINEMA
ALEX MARQUEZ #73
“Staying with Gresini was my main goal. Since I joined this team, my target has been to consistently get close to the best, and it’s something I haven’t achieved yet. The start of the season wasn’t what we hoped for, but the team is strong and I know where we can go. So, I just want to thank Nadia for the trust, and I’m sure we’ll soon repay her with some celebratory pineapple pizza.”
NADIA PADOVANI – GRESINI RACING OWNER
“Alex is our pupil. Since he joined two years ago, the synergy between him and the team has been incredible and has strengthened with each race. We know his potential; he has already shown it and just needs consistency. Renewing with him was an obvious move for us because we are aware of his value both on and off the track. The results will come this year too, I am absolutely certain of it.”
Reg Pridmore was the first AMA Superbike Champion, winning the series for the first three years of its existence: 1976, 1977, and 1978. He helped put BMW motorcycles on the map racing the F750 and R90S. Reg tells his fascinating story from beginnings in the UK of his birth, to his later successes in the USA. All new footage of his BMW F750 hitting the track for the first time after a painstaking restoration reminds us of the skill and daring that Reg brought to early Superbike racing.
Josh Herrin won MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike Race Two Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park, in Shelton, Washington. Riding his Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R on Dunlop Sportmax Slick control tires, Herrin took the lead, crept away from the field with a consistently fast pace, and won the 16-lap race by 5.063 seconds. It was Herrin’s second win of the season and the 12th Superbike win of his career.
Bobby Fong was fourth on the opening lap but was able to push forward to a second-place finish on his Wrench Motorcycles Yamaha YZF-R1.
Race One winner Cameron Petersen got off to a strong start in Race Two but said he suffered from arm pump problems and had to settle for third place on his Attack Performance/Progressive Yamaha Racing YZF-R1.
Herrin’s teammate Loris Baz was unable to convert his pole position to a podium finish, but the Frenchman was able to score fourth place.
Sean Dylan Kelly bounced back from a non-point-scoring finish in Race One to grab fifth place on his EasyHealthPlans.com/TopPro Racing BMW in Race Two.
Hayden Gillim used a last-lap pass to secure sixth on his Real Steel Motorsports Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP.
Xavi Fores ran as high as fifth on his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R but fell victim to Kelly and Gillim in the second half of the race and ended up seventh.
Five-time Champion Cameron Beaubier, who is still recovering from a broken right heel, crossed the finish line 0.199 second behind Fores and collected eighth-place points.
Three-time and defending Champion Jake Gagne ran fifth in the early laps but slipped back to eventually finish ninth.
Fores’ teammate Brandon Paasch passed Beaubier’s teammate JD Beach on the last lap to grab 10th.
Herrin Wins, Superbike Title Chase Features Four At The Top
Four Riders Are Within Eight Points Of The MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike Championship Points Lead
Cameron Petersen (45) leads Josh Herrin (2), Loris Baz (76), Bobby Fong (50), and the rest of the Steel Commander Superbike field on the opening lap at Ridge Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
SHELTON, WA (June 30, 2024) – Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin won his second Steel Commander Superbike race of the season on Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park, and it vaulted him into championship contention in what is arguably the closest Superbike Championship in AMA history at this point in the season.
After two races at Ridge Motorsports Park, four riders are separated by just eight points and there’s just a single point between first and second, making it anybody’s game with a two-week break before the series returns at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, July 12-14.
Herrin won his second race of the year in typical Herrin fashion. He got out front early, made a gap and held it, crossing the line with a tick over five seconds in hand. In addition to being his second win of the year, it was also his sixth podium of the year and his 12th career AMA Superbike victory.
Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong worked his way to second place with 11 laps to go when he passed Attack Performance/Progressive/Yamaha Racing’s Cameron Petersen. Fong set sail after Herrin and was able to pull back some ground but was never close enough to threaten.
However, second place on the day was enough to move Fong back into the lead in the 2024 Steel Commander Superbike Championship points lead after losing it in what was a rainy debacle for the Californian on Saturday.
Third place went to Petersen, a day after the South African won his third race of the season on Saturday. Petersen was some four seconds behind Fong and another four some seconds clear of Herrin’s teammate Loris Baz. His two podiums in the two races put him squarely in the hunt for the title.
Josh Herrin (2) moved around Cameron Petersen (45) and sped off to win his second MotoAmerica Superbike race of the season and the 12th of his career. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Fifth place went to a rather lonely Sean Dylan Kelly on the TopPro Racing BMW M 1000 RR.
Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim was an impressive sixth on his Stock 1000-spec Honda CBR1000RR-R SP after barely beating Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Xavi Forés with the Spaniard finishing seventh.
Five-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier rode through the pain of his surgically repaired broken right heel to finish just off the back of Forés and seven seconds clear of three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Jake Gagne with the latter still struggling mightily with arm pump.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Brandon Paasch rounded out the top 10 finishers.
About that championship we were talking about earlier. How’s this for close? Fong leads Gagne by a single point, 158-157. Petersen is next with 151 and Herrin is fourth with 149, and that all translates to the fact that the top four in the championship point standings are separated by just eight points.
Superbike Race Two
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
Cameron Petersen (Yamaha)
Loris Baz (Ducati)
Sean Dylan Kelly (BMW)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Xavi Forés (Suzuki)
Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
Brandon Paasch (Suzuki)
Quotes
Josh Herrin – Winner
“Obviously, I wish I was further ahead and didn’t do so bad in all four of the rain races we had, but it’s exactly what the championship needs with a fight like this with a bunch of different manufacturers. So, I’m excited for that, especially since Laguna Seca is all of our home rounds. So, it’s going to be a lot of our family there cheering us on. It should be an exciting weekend. Race went great. Tires were great. Everything just clicked today, just like Road America. Like I said all year, we knew Barber was difficult, but every other race we’ve been right there with the exception of the rain. Maybe Dunlop will let us go use the rain track for the end of the year and try to get a little bit better. It’s mainly my fault with all the stupid choices I’ve made with tires the last couple years, running slicks in the rain. I’m just happy to be up here, happy to claw back in the points again. This is the closest we’ve been all year. Thank you to my entire team. Really excited to go to Laguna, not just for the race but Ducati DRE on Monday and hang out with all the Ducati fans and riders. Can’t wait to see you there.”
Bobby Fong – Second Place
“Like Josh said earlier, I need to capitalize on these rain races. I’ve done terrible, and it’s all on me. It’s something that I need to work on. To win this championship, you can’t just be getting 10th in the rain races. I’ve got to do better. That’s plain and simple. I’ve got to do better. But today was great. We rode good. I felt like the bike was quite good. We tried a new swingarm this morning and I was really unsure of it. I’m still unsure of it, but it worked great. We’re always pretty strong at the end of these races. The class is so tight now, you’ve got to qualify on front row to do something, unless you have crazy outright speed. Everybody is so close. When you’re trying to make your way up to Josh (Herrin), it’s basically too late. It’s like World Superbike nowadays. You got to qualify good, like MotoGP. I need to work on my qualifying. I’ve been struggling in qualifying a little bit. What can I say? We’ve got the points lead, but there’s still a lot of races to go. Each weekend, there’s a dogfight up front. You never know what’s going to happen. We’re all on the limit, so anybody can make a mistake. We’re just going to try to stay consistent.”
Cameron Petersen – Third Place
“Yeah, great weekend. Can’t complain with two podiums. The only reason why I’m a little bit frustrated was just we had a bike that was capable of winning both races. The bike felt really good in the beginning. I felt comfortable. Even when Josh (Herrin) came past me I felt like I had a really good rhythm and pace. Was just losing a little bit in the last sector. I was really good everywhere else. About halfway through the race, my left arm just completely locked up. My hand came off the handlebar a few times. It got a little bit scary out there. Just super stoked at the weekend. Like you said, points are close. So, overall, a great weekend. We learned a bunch this weekend and look forward to the rest of the season. Congrats to Josh (Herrin) and Bob (Fong). They rode an incredible race. I think it’s going to be a dogfight for the rest of the season every race we go to, so I’m looking forward to it.”
More, from a press release issued by Ducati:
Josh Herrin Hammers a Dominant Win in Race Two at The Ridge
Sunnyvale, Calif., June 30, 2024 — Josh Herrin showed his love affair with The Ridge Motorsports Park by taking a dominant win in race two of the 2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship.
The race two win marks the third consecutive year Herrin has tasted victory, and the fourth year in a row he has stood on the podium at The Ridge. It also means Herrin now lies only nine points off the championship lead.
The result on Sunday more than made up for the result of race one, where tricky wet/dry conditions meant tire choice was a make-or-break gamble. Herrin and teammate Loris Baz both elected to run slicks, which ultimately proved the incorrect move, with Herrin taking 11th and Baz ninth.
In race two, Herrin got to the front early after disposing of race leader Cameron Petersen and set about lapping at a metronomic pace, posting the fastest lap and eventually coming home five seconds clear of Bobby Fong.
Loris Baz rode brilliantly all weekend. The Frenchman took his first-ever MotoAmerica Superbike pole position and his inspired ninth place in race one made him the first slick-shod rider home.
Race two saw Baz in the fight for the podium early in the 16-lap encounter, but he finally had to settle for fourth at the flag and bagged 13 championship points.
2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship After Round Five
P1 – Bobby Fong 158
P2 – Jake Gagne 157
P3 – Cameron Petersen 151
P4 – Josh Herrin (Ducati) 149
P5 – Loris Baz (Ducati) 122
Josh Herrin (Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati–#2)
“I’d like to say it was a great weekend, but it certainly was a great day,” Herrin said after winning race two. “Saturday, we lost out due to an incorrect tire selection. It was a gamble, and it didn’t pay off. It happens in racing sometimes.”
“But the Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati team rebounded big time today—and the bike was awesome. The team has been working hard to nail the right set-up and we got it right for the race today. I’m so happy with how the weekend finished. Next up is Laguna Seca, not just for the MotoAmerica Superbike races but also for the DRE (Ducati Rider Experience) day on Monday. I can’t wait to get there and ride with all the Ducatisti.”
Loris Baz (Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati–#76)
“I want to keep the positive of the weekend,” said Baz after race two. “First, I want to congratulate Josh. He rode a fantastic race today. On my side of the garage, it was a good weekend. I took my first MotoAmerica pole position, but we got caught out with the tire selection in race one, so that was a shame.
“Today I was really confident going into the race. We had a few issues with the front set-up, and I was trying to over-compensate in some areas. I still have a bit of work to do to make sure I can be as competitive over the race distance as I am in qualifying, but we are making huge steps every weekend. The team is working really well and we’re off to Laguna Seca next, which is a place I absolutely love.”
The fifth round of the 2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship sees the series head to one of the premier events in the calendar at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in California over the July 10-12 weekend.
Mathew Scholtz won MotoAmerica Supersport Race Two Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park, in Shelton, Washington. Riding his Strack Racing Yamaha on Dunlop spec tires, the South African came from behind to win the 15-lap race by 8.530 seconds.
Scholtz was coming back from a slow start when he caught and tried to overtake PJ Jacobsen, who had led from the start on his Rahal Ducati Moto w/XPEL Panigale V2.
Scholtz slipped up the inside of Jacobsen in a decreasing radius left-hander, the two made light contact, and Jacobsen fell down. Scholtz rode on to his fourth straight victory and sixth of the season, while Jacobsen was forced to retire.
Jacobsen’s teammate Kayla Yaakov came out on top of a race-long battle to grab the runner-up spot. Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott finished third, 0.214 second behind Yaakov and just 0.295 second ahead of Corey Alexander and his Rahal Ducati Moto w/Code 3 Associates machine.
Wrench Motorcycles Suzuki’s David Anthony edged out N2 Racing/BobbleHeadMoto Yamaha’s Blake Davis by 0.073 second to finish fifth.
Updated: Following the race, a protest was filed by PJ Jacobsen’s Rahal Ducati Moto team against Mathew Scholtz. A FIMNA Stewards Panel ruled that both Scholtz and PJ Jacobsen shared some responsibility in the incident, but Scholtz was accessed a three-second penalty which changed nothing but Scholtz’s margin of victory. See the official FIMNA ruling below.
Gillim Miscues, Uribe Wins In Ridge Stock 1000 Battle At Ridge Motorsports Park
High Drama In Supersport As Top Two Riders Come Together
Jayson Uribe (360) leads Ashton Yates (27) en route to winning the Stock 1000 race at Ridge Motorsports Park on Sunday. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
SHELTON, WA (June 30, 2024) – Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim made his second mistake of the season in Sunday’s Stock 1000 at Ridge Motorsports Park and it was again a double whammy as it not only cost him victory and championship points, but it also handed a second victory to his thus-far series rival Jayson Uribe.
OrangeCat Racing’s Uribe was hot on Gillim’s tail when the defending MotoAmerica Stock 1000 Champion crashed in turn 14 on the fourth lap with the pursuing pack of Uribe, Benjamin Smith and Ashton Yates zooming past. By the time Hayden remounted he was 14th and had some work to do.
With Uribe pulling away to an eventual 9.7-second win over FLO4LAW Racing’s Smith and Jones’ Honda’s Yates, Gillim set about gaining as many points back as possible. At the completion of the 13-lap race, the Kentuckian was up to fourth place.
However, Gillim went straight after the finish line and didn’t make the turn-one chicane and was thus handed a two-second penalty, which gifted fourth to Visit Indiana/Tom Wood Powersports’ Nolan Lampkin and fifth to AMD Motorsport RK Racing’s Richard Kerr, the last two riders Gillim had passed prior to the finish line.
That put Gillim sixth and cut his championship points lead over Uribe to six points after six races.
BPR Racing’s Bryce Prince, OrangeCat Racing’s Travis Wyman, Team Brazil’s Danilo Lewis and Prince’s BPR Racing teammate Deion Campbell rounded out the top 10.
“It’s always a bummer when you see someone else crash, but the biggest thing for me was getting a better start and being able to be there in the beginning,” Uribe said. “Yesterday I gave myself a little bit too much to work towards. I think that it could have been possible, but I was taking a lot of risks just to keep up. Today we kind of came out with a new plan to just be there, be aggressive, be rough. I feel like we were pretty good at doing that at the start. Like you said, when Hayden went down, it was a bummer but for me it was a realization of, ‘Now I need to conserve. Now I need to stop pushing so hard and save the tire, save the bike, save my body.’ That’s really what I tried to do. I caught a false neutral going into 14 one of those laps and it made me pretty nervous. I thought for sure someone was going to come up the inside. Luckily, we were able to get it back into gear. That OrangeCat BMW was running really good. Kind of like what everybody else was saying. All these bikes have strong points and weak points. I feel like the BMW is really good on the brakes. I can really push that thing going into corners. The biggest thing for us is just being able to get power to the ground on the exit. We’re working on it. We’re working every time we get on that bike to try something new and improve. It’s going good.”
Supersport race winner Mathew Scholtz (11) battles PJ Jacobsen (15) in Sunday’s race. The two made contact a few laps from the end with Jacobsen crashing out. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Supersport – Scholtz Wins With High Drama
Strack Racing’s Mathew Scholtz won his sixth Supersport race of the season at Ridge Motorsports Park, but this was the first one that came with a big dose of drama.
Scholtz had finally caught up to the fast-starting PJ Jacobsen on the Rahal Ducati Moto Panigale V2 with two laps to go. The South African then made an inside move on the New Yorker and it didn’t end well. The two came together and Jacobsen went down, ending his run of finishing on the podium in all the nine previous races.
Jacobsen obviously wasn’t happy with the outcome as the championship was turned on its head. Scholtz went from having a three-point lead to what is now a 28-point lead.
Jacobsen got a flier of a start and instantly put his head down. Scholtz, meanwhile, had a slower start and had work to do to get to second. Once he did, he started to run the New Yorker down. With five to go, the two were together. With two to go, the accident happened, and it was called a racing incident by race control.
It takes a lot to overshadow Kayla Yaakov, but her teammate’s crash did just that. Yaakov raced to her best-career Supersport finish of second, just a day after she finished third. Quite a weekend for the 17-year-old Pennsylvanian.
Yaakov had come out best in a battle with Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott that went to the finish line with Yaakov .214 of a second ahead at the finish line. Meanwhile, her teammate Corey Alexander was just as close in fourth place.
Wrench Motorcycles’ David Anthony had his best finish of the year in fifth.
When asked about the racing incident with Jacobsen, Scholtz said “I thought that I made the move pretty clean past him and ran slightly wider than you would usually do. But I feel that he just tipped in and knew that I was there and carried on turning and hit the side of my foot peg. I felt him there, but I carried on turning and I looked back and I saw that he had crashed. Obviously, that’s not something I want, but I feel that I got to the point of making the pass fair and he should have given me room. But I think that if you’re on their side, they’re going to say that I was wrong. I feel that maybe PJ was slightly wrong. So, we’ll just take it as a 50/50. But overall, I feel that I definitely had the pace and just really happy to pull the championship lead a little bit further. Looking forward to the next couple rounds. Laguna Seca is one of my favorite tracks. Myself and PJ had a massive battle there last year on the Superbikes, so I’m sure we’ll do the same thing there.”
Jake Lewis (85) won his first career Mission Super Hooligan National Championship race on Sunday over Tyler O’Hara (1) and Cory West (13). Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Mission Super Hooligan National Championship – Lewis!
Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson’s Jake Lewis did what everyone has been waiting for him to do on Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park – he won a round of the Super Hooligan National Championship on his Harley-Davidson Pan America.
Always thought of as the fastest guy in the class to have not yet won, Lewis made good on the promise he’s shown by storming into the lead and pulling away to win by a tick over two seconds. And that’s with a final-lap blunder that put him off track momentarily.
Lewis’s victory helped make up for his first-lap crash in wet conditions in Saturday’s race.
Lewis beat S&S Cycle/Indian Motorcycle’s Tyler O’Hara with the defending series champion earning his second podium of the weekend and this one put him atop the championship standings after two rounds and four races.
Third place went to Lewis’s teammate Cory West, who also made up for his crash from the lead in yesterday’s wet race.
O’Hara’s teammate Troy Herfoss ended up fourth after a race-long battle with KWR’s Hayden Schultz.
“I’m two for four on Hooligan finishes,” Lewis said. “Last night I was just so pissed off and bummed. Both Cory and I. It just feels really bad. It feels like you let your team down doing that. Especially me on the first lap. I felt good during the little warmup before the rain race and then, first lap, just threw it on my head and didn’t get any points. Now it’s kind of do or die for me. It’s like my only chance is to try to go out there and win every single Hooligan race. I put in some good, consistent laps this morning and we changed a little bit of setup stuff from yesterday qualifying, and it was a better direction, and it made it even a little bit better for the race. I saw Cory struggling in a couple little spots and felt TO come up my inside there at a couple spots. I thought he was going to stuff me, but I think he played it a little bit nice. I knew once I got by Cory just to put it in first, especially that first lap, two or three good, hard sprint laps, which I did. My lap time was quite a bit faster than I qualified. Then I looked over and saw I had a little gap on TO and just kind of maintained that. But then on that last lap, that lapper, it was just my fault. He broke a lot deeper than I thought he would, and I kind of missed my brake marker and ran off the track. Luckily I had a big lead.”
Mikayla Moore (1) dominated both of the Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. races at Ridge Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. – Another Record For Moore
Mikayla Moore said after her victory on Saturday that she uses lap times for part of her motivation. Her best lap time was a 2:02.801. On Sunday she went even faster, setting a new lap record with her 2:02.683 on the sixth lap to set the bar is even higher for the next wave of Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. racers. Oh, and she also won. By 44 seconds.
The win was Moore’s fifth of the year.
Second place today went to Lauren Prince, the Nashville, Tennessee, resident earning her first MotoAmerica podium a day after crashing on the sighting lap with a cold front tire. Even today wasn’t easy on Prince as her rear tire warmer got stuck and she was forced to start from the back of the pack.
Aubrey Credaroli rounded out the top three with her first podium finish of the season.
“Yesterday I did a 2:02.8 and if I rounded up the numbers, that’s technically still a 2:03,” Moore commented. “So, I was like, I wanted more. I talked with the K Tech guys and they suggested a lot of things that I was nervous about, because I had already done my warmup lap. So, it was really about trusting myself and the bike that I’ll be able to accomplish my goal. I was super happy I was able to do it on the seventh lap. I just kept watching myself drop time. To be able to do the 2:02.3, super happy. I wanted to go for that 2:01, but hey, I’m happy with the 2:02. I exceeded my expectations, like I always do. Super happy to be here.”
Remy Gardner (87), as seen during a recent WorldSBK test. Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Remy Gardner Joins Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP for German GP Weekend
Chemnitz (Germany), 3rd July 2024
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team have travelled from The Netherlands to Germany for the Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland, Round 9 of the 2024 MotoGP World Championship, held this weekend at the Sachsenring. Álex Rins successfully underwent surgery on his right wrist and ankle and is now focusing on making a full recovery. Remy Gardner will attend the German GP in his place, joining Fabio Quartararo in the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP garage.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team will enter the final MotoGP round before the summer break with an altered rider line-up: Fabio Quartararo is joined by Remy Gardner, who replaces the injured Álex Rins.
Quartararo arrives in Germany holding joint 12th place in the championship standings. After a tough outing at the Dutch GP, the Frenchman is keen to start the weekend at the Sachsenring trying new settings in search of further improvement.
The Sachsenring has unique characteristics: it’s twisty, has steep elevation changes, and has predominately left-hand turns. It’s not for everyone, but El Diablo has known success there. A superb win in 2022 (despite feeling under the weather at the time) and a third place in 2021 on German soil underline that Quartararo certainly knows his way around the narrow track.
Following Rins’ crash at the start of the TT Assen MotoGP Race last Sunday, the Spaniard has successfully undergone surgery on his wrist and ankle on Monday evening. With the support of the team, he has decided to focus on making a full recovery in time for the British GP right after the MotoGP summer break.
In the meantime, the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team welcome Remy Gardner as a replacement rider. As the 2021 Moto2 World Champion and former premier class rider (2022), the Australian is already familiar with the MotoGP paddock and the Sachsenring track. Gardner has been riding for the GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK team since 2023, which means the seat stays within the Yamaha familiy.
The area of Chemnitz is known for its love of car and motorcycle racing. Originally, races in the area were held on closed public roads from the 1920s onward. The Sachsenring was built in 1996 for safety reasons. Two years later, the track hosted its first MotoGP event. The just 12m wide circuit has numerous tight corners (ten left, three right), making this circuit one of the slower tracks on the calendar, but there will still be plenty of action at the German GP.
MASSIMO MEREGALLI
Team Director
First of all, let me start by saying that the team is relieved that Álex’ surgery went well and that the injuries he sustained in the highside are not more serious. We all wish him a speedy recovery, and we hope to welcome him back soon.
Secondly, we are thankful to Remy Gardner and the GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK team that he can join us at the Sachsenring on such short notice. We are sure that this will be an interesting experience for him, but the team will do everything we can to make him feel welcome and supported throughout this weekend’s steep learning curve.
The Sachsenring is quite peculiar: its narrow and has a lot of left-handers. It’s difficult to overtake there, so a place in Q2 is even more valuable here than usual. We expect that this will be challenging, but we are intending to do whatever we can to collect as much data as possible before the summer break.
FABIO QUARTARARO
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
The Dutch GP was tough. I expected the Race to go a bit better, especially at the beginning. Hopefully we can find some positives in the data and improve for the next weekend. In general, I don’t think that the Sachsenring is a good track for us, especially the second and third sector will be complicated, but we have to take the positives and try to get some data in order to keep improving.
I wish Álex a speedy recovery. I hope to see him back at the track soon.
ÁLEX RINS
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
The surgery went well, and I‘m heading home now. Unfortunately I‘ll miss the next GP, but I hope to be back very soon. Despite this bump in the road, our motivation to keep working is higher than ever.
REMY GARDNER
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Replacement Rider
First of all, I hope Álex can have a fast recovery and I wish him the best.
I’m really excited about this challenge. I just want to say ‘Thank you so much’ to Yamaha for trusting me to ride this weekend. I will use it as a great experience to learn. It’s a new bike, and coming back to MotoGP for one race is always a nice experience, so I’m looking forward to enjoying this weekend, and I’m just extremely happy for this opportunity. Once again a big ‘Thank you’ to Yamaha.
Jared Mees (1) leading Briar Bauman (3), Dallas Daniels (32), and the rest of the field at the DuQuoin Mile in 2023. Photo by Scott Hunter, courtesy AFT.
Fireworks Expected as Progressive AFT Heads to DuQuoin for Independence Day Weekend
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 2, 2024) – Ten rounds into the 2024 Progressive American Flat Track season, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, the series at last prepares to do battle on a Mile racetrack – the Memphis Shades DuQuoin Mile at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in DuQuoin, Illinois, this Saturday, July 6.
The world’s elite motorcycle dirt trackers dicing it up on a Mile is widely recognized as one of the greatest spectacles in all of motorsport. A unique test of pace, courage, and strategy, Mile nationals are commonly decided by mere inches despite being waged at triple-digits speeds.
The DuQuoin Mile is considered special even inside its category. Known as the “Magic Mile,” DuQuoin has played host to a some of the most legendary and thrilling races in Grand National Championship history.
And this Independence Day weekend’s atmosphere is destined to be that much more electric, as Saturday’s Progressive AFT event will conclude a full week of competition that will also crown this year’s amateur national champions during the 2024 Mission Foods AMA Flat Track Grand Championship, sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association from June 30-July 6.
Progressive American Flat Track has its resident Mile magician in Jared Mees (No. 1 Rogers Racing/SDI Racing/Indian Motorcycle FTR750). The nine-time and reigning Mission AFT SuperTwins king has won an astonishing 17 of the most recent 24 premier-class Miles dating back over the previous five seasons.
That includes last year’s DuQuoin Mile, which saw Mees avenge his 2015 defeat to Bryan Smith in the closest race the series has ever seen, decided by an official 0.000 seconds. Last year’s contest was nearly as close, with Mees taking top honors over Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) (0.033 seconds), Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) (0.097 seconds), and Briar Bauman (No. 3 Rick Ware Racing/KTM/Parts Plus KTM 790 Duke) (0.160 seconds).
There’s a lesson in there for Estenson Racing Yamaha star Daniels, who comes in with a 21-point advantage, a perfect podium record on the season, and fresh off a dominant victory at the Lima Half-Mile. He fully understands that if he doesn’t play his cards just right this weekend, he could potentially see that hard-earned points lead eaten into and his podium streak snapped, even if he manages to finish just a fraction of a second behind the winner.
The Indian-mounted Mees and Robinson will both be looking to make that possibility a reality, while Bauman will be motivated to showcase the prodigious top-end speed of his KTM after using it to such good effect in the 2023 season finale at Springfield, the last time the field lined up for a Mile.
If a genuine pack war is to take hold, it’ll likely include some or all of the following premier-class standouts: Brandon Price (No. 92 Memphis Shades/Sody Ent/OTBR Yamaha MT-07), Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 JMC Motorsports/Fairway Ford Ohio Indian FTR750), Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing Indian FTR750), Dan Bromley (No. 62 Memphis Shades/Vinson/Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda Transalp), and Bronson Bauman (No. 37 Fastrack Racing Mission Foods KTM 790 Duke).
It’ll also provide a high-profile stage for rookies Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Mission Foods/Zanotti Racing KTM 790 Duke) and Declan Bender (No. 70 GOMR/BriggsAuto.com/Martin Trucking Indian FTR750) to continue to prove their skills at the pinnacle of the sport.
Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER
As stunning as last year’s Mission AFT SuperTwins Main Event may have been, the Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER race at the DuQuoin Mile was even tighter. Six riders took the checkered flag within 0.262 seconds of the win, and even a tenth of a second behind first was too much for a rider hoping to finish on the box.
The winner on that day was Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F), who comes in riding high after also claiming top honors just days ago in Ohio. With big skills and light weight, Drane has immediately proven to be a monster on the Miles, a reputation he’ll only hope to enhance this weekend.
That combination will present quite the challenge for two-time defending class champion, Kody Kopp (No. 1 Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus KTM 450 SX-F). Kopp will no doubt be eager to start up another win streak after seeing his three-race run snapped this past weekend. While the bulk of Kopp’s victories have come on Half-Miles and Short Tracks, he made it his mission to win a Mile and accomplished that feat in last year’s Springfield Mile I. He’ll also be motivated by the fact that he left DuQuoin last year with just a fifth-place result despite crossing the line a mere 0.106 seconds after Drane.
Another rider seeking revenge is Chase Saathoff (No. 88 JPG Motorsports Honda CRF450R), who finished second to Drane by 0.011 seconds here a year ago. Saathoff is on something of a roll, having reeled in four consecutive podiums, along with six top threes in his last seven races. As good as his form has been, his goal remains to transform more of those seconds and thirds into firsts.
The same can be said for fourth-ranked Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R), who finished third at DuQuoin in ‘23 and earned a win in last year’s Red Mile.
James Ott (No. 19 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450) continues to head up the next group, which consists of fellow California natives Travis Petton IV (No. 82 ECG Racing/A.M Ortega KTM 450 SX-F), Tarren Santero (No. 75 Vinson Construction/P&M Motorcycles Honda CRF450R), and Tyler Raggio (No. 55 Raggio Racing/Sluggo Racing KTM 450 SX-F), along will up-and-coming Pennsylvanians Logan Eisenhard (No. 66 Hannum’s Harley-Davidson KTM 450 SX-F) and Evan Renshaw (No. 265 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R). However, if he continues at his more recent pace, Ott will find himself instead considered a member of the top group, having scooped up three top fives in his last four races.
There will be plenty to keep spectators entertained off track as well, including numerous vendors, plenty of food and beverage options, and extensive motorcycle parking.
General Admission Grandstand tickets can be purchased for $30 (kids 12 and under free with a paid adult GA ticket), while Reserved Grandstand tickets are $40 (all ages). The Pit Pass Upgrade can be added to either option for $40 ($20 for kids).
New for 2024 is the Opening Ceremonies Trackside Fan Experience ($150 all ages). This ticket option provides reserved seating with Pit Pass access, a guided tour of, and photo opportunities at, the infield podium and start/finish line, infield viewing of Opening Ceremonies and the heat races, and a track talk and photo opportunity with 2016 Grand National Champion Bryan Smith.
Gates will open for fans at 4:00 p.m. ET (1:00 p.m. PT) with Opening Ceremonies scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m. ET (5:00 p.m. PT). You can catch the livestream of all the weekend’s racing activities on FloRacing. Motorsports fans can subscribe to FloRacing to enjoy over 1,000 live motorsports events in 2024. FloSports is available by visiting https://flosports.link/aft or by downloading the FloSports app on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire and Chromecast.
FOX Sports coverage of the Memphis Shades DuQuoin Mile, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Sunday, July 14, at 12:00 p.m. ET (9:00 a.m. PT).
Larry Huffman, as seen back in the day wearing one of his trademark tuxedos. Photo courtesy the Don Emde Collection.
Longtime race announcer Larry Huffman died Monday, July 1. He was 82 and living in Big Bear City, California, at the time of his passing.
Huffman started announcing races in the 1960s and gained wide notoriety when he started doing the first Supercross races in the 1970s. He was known by some as the “Voice of Supercross” or “Supermouth,” according to the Los Angeles Times. He also co-wrote and co-produced the motion picture “On Any Sunday II.”
We will update this most with more details as they become available.
Larry Huffman combined an early career as a disc jockey and a passion for motorcycling to create a lifelong career as a race announcer.
Huffman started announcing at California’s Costa Mesa Speedway in the late 1960s. Since then, he has announced at nearly every type of motorcycle race, including Supercross, Arenacross, ice racing, drag racing, flat track, road racing, Speedway and hill climb. He has announced at motorcycle races in nearly every major city in the United States, Canada and Japan.
Huffman was the announcer at the first Superbowl of Motocross at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1972, and was soon after nicknamed “Supermouth” by the Los Angeles Times for his 300 word-per-minute delivery and his ability to excite crowds. He is credited with being an integral part of early Supercross shows and is widely recognized as the original “Voice of Supercross.”
Huffman created and produced the first motorcycle magazine television show to air on a major American network, “Motorcycle World with Larry Huffman,” which was followed by a radio version of the show that aired in many California cities.
Huffman co-wrote and co-produced the motion picture “On Any Sunday II,” and provided announcer roles for numerous TV shows, including “Charlie’s Angels,” “CHiPs,” “Miami Vice,” “Fantasy Island” and “Knight Rider.” Huffman was the announcer in the 1994 award-winning Miller Lite “Weinerdog Winternationals” commercial that aired during the Olympics, the World Series and the Superbowl.
Huffman has served as a color commentator for ABC, CBS, NBC, TNN, ESPN and Speedvision. Many racers have benefited from Huffman’s in-studio PR course, where they learned to improve their television interview skills. Graduates of the course include Hall of Famers Jeff Ward, Rick Johnson, Mark Barnett, Scott Parker, Wayne Rainey, Kent Howerton and Eddie Lawson.
At the time of his induction into the Hall of Fame, Huffman lived in Big Bear City, Calif., where he operates his PR and announcing business, Larry Huffman Enterprises.
Larry Huffman was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2008.
More, from a press release issued by AMA:
AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Larry Huffman Passes
PICKERINGTON, Ohio — AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Larry Huffman, American motorcycling’s most legendary AMA Supercross and motocross announcer and commentator, and the man behind the “Supermouth” nickname, passed away Monday, July 1. He was 82.
Huffman worked as a Southern California disc jockey during the 1960s and began announcing races at So Cal’s Costa Mesa Speedway in the late 1960s. Over the years he went on to announce just about every type of motorcycle competition, including AMA Supercross, Arenacross, ice racing, drag racing, flat track, hill climb, speedway and road racing.
Huffman was the P.A. announcer at the first Superbowl of Motocross at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1972, and was soon named “Supermouth” by the Los Angeles Times for his 300-word-per-minute delivery and his ability to excite crowds. He is credited with being an integral part of early Supercross events and is widely recognized at the original “voice of Supercross.”
Huffman also co-wrote and co-produced the motion picture On Any Sunday II, and did announcer roles for numerous TV shows, including Charlie’s Angels, CHiPs, Miami Vice, Fantasy Island, and others.
Over the years, Huffman also did motorsports-related color commentary for the likes of ABC, CBS, NBC, TNN, ESPN and Speedvision.
Huffman was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2008. He will be missed.
About the American Motorcyclist Association
Founded in 1924, the AMA is a not-for-profit member-based association whose mission is to promote the motorcycle lifestyle and protect the future of motorcycling. As the world’s largest motorcycling rights and event sanctioning organization, the AMA advocates for riders’ interests at all levels of government and sanctions thousands of competition and recreational events every year. Besides offering members money-saving discounts on products and services, the AMA also publishes American Motorcyclist, a recently revitalized and monthly full-color magazine (and digital version of same) that covers current events and motorcycle history with brilliant photography and compelling writing. American Motorcyclist is also North America’s largest-circulation magazine. Through the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in Pickerington, Ohio, the AMA honors the heroes and heritage of motorcycling. For more information, visit americanmotorcyclist.com.
More, from a press release issued by MX Sports Pro Racing:
Rest In Peace, Larry Huffman (1941-2024)
AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Announcer “Supermouth” Passes
Larry Huffman, R.I.P. Photo courtesy MX Sports Pro Racing.
In the early days of American motocross, announcer Larry Huffman could be heard everywhere: Saddleback Park, Angel Stadium, Carlsbad Raceway, Ascot Park, the LA Coliseum… It was Huffman, a radio disc jockey, who announced the first Superbowl of Motocross in 1972, instantly becoming an integral part of what we now know as supercross, and his unmistakable voice could be heard over the loudspeakers of stadiums and racetracks for many years to come. He was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2008, and deservedly so, as his voice and enthusiasm set the standard for every race announcer that’s come along ever since. He may have been nicknamed “Supermouth,” but Larry Huffman will be remembered as much for his showmanship as his voice, as much for his passion as his humor, and always for his kindness.
On Monday, July 1, Larry Huffman passed away in Big Bear City, California. He leaves behind arguably the most decorated legacy of any announcer in the history of off-road motorcycle racing, with an impact that now spans generations of current and aspiring professionals in motorsports entertainment.
Cameron Petersen (45) leads Josh Herrin (2), Loris Baz (76), Bobby Fong (50), and the rest early in MotoAmerica Superbike Race Two at Ridge Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Yamaha.
Petersen Closes Gap to the Top with Podium Finish in Superbike Race 2 at The Ridge
Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Cameron Petersen made gains in the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship with a win and third-place finish at The Ridge
MARIETTA, Ga. – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Cameron Petersen continued to make forward strides in the title chase with a third-place finish in yesterday’s MotoAmerica Superbike Race 2 at The Ridge Motorsports Park in Shelton, Washington. The South African’s seventh podium finish of the season moved him to within seven points of the leader – fellow Yamaha rider Bobby Fong. Despite feeling less than 100%, Gagne finished ninth, salvaging points to leave The Ridge in the runner-up spot and within a point of the lead in the hotly contested premier class championship.
Fresh off of his third victory of the season, Petersen got another great start from the front row of the grid to take the holeshot. He led the first lap and kept the leader in his sights after being passed. Petersen ran a strong pace and was able to run with the frontrunner, but unfortunately around the halfway point, he started having arm pump issues and ultimately was shuffled to third, where he would finish. His win and third-place finish at the fifth round of the championship resulted in a healthy 21-point gain and has him leaving The Ridge seven points from the leader and completing an all-Yamaha top-three in the championship.
Gagne continued to soldier on despite feeling less than 100% with lingering arm pump issues and salvaged points on the technical 2.47-mile track in the Pacific Northwest. The defending three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion got a solid start in the top five from the second row of the grid. He maintained the position until a couple of laps before the halfway point but ultimately was shuffled to ninth. Gagne’s efforts helped keep him within a point of the championship lead as the series heads into the second half of the season.
Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing heads to the iconic WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in two week’s time for Round 6 of the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship in Monterey, California, on July 12-14.
Richard Stanboli – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“It was a good weekend overall. Once again, the team did a good job and the bikes were competitive. Unfortunately, both of our riders were unable to ride to their full potential, but Jake was able to salvage some points and Cam made up a lot of ground. We’ll come back at Laguna and get both riders back on the box.”
Cameron Petersen (45). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Yamaha.
Cameron Petersen – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing #45
“It was a frustrating race. The team gave me a bike that could win the race and I got a great start and was running a good pace up front. Unfortunately, about halfway through, I got the worst arm pump I’ve ever had in my left arm and I was just really struggling to hold on. It’s a bummer because the bike was there and we could have gone and won that thing. Looking at the big picture, getting a first and a third here at The Ridge, I’ll take that. We’re in the hunt and we’re going to keep fighting and keep climbing our way up in this championship. We’re looking forward to Laguna.”
Jake Gagne (1). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Yamaha.
Jake Gagne – Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing #1
“It was a rough race today. I struggled with my hand, which was unfortunate because the bike was working great, but we’ll come out swinging at Laguna!”
About Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A.
Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A. (YMUS), is a recognized leader in the outdoor recreation industry. The company’s ever-expanding product offerings include Motorcycles and Scooters, ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles, Snowmobiles, Personal Watercraft, Boats, Outboard Motors, Outdoor Power Equipment, Power Assist Bicycles, Golf Cars [sold, serviced, and distributed by Yamaha Golf-Car Company], Power Assist Wheelchair Systems, Surface Mount Technology and Robotic Machines, Unmanned Helicopters, Accessories, Apparel, Yamalube products, and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of distributors and dealers in the United States.
YMUS has a corporate office in California, three corporate offices in Georgia, as well as facilities in Wisconsin, Alabama, and Florida. YMUS subsidiaries Yamaha Motor Manufacturing Corporation of America (YMMC), based in Georgia, and Yamaha Jet Boat Manufacturing U.S.A. (YJBM) based in Tennessee, each assemble and manufacture selected Yamaha brand products. YMUS owns Skeeter Boats [Texas] with its division G3 Boats [Missouri]. Additional U.S.-based subsidiaries include Yamaha Marine Systems Company, Inc. (YMSC) with subsidiary Siren Marine [Rhode Island] and divisions Bennett Marine [Florida], Yamaha Marine Rotational Molders [Wisconsin] and Yamaha Precision Propeller Inc. [Indiana].
Yamaha Motor Finance Corporation, USA, dba Yamaha Financial Services, is an affiliate of Yamaha Motor Corporation, USA offering financing solutions to support Yamaha Dealers and loyal Yamaha Customers nationwide.
More, from a press release issued by Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.:
MULTIPLE PODIUMS FOR VISION WHEEL M4 ECSTAR SUZUKI IN WASHINGTON
Brea, CA — Suzuki Motor USA (Suzuki) and Team Hammer’s premier Superbike and Supersport entries took the spotlight with the Twins Cup contenders taking the weekend off as the 2024 MotoAmerica season resumed at Ridge Motorsports Park, in Shelton, Washington. And there they shined with Xavi Forés and Tyler Scott combining to earn a podium for the team in each class.
Race Highlights
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki
Superbike
Xavi Forés was fast in all conditions, taking the GSX-R1000R to third in the wet and seventh in the dry.
Brandon Paasch charged from outside the top 20 to finish inside the top ten.
Supersport
Tyler Scott fought back to claim a podium after missing out Saturday due to electrical issues.
Teagg Hobbs finished sixth on Saturday, less than four tenths removed from fourth.
Joel Ohman continued to learn as he measured himself against the nation’s top pro racers in the wet and dry.
Reigning Supersport champion Xavi Forés (34) demonstrated his world-class skills as he continued to adapt to the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R. On Saturday, Forés utilized his wet weather experience to secure a podium finish in third. He came back Sunday to charge as high as fifth in the dry before fading to seventh late.
Xavi Forés (34) earned his first MotoAmerica Superbike podium at “The Ridge.” Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Forés’ Saturday podium saw him become the first rider to earn podium finishes in MotoAmerica Superbike, World Superbike, British Superbike, and the IDM German Superbike championship.
“Overall, we made good steps forward with the bike this weekend,” said Forés. “I felt strong on my Suzuki in the wet and the dry. We are now much closer to the top guys, and hope to use the data we’ve gained to continue to close that gap. I used my experience in the weather to choose the tires Saturday and that paid off. I initially attempted to fight for the win, but I had to take too many risks and I wanted to bring the bike home with a podium. This is a nice achievement, and I’m happy.”
Brandon Paasch (96) ran off track on the opening lap of Saturday’s wet Superbike contest, but still managed to slash his way up from 24th to finish ninth aboard the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R in the short, eight-lap race. Paasch came back Sunday to earn a top-ten result in the dry as well, making a pass on the final lap to claim tenth.
Brandon Paasch (96) earned two top-ten results using an all-new setup. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Paasch said, “We had two top ten results and didn’t crash, so the weekend went pretty well. On Saturday, I was bumped off my line and ended up last by 30 seconds, but came back to ninth. The conditions and my lack of patience caught me out from getting an even better result. In the dry race on Sunday, we tried an all-new setup on the bike and l learned a lot about what I want from a bike. We had a good battle for tenth with a quality rider, and I feel good about the result. We’re still improving, and I want to earn a podium. It’s going to be challenging, but we can do it.”
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott (70) joined Forés in claiming a top-three finish on the weekend, racing the next-generation Suzuki GSX-R750 to the box on Sunday afternoon. The result came as vindication after leading Saturday’s Race 1 and racing in the podium mix before an issue forced him down to eighth in a contest waged in the rain. Scott fought back on Sunday to take a scrapping third under ideal, sunny conditions.
Tyler Scott (70) put the Suzuki GSX-R750 on the podium in Washington, the team’s second podium of the weekend. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Scott said, “The whole team did a great job this weekend. Honestly, I felt great on the front-end and on the brakes. I just want to give a big thanks to the whole Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki team and my amazing crew, fixing some issues we had yesterday in Race 1, and getting the bike dialed in. I’m happy to be back up here on the podium, and I’m looking forward to Laguna.”
Teammate Teagg Hobbs (79), meanwhile, enjoyed a better day on Saturday. The Supersport pilot earned a hard-fought sixth aboard his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R750 on Saturday after fighting in a three-rider battle for fourth. He came back Sunday to narrowly miss out on the top ten, losing a position on the final lap to come home in 11th.
Teagg Hobbs (79) ran hard all weekend, finishing sixth on Saturday and 11th on Sunday. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
Hobbs said, “It was not good for us. Race 1 was okay, and I missed the ball on the setup today. It made for the roughest race of the year. We’ll go to Laguna and use the setup we had when I did well there last year and have a better idea.”
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s third Supersport runner, Joel Ohman (92), showed continued improvement, learning with every session both in the wet and the dry conditions.
Joel Ohman (92) continues his progression in the competitive Supersport class. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Suzuki Motor USA, Inc.
“I think we had a positive weekend,” Ohman said. “I felt this was the best setup for me yet this season, and I did a personal best in qualifying by 0.7 at my home track. We were able to identify the areas I need to improve in to gain more speed, and we have a good direction. The team had made some crew changes before the race with some additional help, and it went well. Race 1 was what we wanted. Race 2, I didn’t have as good of a start, but I learned a lot as I got laps in. I feel we’re making forward progress.”
The Suzuki road race teams now head to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, in Monterey, California, on July 12-14, for the next round of the 2024 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship.
The 2024 season marks Team Hammer’s 44th consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won over 130 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums over 360 times, and have won 11 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships (in Superbike and Supersport). The team has also won over 130 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running “Methanol Monster” GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.
ABOUT VISION WHEEL
Founded in 1976, Vision Wheel is one of the nation’s leading providers of custom wheels for cars and trucks, and one of the first manufacturers of custom wheels and tires for ATVs, UTVs, and golf carts. Vision Wheel looks beyond the current trends and to the future in developing, manufacturing, and distributing its wheels. Vision’s lines of street, race, off-road, American Muscle, and Milanni wheels are distributed nationally and internationally through a trusted network of distributors. Vision Wheel also produces the Vision It AR app to allow users to see how their wheel of choice will look on their vehicle before purchase and installation. For more information on Vision Wheel, visit www.visionwheel.com.
More, from a press release issued by Tytlers Cycle Racing:
Double duty for Mesa, Heroic effort from Cam and JD digs deep at The Ridge Motorsports Park
It was a challenging MotoAmerica for the Tytlers Cycle Racing team this past weekend as riders Stefano Mesa, Cameron Beaubier and JD Beach took the undulating Ridge Motorsports Park circuit close to Seattle in three racing categories – Supersport, Super Hooligans and Superbike.
For Mesa, who was on double duty, it was a busy weekend combining a traditional petrol-powered Kawasaki in Supersport with the all-electric Energica machine in Super Hooligans. Qualifying well, after a much better showing on the green meanie (Kawasaki) than twelve months ago, Mesa was in the mix in both Supersport races, fighting for the podium before having to settle in fifth and seventh in the two races. He took the flag in eighth and ninth places respectively in the two Super Hooligan encounters, impressing again against a grid full of conventional motorcycles.
In the Superbike category all eyes were on the returning Cameron Beaubier, who surprised the paddock after announcing he would attempt to ride despite not being fully fit following his Road America spill. Walking around the paddock with the aid of a stick, it was a truly heroic effort from the former champion, who defied the odds to qualify on the third row of the grid, a mere 0.8s from Pole Position. He withdrew from the rain affected opening race after a tire gamble didn’t pay off before salvaging a hard fought eighth on Sunday. On the other side of the Superbike garage JD Beach got his first taste of The Ridge and made progress throughout the weekend, despite losing valuable track time on Saturday morning following a crash. He finished tenth after wet tire gamble in race one, before finishing eleventh on Sunday after a race long battle that saw him narrowly miss a second consecutive top ten finish of the weekend.
Stefano Mesa: “I am glad we had better luck being back to the ridge after a rough experience last year. The Supersport class was good. We were able to find a good set up and went much faster than last year. Race one was solid. We had some weird weather where it was sprinkling quite a bit. I had a good start and was able to go with the front pack for about eight laps. As the water started to come down a bit more, I had a few moments where I almost lost the rear so had so settle for fifth at the flag. Race two was a bit different. I had a bad start and had to work myself up through the pack on the first lap. I was able to hang on to the third-place fight for a few laps and made a few passes but ended up losing the tyre quite fast and fell back a bit, finishing seventh. We also rode the Energica in the Super Hooligans class. We made a lot of progress and where able to go two seconds faster than last year. Race one was wet. It was my first experience on an electric bike in the rain. We had some fun figuring it out and we ended up P8. For race two we had a good plan but unfortunately, we had a little issue that held us back. It was a good race with a group of four bikes and I ended up ninth. I am looking forward to Laguna Seca.”
Cameron Beaubier: “Coming into The Ridge the goal was just to score some points, but the weekend definitely tested me. I’m happy I got some seat time and some points in the bag and I’m happy the weekend is done. I want to say a big thanks to my guys for working so hard and having my back in this tough period! I am gonna keep healing up to get ready for Laguna.”
JD Beach: “My first race weekend at The Ridge was not an easy one but I am glad I got the experience. The track is a tough, especially on the 1000cc bike. There’s a lot of blind turns that are on the gas and you must really commit to it. The conditions for the first race were tricky and we made a last-minute choice for rain tyres. I was able to start from pit road after the race had already started. I fought through from last to 10th at the flag. Race two was a tough one for me after a crash Saturday morning. I lost a lot of track time. We did what we could and finished the race. We have some time to reset and come out swinging at Laguna.”
More, from a press release issued by Rahal Ducati Moto:
THE RIDGE RACE 2
WARM UP & RACE 2
Kayla Yaakov backed up her first-race success at The Ridge Motorsports Park by taking a step higher onto the podium following Race 2. Her back-to-back podium performance at the Shelton, Washington track catapulted her to sixth position in the championship with 89 points.
Corey Alexander also provided a stellar performance, taking two positions on the start. Battling for a podium spot the entirety of the race, the Code 3 Associates Ducati flipped positions back-and-forth with Yaakov and Tyler Scott, before ultimately crossing the finish in fourth.
Despite a dominating six-second lead by Lap 5 of the race, PJ Jacobsen’s day ended early with an incident on Lap 14 . Jacobsen led all 13 laps of the race and was leading on Lap 14 with gap between the the XPEL rider and championship rival Mathew Scholtz shrinking with each passing lap. Scholtz ultimately went on to win the race.
With a bittersweet ending to the team’s first run at The Ridge Motorsports Park, the crew packs the truck to head just south to Monterey, California. Rounds 11 and 12 of Supersport competition at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca will be held in two weeks, July 12 – 14.
NOTES: Rocketed four positions in the championship with only 15 points separating her from the third spot // Collected her first career Supersport double-podium collecting a valuable 26 points on the weekend
WHAT SHE’S SAYING: “The final day at the Ridge was absolutely amazing! We were able to get up onto the podium and finish the weekend off with a second place finish. Unfortunately, my teammate, PJ Jacobsen was taken out in the race, so were were kind of gifted a position in the end. But it was a really hard fought podium and I was really excited to feel like the monkey was off of my back and get the confidence that I’ve had this weekend. The bike was handling amazing and I can’t thank my team enough for all their hard work. Looking forward to do it again in a couple weeks and continue to improve in this class.”
Corey Alexander (23). Photo courtesy Rahal Ducati Moto/Stillhouse.
COREY ALEXANDER
No. 23 CODE 3 ASSOCIATES DUCATI PANIGALE V2
STARTED: 4th
FINISHED: 4th
CHAMPIONSHIP: 7th (88 pts)
NOTES: Fought for a podium finish for the entirety of the race // Made a few ergonomic changes that didn’t work as hoped
WHAT HE’S SAYING: “Overall, we had a better result than yesterday. It was unfortunate for PJ to go down because we did our best to keep [Mathew] Scholtz behind us to give PJ a bit of a gap there in the beginning. The whole team is pumped for Kayla for getting up on the podium again today – we just didn’t have enough to get up there with her. We’ll take two Rahal Ducati Moto bikes in the top five, which is great, and focus onward to Laguna.”
NOTES: Was on track to continue his podium streak before the incident with Scholtz // Is now 28 points behind the leader
WHAT HE’S SAYING: “I felt really good the entire race. I had a good start and a two-second gap in the beginning and I felt my pace was pretty good. My tire started coming off mid-race and I knew [Mathew] Scholtz was there the whole time. I was looking for a good fight at the end. I started closing my line tighter because I knew he would be coming up the inside. On the left-hander, I went even tighter than my normal line and there was no way there was any way to pass me there. Scholtz went up the inside of me and took my shoulder and my bar right out from me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t do anything at that point. I’d consider myself a pretty clean rider, and to take someone out like that in the battle for a championship is not a good way to race. I’m pretty disappointed that someone would make that move. I want to thank all of our sponsors, we appreciate XPEL for coming out to support today. It’s disappointing to not be on the podium for them. I want to thank my entire team. They always have my back and they’ve done a great job. I’m looking forward to Laguna.”
BEN SPIES
TEAM PRINCIPAL
WHAT HE’S SAYING: “It was a bittersweet race for us. PJ got off to a great start and was riding really good. With two to go, Mathew [Scholtz] rolled up on him and caught him. He made a pretty aggressive move and took him out. There wasn’t really anything PJ could do about it. It sucks for the championship points, but for Kayla to back up her third place with a second place today, beating up on the boys – that was awesome to see. She rode incredibly. Corey rode really good today as well. There was a couple little things that just had him stuck there, but he did ride a good race and showed some really good speed. We’ll take the positives from this weekend, move on to Laguna, and start clawing back up in the championship..”
More, from a press release issued by Harley-Davidson:
HARLEY-DAVIDSON PAN AMERICA 1250 RIDERS NOTCH TWO WINS IN SUPER HOOLIGAN RACING AT RIDGE MOTORSPORTS PARK
Cody Wyman and Jake Lewis Win as Pan America Riders Claim Four of Six Podium Positions
Cody Wyman (34). Photo courtesy Harley-Davidson.
MILWAUKEE – KWR/Harley-Davidson rider Cody Wyman and Team Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson rider Jake Lewis each rode race-prepared Harley-Davidson® Pan America® 1250 Special motorcycles to race victories in a Mission Super Hooligan double-header weekend at Ridge Motorsports Park in Shelton, Wash. With his win Wyman moves up to second place in series points after four of 10 scheduled races. The Mission Super Hooligan road racing championship, held in conjunction with the MotoAmerica Superbike series, features 750cc-and-up high-bar race-prepared street bikes from the world’s premier motorcycle manufacturers.
On Saturday, pouring rain created challenging racing conditions and caused the race distance to be shortened from 8 to 6 laps of the 2.47-mile, 16-turn Ridge course. On the first lap, Wyman jumped from eighth position on the starting grid to second place and took the lead on lap 2 with a pass of Team Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson rider Cory West. Wyman was leading by 1.3 seconds when the race was red flagged for a crashed bike on the track surface. West led Wyman briefly when the race was re-started, but West slid off the track in turn 3 and Wyman, in smooth control on the wet surface, sped away from the field. KWR/Harley-Davidson rider Hayden Schultz moved into second place. Wyman crossed the finish line 7.99 seconds clear of Schultz for a 1-2 finish for the KWR/Harley-Davidson team. S&S/Indian rider Tyler O’Hara finished in third place, more than 13 seconds behind Wyman.
“This was a crazy win,” said Wyman. “The team had to fix the bike after I went off the track in practice on Friday. We were down but this team never quits, and they worked all night to get us ready to race. My teammate Hayden helped me out a lot on set-up. I was feeling really good about our chances in the wet today and we finished 1-2 for the team and Harley-Davidson.”
Jake Lewis (85) leads a group of riders during Super Hooligan Race Two. Photo courtesy Harley-Davidson.
On a dry track on Sunday, West, Lewis, and O’Hara broke away from the field on lap 2, and Lewis got past West for the lead on lap 3. Lewis then pulled away, opening a gap of more than 4 seconds by lap 6 of the 8-lap race. A short off-track bobble on the final lap cost Lewis some time but he still beat O’Hara to the finish by 2.00 seconds. West finished third, 4.895 seconds back.
“I was really bummed after sliding off in the rain on the first lap yesterday,” said Lewis. “I was out to pay back the team today. The bike felt great on the warm-up lap, and once I got the lead it was just charge, charge, charge to the win.”
After 4 of 10 rounds in the 2024 Mission Super Hooligan series O’Hara leads with 69 points. Cody Wyman jumps from fourth to second place with 64 points, followed by West with 57 points, S&S/Indian rider Troy Herfoss with 49 points, Lewis with 45 points, and Schultz with 39 points.
The Mission Super Hooligan series returns to action July 12-14 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Salinas, Calif. during the MotoAmerica Superbike Speedfest at Monterey.
Mission Super Hooligan National Championships – Ridge Motorsports Park Race 1
Cody Wyman (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Hayden Schultz (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Tyler O’Hara (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
Hawk Mazzotta (IND) Roland Sands Racing
Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Jeff Lane (KTM) Lane Racing Gray Area KTM
Jordan Eubanks (KTM) Ready To Ride
Stefano Mesa (ENE) Tytlers Cycle Racing
Andrew Berkley (KTM) Underground Racing Team
Adan Mendoz (KTM) Organon Group
Kole King (TRI) King Performance
Paul Canale (BMW) Team Orthopedics
Mike Boyce (KTM) 3D Motorsports
Mitchel Stein (YAM) Team MIM
Mission Super Hooligan National Championships – Ridge Motorsports Park Race 2
Jake Lewis (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Tyler O’Hara (Ind) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
ory West (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Troy Herfoss (IND) S&S/Indian Motorcycle
Hayden Schultz (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Cody Wyman (H-D) KWR/Harley-Davidson
Travis Wyman (H-D) Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson
Hawk Mazzotta (IND) Roland Sands Design
Stefano Mesa (ENE) Tytlers Cycle Racing
Mallory Dobbs (DUC) Diva Racing
AJ Peaslee (KTM) AJ Peaslee Racing
Jordan Eubanks (KTM) Ready to Ride
Adan Mendoz (KTM) Organon Group
Kole King (TRI) King Performance
Jeff Lane (KTM) Lane Racing Gray Area KTM
Andrew Berkley (KTM) Underground Race Team
Mitchel Stein (YAM) Team MIM
Paul Canale (BMW) Team Orthopedics
Mike Boyce (KTM) 3D Motorsports
More, from a press release issued by Energica:
THE RIDGE: A REMINDER OF GOOD THINGS TO COME
Stefano Mesa (137). Photo courtesy Energica.
We may have said it already, but we will say it again: the MotoAmerica Mission Foods Super Hooligan National Championship is one of the fastest growing and competitive domestic classes in motorcycle racing. Born a mere decade ago as the brainchild of noted designer and customizer Roland Sands, in those days it was a very casual flat-track-inspired event where amateurs vied elbow-to-elbow with incognito pros in converted parking lots and indoor garages in conjunction with custom motorcycle shows like Mama Tried, Hand-Built and the One Show.
Over the years and especially with the recent involvement of MotoAmerica, Super Hooligan has shifted solely to tarmac at national racecourses like Laguna Seca, Daytona and even the Circuit of the Americas. The raw but friendly rivalry is still there, but the series has also become more polished and competitive, attracting manufacturers and pro teams that are intensifying their presence and who every year, field constantly evolving machinery.
Last year, Super Hooligan hit another milestone with the inclusion of electric into the full race series, a first for Super Hooligan (and indeed, for any other race series.) The result: a historic podium at COTA and 4th place finish overall for the year from the Energica EVA Ribelle RS piloted by Stefano Mesa and fielded by Tytlers Cycle Racing.
In this ever more intense landscape, the TCR team has made significant improvements from the previous year, while battling opponents who have undeniably made their own progress too.
2024 began with a challenging season debut in March at Daytona (a course notoriously hard on electric thanks to very long straightaways and the 31° banking) followed by this weekend at The Ridge Motorsports Park. For opposite reasons, this track is another challenging venue for electric machinery. The relatively short start/finish straight combined with a tight first chicane prevents the EV rider from exploiting the immense torque out of the gates, and the lack of long corners impedes maximizing corner speed on the EVA Ribelle.
With that said, MotoAmerica’s stopwatch was quite telling. Stefano Mesa’s fastest qualifying lap at The Ridge in 2023 was a 1:49.232, while this year he clocked in 1:47.947. We’ll do the math for you: 1.285 secs quicker. He was P6 on the grid one year ago, P7 this time around. Hence the gap to first place narrows down, however, the number of strong riders on competitive machinery grows.
And as a first-ever in Energica’s still embryonic Super Hooligan journey, the Pacific Northwest weather brought a surprise downpour not long before the start of Race One, which carried a bag full of unknowns as Mesa had never ridden the EVA Ribelle in wet conditions prior to Saturday. The encounter itself was more of a race for survival, the with 31-year-old Colombian making it to the finish line in eighth place, dodging the numerous crashes that occurred on the inundated course.
The irony of it all was a red flag situation, which led to a new, four-lap race, triggered by a crash suffered by Jeff Lane, who back in 2019 won the contest to ride the MotoE replica machine at the Circuit of The Americas – the same EGO taken for a spin by former WorldSBK champion and MotoGP star Colin Edwards that same weekend. Jeff, who right after that COTA experience bought an EGO+ RS and who regularly does track days with it, takes part in the Super Hooligan National Championship with different machinery as the powerful, all-electric sportbike by Energica clearly does not comply with Super Hooligan regulations.
Digression aside, Mesa finished a fully dry Race Two in ninth place, after battling up to the finish line with Hawk Mazzotta. As the second round of the season draws to a close, there is much more to look forward to. Next on the calendar is the WeatherTech Laguna Seca Raceway (July 12-14), which brings fond memories of the first-ever hole-shot for an EV motorcycle in closed-circuit competition as Stefano stormed to P1 at the start of Race One.
Energica, a still relatively small manufacturer of electric motorcycles, has become widely known for punching above their weight. Taking the fight to bigger, ICE manufacturers demonstrates the can-do mentality that drives the company forward into the future.
After all, every success story starts with an underdog!
We invite you to join us at Laguna Seca, as for a second year in a row, Energica makes history combatting endothermic machines head-to-head in a full-on national race series.
2024 Mission Foods Super Hooligan – Round 3
WeatherTech Laguna Seca Raceway – Thursday July 12 – Sunday July 14
Follow our Instagram account Scuderia Energica by clicking on this LINK (or on the image to the left). Plenty of content awaits – pictures, reels, live sessions – all about our most purest and competitive racing side. Keep up to date with all things racing by Energica!
More, from a press release issued by OrangeCat Racing:
OrangeCat Racing’s Uribe wins his second MotoAmerica Stock 1000 race Sunday at The Ridge Motorsports Park
Wyman scores two top-10 finishes at June 28-30 event, Uribe now a close second in points standings
SHELTON, Wash. — When the MotoAmerica Stock 1000 season started in May, Jayson Uribe was the newcomer to the class. Six weeks and three rounds later, he’s proven himself to be a championship contender. The OrangeCat Racing rider was back to winning ways Sunday at The Ridge Motorsports Park and has tightened up the gap from himself to the championship leader from 16 points to six.
The Californian qualified on the front row and took a runner-up finish Saturday before capping off the June 28-30 round with a victory Sunday afternoon.
Uribe’s teammate, Travis Wyman, collected two top-10 finishes and persevered through a challenging Race 1 on Saturday to finish eighth on Sunday.
Uribe and Wyman both had positive starts to the Ridge round. Though Friday morning practice was briefly red flagged, Uribe and Wyman finished that session as the fastest and third-fastest riders, respectively. The first of two qualifying sessions took place later Friday and featured Uribe provisionally qualifying second and Wyman sixth.
The second and final qualifying session on Saturday morning saw Uribe secure second place on the starting grid – as well as improve on his best lap time from Friday qualifying by 0.739 seconds. Wyman clinched seventh on the starting grid for the weekend’s two Stock 1000 contests after improving on his best Friday qualifying time by 0.572 seconds.
The start of the Saturday afternoon Race 1 didn’t go exactly as Uribe planned, as he experienced a bit of a wheelie as he let the clutch out on his BMW M 1000 RR. But all was well for the rest of the opening lap, as Uribe was unfazed and was still running in the same position he qualified as the field negotiated the first several corners of the 16-turn, 2.47-mile Ridge circuit. Uribe went on to finish the first lap – and all of the 12 remaining laps – in second place and netted his second podium appearance of the 2024 season. Unfortunately for Wyman, the change in weather conditions from sunny to overcast and slightly damp did not jive with his bike’s setup. He ran as high as ninth on Lap 2 before having to settle for a 10th-place result.
Sunday’s Race 2 started much the same way as Race 1 with Uribe holding onto second place through the holeshot and to the end of Lap 1. Uribe was matching the race leader’s pace for the first two laps. Then the race leader crashed near the end of Lap 3, and Uribe took over the lead. Though two other frontrunning riders were able to stay with Uribe for most of the race, the Californian’s late race pace allowed him to stretch out his lead in the closing laps to capture the victory. Wyman had a better showing in Race 2. Though he’d dropped to 10th in the running order by the end of Lap 1, Wyman ran as high as seventh place on Laps 6-9 before finishing in eighth place.
Uribe’s strong results at the two most recent rounds have helped move him into a close second place in the championship standings. He’s a mere six points behind the championship leader with four races to go this year.
The penultimate round of the 2024 MotoAmerica Stock 1000 Championship takes place July 12-14 at the Laguna Seca circuit in Monterey, Calif.
Jayson Uribe (360). Photo by Fatal Visualz, courtesy OrangeCat Racing.
Jayson Uribe / No. 360
“Overall, it was a great weekend for the OrangeCat Racing crew here at The Ridge. Race 1 was a good learning lesson for me. My goal was just to stick with the leader for as long as possible. I started running into some tire wear issues, decided to play it safe and come home in second. For Race 2 I tried to be more aggressive right off the bat. After the race leader went down, I immediately tried to slow the pace a little and just focus on being consistent and saving the tires and my body. We were able to click off fast, consistent lap times pretty much the whole race, which I’m happy about. The whole team worked hard to give me a bike that I can comfortably push on. Everyone stepped up this weekend and it showed.”
Travis Wyman (10). Photo by Fatal Visualz, courtesy OrangeCat Racing.
Travis Wyman / No. 10
“In today’s race, I got a pretty good start but was pushed wide by another rider at the first corner. I lost a bunch of ground to the lead pack but managed to battle my way past a couple riders to an eighth-place finish. We’re not where we want to be, but we’re slowly making progress in getting me more comfortable with the bike.”
OrangeCat Racing’s promotional and technical partners for the 2024 MotoAmerica season include Motoworks Chicago, Ohlins USA, and alpha Racing.
Travis Wyman’s promotional partners for the 2024 MotoAmerica season include SP Connect, Klingler Thrillers, Fast Line Motorcycle Performance, Stomp Grip, On Any Moto, Bilmola USA and Alpinestars.
Jayson Uribe’s promotional partners for the 2024 MotoAmerica season include CT Racing, 4SR, San Jose Motorsport and Red Engine Brewing.
To learn more about OrangeCat Racing, visit the team’s website at http://orangecatracing.com and follow the team on Instagram at @orangecatracing.
More, from a press release issued by Altus Motorsports:
(Shelton, WA) The MotoAmerica round at The Ridge Motorsports Park was another eventful weekend for the Altus Motorsports team.
Jake Lewis qualified 6th. In Race 1, he finished a strong 4th place. For Sundays race on lap 6 Jake’s bike started losing power. After 2 more laps Jake was able to switch to a different map setting to get the bike to work again. He was able to fight his way back to salvage a 10th place result. After the race it was determined the front wheel speed sensor wire touched the rotor and was cut.
Jake Lewis (85). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Altus Motorsports.
The Ridge is a track that Jaret Nassaney knows and likes. He showed up expecting decent results but, unfortunately, he was plagued with electronic issues all weekend. He started both races from 15th position. In Race 1, he was part of a three-rider battle for 13th, ultimately finishing 15th. He finished Race 2 in 12th place.
Jaret Nassaney (59). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Altus Motorsports.
Jaret Nassaney: “We are still fitting some electrical gremlins. So didn’t get the finishes I wanted. I know we can run farther up in the group. I just gotta build confidence in myself and in the bike! Looking forward to Laguna.”
Torin Collins started both races from 11th on the grid. He got a good start in Race 1 and was in the top 10 when he crashed and was forced to retire from the race. In Race 2, Torin was again running in the top 10 when a front tire issue forced him to pull in. Upon inspection one side of the tire was shredded after just a few laps.
Torin Collins (171). Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Altus Motorsports.
Torin Collins: “Yeah, it was another difficult and frustrating weekend. It’s a shame because we obviously had the pace to be in the front group. In race 1, I misjudged the grip in the rainy-ish conditions and crashed. And in race 2, we had an issue with the front tire. After 3 laps it felt unsafe. It’s really unfortunate we didn’t get to show the race pace we had due to bad luck. On paper, there aren’t many improvements, but I think for me and the team, we were able to see that we have the potential. We’re keeping our heads high and focused on getting better together. We win together and we lose together.”
George Nassaney: “We have a great crew and talented riders. They don’t deserve the bad luck we have been having. For Jake to have a front wheel speed sensor wire damaged, Jaret having electrical issues, and Torin to have a front tire shred on one side is very unfortunate. As a team, we continue to face, and overcome, challenges. We are working with the supplier to get to the bottom of the recurring electronics issues. When those are resolved and with a bit of good luck, I know our results will improve dramatically.”
Altus Motorsports team is supported by our great family of sponsors: Altus Motorsports, WPS, Firepower, Suzuki Motor Corporation, Buy A Jet From Steve Main, Barnett, Evol Technology, Maxima Oils, Hot Bodies Racing, M4 Exhausts, Vortex EK, Motion Pro, SBS Brakes, BrakeTech USA, Inc., Pit Bull Products, GB Racing, Ohlins, Puig Racing, RS Taichi, Arai, Core Moto, Pro Bolt, Chicken Hawk Tire Warmers, Speed Cell, Law Tigers Oklahoma, and Altus Factory Racing.
Honda Racing Corporation will bolster their testing program with the addition of Aleix Espargaro as a Test Rider in 2025. With close to 250 premier class starts, the 34-year-old brings with him a wealth of experience on Grand Prix machinery as well as the pedigree of three victories and over 1,300 MotoGP points. He will join HRC stalwart Stefan Bradl in continuing the development of the Honda RC213V.
On the Front Cover: Jorge Martin led in MotoGP points for months, until he didn’t.
Frustrated in his quest for a Ducati factory ride, he’ll be on an Aprilia in 2025-2026.
Photo by Gigi Soldano/DPPI Media.
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JULY 2024 ISSUE
FEATURES
Inside Info: Aprilia RS 457 Trophy, BMW R 1300 GS, AMA Junior Cup
and FIM Supersport300 Classes Getting Replaced, and more…
Intro: 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 500 Improves On Ninja 400
Intro: 2024 Yamaha MT-09 Triple Better Than Ever
MotoGP Analysis: An Advanced Rider Warning System
Shops: Alpha Racing Is The BMW Racebike Source
RACING
MotoGP: Bagnaia Is Perfect In Assen
MotoGP: Bagnaia Takes Points Lead At Sachsenring
MotoAmerica Superbike: Fong Sweeps Into Lead At Brainerd
MotoAmerica Superbike: Championship Tightens At The Ridge
WorldSBK: Toprak Triples At Misano
COLUMNS
Letters To The Editor: MotoGP Going To 850cc, Pat Hennen Tribute, & Hydrogen Bikes
10 Years Ago, July 2014: Marc Marquez is on the July 2014 cover with the headline
“Only Marc Marquez Can Stop Marc Marquez!” AMA Superbike Champion
Josh Herrin struggled in Moto2. Melissa Paris tested the KTM RC 390 Cup
racebike. Cameron Beaubier won in Superbike at the GEICO Motorcycle
Superbike Shootout Presented by Yamaha at Sonoma, and more…
The Crash Page: Jorge Martin Crashes Out Of German Grand Prix
Racing, School, & Track Day Calendar: Where & When To Ride
Classified Ads/Advertiser Index
High Performance Parts & Services Directory
Chris Ulrich: Adventures Of An Ex-Racer: Looking Ahead On The Racetrack
Gresini Racing Films, in collaboration with Nadia Padovani, is pleased to announce two new seasons of ‘Better Call Alex’ for the years 2025 and 2026.
#FACCIAMOUNCINEMA
ALEX MARQUEZ #73
“Staying with Gresini was my main goal. Since I joined this team, my target has been to consistently get close to the best, and it’s something I haven’t achieved yet. The start of the season wasn’t what we hoped for, but the team is strong and I know where we can go. So, I just want to thank Nadia for the trust, and I’m sure we’ll soon repay her with some celebratory pineapple pizza.”
NADIA PADOVANI – GRESINI RACING OWNER
“Alex is our pupil. Since he joined two years ago, the synergy between him and the team has been incredible and has strengthened with each race. We know his potential; he has already shown it and just needs consistency. Renewing with him was an obvious move for us because we are aware of his value both on and off the track. The results will come this year too, I am absolutely certain of it.”
Reg Pridmore coaching a braking drill at one of his CLASS Motorcycle Schools. Photo courtesy CLASS Motorcycle Schools.
Reg Pridmore was the first AMA Superbike Champion, winning the series for the first three years of its existence: 1976, 1977, and 1978. He helped put BMW motorcycles on the map racing the F750 and R90S. Reg tells his fascinating story from beginnings in the UK of his birth, to his later successes in the USA. All new footage of his BMW F750 hitting the track for the first time after a painstaking restoration reminds us of the skill and daring that Reg brought to early Superbike racing.
Josh Herrin won MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike Race Two Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park, in Shelton, Washington. Riding his Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R on Dunlop Sportmax Slick control tires, Herrin took the lead, crept away from the field with a consistently fast pace, and won the 16-lap race by 5.063 seconds. It was Herrin’s second win of the season and the 12th Superbike win of his career.
Bobby Fong was fourth on the opening lap but was able to push forward to a second-place finish on his Wrench Motorcycles Yamaha YZF-R1.
Race One winner Cameron Petersen got off to a strong start in Race Two but said he suffered from arm pump problems and had to settle for third place on his Attack Performance/Progressive Yamaha Racing YZF-R1.
Herrin’s teammate Loris Baz was unable to convert his pole position to a podium finish, but the Frenchman was able to score fourth place.
Sean Dylan Kelly bounced back from a non-point-scoring finish in Race One to grab fifth place on his EasyHealthPlans.com/TopPro Racing BMW in Race Two.
Hayden Gillim used a last-lap pass to secure sixth on his Real Steel Motorsports Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP.
Xavi Fores ran as high as fifth on his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R but fell victim to Kelly and Gillim in the second half of the race and ended up seventh.
Five-time Champion Cameron Beaubier, who is still recovering from a broken right heel, crossed the finish line 0.199 second behind Fores and collected eighth-place points.
Three-time and defending Champion Jake Gagne ran fifth in the early laps but slipped back to eventually finish ninth.
Fores’ teammate Brandon Paasch passed Beaubier’s teammate JD Beach on the last lap to grab 10th.
Herrin Wins, Superbike Title Chase Features Four At The Top
Four Riders Are Within Eight Points Of The MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike Championship Points Lead
Cameron Petersen (45) leads Josh Herrin (2), Loris Baz (76), Bobby Fong (50), and the rest of the Steel Commander Superbike field on the opening lap at Ridge Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
SHELTON, WA (June 30, 2024) – Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin won his second Steel Commander Superbike race of the season on Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park, and it vaulted him into championship contention in what is arguably the closest Superbike Championship in AMA history at this point in the season.
After two races at Ridge Motorsports Park, four riders are separated by just eight points and there’s just a single point between first and second, making it anybody’s game with a two-week break before the series returns at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, July 12-14.
Herrin won his second race of the year in typical Herrin fashion. He got out front early, made a gap and held it, crossing the line with a tick over five seconds in hand. In addition to being his second win of the year, it was also his sixth podium of the year and his 12th career AMA Superbike victory.
Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong worked his way to second place with 11 laps to go when he passed Attack Performance/Progressive/Yamaha Racing’s Cameron Petersen. Fong set sail after Herrin and was able to pull back some ground but was never close enough to threaten.
However, second place on the day was enough to move Fong back into the lead in the 2024 Steel Commander Superbike Championship points lead after losing it in what was a rainy debacle for the Californian on Saturday.
Third place went to Petersen, a day after the South African won his third race of the season on Saturday. Petersen was some four seconds behind Fong and another four some seconds clear of Herrin’s teammate Loris Baz. His two podiums in the two races put him squarely in the hunt for the title.
Josh Herrin (2) moved around Cameron Petersen (45) and sped off to win his second MotoAmerica Superbike race of the season and the 12th of his career. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Fifth place went to a rather lonely Sean Dylan Kelly on the TopPro Racing BMW M 1000 RR.
Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim was an impressive sixth on his Stock 1000-spec Honda CBR1000RR-R SP after barely beating Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Xavi Forés with the Spaniard finishing seventh.
Five-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier rode through the pain of his surgically repaired broken right heel to finish just off the back of Forés and seven seconds clear of three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Jake Gagne with the latter still struggling mightily with arm pump.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Brandon Paasch rounded out the top 10 finishers.
About that championship we were talking about earlier. How’s this for close? Fong leads Gagne by a single point, 158-157. Petersen is next with 151 and Herrin is fourth with 149, and that all translates to the fact that the top four in the championship point standings are separated by just eight points.
Superbike Race Two
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
Cameron Petersen (Yamaha)
Loris Baz (Ducati)
Sean Dylan Kelly (BMW)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Xavi Forés (Suzuki)
Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
Brandon Paasch (Suzuki)
Quotes
Josh Herrin – Winner
“Obviously, I wish I was further ahead and didn’t do so bad in all four of the rain races we had, but it’s exactly what the championship needs with a fight like this with a bunch of different manufacturers. So, I’m excited for that, especially since Laguna Seca is all of our home rounds. So, it’s going to be a lot of our family there cheering us on. It should be an exciting weekend. Race went great. Tires were great. Everything just clicked today, just like Road America. Like I said all year, we knew Barber was difficult, but every other race we’ve been right there with the exception of the rain. Maybe Dunlop will let us go use the rain track for the end of the year and try to get a little bit better. It’s mainly my fault with all the stupid choices I’ve made with tires the last couple years, running slicks in the rain. I’m just happy to be up here, happy to claw back in the points again. This is the closest we’ve been all year. Thank you to my entire team. Really excited to go to Laguna, not just for the race but Ducati DRE on Monday and hang out with all the Ducati fans and riders. Can’t wait to see you there.”
Bobby Fong – Second Place
“Like Josh said earlier, I need to capitalize on these rain races. I’ve done terrible, and it’s all on me. It’s something that I need to work on. To win this championship, you can’t just be getting 10th in the rain races. I’ve got to do better. That’s plain and simple. I’ve got to do better. But today was great. We rode good. I felt like the bike was quite good. We tried a new swingarm this morning and I was really unsure of it. I’m still unsure of it, but it worked great. We’re always pretty strong at the end of these races. The class is so tight now, you’ve got to qualify on front row to do something, unless you have crazy outright speed. Everybody is so close. When you’re trying to make your way up to Josh (Herrin), it’s basically too late. It’s like World Superbike nowadays. You got to qualify good, like MotoGP. I need to work on my qualifying. I’ve been struggling in qualifying a little bit. What can I say? We’ve got the points lead, but there’s still a lot of races to go. Each weekend, there’s a dogfight up front. You never know what’s going to happen. We’re all on the limit, so anybody can make a mistake. We’re just going to try to stay consistent.”
Cameron Petersen – Third Place
“Yeah, great weekend. Can’t complain with two podiums. The only reason why I’m a little bit frustrated was just we had a bike that was capable of winning both races. The bike felt really good in the beginning. I felt comfortable. Even when Josh (Herrin) came past me I felt like I had a really good rhythm and pace. Was just losing a little bit in the last sector. I was really good everywhere else. About halfway through the race, my left arm just completely locked up. My hand came off the handlebar a few times. It got a little bit scary out there. Just super stoked at the weekend. Like you said, points are close. So, overall, a great weekend. We learned a bunch this weekend and look forward to the rest of the season. Congrats to Josh (Herrin) and Bob (Fong). They rode an incredible race. I think it’s going to be a dogfight for the rest of the season every race we go to, so I’m looking forward to it.”
More, from a press release issued by Ducati:
Josh Herrin Hammers a Dominant Win in Race Two at The Ridge
Sunnyvale, Calif., June 30, 2024 — Josh Herrin showed his love affair with The Ridge Motorsports Park by taking a dominant win in race two of the 2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship.
The race two win marks the third consecutive year Herrin has tasted victory, and the fourth year in a row he has stood on the podium at The Ridge. It also means Herrin now lies only nine points off the championship lead.
The result on Sunday more than made up for the result of race one, where tricky wet/dry conditions meant tire choice was a make-or-break gamble. Herrin and teammate Loris Baz both elected to run slicks, which ultimately proved the incorrect move, with Herrin taking 11th and Baz ninth.
In race two, Herrin got to the front early after disposing of race leader Cameron Petersen and set about lapping at a metronomic pace, posting the fastest lap and eventually coming home five seconds clear of Bobby Fong.
Loris Baz rode brilliantly all weekend. The Frenchman took his first-ever MotoAmerica Superbike pole position and his inspired ninth place in race one made him the first slick-shod rider home.
Race two saw Baz in the fight for the podium early in the 16-lap encounter, but he finally had to settle for fourth at the flag and bagged 13 championship points.
2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship After Round Five
P1 – Bobby Fong 158
P2 – Jake Gagne 157
P3 – Cameron Petersen 151
P4 – Josh Herrin (Ducati) 149
P5 – Loris Baz (Ducati) 122
Josh Herrin (Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati–#2)
“I’d like to say it was a great weekend, but it certainly was a great day,” Herrin said after winning race two. “Saturday, we lost out due to an incorrect tire selection. It was a gamble, and it didn’t pay off. It happens in racing sometimes.”
“But the Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati team rebounded big time today—and the bike was awesome. The team has been working hard to nail the right set-up and we got it right for the race today. I’m so happy with how the weekend finished. Next up is Laguna Seca, not just for the MotoAmerica Superbike races but also for the DRE (Ducati Rider Experience) day on Monday. I can’t wait to get there and ride with all the Ducatisti.”
Loris Baz (Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati–#76)
“I want to keep the positive of the weekend,” said Baz after race two. “First, I want to congratulate Josh. He rode a fantastic race today. On my side of the garage, it was a good weekend. I took my first MotoAmerica pole position, but we got caught out with the tire selection in race one, so that was a shame.
“Today I was really confident going into the race. We had a few issues with the front set-up, and I was trying to over-compensate in some areas. I still have a bit of work to do to make sure I can be as competitive over the race distance as I am in qualifying, but we are making huge steps every weekend. The team is working really well and we’re off to Laguna Seca next, which is a place I absolutely love.”
The fifth round of the 2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship sees the series head to one of the premier events in the calendar at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in California over the July 10-12 weekend.
Mathew Scholtz won MotoAmerica Supersport Race Two Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park, in Shelton, Washington. Riding his Strack Racing Yamaha on Dunlop spec tires, the South African came from behind to win the 15-lap race by 8.530 seconds.
Scholtz was coming back from a slow start when he caught and tried to overtake PJ Jacobsen, who had led from the start on his Rahal Ducati Moto w/XPEL Panigale V2.
Scholtz slipped up the inside of Jacobsen in a decreasing radius left-hander, the two made light contact, and Jacobsen fell down. Scholtz rode on to his fourth straight victory and sixth of the season, while Jacobsen was forced to retire.
Jacobsen’s teammate Kayla Yaakov came out on top of a race-long battle to grab the runner-up spot. Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott finished third, 0.214 second behind Yaakov and just 0.295 second ahead of Corey Alexander and his Rahal Ducati Moto w/Code 3 Associates machine.
Wrench Motorcycles Suzuki’s David Anthony edged out N2 Racing/BobbleHeadMoto Yamaha’s Blake Davis by 0.073 second to finish fifth.
Updated: Following the race, a protest was filed by PJ Jacobsen’s Rahal Ducati Moto team against Mathew Scholtz. A FIMNA Stewards Panel ruled that both Scholtz and PJ Jacobsen shared some responsibility in the incident, but Scholtz was accessed a three-second penalty which changed nothing but Scholtz’s margin of victory. See the official FIMNA ruling below.
Gillim Miscues, Uribe Wins In Ridge Stock 1000 Battle At Ridge Motorsports Park
High Drama In Supersport As Top Two Riders Come Together
Jayson Uribe (360) leads Ashton Yates (27) en route to winning the Stock 1000 race at Ridge Motorsports Park on Sunday. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
SHELTON, WA (June 30, 2024) – Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim made his second mistake of the season in Sunday’s Stock 1000 at Ridge Motorsports Park and it was again a double whammy as it not only cost him victory and championship points, but it also handed a second victory to his thus-far series rival Jayson Uribe.
OrangeCat Racing’s Uribe was hot on Gillim’s tail when the defending MotoAmerica Stock 1000 Champion crashed in turn 14 on the fourth lap with the pursuing pack of Uribe, Benjamin Smith and Ashton Yates zooming past. By the time Hayden remounted he was 14th and had some work to do.
With Uribe pulling away to an eventual 9.7-second win over FLO4LAW Racing’s Smith and Jones’ Honda’s Yates, Gillim set about gaining as many points back as possible. At the completion of the 13-lap race, the Kentuckian was up to fourth place.
However, Gillim went straight after the finish line and didn’t make the turn-one chicane and was thus handed a two-second penalty, which gifted fourth to Visit Indiana/Tom Wood Powersports’ Nolan Lampkin and fifth to AMD Motorsport RK Racing’s Richard Kerr, the last two riders Gillim had passed prior to the finish line.
That put Gillim sixth and cut his championship points lead over Uribe to six points after six races.
BPR Racing’s Bryce Prince, OrangeCat Racing’s Travis Wyman, Team Brazil’s Danilo Lewis and Prince’s BPR Racing teammate Deion Campbell rounded out the top 10.
“It’s always a bummer when you see someone else crash, but the biggest thing for me was getting a better start and being able to be there in the beginning,” Uribe said. “Yesterday I gave myself a little bit too much to work towards. I think that it could have been possible, but I was taking a lot of risks just to keep up. Today we kind of came out with a new plan to just be there, be aggressive, be rough. I feel like we were pretty good at doing that at the start. Like you said, when Hayden went down, it was a bummer but for me it was a realization of, ‘Now I need to conserve. Now I need to stop pushing so hard and save the tire, save the bike, save my body.’ That’s really what I tried to do. I caught a false neutral going into 14 one of those laps and it made me pretty nervous. I thought for sure someone was going to come up the inside. Luckily, we were able to get it back into gear. That OrangeCat BMW was running really good. Kind of like what everybody else was saying. All these bikes have strong points and weak points. I feel like the BMW is really good on the brakes. I can really push that thing going into corners. The biggest thing for us is just being able to get power to the ground on the exit. We’re working on it. We’re working every time we get on that bike to try something new and improve. It’s going good.”
Supersport race winner Mathew Scholtz (11) battles PJ Jacobsen (15) in Sunday’s race. The two made contact a few laps from the end with Jacobsen crashing out. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Supersport – Scholtz Wins With High Drama
Strack Racing’s Mathew Scholtz won his sixth Supersport race of the season at Ridge Motorsports Park, but this was the first one that came with a big dose of drama.
Scholtz had finally caught up to the fast-starting PJ Jacobsen on the Rahal Ducati Moto Panigale V2 with two laps to go. The South African then made an inside move on the New Yorker and it didn’t end well. The two came together and Jacobsen went down, ending his run of finishing on the podium in all the nine previous races.
Jacobsen obviously wasn’t happy with the outcome as the championship was turned on its head. Scholtz went from having a three-point lead to what is now a 28-point lead.
Jacobsen got a flier of a start and instantly put his head down. Scholtz, meanwhile, had a slower start and had work to do to get to second. Once he did, he started to run the New Yorker down. With five to go, the two were together. With two to go, the accident happened, and it was called a racing incident by race control.
It takes a lot to overshadow Kayla Yaakov, but her teammate’s crash did just that. Yaakov raced to her best-career Supersport finish of second, just a day after she finished third. Quite a weekend for the 17-year-old Pennsylvanian.
Yaakov had come out best in a battle with Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott that went to the finish line with Yaakov .214 of a second ahead at the finish line. Meanwhile, her teammate Corey Alexander was just as close in fourth place.
Wrench Motorcycles’ David Anthony had his best finish of the year in fifth.
When asked about the racing incident with Jacobsen, Scholtz said “I thought that I made the move pretty clean past him and ran slightly wider than you would usually do. But I feel that he just tipped in and knew that I was there and carried on turning and hit the side of my foot peg. I felt him there, but I carried on turning and I looked back and I saw that he had crashed. Obviously, that’s not something I want, but I feel that I got to the point of making the pass fair and he should have given me room. But I think that if you’re on their side, they’re going to say that I was wrong. I feel that maybe PJ was slightly wrong. So, we’ll just take it as a 50/50. But overall, I feel that I definitely had the pace and just really happy to pull the championship lead a little bit further. Looking forward to the next couple rounds. Laguna Seca is one of my favorite tracks. Myself and PJ had a massive battle there last year on the Superbikes, so I’m sure we’ll do the same thing there.”
Jake Lewis (85) won his first career Mission Super Hooligan National Championship race on Sunday over Tyler O’Hara (1) and Cory West (13). Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Mission Super Hooligan National Championship – Lewis!
Saddlemen/Harley-Davidson’s Jake Lewis did what everyone has been waiting for him to do on Sunday at Ridge Motorsports Park – he won a round of the Super Hooligan National Championship on his Harley-Davidson Pan America.
Always thought of as the fastest guy in the class to have not yet won, Lewis made good on the promise he’s shown by storming into the lead and pulling away to win by a tick over two seconds. And that’s with a final-lap blunder that put him off track momentarily.
Lewis’s victory helped make up for his first-lap crash in wet conditions in Saturday’s race.
Lewis beat S&S Cycle/Indian Motorcycle’s Tyler O’Hara with the defending series champion earning his second podium of the weekend and this one put him atop the championship standings after two rounds and four races.
Third place went to Lewis’s teammate Cory West, who also made up for his crash from the lead in yesterday’s wet race.
O’Hara’s teammate Troy Herfoss ended up fourth after a race-long battle with KWR’s Hayden Schultz.
“I’m two for four on Hooligan finishes,” Lewis said. “Last night I was just so pissed off and bummed. Both Cory and I. It just feels really bad. It feels like you let your team down doing that. Especially me on the first lap. I felt good during the little warmup before the rain race and then, first lap, just threw it on my head and didn’t get any points. Now it’s kind of do or die for me. It’s like my only chance is to try to go out there and win every single Hooligan race. I put in some good, consistent laps this morning and we changed a little bit of setup stuff from yesterday qualifying, and it was a better direction, and it made it even a little bit better for the race. I saw Cory struggling in a couple little spots and felt TO come up my inside there at a couple spots. I thought he was going to stuff me, but I think he played it a little bit nice. I knew once I got by Cory just to put it in first, especially that first lap, two or three good, hard sprint laps, which I did. My lap time was quite a bit faster than I qualified. Then I looked over and saw I had a little gap on TO and just kind of maintained that. But then on that last lap, that lapper, it was just my fault. He broke a lot deeper than I thought he would, and I kind of missed my brake marker and ran off the track. Luckily I had a big lead.”
Mikayla Moore (1) dominated both of the Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. races at Ridge Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. – Another Record For Moore
Mikayla Moore said after her victory on Saturday that she uses lap times for part of her motivation. Her best lap time was a 2:02.801. On Sunday she went even faster, setting a new lap record with her 2:02.683 on the sixth lap to set the bar is even higher for the next wave of Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. racers. Oh, and she also won. By 44 seconds.
The win was Moore’s fifth of the year.
Second place today went to Lauren Prince, the Nashville, Tennessee, resident earning her first MotoAmerica podium a day after crashing on the sighting lap with a cold front tire. Even today wasn’t easy on Prince as her rear tire warmer got stuck and she was forced to start from the back of the pack.
Aubrey Credaroli rounded out the top three with her first podium finish of the season.
“Yesterday I did a 2:02.8 and if I rounded up the numbers, that’s technically still a 2:03,” Moore commented. “So, I was like, I wanted more. I talked with the K Tech guys and they suggested a lot of things that I was nervous about, because I had already done my warmup lap. So, it was really about trusting myself and the bike that I’ll be able to accomplish my goal. I was super happy I was able to do it on the seventh lap. I just kept watching myself drop time. To be able to do the 2:02.3, super happy. I wanted to go for that 2:01, but hey, I’m happy with the 2:02. I exceeded my expectations, like I always do. Super happy to be here.”
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