Bobby Fong on bike #50 could be a factor in this race. The weather will be an issue with rain and thunderstorms in the forecast. Jason DiSalvo and the Triumph could be a factor as well. The wind has picked up as we are getting ready to go racing, Daytona Sportbike style.
Jake Gagne has qualified second for the race. Jake Lewis, won the Supersport championship on the East Coast last year. But, he's made the jump to Daytona Sportbike. He grew up down the road from the Hayden brothers, Nicky, Roger, and Tommy. Nicky Hayden won the 2006 MotoGP World Championship. Lewis could follow in those footsteps. The bikes are on their warmup lap as Cameron Beaubier of course, starts from pole. Pack racing, and passes into turn one will be a big deal. It's a four mile track, with 14 corners.
At the start, Dane Westby gets the jump, but the Yamaha's both go around immediately going downhill. Try to get through cleanly. Four riders are already going for it. James Rispoli, Dane Westby, and others. Westby runs wide playing defense. Thirteen laps scheduled. Jake Gagne moves to second behind Cameron Beaubier. Yamaha has the top bike in this class. Bobby Fong moves to sixth on his Triumph Daytona 675. Fong is trying to get used to this new bike. Jake Gagne is going for it. Both riders are on Yamaha bikes. Beaubier is going to have the heat put on him.
J.D. Beach is on the move as James Rispoli gets loose in turn five. Elena Myers is thirteenth. Huntley Nash and Joey Pascarella are also in this contest towards the latter half of the top dozen. Rispoli runs off the road. But, he'll be fine. Two laps complete. Beaubier checked out at the Daytona 200. But now, Jake Gagne is going after Cameron Beaubier. Will Beaubier gap the field here? Beach, Lewis, Westby, Gagne, Gerloff etc. are going to have to push to catch Beaubier.
Cameron Beaubier still has Jake Gagne right up his tailpipe. Dane Westby passes Jake Lewis, and J.D. Beach will be the next rider he's going after. One lap to halfway. Lewis tries passing Westby, but no dice. This race is definitely on now. Westby tries to pass Lewis and runs wide. He's losing time as Garrett Gerloff, James Rispoli, and Bobby Fong are all catching up. Fong is the quickest Triumph bike at the moment.
Rispoli tries passing Garrett Gerloff, and can't quite get there. Jake Lewis holds off Dane Westby. Gerloff is Cameron Beaubier's team mate. Beaubier runs a 2:20.063. The gap is at 1.4 seconds. No mistakes. That's the big deal in these races. Beaubier's crew chief Oliver Hudson says things are going to plan at the moment. Yhis race is into it's second half. Westby, Gerloff, Rispoli, and Fong are still going for it. Rispoli forces his way by. Gerloff tries the outside line and these guys are three wide into the corner! No one wants to give an inch!
Now, can Garrett Gerloff pull away? Beaubier is in another zip code. He's flying. Five laps remain. Bobby Fong is going for it. He's the highest placed Triumph who wants by Rispoli. Jason DiSalvo and Elena Myers are behind. Four laps left. Westby's crew chief Chick Giacetto is confident of their chances to do well. Beaubier's lead is 1.7 seconds over Jake Gagne. We are coming to the finish of this race. Still four laps left. The tires are starting to tear up. Be careful. Manage them. Jake Gagne is trying hard. J.D. Beach and Jake Lewis are trying to battle each other. They are neighbors in Kentucky, and going for it.
Dane Westby protects his place. But, Fong nearly loses his bike! Huntley Nash is out of the race. There's a tire issue, or one for the bike. Game over in Daytona Sportbike. But Nash will be back in Superbike. Fong is also going for it. Will Beaubier win? It's odd that he isn't yet on the road to racing in Europe, in MotoGP competition. Will he be there in the future? Time will tell. Now, it's the last lap. No change at the front. The battle is Gerloff, Westby, Fong, and Rispoli. Myers and DiSalvo on the Triumph's are back there. But, they've not had the race they wanted.
Garrett Gerloff's crew chief Brian Stokes is satisfied with where Gerloff is in the order at the moment. This is the last lap. It'll be a scrap between Westby and Gerloff. James Rispoli is actually racing with Westby. Westby goes for it. Gerloff runs wide! Wow. Westby holds off the challenge, but the riders go four wide! Rispoli wants to show his hand. What will happen into this passing zone? Rispoli is pushing the limits of his bike as Beaubier leads nearly by three seconds. He's going to win it!
#6 Cameron Beaubier Yamaha
It will be Fong passing both Gerloff and Rispoli as Benny Solis and Ben Young are tussling for the last spots in the top six or so. Young gets the place. This race is done and dusted. There will be a second race. Stay tuned for that later on, tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment