(NEWS RELEASE)
Headlining the Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire, the Wiseco SuperBike 100 Doubleheader will feature twin 50-mile sprint races by the stars of the AMA Pro National SuperBike division. AMA Pro Road Racing's premier division will take to the track for race finals on both Saturday and Sunday afternoon. (Brian J. Nelson photo)
LEXINGTON, Ohio (July 11, 2012) – This weekend’s Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire will mark the 30th consecutive year of AMA Pro Road Racing competition at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. This park-like, picturesque natural-terrain road course is one of the most accommodating facilities in the country, featuring incredible camping and spectator viewing areas situated throughout the venue’s rolling Ohio countryside.
AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike
Headlining the Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire, the Wiseco SuperBike 100 Doubleheader will feature twin 50-mile sprint races by the stars of the AMA Pro National SuperBike division. AMA Pro Road Racing’s premier division will take to the track for race finals on both Saturday and Sunday afternoon.
Of the 42 AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike finals contested on the 2.4-mile natural road course in Lexington, Ohio since 1983, 21 different riders have stood atop the podium on five different marques: Suzuki, Yamaha, Ducati, Honda and Kawasaki. The win list is topped by seven-time Series Champion Mat Mladin, whose 10 victories account for half of Suzuki’s 20 wins at the track. Two-time defending AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Champ Josh Hayes has booked three wins, placing him in a tie for second with Aaron Yates and Doug Chandler in the Mid-Ohio record books. The Monster Energy Graves Yamaha ace took his three in succession aboard the Yamaha YZF-R1, taking the checkers in both 2009 races and Race 1 in 2010, before being outdone by the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000-mounted duo of Tommy Hayden (2010 Race 2, 2011 Race 2) and Blake Young (2011 Race 1).
Hayes has been on a determined march this season, posting eight wins and taking home all but one bonus point since the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. The Mississippian leads Young by 37 points heading into this weekend’s doubleheader, 320-283. Suzuki’s leading rider has had success of his own in 2012, taking home the remaining three wins and lone bonus point and finishing on the podium every race, but he’s recently been challenged by a second Monster Energy Graves Yamaha YZF-R1.
AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike star Josh Herrin (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) joined teammate Hayes in the National Guard SuperBike ranks after three solid seasons on the smaller displacement Yamaha YZF-R6. With half a season under his belt, the 2010 Daytona SportBike Mid-Ohio Race 1 winner has been giving Young a handful recently, posting two second-place results and at times challenging Hayes for the lead.
Another freshman SuperBike effort with a string of early successes can be found in the EBR 1190RS. In just its first year of competition, the American-made motorcycle has allowed podium finishes by both veteran National Guard SuperBike rider Geoff May (Team Amsoil/Hero EBR) and four-time GoPro Daytona SportBike Mid-Ohio winner Danny Eslick (Team Hero EBR).
Hometown hero Larry Pegram (Foremost Insurance Pegram BMW) has fielded a consistent effort in 2012 highlighted by a fourth-place showing. Hailing from Hebron, Ohio, Pegram returns to his home track for a second season aboard the BMW S1000RR sitting sixth place in the point standings, splitting the Jordan Motorsports riders of Roger Hayden (National Guard Jordan Suzuki) and Ben Bostrom (Jordan Suzuki).
Hayden and Bostrom are classified in fifth and seventh positions, respectively, based on hit-or-miss results in 2012. Both the Hayden and Bostrom families have a history of success at Mid-Ohio, Roger’s older brothers Tommy and Nicky Hayden and Ben’s older brother Eric Bostrom each have two National Guard SuperBike wins on their resumes, but the younger siblings are still knocking at the door.
Young’s Yoshimura Suzuki teammate Chris Clark, Eslick and Kawasaki ZX-10R-mounted Steve Rapp (Attack Performance/ Motorcycle Superstore M1 PowerSports) round out the top 10 in the National Guard SuperBike standings.
The Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire will take place this weekend, July 13-15. The AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike class will take to the track for the first practice session of the weekend on Friday, July 13 at 12:00 p.m. and will be featured in 21-lap sprint races on Saturday, July 14 at 3:15 p.m. local time and Sunday, July 15 at 3:30 p.m. local time. AMA Pro Road Racing’s National Guard SuperBike and GoPro Daytona SportBike divisions will be featured on SPEED in a set of back-to-back, same-day delayed broadcasts, scheduled to begin at 11:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. PT on Saturday and Sunday nights.
AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Point Standings (After Round 6): 1. Josh Hayes (Gulfport, MS) – 320; 2. Blake Young (Waunakee, WI) – 283; 3. Josh Herrin (Glendale, CA) – 197; 4. Geoff May (Gainesville, GA) – 159; 5. Roger Hayden (Owensboro, KY) – 158; 6. Larry Pegram (Hebron, OH) – 151; 7. Ben Bostrom (Malibu, CA) – 126; 8. Chris Clark (Las Vegas, NV) – 124; 9. Danny Eslick (Broken Arrow, OK) – 121; 10. Steve Rapp (Hawthorne, CA) – 115.
AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike
GEICO Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas has executed an extremely impressive effort aboard the No. 36 Suzuki GSX-R600 in 2012. The Colombian’s six wins in 10 starts have rocketed him to a 51-point lead in the AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike standings over Triumph Daytona 675-mounted Jason DiSalvo (Latus Motors Racing Triumph) as the Series heads to Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this weekend for the Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire.
Mathematically tied for second in the points but classified in third, Dane Westby (M4 Broaster Chicken Suzuki) is the only AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike rider with a DSB class victory at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The Oklahoman earned his maiden AMA Pro Road Racing victory last year in Lexington and returns this season with an impressive collection of consistent results earned with the Suzuki GSX-R600, including back-to-back runner-up results last month at Barber Motorsports Park.
Double National Guard SuperBike Mid-Ohio race winner and fan favorite Tommy Hayden quickly acclimated to the fierce GoPro Daytona SportBike action for 2012 aboard his new Y.E.S. Graves Yamaha YZF-R6, cruising to his fourth podium last round and currently sitting fourth in the points. Hayden’s teammate Cameron Beaubier (Y.E.S. Graves Yamaha), who was sidelined by an off-track injury following the season-opener at Daytona, is back with a vengeance and is ranked fifth in the standings despite missing three starts. The Californian dominated the Barber Motorsports Park round, earning his first pole position and breakout race victory on Saturday and backing that up with an equally imposing win on Sunday. The duo will soon be joined by Garrett Gerloff, as the Y.E.S. Graves Yamaha team announced earlier this week that the 16-year-old phenom has been cleared to begin training again following an early season injury.
Jake Zemke has posted wins in three AMA Pro classes at Mid-Ohio, National Guard SuperBike (2004 Race 2), AMA Supersport (2003) and AMA Formula Xtreme (2005). Zemke and his impressive Ducshop Racing crew are sitting sixth in the GoPro Daytona SportBike standings on the strength of three fourth-place results aboard the Ducati 848 and are hoping to take up a spot on the box this weekend.
Rounding out the top 10 in the points heading to Mid-Ohio are Bobby Fong (Meen Motorsports Yamaha), J.D. Beach (RoadRace Factory/ Red Bull Yamaha), DAYTONA® 200 winner Joey Pascarella (Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki) and Cory West (Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki).
The AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike division will contest 21-lap race finals on Saturday, July 14 at 2:00 p.m. and Sunday, July 15 at 2:15 p.m. local time. AMA Pro Road Racing’s National Guard SuperBike and GoPro Daytona SportBike divisions will be featured on SPEED in a set of back-to-back, same-day delayed broadcasts, scheduled to begin at 11:00 p.m. ET/8:00 p.m. PT on Saturday and Sunday nights.
AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Point Standings (After Round 6): 1. Martin Cardenas (Medellin, Colombia) – 243; 2. Jason DiSalvo (Batavia, NY) – 192; 3. Dane Westby (Tulsa, OK) – 192; 4. Tommy Hayden (Owensboro, KY) – 179; 5. Cameron Beaubier (Roseville, CA) – 152; 6. Jake Zemke (Paso Robles, CA) – 150; 7. Bobby Fong (Stockton, CA) – 140; 8. JD Beach (Philpot, KY) – 138; 9. Joey Pascarella (Vacaville, CA) – 129; 10. Cory West (Eureka Springs, AR) – 115.
AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport
This weekend’s Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire is set to feature yet another AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport doubleheader full of young talent and local experts. The Mid-Ohio event will be the first since April’s Road Atlanta round where East Division riders exclusively will have the opportunity to rack up points toward the Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport divisional and national championships. The season will hit the halfway mark for the East Division riders following Saturday’s race, the first of the weekend’s doubleheader finals.
Motorcycle-Superstore.com East Division points leader Jake Lewis (Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki) has had a remarkable debut season. The Kentuckian has finished on the podium in nine of 11 starts in 2012, underscored by three class wins. He sits atop the East point standings with 138 markers over nearest rival Stefano Mesa (Kneedraggers.com Yamaha) with 99. Mesa earned his first career AMA Pro victory at Road America last month, but unfortunately for the young Colombian’s championship aspirations that round was a West Division-only points paying round.
Third in the East points is Dustin Dominguez (Latus Motors Racing Triumph), one of only two active Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport riders with a win at Mid-Ohio. The Oklahoman’s chances of a weekend sweep looked good last year following his pole position-earning qualifying performance and dominant, 8.079-second Race 1 victory, but a DNF in Sunday’s Race 2 opened the door for then-rookie Hayden Gillim (RoadRace Factory/Red Bull Yamaha) to grab his first AMA Pro win. Rounding out the top five in the East Division standings are Gillim’s RoadRace Factory/Red Bull Yamaha teammate Tomas Puerta and National Guard/ Fairhills Group/ Celtic Racing Suzuki’s Corey Alexander.
Notable West Division entries likely to post top results at Mid-Ohio this weekend include defending Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport National Champ and West Division points leader James Rispoli (Celtic Racing/ Orient Express Racing/ Army National Guard Suzuki), Gillim and Elena Myers (Suzuki SportbikeTrackgear.com).
A number of track day coaches from The Mid-Ohio School’s Performance Track Riding program are also set to compete in Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport this weekend including Allan Pett (KBC Helmets/ Kurveygirl.com/ Mid-Ohio School Yamaha), Brandon Schweitzer (AFJ Race Shop/ assfaultjunkies.com Suzuki) and Ryan Kerr (RFC/ Sunstar/ EBC Kawasaki).
Saturday’s 17-lap final for the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport division will be the first race of the weekend, set to go green at 1:00 p.m., followed by Race 2 on Sunday at 1:15 p.m. local time.
AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport East Division Point Standings (After Round 3): 1. Jake Lewis (Princeton, KY) – 138; 2. Stefano Mesa (Boca Raton, FL) – 99; 3. Dustin Dominguez (Newalla, OK) – 98; 4. Tomas Puerta (Medellin, Colombia) – 95; 5. Corey Alexander (Carmel, NY) – 80; 6. Travis Wyman (Macedon, NY) – 55; 7. Ryan Kerr (Johnstown, OH) – 54; 8. Eric Stump (Berlin, NJ) – 49; 9. Miles Thornton (West Point, GA) – 48; 10. Zach Herrin (Dublin, GA) – 44.
AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport West Division Point Standings (After Round 5): 1. James Rispoli (Attica, NY) – 232; 2. Hayden Gillim (Owensboro, KY) – 173; 3. Elena Myers (Discovery Bay, CA) – 143; 4. Tyler Linders (Mission Viejo, CA) – 87; 5. Ryan Matter (Rancho Cucamonga, CA) – 84; 6. Travis Ohge (Aurora, OR) – 67; 7. Sebastiao Ferreira (Parauna, Brazil) – 64; 8. Devon McDonough (Damascus, OR) – 42; 9. Rocco Horvath (Chandler, AZ) – 36; 10. Colter Dimick (Ft. Collins, CO) – 35.
AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course will see a new winner in the AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series during this weekend’s Buckeye SuperBike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire. Both of the previous Mid-Ohio winners are now competing in AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike, paving the way for any of the 18 entries to stake their claim on the track’s win list. All six races in 2012 so far have been taken by the triple threat of Tyler O’Hara (Bartel’s Harley-Davidson), Kyle Wyman (KLR Group/Vesrah Racing Harley-Davidson) and Michael Barnes (MOB Racing Harley-Davidson).
Thanks to his Road Atlanta and Miller wins plus a slew of bonus points, Vance & Hines XR1200 Series points leader O’Hara has a six point advantage over Wyman heading into this weekend’s event. Wyman has had a hot foot lately, however, clinching two of his three wins this season in his last two outings and cutting O’Hara’s lead by 10 points in the process. Barnes posted another podium last month at Barber, showing that he and his new MOB Racing team are more than up to the mid-season switch.
Notable riders that have scratched at the podium door with fourth place finishes this year include Michael Corbino (XP Motorsports/ Rossiter’s Harley-Davidson), David Estok (Ruthless Racing/ Deeley Harley-Davidson), Travis Wyman (Harv’s Harley-Davidson) and Shane Narbonne (MOB Racing Harley-Davidson).
Mid-Ohio School’s Performance Track Riding coach Pete Cline (Team Ohio Racing) has joined forces with RIDER Insurance / Oxford Consulting Group to grid up a Wounded Warrior-crewed Harley-Davidson XR1200 for the Mid-Ohio round. The team will be holding a silent auction to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) with all proceeds earmarked for the WWP. To contribute to this worthy cause, fans and competitors are invited to come to the WWP booth (located in vendor’s row) on either July 13th or July 14th before 5 p.m.
From 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday evening, the RIDER Insurance / Oxford Consulting Group / Team Ohio Racing will be holding a warrior meet and greet at the Vesrah Suzuki hospitality area in the paddock, open to any ticket holder with a pit pass. This event is an opportunity to meet with and thank the warriors that have served our country and to help educate the public about the WWP mission.
The AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series riders take to the track for their 11-lap race final on Sunday, July 15 at 12:30 p.m. local time.
AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series Point Standings (After Round 6): 1. Tyler O’Hara (Petaluma, CA) – 165; 2. Kyle Wyman (Macedon, NY) – 159; 3. Michael Barnes (Boca Raton, FL) – 144; 4. Michael Corbino (Sarasota, FL) – 89; 5. David Estok (Daytona Beach, FL) – 88; 6. Travis Wyman (Macedon, NY) – 79; 7. Gerry Signorelli (Colorado Springs, CO) – 78; 8. Darren James (Deep Cove, Canada) – 63; 9. Josh Chisum (Bakersfield, CA) – 62; 10. Benjamin Carlson (West Bend, WI) – 54.
SPEED2 Live Streaming Broadcasts and Live Timing & Scoring
Follow along live as the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport and AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series riders battle it out by logging onto http://www.speed2.com. SPEED2 is a broadband service available to customers of Time Warner, Bright House Networks, Cablevision, DISH and Cox. For more information and instructions on gaining access to all of the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com and AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series races, please review the SPEED2 FAQ located at http://www.speed2.com/faq.
AMA Pro Road Racing Live Timing & Scoring presented by Cortech offers fans real-time access to results from on-track sessions at http://live.amaproracing.com/rr/. Between the races, stay connected with AMA Pro Road Racing at www.twitter.com/AMAProSBK and www.facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing.
Pre-Event Meet-and-Greets
Before the event weekend begins, fans can meet and greet with AMA Pro Road Racing riders at a number of pre-event promotions. On Thursday evening from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., GEICO Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas, M4 Broaster Chicken Suzuki’s Chris Ulrich and Dane Westby and Suzuki SportbikeTrackGear.com’s Elena Myers will be signing autographs at the new convenience store Chugz on South Diamond Street in downtown Mansfield. Fans will also have the chance to win race tickets, gas cards and chicken dinners during the promotion.
Then, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday evening, Jordan Suzuki’s Ben Bostrom and Roger Hayden will be on hand at McCune Cycle World (327 Ashland Rd., Mansfield, OH) for an autograph signing which may also include Cleveland Browns defensive end Marcus Bernard. Display bikes will also be on-hand, including Jordan Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000s and an Orange County Chopper belonging to the 179th Airlift Wing of the Ohio Air National Guard. For more information, please call 419-524-2222.
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Event Activities
Though there are dozens of hours of track time between practices, qualifying and races, there is plenty to be seen off track, including a fireworks display on Saturday night and motorcycle stunt shows by team BikeStyles performing in the upper paddock throughout the weekend.
Prior to the races on Saturday and Sunday, fans with Pit and Paddock Passes are able to get onto pit lane for a fan walk and autograph opportunities. Bikes and riders from all four classes will be on the grid during the fan walks, making for a packed pit lane.
Weekend tickets start at $60 and daily tickets at $40. General parking is free and children 12 and under are also admitted free. Visit www.midohio.com anytime or call 800-MID-OHIO (643-6446) Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.- 5 p.m. to order tickets or for more information.
AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.
