Hayden & Beaubier take a win a-piece at Pittsburgh
Images by Brian J. Nelson
Two-time defending MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Cameron Beaubier picked up where he left off two weeks ago in California when he led today’s opening two Motul Superbike practice sessions at Pittsburgh International Race Complex.
Beaubier, who won both races at Sonoma Raceway in round seven, dominated today’s sessions leading up to this weekend’s Championship of Pittsburgh, besting championship points leader Toni Eias by .887 of a second in the final session on the first day of practice at the new facility. Beaubier lapped at 1:40.914 on his Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing YZF-R1.
Elias’ Yoshimura Suzuki teammate Roger Hayden was third fastest on day one, the Kentuckian topping his Owensboro neighbor Jake Lewis and his M4 ECSTAR Suzuki with both riders putting in their best laps late in the session.
TOBC Racing’s Danny Eslick was fifth with Genuine Broaster Chicken Honda’s Jake Gagne, Beaubier’s factory Yamaha teammate Josh Hayes, Décor Brilliance/Lucas Oils/KWR’s Kyle Wyman, Brixx Performance’s Sylvain Barrier and Yamalube/Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz rounding out the top 10. Scholtz crashed early in the session and was forced to be a spectator from the inside of the track.
The two Supersport practice sessions were led by championship leader Garrett Gerloff on his Monster Energy/Yamalube/Y.E.S./Graves Yamaha R6, the Texan topped M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Valentin Debise by .979 of a second. Gerloff’s teammate JD Beach ended the day with the third fastest time.
The KTM RC Cup, meanwhile, held the first of its two qualifying sessions on Friday with Cory Ventura heading the time sheets.
MotoAmerica Superbike Race 1
Although it may prove to be too little too late, Cameron Beaubier is doing everything he can to try and retain his MotoAmerica Superbike Championship as he won his third successive Motul Superbike race, this one coming in the first of two races in the Championship of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh International Race Complex.
Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing’s Beaubier gained five points on championship points leader Toni Elias, the Yoshimura Suzuki rider finishing 1.4 seconds behind the defending two-time champion after leading the majority of the laps.
With his 14th podium finish of the season, Elias leads the title chase by 65 points with five races and 125 points left on the table.
The race was a thriller in front of a large crowd in what was the first day of two days of MotoAmerica racing at the facility on the outskirts of Pittsburgh. For most of the race there were seven riders in the lead pack, led by the trio of Elias, Beaubier and Yoshimura Suzuki’s Roger Hayden, followed by a horde of Bazzaz Superstock 1000 riders and the Genuine Broaster Chicken Honda of Jake Gagne.
Elias grabbed the holeshot and led the first seven laps. Beaubier took over on the eighth lap, but that lead was short-lived. On the ninth lap, Beaubier found himself in third as Hayden moved past the Californian.
On the 14th lap, Beaubier found his way around Hayden again and on the 16th of 18 laps, Beaubier moved past Elias to take the lead. And it was a lead he wouldn’t relinquish as he put his head down and gapped the two chasing Suzukis, crossing the line 1.4 seconds ahead of Elias.
Gagne was impressive in what was by far his best Superbike effort of the season in his first year on the Honda. By the end of the race he’d fought through to fourth place and was nipping on the heels of Hayden. At the finish he was just 4.8 seconds off Beaubier and just a tick over a second off Hayden and the podium.
Fifth place went to Quicksilver/Latus Motors Kawasaki’s Bobby Fong and with it came his sixth victory of the season in the Bazzaz Superstock 1000 class as he passed both of his rivals Mathew Scholtz and Jake Lewis on the final lap. Scholtz ended up sixth on the Yamalube/Westby Racing YZF-R1 with Lewis seventh on the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki.
Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing’s Josh Hayes finished eighth in what was his 300th AMA start across all classes. TOBC Racing’s Danny Eslick battled back from an off-track excursion to finish ninth with Australian Anthony West 10th on the Fly Street/Motul Oils/ADR Motorsports Kawasaki.
Scholtz continues to lead the Bazzaz Superstock 1000 class by 51 points over Lewis, 286-235. Fong now trails Scholtz by 72 points after matching Scholtz’ win total with his sixth victory.
Motul Superbike Race 1 Results
- Cameron Beaubier, Roseville, Calif., Yamaha
- Toni Elias, Barcelona, Spain, Suzuki
- Roger Hayden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki
- Jake Gagne, San Diego, Calif., Honda
- Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Kawasaki
- Mathew Scholtz, Durban, South Africa, Yamaha
- Jake Lewis, Owensboro, Ky, Suzuki
- Josh Hayes, Gulfport, Miss., Yamaha
- Danny Eslick, Tulsa, Ok, Yamaha
- Anthony West, Australia, Kawasaki
Bazzaz Superstock 1000 Race 1 Results
- Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Kawasaki
- Mathew Scholtz, Dublin, South Africa, Yamaha
- Jake Lewis, Owensboro, Ky, Suzuki
- Danny Eslick, Tulsa, Okla., Yamaha
- Anthony West, Australia, Kawasaki
- Hayden Gillim, Philpot, Ky., Suzuki
- Bryce Prince, Bakersfield, Calif., Yamaha
- David Anthony, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki
MotoAmerica Superbike Race 2
Until today, Roger Hayden didn’t have fond memories of Pittsburgh International Race Complex. It was here, during the test on May 17-18, that the Hayden family learned of Nicky Hayden’s tragic bicycle accident in Italy, an accident that took his life a few days later on May 22.
Today, Roger Hayden put that behind him, taking his second Motul Superbike win of the season and the most emotional of his long career – a victory he dedicated to his late brother and his grieving family.
Hayden had to win not once, but twice as the race was red-flagged while he was leading by over two seconds on the 11th lap. But there was no stopping him on this day as he went out and won the second part of the race as well, a six-lap sprint for his second win of the season and first since race one at Virginia International Raceway on May 12.
Roger Hayden
“I had a lot of motivation today since Cameron (Beaubier) has been putting it to us the last couple of races, I was able to get a good jump on the restart and just put my head down. I really wanted a win bad and this was one of the toughest weekends for me since my brother’s accident happened while I was testing here a few months back. I had a lot on my mind, but we’re professionals and there was no way that I was going to let the win slip away at the end today.”
Hayden’s margin of victory at the end of six laps was .263 of a second over his Yoshimura Suzuki teammate Toni Elias, the Spaniard on the cusp of winning his first MotoAmerica Superbike Championship. Elias now leads the title chase by 79 points over Hayden, 340-261, after earning his 14th podium of the season.
Toni Elias
“My team improved the bike quite a bit for me this morning. Roger (Hayden) was so strong today and there was nothing I could do with him. All I could do was try to protect myself from Cameron (Beaubier) and Josh (Hayes), but I was still struggling to do that. Roger did a great job today and I’m very happy for him. I still was able to leave with good points today.”
Monster Energy/Yamalube/Yamaha Factory Racing’s Josh Hayes finished a close third, the four-time Superbike Champion just .194 of a second behind Elias as the top three raced to the flag together.
Josh Hayes
“Today was a better day, I got off of the line well, I tried to be more patient with my passes and made some pretty good moves early on. There was some good racing going on and Roger (Hayden) kind of broke away from us all early. It was unfortunate the red flag came out and we had the restart. I was nervous about the restart, but managed to get another good jump. I’m just happy to finish ahead of the Superstock guys, who are going really fast at the moment.”
Cameron Beaubier had a day to forget just a day after winning his fifth race of the season when he ran off the track and out of the re-started portion of the race just after passing Elias for second place. The non-score puts Beaubier 85 points behind Elias with just two rounds (four races) left to run.
Fourth place went to Yamalube/Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz, the South African running right with the top three Superbikes and finishing just .910 of a second behind Hayes. He was fourth overall and the top Bazzaz Superstock 1000 finisher, giving him his seventh win of the season and a comfortable 64-point lead in the championship as the series heads to New Jersey Motorsports Park in two weeks.
Bobby Fong was second in the Bazzaz Superstock 1000 class and fifth overall after winning yesterday’s Superstock battle. The Quicksilver/Latus Motors Kawasaki rider was 2.8 seconds behind Scholtz and 1.2 seconds clear of third-placed Jake Lewis on the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000.
Genuine Broaster Chicken Honda’s Jake Gagne ended up seventh, just behind Lewis and just ahead of Brixx Performance BMW’s Sylvain Barrier. TOBC Racing’s Danny Eslick and Décor Briliance/Lucas Oil/KWR’s Kyle Wyman rounded out the top 10.
Scholtz now leads Lewis in the championship by 64 points, 331-267. Fong is third, eight points behind Lewis in the fight for second in the title chase.
Mathew Scholtz
“I was just barely holding onto the Superbike pack today. It took everything I had, which helped me pull away and gap the Superstock guys. I didn’t want to let the guys up front get away and was on the absolute edge. This is a brilliant track, I’d suggest a few minor changes, but overall this is one of the best tracks that I’ve been to in a while.”
MotoAmerica Superbike Race 2 Results
- Roger Hayden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki
- Toni Elias, Barcelona, Spain, Suzuki
- Josh Hayes, Gulfport, Miss., Yamaha
- Mathew Scholtz, Durban, South Africa, Yamaha
- Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Kawasaki
- Jake Lewis, Owensboro, Ky, Suzuki
- Jake Gagne, San Diego, Calif., Honda
- Sylvain Barrier, Oyonnax, France, BW
- Danny Eslick, Tulsa, Ok, Yamaha
- Kyle Wyman, Macedon, N.Y., Yamaha
Motul Superbike Championship Standings
- Toni Elias, Barcelona, Spain, Suzuki – 340
- Roger Hayden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki – 261
- Cameron Beaubier, Roseville, Calif., Yamaha – 255
- Josh Hayes, Gulfport, Miss., Yamaha – 180
- Mathew Scholtz, Durban, South Africa, Yamaha – 159
- Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Kawasaki – 138
- Jake Lewis, Owensboro, Ky, Suzuki – 136
- Josh Herrin, Dublin, Ga., Yamaha – 114
- Danny Eslick, Tulsa, Okla., Yamaha – 111
- Kyle Wyman, Macedon, N.Y., Yamaha – 98
Bazzaz Superstock 1000 Race 2
- Mathew Scholtz, Dublin, South Africa, Yamaha
- Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Kawasaki
- Jake Lewis, Owensboro, Ky, Suzuki
- Danny Eslick, Tulsa, Okla., Yamaha
- Bryce Prince, Bakersfield, Calif., Yamaha
- Anthony West, Australia, Kawasaki
- Max Flinders, Preston, England, Yamaha
Bazzaz Superstock 1000 Championship Standings
- Mathew Scholtz, Durban, South Africa, Yamaha – 331
- Jake Lewis, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki – 267
- Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Kawasaki – 259
- Danny Eslick, Tulsa, Okla., Yamaha – 220
- Bryce Prince, Bakersfield, Calif., Yamaha – 167
- Hayden Gillim, Philpot, Ky., Suzuki – 161
- Max Flinders, Preston, England, Yamaha – 117
- David Anthony, Murrieta, Calif., Kawasaki – 66
- Anthony West, Australia, Kawasaki – 57
- Tyler O’Hara, Petaluma, Calif., Kawasaki – 54
Supersport Race 1
Supersport races aren’t normally won by large margins, but apparently Garrett Gerloff doesn’t know that. Gerloff rode his Monster Energy/Yamalube/Y.E.S./Graves Yamaha to victory today in Pittsburgh, topping M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Valentin Debise by 19.1 seconds after 16 laps.
Gerloff’s teammate and title rival JD Beach was a further five seconds behind in third and just two tenths ahead of Team H35’s Benny Solis. This one was all Gerloff, however.
The Texan battled back from a slight off-track excursion and a bee sting to lead the final 12 of the 16 laps for his seventh win of the season and his fourth in a row as he tries to defend his 2016 Supersport title. With Beach finishing third, Gerloff now leads by 23 points, 271-248. Debise, who came from well down after running off in turn two on the opening lap, is third in the series points with 178 points.
New Jersian Anthony Mazziotto III finished fifth today and that was good enough for him to earn his first career win in the Superstock 600 class, the former KTM RC Cup race winner coming back after sitting out the last three “west” races in Utah and California. Paasch topped his former KTM rival Brandon Paasch, with last year’s KTM RC Cup Champion finishing sixth.
Travis Wyman’s first race of the 2017 MotoAmerica season resulted in him finishing seventh on his Travis Wyman Racing Yamaha. M4 medAge Suzuki’s Nick McFadden finished eighth, and second in the Superstock 600 class, just ahead of third-place Superstock 600 finisher Michael Gilbert. Connor Blevins rounded out the top 10.
With Jason Aguilar crashing and remounting to finish 12th and sixth in the Superstock 600 class, the Riderz Law/Aguilar Racing rider saw his lead shrink to just eight points over Gilbert, 201-193.
Supersport Race 1 Result
- Garrett Gerloff, New Waverly, Texas, Yamaha
- Valentin Debise, Albi, France, Suzuki
- JD Beach, Owensboro, Ky., Yamaha
- Benny Solis, North Hollywood, Calif., Honda
- Anthony Mazziotto III, Hammonton, N.J., Yamaha
- Brandon Paasch, Freehold, N.J., Yamaha
- Travis Wyman, Las Vegas, NV., Yamaha
- Nick McFadden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki
- Michael Gilbert, Santa Ana, Calif., Yamaha
- Connor Blevins, Oklahoma City, Okla., Kawasaki
Superstock 600 Race 1 Result
- Anthony Mazziotto III, Hammonton, N.J., Yamaha
- Nick McFadden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki
- Michael Gilbert, Santa Ana, Calif., Yamaha
- Connor Blevins, Oklahoma City, Okla., Kawasaki
- Shane Richardson, Wellington, New Zealand, Kawasaki
- Jason Aguilar, Placentia, Calif., Yamaha
- Braeden Ortt, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Yamaha
- JC Camacho, Deer Park, Texas, Suzuki
- Steven Dietz, Pittsburgh, Pa., Yamaha
- CJ LaRoche, Bellaire, Ohio, Yamaha
Supersport Race 2
Garrett Gerloff didn’t win by as much as he did on Saturday, but he still won and in dominating fashion at Pittsburgh International Race Complex, the Monster Energy/Yamalube/Y.E.S./ Graves Yamaha rider winning his eighth Supersport race of the season and his fifth in a row. This time by 8.3 seconds.
Second place for the second straight day went to M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Valentin Debise, the Frenchman running off track again but not to the extreme of yesterday’s run-off. Thus Debise ended up second, 6.1 seconds ahead of yesterday’s third-place finisher JD Beach.
Fourth place, barely, went to Team H35’s Benny Solis over Riderz Law/Aguilar Racing’s Jason Aguilar, who came away with the victory in the Superstock 600 class.
Garrett Gerloff
“It was a tougher race today for sure. The tires dropped off a lot quicker for me today and it made it tough to maintain the same speed and consistency that I had yesterday. The track was awesome all weekend and I think that it’ll only continue to improve with more time on the new surface for when we come back. I’m looking forward to New Jersey and hope that we can keep the ball rolling.”
Gerloff now leads the Supersport Championship over Beach by 32 points, 296-264, with two rounds (four races) remaining. Debise is third, but 100 points behind Gerloff.
Yesterday’s Superstock 600 winner Anthony Mazziotto III was second in class today with Michael Gilbert rounding out the podium on his Team MG55 Yamaha.
Aguilar leads Gilbert by 17 points in the Superstock 600 title chase. Nick McFadden, fourth today, jumps to third – 55 points behind.
Supersport Race 2 Results
- Garrett Gerloff, New Waverly, Texas, Yamaha
- Valentin Debise, Albi, France, Suzuki
- JD Beach, Owensboro, Ky., Yamaha
- Benny Solis, North Hollywood, Calif., Honda
- Jason Aguilar, Placentia, Calif., Yamaha
- Anthony Mazziotto III, Hammonton, N.J., Yamaha
- Brandon Paasch, Freehold, N.J., Yamaha
- Michael Gilbert, Santa Ana, Calif., Yamaha
- Nick McFadden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki
- Braeden Ortt, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Yamaha
Supersport Championship Standings
- Garrett Gerloff, New Waverly, Texas, Yamaha – 296
- JD Beach, Owensboro, Ky., Yamaha – 264
- Valentin Debise, Albi, France, Suzuki – 196
- Benny Solis, North Hollywood, Calif., Honda – 179
- Jason Aguilar, Placentia, Calif., Yamaha – 110
- Michael Gilbert, Santa Ana, Calif., Yamaha – 104
- Nick McFadden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki – 94
- Connor Blevins, Oklahoma City, Okla., Kawasaki – 82
- Shane Richardson, Wellington, New Zealand, Kawasaki – 80
- Daytona Anderson, Riverside, Calif., Suzuki – 79
Superstock 600 Race 2 Results
- Jason Aguilar, Placentia, Calif., Yamaha
- Anthony Mazziotto III, Hammonton, N.J., Yamaha
- Michael Gilbert, Santa Ana, Calif., Yamaha
- Nick McFadden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki
- Braeden Ortt, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Yamaha
- JC Camacho, Deer Park, Texas, Suzuki
- Brandon Cleland, Fort Worth, Texas, Suzuki
- Connor Blevins, Oklahoma City, Okla., Kawasaki
- Eziah Davis, Hopkinton, R.I., Yamaha
- CJ LaRoche, Bellaire, Ohio, Yamaha
Superstock 600 Championship Standings
- Jason Aguilar, Placentia, Calif., Yamaha – 226
- Michael Gilbert, Santa Ana, Calif., Yamaha – 209
- Nick McFadden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki – 171
- Conner Blevins, Oklahoma City, Okla., Kawasaki – 168
- Shane Richardson, Wellington, New Zealand, Kawasaki – 155
- Braeden Ortt, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Yamaha – 141
- JC Camacho, Deer Park, Texas, Suzuki – 117
- Anthony Mazziotto III, Hammonton, N.J., Yamaha – 110
- Andrew Lee, Clovis, Calif., Yamaha – 91
- Brandon Cleland, Fort Worth, Texas, Suzuki – 58
KTM RC Cup Race 1
Fifteen-year-old Canadian Alex Dumas won his first-ever KTM RC Cup race, the JP43 Junior Team rider barely holding off Quarterley Racing/On Track Development’s Jackson Blackmon by .045 of a second after 10 laps of the Pittsburgh International Race Complex.
CSVMoto’s Cory Ventura ended up third, just 1.1 seconds behind and in the battle for victory for all 10 laps despite a big crash in the morning practice session. Blackmon’s teammate Draik Beauchamp finished fourth with Savage Racing’s Sean Ungvarsky rounding out the top five.
Points leader Benjamin Smith failed to finish after crashing out of fourth place and the result is a tighter championship. Ventura now trails Smith by 21 points, 192-171, with Blackmon moving to third in points, 36 points behind Smith.
KTM RC Cup Race 1 Result
- Alex Dumas, Quebec, Canada, KTM
- Jackson Blackmon, Rock Hill, SC, KTM
- Cory Ventura, Union City, Calif., KTM
- Draik Beauchamp, Knoxville, Tn., KTM
- Sean Ungvarsky, Phoenix, Ariz., KTM
- Dylan Deutschlander, Lake Jackson, Texas, KTM
- Toby Khamsouk, Banning, Calif., KTM
- Nate Minster, Oak Grove, Minn. KTM
- Trevor Standish, Roswell, Ga., KTM
- Dallas Daniels, Mattoon, Ill., KTM
KTM RC Cup Race 2
Fifteen-year-old Canadian Alex Dumas won his first-ever KTM RC Cup race yesterday. Today he went out and won his second, the JP43 Junior Team rider again barely holding off Quarterley Racing/On Track Development’s Jackson Blackmon.
This time the gap was larger, .239 of a second compared to .045 of a second, but the race was better with five riders running at the front for most of the 10 laps of the Pittsburgh International Race Complex.
While first and second were the same as yesterday, third place was different with points leader Benjamin Smith bouncing back from yesterday’s crash to finish third, just .293 of a second behind Dumas. CSVMoto’s Cory Ventura, third yesterday, slipped to fourth today and just under a second off the victor. Quarterley Racing/On Track Development’s Draik Beauchamp rounded out the top five.
Although he lost some points in his championship lead, Smith is still in control. He now leads Ventura by 24 points with two rounds (four races) remaining. Blackmon is third, 32 points behind Smith.
Alex Dumas
“It was a perfect weekend for me, I was good in practice Friday, qualifying, and really strong all weekend. I’m very happy with the setup that my mechanic has done this weekend as we have worked really hard. It was nice to win my first race yesterday, but even better to leave with both wins.”
KTM RC Cup Race 2
- Alex Dumas, Quebec, Canada, KTM
- Jackson Blackmon, Rock Hill, SC, KTM
- Benjamin Smith, Glenmoore, Pa., KTM
- Cory Ventura, Union City, Calif., KTM
- Draik Beauchamp, Knoxville, Tn., KTM
- Sean Ungvarsky, Phoenix, Ariz., KTM
- Toby Khamsouk, Banning, Calif., KTM
- Dylan Deutschlander, Lake Jackson, Texas, KTM
- Trevor Standish, Roswell, Ga., KTM
- Setin West, Decatur, Ill., KTM
KTM RC Cup Championship Standings
- Benjamin Smith, Glenmoore, Pa., KTM – 208
- Cory Ventura, Union City, Calif., KTM – 184
- Jackson Blackmon, Rock Hill, SC, KTM – 176
- Alex Dumas, Quebec, Canada, KTM – 173
- Draik Beauchamp, Knoxville, Tn., KTM- 165
- Toby Khamsouk, Banning, Calif., KTM – 120
- Trevor Standish, Roswell, Ga., KTM – 105
- Gavin Anthony, Hillard, Ohio, KTM – 83
- Nate Minster, Oak Grove, Minn. KTM – 70
- Sergio Rodriguez, Oxnard, Calif., KTM – 63
