Cycle News Staff | April 21, 2024
Sunday Superbike
Attack Performance Yamaha’s Jake Gagne turned the tables on the Steel Commander Superbike field on Sunday at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta with the three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion withstanding the constant pressure applied by the Tytlers Cycle Racing duo of Cameron Beaubier and JD Beach to take his first win of the season.
On Saturday, it was Beaubier winning the first race of the new season at Road Atlanta with Gagne right on his tail. On Sunday, the positions changed with Beaubier unable to find a way past the Yamaha on the final lap. Gagne’s margin of victory over Beaubier was just .119 of a second.
For Gagne the win was the 41st AMA Superbike win of his career, and it came in dicey conditions with the entire field on full rain tires after wet weather lashed down on the track in Braselton for most of the day.
Gagne kept his powder dry to take the second race win.
Third place went to an emotional Cameron Petersen with the South African getting on the podium after a difficult off-season rehabbing from surgery on his badly broken right wrist. There were times when Petersen wasn’t certain that his career would continue so the emotion of racing again and finishing on the podium was overwhelming.
Beach ended up fourth after reeling in Gagne and then battling with and leading the defending champion prior to a high-speed crash and slide through the wet grass in Road Atlanta’s iconic esses. Beach was quickly on his feet and running to his bike, which was on the other side of the track. He got the bike restarted and turned in the right direction and was back on the attack, eventually working his way up to fourth place.
Fifth went to Superbike class rookie Sean Dylan Kelly, giving the Floridian fourth- and fifth-place finishes in his debut in MotoAmerica’s premier class on the TopPro Racing BMW.
Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim recovered from an off-track excursion to finish sixth, some 10 seconds behind Kelly and ahead of Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Loris Baz with the Frenchman still hurting from his Saturday crash.
Visit Indiana/Tom Wood Powersports’ Nolan Lamkin, Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin and Wrench Motorcycles Bobby Fong rounded out the top 10.
After the opening two races in the championship, Gagne and Beaubier are tied with 45 points apiece. Kelly is third with 24 points, two ahead of Fong and Beach who are tied on 22 points.
Superbike Race Two
- Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
- Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
- Cameron Petersen (Yamaha)
- JD Beach (BMW)
- Sean Dylan Kelly (BMW)
- Hayden Gillim (Honda)
- Loris Baz (Ducati)
- Nolan Lamkin (BMW)
- Josh Herrin (Ducati)
- Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
Sunday Supersport—Double up for Jacobsen
It was a breakthrough weekend for Rahal Ducati Moto. The brand-new Supersport team had some teething pains at Daytona, but it all came together for them at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
First, it was Corey Alexander who earned provisional pole in Friday’s first qualifying. Then, on Saturday, PJ Jacobsen got the team’s first victory of the season aboard his bright-yellow Ducati Panigale V2.
Jacobsen was inch perfect for the dream double win on Rahal Ducati’s MotoAmerica championship debut.
In Sunday’s Supersport race two, the riders faced an additional challenge of a fully rain-soaked racetrack. Jacobsen handled the conditions well, and in fact, the New Yorker led all 15 laps to get the double win. Alexander, who finished just off the podium in fourth on Saturday, was second for a one-two Ducati Rahal Moto finish. Altus Motorsports Suzuki rider Jake Lewis completed the podium in third.
Sunday Mission King Of The Baggers – All Herfoss
If those racing for the Mission King Of The Baggers Championship weren’t already worried about Troy Herfoss prior to the Road Atlanta round, they most definitely are now. Herfoss rode his S&S/Indian Motorcycles Challenger to a runaway victory in Sunday’s race held on drying pavement, beating his teammate Tyler O’Hara by 13.887 seconds.
Herfoss was on a different level in race two for an easy win.
The two factory Indian riders’ choice of using slick tires instead of full rains pretty much sealed the victory for Herfoss. The Australian took off from the start and motored away from the field, with O’Hara taking a bit more time to work his way to the runner-up spot.
Third place, and the first rider using rain tires, was the ever-popular Max Flinders on his Mad Monkey Motorsports Indian Challenger with the New Hampshire resident putting in maximum effort to keep RevZilla/Motul/Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim behind him to score the final podium spot.
After three rounds and six races, Herfoss is now leading the championship by nine points over Harley-Davidson Factory Racing’s Kyle Wyman, who was fifth today.
Sunday Junior Cup – Medina’s First
Sunday dawned with rain in the forecast, and the riders in Junior Cup were first up with their feature race, which was shortened by two laps due to the prodigious precipitation.
Medina (39) wanted a wet one and he got it, plus his first win to boot.
Yandel Medina, who was third in Saturday’s race one, was hoping for a wet race, and that’s exactly what he got. And, he made the best of it, as the New York Safety Track Racing rider notched the first win of his MotoAmerica career. Meanwhile, Ryan Wolfe followed up his runner-up result on Saturday with another second-place finish in Sunday’s race two. BARTCON Racing’s Eli Block, who won both Junior Cup races in the rain at New Jersey Motorsports Park last year, rounded out the podium in third.
BellissiMoto Twins Cup – Doyle In the Wet
South African Dominic Doyle has paid his dues in the BellissiMoto Twins Cup Championship. Doyle, who raced for a different team last year and finished fourth in the 2023 Twins Cup Championship, got the win in Sunday’s race two aboard his Giaccmoto Racing Yamaha YZF-R7.
Doyle braved it for the second race win in Twins Cup.
British rider, by way of Canada, Jack Roach powered his Wrench Motorcycles Yamaha to second place, albeit a little over three seconds behind Doyle. Twins Cup Championship leader Gus Rodio completed the podium in third after finishing second on Saturday aboard his Rodio Racing – Powered By Robem Engineering Aprilia.
Saturday Superbike
In a titanic battle that began with as many as seven riders fighting at the front and ended with three, Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier came out on top with a pass on Attack Performance Yamaha’s Jake Gagne with two laps to go in a thrilling Steel Commander Superbike season-opening race at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on Saturday.
The win was the 60th Superbike victory of Beaubier’s career and it came with the five-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion biding his time and sitting behind Gagne and Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong for the last third of the race. Beaubier planned to make his move with three laps to go, but instead had to wait until the penultimate lap. He made the move and made it stick, beating three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Gagne to the line by .240 of a second in what was his comeback race from the injuries he suffered last year at Pittsburgh International Race Complex
For many, Fong was the surprise of the weekend with the Wrench Motorcycles Yamaha YZF-R1-mounted Fong earning pole position in the morning Q2 session, then running at the front for the duration and ending up third and just .332 of a second from race-winner Beaubier.
Beaubier won a corker of a race, besting Gagne by the skin of his teeth.
TopPro Racing Team’s Sean Dylan Kelly was an impressive fourth in his MotoAmerica Superbike debut. The Floridian was quick from the get-go and didn’t put a foot wrong – even as he battled in the heated pack at the front in the first portion of the race. Kelly was just 3.5 seconds behind Beaubier and .7 of a second ahead of Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin.
Herrin was at the front of the Superbike pack early in the race, battling primarily with Fong for the top spot as the others hooked in behind the lead duo. Fong made a pass on the inside of Herrin early in the race, but it was the second time that he made the same move in the final corner that ended up going horribly wrong for Herrin. With the door open enough for his Yamaha to fit through, Fong made the move in the final corner and the result was Herrin running off the track on the exit.
By the time he rejoined the racetrack, Herrin was well back and forced to do an admirable job of moving forward again with passes on Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante, Tytlers Cycle Racing’s JD Beach, and Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Loris Baz.
Herrin ended up fifth with Baz sixth, Beach seventh and Escalante eighth with the top eight separated by under six seconds. Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim and Thrashed Bike Racing’s Max Flinders rounded out the top 10.
After crossing the finish line just .6 of a second apart, Baz and Escalante were involved in a big crash together at the end of the front straight after both crossed the finish line.
Two of the series stars had bad days with Brandon Paasch crashing his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki out of the race after just two laps and Attack Performance Yamaha’s Cameron Petersen crashing, remounting, and finishing 15th to at least salvage a championship point. Petersen was running near the front when he was penalized two spots for passing under a waving yellow flag. After doing so, Petersen crashed but was able to remount and finish the race.
Superbike Race One
- Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
- Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
- Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
- Sean Dylan Kelly (Yamaha)
- Josh Herrin (Ducati)
- Loris Baz (Ducati)
- JD Beach (BMW)
- Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
- Hayden Gillim (Honda)
- Max Flinders (Yamaha)
Mission King Of The Baggers – Aussie, Aussie, Aussie
S&S/Indian Motorcycle’s Troy Herfoss continues to impress with the Australian winning his second Mission King Of The Baggers race of the year at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on a sunny Saturday.
Troy Herfoss gave the Aussies something to cheer about with two wins out of two in Road Atlanta.
Herfoss, who earlier in the day won the three-lap Mission King Of The Baggers Challenge, sat behind Harley-Davidson Factory Racing’s Kyle Wyman for four of the eight laps before making a pass on the championship points leader and taking the victory, albeit by just .615 of a second.
Third place went to RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim with the Kentuckian earning his first podium finish of the season in the fifth Baggers race of the year.
Herfoss’s win over Wyman cut a 10-point lead in half and the pair are now separated by just five points.
Junior Cup – A First For Chapin
Saturday’s racing started off with MotoAmerica’s entry-level riders, who always put on a great show in the Junior Cup Championship. There are a lot of new faces in Junior Cup this year as several riders have moved up to other race classes. However, Bad Boys Racing’s Avery Dreher, who is also racing in the BellissiMoto Twins Cup Championship, is defending his 2023 Junior Cup Championship. And, for a while, it looked like the rider of the number-one Kawasaki was going to win the race. Unfortunately, after extending his lead to a comfortable distance, he made a mistake and crashed out. That left a gaggle of riders to fight for the win, and fight, they did.
Youngster Matthew Chapin came good for a first win in his young career.
BARTCON Racing’s rookie rider Matthew Chapin prevailed with the first win of his young career by .072 of a second over polesitter Ryan Wolfe, who notched his first career podium aboard his Wolfe Racing Kawasaki. Third place went to New York Safety Track Racing’s Yandel Medina for the second podium of his career.
BellissiMoto Twins Cup – Suzuki’s First With the GSX-8R
Former champion Landers used all his guile to take the first Twins Cup win.
The Suzuki GSX-8R has joined the fray in the highly competitive BellissiMoto Twins Cup Championship, and in race one, RevZilla/Motul Vance & Hines Suzuki rider Rocco Landers brought home the bike’s first MotoAmerica win by .769 of a second over Rodio Racing – Powered By Robem Engineering Aprilia rider Gus Rodio. Rodio was followed across the finish line by his teammate and third-place finisher Alessandro Di Mario.
Supersport – Jacobsen Gives Rahal Victory #1
With 44 riders entering to race in Supersport at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta and several former Superbike riders joining the class for the 2024 season, we knew the competition level would be at an all-time high. Saturday’s Supersport race one did not disappoint as it was definitely one of the most exciting races of the day.
Jacobsen came good right at the end for a first win for Rahal Ducati.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki rider Tyler Scott looked to have the race in hand, but he unfortunately suffered a big crash in the esses, which took him out of the race. At the front of the pack, N2 Racing/BobbleHeadMoto’s Blake Davis got his Yamaha in the lead, but Rahal Ducati Moto’s PJ Jacobsen overtook Davis and crossed the finish line just .103 of a second ahead of Davis.
Meanwhile, Mathew Scholtz, who had electrical problems with his Strack Racing Yamaha on Thursday and only managed to qualify 11th, knifed his way through the pack and actually led the race for a short time before bringing his bike home in third place for the final spot on the podium.
Friday Superbike
Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin had two reasons to be happy with his Friday qualifying at Road Atlanta. For starters, Herrin earned provisional pole position in Q1 with his 1:24.627. He then followed that up by pocketing an “I owe you” from his teammate Loris Baz as he towed the Frenchman to third, giving Ducati two bikes on the provisional front row heading into tomorrow’s Q2 session.
If Q1 is any indication, the Steel Commander Superbike Championship is going to be hotly contested as eight riders circulated within a second of Herrin.
Herrin put on a perfect show on Friday for the top spot in Superbike.
Three-time and defending MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Jake Gagne ended the session third fastest and just .096 of a second behind Herrin’s best. With the aforementioned Baz ending the session third in his return to the MotoAmerica paddock, it was Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong slotting into fourth, the last rider in the 1:24s on the 2.55-mile road course.
Superbike rookie Sean Dylan Kelly had an impressive first day on the TopPro Racing BMW M 1000 RR, the 2021 MotoAmerica Supersport Champion ending up fifth fastest and less than half a second behind Herrin.
Gagne’s Attack Performance Yamaha teammate Cameron Petersen was sixth fastest, the fastest of the two Camerons on day one with five-time champ Beaubier ending up seventh on the Tytlers Cycle Racing BMW M 1000 RR. Beaubier returned to action with just a handful of minutes left in the session after his crew did a good job of getting him back on track after an early session crash in turn 10-A.
Beaubier’s teammate JD Beach ended up eighth in his first qualifying session on the BMW.
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki teammates Richie Escalante and Brandon Paasch rounded out the top 10.
Supersport
Of the three Supersport riders on the Rahal Ducati Moto team, Corey Alexander came into the 2024 season with the least amount of fanfare. On Friday afternoon, Alexander let his riding do the talking as he emerged from the 43-rider field with the fastest lap to earn provisional pole position at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
Alexander led the way with his 1:28.912 just .225 of a second faster than Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott and .334 of a second clear of his teammate PJ Jacobsen, with those three making up the provisional front row.
N2 Racing/BobbleHeadMoto’s Blake Davis, Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Stefano Mesa, and Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Teagg Hobbs made up the second row, provisionally.
Things were tight at the top with nine riders qualifying within a second of Alexander’s best.
Junior Cup
Yandel Medina showed that he’s ready for the new season of Junior Cup racing with the New Yorker leading the way on Friday to earn provisional pole position on his New York Safety Track Racing Kawasaki Ninja 400.
Medina lapped at a best of 1:42.976 to lead BARTCON Racing’s Eli Block by .765 of a second with defending class champion Avery Dreher third with his 1:43.768 lap.
BSB Racing’s Trenton Keesee and Speed Demon Racing’s Logan Cunnison rounded out the top five qualifiers on Friday.
BellissiMoto Twins Cup
RevZilla/Vance & Hines Suzuki’s Rocco Landers put his new Suzuki GSX-8R on provisional pole position in the BellissiMoto Twins Cup class at Road Atlanta on Friday afternoon with a best lap of 1:33.150.
Landers, the all-time wins leader in the Twins Cup class, led Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Rossi Moor by .610 of a second for a Suzuki one-two.
Daytona winner and championship leader Gus Rodio was third quickest on his Rodio Racing – Powered By Robem Engineering Aprilia and .665 of a second off Landers’ best. Giaccomoto Yamaha Racing’s Dominic Doyle and Rodio’s teammate Alessandro Di Mario rounded out the top five heading into Saturday’s Q2 session.
Mission King Of The Baggers
SDI/Roland Sands Racing/Indian Motorcycle’s Bobby Fong led the Mission King Of The Baggers qualifying session on Friday with a new lap record at Road Atlanta of 1:29.528.
Second fastest on opening day was Troy Herfoss, the S&S/Indian Motorcycle-backed Australian just .192 of a second off Fong’s best in his first visit to Road Atlanta.
Fong broke the lap record on the RSD Indian for the top KoTB place.
Championship points leader Kyle Wyman was third fastest on the factory Harley-Davidson, despite a crash in 10-A early in the session. Wyman’s best was .265 of a second slower than Fong’s.
Defending Mission King Of The Baggers Champion Hayden Gillim was fourth fastest, a few tenths quicker than his class rookie teammate Rocco Landers.
The session was a bit of a crashfest as Kyle Wyman wasn’t the only faller. He was joined in the 10-A gravel by his teammate James Rispoli and by his brother Travis Wyman. Tyler O’Hara was also a faller in the session.
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