With a championship battle coming down to the final motos between Ryan Dungey and Christophe Pourcel at the AMA Motocross Championship in Southwick, Mass., it was an AMSOIL-backed rider that led the charge this past weekend.
Rookie sensation Justin Barcia, from the GEICO Powersports/AMSOIL/Honda team, held off a strong field in the 250 class to take home his first-ever moto victory after passing Dungey around the halfway point.
In the second moto, Barcia again had his hands full with Dungey as the two battled back and forth as they worked their way through the pack. Barcia worked on Dungey until they sat third and fourth at about the halfway point, and then Barcia took over the third position with two laps to go, solidifying his first-ever AMA National victory. Metcalfe finished second for third overall. Wharton finished seventh overall.
Race fans will be seeing double this Labor Day weekend in what promises to be one of the biggest off-road races off all time. Douglas Motorsports will field two identical AMSOIL Kumho Ford F-150s in the BorgWarner World Championship Cup race, which is part of the Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL. Two-time BorgWarner champ Scott Douglas will drive the number 7 AMSOIL Pro 4x4 and Pro Light champion Chad Hord will drive a matching Douglas Motorsports AMSOIL entry.
Douglas Motorsports team recently tested both trucks at Crandon and Chad Hord quickly proved the transition to a full-size 4x4 race truck with 900 horsepower will not be a problem. Team owner Scott Douglas was very pleased with his performance and Chad gained valuable seat time in the AMSOIL F-150.
“Chad Hord is very deserving of this opportunity to drive one of the AMSOIL Ford F-150s from Douglas Motorsports,” said Jeremy Meyer, AMSOIL Race Program Manager. “His program is top notch and he has the ability to compete with the best drivers in the sport at Crandon. AMSOIL has two cup winners on its Super Team in Mike Oberg (Baldwin Memorial Cup) and Scott Douglas (two-time BorgWarner Cup) and Chad has the talent to bring home a third. The Pro 4x4 class just got a lot deeper with Chad Hord running for this year's prize and the world will get to see it live on ABC.”
Hord will also race his Pro Light 2wd truck at Crandon. Hord is currently leading the points in Pro Light. Oberg will pilot his Pro 2wd on the same track that he finished second on during the Chairman's Cup race this past June.
For those who can’t make it to Crandon’s huge 40th Anniversary celebration, the 2009 BorgWarner Cup race will air live on ABC Sunday September 6th at 3:00 pm Central Standard Time.
One year after a tragic racing accident at Patchogue, N.Y., the community pulled together to put on a spectacular racing festival: The OPA Battle in the Bay. This first-class event had participating entities including fire and police departments from several neighboring communities.
With Hurricane Bill approaching the Northeast, it was anticipated that the racing conditions were going to be rough. Water conditions on Friday were quite choppy in the Great South Bay. By Saturday morning, conditions began to calm which necessitated the Team AMSOIL crew to change the set up on the boat back to a calmer water configuration. As it turned out, it was a good move. The testing on Saturday proved that the boat would be competitive if the conditions held. The conditions were slightly calmer on Sunday and the Team AMSOIL boat was entered in the last two main event races.
Team AMSOIL Offshore Racing ran in the race with the P-1 class boats and exhibited a dominating performance. The next race produced a deck to deck race for Team AMSOIL #77 with the highly competitive Motley Crew #00 team in their 368 Skater. The Crew drew the pole position lane with Team AMSOIL in lane two. The two Skaters ran deck to deck swapping positions a couple of times until Team AMSOIL pulled on the inside lane on the front straightaway of the 5 1/2 mile course. As Team AMSOIL was nearing on the inside of the Crew, a guardian condition in their left motor caused them to veer sharply to the left toward Bob Teague and Paul Whittier in the Team AMSOIL boat. Bob and Paul were able to maneuver the boat in order to avoid a collision and continued in the pass of the Motley Crew boat. Team AMSOIL continued holding onto first place for the balance of the race.
The Patchogue race was the second in the Geico Triple Crown series. The win by Team AMSOIL resulted in an unbeatable first place position for the 2009 Cat Lite Triple Crown title. Currently, Team AMSOIL #77 is also in the points lead in the OSS and OPA sanctioning organizations, and is tied for first place in Super Boat International.
Up next for Team AMSOIL is the combined OPA/OSS race in Point Pleasant, N.J. on September 12-13.
The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) is proud to report that Eli Tomac, fresh off a stellar performance at the 2009 AMA Air Nautiques Amateur Motocross Championships presented by AMSOIL, was victorious over top junior motocross riders from around the world in the 125cc FIM Junior Motocross World Championship in Taupo, New Zealand, on Aug. 15-16, 2009.
"I think I haven't realized yet that I became a World Champion," Tomac said. "Thanks also to my sponsors, my family, the Townley family, Honda New Zealand, my mechanic and everybody who helped me to get this result. And also especially the AMA and the AMSOIL/Factory Connection/Honda team for helping me come here to this race with the added costs of international travel."
Tomac faced competition from all over the world, including riders from New Zealand, Australia, Italy, the Netherlands and more.
AMA Director of Racing Joe Bromley said that Tomac's triumph demonstrates that the young rider has proven to be a force to reckon with on any motocross track in the world.
"It's a great honor to have Eli Tomac competing and winning the Junior Motocross World Championship," Bromley said. "We at the AMA are proud of his accomplishment representing the United States and commend him on his great success."
Eli's father, John Tomac, was also proud of his son's accomplishment.
"Wow, what an impressive event that the Taupo track and New Zealand MX put on for this FIM Junior World Championship," Tomac said. "It was great for Eli to represent the United States and bring home the title for American motocross. It was a true test, with tough conditions with rain all week long and some great competition from the Europeans, Australians, New Zealanders and other international riders."
Tomac faced extreme weather conditions all weekend, including excessive cold and rain. Nevertheless, the Cortez, Colo., rider thanked the track promoter for providing a quality course.
"It was nice to compete in New Zealand. Thanks to the organizer for preparing this wonderful track," Tomac said.
While Tomac was takin on the world, his pro teammates in the GEICO Powersports/AMSOIL/Honda team were battling a tough track and heavy rains in Mechanicsville, Md.
The first 250 moto was mostly dry, and rookie sensation Justin Barcia fought his way up on the first lap from a few spots back to grab fourth.
“I’ve been working really hard trying to get my body back in shape, and I had a decent start. But I had to pass a lot of guys on the first lap to catch up to fourth, and then I just rode really smart and smooth,” Barcia said.
Aussie Brett Metcalfe, though, went down in the first turn and was forced to fight his way through the pack from the back.
“They dropped the gate before five seconds, which I think is illegal, so I got caught off guard and got a bad jump, then got cutoff, and then got bunched up down the straight,” Metcalfe said. “I went down pretty hard and rung my bell, and my bike was stuck,.”
However, Metcalfe was able to fight his way back up into the points, finishing 18th and gathering up three hard-earned points. In the second moto, Metcalfe nearly got the hole shot, but then led the entire race, only to lost the lead on what turned out to be the last lap, as the red flag was thrown, marking the end of the race. Under AMA Rules, if the red flag is thrown after the 25-minute mark, the race is called in that order. The strong second moto put Metcalfe sixth overall.
Barcia had a tougher time in the mud, though.
“I’ve been in mud races, but I’ve never seen anything like that before!” Barcia said. “There were rivers going through the track, and you’d be going through a rut and your front end would just dive down into a big hole... It was fun in the beginning, until I lost my goggles...”
After that, though, Barcia was stuck pretty much where he was and finished seventh, which was still good for fourth overall.
Their teammate Blake Wharton had a tough day with falls in both motos knocking him out of points contention both times out.
In the 450cc class, both Kevin Windham and Dan Reardon were back in action, and after qualifying fourth in the 450cc class, Windham had a really tough time in the opening moto. Coming off the couch, he gated decently but got arm-pump and ended up finishing outside the points on the trick Budds Creek track. Windham opted to sit out moto two.
Similarly, Reardon came back from a shoulder injury suffered at High Point, but although he thought it would be ready to go, a first-turn fall in the first moto aggravated the injury and he didn’t finish the race.
From here, the GEICO Powersports Honda team heads to Southwick, Mass., for round 11 of the AMA Outdoor Nationals at a sand track known as MX338.
The Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL is proud to announce that one lucky fan will have a chance to ride alongside off-road legend Robby Gordon in the Traxxas TORC Pace Truck. This ride of a lifetime will take place Labor Day weekend at the birthplace of short course off road, Crandon International Raceway in Crandon, Wis.
The contest winner will also have the opportunity to meet some of off-roads finest with a private tour of the pits, watch the race from the Monster Energy VIP Stage, and take home their very own Traxxas R/C Slash- a replica of the Traxxas TORC Series pace truck that they will be riding in. The ten runners up will also receive a Traxxas R/C Slash. Visit http://www.torcseries.com/ through August 31st, 2009 to enter and win. Contest winners will be announced September 1st, 2009.
The Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL is the world's premier short course off road series. TORC drivers push the limits with 900 horsepower, action-packed fender pounding on challenging natural terrain racetracks. The 2009 season schedule includes stops in Texas, California, Nevada, Michigan, and Wisconsin. For more information on TORC please visit http://www.torcseries.com/.
The Labor Day weekend race will air live on ABC on Sunday, September 6 at 5:00 P.M. EST.
It will be a busy weekend for Team AMSOIL as sponsored race teams go after wins coast-to-coast, on air and even over seas.
AMA Pro Road Racing
Team AMSOIL road racer Larry Pegram is back in action this weekend at Virginia International Raceway for the Big Kahuna Nationals. Pegram will strive to duplicate his last race weekend, one that saw him win pole position and both AMA Pro American Superbike races on his Ducati 1098R at Heartland Park Topeka in what was an incredible three days for the veteran racer. Pegram has emerged victorious three times in 2009 and his hot streak has seen him rise to third place in the series points.
"We're looking to carry the momentum from Kansas," said Pegram. "VIR is a nice track and the fans are great. It should be a good weekend for the team. The track is a fairly tight circuit and the layout has some good passing spots. We're hot right now and the way things are going, we feel we can do very well at all the tracks."
Qualifying will be held on Friday, with same-day coverage of both races (Saturday and Sunday) on Speed. AMSOIL is the Official Oil of AMA Pro Road Racing and the presenting sponsor of the Daytona Sportbike class.
Top AMSOIL amateur heads overseas
Fresh off his dominating week at the AMA Amateur Nationals presented by AMSOIL, AMSOIL/Factory Connection motocrosser Eli Tomac is headed to New Zealand this weekend.
Tomac, who destroyed the field at Loretta Lynn's Ranch by winning all six of his moto's and two more championships, will take part in the FIM Jr. World Championships in Taupo, New Zealand this weekend. Tomac is leading a strong U.S. team into the event.
TORC on T.V.
Chad Hord took the win on his hometown track of Bark River last weekend, now you can watch the exciting battle between the AMSOIL Super Team driver and AMSOIL sponsored Jeff Kincaid this weekend.
Also find out how Super Team members Scott Douglas and Mike Oberg fared in the fender to fender battles in Pro 4x4 and the AMSOIL Pro 2wd class. ESPN 2 will carry the Sunday at 11:30 A.M. EST.
Team AMSOIL motocross rider Kevin Windham will be making his 2009 outdoor debut. K-Dub will pilot his GEICO Powersports/AMSOIL/Honda at the Unadilla round of the AMA Motocross Championships in New York.
Windham, who finished fourth in the AMA Supercross series this winter, hasn't raced an outdoor national in two seasons, when he finished second overall. Racing takes place on Saturday with same-day television coverage on SPEED starting at 7:00 P.M. EST.
Jottings...
The AMA ATV Motocross Championship will take one step closer to crowning a champion this weekend in Walnut, Ill. AMSOIL is the Official Oil of the series.
Team AMSOIL late model driver Brady Smith will compete at a World of Outlaws Late Model Series triple header this weekend at Grandview Speedway and Bedford Speedway in Pennsylvania and Hagerstown Speedway in Maryland.
From a field of more than 20,000 hopefuls and nearly 1,400 riders who qualified for the national event at Loretta Lynn Ranch, champions in 34 classes were crowned after a week of racing at the Air Nautiques AMA Amateur Motocross Nationals presented by AMSOIL.
The Colorado-born rider turned in a dominant performance, winning all six of his motos by large margins and taking the Schoolboy 2 and 250 B Modified classes. Tomacer also turned in the fastest lap time of the week. Although classified as a B (intermediate) rider, Tomac's lap times put him on par with the A (expert) level racers.
Three outstanding riders-each who claimed two championships-were honored with AMA specialty awards. Canidae Motosport.com Kawasaki's Dean Wilson, of Canada, claimed the coveted AMA Horizon Award after claiming the 450 A/Pro Sport Title and the 250 A Title and winning five of his six motos during the week. Kawasaki Team Green's Zach Bell was named AMA Youth Rider of the Year for claiming the Supermini 1 and Supermini 2 crowns. The Georgia-based rider also won five of his six motos. And Yamaha legend Doug Dubach, a Californian, was named Vet Rider of the Year for sweeping all six of his motos and claiming both the Plus 40 and Plus 45 Championships.
Wilson took two of the A class titles, with Monster Energy Team Green Kawasaki rider Blake Baggett, of California, delivering the 250 A Pro Sport title. Baggett was plagued with bad starts when matched against Wilson in the 250 A class and had to settle for third in that class, behind Honda of Houston backed Taylor Futrell. In the 450 A class, Suzuki's Justin Weeks bought three moto wins back to his Cincinnati, Ohio, home. Kawasaki's Malcolm Stewart, younger brother of Monster Energy AMA Supercross Champion James Stewart, took second behind Weeks in each moto. Stewart also placed second overall in the Open Four-Stroke Class, which saw Alabama's Heath Harrison roll to a championship.
Other A class favorites struggled, such as KTM's Jason Anderson, who saw his title hopes eliminated in his first two motos of the week due to crashes and mechanical troubles.
After Tomac cleaned up in the 250 B Mod class, California's Michael Lieb won the 250 B stock title in one of the most dramatic races of the week. Lieb won the first two motos, but went down in a first-turn crash in the third moto. His clutch perch broken, and riding in pain, Lieb managed to dig down for a 14th-place finish in the third moto, still enough to edge Ireland's Edward Allingham and Lance Vincent, who went 4-13-1 in his races. Florida's Justin Starling won the 450 B stock class, and Gannon Audette won 450 B Mod, both on Suzukis. Yamaha rider Bryce Valle finished second in both classes.
Tomac took the Schoolboy 2 class for 250 four-strokes, while Kawasaki's Jacob Hayes won the Schoolboy 1 class for 125 two-strokes. Hayes survived the best moto of the week, as the final moto in that class featured a four-rider duel including Kyle Peters, Brad Frace and Joey Savatgy that went down to the final corner.
The C classes were topped by Washington's Conner Elliot (250 C stock), New Jersey's Jesse Pierce (250 C Mod) and Oklahoma's Blake Barnes (450 C Mod).Bell won both Supermini classes over Suzuki rider Jeremy Martin, of Millville, Minn. The coveted 85 (12-13) stock and mod classes featured a dramatic showdown between future pro superstars, with much-heralded Monster Energy Kawasaki pilot Adam Cianciarulo winning both titles. It wasn't easy on the 12-year-old Florida native, though. He overcame a challenge from Alabama's Thomas Covington to win the Stock class, but was sitting fourth overall in the Mod division heading into the third moto. Cianciarulo grabbed the holeshot and won the third moto, and improbably, his competitors ran into trouble. Yamaha's rider Matt Biscelia and Suzuki's Jesse Masterpool came into the moto tied for the overall lead. Biscelia crashed, but came back through to challenge Masterpool for second. They tangled and found their bikes locked together, and after taking over a lap to get unhooked, Cianciarulo had the title in his hands in dramatic fashion.
In the 85 (9-11) classes, KTM's Alexander Frye turned in a strong last-moto charge to top Kawasaki Blake Green for the title, but Green came back to win the Zach Bell's younger brother Chase delivered in the stock class to claim a title there. In the 65 classes, Zach Bell's younger brother Chase won the 65 (10-11) Stock title, with Canada's Kade Walker winning the 65 (7-11) Modified class. California's Sean Cantrell won a close fight with Michael Mosiman to win the 65 (7-9) stock class.
The Vet classes were dominated by Dubach and Massachusett's Keith Johnson, who won the Plus 25 and Plus 35 classes for the second-straight year on his Kawasaki. Kawasaki's Matt Tedder won the 50 plus class, which had returned to the event this year, over Honda rider Craig Pickett. Mississippi's Glen Myatt won the 30 B/C class.
The Women's class usually delivers some of the best racing of the event, and this year was no exception. California's Alexah Pearson held a big points lead with 1-3 moto scores, but she crashed on the first lap of the third moto. She charged back to 11th, but it wasn't enough to stop Texas' Shelbie Brittain from claiming the title with 3-6-3 scores. Kawasaki's Sarah Price, who finished second in the class last year, took the runner up result again, going 11-1-1 after crashing in a muddy first moto.
Utah's Amanda Mahue avoided such drama in the Girls (11-15) class, winning all three motos.The 51cc classes went to Cobra's Stilez Robertson in AMA Class 1 Stock (4-6) and Jordan Bailey in AMA Class 2 Stock (7-8), and Vance Stiers in the Stock Shaft Drive class on a Yamaha.
As always, the event featured plenty of activity off the track, living up to the reputation as "The World's Greatest Motocross Vacation."
The high flying action of the Traxxas TORC Truck Series presented by AMSOIL returned to Bark River, Mich. this weekend for another two rounds of racing. Bark River International Raceway was the proud host to rounds nine and ten of the national series. This weekend's event saw 17,000 people watching off roads finest go head to head at the 1.5 mile track.
In the PRO 4x4 class, Red Bull/AMSOIL driver Steve Barlow was on the poll both days, but was unable to hang onto his lead. Rockstar Kyle LeDuc took the lead from Barlow early on in the race and dominated the weekend, taking two victories and two Oakley Bomb Run Awards for the fastest lap times. Monster Energy superstar Rick Huseman took second both days, with AMSOIL Super Team driver Scott Douglas rounding out the podium on Saturday. After blowing an engine Saturday on the last lap of the race, Johnny Greaves came back and took third place on Sunday.
The AMSOIL PRO 2WD class continues to bring intense racing and a lot of excitement as it is TORC's largest PRO class and stacked deep with racing talent. Two AMSOIL drivers, supercross legends Jeremy McGrath and Ricky Johnson had an intense battle on Saturday as McGrath led for most of the race trying to hold off Johnson; eventually he would succumb to both Ricky Johnson, who took the win, and Todd LeDuc, who took second. All was not lost for McGrath, as he took home his very first Oakley Bomb Run Award. LeDuc came back from his third place finish to win on Sunday. Red Bull/AMSOIL driver Ricky Johnson took second and Rob MacCachren took third. Johnson also took home the Oakley Bomb for the fastest lap time on Sunday. AMSOIL Super Team driver Mike Oberg finished sixth on Saturday but was blindsided on Sunday, finishing tenth. He is seventh overall.
The most unpredictable class of the weekend was PRO Light. Traxxas/AMSOIL driver Jeff Kincaid took the win on Saturday, but was not as successful Sunday after ending his race early due to engine trouble. Kincaid did, however, take the Oakley Bomb Run Award for the fastest lap time both days. Marty Hart took second on Saturday behind Kincaid, but was shut out of the top three on Sunday. AMSOIL Super Team driver Chad Hord took a fourth on Saturday despite being a wad of dirt filling up his engine. The hometown hero was able to retake the points lead with a win on Sunday.
Didn't catch all the action from Bark River, Michigan? You can watch it on August 16 at 11:30 EST on ESPN2.
The next stop on the 2009 TORC race schedule is Crandon International Raceway in Crandon, Wisconsin. The world famous track will host its 40th anniversary event on Labor Day Weekend, September 4-6th. Robby Gordon will make his driving debut for TORC, and TORC will be live for the first time on ABC. AMSOIL is the Exclusive Official Oil and Presenting Sponsor of the Traxxas TORC Series.
The first weekend of August found Bob Teague and Team AMSOIL Offshore competing in the 17th running of the popular St. Clair River Classic Offshore Race. The St. Clair race was the first OPA/OSS joint event of 2009.
A festival was held along the park and race course and offered a full-blown carnival complete with rides, attractions and street vendors. The event was a huge success, drawing nearly 100,000 people over three days.
Although high winds made test conditions unusually rough on Saturday, Sunday brought calmer conditions for race day.
Sunday's racing was fast, furious and safe with no accidents or rollovers reported. In the main event, Team AMSOIL started in the number-two lane, with Team Propstop on the pole. When the green flag dropped, a deck-to-deck battle ensued with the 388 Skater of Team Propstop. On the third lap, as Team AMSOIL attempted to pass on the inside of turn one, Team Propstop hooked into the path of Team AMSOIL. The #77 boat got caught in the rooster tail and had to pull back. The deluge of water caused one of the AMSOIL boat’s engines to go into “guardian mode” with reduced power. Teague was able to get the engine restarted after three tries, but by that time Team Propstop had gained about a 20-second lead.
After three laps, Team AMSOIL made up the deficit and was again knocking on the door of Team Propstop. Throttle-man Teague and driver Paul Whittier stayed on the outside lane in turns one and two, tailing Team Propstop closely down the course into turns three and four. As Propstop headed into turn four, they left a lane open. Teague and Whittier crossed to the inside and hooked the 368 Skater tightly around turn buoy four at high speed, gaining a two-boat advantage heading out of the turn. The planned move paid off as Team AMSOIL then stretched the lead for the remaining laps until taking the checkered flag. The winning Cat Lite #77 Team AMSOIL boat was paraded in front of the huge crowds, proudly displaying the checkered flag. The win at St. Clair put Team AMSOIL in first-place in the points’ chase in both the OPA and OSS circuits.
Next stop: OPA/OSS Race – Patchogue, New York – August 22 & 23
Team AMSOIL road racer Larry Pegram (Foremost/AMSOIL/Ducati Team) will be a featured guest on Pit Pass Radio tonight.
Pegram swept the American Superbike races this weekend at Heartland Park Topeka in Kansas. He dominated the start of the doubleheader weekend, leading every lap and, ultimately, winning Saturday’s race. Sunday’s event brought a much closer fight with Tommy Hayden, leaving the outcome questionable right up to the checkered flag. The pair traded the lead in late laps but Pegram prevailed, winning by just 0.333 of a second. This marks Pegram’s first career sweep in AMA Pro Road Racing.
Pit Pass Moto Weekly is a syndicated motorcycle talk show heard on radio stations across the U.S. and around the world via the internet at http://www.pitpassradio.com/. The show airs every Tuesday from 8-10 p.m. Eastern at http://www.pitpassradio.com/
AMSOIL is the Official Oil of AMA Pro Road Racing and the Presenting Partner of the Daytona Sportbike class. The next event is August 14-16 at Virginia International Speedway.
Team AMSOIL Superbike rider Larry Pegram (No. 72 Foremost Insurance/AMSOIL Ducati 1098R) scored his first career weekend sweep in AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike presented by Parts Unlimited competition and Martin Cardenas (No. 36 Team M4 Suzuki GSX-R600) won a class-leading seventh AMA Pro Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL race Sunday in the Tornado Nationals presented by BriggsAuto.com at Heartland Park Topeka.
As he did in Saturday's final, Pegram led every lap from the start for a convincing win that was his third victory of the season. Unlike Saturday's race when the Ducati was the clear class of the field, a persistent Tommy Hayden (No. 22 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) chased Pegram to the finish on Sunday.
"I was sweating and Tommy was all over me, he was an animal," Pegram said. "I could hear him back there, I could feel him. The last three laps I was riding fairly defensive. I was still trying to set a good pace but in the places where I knew there were opportunities to pass, I wasn't giving any room there. My hats off to him, I rode as hard as I possibly could and he was there the whole race."
Hayden crossed the finish line .333 of a second behind Pegram and he has now been on the podium for half of this year's 16 races. Josh Hayes (No. 4 Yamaha Motor Corp. USA Yamaha R1) finished third for his third podium in the last four races after scoring a weekend victory sweep of his own one race ago at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
"I was a lot stronger than Larry through two of the corners," Hayden said. "I didn't want to try a move until I thought I was close enough to make it. I tried the one spot and he got back by and I never really got close enough again through that area. He picked it up a bit there. It's kind of frustrating to keep getting this close and not get a win, but I feel like I'm learning a lot in the races. I have to keep doing what I'm doing, it can't be too far away."
Pegram also showed some appreciation for the Heartland Park officials.
"Personally, I love this place now," Pegram said. "I think Heartland Park has the potential to be a really, really good race track as far as safety goes."
Mat Mladin (No. 7 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) continues to lead the American Superbike championship standings with 390 points, Hayden remains second with 307 points while Pegram has jumped from fifth to third in the standings after the Tornado Nationals with 286 points.
Next up for American Superbike is the Suzuki Big Kahuna Nationals at Virginia International Raceway (VIR), August 14 - 16. The races will be featured in a pair of same-day, two-hour telecasts on SPEED on Saturday, August 15 at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) and Sunday, August 16 at Midnight ET (9 p.m. PT).
AMSOIL-backed rider that led the charge this past weekend.
In the second moto, Barcia again had his hands full with Dungey as the two battled back and forth as they worked their way through the pack. Barcia worked on Dungey until they sat third and fourth at about the halfway point, and then Barcia took over the third position with two laps to go, solidifying his first-ever AMA National victory. Metcalfe finished second for third overall. Wharton finished seventh overall.
Sunday's racing was fast, furious and safe with no accidents or rollovers reported. In the main event, Team AMSOIL started in the number-two lane, with Team Propstop on the pole. When the green flag dropped, a deck-to-deck battle ensued with the 388 Skater of Team Propstop. On the third lap, as Team AMSOIL attempted to pass on the inside of turn one, Team Propstop hooked into the path of Team AMSOIL. The #77 boat got caught in the rooster tail and had to pull back. The deluge of water caused one of the AMSOIL boat’s engines to go into “guardian mode” with reduced power. Teague was able to get the engine restarted after three tries, but by that time Team Propstop had gained about a 20-second lead. 
