Toni Elias ends season on a high at MotoAmerica closer

Toni Elias takes both Superbike wins

Hayden Gillim wins Supersport across both days

Alex Dumas untouchable in Junior Cup

Robert McLendon III takes the Twins Cup win

Andrew Lee wins Stock 1000

Images by Paul Carruthers, MotoAmerica

Toni Elias may not have successfully defended his MotoAmerica Superbike title, but he was 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 series ended on Sunday with a Motul Superbike race that was a fitting finale and one of the best of the season. When all was said and done, Toni Elias took his ninth win of the season but not without a frantic final two laps against Cameron Beaubier, the three-time champ coming up just .333 of a second short at the finish.

The win was the 25th of Elias’ MotoAmerica Superbike career and he will start the 2019 season just three behind World and AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies, who is fifth on the all-time list.

Superbikes – Saturday

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 Yamaha Factory Racing YZF-R1 to try and win his ninth race of his championship season.

Second place on Saturday went to early race leader Josh Herrin, 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.

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.

Hayden held on for fourth, some two seconds behind Scholtz and 1.2 seconds ahead of fellow Kentuckian Jake Lewis. Danny Eslick was sixth, 2.8 seconds ahead of Garrett Gerloff. Bobby Fong got the better of teammate Cameron Petersen for eighth.
Kyle Wyman rounded out the top 10.

Going into Sunday’s final race of the year, Beaubier leds 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.

Motul Superbike – Saturday

1. Toni Elias (Suzuki)
2. Josh Herrin (Yamaha)
3. Mathew Scholtz (Yamaha)
4. Roger Hayden (Suzuki)
5. Jake Lewis (Suzuki)

Superbikes – Sunday

Elias had his hands full for the duration with Josh Herrin early, then Beaubier late as the three diced it up for the entire race. Beaubier made a mistake in turn five with two laps to go and it allowed Elias to pull out a lead.

But the newly crowned champion put his head down and turned in two stellar laps to pull Elias back in. It was too little too late, however, and Beaubier was forced to settle for what was his 16th podium finish of the year.

Toni Elias

“Honestly, I was thinking to open a gap, but at the end he (Beaubier) was there doing incredible lap times in the last part of the race. Today was fun. It was fun because all of us,we didn’t think about anything – just go push over the limit. We show each other today was not any jokes. Some elbows, some hard-braking areas. Was fun. We enjoyed it. Finally, I won but also I could lose. But I’m lucky to finish the championship in this way. Yesterday I able to manage second position in the championship. Good job this year for Josh (Herrin). Incredible job for Cameron (Beaubier). He deserves the number one. This morning I was joking about this afternoon I want his number one out. I want to put that my number to start on Tuesday. I will be happy in two years with that number again. It’s been a nice year. Difficult. I learned a lot. My team, too. Thanks, because even in the difficult times, we are a family, we are a group. I feel all the time the support. They work like animals. That for me, win or lose, is the best. Thanks Roger Hayden for his career, but more to be a great human. He is an amazing teammate. We are friends. Now one day will be my time, but today arrive his time. Now time to go rest, to enjoy the family, create family, travel, as he said. I wish him all the best and Dana (Hayden’s wife). He comes from an amazing family. Nicky, Tommy, all the sisters. Amazing people. I’m very lucky to meet them. Thank you.”

Cameron Beaubier

“It’s been dog fights all year. A really fun, tough, rewarding year. Just getting beat up there at the beginning of the year and keep getting second places and third places to Toni and Josh (Herrin), it was tough, man. But we were able to fight back and went on a little winning streak and clinched that championship. Like I said on the podium, I can’t put into words how good it feels to bring this number one plate back to Yamaha. It’s been an amazing season. I gave it everything I had those last two laps. I was pushing the front. I was sliding the rear on the entries. I was just going for it. I had nothing to lose. I wanted to try to get up close to Toni and try to see if I could do something in the last section, but he had that last section dialed today. It was a really fun, rewarding season.”

At the end of the 21-lap race, Herrin was three seconds behind the lead duo but a comfortable third. It was the Georgian’s 12th podium of a season that included two victories.

Mathew Scholtz rode well to finish fourth, climbing to within a second of the top-three battle at the halfway mark but eventually finishing 9.5 seconds behind Herrin. Jake Lewis was fifth, some 10 seconds behind Scholtz and some six seconds clear of Danny Eslick. Bobby Fong ended his trying 2018 season with a seventh-place finish.

Roger Hayden ran off track on the opening lap of the final race of his career and spent the rest of the race making up for it. He ended up finishing eighth, honored on his final run down the front straight to the finish line with crews from every team lined up against the pit wall and cheering him on. Geoff May and Ben Young rounded out the top 10 on their BMWs.

Motul Superbike – Sunday

1. Toni Elias (Suzuki)
2. Cameron Beaubier (Yamaha)
3. Josh Herrin (Yamaha)
4. Mathew Scholtz (Yamaha)
5. Jake Lewis (Suzuki)

Motul Superbike Standings

1. Cameron Beaubier 390
2. Toni Elias 339
3. Josh Herrin 289
4. Mathew Scholtz 239
5. Garrett Gerloff 208
6. Jake Lewis 207
7. Roger Hayden 172
8. Kyle Wyman 157
9. Danny Eslick 152
10. David Anthony 97

Supersport – Saturday

In Supersport, 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 JD Beach, who finished second in Saturday’s race after already clinching the class championship in New Jersey. Valentin Debise returned to form after recovering from his crash in Pittsburgh two rounds ago, and he finished third.

Supersport – Saturday

1. Hayden Gillim (Yamaha)
2. JD Beach (Yamaha)
3. Valentin Debise (Suzuki)
4. Braeden Ortt (Yamaha)
5. Bryce Prince (Yamaha)

Supersport – Sunday

In Supersport, Saturday’s winner Hayden Gillim won again on Sunday, but it wasn’t easy. JD Beach, the already crowned 2018 Supersport Champion, gave Gillim all he could handle, and the two even came together on the final lap, with Gillim getting the better of Beach to take the checkers for the second time this weekend. Valentin Debise just beat Bryce Prince at the line for third.

Hayden Gillim

“We had a really good battle, JD made some good passes on me, and I made some good passes on him. On the last lap, I had one place to go and that was it. Unfortunately, we came together. That wasn’t supposed to happen. It’s racing, like he said. We both came across the finish line. We’re both healthy. It was a good race weekend for us. To get the double was pretty incredible. It’s always fun racing with these boys and being at the front.”

Supersport – Sunday

1. Hayden Gillim (Yamaha)
2. JD Beach (Yamaha)
3. Valentin Debise (Suzuki)
4. Bryce Prince (Yamaha)
5. Richie Escalante (Yamaha)

Supersport Standings

1. JD Beach 388
2. Hayden Gillim 300
3. Valentin Debise 182
4. Bryce Prince 174
5. Nick McFadden 170
6. Richie Escalante 148
7. Anthony III Mazziotto 137
8. Cory West 129
9. Braeden Ortt 126
10. Jason Aguilar 117

Liqui Moly Junior Cup – Saturday

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 rider notched his ninth victory of the season with another dominant performance where he was never headed. Cory Ventura finished second aboard his Yamaha, while Renzo Ferreira finished third aboard his Kawasaki to complete the balanced, three-brand podium.

Liqui Moly Junior Cup – Saturday

1. Alex Dumas (KTM)
2. Cory Ventura (Yamaha)
3. Renzo Ferreira (Kawasaki)
4. Jay Newton (Yamaha)
5. Gavin Anthony (Yamaha)

Liqui Moly Junior Cup – Sunday

In Liqui Moly Junior Cup, it was yet another balanced podium as riders from three different brands were represented, with Alex Dumas winning his second race of the weekend, and his 10th of his championship season. Damian Jigalov scored his second podium result of the season with a second-place finish, and Cory Ventura completed a double-podium with a third after finishing second on Sunday.

Alex Dumas

“Today was good, I set some good pace in the front. Didn’t know what to expect. It’s a little bit colder than yesterday, so the tire felt better with the grip. I’m just excited to win. Next weekend I’m going to France and the last round of the World 300 Supersport class. I’m excited to go there and see how I’m going to do there.”

Liqui Moly Junior Cup

1. Alex Dumas (KTM)
2. Damian Jigalov (Kawasaki)
3. Cory Ventura (Yamaha)
4. Jay Newton (Yamaha)
5. Gavin Anthony (Yamaha)

Liqui Moly Junior Cup Standings

1. Alex Dumas 295
2. Cory Ventura 221
3. Jay Newton 196
4. Ashton Yates 172
5. Sean Ungvarsky 134
6. Jackson Blackmon 134
7. Gavin Anthony 126
8. Kevin Olmedo 118
9. Jamie Astudillo 116
10. Renzo Ferreira 91

Twins Cup – Saturday

In the Twins Cup class, Saturday’s race was the final one of the 2018 season, and it decided the championship between Chris Parrish and 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 in his first-ever MotoAmerica race; Kris Turner was second on his Suzuki; and Curtis Murray was third on another Suzuki.

Twins Cup – Saturday

1. Robert McLendon III (Yamaha)
2. Kris Turner (Suzuki)
3. Curtis Murray (Suzuki)
4. Justin Filice (Suzuki)
5. Darrell Ricks (Suzuki)

Twins Cup Standings

1. Chris Parrish 147
2. Jason Madama 144
3. Kris Turner 65
4. Curtis Murray 48
5. Ryan Roth 44
6. Justin Filice 40
7. Danielle Diaz 33
8. Brian McGlade 31
9. Aaron Tulchinsky 31
10. Shane Perry 26

Stock 1000 – Sunday

Already crowned 2018 Stock 1000 Champion Andrew Lee continued his winning ways when he notched his third victory of the season aboard his Kawasaki. Chad Lewis was second, and New Zealander Shane Richardson rode his Woolich Racing Kawasaki to third place for his third podium this season.

Andrew Lee

“Coming into this round, I knew I had already wrapped up the championship, so the goal was to get a win… to end the season with another win. We had a slow start, just a string of seconds, but at the end of the day, it got me the championship so that’s what matters. Leading into the first round, we weren’t even too sure if we were going to make the first round. So doing my first full season as a pro, it’s fantastic. Couldn’t have asked for anything more. I want to thank RiderzLaw for getting behind me this year. Spidi, Arai, Graves Motorsports, everyone out there was just super-supportive of me this year, so thanks to everyone.”

Stock 1000 – Sunday

1. Andrew Lee (Kawasaki)
2. Chad Lewin (Yamaha)
3. Shane Richardson (Kawasaki)
4. Garrick Schneiderman (Yamaha)
5. Travis Wyman (BMW)

Stock 1000 Standings

1. Andrew Lee 166
2. Travis Wyman 119
3. Chad Lewin 91
4. Shane Richardson Jr. 74
5. Stephen Incledon 48
6. Melissa Paris 43
7. Roi Holster 37
8. Timothy Bemisderfer 34
9. Andy DiBrino 29
10. Tawfik Khalil 26