Suzuki's Blake Young is leading the SuperBike Championship by only five points coming into the final round.
The final round of the 2011
AMA Pro Road Racing Championship is going down this Labor Day weekend at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Kicking off the festivities on Friday was qualifying for American SuperBike, Daytona SportBike and
Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport, with the SuperBike Championship remaining separated by just five points. Will Josh Hayes be able to defend the title this year, or will Blake Young claim his first-ever ASB title?
American SuperBike
During Friday’s American SuperBike qualifying session Rockstar Makita
Suzuki’s Tommy Hayden recorded the fastest lap only 0.114 seconds ahead of Jordan Suzuki’s Ben Bostrom. National Guard Jordan Suzuki’s Roger Hayden notched third in the timesheets after completing 26 laps at the New Jersey circuit, finishing just 0.041 seconds behind Bostrom. Suzuki is proving to be a formidable force in SuperBike after seizing four of the top-five positions during qualifying. Meanwhile, Monster Energy Graves Yamaha’s
Josh Hayes secured fourth in the order after dominating practice earlier in the day. The 36-year-old was 0.298 seconds quicker than Blake Young, who improved his practice time by more than a second in the afternoon qualifying run. Larry Pegram was sixth-fastest ahead of Cycle World Attack Performance’s Steve Rapp. Amsoil EBR Racing’s Geoff May was the final rider within a second of Tommy Hayden, and crossed the line only 0.098 seconds after Brett McCormick. M4 Suzuki's Martin Cardenas rounded out the top-10 riders, the Colombian claiming a time of 1:22.557 after completing 20 laps.
AMA SuperBike Friday Qualifying Results:
1. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) 1:21.005
Tommy Hayden was the fastest after qualifying on Friday.
2. Ben Bostrom (Suzuki) 1:21.119
3. Roger Hayden (Suzuki) 1:21.160
4. Josh Hayes (Yamaha) 1:21.458
5. Blake Young (Suzuki) 1:21.753
6. Larry Pegram (BMW) 1:21.867
7. Steve Rapp (Kawasaki) 1:21.873
8. Geoff May (Buell) 1:21.971
9. Brett McCormick (BMW) 1:22.151
10. Martin Cardenas (Suzuki) 1:22.557
11. Chris Clark (Yamaha) 1:22.702
12. Chris Peris (BMW) 1:22.772
13. Aaron Gobert (BMW) 1:23.036
14. Taylor Knapp (Buell) 1:23.145
15. Chris Fillmore (KTM) 1:23.465
Daytona SportBike
Richie Morris Racing Suzuki’s
Danny Eslick is the man to beat in Daytona SportBike after grabbing the top lap of the day. The 25-year-old claimed provisional pole by 0.242 seconds ahead of Riders Discount/Jake Holden Racing’s Cameron Beaubier, who saw improvement in the afternoon after taking eighth during practice. Meanwhile, Vesrah Suzuki’s Taylor Knapp was only 0.075 seconds behind with Monster Energy Graves
Yamaha’s Josh Herrin securing fourth in the order. Triple Crown Industries’s Paul Allison and M4 Suzuki’s Dane Westby earned fifth and sixth respectively during qualifying, with Celtic Racing’s PJ Jacobsen grabbing the seventh-best lap. Yamaha Extended Service/Pat Clark Sports’ Tommy Aquino was just 0.050 seconds behind Jacobsen with Bryce Prince following in ninth. After making the switch to a
Triumph Daytona 675, Team Latus Motors Racing’s
Jason DiSalvo rounded out the top-10 times on Friday, the 27-year-old finishing 0.879 seconds adrift of Eslick.
Daytona SportBike Friday Qualifying Results:
1. Danny Eslick (Suzuki) 1:24.694
Danny Eslick has the Daytona SportBike Championship well in hand as he leads by 45 points ahead of Josh Herrin.
2. Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha) 1:24.936
3. Taylor Knapp (Suzuki) 1:25.011
4. Josh Herrin (Yamaha) 1:25.027
5. Paul Allison (Yamaha) 1:25.049
6. Dane Westby (Suzuki) 1:25.106
7. PJ Jacobsen (Ducati) 1:25.156
8. Tommy Aquino (Yamaha) 1:25.170
9. Bryce Prince (Yamaha) 1:25.386
10. Jason DiSalvo (Triumph) 1:25.573
11. Tyler OHara (Yamaha) 1:25.850
12. Cory West (Suzuki) 1:26.110
13. Kev Coghlan (Yamaha) 1:26.121
14. Mike Selpe (Yamaha) 1:26.559
15. Kyle Wyman (Yamaha) 1:26.755
AMA SuperSport
Young gun Garrett Gerloff ruled the
Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport field during the first day of qualifying. Finishing 0.129 seconds ahead of Ant-Racing Suzuki’s James Rispoli, the 16-year-old is competing in his first AMA Pro Race this weekend after winning the 600 Superstock and 600 Superbike races during the WERA Cycle Jam at VIR. RM Racing’s Hayden Gillim posted the third-fastest time, followed by Benny Solis and Latus Motors Racing’s Dustin Dominguez. Stefano Mesa secured sixth in the charts more than two seconds off the pace of the leader, with LTD Racing’s David Gaviria following in seventh. Eric Stump, Miles Thronton and Alex Shaw rounded out the top-10 times for the day.
AMA SuperSport Friday Qualifying Results:
1. Garrett Gerloff (Yamaha) 1:24.812
Garrett Gerloff grabbed the fastest lap during qualifying as he competes in his first ever AMA Pro race this weekend at New Jersey.
2. James Rispoli (Suzuki) 1:24.941
3. Hayden Gillim (Yamaha) 1:25.493
4. Benny Solis (Honda) 1:26.307
5. Dustin Dominguez (Triumph) 1:26.864
6. Stefano Mesa (Suzuki) 1:26.921
7. David Gaviria (Yamaha) 1:27.180
8. Eric Stump (Yamaha) 1:27.186
9. Miles Thornton (Yamaha) 1:27.359
10. Alex Shaw (Yamaha) 1:27.444
11. Corey Alexander (Suzuki) 1:27.522
12. Tomas Puerta (Yamaha) 1:27.546
13. Elena Myers (Suzuki) 1:27.963
14. Ryan Kerr (Kawasaki) 1:28.253
15. Ryan Matter (Suzuki) 1:28.553
