Round five of the 2012 AMA Pro Racing season takes place at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama. Daytona Sportbike is up first. This is race number two. Cameron Beaubier wins the first race of the weekend. It's Beaubier's first win in the series.
Beaubier took the lead and Jason DiSalvo was also strong in race one. Jake Gagne crashed while Dane Westby tried for the lead, too. Beaubier just barely won the first race. Martin Cardenas still has the points lead in the series. Rider Michael Beck is starting in this race, running in the top ten. Beck had a savage crash in the XR1200 series race at Barber last year. But, he's back, ready to race. This track has many blind and off camber corners. The track is like a roller coaster. It's hot at the track today, though less intense than the day before.
The start of the Daytona Sport Bike race is coming up. The bikes are forming up on the grid, ready to go. At the start, Dane Westby started well as Cameron Beauvier went down to fifth behind Bobby Fong. Leading is Tommy Hayden. Westby is third. Fong battles Beaubier and Fong has the advantage. Jake Gagne is going well. Jason DiSalvo slides around Tommy Hayden and tries to open a gap on the field. A rider might win in race one, but the competition is so tough, no one knows. The race is 21 laps. The riders will need to settle down.
But, Beaubier and Fong are the two really scrapping with each other. Three wide between Hayden, Beauvier and Westby. Into the valley, they are single file, but Westby charges. Westby is now second. Westby, Beauvier, and Fong are surely scrapping. Martin Cardenas and Benny Solis are behind this battle. Cardenas passes Hayden. These guys are flying as DiSalvo and the Triumph are the class of the field to this point on lap four. DiSalvo runs a 1:28.708. Beauvier passes Westby. It's Yamaha vs. Suzuki. The place to make a move is into Museum corner.
Beaubier resets fast lap at 1:28.3, taking the lead from DiSalvo and the battle rages between Bobby Fong and Dane Westby. Beauvier continues to lead with Fong, Cardenas, Westby and others going for it. The riders follow each otheer, but there is some passing going on. These riders really push hard. Fong sat out last year even after riding once on a Ducati. He was getting dehydrated in the first race. Riders will need to be very careful. Tommy Hayden is going for it. The clouds are cooling the air and the track down.
Cameron Beaubier runs wide but recovers. Martin Cardenas passes Dane Westby. Cardenas ran a 1:28.5 on the previous lap. There's a group of five riders down the order including Benny Solis, Jake Gagne, Jake Zemke and Joey Pascarella. The Triumph's three cylinder motor has a little less power than the four cylinders. But, it seems like DiSalvo has lost some handling advantages. The race is about half over. Will Westby be content to stay behind Cardenas? That's doubtful. Westby is a fighter and he'll be on top of the #36 bike to be sure.
Ten laps remain. Beaubier still leads. Westby tries passing Cardenas again, but it can't really work out for the rider of the #5 bike. Most everyone is now running in the 1:29 bracket. Westby will go after Bobby Fong and Jason DiSalvo is also right in it. Martin Cardenas goes wide into turn seven. Dane Westby tries for the lead. He wants to win a race but hasn't yet this year. Westby tries to get inside Beauvier through turn one. Westby takes over the race lead. Beauvier shoots back into the lead position. This is a see-saw battle. There are four or five bikes that can win this race with seven laps to run.
The bikes run four and five wide! Fong is pushed to the outside. Martin Cardenas is going for it. Six laps left now. Fong is all over Cardenas as Westby continues to lead. Hayden and DiSalvo are also right up in this fight. Westby was pushed wide. Beauvier will lead. Bobby Fong moves onto the podium past Cardenas. Four laps to go. But, a lot will happen in that time. It's going to be at least a four or five bike fight to the end.
Walt Sipp and Michael Morgan (lapped riders) move out of the way of the leaders as Bobby Fong loses spots. Cardenas passes Sipp and Tommy Hayden ran through the grass. David White is another backmarker that gives way. Cameron Beauvier might have better tires. He's got a way to keeping the surface level on the track without abusing the tires. Westby is doing all he can, but Beaubier has the definite edge right now.
Tommy Hayden and Martin Cardenas are battling for the last podium spot. Going into Charlotte's Web, there's some close action in these battles for the podium. Cardenas is sideways as is Hayden. Martin Cardenas goes deep into a corner but comes back on Hayden. Cameron Beaubier will do the double, winning race two!
#6 Cameron Beaubier Yamaha YZF-R6
The Superbike race is next up.
Josh Hayes is on a roll, having won four straight races in the Superbike division. This is round six, race two. Josh Herrin ran a good race in race one, but, his feet were burning after the first one. Chris Fillmore will not race today because he has a broken hand. He is at the track, but will not get on the bike. Larry Pegram has been on a roll with his BMW. Josh Hayes won the race yesterday. Hayes actually crashed his backup bike and is on his primary bike.
At the start, Josh Herrin takes the lead of the race and Ben Bostrom is up to third. Geoff May is fourth. Josh Hayes takes the lead and Ben Bostrom wnats by Herrin, but can't quite get there. Can Geoff May hold on? That EBR will be a handful. Roger Hayden is opening a gap right now. Where is Blake Young? He is riding behind Steve Rapp. This will be a 21 lap event as the Daytona SPort Bike race was. Young passes Rapp and ALMOST crashes. Herrin has lost ground to the leaders. Bostrom runs a shade wide. Meanwhile, Young continues to carve through the field.
Roger Hayden runs past Geoff May. May tries to get it back, but no. Roger Hayden has the spot. Blake Young runs a 1:26.659 for his best lap so far. Long corners are tougher to negotiate for the EBR bikes because of no traction control. Herrin runs a 1:25.7, even FASTER than the leaders! Blake Young is languishing now. Young ran third in race one. It's Hayes vs. Herrin. Hayes has taken back 2/10 of a second over his Yamaha team mate. Blake Young passes Roger Hayden for fourth and he almost hits Geoff May under braking into turn six.
Josh Herrin battles Chris Clark on the sister Yoshimura Suzuki. Josh Herrin slides wide through turn for in a section of track called Charlotte's Web, while Danny Eslick has a problem with his EBR and is out of the race. On lap seven, Josh Hayes extends his lead. Blake Young passes Ben Bostrom and so does Roger Hayden. Herrin is charging, trying to get back to a podium place. Josh Herrin passes Geoff May. The battle in the top five is going to intensify.
Josh Herrin passes both Roger Hayden and Ben Bostrom, going to third spot. One lap to halfway. Steve Rapp is now behind that battle between Bostrom and the others. Rapp still has a broken wrist. Chris Clark passes Larry Pegram. By the way, Steve Rapp will be a wildcard for the MotoGP race at Laguna Seca in July. Josh Herrin closes on Blake Young. Just ten laps remain. Josh Hayes has the lead and runs a fast lap at 1:26.8. He's increased his lead by six seconds. Geoff May passes Ben Bostrom for fourth place. Chris Clark has fallen down. There's also some rain appearing (just a few drops from a cloud).
Clark is team mate to Blake Young at Suzuki. Herrin looks to get by Blake Young. Just five laps left to run in this event. Hayes has a 6.4 second lead. Young and Herrin continue to battle. He's been having issues with heat, burning his feet. There are some drops of rain falling on track as Herrin wants to pass Young, but Young fends off the spot. Hopes are this battle will not end in tears. Into Museum corner, the bikes are sliding because of the hot conditions, not the rain.
Josh Herrin takes second from Blake Young. Can he gap the #79 Suzuki? In turn five, the Yamaha has the acceleration advantage over the Suzuki. Blake Young is not done yet, though. He's applying the blowtorch. Down the straight, they are right together. Herrin ran wide and Young passes. So, Herrin will have to settle for third, likely. Roger Hayden passes Ben Bostrom as the two Jordan Suzuki team mates scrap for fifth and sixth spot. Josh Hayes is on his last lap.
Privateer lapped rider Shawn Dwyer moves over, letting Hayes by. Hayes will not have to deal with the lapped bike of Tim Bemester. Hayes does the double!
#1 Josh Hayes Yamaha R1
In Supersport Dustin Dominguez lost track on the start, but he battled with Jake Lewis. Lewis ended up winning. In race two. Stefano Meso and Justin Dominguez both crashed. There was a red flag. Then, another later in the race. James Rispoli won. In XR1200, Tyler O'Hara was beaten by Kyle Wyman.
There will be a test session at a track in New Orleans, Louisiana. This is going to start the second half of the season. The next race on the AMA schedule will be the Buckeye Superbike Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire at the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, set to take place in a shade over two weeks.
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