Mikayla Moore won the MotoAmerica Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. (BTR) race Sunday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. It was 19-year-old Moore’s fifth win in five races so far in 2023.
Sonya Lloyd earned pole position in qualifying but didn’t have the speed to run with Moore in the race and finished in second place, 11.869 seconds back, for her fourth podium finish of the season.
Crystal Martinez claimed the third and final spot on the podium, her second visit to the podium in 2023.
Defending Champion Kayleigh Buyck sat out practice on Friday due to health issues, qualified third on Sunday morning, and then decided to sit out the race due to the same ongoing health issues.
Five-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier will not ride Sunday in MotoAmerica Medallia Superbike Race Two at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota.
Beaubier had a big highside crash during Superbike Race One on Saturday and suffered a concussion. Although he did not go to a hospital, Beaubier was examined by MotoAmerica’s medical staff and declared unfit to ride.
Regardless of the official ruling, Beaubier said he would not have ridden on Sunday.
“I feel OK, but I’ve been having some spacy moments,” said Beaubier. “The head is not something I want to mess with, and I don’t think anyone should. So, I’m going to sit today out and go home, heal up, and come back to PittRace.”
Sonya Lloyd earned pole position during MotoAmerica Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. (BTR) Qualifying Two Sunday morning at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. Riding her Royal Enfield Continental GT 650, Lloyd lapped the 2.5-mile course in 1:56.756 to lead the field of 12 female riders.
Defending World Champion Alvaro Bautista won World Superbike Race Two Sunday at Autodrom Most, in the Czech Republic. Riding his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, the Spaniard won the 22-lap race by 4.652 seconds. It was Bautista’s 14th full-length race win and his 18th win overall in 2023.
Danilo Petrucci took second place on his Barni Spark Racing Team Ducati by just 0.073 second ahead of Jonathan Rea and his factory Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR.
American Garrett Gerloff crashed his Bonovo Action BMW M 1000 RR, rode back to the pits, and then continued in the race, finishing 20th and two laps down.
Pata Yamaha Prometeon’s Toprak Razgatlioglu crashed and did not finish the race.
Bautista seals historic Race 2 win, sets new all-time record of season wins
Alvaro Bautista (1). Photo courtesy Dorna.
In a dramatic WorldSBK Race 2 at Most, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) emerged as the star of the day, securing a historic 18th win of the season and setting a new all-time record of season wins. The race took a thrilling turn as Bautista’s title rival, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK), crashed out from the lead, handing Bautista a 25-point swing in the Championship standings. Meanwhile, Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) engaged in a fierce battle for the remaining podium positions, with Petrucci ultimately edging out Rea by a mere 0.073 seconds to secure second place.
Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) displayed remarkable resilience, recovering from an early setback when he ran through the gravel at the chicane. Despite losing time, Bassani fought back and finished just 0.061 seconds off the podium in fourth place. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) secured fifth place after a closely contested battle in the closing stages. Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) impressed with a solid sixth-place finish, marking his strongest weekend in the WorldSBK Championship so far.
Read the full report from Race 2 on worldsbk.com
Alvaro Bautista. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Bautista’s 50th WorldSBK victory sets a new all-time record of 18 wins in a single season, extending his Championship lead to 74 points.
P1 | Alvaro Bautista | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“I didn’t expect to win this weekend, especially after a really tough Friday and Saturday. I always believed in myself, tried to be calm and do my best. The Superpole Race was the key. I knew it was important to have a good race and improve the position from P14 on the grid for Race 2. I was fifth or sixth on Lap 1, I think it was one of the best starts of my life. When I was fourth, I was lapping similarly to the three guys in front of me and I thought P4 was nice for Race 2. After mid-race, I saw Bassani dropping a little bit. When it was two laps to go, I tried to close the gap and did my best lap on the penultimate lap. I was very close in the last two corners, and I knew I was a bit stronger than him there.
Third position was nice for Race 2. I had a good battle with Toprak. He always tried to put the bike on the inside at Turn 1. Even if we missed the corner, he was in front. One time, I tried to stay on the inside, but I didn’t want to miss the first corner to avoid him passing me exiting between Turns 1 and 2. He came from the outside and the same. He missed the corner, but he was in front! It was fun. In races, anything can happen until the chequered flag. It’s the good and bad thing about racing. I’m really happy.”
Danilo Petrucci. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Danilo Petrucci snatched second place from Rea in a thrilling battle, securing his third career podium in WorldSBK.
Jonathan Rea (65). Photo courtesy Dorna.
Jonathan Rea finished third, adding to his impressive tally of 256 career podiums, but loses ground to Bautista in the title fight.
Axel Bassani (47) leads Andrea Locatelli (55) at Most. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Axel Bassani showed resilience after an early setback, missing the podium by a mere 0.061 seconds.
Remy Gardner (87). Photo courtesy Dorna.
Remy Gardner impressed with a solid sixth-place finish, displaying consistent pace throughout the race, and concluding his strongest WorldSBK weekend to date.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (standing to the left) crashed out of Race Two. Photo courtesy Dorna.
A highside crash in the second half of the race proved costly for Razgatlioglu, as he lost 25 points to Bautista in the Championship standings.
Tarran Mackenzie won World Supersport Race Two Sunday at Autodrom Most, in the Czech Republic. Riding his PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda CBR600RR, the British racer won the 19-lap race by 2.037 seconds.
It started raining during the race, and Mackenzie opted to stay out on slicks while most of the field pitted to change tires. When it stopped raining and dried out, Mackenzie’s gamble paid off, earning him his first win in the class.
Marcel Schroetter was second on his MV Agusta Reparto Corse F3 RR, 16 seconds clear of his teammate Bahattin Sogfuoglu, who crashed and did a long lap penalty and still got third place.
Former MotoAmerica Supersport regular Valentin Debise finished 12th on his GMT94 Yamaha YZF-R6.
Toprak Razgatlioglu won the World Superbike Superpole Race Sunday morning at Autodrom Most, in the Czech Republic. Riding his Pata Yamaha Prometeon YZF-R1, the Turkish rider won the 10-lap race by 1.203 seconds.
Six-time World Champion Jonathan Rea took second place on his factory Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR, and defending Champion Alvaro Bautista was third on his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, just 1.765 seconds behind Rea.
American Garrett Gerloff finished ninth overall and was the top BMW rider on his Bonovo Action BMW M 1000 RR.
Changes for Practice and Qualifying for the N2/WERA National Endurance Series by Dunlop.
Media, PA (July 2023) – The practice day and qualifying procedure for the N2/WERA National Endurance Series by Dunlop at Pittsburgh International Race Complex has been changed. Traditionally the Friday practice before an Endurance event has been open to racers and track day enthusiasts. Due to the anticipated level of participation for the 6-Hour and 2-Hour Endurance Races at PittRace, N2 and WERA have decided to change the practice day and qualifying procedures.
The N2 Track Day on August 11th, 2023 at Pitt Race has been officially changed to a racer practice day for N2 Endurance and WERA Sprint racers only. All sessions will be timed with a required transponder and the day will be run with three groups based on motorcycle class, not track day classifications. On Friday afternoon, there will be a dedicated session for each Endurance class to determine provisional grids which will be posted on Friday evening. Final timed sessions will be held on Saturday August, 12th 2023 in the morning to improve on times or for those teams unable to make the Friday sessions.
“The Endurance Series continues to grow thanks to our partners like Dunlop, Yamaha, and WERA,” said N2 CEO Jim Curtis. “The turnout for last year’s endurance races at PittRace exceeded our expectations and we expect the turnout to be event larger this year. With the anticipated turnout for the weekend we modified the Friday before the race to be a ‘racer practice’ with timed sessions throughout the day. One rotation in the afternoon will be used to determine provisional grid positions. This will give teams ample time to practice and improve grid position. There will also be a session in the morning on Saturday to improve position and for those teams not able to make the Friday practice. Typically, the day before the event was a track day where track day enthusiasts could sign up and ride. Due to the popularity of racing this weekend that format would not work and we need to allow space for those racing to practice. Full refunds will be issued to those who were signed up for the track day but not racing. We hope they come out and spectate. It’s sure to be another fantastic event.”
Endurance racers are encouraged to sign up for the event and practice as soon as possible including getting on the wait list. Racers can sign up at www.n2td.org
About N2: N2 – Ride, Learn, Race.
Founded in 2014, N2’s mission is to build a sustainable motorcycle community through safe, structured motorcycle track days, advanced rider training programs based on Yamaha Champions Riding School teaching methods, with a strong affinity for motorcycle road racing. N2 successfully resurrected Motorcycle Endurance Racing in America partnering with WERA Roadracing and creating the N2/WERA National Endurance Series by Dunlop. N2 is a premier participant in the MotoAmerica Pro Racing Series with a multi-rider team competing in several classes. N2 is also a major contributor to the Roadracing World Action Fund through fundraising efforts and support from its large member base.
The N2 National Endurance Series is proudly sponsored by: Dunlop Motorcycle Tire, Yamaha Motor Corporation USA, Dainese, Woodcraft Technologies, BobbleHeadMoto, WERA Road Racing, KYT Helmets America, R.E.B Graphics, Millennium Technologies, Wiseco Pistons, JE Pistons, Rise Moto, Ghetto Customs, Pit-Lane Moto and Yamaha Champions Riding School.
Hayden Gillim won MotoAmerica Mission King Of The Baggers Race One Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. Riding his Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Harley-Davidson Road Glide, Gillim won the nine-lap race by 2.546 seconds. It was Gillim’s second win of the season and his second win the last three races.
Bobby Fong was the runner-up on his Sac Mile/SDI Racing/Roland Sands Design Indian Challenger, and Gillim’s teammate James Rispoli scored third place. Gillim is now only four points behind Rispoli and six points behind Wyman in the standings.
Kyle Wyman finished a lonely fourth on his Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson, which was enough for him to retain a small, two-point lead in the Championship over Rispoli.
Defending Champion Tyler O’Hara and his Progressive Insurance/Mission Foods Indian teammate Jeremy McWilliams both suffered mechanical problems and retired from the race.
Rossi Moor won MotoAmerica Junior Cup Race One Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. Riding his Fairium NGRT – Gray Area KTM RC 390R, Moor took the lead on lap two and pulled away to win the 11-lap race by 7.296 seconds.
Hayden Bicknese, Max Van, Jayden Fernandez, and Levi Badie battled for the remaining podium spots until the end of the race. When they crossed the finish line, it was Badie second, Bicknese third, Van fourth, and Fernandez fifth.
After the race, however, Badie was given a two-position penalty for passing under a waving yellow flag, resetting the order to Bicknese second, Van third, Badie fourth, and Fernandez fifth.
Championship point leader Avery Dreher crashed out of the fight for second place mid-race and DNF, but Dreher still holds a 13-point lead in the Championship over Van.
Two-time and defending Champion Jake Gagne won restarted MotoAmerica Medallia Superbike Race One Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota.
Tytlers Cycle Racing BMW’s PJ Jacobsen pushed Gagne from start to finish, but Gagne was able to hold on and win on his Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha by 0.195 second, taking his sixth win of the season and extending his Championship point lead.
Jacobsen tied his career-best finish with second place.
Josh Herrin came in third on his Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, extending his Superbike podium streak to eight.
Four-time Superbike Champion Josh Hayes, riding in place of injured Cameron Petersen on the Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha, had to avoid a crash and turn some of the fastest laps of the race in the closing stages to secure fourth place.
Richie Escalante got fifth on his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R.
Jacobsen’s teammate Cameron Beaubier suffered a big highside crash while running third on lap three of the race and Did Not Finish (DNF).
The original start of the race was halted on the opening lap when fluid was leaked onto the track. The fluid came from the Westby Racing Yamaha of Mathew Scholtz, who rear-ended Jacobsen in a chain reaction incident in Turn Three that was set off by Beaubier overshooting the corner.
Gagne Wins Race One At Brainerd International Raceway To Extend Points Lead
Gagne Victorious, Beaubier Crashes Out And Gagne Now Leads Herrin In Title Chase
Jake Gagne (1) held off PJ Jacobsen (99) to win Race One. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
BRAINERD, MN (July 29, 2023) – The MotoAmerica Medallia Superbike Championship pendulum took a big swing towards two-time defending champion Jake Gagne on Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway with Cameron Beaubier, his main rival for the title coming into the Minnesota round, crashing out of the race early.
And just like that, Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Gagne is close to having a two-race points lead on new second-place man, Josh Herrin. Gagne leads the title chase by 48 points, 242-194, over Warhorse HSBK Ducati Racing’s Herrin.
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Beaubier slips to third in the standings, 59 points behind Gagne.
Despite not having Beaubier to deal with, Gagne still didn’t have it easy as Beaubier’s teammate PJ Jacobsen flew the team’s flag and hounded the Yamaha man to the finish, ending up with a gap of just .195 of a second in the race that saw a complete restart after a melee on the opening lap.
Third place went to Herrin, 3.48 seconds behind Gagne and 1.2 seconds ahead of four-time AMA Superbike Champion Josh Hayes, who was competing in his first Superbike race since 2017 (a span of 108 Superbike races). Hayes, who was riding in place of the injured Cameron Petersen on the Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing YZF-R1, got faster as the race wore on – apparently not overly fatigued even though he had raced to victory in the Supersport race 20 minutes earlier. Not to mention the emotions of a man who with that Supersport win became the all-time leader in AMA victories across all classes with his 87th win.
Josh Herrin (2) was third and Richie Escalante (54) got fifth. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante was fifth, 1.2 seconds behind Hayes and some six seconds clear of Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong, who had his best finish since returning to the class.
Seventh place went to Disrupt Racing’s Hayden Gillim, who was doing triple duty on the day with races in Superbike, Mission King Of The Baggers (he won) and Steel Commander Stock 1000 (he also won that).
Escalante’s new teammate Brandon Paasch started fast but faded, eventually finishing eighth in his third race on the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000 R.
Aftercare Scheibe Racing’s Ashton Yates and Thrashed Bike Racing’s Max Flinders rounded out the top 10.
The first attempt at a race was stopped after the opening lap when Beaubier clipped the back of Gagne’s Yamaha in turn two and then veered off track, taking Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz with him. With the race featuring a complete restart, Beaubier was able to take his spot on pole for the second go. Scholtz wasn’t as lucky as his radiator was torn open in the melee, causing the motor to expire.
Superbike Race 1
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
PJ Jacobsen (BMW)
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Josh Hayes (Yamaha)
Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
Hayden Gillim (Suzuki)
Brandon Paasch (Suzuki)
Ashton Yates (BMW)
Max Flinders (Yamaha)
Quotes
Jake Gagne – Winner
“After a couple of laps, I could see PJ’s (Jacobsen) pit board come out. Then there was one point after maybe five or six laps, I saw a Beemer on the side of the track, and I think I saw Cameron (Beaubier). I recognized the helmet. I didn’t know what happened. It was tough. It was really greasier and slicker than I think most of us expected, so right from the get-go I was just trying to hit my marks and not make any mistakes. It seemed like it would have been really easy to throw it away today. PJ was there. I knew Josh (Herrin) was in third. There were a couple laps I could see PJ’s pit board and I could see that Josh was maybe getting a couple tenths back. So, hats off to the team. I think we’re lucky. We got a little lucky today. It sucks to see Beaubier go down that big. I just saw it on the camera. I hope that he’s all good. I think he was kind of the guy setting the pace this weekend. So, I think we’re in for a good show tomorrow. We’ll go back and see if we can improve a couple little things. Just hats off to the team. Always helping me and trying to make me a better rider and understand what we need to go forward. I miss Cam P (Petersen), but it’s been good having (Josh) Hayes out here helping us out and having his input, because the guy has been around a long time and he’s super wise. So hopefully we can put our heads together later, get a little better, a little faster. He’s the all-time American-winning machine now.”
PJ Jacobsen – Second Place
“It was a pretty crazy race, especially everything that happened at the start of the race with Cam (Beaubier) and then I moved over a little bit to avoid him because I was going to get cleaned out. And then (Mathew) Scholtz really smashed into the back of me. I think I got a whole bunch of oil all over my tire because I went into the next corner and I almost highsided, and the same with the right. So, it was kind of freaking me out. I thought I bent my swingarm or something happened, or the tire spun or something. So, I was yelling to Scotty (his crew chief, Jensen) when we got in there like, ‘what are we going to do?’ Because something’s wrong. We were going over it with Dunlop and stuff, but I just went back out there with the same tire I guess oiled up or whatever and tried to clean it off. It was a pretty crazy race. Then I was mad because they were going to put me back on row seven or something for no reason. I was like flipping out, cursing in my helmet. I had a whole bunch of adrenaline going. I was bummed that I got a great start the first time, so I just wanted to kind of do that again the second time. I just felt like I could have made a pass on Jake (Gagne) in the beginning of the race when I had more grip and stuff. I was seeing some spots, but I just didn’t go for it. I was sitting there behind him. Then he pulled a small bit of a gap, and it seemed like it stayed the same. I’d catch him in some spots, and he’d pull away in others. I tried to do what he was doing. I was picking the bike up as much as I could and it seemed like it was helping, but obviously it just wouldn’t bring me closer to him. But it was a good race. It was really greasy and hot. The lap times, I thought, were not really that great, to be honest. I think it was just the lack of grip that we had out there today. So, it kind of set us back a little bit and staying in the 31s. But it was a good race. Good job. I saw on the pit board with plus 1.9 or 2 or whatever to Josh (Herrin), so I was trying to maintain that as well because you know he’ll be coming on as well in that race. It was a hard race. I tried to get the win, but I just didn’t have enough there at the end. So, congrats to Josh and Jake on being on the podium. We’ll try to figure out some things tonight to improve and try to move one more spot forward, but it’s hard with the talent out there.”
Josh Herrin – Third Place
“I just wasn’t feeling myself this weekend. I came into here maybe trying to be too confident because I don’t like this track layout. I love the facility. I love the event, but the track layout I’m just not good at. So naturally whatever tracks we don’t do good at, we don’t like them. It’s not because it’s a bad layout, but if I don’t do good here, I’m not a big fan. So, I came into it trying to think of it the opposite way, think we’re going to have a great weekend. Then I think when I didn’t start really good it made it even worse in my head. I’ve just been struggling. We got a good setup at the very end of the day yesterday. Threw down a good time but everybody is so close that it didn’t look that good. But we were within six or seven tenths. Then tried a big change this morning thinking it would help us even more, but it was worse. So, then we really only got two laps at the end to feel comfortable. So, I knew that we could be battling. I figured we might be battling for second or third, but the race actually ended up I felt a lot better than I thought I was going to. I think just with the restart, I’m not sure but the front was just really greasy. When Cam (Beaubier) went down I lost maybe two seconds or something and I kind of clawed back up, but I didn’t feel like with me gaining as many points as I was going to gain on Cam, I didn’t push that extra two percent that I needed to do try to catch him. I don’t know if it would have been possible, but I had a chance. I clawed them back a little bit and then when the front started moving around a little bit, I just wanted to make sure that I was playing it safe and getting another podium finish here this weekend and leave here today honestly pumped, because qualifying seventh is not fun. To come away from here with a third and be second in points is good. But now we’ve got fifty points to make up on Jake, so that’s going to be really hard. Hats off to my guys. Like I said on the podium, I’m bummed Eraldo (Ferracci) isn’t here because this helmet was extra special. We’ve been planning it all year. So, I’m bummed that he didn’t make it, but this will be going in his house whenever we’re done with this weekend. So, hopefully, tomorrow we can be closer to the front for him. Congrats to Josh Hayes on his all-time win record today. I know that’s a huge deal for him. Being teammates with him for a long time and looking up to him since I started racing when I was 16, 18 years ago, I know it’s a huge deal. It’s cool to see him. I’m still looking up to him and hoping that when I’m 48 years old that I can be that fast. So, hats off to him and I’m sure there’s going to be more to come.”
More, from a press release issued by Westby Racing:
Chain Reaction Takes Mathew Scholtz And His Westby Racing Yamaha Out Of Superbike Race One At Brainerd
Mathew Scholtz (11) was the victim of a chain-reaction incident at the start of Race One. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Westby Racing.
Brainerd, MN – July 29, 2023 – Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz made an evasive maneuver in Saturday’s Superbike race one at Brainerd International Raceway, but he still got the worst of a “chain reaction” that unfortunately took him out of the race.
Starting from the middle of the second row on the grid, Mathew got off to a good start, but on the opening lap, Cameron Beaubier’s motorcycle clipped the back end of Jake Gagne’s motorcycle, which caused PJ Jacobsen to stop quickly in order to avoid a collision. Mathew had to swerve to avoid hitting Jacobsen, but unfortunately, the radiator on Mathew’s Westby Racing YZF-R1 Superbike contacted the drive chain and rear sprocket on Jacobsen’s motorcycle, which tore a hole in the radiator. Mathew also went off-track momentarily, but he kept the bike upright, and attempted to re-join the race. His R1’s engine was also leaking oil, however, and it unfortunately expired. The race was red-flagged, but Mathew was unable to make the restart due to the damage to his bike.
“It was a shame what happened,” commented Mathew. “I felt like I had good pace, but I never got to show it. I tried to avoid getting caught up in the incident, but there was nothing I could do. I know the Westby boys will have the bike ready to go for morning warm up, and I’m looking forward to the second race. We were just unlucky today, so tomorrow, I’m expecting to be racing with the front group.”
Superbike race two will go green Sunday afternoon at 3:10 CT, and the race will be broadcast live on MotoAmerica’s YouTube Channel. For all the action from Brainerd International Raceway, as it happens, subscribe to MotoAmerica Live+, which is MotoAmerica’s live streaming and on-demand service.
Meet Mathew, Get An Autographed Poster, And More
Mathew will be available for autographs during the Dunlop Hot Pit Walk & Autograph Session, scheduled for 11 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday on pit lane at BIR. He and the team will be handing out free posters and T-shirts, so don’t miss it.
Check Out The Westby Racing Sponsor Showcase
RK Excel America, NGK Spark Plugs, and Motorex USA are the featured team sponsors on display in the Westby Racing paddock area this race weekend, so be sure to stop by to say hello and learn about some of the companies that support the team.
For more updates about Westby Racing, including news, photos, and videos, visit www.WestbyRacing.com
Also, follow “Westby Racing” on your favorite social media sites.
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Gagne Expands Championship Lead with Brainerd Victory
Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne scores 35th MotoAmerica Superbike victory in Race 1 at Brainerd International Raceway
MARIETTA, Ga. – July 30, 2023 – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne put in a superb ride and returned to the top in MotoAmerica Superbike Race 1 at the Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minnesota. The reigning champ led from start to finish despite being under pressure to score his sixth win of the season and expand his championship lead to 48 points. Filling in for the injured Cameron Petersen, Josh Hayes also showed strength in his first race aboard the Attack Performance prepped Yamaha R1, setting some fast times towards the end of the race to come back to a fourth-place finish.
Gagne hit the ground running and topped both sessions on Friday but ultimately qualified third to have a good position on the front row. The Colorado rider got a great start in a drama-filled beginning to Race 1, grabbing both holeshots in the twice-restarted race. He threw down the fastest lap of the race on Lap 2, but the competition was hot on his heels, and stayed in the fight the entire race. Gagne kept cool under pressure in the greasy track conditions to lead every lap and score his 35th-career win in the premier class. His sixth win of the season also made championship gains, expanding his lead to 48 points.
Hayes also had a good start to the weekend and was third in Friday’s first Superbike qualifying session. Unfortunately, he had a crash late in the second qualifying session and ended up eighth in combined times but was unhurt. Fresh off of his Supersport win, which marked a record-breaking 87th-career victory to become the winningest AMA rider across all classes, Hayes switched gears to go Superbike racing. He had a decent start from the third row of the grid aboard the Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing R1 and quickly made his way to sixth after the restart. Hayes lost a little time and a position after having to avoid a downed rider and the bike on Lap 3, but he put his head down and made the pass for fifth three laps later. The four-time Superbike Champion picked up the pace, setting his fastest lap of the race at the halfway mark and running some consistently fast times to make an impressive charge in the latter half of the race. Hayes closed the gap and advanced to fourth with five laps to go, and was closing the gap to third, but ultimately ran out of time and rode on to secure a solid fourth-place finish.
The Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing Team looks to keep the momentum rolling in MotoAmerica Superbike Race 2 at the Brainerd International Raceway.
Richard Stanboli – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“The team did a great job. Like the champion that he is, Jake rode a precise, error-free race leading every lap. Josh surprised us all with his early speed on Friday and his late-race speed in Race 1. He showed real podium potential. It’s a lot of fun having him on our bike after his first ride with us 20 years ago. We look forward to Race 2.”
Jake Gagne (1). Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Jake Gagne – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing
“Today’s Race 1 was the toughest feeling yet, and it was hard to run good lap times. It was hot and greasy and slick, but I just tried to keep a clean, smart race, and I’m happy we brought home a win. We learned a lot for tomorrow.”
Josh Hayes (4). Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Josh Hayes – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing
“Today was a pretty special day with my 87th career win on my Squid Hunter R6, followed up with my first Superbike start since 2017!
“My reunion with Attack Performance, 20 years after winning my first pro championship with the team, has gone really well. Friday was a pleasant surprise to be so close in pace with Jake, but my mistake in Q2 set me up for an uphill battle from the third row. I was a little tentative at the start and in the early laps while learning the ropes again, but I am proud to have a strong late-race pace after such a long day. Fourth will have to do, but I believe that we have the pace to challenge for the podium tomorrow with any luck.”
Brainerd International Raceway. Photo courtesy MotoAmerica.
Mikayla Moore won the MotoAmerica Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. (BTR) race Sunday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. It was 19-year-old Moore’s fifth win in five races so far in 2023.
Sonya Lloyd earned pole position in qualifying but didn’t have the speed to run with Moore in the race and finished in second place, 11.869 seconds back, for her fourth podium finish of the season.
Crystal Martinez claimed the third and final spot on the podium, her second visit to the podium in 2023.
Defending Champion Kayleigh Buyck sat out practice on Friday due to health issues, qualified third on Sunday morning, and then decided to sit out the race due to the same ongoing health issues.
Cameron Beaubier (right) with his Crew Chief Dave Weaver (left) on the grid prior to Superbike Race One at Brainerd. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Five-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier will not ride Sunday in MotoAmerica Medallia Superbike Race Two at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota.
Beaubier had a big highside crash during Superbike Race One on Saturday and suffered a concussion. Although he did not go to a hospital, Beaubier was examined by MotoAmerica’s medical staff and declared unfit to ride.
Regardless of the official ruling, Beaubier said he would not have ridden on Sunday.
“I feel OK, but I’ve been having some spacy moments,” said Beaubier. “The head is not something I want to mess with, and I don’t think anyone should. So, I’m going to sit today out and go home, heal up, and come back to PittRace.”
Sonya Lloyd earned pole position during MotoAmerica Royal Enfield Build. Train. Race. (BTR) Qualifying Two Sunday morning at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. Riding her Royal Enfield Continental GT 650, Lloyd lapped the 2.5-mile course in 1:56.756 to lead the field of 12 female riders.
Defending World Champion Alvaro Bautista won World Superbike Race Two Sunday at Autodrom Most, in the Czech Republic. Riding his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, the Spaniard won the 22-lap race by 4.652 seconds. It was Bautista’s 14th full-length race win and his 18th win overall in 2023.
Danilo Petrucci took second place on his Barni Spark Racing Team Ducati by just 0.073 second ahead of Jonathan Rea and his factory Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR.
American Garrett Gerloff crashed his Bonovo Action BMW M 1000 RR, rode back to the pits, and then continued in the race, finishing 20th and two laps down.
Pata Yamaha Prometeon’s Toprak Razgatlioglu crashed and did not finish the race.
Bautista seals historic Race 2 win, sets new all-time record of season wins
Alvaro Bautista (1). Photo courtesy Dorna.
In a dramatic WorldSBK Race 2 at Most, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) emerged as the star of the day, securing a historic 18th win of the season and setting a new all-time record of season wins. The race took a thrilling turn as Bautista’s title rival, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK), crashed out from the lead, handing Bautista a 25-point swing in the Championship standings. Meanwhile, Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) engaged in a fierce battle for the remaining podium positions, with Petrucci ultimately edging out Rea by a mere 0.073 seconds to secure second place.
Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) displayed remarkable resilience, recovering from an early setback when he ran through the gravel at the chicane. Despite losing time, Bassani fought back and finished just 0.061 seconds off the podium in fourth place. Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) secured fifth place after a closely contested battle in the closing stages. Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) impressed with a solid sixth-place finish, marking his strongest weekend in the WorldSBK Championship so far.
Read the full report from Race 2 on worldsbk.com
Alvaro Bautista. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Bautista’s 50th WorldSBK victory sets a new all-time record of 18 wins in a single season, extending his Championship lead to 74 points.
P1 | Alvaro Bautista | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“I didn’t expect to win this weekend, especially after a really tough Friday and Saturday. I always believed in myself, tried to be calm and do my best. The Superpole Race was the key. I knew it was important to have a good race and improve the position from P14 on the grid for Race 2. I was fifth or sixth on Lap 1, I think it was one of the best starts of my life. When I was fourth, I was lapping similarly to the three guys in front of me and I thought P4 was nice for Race 2. After mid-race, I saw Bassani dropping a little bit. When it was two laps to go, I tried to close the gap and did my best lap on the penultimate lap. I was very close in the last two corners, and I knew I was a bit stronger than him there.
Third position was nice for Race 2. I had a good battle with Toprak. He always tried to put the bike on the inside at Turn 1. Even if we missed the corner, he was in front. One time, I tried to stay on the inside, but I didn’t want to miss the first corner to avoid him passing me exiting between Turns 1 and 2. He came from the outside and the same. He missed the corner, but he was in front! It was fun. In races, anything can happen until the chequered flag. It’s the good and bad thing about racing. I’m really happy.”
Danilo Petrucci. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Danilo Petrucci snatched second place from Rea in a thrilling battle, securing his third career podium in WorldSBK.
Jonathan Rea (65). Photo courtesy Dorna.
Jonathan Rea finished third, adding to his impressive tally of 256 career podiums, but loses ground to Bautista in the title fight.
Axel Bassani (47) leads Andrea Locatelli (55) at Most. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Axel Bassani showed resilience after an early setback, missing the podium by a mere 0.061 seconds.
Remy Gardner (87). Photo courtesy Dorna.
Remy Gardner impressed with a solid sixth-place finish, displaying consistent pace throughout the race, and concluding his strongest WorldSBK weekend to date.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (standing to the left) crashed out of Race Two. Photo courtesy Dorna.
A highside crash in the second half of the race proved costly for Razgatlioglu, as he lost 25 points to Bautista in the Championship standings.
Tarran Mackenzie won World Supersport Race Two Sunday at Autodrom Most, in the Czech Republic. Riding his PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda CBR600RR, the British racer won the 19-lap race by 2.037 seconds.
It started raining during the race, and Mackenzie opted to stay out on slicks while most of the field pitted to change tires. When it stopped raining and dried out, Mackenzie’s gamble paid off, earning him his first win in the class.
Marcel Schroetter was second on his MV Agusta Reparto Corse F3 RR, 16 seconds clear of his teammate Bahattin Sogfuoglu, who crashed and did a long lap penalty and still got third place.
Former MotoAmerica Supersport regular Valentin Debise finished 12th on his GMT94 Yamaha YZF-R6.
Toprak Razgatlioglu won the World Superbike Superpole Race Sunday morning at Autodrom Most, in the Czech Republic. Riding his Pata Yamaha Prometeon YZF-R1, the Turkish rider won the 10-lap race by 1.203 seconds.
Six-time World Champion Jonathan Rea took second place on his factory Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR, and defending Champion Alvaro Bautista was third on his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, just 1.765 seconds behind Rea.
American Garrett Gerloff finished ninth overall and was the top BMW rider on his Bonovo Action BMW M 1000 RR.
The starting grid of an N2/WERA National Endurance race at PittRace. Photo courtesy N2.
Changes for Practice and Qualifying for the N2/WERA National Endurance Series by Dunlop.
Media, PA (July 2023) – The practice day and qualifying procedure for the N2/WERA National Endurance Series by Dunlop at Pittsburgh International Race Complex has been changed. Traditionally the Friday practice before an Endurance event has been open to racers and track day enthusiasts. Due to the anticipated level of participation for the 6-Hour and 2-Hour Endurance Races at PittRace, N2 and WERA have decided to change the practice day and qualifying procedures.
The N2 Track Day on August 11th, 2023 at Pitt Race has been officially changed to a racer practice day for N2 Endurance and WERA Sprint racers only. All sessions will be timed with a required transponder and the day will be run with three groups based on motorcycle class, not track day classifications. On Friday afternoon, there will be a dedicated session for each Endurance class to determine provisional grids which will be posted on Friday evening. Final timed sessions will be held on Saturday August, 12th 2023 in the morning to improve on times or for those teams unable to make the Friday sessions.
“The Endurance Series continues to grow thanks to our partners like Dunlop, Yamaha, and WERA,” said N2 CEO Jim Curtis. “The turnout for last year’s endurance races at PittRace exceeded our expectations and we expect the turnout to be event larger this year. With the anticipated turnout for the weekend we modified the Friday before the race to be a ‘racer practice’ with timed sessions throughout the day. One rotation in the afternoon will be used to determine provisional grid positions. This will give teams ample time to practice and improve grid position. There will also be a session in the morning on Saturday to improve position and for those teams not able to make the Friday practice. Typically, the day before the event was a track day where track day enthusiasts could sign up and ride. Due to the popularity of racing this weekend that format would not work and we need to allow space for those racing to practice. Full refunds will be issued to those who were signed up for the track day but not racing. We hope they come out and spectate. It’s sure to be another fantastic event.”
Endurance racers are encouraged to sign up for the event and practice as soon as possible including getting on the wait list. Racers can sign up at www.n2td.org
About N2: N2 – Ride, Learn, Race.
Founded in 2014, N2’s mission is to build a sustainable motorcycle community through safe, structured motorcycle track days, advanced rider training programs based on Yamaha Champions Riding School teaching methods, with a strong affinity for motorcycle road racing. N2 successfully resurrected Motorcycle Endurance Racing in America partnering with WERA Roadracing and creating the N2/WERA National Endurance Series by Dunlop. N2 is a premier participant in the MotoAmerica Pro Racing Series with a multi-rider team competing in several classes. N2 is also a major contributor to the Roadracing World Action Fund through fundraising efforts and support from its large member base.
The N2 National Endurance Series is proudly sponsored by: Dunlop Motorcycle Tire, Yamaha Motor Corporation USA, Dainese, Woodcraft Technologies, BobbleHeadMoto, WERA Road Racing, KYT Helmets America, R.E.B Graphics, Millennium Technologies, Wiseco Pistons, JE Pistons, Rise Moto, Ghetto Customs, Pit-Lane Moto and Yamaha Champions Riding School.
Brainerd International Raceway. Photo courtesy MotoAmerica.
Hayden Gillim won MotoAmerica Mission King Of The Baggers Race One Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. Riding his Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Harley-Davidson Road Glide, Gillim won the nine-lap race by 2.546 seconds. It was Gillim’s second win of the season and his second win the last three races.
Bobby Fong was the runner-up on his Sac Mile/SDI Racing/Roland Sands Design Indian Challenger, and Gillim’s teammate James Rispoli scored third place. Gillim is now only four points behind Rispoli and six points behind Wyman in the standings.
Kyle Wyman finished a lonely fourth on his Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson, which was enough for him to retain a small, two-point lead in the Championship over Rispoli.
Defending Champion Tyler O’Hara and his Progressive Insurance/Mission Foods Indian teammate Jeremy McWilliams both suffered mechanical problems and retired from the race.
Brainerd International Raceway. Photo courtesy MotoAmerica.
Rossi Moor won MotoAmerica Junior Cup Race One Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota. Riding his Fairium NGRT – Gray Area KTM RC 390R, Moor took the lead on lap two and pulled away to win the 11-lap race by 7.296 seconds.
Hayden Bicknese, Max Van, Jayden Fernandez, and Levi Badie battled for the remaining podium spots until the end of the race. When they crossed the finish line, it was Badie second, Bicknese third, Van fourth, and Fernandez fifth.
After the race, however, Badie was given a two-position penalty for passing under a waving yellow flag, resetting the order to Bicknese second, Van third, Badie fourth, and Fernandez fifth.
Championship point leader Avery Dreher crashed out of the fight for second place mid-race and DNF, but Dreher still holds a 13-point lead in the Championship over Van.
Brainerd International Raceway. Photo courtesy MotoAmerica.
Two-time and defending Champion Jake Gagne won restarted MotoAmerica Medallia Superbike Race One Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, in Brainerd, Minnesota.
Tytlers Cycle Racing BMW’s PJ Jacobsen pushed Gagne from start to finish, but Gagne was able to hold on and win on his Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha by 0.195 second, taking his sixth win of the season and extending his Championship point lead.
Jacobsen tied his career-best finish with second place.
Josh Herrin came in third on his Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, extending his Superbike podium streak to eight.
Four-time Superbike Champion Josh Hayes, riding in place of injured Cameron Petersen on the Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha, had to avoid a crash and turn some of the fastest laps of the race in the closing stages to secure fourth place.
Richie Escalante got fifth on his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R.
Jacobsen’s teammate Cameron Beaubier suffered a big highside crash while running third on lap three of the race and Did Not Finish (DNF).
The original start of the race was halted on the opening lap when fluid was leaked onto the track. The fluid came from the Westby Racing Yamaha of Mathew Scholtz, who rear-ended Jacobsen in a chain reaction incident in Turn Three that was set off by Beaubier overshooting the corner.
Gagne Wins Race One At Brainerd International Raceway To Extend Points Lead
Gagne Victorious, Beaubier Crashes Out And Gagne Now Leads Herrin In Title Chase
Jake Gagne (1) held off PJ Jacobsen (99) to win Race One. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
BRAINERD, MN (July 29, 2023) – The MotoAmerica Medallia Superbike Championship pendulum took a big swing towards two-time defending champion Jake Gagne on Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway with Cameron Beaubier, his main rival for the title coming into the Minnesota round, crashing out of the race early.
And just like that, Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Gagne is close to having a two-race points lead on new second-place man, Josh Herrin. Gagne leads the title chase by 48 points, 242-194, over Warhorse HSBK Ducati Racing’s Herrin.
Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Beaubier slips to third in the standings, 59 points behind Gagne.
Despite not having Beaubier to deal with, Gagne still didn’t have it easy as Beaubier’s teammate PJ Jacobsen flew the team’s flag and hounded the Yamaha man to the finish, ending up with a gap of just .195 of a second in the race that saw a complete restart after a melee on the opening lap.
Third place went to Herrin, 3.48 seconds behind Gagne and 1.2 seconds ahead of four-time AMA Superbike Champion Josh Hayes, who was competing in his first Superbike race since 2017 (a span of 108 Superbike races). Hayes, who was riding in place of the injured Cameron Petersen on the Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing YZF-R1, got faster as the race wore on – apparently not overly fatigued even though he had raced to victory in the Supersport race 20 minutes earlier. Not to mention the emotions of a man who with that Supersport win became the all-time leader in AMA victories across all classes with his 87th win.
Josh Herrin (2) was third and Richie Escalante (54) got fifth. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante was fifth, 1.2 seconds behind Hayes and some six seconds clear of Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong, who had his best finish since returning to the class.
Seventh place went to Disrupt Racing’s Hayden Gillim, who was doing triple duty on the day with races in Superbike, Mission King Of The Baggers (he won) and Steel Commander Stock 1000 (he also won that).
Escalante’s new teammate Brandon Paasch started fast but faded, eventually finishing eighth in his third race on the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000 R.
Aftercare Scheibe Racing’s Ashton Yates and Thrashed Bike Racing’s Max Flinders rounded out the top 10.
The first attempt at a race was stopped after the opening lap when Beaubier clipped the back of Gagne’s Yamaha in turn two and then veered off track, taking Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz with him. With the race featuring a complete restart, Beaubier was able to take his spot on pole for the second go. Scholtz wasn’t as lucky as his radiator was torn open in the melee, causing the motor to expire.
Superbike Race 1
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
PJ Jacobsen (BMW)
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Josh Hayes (Yamaha)
Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
Hayden Gillim (Suzuki)
Brandon Paasch (Suzuki)
Ashton Yates (BMW)
Max Flinders (Yamaha)
Quotes
Jake Gagne – Winner
“After a couple of laps, I could see PJ’s (Jacobsen) pit board come out. Then there was one point after maybe five or six laps, I saw a Beemer on the side of the track, and I think I saw Cameron (Beaubier). I recognized the helmet. I didn’t know what happened. It was tough. It was really greasier and slicker than I think most of us expected, so right from the get-go I was just trying to hit my marks and not make any mistakes. It seemed like it would have been really easy to throw it away today. PJ was there. I knew Josh (Herrin) was in third. There were a couple laps I could see PJ’s pit board and I could see that Josh was maybe getting a couple tenths back. So, hats off to the team. I think we’re lucky. We got a little lucky today. It sucks to see Beaubier go down that big. I just saw it on the camera. I hope that he’s all good. I think he was kind of the guy setting the pace this weekend. So, I think we’re in for a good show tomorrow. We’ll go back and see if we can improve a couple little things. Just hats off to the team. Always helping me and trying to make me a better rider and understand what we need to go forward. I miss Cam P (Petersen), but it’s been good having (Josh) Hayes out here helping us out and having his input, because the guy has been around a long time and he’s super wise. So hopefully we can put our heads together later, get a little better, a little faster. He’s the all-time American-winning machine now.”
PJ Jacobsen – Second Place
“It was a pretty crazy race, especially everything that happened at the start of the race with Cam (Beaubier) and then I moved over a little bit to avoid him because I was going to get cleaned out. And then (Mathew) Scholtz really smashed into the back of me. I think I got a whole bunch of oil all over my tire because I went into the next corner and I almost highsided, and the same with the right. So, it was kind of freaking me out. I thought I bent my swingarm or something happened, or the tire spun or something. So, I was yelling to Scotty (his crew chief, Jensen) when we got in there like, ‘what are we going to do?’ Because something’s wrong. We were going over it with Dunlop and stuff, but I just went back out there with the same tire I guess oiled up or whatever and tried to clean it off. It was a pretty crazy race. Then I was mad because they were going to put me back on row seven or something for no reason. I was like flipping out, cursing in my helmet. I had a whole bunch of adrenaline going. I was bummed that I got a great start the first time, so I just wanted to kind of do that again the second time. I just felt like I could have made a pass on Jake (Gagne) in the beginning of the race when I had more grip and stuff. I was seeing some spots, but I just didn’t go for it. I was sitting there behind him. Then he pulled a small bit of a gap, and it seemed like it stayed the same. I’d catch him in some spots, and he’d pull away in others. I tried to do what he was doing. I was picking the bike up as much as I could and it seemed like it was helping, but obviously it just wouldn’t bring me closer to him. But it was a good race. It was really greasy and hot. The lap times, I thought, were not really that great, to be honest. I think it was just the lack of grip that we had out there today. So, it kind of set us back a little bit and staying in the 31s. But it was a good race. Good job. I saw on the pit board with plus 1.9 or 2 or whatever to Josh (Herrin), so I was trying to maintain that as well because you know he’ll be coming on as well in that race. It was a hard race. I tried to get the win, but I just didn’t have enough there at the end. So, congrats to Josh and Jake on being on the podium. We’ll try to figure out some things tonight to improve and try to move one more spot forward, but it’s hard with the talent out there.”
Josh Herrin – Third Place
“I just wasn’t feeling myself this weekend. I came into here maybe trying to be too confident because I don’t like this track layout. I love the facility. I love the event, but the track layout I’m just not good at. So naturally whatever tracks we don’t do good at, we don’t like them. It’s not because it’s a bad layout, but if I don’t do good here, I’m not a big fan. So, I came into it trying to think of it the opposite way, think we’re going to have a great weekend. Then I think when I didn’t start really good it made it even worse in my head. I’ve just been struggling. We got a good setup at the very end of the day yesterday. Threw down a good time but everybody is so close that it didn’t look that good. But we were within six or seven tenths. Then tried a big change this morning thinking it would help us even more, but it was worse. So, then we really only got two laps at the end to feel comfortable. So, I knew that we could be battling. I figured we might be battling for second or third, but the race actually ended up I felt a lot better than I thought I was going to. I think just with the restart, I’m not sure but the front was just really greasy. When Cam (Beaubier) went down I lost maybe two seconds or something and I kind of clawed back up, but I didn’t feel like with me gaining as many points as I was going to gain on Cam, I didn’t push that extra two percent that I needed to do try to catch him. I don’t know if it would have been possible, but I had a chance. I clawed them back a little bit and then when the front started moving around a little bit, I just wanted to make sure that I was playing it safe and getting another podium finish here this weekend and leave here today honestly pumped, because qualifying seventh is not fun. To come away from here with a third and be second in points is good. But now we’ve got fifty points to make up on Jake, so that’s going to be really hard. Hats off to my guys. Like I said on the podium, I’m bummed Eraldo (Ferracci) isn’t here because this helmet was extra special. We’ve been planning it all year. So, I’m bummed that he didn’t make it, but this will be going in his house whenever we’re done with this weekend. So, hopefully, tomorrow we can be closer to the front for him. Congrats to Josh Hayes on his all-time win record today. I know that’s a huge deal for him. Being teammates with him for a long time and looking up to him since I started racing when I was 16, 18 years ago, I know it’s a huge deal. It’s cool to see him. I’m still looking up to him and hoping that when I’m 48 years old that I can be that fast. So, hats off to him and I’m sure there’s going to be more to come.”
More, from a press release issued by Westby Racing:
Chain Reaction Takes Mathew Scholtz And His Westby Racing Yamaha Out Of Superbike Race One At Brainerd
Mathew Scholtz (11) was the victim of a chain-reaction incident at the start of Race One. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy Westby Racing.
Brainerd, MN – July 29, 2023 – Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz made an evasive maneuver in Saturday’s Superbike race one at Brainerd International Raceway, but he still got the worst of a “chain reaction” that unfortunately took him out of the race.
Starting from the middle of the second row on the grid, Mathew got off to a good start, but on the opening lap, Cameron Beaubier’s motorcycle clipped the back end of Jake Gagne’s motorcycle, which caused PJ Jacobsen to stop quickly in order to avoid a collision. Mathew had to swerve to avoid hitting Jacobsen, but unfortunately, the radiator on Mathew’s Westby Racing YZF-R1 Superbike contacted the drive chain and rear sprocket on Jacobsen’s motorcycle, which tore a hole in the radiator. Mathew also went off-track momentarily, but he kept the bike upright, and attempted to re-join the race. His R1’s engine was also leaking oil, however, and it unfortunately expired. The race was red-flagged, but Mathew was unable to make the restart due to the damage to his bike.
“It was a shame what happened,” commented Mathew. “I felt like I had good pace, but I never got to show it. I tried to avoid getting caught up in the incident, but there was nothing I could do. I know the Westby boys will have the bike ready to go for morning warm up, and I’m looking forward to the second race. We were just unlucky today, so tomorrow, I’m expecting to be racing with the front group.”
Superbike race two will go green Sunday afternoon at 3:10 CT, and the race will be broadcast live on MotoAmerica’s YouTube Channel. For all the action from Brainerd International Raceway, as it happens, subscribe to MotoAmerica Live+, which is MotoAmerica’s live streaming and on-demand service.
Meet Mathew, Get An Autographed Poster, And More
Mathew will be available for autographs during the Dunlop Hot Pit Walk & Autograph Session, scheduled for 11 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday on pit lane at BIR. He and the team will be handing out free posters and T-shirts, so don’t miss it.
Check Out The Westby Racing Sponsor Showcase
RK Excel America, NGK Spark Plugs, and Motorex USA are the featured team sponsors on display in the Westby Racing paddock area this race weekend, so be sure to stop by to say hello and learn about some of the companies that support the team.
For more updates about Westby Racing, including news, photos, and videos, visit www.WestbyRacing.com
Also, follow “Westby Racing” on your favorite social media sites.
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha:
Gagne Expands Championship Lead with Brainerd Victory
Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne scores 35th MotoAmerica Superbike victory in Race 1 at Brainerd International Raceway
MARIETTA, Ga. – July 30, 2023 – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne put in a superb ride and returned to the top in MotoAmerica Superbike Race 1 at the Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minnesota. The reigning champ led from start to finish despite being under pressure to score his sixth win of the season and expand his championship lead to 48 points. Filling in for the injured Cameron Petersen, Josh Hayes also showed strength in his first race aboard the Attack Performance prepped Yamaha R1, setting some fast times towards the end of the race to come back to a fourth-place finish.
Gagne hit the ground running and topped both sessions on Friday but ultimately qualified third to have a good position on the front row. The Colorado rider got a great start in a drama-filled beginning to Race 1, grabbing both holeshots in the twice-restarted race. He threw down the fastest lap of the race on Lap 2, but the competition was hot on his heels, and stayed in the fight the entire race. Gagne kept cool under pressure in the greasy track conditions to lead every lap and score his 35th-career win in the premier class. His sixth win of the season also made championship gains, expanding his lead to 48 points.
Hayes also had a good start to the weekend and was third in Friday’s first Superbike qualifying session. Unfortunately, he had a crash late in the second qualifying session and ended up eighth in combined times but was unhurt. Fresh off of his Supersport win, which marked a record-breaking 87th-career victory to become the winningest AMA rider across all classes, Hayes switched gears to go Superbike racing. He had a decent start from the third row of the grid aboard the Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing R1 and quickly made his way to sixth after the restart. Hayes lost a little time and a position after having to avoid a downed rider and the bike on Lap 3, but he put his head down and made the pass for fifth three laps later. The four-time Superbike Champion picked up the pace, setting his fastest lap of the race at the halfway mark and running some consistently fast times to make an impressive charge in the latter half of the race. Hayes closed the gap and advanced to fourth with five laps to go, and was closing the gap to third, but ultimately ran out of time and rode on to secure a solid fourth-place finish.
The Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing Team looks to keep the momentum rolling in MotoAmerica Superbike Race 2 at the Brainerd International Raceway.
Richard Stanboli – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“The team did a great job. Like the champion that he is, Jake rode a precise, error-free race leading every lap. Josh surprised us all with his early speed on Friday and his late-race speed in Race 1. He showed real podium potential. It’s a lot of fun having him on our bike after his first ride with us 20 years ago. We look forward to Race 2.”
Jake Gagne (1). Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Jake Gagne – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing
“Today’s Race 1 was the toughest feeling yet, and it was hard to run good lap times. It was hot and greasy and slick, but I just tried to keep a clean, smart race, and I’m happy we brought home a win. We learned a lot for tomorrow.”
Josh Hayes (4). Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Josh Hayes – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing
“Today was a pretty special day with my 87th career win on my Squid Hunter R6, followed up with my first Superbike start since 2017!
“My reunion with Attack Performance, 20 years after winning my first pro championship with the team, has gone really well. Friday was a pleasant surprise to be so close in pace with Jake, but my mistake in Q2 set me up for an uphill battle from the third row. I was a little tentative at the start and in the early laps while learning the ropes again, but I am proud to have a strong late-race pace after such a long day. Fourth will have to do, but I believe that we have the pace to challenge for the podium tomorrow with any luck.”
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Default
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Default
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Visually Pleasing Experience
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Light Contrast
Monochrome
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High Saturation
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Adjust Text Colors
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Easy Orientation
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Cognitive Reading
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Accessibility Statement
www.roadracingworld.com
November 12, 2026
Compliance status
We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone, and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience,
regardless of circumstance and ability.
To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level.
These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible
to all people: blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.
This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific
disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.
Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML,
adapts Its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by the blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.
If you’ve found a malfunction or have ideas for improvement, we’ll be happy to hear from you. You can reach out to the website’s operators by using the following email
Screen-reader and keyboard navigation
Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with
screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive
a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements,
alongside console screenshots of code examples:
Screen-reader optimization: we run a background process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website.
In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels;
descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups),
and others. Additionally, the background process scans all the website’s images and provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag
for images that are not described. It will also extract texts that are embedded within the image, using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology.
To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on
as soon as they enter the website.
These adjustments are compatible with all popular screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA.
Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML, and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.Additionally, keyboard users will find quick-navigation and content-skip menus, available at any time by clicking Alt+1, or as the first elements of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, and not allow the focus drift outside it.
Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.
Disability profiles supported in our website
Epilepsy Safe Mode: this profile enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
Visually Impaired Mode: this mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
Cognitive Disability Mode: this mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode: this mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode: this mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
Keyboard Navigation Profile (Motor-Impaired): this profile enables motor-impaired persons to operate the website using the keyboard Tab, Shift+Tab, and the Enter keys. Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.
Additional UI, design, and readability adjustments
Font adjustments – users, can increase and decrease its size, change its family (type), adjust the spacing, alignment, line height, and more.
Color adjustments – users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds, with over seven different coloring options.
Animations – person with epilepsy can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
Content highlighting – users can choose to emphasize important elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
Audio muting – users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
Cognitive disorders – we utilize a search engine that is linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
Additional functions – we provide users the option to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.
Browser and assistive technology compatibility
We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers).
Notes, comments, and feedback
Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs. There may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to
