#yoshimurasuzuki

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[sbknews]

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Toni Elias Takes Barber Race One

Yoshimura Suzuki’s Toni Elias may not have successfully defended his MotoAmerica Superbike title, but he’s hell-bent on making sure he ends up with the most victories. On a sunny and hot Saturday at Barber Motorsports Park, Elias took one step towards that as he won his eighth race of the year, a win that moves him into a tie with newly crowned champion Cameron Beaubier. The two now have eight victories apiece heading into tomorrow’s season finale in the Championship of Alabama.

While Elias was able to win his eighth race of the year, his rival Beaubier was down and out, the three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion crashing out of what was a three-way fight for victory on the 14th of 21 laps. Bruised and beaten, Beaubier will be back on the Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing YZF-R1 tomorrow to try and win his ninth race of his championship season.

“Of course,” Elias said when asked if his goal was to win the most races. “That’s why my mind was in the championship in the second position, but my goal when I arrive here is win more races than Cameron (Beaubier). I’m not going to have the number one because the championship is long (gone) and I did many mistakes, but I will try to go home in that way.”

The win was not only Elias’ eighth of the season, but it was the 24th of his MotoAmerica career.

“After the mistake in Pittsburgh, I was a little bit worried about it because this guy’s fast in wet, he’s fast in dry,” Elias said of Herrin. “So, my second place in the championship was not safe. One part of my mind was on that, and another part was on trying to win this race. I really wanted to. We worked so good yesterday. New setup works perfectly for this tire and this heat. We found something like we didn’t find before. I was pretty confident. Finally, the result confirms what we found. At the beginning from seventh position, I had some troubles. I did some mistakes trying to overtake some riders. I was risking too much. I had false neutrals. It was pretty difficult at the end. At the beginning, I calmed down a little bit, step by step, taking confidence, overtake some riders. Then I catch Josh (Herrin). He was so strong. The more laps we had was a little bit more easy for me, and at the end we could win this race. He was pretty beat up, so congratulations for the second place and also for Mathew’s (Scholtz) podium. Tomorrow let’s try to finish this championship if it’s possible with another win. Yamaha guys will be a little bit more tough. They used the green tires, but when we saw before the race they used reds it was like, ‘wow, this is a big mistake.’ I knew that from Friday it was impossible. After five laps was so soft, and the green tire was the right choice.”

Second place on Saturday went to early race leader Josh Herrin on the Attack Performance/Herrin Compound Yamaha, the Georgian dropping out of the lead and 7.3 seconds behind Elias at the finish after his back issue from the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca round reared its ugly head.

“Yeah, I think I had to kind of go off at Laguna,” Herrin said of his back pain. “It’s my lower back. Just with the amount of riding that we were doing and all the stuff that I was having to put my back through that weekend. It’s been fine all year, and then here I think because of the long rights and having to manage the tire and kind of move your body in a different way… it just kind of flared up today. I just didn’t want to make it any worse. I saw that I had a big gap to second, and I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to keep up with Toni (Elias). So I just kind of tried to keep up with him as much as I could without making it any worse. Luckily, we were able to hold onto second. It’s a bummer because I think tomorrow the Graves guys are going to smart up a little bit and run the green tires, so today was a good opportunity to get out and beat down on them a little bit. So, tomorrow will be tougher, but I’ll be more prepared for tomorrow’s race. Hopefully, we can battle for a win, so we can end the season strong.”

Yamalube/Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz finished third, the South African coming out on top of his battle with Yoshimura Suzuki’s Roger Hayden after the two came together in the closing laps. It was Scholtz’ eighth podium of the season.

“I wouldn’t say tough,” Scholtz said. “He followed me in and passed me on the second last lap. His bike is the fastest bike again. I came from so far back. There was nothing else that I could really do. I made a move. It was hard, but none of us crashed. I’m sorry that he got pushed wide. I finished third and I’m just thankful to be able to race with you guys. Thank you to everyone that has supported me.”

Hayden held on for fourth, some two seconds behind Scholtz and 1.2 seconds ahead of fellow Kentuckian Jake Lewis on the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki.

Scheibe Racing BMW’s Danny Eslick was sixth, 2.8 seconds ahead of Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing’s Garrett Gerloff. Bobby Fong got the better of teammate Cameron Petersen on the intrateam Genuine Broaster Chicken Honda battle for eighth.

KWR’s Kyle Wyman rounded out the top 10.

Going into tomorrow’s final race of the year, Beaubier leads Elias by 56 points with the Spaniard 41 points ahead of Herrin. Scholtz is secure in fourth, 18 points ahead of Gerloff who in turn is 12 points ahead of Lewis.

Supersport – Gillim Wins – In The Dry!

In Supersport, Rickdiculous Racing’s Hayden Gillim, who has been developing somewhat of a reputation as a “rain rider” this season, with his two previous wins occurring in wet weather, showed his prowess on a dry track when he got the victory over Monster Energy/Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha’s JD Beach, who finished second in Saturday’s race after already clinching the class championship in New Jersey. M4 ECSTAR Suzuki rider Valentin Debise returned to form after recovering from his crash in Pittsburgh two rounds ago, and he finished third.

“It’s really good to get a win in the dry,” Gillim said. “It’s been, like, five years. So, it’s really good to get back up here, and to have to earn it. It’s incredible. We had a really good race. The red flags were obviously a little weird. I was concerned about that because, going full pace and then stopping, going full pace, stopping, going full pace, stopping. I wasn’t sure how I was going to do on that. Then I was worried about my clutch a little bit. I know I’ve had some issues there doing the starts. So, three starts on one clutch and it wasn’t acting up. It was really good. The whole Rickdiculous team gave me a really good bike this year, and especially this weekend. I felt good. We’ve got some stuff to work on. It’s going to be another great race tomorrow.”

Liqui Moly Junior Cup – Dumas Again

In Liqui Moly Junior Cup, Alex Dumas, who clinched the 2018 class championship at New Jersey, led from the pole and, despite the race being red-flagged twice, the KTM Orange Brigade/JP43 Training rider notched his ninth victory of the season with another dominant performance where he was never headed. MP13 Racing’s Cory Ventura finished second aboard his Yamaha, while Quarterley Racing’s Renzo Ferreira finished third aboard his Kawasaki to complete the balanced, three-brand podium.

“I got pole this morning and I was really happy about it,” Dumas said. “I just wanted to have a good start, which I did. Unfortunately, Ashton (Yates) crashed in the first lap. I had a one-row gap on the other guys for the start, so I took advantage of that and got a good start. I tried my best to put my head down and do some fast laps. The track was really slick. It’s hard, mentally, to ride on it, but I’m really happy about the race. I hope to win tomorrow again.”

Twins Cup – Parrish Crowned

In the Twins Cup class, Saturday’s race was the final one of the 2018 season, and it decided the championship between Ghetto Customs Suzuki rider Chris Parrish and Syndicate/AP MotoArts Yamaha’s Jason Madama. The two riders were separated by just two points going into the finale and Parrish finished eighth, while Madama finished ninth. The outcome was that Parrish won the title by a scant three points. Meanwhile, back at the race, Robert McLendon III was the victor aboard his Altus Motorsports Yamaha in his first-ever MotoAmerica race; Turner’s Cycle Racing’s Kris Turner was second on his Suzuki; and RBoM 180 Racing’s Curtis Murray was third on another Suzuki.

“It was an absolutely awesome race,” McLendon said. “First time on the bike, first time with that team. Hats off to these guys right here. We went and got a brand-spanking-new bike for me. This is like my home track. I’ve got four kids and I can still say that’s the most fun you can have with your clothes on, ever. The race itself was pretty awesome. I wanted to get a good start and try and check out, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen. Kris (Turner) rode awesome. I was saving that move for the last lap. I’m so glad you did the same exact thing, man, because I was giggling. I saw I was getting side by side. I was like, ‘well, I got the inside. So it’s about to be really, really awesome. There’s going to be a bunch of parts laying on the gravel track because I’m going for it.’ ”

Motul Superbike

Toni Elias (Suzuki)

Josh Herrin (Yamaha)

Mathew Scholtz (Yamaha)

Roger Hayden (Suzuki)

Jake Lewis (Suzuki)

Supersport

Hayden Gillim (Yamaha)

JD Beach (Yamaha)

Valentin Debise (Suzuki)

Braeden Ortt (Yamaha)

Bryce Prince (Yamaha)

Liqui Moly Junior Cup

Alex Dumas (KTM)

Cory Ventura (Yamaha)

Renzo Ferreira (Kawasaki)

Jay Newton (Yamaha)

Gavin Anthony (Yamaha)

Twins Cup

Robert McLendon III (Yamaha)

Kris Turner (Suzuki)

Curtis Murray (Suzuki)

Justin Filice (Suzuki)

Darrell Ricks (Suzuki)

MotoAmerica

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[wmhauser]

@tonielias24 on his @yoshimurasuzukiracing during @motoamerica race weekend at @njmotorsportspark 📸: @whauserphoto #whauserphoto #tonielias #yoshimurasuzuki #motoamerica #njmp #motorcycle #racing #race #motorcycleracing #motorcycles #instamotorcycle #speed #adrenaline #extreme #extremesports #epic #action #motorsportsphotography #theneedforspeed #nikon #nikonusa #nikonlove #nikonnofilter #thinktankphoto #blackrapidstrap #reallyrightstuff (at New Jersey Motorsports Park - NJMP)

[racingfortheson]

Former #MotoGP star #ToniElias has clinched the 2017 #MotoAmerica #motulsuperbikechampionship title for #YoshimuraSuzuki at #NewJerseyMotorsportsPark. 🏁🏆🥇 Congratulations @tonielias24! Watch more exciting live action on #beinsportsusa tv TODAY! (at New Jersey Motorsports Park - NJMP)

[dontgiveuptheship]

@therealjs7 guess what day it is? #whipitwednesday #jamesstewart #yoshimurasuzuki

[urbanassaultcycles]

Might two wheeled Tuesday goes out to a friend #59 Donald Jack's it's been 19 years ago and two days since I last spoke to you , You'll always be remembered and missed #59 #donaldjacks #rip #Alwaysberememberedmyfriend #yoshimurasuzuki #yoshimurard #kawasaki #zx6 #ninja636 #zx10 #zx14 #cbr1000rr #cbr600rr #suzuki #gsxr600 #gsxr1000 #honda #dunlop #yamaha #r1 #r6 #urbanassaultcycles #cyclelaw #bikersofinstagram #kneesliders

[sbknews]

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Yoshimura Suzuki Announces Suzuka 8-Hours Team

Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing has announced its four-rider line-up for the Suzuka 8-Hours World Endurance Championship fifth and final round that takes place at Suzuka Circuit in Japan on July 29th. 

Suzuki MotoGP test rider Sylvain Guintoli and British Superbike rider Bradley Ray will join All Japan Superbike and Suzuka 8-Hour regulars Takuya Tsuda and Kazuki Watanabe aboard the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 as the team competes in its 41st event.

Fujio Yoshimura: President of Yoshimura Japan Co., Ltd: 

“It will be the 41st Suzuka 8 Hours for us! This event has been in the world championship series ever since 1980. Back in 1976 to 1978, Honda RCB was called an ‘Unsinkable Fleet’ in the World Endurance Series in Europe and the first Suzuka 8 hours in 1978 was going to be Honda’s ‘Homecoming Victory’ as many of the Japanese fans had never seen RCB in their home country – but it was not.

“Racing fans always remember that Yoshimura beat the factory teams and won the first Suzuka 8 Hours! We do not know what sort of drama we may encounter during the coming 8 Hours as we finished the race in seventh place overall despite a second lap accident last year. Nonetheless, Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing was rewarded the ‘Anthony Delhalle EWC Spirit Trophy’ by the race organisers for our fighting spirit.

“Yoshimura’s Challenging Spirit is the key word which we would like to share with all our fans at the Suzuka Circuit and we look forward to seeing you all at Suzuka!”

Yohei Kato – Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing Team Manager:

“Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL racing is going to take part in the 41st FIM Suzuka 8 Hours Endurance World Championship. Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing is calling four riders, Sylvain Guintoli & Takuya Tsuda, the Suzuki MotoGP test riders, Bradley Ray, one of the most distinctive riders in the British Superbike, and Kazuki Watanabe, the new Yoshimura JSB1000 rider.

“Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing will select three riders to make the strongest package for the final race. Suzuka 8 hours this year will be the one of the hardest races because in addition to the Yamaha Factory team who have won for the past three years, Honda has a reorganised factory team and Kawasaki will take a part with a world champion rider. Yoshimura and Suzuki worked together more than ever to make the GSX-R1000R faster to challenge these rival teams. In 2017, our crash in the second lap made Yoshimura Suzuki supporters really disappointed. This year, I make a promise to all who supports us that Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing will beat the factory teams with great riders and powerful teamwork. Let’s enjoy two years’ worth of Suzuka 8 hours. Thank you very much for your great support of Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing. I’ve Got The Power!”

Takuya Tsuda: 

“I am proud to be racing the Suzuka 8 Hours this summer for the Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing Team. It is known as one of the most difficult races and rival teams are getting faster and faster every year. However, I am confident that our GSX-R1000R is improved and much and faster than the last year. I will concentrate on my energy to make the race machine faster until the last minute for the victory of the Suzuka 8 Hours.”

Sylvain Guintoli:

“Last year was the first time for me in the Suzuka 8 Hours and it was an unforgettable experience. The level of bikes and riders is very high, and the track and weather conditions make for what is probably the toughest race in the world. We enjoyed, we suffered but made a great team effort with all the Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing Team to come back from the last to the seventh place. I am looking forward to riding the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000R again on this fantastic track and hopefully improve our result from last year.”

Bradley Ray:

“I am so honoured and privileged to be invited by the Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing Team to take part in the famous Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race. This will be my first time taking part in the event and I am extremely excited. I’m looking forward to teaming up with Sylvain Guintoli, Takuya Tsuda and Kazuki Watanabe as they have all done the Suzuka 8 Hours race before and have an experience in the Yoshimura Suzuki team. We will all be pushing hard as a team to get on the top step of the podium this year.”

Kazuki Watanabe:

“It is a great honour to be invited as one of Yoshimura Suzuka 8 Hours riders. I feel the passion and sprits of Yoshimura Suzuki MOTUL Racing Team by racing the JSB1000 Championship and I am very looking forward to racing the Suzuka 8 Hours with the team. It is difficult to evaluate my contribution to the team at the moment, but I will try my best to lead the team on the top of the podium.”

[racingfortheson]

#ToniElias24 stretching before Superbike race at #sonomaraceway @racesonoma Former #MotoGP #race winner and #Moto2 #WorldChampion #ToniElias won races in his rookie season in the #MotoAmerica Series. #Yoshimura #Suzuki #FactoryRacing, #Superbike. In 2016, @tonielias24 joined the #YoshimuraSuzuki squad as a fill-in rider for the team when #JakeLewis was injured in an off-season training accident. Elias wasted little time in riding the #GSXR1000 to victory in both Superbike races in the season opener at Circuit of The Americas in Texas. And he never looked back. The #Spaniard ended up winning six races in his debut season, finishing third in the #championship and just seven points behind class #champion #CameronBeaubier. Elias earned two #polepositions and stood on the #podium 13 times in 2016 and he's coming back for more in 2017 as he's found a new home in the MotoAmerica Championship. 🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁 Follow Toni here: Twitter https://twitter.com/ToniElias24 Instagram https://instagram.com/tonielias24/ (at Sonoma Raceway)

[racingfortheson]

@rogerhayden95 for TV interview after #podiumfinish @racesonoma #racetrack #motoamerica #rogerhayden #racer #yoshimurasuzuki #araihelmets #motuloil #dunlop #alpinestars watch live today on #beinsports (at Sonoma Raceway)

[sbknews]

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Roger Hayden Announces Racing Retirement

Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing’s Roger Hayden has announced his intention of retiring from professional racing at the end of this season.

The former AMA Supersport Champion, the youngest of the world-famous Hayden brothers, has been a leading racer for nearly all of his 20 seasons as a professional.

Suzuki and Hayden are exploring ways he might stay involved in the sport after this part of his career is completed.

Roger Hayden:

“This is not something I’ve decided lightly. I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I’ve been going to races on the weekends since I was nine and I just thought it was the right time to move on to the next chapter in my life. I want to spend more time with my wife and maybe do some travelling and start a family at some point soon.

“Yoshimura and Suzuki have felt like a family to me. Don (Sakakura) and Pat (Alexander) are more like friends to me than a boss. We talk about life, sports, you name it and it’s just been a pleasure to be part of the team. I’ve had some of my greatest success with Yoshimura Suzuki and the entire team has always worked hard at giving me great motorcycles to race.

“I would like to stay involved in racing in some way. I enjoy working with the young riders coming up and we’ll see what the future holds.”

Hayden followed in the footsteps of his older brothers Tommy and Nicky into the professional racing ranks as both flat track and road racers. Like Roger, both Tommy and Nicky spent time racing for Suzuki.

The massive success enjoyed by all three Haydens made them perhaps the best-known brother trio in the history of motorcycle racing. An entire generation of fans grew up watching and rooting for the Hayden brothers. Perhaps the highlight of their career as a racing family, was when Nicky, Tommy and Roger swept the podium at the 2002 Springfield TT AMA Grand National. It marked the first and only time in the long history the AMA Grand National Championship that brothers completed a podium sweep.

Roger grew up in a racing family in Owensboro, Kentucky. Both his father and mother (Earl and Rose) raced as well as his two sisters Kathleen and Jenny. Roger entered his first race at the age of six and was already a nationally-known rider by the time he turned pro in 1999 due to the fact that he’d won a lot of races in the amateur ranks in both flat track and road racing. Roger also earned the prestigious AMA Horizon Award in 1998 when he was just 15.

Roger launched his professional road racing career in 1999 at the age of 16. He showed amazing potential even as a rookie when he scored an impressive fifth-place result in the AMA 750cc Supersport race at Road Atlanta. From there his results continued to grow ever more impressive with each season. He scored his first AMA 750 Superstock podium finish at age 17. His first two seasons racing as a pro road racer were aboard Suzuki GSX-Rs.

In 2006 he was named AMA Superbike Rookie of the Year and then in 2007 he won the AMA Supersport Championship. In 2011, he returned to the Suzuki camp, racing Superbike for National Guard Jordan Suzuki. In 2012 he scored his first AMA Pro Superbike victory at Homestead-Miami Speedway with the Jordan squad and has been part of Yoshimura Suzuki since 2014. To date his career MotoAmerica/ AMA Superbike win total stands at seven. He is coming off his most successful season of MotoAmerica Superbike racing in a long and successful career. He was title contender much of the 2017 season. Along the way he stood on the rostrum 15 times in the 18-race series, scoring three victories. Hayden secured second in the championship, giving the new Suzuki GSX-R1000 a 1-2 result in the machine’s debut season. In addition, he earned seven Superpoles in 2017 – a season best in the championship.

Besides his success in the American championships, Hayden also enjoyed racing on the world championship level as wildcard rider in MotoGP and Moto2 and as a regular in World Superbike in 2010.

“We are honoured to have Roger as part of the Suzuki racing family,” said Suzuki race support manager Pat Alexander. “He set a standard of excellence and hard work throughout his career and he’s been a great asset for Suzuki. We hope to continue working with Roger into the future.”

Yoshimura Suzuki Racing’s President Don Sakakura is similarly happy with his team’s association with Roger. “The Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing Team has been privileged the past four-and-a-half seasons to work along-side Roger,” Sakakura said. “Our team has evolved over the years as a result of Roger’s competitive dedication, and his racing spirt. 20 seasons of professional road racing is an impressive accomplishment. Equally, I respect Roger for his integrity and his core family values, we’ve all enjoyed the company of the Hayden family for countless years. We all wish Roger the very best as he transitions to his next phase in life. Thanks for the amazing memories Roger!”

Fans will have the opportunity to watch Hayden race and to see him during fan walks in the remaining four rounds of the 2018 MotoAmerica Series. Next up is the Championship of Sonoma (California) at Sonoma Raceway on Aug. 10-12th.

[ericclayphoto]