Motourage

The U.S. Army National Guard has extended its sponsorship of AMA Pro Road Racing’s Superbike class for the 2011 season.

The Army National Guard is the oldest component of the U.S. Armed Forces and one of the longest enduring U.S. institutions, operating in all 50 states, D.C. and three U.S. territories. This will be the Army National Guard’s third consecutive year of involvement with AMA Pro Road Racing as the primary sponsor of the elite Superbike class.

“We are very proud of our association with the Army National Guard,” said AMA Pro Chief Operating Officer David Atlas. “To help support the important recruiting efforts of the Army National Guard is something we take very seriously. The overall support of the many men and women serving our country at home and abroad makes all of us at AMA Pro very proud to be associated with the greatest military institution in the world.”

The Army National Guard and AMA Pro have a dedicated series of actions and activities at each AMA Pro Road Racing event that provide for recruitment and exposure to the many exciting opportunities available in the Army National Guard.

The fast paced environment of AMA Pro National Guard Superbike racing and the other exciting classes of motorcycle racing on tap at AMA Pro Road Racing events attracts a high-energy, dedicated fan base that provide a high degree of potential candidates for recruitment in the Army National Guard.

In addition, the National Guard sponsors the winning Michael Jordan Motorsports team with new rider Roger Lee Hayden riding the iconic No. 54 in 2011. Last year, The National Guard Jordan team took their historic first victories in the AMA Pro National Guard Superbike class at Daytona International Speedway.

This year’s AMA Pro Road Racing season will kick off March 10-12, 2011 at Daytona International Speedway and will race throughout the country over the year.

AMA Pro has announced its preliminary 2011 Road Racing schedule.

New this year is the change of the fabled Daytona 200 event back to its more traditional daytime running time, a return to Miller Motorsports Park over the Memorial Day weekend and some small date changes for some of the traditional events.

The 2011 AMA Pro Road Racing season will kick off at the famed Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. with the biggest motorcycling event of the year, Daytona 200 Week.  Activities will begin this year on Saturday night, March 5th with the longest continuous running Supercross event in America, the Daytona Supercross.  The opening rounds of AMA Pro Flat Track kick off Thursday, March 10 and Friday, March 11, 2011 to mark the second running of the Grand Nationals at the new DAYTONA Flat Track.

The Road Racing activities also begin on Thursday, March 10th with practice and qualifying for the four main classes of AMA Pro Road Racing.  The AMA Pro National Guard Superbike series will again race two times during the Daytona 200 Week activities on Friday, March 11th and Saturday, March 12th.  New this year will be the AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series, making its debut at Daytona. The AMA Pro Supersport division will also race on Friday and Saturday.  The Daytona 200 will once again be run as a day race on Saturday, March 12th and will be the closing event of the 2011 Daytona 200 Week activities.  2010 Daytona 200 winner, Josh Herrin will lead the field in the namesake AMA Pro Daytona SportBike class for the 70th running of the famous event.

The series will then travel to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. for the West Coast Moto Jam, May 13 – 15, 2011.  The popular Infineon Raceway provides a full slate of activities throughout the weekend and this year the AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series will make its debut at the 2.32-mile natural road course.

Next on the schedule for AMA Pro Road Racing is a return to Miller Motorsports Park on Memorial Day weekend, May 28 – 30, 2011 in conjunction with the HANNspree Superbike World Championship event. AMA Pro previously raced at the picturesque facility in Tooele, Utah from 2006 to 2008.

Elkhart Lake’s Road America will once again feature the full complement of AMA Pro Road Racing as the series travels to the legendary 4.0-mile road course through the Kettle Moraine countryside in Wisconsin, June 3 – 5, 2011.

Celebrating its 50th Anniversary Season, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course will host AMA Pro Road Racing one week earlier than usual, the race taking place July 8 – 10, 2011.  The Honda Super Cycle Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire will once again bring the eyes of the motorcycle racing world to the gentle hills in Lexington, Ohio.

The series will then travel to Northern California to join the activities at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, July 22 – 24, 2011.  This weekend will feature single races for National Guard Superbike, Daytona SportBike and Supersport in addition to the first stop in the USA for MotoGP.

The next event will be in August at another great facility for motorcycle racing, Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Va.  The August 12 – 14, 2011 weekend will once again see all Road Racing classes competing at the 2.25-mile country-club-like natural road course.

AMA Pro Road Racing will then travel to southern New Jersey for the Labor Day weekend at the New Jersey Motorsports Park event in Millville, N.J.  Very popular with fans and competitors alike, the impressive Thunderbolt circuit will host the series, September 2 – 4, 2011.

A return to Barber Motorsports Park, located in Birmingham, Ala., is still being negotiated and the June date and confirmation are to be determined.

One additional season-ending event is also under consideration and will be announced at a later date.

Preliminary 2011 AMA Pro Road Racing Schedule

The 2010 Cemetery Circuit, New Zealand’s legendary street course, is often called the Southern Hemisphere’s Isle of Man. This is a not-to-be-missed event, but if you can’t get to Wanganui on Boxing day, Dec 26, you can do the next best thing: watch it live online on Speedbox. It will be spectacular street racing; don’t miss out.

What: Cemetery Circuit Street Race Live Stream
When: Sun, Dec 26, 11:30am NZST (Sat, Dec 25, 5:30pm USEST)
Where: Live from Wanganui, New Zealand
Cost: $14.95 (NZ)
100% money back guarantee
Event Classes:
•    F1 SUPERBIKES
•    F2 600 SPORT
•    F3 SPORTBIKES
•    POST CLASSICS
•    BEARS
•    F1 SIDECARS
•    450 MOTO
•    SUPERMOTO
•    CLASSIC SIDECARS

To get you ready for the 2010 event, the full archive of 2009 Cemetery Circuit is now available to watch in the Videos section – all races in full, with extended interviews. It is divided into classes with separate videos for each class.

Team Suzuki rider Troy Herfoss has extended his points lead to 31 in the Australian Supersport Championship after two hard-fought races at the penultimate round of the series at Victoria’s Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit this past weekend.

Herfoss, who started from pole position on his Team Suzuki GSX-R600, was engaged in two thrilling 10-lap races with Christan Casella and Suzuki rider Brodie Waters. The 23 year old, who is only in his second full season of Supersport racing after swapping from Supermoto at the end of 2008, went elbow-to-elbow with his two adversaries in each race at a meeting run in conjunction with a round of the V8 Supercar Championship Series.

The Team Suzuki rider recorded the fastest lap in race one on his way to a 2.340-second victory over Waters, with Casella third. Waters had led the opening two laps, but Herfoss proved too strong in the latter part of the race.

“I had a couple of scary moments in race one when I nearly hit some seagulls, but I wasn’t sure how close Brodie was behind so I didn’t want to back off,” said Herfoss.  “Then when I came around Turn 12 there was a tortoise trying to cross the track. I was pretty glad to see the checkered flag, that’s for sure.”

In race two Herfoss was engaged in another titanic battle with Casella and Waters, with Waters leading the opening four laps, then Casella the next three, before the Team Suzuki rider forced his way to the front for the next two laps. But a minor error at Turn 10 on the final lap saw Herfoss run slightly wide with Casella eventually winning a drag race to the finish line to take a 0.003sec win in a photo-finish. Waters was 0.967seconds back in third.

“I’m disappointed with my small mistake, but happy to have won the round and extended the championship lead,” said Herfoss.

With one round remaining, Herfoss leads the Australian Supersport Championship with 224pts ahead of Casella with 193 and Waters with 179.

In the Australian Superbike Championship Team Suzuki riders Shawn Giles and Robbie Bugden finished fifth and eighth overall after chasing a set-up they were comfortable with on the fast and challenging 4.45km Victorian circuit. The round was won by Wayne Maxwell from current championship leader Bryan Staring.

Giles, a three-time Australian Superbike Champion, finished fourth and seventh in each race after starting from the second row of the grid. The 40-year-old won an engaging battle with Suzuki rider Scott Charlton and Shannon Johnson in race one by just 0.770sec, but was unable to repeat the result in race two after getting away to a bad start.  Giles’ 31-point haul from the two races sees the Team Suzuki rider just 6.5pts off third overall in the championship.

Bugden, a three-time New Zealand Superbike Champion, finished sixth and eighth in the two 10-lap races in his first outing on the Phillip Island circuit in 2010. Bugden missed the opening round of this year’s Australian Superbike Championship at Phillip Island in February as he was defending his 2009 New Zealand Superbike title.

With one round remaining Bryan Staring leads the series on 211pts from Wayne Maxwell 192.5, Glenn Allerton 149, Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 143 and Shawn Giles 142.5.

Missing from the grid for Round Six’s two Superbike races was the Team Suzuki GSX-R1000 of reigning Australian champion Josh Waters, the 23-year-old still recovering from an accident in early July in the USA when testing for the US Suzuki Superbike team. Waters is expected to return for the final round in November.

The series now heads to Tasmania’s Symmons Plains Circuit on November 12-14 for the final round, to be run in conjunction with the V8 Supercars.

Phil Tainton – Team Manager:
“Troy’s performance this weekend again showed maturity beyond his years. For someone in just his second full season of road racing his results have been exceptional. Pole position, a win and a second this weekend have put Troy in a strong position for the 2010 Supersport championship as we head to the final round in Tasmania in November.

“It was a challenging weekend finding a set-up for the Superbike guys, especially with the changeable weather conditions. Phillip Island is a circuit that puts big demands on the rear tires of the Superbikes, and the heat generated through the fast corners is the highest we encounter on any circuit.

Troy Herfoss:
“I’m pleased with the overall weekend result and it’s good to win the round, but I’m disappointed with the small mistake I made in race two that cost me the win. It would have been good to win in front of the big Sunday crowd, although I’ve increased my points lead so I am happy with that because our focus is the championship.

“It was a close battle between Brodie (Waters), Christan (Casella) and myself in race two and I was sitting back planning my move. I wanted the win, not just to ride for the points. But I ran wide at Turn 10, and that allowed Christan to close up and then get by. The bike was awesome and the team did a great job. I’m looking forward to Tassie.”

Shawn Giles:
“I was happy with the opening race, and winning the battle for fourth was a good result. Phillip Island is one of my favorite tracks, but it really punishes the tires because of the high speeds. It’s always a balancing act between grip and making the tires last the distance.

“We made some set-up changes for race two and I was confident of getting on the podium. But I got a bad start and got caught up in the pack in the early laps. The team worked non-stop all weekend, and kept making set-up changes until I had the confidence to push harder. I can’t thank them enough. I had one of the fastest bikes through the speed trap at 307km/h.”

Robbie Bugden:
“It was a challenging weekend for me as I haven’t raced at Phillip Island since the final round in November last year, so it was my first time here on the new control tires. Finding a good set-up on such a fast circuit is always a challenge, and losing a session on Friday because of the wet conditions didn’t help. But we made good progress every time we went out on the circuit.

“It’s just a pity the meeting wasn’t starting Sunday afternoon, as I feel I could have challenged for the podium.”

Josh Waters:
“It’s obviously disappointing not to be racing, but it’s important that I’m fully fit before I get back on the bike. Suzuki won’t let me rush my return because they are focused on my long term racing goals.  Team Suzuki and Suzuki Racesafe have been monitoring my progress and making sure I’ve been getting regular medical attention. I expect to be back on the bike for the final round at Symmons Plains in Tasmania.”

Superbike Overall Results – Round 6: 1 Wayne Maxwell; 2 Bryan Staring; 3 Glenn Allerton; 4 Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000); 5 Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000); 6 Jamie Stauffer; 7 Shannon Johnson; 8 Robbie Bugden (Suzuki GSX-R1000); 9 Craig McMartin; 10 Cru Halliday.

Superbike Championship Points (after 6 of 7 rounds): 1 Bryan Staring 211pts; 2 Wayne Maxwell 192.5; 3 Glenn Allerton 149; 4 Scott Charlton (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 143; 5 Shawn Giles (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 142.5; 6 Jamie Stauffer 127; 7 Shannon Johnson 119; 8 Robbie Bugden (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 115; 9 Josh Waters (Suzuki GSX-R1000) 105.5; 10 John Allen 68.5.

Supersport Overall Results – Round 6 : 1 Troy Herfoss (Suzuki GSX-R600); 2 Christan Casella; 3 Brodie Waters (Suzuki GSX-R600); 4 Ben Burke; 5 Aaron Gobert; 6 Michael Jones; 7 Dylan Mavin; 8 Ryan Taylor; 9 Blake Leigh-Smith (Suzuki GSX-R600); 10 Des Darby.

Supersport Championship Points (after 6 of 7 rounds): 1 Troy Herfoss (Suzuki GSX-R600) 224pts; 2 Christan Casella 193; 3 Brodie Waters (Suzuki GSX-R600) 179; 4 Aaron Gobert 129; 5 Chris Quinn 128; 6 Ben Burke 119; 7 Ryan Taylor 104; 8 Blake Leigh-Smith (Suzuki GSX-R600) 85; 9 Des Darby 85; 10 Sam Heath 80.

Riders Cal Crutchlow and James Toseland completed their final day of testing today at the Portimao circuit in Portugal. The two British riders have worked hard over the three days, experiencing a variety of weather conditions from dry to wet to intermediate as they and the team worked through various electronic and bike set ups ahead of the 2010 season.

The final session saw Cal fall victim to the drastically reduced grip of the track following yesterday’s rain. Fifty minutes from the end he lost the front of the bike on the slippery surface on the last corner before the home straight. In typical form he was back on his spare bike shortly afterwards for the remainder of the session. Team-mate James was consistently fast all day, ending the last test day just outside the top five in sixth position.

Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team, (4th, 1’42.9)
“It was frustrating to fall today, the track so was so slippery it was unavoidable, but it cost me some time on the track. Having said that we’ve had a really good test, we’ve worked through a lot of things and I think we’ve got closer to a good set-up for the first race. I’m really keen to get to Australia and start the next test before we kick-off racing.”

James Toseland, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team, (6th, 1’43.1)
“I’m really pleased overall. We’ve worked through a lot of stuff over the last three days and I feel I’ve got a lot more understanding of the bike. The team has worked really well and I’m pleased we’ve managed to keep consistent fast pace over the test. I think there’s more to come so I’m looking forward to getting started again!”

Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team Manager
“Unfortunately the grip level was much less than Friday, so until the soft tires went on the lap times were not as fast as when we started the test. All the riders struggled to find good grip, so the problem was with the track, not the riders. Cal lost some time after his fall, he switched bikes but had no experience on the tire on the second bike so couldn’t push so hard. James rode really well today, he is always consistent and was definitely fast enough for the conditions out there. Overall we go to Australia feeling confident and with a good spirit. We’ve had a really successful test, we’ve got some great feedback and have made a good start to 2010.”

A mix-up with the flag signals at Invercargill may yet have a long-term impact on this year’s national superbike championship.

There was a tinge of controversy to the weekend’s racing at the weekend’s second round of five in this year’s Castrol Power 1 New Zealand Superbike Championships at Invercargill’s Teretonga circuit when the white last-lap flag was not shown to the race and championship leader, Suzuki’s Andrew Stroud, at the end of the prescribed 14 laps.  Instead it was waved after the 15th lap and, soon after that, there was a new man in front, defending champion Robbie Bugden (Suzuki).

Stroud had won the day’s first 15-lap superbike race, finishing ahead of Australian Budgen and Christchurch’s James Smith (Suzuki).  But Brisbane rider Bugden fought back in race two — Bugden, Stroud and Feilding’s Craig Shirriffs (Honda) battling furiously in a three-way fight at the front.  When race leader Stroud had a “moment at the hairpin” on the “extra” lap 16, Bugden pounced and crossed the line first.

After much deliberation, Bugden’s win was confirmed and it was an extremely disappointed Stroud who left the track at day’s end, his championship lead still intact, but with Bugden now up to second in the title chase, albeit still 13 points behind Stroud.

Bugden will have renewed confidence as the riders head to round three at Timaru’s Levels circuit next weekend.

“It has been recommended to me that I could protest this (flagging mistake),” said Stroud.  The same thing happened in a 125GP race on Saturday and they wound it back to the rider order on the previous lap. I filled out a protest form but then drew a line through the whole lot. I always race to the flag and to the spirit of racing, so I’ve left the situation as it is and I’m not protesting.  I’ll just carry on as it is and aim to finish in front of Robbie at the next rounds.  I blew it in that second race. On the lap I went in too hot in the last corner before the flag and overshot the bend and lost all my drive coming out.  But I’m still feeling confident. The Brother Suzuki is great and the Pirelli tyres are fantastic. I know a lot of the crowd are wanting to see the title come back to New Zealand (after Bugden has won it the past three seasons), and I hope I can satisfy their wants.”

Read more…

Australian Robbie Bugden won’t be sitting back and taking it lightly in Invercargill this weekend.  The Suzuki rider from Brisbane, AU has won the New Zealand Superbike title for the past three seasons, winning the title last year by a solid 29 points over fellow Suzuki man Andrew Stroud of Hamilton.  But now the boot is on the other foot and it’s Stroud who is on top after the series opener at Christchurch on Sunday.  Stroud leads fellow Hamilton rider Sloan Frost by two points, with defending champ Bugden back in fifth spot overall and 13 points behind Stroud.  But the series has a long way to go yet and the action is only just starting to warm up.

Robbie Bugden will need to act fast if he hopes to hold off an early season charge by Andrew Stroud

It’s round two at Invercargill’s Teretonga Park this weekend, followed by the Timaru International Motor Raceway event the following Sunday. Then the riders head north to round four at Feilding’s Manfield Circuit and, finally, the new track at Hampton Downs, near Meremere.

So a lot is likely to happen before the championship reaches Hampton Downs on March 28 and Bugden has plans to catch and overtake the four men ahead of him.

Bugden’s race team manager, Red Fenton, is confident his man can do the job.
“Robbie always goes very strong at Teretonga and I’m sure he will get amongst it and come away from there with the gap a lot closer.  We always go out to win and that’s what we’ll be trying to do this weekend.”

Andrew Stroud has come on strong and looks to open up a points lead this weekend

Bugden’s teammate, Christchurch’s James Smith, is enjoying his debut season in the Superbike class, and he is currently third in the standings. Smith is also racing in the 600cc Sports Production class and hoping to improve upon his runner-up finish of last season.  That might be a difficult proposition, though, for Smith, after the sparkling performance of Hamilton’s Nick Cole (Kawasaki) at round one.  Cole looked comfortable in winning both 600cc races at Christchurch, and he has a solid 10-point lead over Smith and 21-point gap over third-ranked John Ross (Yamaha) after that opening round.

Racing is also close in the other classes, with more exciting action expected in the Formula Three, Pro Twins, 125GP, Super Motard and Streetstock categories.

Read more…

Former AMA Formula Xtreme Champion and MotoGP star John Hopkins will test a GSX-R1000 Superbike at California Speedway on February 2-3, 2010. Team Hammer, which races as Team M4 Suzuki, is in negotiations to sign Hopkins to race the 2010 AMA Pro Racing American Superbike season for Team M4 Suzuki.

Dave from Motourage with John Hopkins at Laguna Seca, 2008

“We’re excited about having the opportunity to test with a rider the caliber of ‘Hopper’ and about the possibility that he might race with us in 2010,” said Crew Chief Keith Perry. “It’s been several years since the team worked with John and we had a lot of success together the last time. John went on to have success in MotoGP and it’s been nice to see him do well on the World Championship scene. The team is hoping this test at Fontana will lay the groundwork for a successful partnership with Hopkins in anticipation of working together this upcoming season.”

Hopkins, 26, won two AMA National Championships with Team Hammer, in 2000 and 2001, before beginning his World Championship career. Hopkins raced with Red Bull Yamaha before joining the factory Suzuki team, then moved to Kawasaki factory squad five years later. Last season, Hopkins raced with Stiggy Honda in World Superbike.

The Woodstock Bourbon Australian Superbike Championship and the International Entertainment Group have released the finalized 2010 ASBK event schedule.

As in 2009, the 2010 series kicks off at Phillip Island and includes two stops at the Victoria circuit; however, the Symmons Plains, Tasmania stop has been moved from the round two slot to become the season finale in November.  Queensland Raceway gets an extra event with the Quantum Racing Industries-sponsored third round, and the Mallala stop is absent from the 2010 calendar, most likely due to the declining quality of the south Australia circuit.  An event at Melbourne’s Broadford Track fills in the schedule.

Team Roadracingworld.com and professional racer Chris Ulrich, the 12th-place finisher in the 2009 AMA Pro American Superbike Championships, will be holding a fundraising event November 28-29 at Fontana, California’s Auto Club Speedway, in association with Fastrack Riders Association (FRA).

Ride two-up with Chris Ulrich for a good cause

In exchange for a cash donation, which will go to the Roadracing World Action Fund–a non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)3 organization which advocates and promotes the use of soft barriers to help prevent rider injuries at racetracks–Ulrich will take donors for a couple of fast laps around Auto Club Speedway’s 2.3-mile, 21-turn infield road course on the back of his 185-horsepower, 195-mph Suzuki GSX-R1000 racebike, which has been fitted with a passenger seat, passenger foot rests and a grab handle on the fuel tank.

Ulrich normally uses the retired racebike as an outreach tool during the race season, giving rides on the racetrack to local mainstream media representatives prior to AMA Championship events to help them better understand the sport of motorcycle road racing.

Prior to past AMA events at Auto Club Speedway, Ulrich has given KTLA-TV Sports Anchor Damon Andrews, KNBC-TV’s Amanda Maynard and G4 Network “Attack Of The Show” correspondent Alison Haislip two-seater rides. And over the course of the last several years, Ulrich has given rides to people ranging from small town newspaper reporters to Indy Car drivers to TV/movie stars to 1993 500cc Grand Prix World Champion Kevin Schwantz.

This Thanksgiving Day weekend will be the fifth consecutive year Ulrich, Team Roadracingworld.com and FRA have held the ridealong fundraiser to benefit the Roadracing World Action Fund.

Full professional riding gear will be provided on loan free of charge courtesy of FRA and Team Roadracingworld.com, however, due to limited supplies, all sizes may not be available and not everyone will be able to ride. All rides will be on a first-come, first-served basis. No reservations are required.

The minimum donation amount will be $50. Larger donations will earn additional laps. Photos and videos of the rides may be available for an extra donation.

For additional information on the Roadracing World Action Fund, go to: http://actionfund.roadracingworld.com/

To see actual video footage from a two-seat ride with Ulrich at California Speedway, go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9G1kVY0OPo

Or go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpeCEPSjRxI&feature=fvw

To see the “Attack of the Show” segment with Chris Ulrich, go to: http://www.g4tv.com/attackoftheshow/exclusives/64491/Road-Report-Suzuki-GSXR600-Motorcycle.html

For more information about Fastrack Riders track days, go to http://www.fastrackriders.com