Motourage

The AMA Pro Flat Track K&N Filters Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com switched from a Singles Short Track to a Twins Half Mile this past weekend, but Henry Wiles never missed a beat. Wiles just devastated the Allen County Fairgrounds Half Mile in Lima, OH, leading the 25-lap National from start to finish. The dominating performance gave Wiles 50 consecutive laps led as he pushed his # 17 KK Motorcycle Supply/Mike & Eddie Adkins backed Harley-Davidson XR750 to a six-and-a-half second win over Sammy Halbert and his # 7 Kings Kustoms/KK Motorcycle Supply backed Harley-Davidson.

“I love this place. This is my kind of track, and the fans really get into it. I can see them hanging on the fence all the way around,” said Wiles. “I just tried to get away in the National. It seemed like I was in lapped traffic real soon. It was like, this isn’t the heat race, these are the best of the best. This is really just great, now we’ve got to get it together for the groove tracks coming up.”

Wiles couldn’t have been better as he set the fast qualifying time, won the fastest heat, captures the five points and $2,000 in the dash and then dominated the National. The George Roeder Memorial Dash featured double the normal purse for the four-lap race. Wiles led the group into turn one when the green light flashed on the eighteen-rider grid. Joe Kopp, Sammy Halbert, Jake Johnson and Defending Twins Series Champion Jared Mees were bunched right behind.

Wiles quickly pulled away as Halbert also separated himself from the pack. Wiles’ and Halbert’s race looked to be settled and both were into serious lapped traffic by lap 15. Two years ago Wiles lost this race when a lapped rider opened the door for Joe Kopp to nip him at the line. No chance of that this year as Wiles sliced and diced his way through the field, lapping all the way up to eighth place. Ironically Kopp was the last rider he lapped right at the finish line.  The race was now for third as Johnson, Bryan Smith, Mees and Matt Weidman battled away.

Smith was looking to put his Kawasaki on the podium for the second straight time as he and Johnson exchanged the position all around the track, but it was the youngster from New York, Weidman, who prevailed earning his first ever Grand National podium finish. Smith finished a couple of seconds back in fourth, followed by Johnson and Mees. Dustin Crow was a solid seventh with Chris Carr, Kopp and Steve Bonsey filling out the top ten.

After winning three of the last four races Henry Wiles has moved into a points tie for the Grand National Championship with Joe Kopp at 129 points.  Jake Johnson is just eight points back with Sammy Halbert and Jared Mees another five and six points back. Three-time Grand National Champion Kenny Coolbeth is lurking 31 points off the pace, but with some strong races for him coming up.

Defending Pro Singles Champion Brad Baker was just about as dominant as Wiles in the 12-lap Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Grand National Championship Main. Baker had his #1 Honda well in front of a great race for second. James Rispoli looked to have second nailed down, but Chaz Springsteen pushed his Kawasaki into second on lap eleven with Mike LaBelle also getting by on his Honda.

Series points leader Jeffery Carver had an off night finishing seventh. Carver still holds 24 point lead over Baker with Rispoli seven points back in third.

After taking the Fourth of July weekend off, the AMA Pro K&N Filters Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com Championship moves to the I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, MI.

Lorenzo extends championship lead with win at Assen

Jorge Lorenzo put in another textbook performance at Assen on Saturday, leaving his rivals trailing as he led from the front to win the 80th Dutch TT and take his fourth victory of the season. In doing so he becomes only the seventh rider in history to have won in three or more classes at the historic racetrack, with 125cc, 250cc and MotoGP wins to his name. Meanwhile Tech 3 Yamaha rider Ben Spies ensured that there were still two Yamahas in the top four, despite the absence of Valentino Rossi, with another brilliant performance to back up his maiden podium last week.

Lorenzo had looked the man to beat all weekend after topping both practice and qualifying, and he got a great start from pole position and quickly pulled out a second’s gap. But, by lap five, Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner were looming large behind him, and for a few laps it looked as if a tense three-way battle was in the offing. However Lorenzo’s choice of the harder Bridgestone tire soon began to pay off and, with a lighter fuel load by mid-race distance, he was able to step things up a notch and gave himself an unassailable lead, crossing the line 2.935 seconds ahead of Pedrosa, with Stoner third and Spies fourth.

The Fiat Yamaha man’s second win on the bounce sees him extend his championship lead to an impressive 47 points from Pedrosa, while Rossi remains fourth in the standings. The next round comes in just a week’s time at Barcelona in Spain, when Wataru Yoshikawa will join the Fiat Yamaha Team to fill in until Rossi is back on board his M1.

Jorge Lorenzo – 1st, Time: 41’18.629
“This race was a bit more difficult than Silverstone because Dani was so fast with the softer tire early on in the race and I had to really keep my concentration to stay in front of him at that point. I was confident that my harder Bridgestone tire would help me later on and this was the case, so we made the right choice. It wasn’t easy though and at the end I was sliding quite a lot, in fact I made a mistake at the chicane and nearly crashed so I was quite glad to finish! I am really happy that I have won here in all three classes because it’s such a historic place and the football I had in Parc Ferme was to celebrate this ‘hat-trick.’ Thanks to all my Yamaha guys and also to Bridgestone for this win, we have a big lead in the championship so we can afford to stay calm and relaxed. Now we go to my home in Barcelona and I am excited about another chance to race in front of the Spanish fans.”
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FTR Moto and the FIMMCO Speed Up Team enjoyed a second win of the year in the inaugural Moto2 World Championship as sensational Italian rider Andrea Iannone repeated his victory of three weeks ago at Mugello, Italy by dominating today’s sixth round at Assen in Holland.

Iannone grabbed the lead a third of the way into the opening lap then extended his lead to 9.0s by lap 17 of the 24-lap race. He eventually crossed the finish line with a winning margin of 4.4s on the M210 and is now up to fourth place in the World Championship, just 33 points behind leader Toni Elias – runner-up at Assen today.

“The win today feels better than my win in Mugello,” said Iannone who, as he did in Mugello, started the race today from pole position. He added: “It was a tough race; I had to keep pushing hard to keep the lead. I have to thank the mechanics and Luca Boscoscuro. Now we must keep focused and do the same job next week at the Catalunya round.”

Czech Republic rider Karel Abraham enjoyed a career-best finish of ninth place after being locked in a battle for seventh on his Cardion AB Motoracing Team FTR M210. Abraham’s seven points for ninth moved him up six places in the Championship table to 22nd.

Iannone’s FIMMCO Speed Up team-mate Gabor Talmacsi bounced back from a heavy fall in qualifying on Friday to take his fifth points-scoring finish from six rounds with 13th place. Talmacsi sits joint ninth in the World Championship with luckless Aeroport de Castello-Ajo Team rider Alex Debon who was unable to start after a qualifying crash on Friday.

FTR’s Steve Bones commented: “Andrea was sensational today, as he was in Mugello. All three of our machines that started finished in the points and Karel Abraham’s performance – in only his fourth race on the machine – was superb and he was the fastest rider through the speed trap at 163mph so we’re leaving Holland and heading to Spain with plenty of optimism.”

Fimmco Speed Up rider Andrea Iannone is celebrating a second pole position in three rounds as the Italian recorded the fastest time in qualifying for Saturday’s sixth round of the Moto2 World Championship at the Assen circuit in the north of Holland.

Iannone started from pole position then won the fourth round at Mugello in Italy three weeks ago and will be looking to do the same tomorrow after being fastest throughout practice and qualifying.

Fellow FTR rider Alex Debon was leading the qualifying session when he became involved in an incident with a slower rider. Debon fell from the Aeroport de Castello-Ajo M210 and the luckless Spaniard suffered a broken right collarbone. The crash rules Debon out of tomorrow’s Assen race even though he qualified in third place on the front row.

Cardion AB Motoracing’s Karel Abraham continues to adapt to the FTR M210 after switching to the Buckingham, England-built chassis for the Le Mans, France third round last month. Abraham was constantly in the top 10 throughout practice and qualifying but a crash-ridden finish to qualifying left the Czech Republic rider in 12th place, completing the third row of the grid.

Iannone’s teammate Gabor Talmacsi – again a front-runner throughout practice – will start from 23rd place after crashing out of qualifying, escaping injury.

FTR’s Steve Bones
“We’re working hard with Andrea Iannone as he still has some set-up issues but his time in qualifying was impressive and I’m sure he’ll believe he can win tomorrow. It was a real shame for Alex Debon as he’d made some changes prior to the qualifying session and on his third lap out set the time that was eventually to be good enough for third place on the grid. Karel Abraham is impressing every week as he gets used to the FTR M210 and we’re hoping he can push for a top 10 finish tomorrow. After the injury to Alex Debon I’m pleased that Gabor Talmacsi is OK to race following his crash. His machine needs some attention but that can be easily fixed.”

Rizla Suzuki racers Loris Capirossi and Álvaro Bautista will start side-by-side on the fourth row of the grid for tomorrow’s MotoGP Dutch TT at Assen in the Netherlands.

Bautista (1’36.344, 28 laps) produced his best qualifying performance of the season to put his bike next to Capirossi on the fourth row in 12th place. Despite still struggling with his shoulder injury – that has manifested itself to a greater extent than at Silverstone – he continued to make improvements to his lap times before setting his best time on his penultimate lap of the day. Bautista is in a confident mood for tomorrow’s 26-lap race as he goes in search of his best finish in a MotoGP race to match today’s qualifying.

Capirossi (P11, 1’35.664, 29 laps) made progressive steps with his Suzuki GSV-R today, but the Italian is still looking for the optimum setting for his machine that will enable him to get the best out of himself and the bike here at Assen. He is still sure that he can run in a higher position and will be out to prove that when tomorrow’s race gets underway.

Today’s qualifying was held in warm and sunny conditions with track temperatures reaching 107ºF. Jorge Lorenzo on his factory Yamaha took his second successive pole position of the season.

Tomorrow’s race is the only event on the Grand Prix calendar to be held on a Saturday and proceedings will commence at 2pm local time (Noon GMT, 8am EDT) for the 80th running of the historic Dutch TT.

Álvaro Bautista:
“This morning I had some problems with my left arm and I felt quite a lot of pain. I think it is because this track is very physical and requires a lot more work with my arm. For this afternoon I took some pain-killers, but it was still very uncomfortable so I tried to take things a bit easier, so I could save myself for the race tomorrow. We resolved some of the problems we had from yesterday and made some improvements, but we are still not quite there. I still have some problems changing direction as I feel that the bike is very heavy because I don’t have the strength in my arm. We still have some small things to try in warm-up to make some small steps to make things better. I want to start well and stay with a good group and be able to push more as the race goes on. I hope the pain doesn’t get any worse during the race and I can enjoy it. I am confident that I can make a good result, but the main thing is to enjoy riding the bike.”

Loris Capirossi:
“I don’t really know what to say today! We did change the bike a bit to alter the way the weight transfers and this gave us a bit of traction back, but still we are not competitive enough. It seems if we improve the rear we are losing out on the front. We just cannot find the best solution and all the guys are working so hard to make things better. We improved the electronics this afternoon and I am happy that we have made a step there. We hope that we can make a small step in the morning because we don’t want to start making big changes to the bike now. We’re still confident we can run higher than the qualifying position and we’ll just have to see what tomorrow brings.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“There is no great satisfaction to be taken from the result today, but after the Silverstone weekend at least we can say that we have made a start to rebuilding the season. Loris is only 0.9 seconds off the front row and while that gap is too big, it’s a lot smaller than it was a week ago. Unfortunately Álvaro is struggling more with his injury than he was last week and despite showing good potential in some parts of the track, he is struggling in the important fast changes of direction – both with the bike setting and his injury – so the team will be working hard tonight to make it easier for the race tomorrow. Our target for tomorrow is not too far-fetched – we’d like to see both riders finish the Grand Prix, score some points and take a better platform on to Catalunya next weekend.”

Tim TT Assen Qualifying Practice Classification:
1. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 1’34.515: 2. Randy de Puniet (Honda) +0.282: 3. Casey Stoner (Ducati) +0.288: 4. Ben Spies (Yamaha) +0.411: 5. Nicky Hayden (Ducati) +0.484: 11. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.149: 12. ÁLVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.829:

International Entertainment Group (IEG), the official promoters and organizers of the Viking Group Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) has announced that the Broadford round of the series, originally scheduled for July 3-4, will now be combined with the upcoming Queensland Raceway round, August 20-22.

Due to unmet financial obligations within the ASBK State Cup classes, the event has been deemed financially unfeasible. Though regrettable, after much consultation within the Industry, IEG feels the decision is in the best interest of those involved – riders, teams and spectators.

In fairness to competitors in the scheduled championship classes – Superstock C&D 1000, Superstock 600 and 125/250GP Mono – a double-header round will be held at the August 20-22 event at Queensland Raceway. All other classes will run as originally planned, and an updated schedule will be provided.

IEG will be releasing information on next year’s calendar and classes as soon as possible. Discussions have taken place with Motorcycling Australia, riders (both privateer and factory) and sponsors. IEG believes the new direction will suit a more-diverse range of competitors, while ensuring the current competitors have higher-profile premier categories in which to compete.

Rizla Suzuki MotoGP has shaken off the blues from Silverstone last week and started this weekend’s Dutch TT at Assen on a more positive note.

Loris Capirossi (P13, 1’36.786, 27 laps) and Alvaro Bautista (P15, 1’37.384, 25 laps) both used the information they had from Silverstone to good effect as they set about closing the time gap between themselves and the rest of the pack. Capirossi’s team made fundamental changes to his Suzuki GSV-R and he was able to reap the benefits as his lap times improved and the team were able to see a clear direction to go for the rest of the weekend.

Bautista is still struggling with his shoulder injury, especially on the physically-demanding 4,542m Assen circuit. He did improve both his bike’s setting and his lap-times during the session and is confident that the stronger he gets, the quicker he will get.

Today’s’ practice was held in dry and sunny conditions with air temperatures getting up to 27ºC, helping to generate more grip for both Rizla Suzuki riders as the track temperature rose to 44ºC. World Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo set the quickest time of the day.

Rizla Suzuki has one more practice session tomorrow morning, followed by qualifying in the afternoon. The 80th running of the Dutch TT takes place on Saturday 26th June at 14.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT).

Loris Capirossi:
“The temperature has been much warmer here and we have started to use a different setting to make the tire work for us. We have got a better feeling today, but it still needs to improve a bit. We used a shorter bike today than usual to try and get more grip on the back and this did help. Tomorrow we will try to make the bike go a bit quicker overall, because at some points we are struggling. We were also a bit too soft on the spring so we will change that for tomorrow. I am much happier than I was in Silverstone, my position is not so good today, but I know we can improve a lot.”

Alvaro Bautista:
“We started with the same setting that we finished with at Silverstone to try and get more grip on the back and I think we still need to work quite hard because I don’t have a good feeling in the front, so we must improve on this. This track is harder and more demanding to ride than last week for my shoulder. I still need a more strength and I feel a bit more tired than I did in Silverstone. After some more practice – and with the bike getting better – it should be less effort to ride and I will be able to improve my times. We still have to work hard and do our best step-by-step.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“Given how far away we were at Silverstone and the extreme difficulty faced that weekend, the first hour of running here at Assen has been a lot more positive. The lap-time and the consistency is a lot closer to the group from fifth to 10th position, which is where we believe Loris and the bike can be, as we strive to rebuild our season. We’ve had to take a different direction here, so the bike has at the moment, a different feeling for both riders. That being the case, we should be able to take some significant steps tomorrow and improve our potential. The feeling in the camp is certainly more positive than it was last weekend and we’re looking to get our season going here in Assen.”

Tim TT Assen Free Practice Classification: 1. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 1’35.169: 2. Casey Stoner (Ducati) +0.011: 3. Nicky Hayden (Ducati) +0.517: 4. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) +0.530: 5. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) +0.699. 13. Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki MotoGP)) +1.617. 15. Alvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki MotoGP) +2.215.

This Saturday night the AMA Pro Flat Track K&N Filters Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com heads to the Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, Ohio for the 2010 edition of the Ohio National Championship.

Last year’s Lima winner Bryan Smith, who rode a Harley-Davidson to his victory at the Fairgrounds, will be switching to the Monster Energy/Werner-Springsteen Racing Kawasaki.  Smith came in second at this year’s Springfield Mile on May 30th, and is still seeking his first win of the 2010 season, currently seventh in the Expert rider point standings.

Can Joe Kopp and his Latus Motors Ducati break Harley's 15-year hold on Lima, Ohio?

2008 Ohio National Championship winner Joe Kopp, who also won aboard a Harley-Davidson last year, will be switching to the Latus Motors/ENI USA R&M/Lloyd Brothers Motorsports Team Ducati.  Kopp won the Arizona Mile at Yavapai Downs earlier this year aboard the team’s Ducati and comes into Lima with 118 points, leading the Expert riders in the Grand National Championship points chase.  Jeff Carver has 118 points in Pro Singles Grand National Championship standings and leads that division.

Top riders from across the country call this race one of the most demanding, fun and exciting races on the series.  The Harley-Davidson XR750 has won 23 of 25 Nationals on the limestone half-mile dirt track, winning 15 consecutive races since 1994.

The Ohio National Championship will mark the seventh event on the 19-race 2010 calendar. Smith will headline a field of former Lima winners including Kopp (’03, ’04), Jared Mees (’05, ’07) and AMA Pro legend Chris Carr (’91, ’99, ’00, ’01). Although Kopp is the current points leader, he is being chased by winners of the last two GNC nationals, Jake Johnson and Henry Wiles, who each have two wins of their own this season.  All of these leading competitors, in addition to three-time Grand National Champion Kenny Coolbeth and Nichole Cheza, are among the top riders coming to Lima.

The series competed most recently at Gas City I-69 Speedway in Gas City, IN on June 19.  “Hammerin” Hank Wiles nipped Mees by .624 seconds at the line, with Kopp finishing third.

Fairground gates open at 3 p.m. local time on June 26. There will be a number of vendor displays on the grounds including Budweiser, Lima Ford, Lima Harley-Davidson, K&N Filters and Memphis Shades.

Timed practice is slated for 3 p.m. with a rider autograph session and open paddock area set for 5:30 p.m. Opening ceremonies are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. with the official racing program kicking off at 7:30 p.m. local time.  Pro Singles and Expert Singles will battle through nine qualifying races, culminating with the Pro Singles Main, a 12-lap feature, and the Expert Singles Main, a 25-lap showdown, wrapping up the evening of racing.

The WERA Sportsman Regionals comes to Road Atlanta this weekend, June 25-27. See some of the region’s best racers go head to head at one of the east coast’s fastest tracks.

Tickets are available at the gate and are priced as follows:
$35/weekend (Fri-Sun)
$30 Sat/Sun
$25 Sunday
FREE Parking
$25 Camping

Weekend Schedule:

FRIDAY
7:00-11:00am & 12:00-2:00pm Registration Open
7:15-11:15am & 12:15-2:15pm Tech Open
9:00-11:30am Practice Groups as follows:

1. 750cc and Up Experts 5) 750cc and Up Novices
2. Lightweight Novices and Experts 6) Vintage 1 – 4
3. 600cc Novices
4. 600cc Experts

11:30am-12:30pm Lunch Break
12:30-5:00pm Practice Groups – same grouping as above

SATURDAY
7:30am – 9:30am Registration Open
7:45am – 9:45am Technical Inspection Open
8:30am – 11:00am Practice – Groups as follows (two rounds):

1. 750cc and Up Experts
   
2. Lightweight Novices and Experts
   
3. 600cc Novices
   
4. 600cc Experts
5. 750cc and Up Novices
6. Vintage 1 – 4
7. Riders School

11:00am – 12:00pmLunch Break
11:10am Riders Meeting – Tech
12:00pm Solo 16’s and Vintage Races (6 laps)

1. V6 LW, Formula 2-Stroke, V4
   
2. Mediumweight Novice Solo
   
3. Mediumweight Expert Solo
   
4. V5, V3
   
5. Lightweight Expert & Novice Solo
   
6. V2, 500 GP, 250 GP
7. Heavyweight Novice Solo
8. Heavyweight Expert Solo
9. Formula 500, V1, 350 GP
10. Riders School Mock Race (4 laps)

- Awards Presentation in Winners Circle –

SUNDAY
8:00am – 9:30am Registration Open
8:15am – 10:00am Technical Inspection Open
8:00am – 10:00am Practice Groups as follows (one round):

1. 750cc and Up Experts
2. Lightweight Novices and Experts
3. 600cc Novices
4. 600cc Experts
5. 750cc and Up Novices

10:00am – 12:00pm Lunch Break
10:15am Riders Meeting – Tech
10:40am Chapel Service – TBA
12:00pm Pirelli/WERA Sportsman Series Races – 6 laps

1. C Superbike Ex, HWT SS Ex & Nv
2. C Superbike Novice
3. Formula 1 Expert & Novice
4. LWT SS, DSB, ESS Ex & Nv
5. B Superbike Expert. V7 HW
6. B Superbike Novice
7. LWT SB, DSS
8. A Superbike Expert & Novice
9. A Superstock Ex & Nv
10. WSS, HWT SB, V6 HW, V7MW
11. C Superstock Expert
12. C Superstock Novice
13. Formula 2 Expert & Novice
14. Senior Superbike Ex & Nv
15. B Superstock Expert
16. B Superstock Novice9)125cc GP, Clubman

- Awards Presentation in Winners Circle -

After almost a month away from racing, Team Suzuki Alstare riders Leon Haslam and Sylvain Guintoli will line up at the Misano Circuit this weekend for round eight of the Superbike World Championship.

Leon Haslam gets a ride to the paddock after a lowside crash in race 2 ended his weekend in Utah

Leon Haslam:
“The Misano tests went pretty well even though we did lose some time due to rain on one of the days. We still managed to get through a lot of stuff – new forks, different clutch settings and we were all happy enough at the end. I like Misano and although it is a tough track, I’m sure that we’re in for a lot of hard battles – but I like that! Everybody has tested there recently, so I’m expecting all the riders to be quick off the mark right from the start of first practice.
I had the stitches taken out of my left elbow just before the recent tests and I’ve got full movement in the arm, so I don’t think there’ll be any problems in that area. There’s a little bit of discomfort because of where the stitches rub against my leathers, bit it’s definitely not going to be a problem. Max Biaggi will want to do well in his home country, but I’ll be going all out to give him a tough time of it and spoil his party.”

Sylvain Guintoli:
“At least, I have raced at Misano before, so I will not have to start the first practice learning a new track, as has been the case so many times this year. Also we tested here recently and that has given me more track information and knowledge. I’m hoping that all of this means that I will not be chasing the rest of the riders on the first day of practice and I will be more competitive right from the start. I want to get back to the way I was at the start of the season and be on it right from day one and qualify well. Poor qualifying has held me up quite a few times this season, so it’s about time I did the business on Friday and Saturday and got myself in a good position on the grid on race day.”

2009 results:
Race 1: 1 Ben Spies (USA-Yamaha), 2 Shane Byrne (GBR-Ducati), 3 Michel Fabrizio (ITA-Ducati). 12 Leon Haslam (GBR-Honda). Sylvain Guintoli DNS.
Race 2: 1 Jonathan Rea (GBR-Honda), 2 Michel Fabrizio (ITA-Ducati), 3 Noriyuki Haga (JPN-Ducati). 8 Leon Haslam (GBR-Honda). Sylvain Guintoli DNS.