McCormick streaks into Shannonville

From Frontline CSBK Inc.

SHANNONVILLE, ON – If you’re in the vicinity of Shannonville Motorsport Park this weekend, cover your eyes. There’s a streaker on the loose.

Brett McCormick comes into the second and third rounds of the Canadian Superbike Championship by Parts Canada with a couple of winning streaks on the go, and the 19-year-old from Saskatoon is in a good position to keep the string going.

The radX / BMW Motorrad Canada rider will be looking for his third straight victory at the legendary Canadian motorcycle racing venue, which hosted is first Canadian national event in 1980. McCormick picked up his first ever Canadian Superbike win here in 2008 and followed that up with another triumph in 2009. Shannonville did not host a national round last season.

McCormick is also riding a stretch of three consecutive wins on the Canadian Superbike Championship trail. He won the final two rounds of the 2009 season before spending last year racing in the U.S. He marked his return to Canada with a win in the season opener of this year’s title chase at Circuit ICAR in Mirabel, Que. on May 29.

McCormick’s domination of that event – he started from pole and led every lap on his BMW S1000RR – put him in control of the seven-race championship with 56 points.

There will be plenty of racers in a position to put an end to McCormick’s streaking at this weekend’s doubleheader, however. Among them will be fellow BMW rider Andrew Nelson. The Kars, Ont. ace placed second at Circuit ICAR aboard his Nelson Racing / Gymax / Monette Sports S1000RR and is second in the standings with 44 points.

Nelson is on a streak of his own, having now placed runner-up in the last three national rounds dating back to last season. He can practically taste his first ever Canadian Superbike triumph.

McCormick will also want to be wary of Brantford, Ont.’s Jordan Szoke, who knows plenty about streaks, having won seven Superbike races in a row to take his fifth consecutive national title last year. The 31-year-old is third in points with 40 for the Competition Systems Kawasaki Race Team on its Ninja ZX-10R.

Other racers hoping to pick up their first career National Superbike triumph this weekend include Alex Welsh of Uxbridge, Ont. and Mississauga, Ont. racer Michael Ferreira.

Welsh is coming off a solid fourth at Circuit ICAR on the Z1 CycleTech Suzuki GSX-R600 and will be hoping to debut the team’s GSX-R1000 this weekend. Ferreira was fifth in the season opener after qualifying on the front row aboard the second of the radX / BMW Motorrad Canada factory entries.

Not to be discounted either is two-time Canadian Superbike Champion Francis Martin of Sherbrooke, Que. The Couturier Racing BMW rider was sixth in round one but was lying third before falling on the final lap.

This weekend’s event will also see doubleheaders for the Pirelli Pro Sport Bike, Harley-Davidson XR1200 Cup, K&N Performance Filters Amateur Superbike, Inside Motorcycles Amateur Sport Bike and Honda CBR125R Challenge national classes.

Woodbridge, Ont.’s Frank Trombino won the Pro Sport Bike opener at Circuit ICAR on the Suzuki Canada / Hindle / Sturgess Cycle Suzuki GSX-R600 and is a multi-time Shannonville regional champion.

Cody Matechuk of Cochrane, Alta. won the XR1200 Cup curtain raiser at Circuit ICAR after a thrilling duel with legend Steve Crevier, as the class made its national debut.

Alex Coelho of Longueuil, Que. took the first round of the Amateur Superbike Championship on the Black Sheep Racing Kawasaki ZX-6R and Magog, Que.’s Samuel Proulx was the victor in the Amateur Sport Bike class riding the Sherbrooke Harley-Davidson-backed Suzuki GSX-R600.

St-Lazare, Que.’s Stacey Nesbitt leads the Honda CBR125R Challenge point standings after a fifth place finish and a victory in the opening weekend doubleheader at Circuit ICAR.

Practice and qualifying for this weekend’s events take place on Friday. Racers will be battling for the Kawasaki S4-R Lubricants Pole Awards and, in the Harley-Davidson XR1200 Cup the Tactical Products Canada Pole Award. Races in all national classes will go Saturday and Sunday.

For ticket information call 1-800-959-8955 or go to www.shannonville.com.

Spies claims first MotoGP win

From motogp.com

Yamaha Factory Racing's Ben Spies took his first win in the MotoGP class, with the two Repsol Hondas of Casey Stoner and Andrea Dovizioso occupying the lower two steps on the podium at the Iveco TT Assen race on Saturday.

American Spies, who was edged out of pole position by Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini Team), rode a perfect race to cross the line 7.697s ahead of Stoner in second place. The Texan had a good start, allowing him to narrowly avoid the drama of the first lap, when pole starter Italian Simoncelli took out Spies' team mate Jorge Lorenzo in the third corner. Simoncelli had hoped to finally reach the podium in the Saturday race, but the Italian fell victim to a cold tire early on.

"It was strange because it was one of the most comfortable races I've had, and it resulted in a win," Spies admitted. "I had a good feeling with the bike at the start of the race so I pushed to make a gap. Even after I was three or four seconds ahead of Casey, when he pushed to try to catch me, I still had some reserve I could use, so I could speed up if I needed to.

"At least I don't have to hear 'are you ever going to win a race?' There is always that question. Now I can keep developing the bike for next year and keep having fun. Obviously now I want a championship."

Stoner led team mate Dovizioso to the finish, where the Italian claimed his third top three finish of the 2011 season. Stoner is now 28 points ahead of Lorenzo in the Championship while Dovizioso remains third, but is now only nine points behind the Spaniard.

Battered and bruised from a Friday accident, Stoner never felt totally comfortable with his set up all weekend and was very relieved to score some important Championship points.

"Today we would have liked to challenge for the win but the way this weekend has gone for us I'm really very happy for a podium finish and to take some valuable points," Stoner explained. "Yesterday we weren't happy with the set up, so today we made some changes and tried to get some more feeling, but unfortunately in the warm up we didn't get a proper chance to try it, which meant we started the race with a set up we didn't really know.

"After the crash yesterday I'm a little bit sore, in the middle part of the race I started to have some problems in the left hand corners with the shoulder but in general we knew we didn't really have the pace to stay with Ben. I tried everything possible to catch him, but he was able to retain the advantage and start to pull some more, so my congratulations to Ben, he rode a great race, but for us it was just important to get points today."

Dovizioso was also still a little sore from a Friday fall. He experienced a tire issue in the race which affected his ability to stay with Stoner.

"I'm really happy with today's podium," the Italian said. "It's a good result for the Championship and also it has come after a complicated race weekend.

"The track conditions were tough. When we were on the grid, the weather was still unpredictable and the track was not completely dry, so we went for a safe tire selection, choosing the soft front tire. This choice influenced my race because when I tried to stay with Casey, I was losing the front and I couldn't push harder. This is my only disappointment today. Then after 15 laps, a strange vibration on the rear began. It was very annoying and I couldn't understand what it was. As I had a good margin from Valentino, I rode more carefully to secure the third position. After the race we saw that the front tire had some issues, which Bridgestone will analyse."

The Ducati Team duo was led across the finish line by Valentino Rossi in fourth and Nicky Hayden in fifth. Lorenzo was able to rejoin the race and put his head down after the clash with Simoncelli to cross the line in sixth place.

Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider Colin Edwards was seventh, in front of Dani Pedrosa's stand-in Hiroshi Aoyama. They were followed by Simoncelli in ninth, who rejoined the race after push starting his own motorcycle following the run in on the first lap. Toni Elias of the LCR Honda team completed the top 10 finishers.

Cal Crutchlow exited the track with a front tire problem, though re-entered the race to finish 14th.

Karel Abraham ended what was otherwise a good weekend for the Cardion AB Motoracing with a fall early in the race. He was followed a short time later by Randy de Puniet (Pramac Racing), the fourth DNF of the season for the Frenchman. Both riders were unhurt in the falls.

Loris Capirossi (Pramac Racing) did not participate in the race due to injuries sustained in a fall during the qualifying session.

Marc Marquez took his second victory of his Moto2 debut season in tricky conditions at the Iveco TT Assen ahead of Kenan Sofuoglu and Bradley Smith. Reigning 125cc Champion Márquez (Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol) crossed the finish line in first, climbing six places in the Moto2 Championship to put him second in the standings.

Both Sofuoglu and Smith led the field throughout the race, battling with Spanish star Márquez and Yuki Takahashi (Gresini Racing), who made it up to second position before crashing out with only four laps to go. Mike di Meglio (Tech 3) was also an early front runner until he crashed out as well.

Anthony West (MZ Racing) rode a strong race to finish fourth, his best finish of the season thus far. The Australian was chased by Alex de Angelis (JiR Moto2) in fifth and Mattia Pasini (Ioda Racing Project) in sixth.

Maverick Viñales charged to his second victory of the 2011 125cc World Championship at Assen, pulling a two and a half second gap over Luis Salom in second and Sergio Gadea in third before rain produced a red flag. Rookie Viñales (Blusens by Paris Hilton Racing Team) pulled away from the field after a thrilling start saw a group of eight riders battling for the lead. The 16-year-old had dropped back as far as ninth position, only to make his way back to the front, finally making an outside pass on Sandro Cortese (Intact Racing Team Germany) to take the lead on lap 10.

MotoGP Race Results
1. Ben SPIES (USA) Yamaha Factory Racing / Yamaha 41:44.659
2. Casey STONER (AUS) Repsol Honda Team / Honda +7.697
3. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda Team / Honda +27.506
4. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Ducati Team / Ducati +30.684
5. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati Team / Ducati +43.172
6. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Yamaha Factory Racing / Yamaha +44.536
7. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 / Yamaha +1:08.112
8. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Repsol Honda Team / Honda +1:10.753
9. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini / Honda +1:24.925
10. Toni ELIAS (SPA) LCR Honda MotoGP / Honda +1:26.216
11. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP / Suzuki +1:38.466
12. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP / Ducati +1 Lap
13. Kousuke AKIYOSHI (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini / Honda +1 Lap
14. Cal CRUTCHLOW (GBR) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 / Yamaha +2 Laps
Not Classified
Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) Pramac Racing Team / Ducati 25 Laps
Karel ABRAHAM (CZE) Cardion AB Motoracing / Ducati 0 Laps

MotoGP Point Standings
1. Casey STONER (Honda) 136
2. Jorge LORENZO (Yamaha) 108
3. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda) 99
4. Valentino ROSSI (Ducati) 81
5. Nicky HAYDEN (Ducati) 71
6. Dani PEDROSA (Honda) 61
7. Ben SPIES (Yamaha) 61
8. Hiroshi AOYAMA (Honda) 51
9. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha) 46
10. Marco SIMONCELLI (Honda) 39
11. Hector BARBERA (Ducati) 35
12. Toni ELIAS (Honda) 34
13. Karel ABRAHAM (Ducati) 33
14. Cal CRUTCHLOW (Yamaha) 32
15. Alvaro BAUTISTA (Suzuki) 27
16. Loris CAPIROSSI (Ducati) 22
17. Randy DE PUNIET (Ducati) 10
18. John HOPKINS (Suzuki) 6
19. Kousuke AKIYOSHI (Honda) 3

Conditions play havoc with Assen opening

From motogp.com

Track conditions following the first Moto2 practice session at the MotoGP World Championship Dutch TT on Thursday were deemed too dangerous to hold FP2 for any of the classes, despite a team of cleanup trucks spending close to two hours scrubbing oil spilled over one third of the circuit.

The heavy rain during the first practice sessions claimed many riders in crashes, particularly in the Moto2 class, in which Italian rider Alex Baldolini inadvertently left a trail of oil over a considerable portion of the track when he reentered following a crash.

The clean up work initially delayed the start of FP2 125cc session, which was due to begin at 1:15pm, and then finally forced a full cancellation of the afternoon sessions when the MotoGP FP2 was unable to start.

San Carlo Honda Gresini Team rider Marco Simoncelli led the MotoGP field in front of Valentino Rossi and Casey Stoner in the first practice at the Iveco TT Assen on Thursday morning. Rain disrupted the MotoGP session from the start, but Simoncelli started the weekend in the best possible way, lapping 0.360s ahead of Ducati Team's Rossi, who is on board the GP11.1 Desmosedici for the Dutch TT. Completing the top three was Repsol Honda rider and series leader Stoner, who was close to half a second down on Rossi.

"It is a shame that we couldn't ride this afternoon because of the track conditions but we will be able to make up for it with the extra time tomorrow," Simoncelli said. "This morning I went very well on a very wet track and we were able to get valuable data and a feeling for the track. I am happy and I can't wait for tomorrow to get back on the bike. We will try something with the front-end set-up and some electronic solutions but already we have good traction and stability on the rear."

The two Italians had tussled to lead the timings early in the session, swapping first and second fastest positions until the Australian stepped into the mix. All three pulled out fast laps at the close of the session, with Simoncelli coming out on top.

"We only had one practice session with the new bike, so it's very early to make a full verdict, but the first feelings are certainly positive," Rossi explained. "The GP11 also went well in the wet, but the GP11.1 didn't just maintain the positive aspects; I actually liked it a little bit more, so I'm curious to also try it in dry conditions. Unfortunately, they canceled the afternoon session because of an oil leak in Moto2; it would have been very nice to continue — in either the wet or the dry — the work that we started.

"Anyway, we're happy for now. The new gearbox helps with acceleration on corner exits, and the rear of the bike is more stable. Now I can ride more naturally. There are still some small things to improve with the bike's character, but we knew that and will continue to work on it."

The three were followed by Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) in fourth and Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing) in fifth.

Cal Crutchlow, after breaking his collarbone only two weeks ago at his home Silverstone race, stuck it out for 13 laps to lay down a time that put him sixth in the standings.

Rookie Karel Abraham (Cardion AB Motoracing) carried his form over from the weekend in Silverstone with the seventh-fastest time, finishing the practice ahead of Americans Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) in eighth, Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) ninth and Ben Spies (Yamaha Factory Racing) in 10th. Héctor Barberá (Mapfre Aspar) followed with 11th place.

Hiroshi Aoyama who is replacing the injured Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda team, put in a 12th fastest time in the wet session.

The current leader of the Moto2 class, Stefan Bradl put the heat on his intermediate category rivals in the rainy Assen FP1. The Viessmann Kiefer Racing rider opened up the first Moto2 practice session of the Iveco TT Assen weekend riding his Kalex machine to the top of the timesheet with a best lap of 1:54.435 on the historic Dutch circuit. Kenan Sofuoglu (Technomag-CIP) was second fastest, less than three tenths behind the German with Simone Corsi (Ioda Racing Project), who is currently second in the Championship, third quickest in the wet.

Jonas Folger (Red Bull Ajo Motorsport) set the fastest time in the first 125cc practice of the Iveco TT Assen. Sandro Cortese (Intact Racing Team Germany) and Maverick Viñales (Blusens by Paris Hilton Racing Team) followed with second and third quickest times.

Castrol Raceway announces road course construction

From Castrol Raceway

EDMONTON, AB -- Castrol Raceway owners Rob Reeves and Ron Hodgson, along with Dave Fifield C.O.O. of Wakefield Canada Inc., announced on Tuesday the construction of a 2.7km road course at the Raceway. The road course will be the newest addition to Castrol Raceway, which also boasts a quarter-mile IHRA sanctioned drag strip, three-eighths-mile clay oval and a 10-acre motocross track.

A road course has been in the works on the Castrol Raceway property since it was first built 20 years ago.

“With the commitment of Wakefield Canada [Castrol’s Canadian parent company] to remain the title sponsor and partner of the race track, it seemed like the ideal time to build,” said Reeves.

If all goes according to plan, the road course will be fully completed within three years. Phase one is currently underway and will consist of completing the first 1.4km loop of track with the hope of being operational by the end of this summer. Phase two will see the completion of the second 1.3km loop, and phase three will bring it all together.

The road course will bring a whole new dimension of racing to Castrol Raceway - open and closed wheel racing, Formula Atlantic/Indy Lights and Grand Am racing along with road cars' special track days.

With the rumored closure of Calgary’s Race City Motorsport Park, Castrol Raceway’s new road course will be the only track in the vicinity, with the next closest one located in Mission, BC.

According to Reeves, “Castrol Raceway will rival the best motorsports facilities in North America, bringing back the same excitement that was felt with the Edmonton International Speedway.”

This weekend will see the top drag racers from across North America come to Edmonton for Canada’s biggest drag racing event: the 9th annual Mopar Rocky Mountain Nitro Jam Nationals (June 24-26). Over 40,000 spectators will experience the ground-pounding excitement of Top Fuel Dragsters and the nitro-powered mayhem that makes up the IHRA Nitro Jam Drag Racing series.

Later on this summer (Aug. 6-7) Castrol Raceway will play host to the one and only Monster Jam monster truck show. This year’s line-up includes the superstars of Monster Jam: Grave Digger, Superman, Monster Mutt and Captain’s Curse. The trucks will have all the space they need in Castrol Raceway’s outdoor arena to thrill monster truck fans.

The World of Outlaws return to Castrol Raceway for the Oil City Cup (Aug. 26-27). And for the first time in Canada, Castrol Raceway hosts the Super Chevy Show this September long weekend (Sept. 2-4). Making its Canadian debut in 2011, the Super Chevy Show tour brings high-powered Chevy racing excitement and beautiful classic Chevy Show Cars to Castrol Raceway.

Please visit the brand new www.CastrolRaceway.com for more information and a full event listing.

Castrol Raceway is located just south of Edmonton, adjacent to the Edmonton International Airport.

Lowes to replace injured Rea

From Castrol Honda SBK

The Castrol Honda team has announced that Britain’s Alex Lowes is to replace its injured rider Jonathan Rea for the eighth round of the World Superbike championship at Brno in the Czech Republic on July 7-9.

Rea, 24, sustained a fracture and ligament damage to his right arm and wrist in a warm-up crash at Misano in Italy last week and faces an intense period of rehabilitation and recovery.

Lowes is currently competing in the British Superbike championship. Having started the season in the ‘Evo’ class on a Honda CBR1000RR, the 20-year-old recently moved up to full superbike specification to replace injured Kawasaki rider Stuart Easton.

Lowes took a spectacular pole position in his first British Superbike ride last month at Thruxton. Along with his twin brother Sam, who rides for the Parkalgar Honda World Supersport team, Lowes contested the European Superstock championships in 2008 and 2009 and is familiar with Brno and other WSBK circuits.

"The first thing I want to say is that I hope Jonathan’s injuries heal quickly and that he’s back on the bike soon," Lowes said. "It’s never ideal getting a ride because another rider has been hurt, but it’s now happened to me twice this season. Having said that, this is an incredible opportunity for me – I keep pinching myself because I’m riding for one of the world’s best race teams in the World Superbike championship. I know I have a lot to learn but I want to make the most of this and repay Castrol, Honda and the whole team for the faith they’ve shown in me."

Young on a mission at Barber

From the Fogi Racing Development Team

BIRMINGHAM, AL -- Collingwood, ON’s Ben Young produced a tremendous ride through the field to finish 10th in last Sunday’s AMA Pro Motorcyclesuperstore.com SuperSport race at Barber Motorsport Park in Birmingham, AL, capping off a stressful weekend that saw Young and his team overcome a number of challenges.

After placing a superb ninth in wet practice Young carried that form over to qualifying, putting the Fogi Racing Development Yamaha YZF-R6 11th on the grid for the pair of SuperSport races. However, a rules infringement put the teenager at the back of the 37-bike grid, leaving him with a lot of work to do on Saturday and Sunday.

“We were disappointed with the outcome,” Young admitted after qualifying, “but the rules are there to be adhered to.”

Undaunted, Young put on a charge in Saturday’s opening 17-lap race around the challenging 2.3-mile Barber Motorsport Park circuit, climbing all the way up to 14th within four laps before a connecting rod bearing let go in the engine.

The Fogi Development Team undertook a frantic engine change before Sunday’s second race and after a strong performance in the morning warm-up hopes were high that Young could reproduce his form of the previous day.

Despite battling temperatures in the 100-degree Fahrenheit range Young recovered from a poor start to methodically work his way through the pack over the course of the 17-lap race and crack the top 10 in the final results.

“I just got my head down and rode smart and worked my way through the field,” Young said. “I had such a great time riding with riders I have never ridden with before and my team built me a great bike. Huge thanks to Rocky Stargel, James Hillis, my dad, and all my sponsors. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without them.”

With the weekend ending on such a high the Fogi Racing Development Team is looking forward to the next AMA Pro Motorcyclesuperstore.com SuperSport round at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, OH July 8-10.

Young and Fogi Racing Development Team would like to thank,  Lean Angle, Motul, Arai, EBC Brakes, K&N, TechSpec Gripsters, MICS (Medical Information Carrier System), Turn2 Sportbike School, Arlen Ness, Vortex, Goodridge, AirTrix Paint Store, BCL Motorsports, Renthal, Infinet Designs, GP Tech, The Awning Company, Scot-Build Developments and Armour Bodies.

Tough podiums for Kruger in China

From Dan Kruger

Overcoming a number of setbacks over the past week, Canadian Dan Kruger managed a pair of podium finishes in the summer round of the Audi-Red Bull Pan Delta Championship at the Zhuhai International Circuit in Zhuhai, China last weekend. A second and third place finish in the Superbike events aboard his Kawasaki/BG Motorsports Kawasaki ZX-10R put the Montreal rider back in the title running.

The first setback came when Kruger's new Kawasaki race bike was held up due to China Customs issues. He was forced to race his old Superbike again, which is clearly showing its age.

Next came the weather. Testing the previous Sunday all the way up to and including qualifying sessions 1 and 2 were run on a wet track. Kruger qualified fourth overall in the rain, which due to a brand new three per row starting grid pushed him back to the second row.

Race 1 saw Kruger drop a few spots after a bad start. He struggled through the race and so did his bike. Heavy smoke was coming out of the exhaust and he fought to find grip. Kruger made a couple of last lap passes to get himself back into third and that's where he ended up.

"To be honest, I am happy to get a podium but not very happy with my lap times or the race in general," he admitted. "At this point, people are expecting me to be fighting for the win, not just a podium."

Race 2 started off better with a good start and Kruger was running with the two leaders. After a few laps the tired engine started showing more signs of its age and was consistently 15km/h slower than the frontrunners down the front straightaway according to the trap speeds. A very well prepared Japanese Yosh Endurance team running a GSX-R1000 got by Kruger under power as did a Macau rider. At that point, Kruger put his head down and chased them with determination to get past them for a podium. In the end, Kruger wound up second in Superbike.

The team would like to thank its sponsors Titanic Kawasaki, BG Motorport, Pirelli, Arlen Ness/Berik, Speedmaster, Ohlins, and more. A special thanks goes to to WSB rider Ruben Xaus for taking some time coaching Dan a few weeks back at the circuit while they were both in China for an Arlen Ness PR event.

Allen opens season with win

From Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada

EDMONTON, AB – In the wake of a host of new talent that is emerging in the Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada-sponsored V-Rod Destroyer Drag Race Series, one man still stands out as the one to beat. Nick Allen, racing for Redline Harley-Davidson, is fully aware that his rearview mirror is filling up with riders looking for a shot at dethroning the king of the Western Series.

The season opener at Castrol Raceway in Edmonton saw an epic battle that went down to the wire. In a precursor of how tight the race would be, the qualification round saw all seven riders finish within a quarter of a second, from first to last. Allen recorded the best run with an ET of 9.589 and a top speed of 137.09 mph.

Allen again bested the field in the first round of eliminations posting a solo run at 9.511 and top speed of 138.20 mph, bettering his morning run. Next up, it was rider Rick Adams supported by Edge Harley-Davidson with a narrow victory over fellow Alberta rider, Shaun Rude, racing for Heritage Harley-Davidson. Adams beat Rude to the lights with a meagre .009 of a second to spare.

Newcomer Jamie Moench, riding out of Edge Harley-Davidson made an immediate impression in his very first outing on a V-Rod Destroyer motorcycle. Lined up against the very talented Jeff Pitre, riding for Harley’s Hard Rock Saloon, Moench left no doubt in what his intentions were. With a reaction time of only .023 of a second and ET at 9.820, he crossed the line ahead of Pitre who ran a respectable ET of 9.956.

The next match-up saw last year’s Redline Harley-Davidson-sponsored contender, Chris Perkins line up against Kelly McCuaig and Perkins did not disappoint. His run had the second fastest ET of the first round with a 9.647 and 139.20 mph top speed sending McCuaig to the sidelines.

In round 2 of eliminations, rookies Perkins and Moench squared off at the tree. With almost identical reactions times they broke the beam at the end of the quarter almost simultaneously with Moench at 9.756 and just a wheel spoke ahead of Perkins, who ran a 9.767, which launched Moench into the final. That left champion Allen to test his metal against Adams. Adams was quicker on the trigger, but the cagey Allen broke the beam at the end of the run with .182 of a second, setting the stage for the veteran to go up against Moench, who was in not only his first V-Rod race, but also his first challenge for the weekend win.

The rookie remained calm as both bikes left the tree together. However, once again, Allen managed to squeeze a little more throttle out of his V-Rod Destroyer motorcycle for the race win, starting the season just where he left off, in the winner’s seat.

For further information on Canadian Motorcycle Drag Racing events, please refer to www.cmdra.com.

Lawrence wins in Welland

From Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada

WELLAND, ON – Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada-sponsored Donald Taylor scored a hard fought third place in the Open Expert Class Final at Niagara Motorcycle Raceway last Saturday night to keep the points lead he had established with his win in the opening round.

Taylor was in a tight pack with Doug Lawrence and Chris Evans and the three contenders separated from the rest of the 15-rider field.

Lawrence, on the American Harley-Davidson/Kurt Biegger entry, won his first race of the year with Evans on the George Evans Racing bike in second, and Taylor in third on an XR750 motorcycle prepared by Jim Sehl.

“It was a weird main event," the six-time champion commented. “The track was well-prepped, but it was a bit slippery and you really had to ride smart and hard. I ran second and was trying to find a way past Doug and I was really pushing him. I left rubber marks on his leathers and his bike and then Evans did the same to me.”

Evans pushed Taylor off the groove and into third place where he would remain until race completion.

“It was a good night really,” Taylor commented. “I won the lightweight race on the same bike I won on last week, but this was a new bike to me and we still have some work to do. I felt really comfortable on it and I know I’m going to get faster with it. I wasn’t tired after the main event, so I’m back in shape.

"I do have the points lead, but it’s only one point and I’ve got to admit, it’s tougher than I expected. Lawrence is just flying and I’m really surprised with Chris, but like I say, I’m going to get faster and I hope to start gapping them by mid-season.”

Round three of the Canadian Motorcycle Association 2011 Dirt Track National Championships runs Saturday evening, June 25 at the Niagara Raceway in Welland.

Pedrosa doubtful for Assen

From Repsol Honda

This weekend the Repsol Honda Team travels to Holland to take part in the Dutch TT, the seventh round of the MotoGP Championship, with Casey Stoner leading the Championship, Andrea Dovizioso in third place overall and Dani Pedrosa - now fifth after missing the last two GPs - working hard to return to racing as soon as possible after receiving another surgery last Thursday.

But it looks like the Repsol Honda team will face another GP without Pedrosa. The Spanish rider is still recovering after his surgery last Thursday to fix a small fragment of bone in the right collarbone that had moved during his previous rehabilitation. Pedrosa, who confirmed he will be back on his RC212V in Mugello on July 3, is feeling better and better each day, but at this moment it is almost certain he will not return in Assen.

“It's been some days since the surgery and I feel much better," Pedrosa explained. "I don't feel the pain I had before the operation and the evolution has been very good. I've already begun the rehabilitation and I am very positive. Every day I notice an improvement and this is very good because I really wish to get back on the bike as soon as possible.

"To be honest it will be very difficult for me to make it to Assen, but I really believe I will be okay for Mugello, so now I'm focused on working to get better every day and see how far I get. I want to return as soon as possible, but I want to do the right thing.”

If, as it looks more likely, Pedrosa will not race in Assen, he will be replaced in the Repsol Honda team by Hiroshi Aoyama, with HRC test rider, Kousuke Akiyoshi stepping in to take his place in the San Carlo Honda Gresini Team. HRC would be pleased to give an opportunity to Aoyama to race in Assen on the Factory RC212V and thanks Gresini Racing Team for their cooperation.

Herrin rebounds with SportBike win

From AMA Pro Racing

BIRMINGHAM, AL - Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Herrin had something to prove -- and points to regain -- in Sunday's AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Race 2, and when the light went green at Barber Motorsports Park, that's exactly what he did. After stalking GEICO Powersports/RMR Suzuki's Danny Eslick through the majority of the hard-fought race, Herrin turned the misery of Saturday's DNF into a very sweet .022-second margin of victory, then celebrated by scaling an enormous fence to cheers from fans.

"I consider this my home race, and I was really excited," said Herrin. "I did the Track Walk yesterday and told a couple fans I'd climb the fence, and they were pretty excited about it. So, I thought I would be nice to the fans," added the rider who'd just taken a win in 96-degree heat, "to get them out of the shade up there."

Saturday's seized engine may come back to haunt Herrin in the overall points chase, but for Sunday, the Yamaha rider -- followed across the line by Eslick and Jake Holden Racing's Cameron Beaubier -- is back on top. Only on top of the Barber podium, however, as it's Eslick who's taken over the championship points lead now, becoming the fourth rider to do so this year.

For Celtic Racing/Fast by Ferracci's PJ Jacobsen, Sunday's event was eerily and unpleasantly similar to Saturday's, in which he crashed out early in the race after leading briefly. In Sunday's contest, he lost that lead to a string of other riders before sliding out, but he was far from the only front-runner to suffer sideline fate: M4 Suzuki's Dane Westby followed suit after running as high as third, while former points leader Cory West (Vesrah Suzuki) ran off just minutes later while trying to move up from fourth. (West was able to reenter, ultimately finishing 20th.)

As Herrin put steadily increasing pressure on Eslick while clearly planning a last-minute attack, it was Y.E.S./Pat Clark/Grave Yamaha's Tommy Aquino who grabbed the spotlight, putting on a performance unlike anything the 19-year-old's shown the paddock this year. Though Beaubier ultimately got him at the last minute -- "It was a little close," said Beaubier, "but I had to do it" -- Aquino demonstrated he's still got what it takes to land on the box. 

When the white flag flew and the last lap unspooled, Herrin's attack, which he later labeled part of a "just I hope I can get it, and hope it'll stick" strategy, let loose on the string of final corners, delivered Herrin to the finish-line less than three tenths ahead of Eslick. "I can say I got beat," Eslick said later, laughing. "There's not much else to it. I led every lap down to the last corner pretty much, and he was definitely in a good position. After following me for 20 laps, he knew exactly where I was going on every lap. He definitely had options, and I didn't know where [the attack] was going to come from, but at that point I knew it was coming pretty quick."

When asked how the riders handled Sunday's heat, Eslick quipped, "The same as we do whenever it's cold -- we're not the smartest people out here."

Third-place finisher Beaubier later described his strategy as "just trying not to make any mistakes at the beginning. I knew if I didn't charge hard enough at beginning, I wouldn't be there at end," he continued. "It was a really tough race. I had a couple hard moments trying to keep up, but it was an awesome race."

Behind Beaubier, Aquino, Taylor Knapp (Vesrah Suzuki), Jason DiSalvo (Latus Motors Racing), Kris Turner (Turner's Cycle Racing), Tyler O'Hara (GP Bike Parts Racing), Barrett Long (Longevity Racing) and Tyler Odom (Don Odom Racing) rounded out the top 10.

Kenny Riedmann of Belfountain, ON finished 17th on his Triumph 675 Daytona.

The weather wasn't the only thing that was hot at Barber Motorsports Park on Sunday, as the second AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport race of the weekend boasted some seriously steamy action. ANT-Racing.com Suzuki rider James Rispoli barely edged out Saturday's winner, Benny Solis (Roadracingworld.com Honda), for the victory, while Hayden Gillim finished third and celebrated his first Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport podium.

Collingwood, ON's Ben Young placed an impressive 10th on his Lean Angle Yamaha YZF-R6 but Burlington, ON racer Emerson Connor was a DNF aboard his Ducati 848.

The AMA Pro Road Racing Championship next heads to Lexington, OH's Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the July 8-10 weekend, Round 6 on the series calendar. For tickets and information, visit www.midohio.com or call (419) 884-4000.

SportBike Race Results
1. Josh Herrin (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 21 Laps
2. Danny Eslick (Richie Morris Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 +0.022
3. Cameron Beaubier (GP Bike Parts Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 +0.187
4. Tommy Aquino (Yamaha Extended Service, Pat Clark Sports, Graves, Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 +0.448
5. Taylor Knapp (Vesrah Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 +4.854
6. Jason DiSalvo (Team Latus Motors Racing) Ducati 848 +14.432
7. Kris Turner (Turner`s Cycle Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 +14.707
8. Tyler O'Hara (GP Bike Parts Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 +38.605
9. Barrett Long (Longevity Racing) Ducati 848 +38.619
10. Tyler Odom (Don Odom Racing) Honda CBR600RR +45.133
11. Santiago Villa (M4 Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 +47.033
12. David Sadowski, Jr. (Top Shelf Motorcycles Racing) Ducati 848 +1:08.580
13. Matthew Sadowski (Top Shelf Motorcycles Racing) Ducati 848 +1:08.604
14. Wes Humphryes (Humphryes Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 +1:20.560
15. Michael Morgan (Autolite RIM Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 +1:22.306
16. Matt Hall (CS Carey Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 +1:24.688
17. Kenny Riedmann (Kenny Riedmann) Triumph Daytona 675 +1:28.291
18. Dirk Sanchez (Sons Mexico) Ducati 848 20 Laps
19. Sam Rozynski (Triple Crown Industries) Yamaha YZF-R6 +28.791
20. Cory West (Vesrah Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 +49.599
21. Dane Westby (M4 Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 8 Laps
22. PJ Jacobsen (Celtic Racing) Ducati 848 +3:42.981
23. Paul Allison (Triple Crown Industries) Yamaha YZF-R6 7 Laps
24. Huntley Nash (LTD Racing Y.E.S Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 6 Laps
25. Ricky Corey (GP Bike Parts Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 2 Laps
26. Melissa Paris (HT Moto Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 +8.209
27. Nahun Alvarez (NA Racing - MFM) Honda CBR600RR +5:56.219
28. Fernando Amantini (Team Amantini) Kawasaki ZX-6R 1 Lap
Race Time: 32:07.565
Margin of Victory: 0.022
Best Race Lap: Cameron Beaubier (1:30.584)

SportBike Point Standings (Top 15)
1. Danny Eslick 161
2. Josh Herrin 157
3. Jason DiSalvo 141
4. Cory West 137
5. Tommy Aquino 126
6. Cameron Beaubier 113
7. Dane Westby 96
8. PJ Jacobsen 90
9. Taylor Knapp 82
10. Tyler O'Hara 72
11. Paul Allison 59
12. Fernando Amantini 58
13. Santiago Villa 57
14. Huntley Nash 55
15. Tyler Odom 45
36. Kenny Riedmann 4

Superbike series broadcast schedule set

From Professional Motorsports Productions

TORONTO, ON – Groundbreaking 3D coverage of the Canadian Superbike Championship by Parts Canada will make its debut on the High Definition network radX on Monday, Nov. 7. This will be the first of 18 half-hour programs featuring the national motorcycle road racing series.

The Canadian Superbike Championship coverage will be part of ‘Motorcycle Mania’ on radX, a block of both High Definition and 3D programming dedicated to Canadian motorcycle competition. Premiering each Monday night, ‘Motorcycle Mania’ will feature the second season of the documentary series ‘Ultimate Superbike’ as well as the National road race series coverage.

The Canadian Superbike Championship coverage will be a co-production of Professional Motorsports Productions and WhistleStop Productions.

“With ‘Motorcycle Mania’ we have created a dedicated time and place for Canadian motorcycle racing coverage,” said Colin Fraser of Professional Motorsports Productions. “This should appeal to existing fans of the sport and also help introduce new enthusiasts to the speed, drama and color of the Canadian Superbike Championship.”

The race series coverage will include flag-to-flag action from the featured Parts Canada Superbike class, plus the Harley-Davidson XR1200 Cup and Pirelli Pro Sport Bike divisions.

'Ultimate Superbike’ is a behind the scenes look at the radX / BMW Motorrad Canada factory Superbike team as it contests the national tour. The series debuted last summer on radX.

“Fans of all action sports are in for a treat this fall,” said David Hatch, who along with his partner Stacey Hatch are executive producers at WhistleStop Productions. “The addition of 3D technology to the racing telecasts is a huge step forward and will add a spectacular dimension to motorcycle road racing.”

This represents the 17th straight season of television coverage of the Canadian Superbike Championship by Parts Canada. Sponsorship comes from BMW Motorrad Canada and Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada. BMW is now in its second year of running a factory Pro Superbike team while Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada is title sponsor of the XR1200 Cup as well as the Ruthless Racing team.

New to Canadian tracks this season, the XR1200 Cup is a spec class for Harley-Davidson’s XR1200 motorcycle. It is based on similar series currently running in the United States and Great Britain.

The premier schedule for the radX Canadian Superbike Championship is as follows:

Episode 1, Circuit ICAR, Mirabel, Que., Nov. 7
Episode 2, Shannonville Mtrspt Park, Shannonville, Ont., Nov. 14
Episode 3, Autodrome St. Eustache, St-Eustache, Que., Nov. 21
Episode 4, Atlantic Motorsport Park, Shubenacadie, N.S., Nov. 28
Episode 5, Mosport Int’l Raceway I, Bowmanville, Ont., Dec. 5
Episode 6, Mosport Int’l Raceway II, Bowmanville, Ont., Dec. 12

Young wins SuperBike scorcher

From AMA Pro Racing

BIRMINGHAM, AL - After settling for third in Saturday's rain-soaked AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike contest, Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Blake Young demanded a swap from Race 1 winner Martin Cardenas (M4 Suzuki) on Sunday and went right through Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Hayes to get it. With all three riders visibly exhausted after the extremely hot race, Young -- who started from the second row -- said, "I just kept thinking to myself, 'If I'm hurting this bad and this tired, he's gotta be hurting too, so just keep after it.'"

As sapped as the podium trio felt post-race, however, a pair of Hayden bothers -- Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Tommy and National Guard Jordan Suzuki's Roger -- undoubtedly felt worse. Tommy, who got the holeshot off the start and led through the first third of the race, was handed sudden misfortune when his bike began spewing smoke and flames, sidelining the eldest Hayden.

Roger, who'd been running a very strong fourth before a ride through the grass relegated him to a much more distant sixth, had been making up impressive ground on the frontrunners -- closing the gap from over two seconds to less than a half-second -- when a crash ended his race with seven laps to go. Although the Jordan rider walked away shaking his head, however, one thing his Barber runs have made clear is that the SuperBike class could soon see a new contender for front-runner status. 

Hayes and Young, meanwhile, continued to trade the lead while testing each other's lines, often running just inches apart and swapping spots in consecutive corners. With six laps left in the race, Young took back the lead and tried desperately to shake the Yamaha rider off, and he was able to eke out just enough of a margin to keep himself safe while the pair made their final charge up the front straight.

"I knew he'd be there," said Hayes, "he always is. Blake knew the areas where I was fast, and I really thought maybe the end would come my way a little bit because it seemed like he was having to use his bike more defensively than me. But at the end, I think we were both in hot water: pretty hot, pretty tired, and the bikes were getting extremely hot. I made the best run I could at him, but he rode a smart race, and he beat me."

"Today conditions were very extreme, very hot," Cardenas agreed, "and I think today's race was even tougher than yesterday's because we were sliding even a bit more than yesterday, so it was very difficult to maintain the pace. Roger and Tommy and Josh and Blake were running very fast and gaining some time over me in Turn 2 every lap, so I had to push very hard each lap to close the gap. But at the end I was just exhausted, and the last eight laps were very difficult for me to move on the bike because I was very tired and dehydrated. But third is a very good result, and we were closer than ever to the frontrunners, so I am very happy."

Behind Cardenas, Steve Rapp (San Diego BMW), Ben Bostrom (Jordan Suzuki), Larry Pegram (Foremost Insurance/Pegram Racing), Geoff May (Amsoil EBR Racing), Chris Clark (Y.E.S./Pat Clark/Graves Yamaha), Calgary's Chris Peris (Iron Horse BMW) and JD Beach (Cycle World Attack Kawasaki) rounded out the top 10.

The points race has tightened considerably, with Young trailing Hayes, 233 to 235. Tommy Hayden sits third with 182.

Parts Unlimited Harley-Davidson rider Rapp piloted his XR1200 to a second 2011 victory in Barber Motorsports Park's hot and humid AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 contest. Rapp barely edged out Chris Fillmore (Bruce Rossmeyer Daytona Racing) to take victory by a mere 0.157 of a second. Rounding out the podium was last year's AMA Pro SuperSport Top Gun Champion Tyler O'Hara.

The AMA Pro Road Racing Championship next heads to Lexington, OH's Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for the July 8-10 weekend, Round 6 on the series calendar. For tickets and information, visit www.midohio.com or call (419) 884-4000.

SuperBike Race Results
1. Blake Young (Rockstar ·Makita ·Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 21 Laps
2. Josh Hayes (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R1 +0.765
3. Martin Cardenas (M4 Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +3.775
4. Steve Rapp (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +8.637
5. Ben Bostrom (Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +12.729
6. Larry Pegram (Pegram Racing) BMW S1000RR +25.519
7. Geoff May (Amsoil EBR Racing) Buell 1125R +31.936
8. Chris Clark (Yamaha Extended Service, Pat Clark Sports, Graves, Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R1 +34.600
9. Chris Peris (Team Iron Horse BMW ·ESP) BMW S1000RR +35.526
10. JD Beach (Cycle World Attack Performance) Kawasaki ZX-10 +52.311
11. Chris Trounson (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +1:11.045
12. Trent Gibson (Seven Sports) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:21.082
13. Danny Kelsey (M & M Roadracing) Honda CBR1000RR +1:21.507
14. Reese Wacker (Wacker Racing LLC) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:22.003
15. Jordan Burgess (ADR Fly Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:26.337
16. Jeremy Toye (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +1:26.414
17. Skip Salenius (Karma Tequila Racing) Yamaha YZF-R1 20 Laps
18. Roger Hayden (National Guard Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 13 Laps
19. Kevin Boisvert (Bayside Performance) Suzuki GSX-R1000 12 Laps
20. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar ·Makita ·Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 8 Laps
Race Time: 30:44.626
Margin of Victory: 0.765
Best Race Lap: Blake Young (1:26.962)

SuperBike Point Standings (Top 20)
1. Josh Hayes 235
2. Blake Young 233
3. Tommy Hayden 182
4. Martin Cardenas 155
5. Ben Bostrom 130
6. Larry Pegram 125
7. Roger Hayden 106
8. Chris Clark 103
9. Steve Rapp 95
10. Geoff May 82
11. Chris Peris 74
12. Jeremy Toye 63
13. David Anthony 57
14. JD Beach 52
15. Trent Gibson 49
16. Jordan Burgess 36
17. Chris Ulrich 33
18. Chris Trounson 32
19. Chris Siebenhaar 23
20. Jason Farrell 22

Melandri and Biaggi trade wins

From the WSBK Pressoffice

A hot afternoon of racing in every way saw Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) and Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team) trade wins and second place finishes at Motorland Aragon on Sunday to squeeze World Superbike Championship title leader Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) in the overall points standings.

The Spanish rider fell in race one at his home track and then took a well-deserved podium place, third, in race two. Checa, desperate to make amends for sliding off as he chased the leading duo in race one, had to work hard to keep Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare) behind him for much of the race and Checa's 16 points for third place mean that Biaggi is still 43 behind and Melandri is 66 adrift as the season clicked past its mid-point.

Spanish riders had some good and the occasional not so good results all round, with Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team) posting seventh in race one then finishing an season best equalling fifth in race two.

Irish rider Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike Team) put in a fourth and a sixth place, to remain fourth overall.

WSB legend Noriyuki Haga (PATA Racing Team Aprilia) took part in his 300th race and left with strong results of sixth and seventh to his credit.

Tom Sykes equalled fellow Kawasaki rider Lascorz' prowess with fifth in race one, but a fall in race two spoiled an otherwise consistent and competitive weekend, as the whole Kawasaki effort took another step up with its new bike.

Once more it was a tough weekend for the BMW riders, this time from both official and satellite teams, with Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) scoring two ninth places and Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK Team) was eighth and 10th. The worst experience of all came for the luckless Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) as an entirely accidental collision between him and Maxime Berger caused Corser's left radius and ulna to fracture, putting him out of action in race two. He had been 10th in race one.

In race one, Melandri took his second win of the year after leading when it really counted as his rival Biaggi made a small slip a few laps from the end. The margin of victory was 1.5 seconds.

"It's been an awesome race for me," Melandri said. "Max was strong and consistent at the start and it was difficult to follow him. But in the end it was going to be tough for me to pass him so thanks to him that he made a mistake! Otherwise it would have been difficult. The team has been working very hard and I was very confident all weekend."

"I cannot say I am super-happy for the result but I had a good rhythm and just at the end the bike was a little more difficult to ride," Biaggi admitted. "We need to work more on the bike to improve it towards the end of the race, and hopefully we can do that for race two."

Camier was a strong finisher in third, and Laverty took fourth place in a close fight with Sykes. Haga and Lascorz followed close behind those two.

"I was struggling a bit at the beginning to get into the rhythm, but I'm happy with the result and happy for Aprilia, everyone's worked hard this weekend," Camier said. "It'll now make me try and go better at the beginning of the next race really."

Checa fell while in a potential podium position, on lap eight. He had just set the fastest lap of the race and was pushing on to try and stay with the leading riders.

Biaggi took his long awaited first win of the 2011 season after an immaculate display of front running in race two, heading Melandri by 4.809 seconds, after he ran off track at one point, with a few laps to go.

"I'm very happy of course, this is my first win of 2011," Biaggi said. "I didn't get one before because the other guys did a better job than me. This win came after a very strong race, I had a good pace all the way to the end, so the changes we made to the bike's suspension made it work better than race one. We should have done it before for race one but I'm happy with today's results."

Biaggi's victory made him the fifth different rider, from the fourth different manufacturer, to win at least one race in 2011.

"The conditions were a little bit different to race one and Max had a bit better pace," Melandri admitted. "I was braking so hard to recover what we lost in acceleration, so I lost the front, the tire locked and I lost the position on the bike and went off. I'm disappointed, it wasn't easy to try and pass like in race one, but I'm happy anyway."

Checa completed a damage limitation exercise after his fall in race one, scoring third in the second 20-lap contest, from the impressive Fabrizio.

"What a weekend with a crash in race one and struggling to catch Marco and Max in race two, but it was impossible," Checa explained. "After reaching third I felt it was the best situation to stay in third. Honestly, it was quite acceptable and I am quite satisfied for race two, it was a shame because it was my home race, we wanted to be at the top but here was not the place."

Lascorz was a 'hometown' top five finisher, from Laverty and Haga.

Chaz Davies (Yamaha ParkinGO) won his third World Supersport race of the year and took the championship lead after a dramatic race at Motorland. Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) was a close second but was unable to get into the slipstream of Davies to mount a last lap pass.

David Salom (Kawasaki Motocard.com) and Massimo Roccoli (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki) finished third and fourth respectively, in a race where two top contenders fell out of leading positions. Poleman Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com) and Luca Scassa (Yamaha ParkinGO) no scored after separate crashes near the end.

Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) took his third win in the 1000cc Superstock category this year but he had to work hard out front for it. He was pushed in the final sector of the 12-lap race by second place rider Lorenzo Zanetti (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock), who tried on the final two laps to pass the Roman rider. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Team) went third, winning a sprint to the line from Niccolò Canepa (Lazio MotorSport). The top four were well ahead of fifth place man, Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock).

Motorland Aragon also hosted the third round of the European Junior Cup, which saw a second successive win for Matt Davies. The Australian took the flag ahead of Germany's Tom Busch and Spain's Ruben Fenoll. Busch leads the table with seven points advantage over Davies.

Superbike Race One Results
1. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF-R1 40:01.968 (160.189km/h)
2. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory +1.572
3. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory +2.432
4. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF-R1 +10.799
5. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R +10.847
6. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory +11.931
7. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R +12.591
8. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000RR +16.954
9. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000RR +24.205
10. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000RR +24.694
etc.
Pirelli BEST LAP Award: Carlos Checa (Althea Racing), 1:58.862 (Lap 7)

Superbike Race Two Results
1. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 40:04.407 (160.026km/h)
2. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF-R1 +4.809
3. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R +6.944
4. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +9.001
5. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R +11.562
6. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF-R1 +14.288
7. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory +15.138
8. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory +17.660
9. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000RR +24.184
10. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000RR +24.676
etc.
Pirelli BEST LAP Award: Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike), 1:59.159 (Lap 3)

Superbike Points
(after 7 of 13 rounds)
1. Checa 261
2. Biaggi 218
3. Melandri 195
4. Laverty 146
5. Camier 125
6. Haslam 120
7. Fabrizio 108
8. Rea 94

Eslick snags first SportBike win

From AMA Pro Racing

BIRMINGHAM, AL - "As you can see," said GEICO Powersports/RMR Suzuki's Danny Eslick in the post-qualifying press conference, "this is a pretty mean front row." Sitting beside the AMA Pro Daytona SportBike pole-earner in Barber Motorsport Park's pressroom were the other three most-wanted men in 2011 Daytona SportBike racing: PJ Jacobsen (Celtic Racing/Fast by Ferracci), Josh Herrin (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) and Jason DiSalvo (Team Latus Motors Racing).

The stakes were sky-high for all four heading into a sweltering Race 1 at the gorgeously green Birmingham facility, as a pair of DNFs at the previous round had seen DiSalvo forced to cede the lead to Herrin for the first time this season. In the end, however, victory shone not on points-leaders or former points-leaders, but on those from the road race-proud state of Oklahoma, as Broken Arrow's Eslick led M4 Suzuki's Dane Westby (Tulsa) and Vesrah Suzuki's Cory West (Oklahoma City) to what some OK-fans have labeled an "Oklapodium."

"It's been a tough season so far," said Eslick, who'd gone winless in 2011 until today. "It means a lot to get this win ... it's pretty awesome."

Eslick launched into the lead off the start, and - in an almost unheard-of occurrence in the shark-tank-like Daytona SportBike class - was never forced to release it, save for a brief skirmish with Jacobsen on Lap 1. Instead, he began almost immediately to spin out a modest lead that grew, over the 21 laps, to an unassailable one. Helping matters were that fact that two of his biggest recent threats, Herrin and Jacobsen, were negated early in the contest, Jacobsen sliding out at the end of Lap 1 and Herrin - pounding his tank in fury - having to pit just minutes later with a seized engine.

DiSalvo, trying desperately to chase down Eslick from second, initially appeared to be the heir-apparent challenger once Jacobsen and Herrin were out, but the Latus rider was likewise soon struggling, getting shuffled back to fifth in the lead pack. With about seven to go, a three-way battle for second kicked off between Tommy Aquino, Westby, and West, and as the laps clicked down, it only intensified.

"I could see the numbers on the scoring tower changing position," said Eslick, "[and] I kept seeing different numbers in second, so I knew they were racing pretty hard back there. I just didn't want to do anything crazy and mess up."

While Eslick checked out, heading the field by nearly four seconds at one point, DiSalvo did everything he could to keep the trio in front of him within grasp, but was ultimately forced to settle for fifth, his run of recent bad luck seeming to stretch yet further. And while Aquino was left to a solid but somewhat disappointing fourth, Westby and West each had plenty to celebrate, Westby claiming the race's runner-up position while West took over the overall points-lead in the Daytona SportBike Championship, 136 points to Eslick's 135.

"It's awesome," said West later, shaking his head. "I can't thank the Vesrah guys enough. Now we just have to try to push on and get another podium tomorrow."

Belfountain, ON's Kenny Riedmann was classified 23rd on his Triumph 675 Daytona.

The opening race of the Barber SuperBike Classic Weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL stepped up the intensity of AMA Pro's "young-gun" class yet another notch -- and set the tone for the races to follow. Saturday's 17-lap AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport race saw Roadracingworld.com's Benny Solis take his third victory of the season, but only after a race-long battle with pole-sitter James Rispoli (ANT-Racing.com Star School Suzuki) and a determined Elena Myers (Team SuzukiScoopFans Racing).

Both Ben Young and Emerson Connor were DNFs in the first SuperSport race of the weekend.

SportBike Race Results
1. Danny Eslick (Richie Morris Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 21 Laps
2. Dane Westby (M4 Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 +2.842
3. Cory West (Vesrah Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 +3.005
4. Tommy Aquino (Yamaha Extended Service, Pat Clark Sports, Graves, Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 +3.144
5. Jason DiSalvo (Team Latus Motors Racing) Ducati 848 +3.682
6. Taylor Knapp (Vesrah Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 +4.556
7. Kris Turner (Turner`s Cycle Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 +33.576
8. Tyler OHara (GP Bike Parts Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 +37.303
9. Huntley Nash (LTD Racing Y.E.S Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 +45.745
10. Ricky Corey (GP Bike Parts Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 +48.782
11. Barrett Long (Longevity Racing) Ducati 848 +1:04.276
12. Tyler Odom (Don Odom Racing) Honda CBR600RR +1:12.767
13. David Sadowski, Jr. (Top Shelf Motorcycles Racing) Ducati 848 +1:16.211
14. Nahun Alvarez (NA Racing - MFM) Honda CBR600RR +1:16.542
15. Michael Morgan (Autolite RIM Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 +1:33.038
16. PJ Jacobsen (Celtic Racing) Ducati 848 20 Laps
17. Wes Humphryes (Humphryes Racing) Suzuki GSX-R600 +7.050
18. Melissa Paris (HT Moto Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 +8.283
19. Sam Rozynski (Triple Crown Industries) Yamaha YZF-R6 +1:07.915
20. Fernando Amantini (Team Amantini) Kawasaki ZX-6R +1:11.146
21. Santiago Villa (M4 Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R600 19 Laps
22. Matthew Sadowski (Top Shelf Motorcycles Racing) Ducati 848 15 Laps
23. Kenny Riedmann (Kenny Riedmann) Triumph Daytona 675 14 Laps
24. Josh Herrin (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R6 4 Laps
25. Dirk Sanchez (Sons Mexico) Ducati 848 +19:25.563
26. Paul Allison (Triple Crown Industries) Yamaha YZF-R6 2 Laps
27. Cameron Beaubier (GP Bike Parts Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 +16:27.547
28. Matt Hall (CS Carey Racing) Yamaha YZF-R6 0 Laps
Race Time: 32:03.777
Margin of Victory: 2.842
Best Race Lap: Jason DiSalvo (1:30.845)

Cardenas claims first SuperBike win

From AMA Pro Racing

BIRMINGHAM, AL - Saturday's AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike action at Barber Motorsports Park started with a front-row shakeup in morning qualifying, as pole-earner Josh Hayes (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) and runner-up Tommy Hayden (Rockstar Makita Suzuki) were joined by Iron Horse BMW/ESP's Chris Peris and National Guard Jordan Suzuki's Roger Hayden. Tommy's Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammate, Blake Young - second in points as the series headed to Barber, with four victories to his name - was left to head up the second row, the fifth-place start adding up to his worst yet in 2011.

Once the race itself kicked off, though, Calgary's Peris and Young both proved that qualifying is an entirely different animal from actual competition-and they weren't the only ones. With a little help from inclement weather, Barber's National Guard SuperBike Race 1 resolved into a podium that delivered M4 Suzuki's Martin Cardenas his first AMA Pro career SuperBike victory, and welcomed second-place finisher Ben Bostrom (National Guard Jordan Suzuki) to the winner's circle for the first time in 2011.

Off the start, Peris was shuffled to the back of the top 10 while Young sailed forward to land on teammate Hayden's - who'd rocketed to the overall lead - rear wheel. Hayes immediately tucked into third with Roger Hayden right behind, and the lead four tore through the next handful of laps just bike-lengths apart. With 16 laps remaining, however, heavy rain began to spatter riders' windscreens, bringing out the red flag. In a holding pattern, teams waited to see whether the system would pass, or whether it would stay put and mandate a switch to rain tires.

On the restart, with the majority of the grid and all of the front-runners on full rains, it was Young who took over the lead as the field picked their way almost daintily around the track in wet conditions. With Young, Hayes, and Tommy Hayden all riding conservatively, however - seeming to have switched their focus to a defense of precious championship points - it wasn't long before new race contenders declared themselves.

First Roger Hayden made a bid for the lead, moving up to second behind Young with Cardenas just behind, and as Cardenas himself stole the lead from Young, Bostrom likewise broke into the lead pack, passing Roger and Young to settle into second position behind Cardenas.

With two laps to go, Bostrom was systematically stalking Cardenas, and while Young trailed in third, all eyes were glued to the lead pair as the white flag flew. Through the last two corners on the race's last lap, Bostrom pounced, trying the outside twice and the inside once but pouring out onto the front straight just tenths behind Cardenas, crossing the line .137 second after the leader.

"We had a very good bike, and the thought was obviously to wait until a couple laps from the end, then attack him," said Bostrom afterward. "I thought I was good on the brakes, but he was also very good on the brakes, so I got snookered there."

And while Cardenas - the reigning Daytona SportBike champion turned SuperBike rookie - was happy with his first SuperBike victory, he noted that rain victories come with a sort of asterisk, and that he's got work to do yet.

"It's always great to win in whatever class you're in, but it's different to win in the dry than in the wet," he admitted. "So this is good, but if it were a dry race it would be much better. We'll see tomorrow in the dry what happens ... I'll give my best. But today, I'm very happy for me and my team."

Race Results
1. Martin Cardenas (M4 Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 21 Laps
2. Ben Bostrom (Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +0.137
3. Blake Young (Rockstar ·Makita ·Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +2.019
4. Josh Hayes (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R1 +2.878
5. Larry Pegram (Pegram Racing) BMW S1000RR +6.863
6. Roger Hayden (National Guard Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +10.730
7. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar ·Makita ·Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +47.857
8. JD Beach (Cycle World Attack Performance) Kawasaki ZX-10 +58.522
9. Trent Gibson (Seven Sports) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:00.054
10. Jeremy Toye (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +1:12.527
11. Chris Peris (Team Iron Horse BMW ·ESP) BMW S1000RR 20 Laps
12. Steve Rapp (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +0.325
13. Geoff May (Amsoil EBR Racing) Buell 1125R +22.133
14. Jordan Burgess (ADR Fly Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +51.050
15. Chris Trounson (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +53.679
16. Chris Clark (Yamaha Extended Service, Pat Clark Sports, Graves, Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R1 +53.700
17. Reese Wacker (Wacker Racing LLC) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:01.404
18. Danny Kelsey (M & M Roadracing) Honda CBR1000RR 19 Laps
19. Skip Salenius (Karma Tequila Racing) Yamaha YZF-R1 +31.082
20. Kevin Boisvert (Bayside Performance) Suzuki GSX-R1000 6 Laps
Race Time: 1:00:50.401
Margin of Victory: 0.137
Best Race Lap: Tommy Hayden (1:26.633)

Canadian Speedway champ injured

By Todd Vallee

Defending Canadian Speedway champion Aaron Hesmer was injured on Saturday in a crash at Niagara Motorcycle Raceway in Welland, ON.

Hesmer, who was riding the Intermediate flat track class as well as Speedway, was injured in the 450 Intermediate final. As the pack headed into turn one off the start, Hesmer made contact with the rear wheel of a slowing rider and was thrown off the bike. Along with several bumps and bruises, Hesmer suffered a broken bone in his hand. It is unclear at this time how much of the season will be lost.

The Speedway class has been hit hard by injuries this year as a few weeks earlier Jeff Orosz, runner-up in the championship last year, suffered a serious shoulder injury. Original prognosis was that he would be out for a few months.

Melandri claims first ever Superpole

From the WSBK Pressoffice

Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) put in a great performance in qualifying for the World Superbike Championship event at Motorland Aragon to take his first ever Tissot-Superpole success on Saturday and also give Yamaha its first top grid slot of the season.

Melandri set a new track best of 1 minute 57.634 seconds in Superpole 3 and he will start Sunday's 20-lap races with his great rival Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team) as his closest challenger. Biaggi's team-mate Leon Camier and championship leader Carlos Checa (Althea Racing) complete the front row.

"It's awesome, I'm very happy," Melandri said. "I didn't think it could happen, especially after Superpole 1 when I almost lost the chance to go to the next one. When I saw Max in front of everyone in Superpole 3, I had a few guys in the middle on race tires so I passed them and followed Max to set my best time so I need to say thanks to him for my lap time."

Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike) put in a late charge on race tires to claim fifth, with Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike Team), Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK Team) all joining him on row two.

The competition for places in qualifying was remarkable at such a long 5.344km circuit, with combined qualifying (which determines the top riders who go forward to Superpole) ending with the top 16 riders within a second of each other.

The four riders who had to exit Superpole after the second of three sessions were Misano podium finisher Noriyuki Haga (PATA Racing Team Aprilia), Sylvain Guintoli (Team Effenbert-Liberty Racing), Michel Fabrizio (Team Suzuki Alstare) and the remarkable Mark Aitchison (Team Pedercini) who had his most impressive qualifying of the year, ending up 12th from 20 riders in his rookie WSBK season on a privateer machine. 

The first casualties of the stopwatch as the first session finished included a surprise figure, as Jakub Smrz (Effenbert-Liberty Racing) was second place in combined qualifying but he ended up 13th on the grid after Superpole 1. Even more of a surprise in some regards was that official BMW riders Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) and Troy Corser (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) were unable to compete the way they hoped and finished 14th and 16th respectively. Privateer Ducati rider Maxime Berger (Supersonic Racing Team) took a fourth row start after posting some impressive times in earlier qualifying and practice sessions.

Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com) booked his ticket for a repeat win with another terrific performance in Saturday's World Supersport final qualifying session. The Australian's time of 2:02.093 was almost four-tenths quicker than his Spanish team-mate, David Salom, who was also on form. A fighting third place went to Britain's Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda), while fellow-Brit Chaz Davies completed the front row for the Yamaha ParkinGO team.

Erstwhile championship leader Luca Scassa (Yamaha ParkinGO) could only manage fifth place and a row 2 start, with Massimo Roccoli (Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki) grabbing sixth place in the final stages from Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) and James Ellison (Bogdanka PTR Honda).

Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Team Ducati) laid down the gauntlet to his fellow Superstock 1000 runners by setting a scintillating time of 2:01.161, almost one full second clear of the next man, Lorenzo Zanetti (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock). Zanetti was a fraction ahead of points leader Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Ducati) in third, while the all-Italian front row will be completed by the returning Niccolò Canepa on another Ducati, the SS Lazio Motorsport version.

Jed Metcher (MTM-RT Motorsports Yamaha) was the fourth different winner in the first four rounds of this year's exciting Superstock 600 European Championship. The Australian, now firmly in second place in the table, finished just over one second ahead of points leader Romain Lanusse (MRS Yamaha Racing France), but the Frenchman is now 20 points clear in the table. The final podium slot went to Belgium's Gauthier Duwelz (MTM-RT Motorsports Yamaha), who held off a fierce challenge from a trio of riders on Yamaha and Honda machinery.

World Superbike Tissot-Superpole Times
1. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF-R1 1:57.634
2. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1:57.790
3. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1:58.279
4. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 1:58.472
5. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1:58.641
6. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF-R1 1:58.756
7. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1:59.194
8. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000RR 1:59.591
9. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 1:58.566
10. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1:58.640
11. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1:58.950
12. Aitchison M. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1:59.680
13. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 1:59.355
14. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000RR 1:59.367
15. Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 1:59.507
16. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000RR 1:59.565
etc.

Hayes stays hot in deep south

From AMA Pro Racing

BIRMINGHAM, AL - Despite the onslaught of severe thunderstorms Friday morning in Birmingham, the AMA Pro Road Racing teams remained undaunted. When the weather finally cleared, they successfully wrapped up the first round of qualifying in the Barber SuperBike Classic Weekend at the scenic, 2.38-mile Barber Motorsports Park.

In the AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike class, Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Hayes remained unstoppable. Hayes has taken every pole position this season and held the provisional pole at Barber at the end of Friday, thanks to a fast lap of 1:25.980. Next on the grid was Rockstar Makita Suzuki rider Tommy Hayden, who notched a victory at Barber last year and declared his intention to repeat in 2011 with a best provisional time of 1:26.157. Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki teammates Ben Bostrom (1:26.848) and Roger Hayden (1:26.850) rounded out the SuperBike front row.

"I struggled with some grip early on," said Hayes. "We wanted to run through all the tire combinations we had, and we went to the tire we raced last year. The bike was pretty good, [and] some of the changes the team made definitely helped.

"I was a little surprised to see a 25 today; I didn't think the track was ready for that. I definitely have some ideas for tomorrow. There have been several weekends this year where, by this time in the weekend, the bike's pretty good and I'm not sure where else to go with the set-up, but I feel like I have a few things I can improve for tomorrow."

In AMA Pro Daytona SportBike, Josh Herrin was sitting in the proverbial catbird seat. Winner of the last three Daytona SportBike races, the Monster Energy Graves Yamaha rider nabbed the provisional pole position with a fastest lap of 1:29.582, turned on his final lap of qualifying. Second was Jason DiSalvo on the Team Latus Motors Ducati, who posted a fastest time of 1:29.780. Third was fellow Ducati rider P.J. Jacobson (Celtic Racing/Fast by Ferracci), who put in a lap of 1:30.134 and was closely followed by Vesrah Suzuki's Cory West with a time of 1:30.238. 

"This is a track I like coming to," said Herrin, "but I've also been on a pretty good roll. It's nice to come to a race weekend and know you're the guy to beat. I got some rain riding in this morning and I was happy to post P1 because there's a chance it might rain tomorrow morning, and I wanted to put in a good lap just in case."

In AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport, recent Miller Motorsports Park winner Cory Alexander set the top time of 1:31.581 before a minor get-off sidelined him for the remainder of qualifying. Following a close second was two-time 2011 race winner David Gaviria (1:31.959) on his LTD Racing Y.E.S. Yamaha. Benny Solis -- another two-time 2011 Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport race winner -- was third, with a lap time of 1:32.034 on his Roadracingworld.com Honda. Rounding out the front row was Road America winner Travis Wyman and his Harv's Harley-Davidson AB1 Motorsports Yamaha (1:32.056). 

"We were third or fourth, and we came in and put on a different tire and went back out," said Alexander. "I did one fast lap, and that was the fastest lap that we did. I think there was a little bit of seepage after all the rain we had this morning, and I went into Turn 2 and I just hit a seam and it tucked the front end. So I sat there for about 12 minutes and hoped nobody went faster. My Vesrah Suzuki is really good, so tomorrow I think we can go even faster."

SuperBike Qualifying Results
1. Josh Hayes (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R1 1:25.980
2. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar ·Makita ·Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +0.177
3. Ben Bostrom (Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +0.868
4. Roger Hayden (National Guard Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +0.870
5. Blake Young (Rockstar ·Makita ·Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +0.904
6. Larry Pegram (Pegram Racing) BMW S1000RR +1.073
7. Steve Rapp (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +1.300
8. Martin Cardenas (M4 Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1.320
9. Geoff May (Amsoil EBR Racing) Buell 1125R +1.579
10. Chris Peris (Team Iron Horse BMW ·ESP) BMW S1000RR +1.970
11. Chris Clark (Yamaha Extended Service, Pat Clark Sports, Graves, Yamaha) Yamaha YZF-R1 +2.670
12. JD Beach (Cycle World Attack Performance) Kawasaki ZX-10R +3.478
13. Jeremy Toye (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +3.574
14. Jordan Burgess (ADR Fly Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +4.880
15. Chris Trounson (San Diego BMW/Locust Powered by Lee`s Cycle) BMW S1000RR +5.176
16. Trent Gibson (Seven Sports) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +5.694
17. Reese Wacker (Wacker Racing LLC) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +5.721
18. Danny Kelsey (M & M Roadracing) Honda CBR1000RR +5.991
19. Skip Salenius (Karma Tequila Racing) Yamaha YZF-R1 +6.529
20. Kevin Boisvert (Bayside Performance) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +7.303

Ducati launches smartphone apps

From Ducati North America

CUPERTINO, CA – Ducati North America has launched iPhone and Android apps for the DucatiCommunity.com social networking site, enabling users to post their Ducati experiences via text, photo and video in real time on the www.ducaticommunity.com site.

The two mobile apps for the DucatiCommunity.com site are available now for free download. These new apps enable Ducati Community members to post directly to the site from their garage, a MotoGP race, or a Sunday morning ride using their iPhone and Android enabled devices.

“Mobile applications were a key component of the Ducati Community strategy from day one,” said Arrick Maurice, leader of the Ducati Community project. “Now that they are available, community members can unlock the true potential of the site.”

The Ducati Community Apps are available for iPhone at the iTunes store, and Android at the Android Marketplace. To learn more about the Ducati community please visit www.ducaticommunity.com.

Pedrosa has successful operation

From Repsol Honda

Repsol Honda MotoGP rider Dani Pedrosa underwent further surgery Thursday evening to his broken right collarbone caused in the accident in Grand Prix of France.

The operation was conducted at the USP Institut Universitari Dexeus by Dr. Xavier Mir, Chief of the Pathology Unit of the Hand of Dexeus USP, and Dr. Cesar Garcia Madrid, vascular specialist of the Institute Planell at Teknon Medical Center.

The aim of the operation was to fix, by compression osteosynthesis, a small fragment of bone that had dislodged during the rehabilitation process. This technique allows a faster consolidation, minimizing the resting time.

After the surgery, Dr. Mir reported, "We believe the surgery was successful as we were able to fix the fragment of bone of his collarbone in a very stable way and because of this we are confident that in 48 hours it will be possible to begin rehabilitation of his right shoulder."

After this period of rest, Pedrosa will discuss with his medical team about his presence in the Dutch Grand Prix next week.

Melandri starts weekend on top

From WSBK Pressoffice

Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) was the clear front-runner from the first day of World Superbike action at the Motorland Aragon circuit, the Italian taking the provisional pole on Friday from home favourite Carlos Checa (Althea Racing Ducati).

Having been the fastest man in free qualifying in the morning once again Melandri was the only rider to set a sub-two minute lap in the afternoon, stopping the clocks at a new circuit record of 1 minute 59.726 seconds. Melandri has tested here in the recent past but many other riders have also taken advantage of the chance to lap this exquisite new WSBK racing facility because it has already proven to be a popular designated test track for several teams.

Checa was three-tenths off Melandri's pace, just a fraction ahead of Noriyuki Haga (PATA Aprilia), who crashed halfway through the session but then came good at the end to take the third slot. The Misano podium finisher has clearly had a new lease of racing life in his satellite Aprilia team, improving in the hot conditions of the afternoon qualifying session.

Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team) and Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) were each on terrific form, the two Brits just within a tenth of Haga.

The other top championship contender Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia Racing Team) registered sixth quickest on the timesheets, with all three Aprilia v-four riders clearly liking the heat of early competition at Motorland. Biaggi, the reigning champion, was followed by fellow Italian Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare) and an increasingly incisive Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia SBK).

Maxime Berger (Supersonic Racing Team) impressed in 10th place on his privateer Ducati, ending day one tenth and only 0.783 seconds from the provisional pole time. The two factory BMW Motorrad Motorsport machines of Troy Corser and Leon Haslam still appear to be in difficulty, setting 12th and 14th quickest times respectively.

The lone Castrol Honda of local star Ruben Xaus was 13th, just over a second from the best pace of the day while recent returnee rider Chris Vermeulen (Kawasaki Racing Team) was 19th. Final qualifying and Tissot-Superpole take place on Saturday.

Misano winner Broc Parkes was the man to watch in World Supersport qualifying as the expert Australian set the quickest time of 2:02.773, three-tenths ahead of his Kawasaki Motocard.com team-mate David Salom. It was a good day all round for the Spanish team as it dominated the timesheets at its home track.

Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) made a late move up into third place, half a second adrift from the poleman's time, but the British rider did well to put some clean air between himself and the Yamaha ParkinGO duo of Chaz Davies and championship returnee Luca Scassa. Both Parkes and Scassa had crashes during the session.

Danilo Petrucci (Barni Racing Ducati) took the provisional pole in the first Superstock 1000 qualifying session at Aragon, the Italian coming out on top with a time of 2:02.268. Petrucci, who was also quickest in the morning, put almost half-a-second between himself and the next man, fellow Ducati runner Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing). The current FIM Cup points leader is one of the few riders who has not previously tested at the Spanish track.

Sylvain Barrier (BMW Motorrad Italia Superstock) was third quickest, while South African Sheridan Morais finally had a good run to provisional fourth on his Lorenzini by Leoni Kawasaki ZX-10R.

Stephane Egea (ASPI Yamaha) headed the field in the opening qualifying session for round 4 of the Superstock 600 European Championship. The 20-year-old Frenchman set a time of 2:07.649, almost half-a-second faster than 18-year-old Italian Riccardo Russo (Trasimeno Yamaha).

The top two in the championship, Romain Lanusse (MRS Yamaha Racing France) and Jed Metcher (MTM-RT Motorsports Team Yamaha) were next up, but with the Australian ahead of his French rival in third.

Superbike Qualifying Times
1. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF-R1 1:59.726
2. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 2:00.073
3. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2:00.214
4. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2:00.253
5. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 2:00.267
6. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 2:00.309
7. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 2:00.324
8. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000RR 2:00.377
9. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF-R1 2:00.503
10. Berger M. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 2:00.509
11. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 2:00.727
12. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000RR 2:00.798
13. Xaus R. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 2:00.853
14. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000RR 2:01.047
15. Aitchison M. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 2:01.428
16. Lanzi L. (ITA) BMW S1000RR 2:01.475
etc.

Harley-Davidson motorcycle awarded

From A&W Food Services of Canada

This spring, A&W has been running a contest with a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy motorcycle as the Grand Prize. The winner will be the envy of her friends on this exciting bike that captures all of that sought-after Harley-Davidson heritage.

Judy Dettman will shortly be presented with this beautiful bike at a Harley-Davidson dealership near her home in Ontario.

A couple of weeks ago John Catena of Mississauga, ON was annnounced as the winner of the early bird prize in this contest. He’s making a trip for two to Vernon, BC to enjoy the thrill of a VIP weekend at the A&W 300 race in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series on July 23. He and his companion will have a chance to meet #21 Jason White, who races the A&W Dodge Challenger, and participate in all the excitement of race weekend.

And now the winners have also been drawn for the 10 beautiful leather A&W Cruisin’ jackets and 500 Teen Burger combo certificates. Jackets and certificates will be sent to the winners shortly.

Right now and through Sept. 30, you can enter to win one of 500 Teen Burger combo certificates, 10 more A&W leather jackets, or a brand-new Dodge Challenger SXT Plus with Rallye Group exterior appearance package. Those who enter by July 10 will have a chance at the early bird prize of a weekend trip for two the Aug. 20 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race at the famous Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal. That prize will also include meeting White and VIP positions as honourary race team members for the weekend.

Go to www.aw.ca, click on Cruisin’ the Dub at the bottom of the page, and follow the entry instructions.

Rea faces long recovery battle

From Castrol Honda SBK

Castrol Honda World Superbike rider Jonathan Rea looks set to miss more than just this weekend’s two seventh round World Superbike championship races at Aragon in Spain following surgery in the UK on Wednesday.

Rea crashed during warm-up for round six of the series last Sunday at Misano in Italy, with the most serious initial diagnosis - following x-rays at the Ospetale Bufalini in Cesena - being a fractured radius near his right wrist.

The 24-year-old from Northern Ireland flew back to Manchester on Monday to visit consultant orthopaedic hand surgeon, Mike Hayton, who operated on Rea Wednesday afternoon. In addition to the radius fracture, however, the surgery also revealed damage to the scapholunate ligament in his right wrist.

A screw was inserted in the radius bone and the ligament damage has been pinned. It means that Rea is unlikely to be fit to compete at the Brno round in the Czech Republic on July 8-10.

"I was pretty upset when I got the news after the surgery yesterday because it means a longer rehab than we’d thought," Rea said. "It’s difficult, of course, and I’m devastated, but I’ve got a great team around me so I know I’ll get all the support I need to come back strong. As I said before, I want to be 100 percent when I get back on the bike so, at the moment, I’m not going to put a definitive timescale on that. I’ll just concentrate on getting back to fitness as fast and as completely as I can."

Crutchlow recovering after surgery

From Yamaha Racing

Yamaha MotoGP World Championship racer Cal Crutchlow has undergone successful surgery on the broken left collarbone he suffered during last weekend's British Grand Prix.

The 25-year-old had a titanium plate and several screws inserted in the shoulder in an operation carried out by specialist surgeon Doctor David Clark at the Royal Derby Hospital. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider broke his left collarbone in five places in a high-speed accident during qualifying for his home race at the Silverstone circuit.

Surgery on the damaged collarbone was delayed while Crutchlow was assessed for a neck injury suffered in the crash. Initial checks at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford showed a suspected non-displacement fract ure of his C2 vertebrae. But CAT scans showed no damage to his neck, and he was immediately transferred to the Royal Derby Hospital for surgery on his left collarbone.

Crutchlow has already started the recovery process with intensive physiotherapy, but it is too early to know whether the 2009 World Supersport Champion will be fit to participate in the Dutch Grand Prix at the historic Assen circuit next weekend.

"The operation on my collarbone was a success and the doctors seems really happy with the outcome," Crutchlow said. "But I am still in a lot of pain. Unfortunately, the break is a lot worse than the one my team-mate Colin Edwards had in Catalunya and I've got different pain and movement levels. And I've spent two days lying on my back with a suspected neck injury, so my shoulder just got swollen.

"I am not very happy that this happened to me in my home race at Silverstone when things were going really well for the weekend. I don't know if I will ride in Assen. We will have to wait and see, but I'll be trying 100 per cent to be there if I can.”

SuperBike action heats up down south

From AMA Pro Racing

DAYTONA BEACH, FL - Two weeks after the spectacular racing at Wisconsin's Road America circuit, AMA Pro Road Racing is back in action this weekend at the Birmingham-area's lush Barber Motorsport Park. The central Alabama facility plays host to the Barber SuperBike Classic, which will feature edge-of-your-seat racing plus a number of activities in support of the Alabama National Guard, including special ticket offers for Guard members and their families.

The AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike, Daytona SportBike, Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport, and Vance & Hines XR1200 divisions are all preparing to line up at Barber, which will see doubleheader races in three of the series' four classes. As the points races tighten across the board, some new challengers have stepped forward to confront those riders who laid claim to the early part of the season.

Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Hayes continues to hold the points lead in the premier class, and the Mississippi boy has yet to finish off the podium in his championship defense. But with Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Blake Young having returned to his winning ways at Rounds 3 and 4, the battle's even closer than the 10 points currently separating them would indicate. Add Young's Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammate, Tommy Hayden, to the mix, and you've got three impressively dominant riders primed to deliver the same kind of wheel-to-wheel racing Road America fans witnessed.

The Daytona SportBike class standings saw a true upset at Round 4, as Team Latus Motors Racing's Jason DiSalvo - who was near perfection after the first three races - crashed out of not one but two Road America contests, allowing Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Herrin, who took his first victory of the year at Round 3, to bang out two additional class wins and take over the championship lead. While entirely determined to make a comeback, DiSalvo will first have to contend with Vesrah Suzuki's Cory West, who currently sits second overall.

The Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport class, meanwhile, is still wholly up for grabs, five different riders having already won 2011 races in pursuit of championship crowns and the Motorcycle-Superstore.com $25,000 points-fund bonus. Barber Motorsports Park's Round 5 will be the third East Division SuperSport race on the calendar - a coast LTD/Y.E.S. Yamaha's Tomas Puerta is currently firmly in control of, while teammate David Gaviria owns the West Coast points race. Roadracingworld.com's Benny Solis, however, has proved a winner on any given day, and a whole host of other young riders are also coming on strong, including Corey Alexander (Vesrah Suzuki), Travis Wyman, Elena Myers (SuzukiScoopFans Racing), James Rispoli (ANT-Racing.com Suzuki), and Dustin Dominguez (Team Latus Motors Racing).

And finally, having just celebrated its one-year anniversary, the Vance & Hines XR1200 class is flexing its new maturity in a big way, boasting increasingly deeper fields of riders and a rash of diverse talent. When Chris Fillmore (Bruce Rossmeyer Daytona Racing) took his second victory of 2011 at Road America, he did so by defeating a staggering seven riders after a seesaw battle that saw the chase train cross the finish within a second of the race-winner. Fillmore is currently followed in the standings by Parts Unlimited's Steve Rapp and Fillmore's Bruce Rossmeyer teammate, Kyle Wyman.

Fans in attendance on Saturday are encouraged to stay late for some face-time with their favourite riders, as AMA Pro Racing, Barber Motorsports Park, and ZOOM Motorsports are hosting a special Track Walk at 5:30pm to benefit local victims of the tornados that devastated the area in late April. For only $10, fans can walk all or a portion of the track while talking race strategy with AMA Pro stars; tickets can be purchased either upon Saturday entry at Gates 2 and 10, or in Lot E prior to the start of the walk.

For TV broadcast dates and times for Barber SuperBike and Daytona SportBike action, visit www.speedtv.com. Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport and Vance & Hines XR1200 can be viewed lived on Speed2.