Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Provisional AMA Formula Xtreme Qualifying Results:

1. Ben Bostrom, Honda CBR600RR, 1:52.800
2. Miguel Duhamel, Honda CBR600RR, 1:53.339
3. Vincent Haskovec, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:54.213
4. Pascal Picotte, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:54.297
5. Alex Gobert, Honda CBR600RR, 1:54.661
6. Jake Zemke, Honda CBR600RR, 1:55.990
7. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:56.180
8. Jake Holden, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:56.445
9. Jeff Wood, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:56.687
10. Jimmy Moore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:57.657
11. Corey Eaton, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:58.283
12. Frank Trombino, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:59.538
13. Nathan Hester, Yamaha YZF-R6, 2:00.061
14. Jason Smith, Yamaha YZF-R6, 2:00.192
15. Perry Melneciuc, Yamaha YZF-R6, 2:00.310
16. Nathan Dressman, Yamaha YZF-R6, 2:02.491
17. Marcus Winfree, Suzuki GSX-R600, 2:02.516
18. Adam Vella, Suzuki GSX-R600, 2:05.260

112 percent of fast time: 2:06.336

DNQ. Randy Rega, Buell XB12R, 2:08.928


More, from a press release issued by Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki:

TEAM VALVOLINE EMGO SUZUKI KICKS OFF 2004 AMA SEASON AT DAYTONA

Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki opened their 2004 AMA race season on Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway, posting solid efforts in each of their classes. The team attempted to keep up momentum from the excellent results of last weekend’s Formula USA weekend that saw Steve Rapp and Vincent Haskovec win races and Chris Peris finish on the podium.

On Wednesday, Vincent Haskovec certainly made a good first impression as a member of the squad in AMA competition with a front row qualifying performance on his Michelin slick-shod GSX-R600 Formula Xtreme racer. Haskovec, originally from the Czech Republic, will start from the third spot on the grid in tomorrow’s 15-lap race thanks to his fast lap of 1:54.213 aboard the still-developing 600 ‘mini-Superbike’. In fact, Vincent out-qualified several riders on factory machines.

“It’s going well so far, the Michelin tires were giving me grip around this track and the team gave me a good bike to ride today,” Haskovec said afterward. Vincent backed up his Formula Xtreme showing with a third row qualifying effort aboard his GSX-R1000 in the extremely competitive Superstock class. His best time was a lap of 1:50.873.

His teammate Steve Rapp will line up in tomorrow’s twelve-lap Superstock race two rows behind Haskovec. Unfortunately, Steve’s best lap time on the fire-breathing Suzuki GSX-R1000– one that would have put him inside the top ten — was disallowed after he missed turn one. “Those are the rules,” Rapp said after the session held in warm, sunny weather. “I didn’t gain an advantage by missing turn one, but all it really means now is that I’ll just have to charge even harder in the race.”

The 31-year-old Californian fared better with his GSX-R600 in Supersport practice, ranking tenth with a best time of 1:54.674.

Rapp’s other new teammate, 18-year-old Chris Peris, was just one position behind him in the Supersport free session. The Canadian posted a best mark of 1:54.928 in his AMA racing debut with the team.

From a press release issued by Pro Italia:

Join Pro Italia on Saturday March 6th for our annual Daytona 200 TV Party complete with a 61″ big screen television and refreshments for your race viewing pleasure. We will have a contest with prizes for leaders at various stages in the race. Get to Pro Italia in time for the Superbike rider name drawing at 10:15am.

Pro Italia will open at 7:30 a.m. for the exciting BMW BoxerCup. Superbike racing starts at 10:30 a.m.

Pro Italia Los Angeles
3319 N Verdugo Road
Glendale, CA 91208

818 249-5707
[email protected]

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Provisional Wednesday Morning AMA Formula Xtreme Practice Times:

1. Miguel Duhamel, Honda CBR600RR, 1:53.248
2. Pascal Picotte, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:54.230
3. Jake Zemke, Honda CBR600RR, 1:54.243
4. Ben Bostrom, Honda CBR600RR, 1:54.335
5. Vincent Haskovec, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:54.923
6. Alex Gobert, Honda CBR600RR, 1:55.644
7. Jeff Wood, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:56.744
8. Jake Holden, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:56.904
9. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:56.992
10. Jimmy Moore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:58.285
11. Corey Eaton, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:59.709
12. Jason Smith, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:59.932
13. Frank Trombino, Yamaha YZF-R6, 2:00.088
14. Nathan Hester, 2:00.378
15. Marcus Winfree, 2:01.313
16. Perry Melneciuc, Yamaha YZF-R6, 2:01.763
17. Nathan Dressman, 2:02.614
18. Adam Vella, Suzuki GSX-R600, 2:06.385
19. Randy Rega, Buell XB12R, 2:10.606
20. Jay Jacobson, 2:11.427

From a press release issued by the AMA:

HALLS OF FAME ANNOUNCE INTENT TO MERGE

PICKERINGTON, OHIO — The Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum, located in Pickerington, Ohio, and the National Motorcycle Museum & Hall of Fame, located in Anamosa, Iowa, have signed a “memo of understanding” to pursue a merger of their respective hall-of-fame inductees and procedures into a unified entity under the banner of the current Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum. Both museums would otherwise retain their individual identities and continue their independent operations and management.

The joint announcement was made today in Daytona Beach, Florida, by John Parham, President of the National Motorcycle Museum’s Board of Directors, and Mark Mendell, Chairman of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum’s Board of Directors.

“It’s our mutual intent to enter into a written agreement which will detail the specifics of the merger,” Parham said in making the announcement. “Among the principles of the agreement are the automatic enshrinement of all past inductees in both museums’ halls of fame into one merged entity; development of a single nomination and selection process for future inductees; and a common set of graphic standards to reinforce the brand identity of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame. This also would include a common website linked to both museums, which will feature both museums’ combined list of past inductees.”

“Once fully implemented, this merger will bring a new strength of unity to our motorcycle community,” said Mendell. “It will provide even wider recognition for those we honor in our Hall of Fame, as well as clarity for our national audience who will experience the same hall-of-fame elements in both museums. We think this is a real win-win for everyone and we are very enthusiastic about our potential for the future.”

For more information, contact Mark Mederski, Executive Director of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum (Pickerington, Ohio), at (614) 856-2222; or Maria Tuttle, Director of the National Motorcycle Museum (Anamosa, Iowa) at (319) 462-3925.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Parts Unlimited Ducati Austin’s Eric Bostrom earned the provisional AMA Superbike pole position for the 63rd running of the Daytona 200 by Arai Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway.

With a Michelin qualifying tire on his Ducati 999F04 Superbike, Bostrom ripped off a lap of 1:46.835 to officially eclipse the two-year-old Superbike record set by Nicky Hayden (1:47.174).

“I’m feeling really good about the Ducati and the Michelin tires,” Bostrom told reporters on pit lane. “I don’t think I did my absolute best job out there, but that’s how qualifying tires are. You either come away feeling like you could’ve gone faster or you end up on your head.”

Bostrom was also fastest in Wednesday morning practice but called his Ducati an “ill-handling machine” then. He said a miscommunication over shock settings was resolved, which made it feel like “I’m back on Eric’s bike again.”

American Honda’s Miguel Duhamel was second-fastest, some 1.3 seconds behind Bostrom, with a 1:48.116. According to Duhamel’s Crew Chief Al Ludington, their newly-built CBR1000RR racebike has a different feel than the prototype CBR1000RR they tested with over the winter. “We’re barely at the tip of the iceberg,” said Ludington. “1:46s are very doable.”

Erion Honda’s Jake Zemke shook off a troubled Formula Xtreme qualifying effort to post the third-fastest time (1:48.344) in his first-ever Daytona 200 qualifying session, on another CBR1000RR.

Fourth-fastest Aaron Yates (1:48.478) was happier with the race set-up on his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 Wednesday afternoon thanks to a new shock linkage, but his qualifying effort was hindered by a painful interaction between his left elbow and the pylon at the exit of the chicane. Yates was seen icing the injury after the session.

Fifth-fastest Ben Bostrom (1:49.051) said he was happy with a “huge improvement” he made on the race set-up of his American Honda CBR1000RR and looked forward to better times when he started using his qualifying Dunlops Thursday.

Defending AMA Superbike Champion Mat Mladin, sixth-fastest with a 1:49.203, said everything was good with his Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 at the moment, but he couldn’t help but take a jab at rival Eric Bostrom.

“Last year everyone said my bike was too fast,” said Mladin, “but for Eric Bostrom to be on pole at Daytona his bike must be a rocketship. That Ducati must be really, really fast for Eric Bostrom to be on pole.”

Pascal Picotte was seventh on his Yamaha YZF-R1 with 17-inch Dunlop slicks. Josh Hayes was eighth-fastest on his Attack Kawasaki ZX-10R Superbike. Triangle Cycles Yamaha’s Larry Pegram came back from a crash Wednesday morning to post the ninth-fastest time on his Pirelli-shod YZF-R1. Prieto Racing’s Geoff May rounded out the top 10 on his Pirelli-backed Suzuki GSX-R1000.


Provisional AMA Superbike Qualifying Results:

1. Eric Bostrom, Ducati 999F04, 1:46.835*
2. Miguel Duhamel, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:48.116
3. Jake Zemke, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:48.344
4. Aaron Yates, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:48.478
5. Ben Bostrom, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:49.051
6. Mat Mladin, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:49.203
7. Pascal Picotte, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:51.417
8. Josh Hayes, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:51.652
9. Larry Pegram, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:51.280
10. Geoff May, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:51.926
11. Eric Wood, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:52.136
12. Jordan Szoke, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:52.233
13. Chris Caylor, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:52.740
14. John Haner, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:53.558
15. Mike Sullivan, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:54.121

*New track record


More, from a press release issued by Mat Mladin Motorsports:

2004 AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship – Round 1, Daytona 200
Daytona International Speedway, Florida, USA

CONSISTENCY WILL BE THE KEY FOR MLADIN AT DAYTONA THIS WEEKEND

Daytona Beach, Florida, USA (Wednesday, 3 March) – Defending American AMA Superbike champion Mat Mladin, has recorded the sixth fastest time during today’s opening qualifying session for this weekend’s Daytona 200, held at the famed Daytona International Speedway in Florida.

In picture postcard weather conditions, Mladin and his Yoshimura Suzuki team spent the day acclimatising themselves to the ultra fast layout of the circuit and worked at getting the settings right on the teams Suzuki GSX-R1000 in preparation for Saturday’s 57-lap 200-mile classic.

A time of 1:49.203 leaves Mladin with the sixth fastest time of the day. Provisional pole position went to Ducati’s Eric Bostrom who blasted a 1:46.835 in the closing minutes of the session. Completing the top four placings for the session were Miguel DuHamel (Honda, 1:48.116), Jake Zemke (Honda, 1:48.344) and Mladin’s teammate Aaron Yates (Yoshimura Suzuki, 1:48.478).

Mladin, who hails from Camden south west of Sydney, is a two times winner of the Daytona 200 and knows exactly what it takes to not only win this race, but also the championship which he has won on an unprecedented four occasions.

“We had a good session out there,” said Mladin after the conclusion of the opening qualifying session. “I did about seven or eight laps at a decent pace with Aaron (Yates) just to get a feel for some race type conditions and it felt good. The rest of the session was spent circulating around, checking things out and getting things ready for Saturday’s race.”

“I did a lap on a soft qualifier at the end there, but it chunked a bit on my fast lap and that was the time I ended up with. I’m not concerned by times at the moment.”

“Overall things are going according to our strategy for the weekend, so we’re happy with the progress so far.”

Prior to the commencement of today’s practice and qualifying sessions, race officials announced a change in the qualifying format where traditionally the top four riders in the opening session would retain their positions for the race, while the remainder of the field would have their grid positions determined by the overall result of both sessions. The format now reflects the qualifying procedure for each of the other rounds of the championship with all grid positions being determined on combined times from both sessions.

Being a former Pole Position winner in the traditional format, Mladin was not overly perturbed by the late change to the qualifying format.

“I used to like the locking in of the front row after that first qualifying session as it used to put a bit of pressure on you to go out and work harder a bit earlier than at other race meetings. Now the format is the same as everywhere else so it’s no problem.

Qualifying for the Superbike competitors concludes tomorrow afternoon.


More, from a press release issued by Daytona International Speedway:

Ducati Austin’s Eric Bostrom

Takes Daytona 200 By Arai Provisional Pole In Record Fashion

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., (March 3, 2004) – Eric Bostrom made history on Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway during provisional qualifying for the Daytona 200 by Arai.

Bostrom, riding the No. 32 Ducati Austin, turned a track record qualifying lap of one minute, 46.835 seconds, 119.961 mph to capture the provisional pole for Saturday’s 63rd Daytona 200 By Arai.

Bostrom’s lap shattered the track qualifying record of Nicky Hayden, who turned a lap of 1:47.174, 119.580 mph in 2002.

“You just have to hit your marks,” Bostrom said. “The bike was obviously working fantastic and the tires as well. I was a little surprised myself it came out as good as it did. You really just out there playing a video game, trying to hit your marks and do everything better than the lap before.”

Rounding out the top-four qualifiers were 2003 Daytona 200 By Arai champion Miguel Duhamel (118.539), Jake Zemke (118.290) and Aaron Yates (118.144).

Final qualifying for the Daytona 200 By Arai is scheduled for Thursday at 1:55 p.m. The 63rd Daytona 200 By Arai is scheduled to go green on Saturday at 2 p.m.

In other qualifying sessions on Wednesday, Ben Spies, riding the No. 11 Yoshimura Suzuki, stole the Repsol Superstock pole from Yamaha rider Jason DiSalvo. Spies toured the 3.56-mile road course about his GSX-R1000 in a track record one minute, 48 seconds, 118.445 mph.

“Yeah (I’m surprised) for only doing three laps in all of qualifying,” Spies said. “We went out this morning and I did three laps and we were second fastest. Then my bike broke right after the first couple of laps and I was sure we were going to get it figured out. Then I got on a bike (during qualifying) that I hadn’t even ridden and I just went faster than on my Superbike around here. It feels good and hopefully we can keep it up.”

DiSalvo, riding the No. 40 Yamaha, turned a fast lap of 1:48.496, 118.124 mph, was excited about his new Yamaha YZF-R1’s performance.

“The bike is so fast,” DiSalvo said. “It’s unbelievable. You juice the power on and the front wheel pulls up in just about every gear. We did so much winter testing here and other places. It just goes to show you how it paid off and what a good bike Yamaha has put together here.”

In Lockhart Phillips Formula Xtreme, Honda’s Ben Bostrom captured the pole with a time of 1:52.800, 113.617 mph. Sebastien Legrelle posted the fastest time in provisional qualifying for the BMW BoxerCup with a lap of 103.469 mph.

On tap on Thursday at the Speedway will be final Daytona 200 By Arai qualifying as well as the Repsol Superstock and Lockhart Phillips Formula Xtreme events.

Tickets for all motorcycle races are available online at http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.



More, from a press release issued by Ducati:

BOSTROM BREAKS DAYTONA LAP RECORD TO TAKE PROVISIONAL POLE POSITION

Parts Unlimited Ducati Austin’s Eric Bostrom made the full potential of his 999 clear by breaking the Daytona lap record with a 1.46.835 in today’s first qualifying session for the 63rd running of the Daytona 200. The previous lap record of 1.47.174 was set by Nicky Hayden in 2002. Eric continued his form from this morning’s practice session during which he finished ahead of all his competitors and was only one of two riders to break the 1.50 mark. The clear skies in the morning gave way to overcast conditions during qualifying, but temperatures remained warm.

Fresh from Ducati’s victory in the World Superbike factory team’s season opener at Valencia, Spain, Ducati Corse’s Paolo Ciabatti and Track Engineer Ernesto Marinelli traveled to the U.S. for the major American event. “We didn’t do any big set-up changes between the morning and this afternoon. The big difference were the Michelin qualifying tires,” explained Marinelli. “Tomorrow we really need to concentrate on the race. We just want to do a race distance simulation.”

Bostrom said of his record-breaking lap, “I was surprised. There was a little more left in the tires and I didn’t feel like I did the perfect lap or anything. You’re really out there like it’s a video game and trying to hit your marks and doing everything better than the lap you did before. You’re not trying to be Superman or anything, especially here at Daytona because this place can catch you out really easy so you have to keep that in mind.

“I feel like we have a real good bike. I really hope to accomplish these types of results all year. It’s a bit of a surprise. Daytona’s never really treated me that well and I’ve never really had the best go at this place so maybe this year will be different for us.”

Final qualifying is scheduled to take place tomorrow at 1:55 p.m.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

The first day of official AMA activity at Daytona has been marked by a series of timing & scoring problems.

The wireless network that is supposed to transfer data from timing & scoring to the press room first started working late in the afternoon. The day started with runners carrying timing sheets from timing & scoring to the press room, until a FAX machine was finally installed in timing & scoring.

Duplicate times and rider names have been common on timing screens all day, with, for example, Jamie Hacking appearing as third-fastest and sixth-fastest at the same time on monitors during Supersport practice.

Fast times by several riders appeared on screens, then disappeared, then appeared again.

Chuck Graves is in an uproar, claiming that Ben Spies’ pole time in Superstock qualifying appeared on the screen several minutes after the session ended, and that Spies did not start his lap prior to the checkered flag falling on the session.

At 3:43 p.m., timing & scoring issued times for Formula Xtreme Group #1 qualifying, showing Ben Bostrom fastest at 1:52.800, followed by Miguel Duhamel at 1:53.339 and Vincent Haskovec at 1:54.213.

At 4:02 p.m., timing & scoring issued times for Formula Xtreme Group #2 qualifying, showing Ben Bostrom fastest at 1:52.800, followed by Miguel Duhamel at 1:53.339 and Vincent Haskovec at 1:54.213.

No word on when the system will be up and running correctly, if ever.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

In an unannounced move, AMA Pro Racing will not lock in the front row of the 63rd Daytona 200 by Arai during the first Superbike qualifying session, as has been the tradition throughout recent memory.

Instead, the Rolex Pole Position Award and the rest of the Daytona 200 grid will be determined according to the fastest times turned regardless of which of the two qualifying sessions the times are set in.

(Actually, there are four Superbike qualifying sessions at Daytona, two for slower riders and two for faster riders, as determined by practice times.)

Locking in the front row of the Superbike grid after the first qualifying session was a Daytona-only program.

The benefit for first-row qualifiers was it allowed them to use the second qualifying session for additional practice. Locked-in qualifiers of the past normally used the second qualifying session to do long-distance endurance runs to improve their race set-ups and test tires.

AMA Pro Racing is expected to issue a statement regarding the change in the Daytona qualifying procedure later today.


Update:

AMA Pro Racing Superbike Series Manager Ron Barrick told Roadracingworld.com, “Now that we’re running the condensed schedule and the guys are used to having all of the first day to practice, we, along with the Speedway, decided it was better to do it by the normal method we use at all of the races through the year and combine the times from all qualifying sessions. We didn’t think it was fair to give them just one practice and then just throw them out in the pressure cooker.”

Parts Unlimited Ducati Austin’s Eric Bostrom, the quickest Superbike rider Wednesday morning, agreed, saying, “If they didn’t (give both sessions to chase the pole position) you would be out their with your bike all messed up.”

After announcing the change in the Daytona 200 Superbike qualifying procedure at Wednesday’s rider’s meeting, Barrick announced that the qualifying cut-off limit for Superbike would be 110 percent of the pole position time in 2004, down from 112 percent. All of the other AMA classes will continue to use a 112 percent qualifying cut-off.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

AMA Crew Chiefs and Team Managers said they prefer the new-for-2004, single 40-minute practice sessions versus the normal two, 20-minute practice sessions of the past at Daytona International Speedway.

“It gives you more time to go through tire choices, more time to get the set-up for the tires,” said Yamaha Crew Chief Tom Halverson. “It gives you more ability to work on your strategy for the session and try something different back-to-back on the A-bike and B-bike. I just wish the Supersport and Superstock practice sessions weren’t back-to-back.”

“I generally like these (longer sessions) more,” said Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki Crew Chief Keith Perry. “It’s better to test tires, to put race-distance on tires, especially here at Daytona where tires are so important.”

“I think it’s better to have the longer session,” said Yoshimura Suzuki Team Manager Don Sakakura. “Once you get your test items going it’s better to keep rolling in the session.”

But the feeling was not completely unanimous among AMA team leaders.

“I’d like to have two sessions no matter what, but I like the long session,” said Kawasaki Team Manager Michael Preston. “It’s nice to have two sessions in case you have an issue and it gives your riders time to think and sort stuff out. But we’ve got a good crew of guys, and it’ll be fine.”

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Yamaha’s Aaron Gobert started the 2004 Daytona AMA weekend off right by turning the fastest lap time in Supersport practice, a 1:52.234 on his YZF-R6, a time which is well under the 2003 AMA Supersport lap record (Miguel Duhamel, Honda CBR600RR, 1:52.785) for Daytona International Speedway.

“The track’s pretty good this morning,” Gobert told Roadracingworld.com. “I got a good draft on that lap. You know how it is, this place is all about the draft. It’s good to be fastest, but you have to make sure you don’t let yourself get all built up too early.”

Brother/teammates Tommy and Roger Lee Hayden were second- and third-fastest respectively on the new and improved 2004 Kawasaki ZX-6RR. Tommy Hayden’s 1:52.268 was also under the old lap record, while Roger Lee Hayden’s 1:52.924 was just slower than Duhamel’s record.

Wednesday Morning AMA Supersport Practice Times:

1. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha, 1:52.234
2. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki, 1:52.268
3. Roger Lee Hayden, Kawasaki, 1:52.924
4. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha, 1:52.961
5. Jason DiSalvo, Yamaha, 1:53.120
6. Jamie Hacking, Yamaha, 1:53.260
7. Aaron Yates, Suzuki, 1:53.801
8. Michael Barnes, Yamaha, 1:54.027
9. Ben Spies, Suzuki, 1:54.220
10. Steve Rapp, Suzuki, 1:54.675
11. Chris Peris. Suzuki, 1:54.928
12. Pascal Picotte, Yamaha, 1:55.101
13. Tony Meiring, Kawasaki, 1:55.514
14. Scott Greenwood, Yamaha, 1:55.754
15. Lee Acree, Suzuki, 1:56.977
16. Barrett Long, Yamaha, 1:57.425
17. Danny Eslick, Suzuki, 1:57.568
18. Heath Small, Yamaha, 1:57.710
19. William Meyers, III, Kawasaki, 1:58.248
20. Pedro Valiente, 1:58.421

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Yoshimura Suzuki’s Ben Spies, the 2003 Formula Xtreme Champion, took pole position for the AMA Superstock race Wednesday at Daytona International Speedway with a new lap record of 1:48.202 on his GSX-R1000.

The amazing part of the effort was that Spies encountered technical problems with his preferred, or A-bike, during the session, switched to his back-up bike late, and did his pole time on his one and only flying lap without the aid of a drafting partner.

Graves Yamaha’s Jason DiSalvo had the fastest lap until Spies’ flyer. DiSalvo turned a 1:48.496 while doing unplanned drafting with teammate Jamie Hacking in the middle of the session.

DiSalvo ended up second-fastest, and Hacking finished third-fastest with a 1:48.643.

Hacking started feeling the effects of his morning Supersport crash Wednesday afternoon, could not walk and had to be carried to his bike, and did his fastest time on his only flying lap of the session.

Aaron Gobert earned the final spot on the front row with a time of 1:48.763 on his Graves Yamaha YZF-R1.

Larry Pegram crashed his Triangle Cycles Yamaha YZF-R1 in turn one during the Superstock qualifying session.

Provisional AMA Superstock Qualifying Results:

1. Ben Spies, Suzuki, 1:48.202
2. Jason DiSalvo, Yamaha, 1:48.496
3. Jamie Hacking, Yamaha, 1:48.643
4. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha, 1:48.763
5. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki, 1:49.252
6. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha, 1:49.295
7. Roger Lee Hayden, Kawasaki, 1:49.394
8. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki, 1:50.181
9. Josh Hayes, Kawasaki, 1:50.263
10. John Haner, Suzuki, 1:50.333
11. Vincent Haskovec, Suzuki, 1:50.873
12. Larry Pegram, Yamaha, 1:50.993
13. Shawn Higbee, Suzuki, 1:51.265
14. Alex Gobert, Honda, 1:51.418
15. Eric Wood, Suzuki, 1:51.454
16. Geoff May, Suzuki, 1:51.592
17. Jake Holden, Suzuki, 1:51.633
18. Steve Rapp, Suzuki, 1:51.697
19. Jordan Szoke, Honda, 1:52.163
20. Lee Acree, Suzuki, 1:52.194
21. Jimmy Moore, Suzuki, 1:52.243
22. Pascal Picotte, Yamaha, 1:52.800
23. Chris Caylor, Suzuki, 1:53.185
24. Corey Eaton, Suzuki, 1:54.218
25. J.J. Roetlin, Suzuki, 1:54.319
26. John Dugan, Suzuki, 1:54.783
27. Frank Trombino, Yamaha, 1:55.063
28. Jason Curtis, Suzuki, 1:55.822
29. John McGarity, Suzuki, 1:55.895
30. Craig Fitzpatrick, Suzuki, 1:56.233
31. Marco Martinez, Suzuki, 1:56.352
32. Bostjan Skubic, Suzuki, 1:57.821
33. Roger Bell, Suzuki, 1:57.893
34. Ron McGill, Suzuki, 1:58.433
35. Montez Stewart, Yamaha, 1:58.620
36. David Bell, Suzuki, 1:59.008
37. John Scott Wilson, Suzuki, 1:59.675
38. Eric Haugo, Suzuki, 1:59.918
39. Dave Loikits, Suzuki, 2:00.662
40. Joe Capelli, Suzuki, 2:00.818