Pegram takes Topeka Superbike win

From AMA Pro Racing

TOPEKA, KS - Larry Pegram (No. 72 Foremost Insurance/Pegram Racing Ducati 1098R) dominated the AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike race Saturday in the Tornado Nationals presented by BriggsAuto.com at Heartland Park Topeka.

After winning his first pole since 1996 in Friday's Superpole qualifying, Pegram took the lead at the race start and was never seriously challenged. He crossed the finish line 2.184 seconds ahead of Ben Bostrom (No. 2 Yamaha Motor Corp. USA Yamaha R1) and Blake Young (No. 79 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) finished third.

"For me, it's just validation," said Pegram, who also won earlier this season at Road America. "Here we beat everybody again, and I proved to myself I can win at this level because I had lost a lot of confidence over the years riding bikes that weren't capable of winning. You start to wonder if it might be you, but I always knew at the bottom of my heart that I could win races, especially if I got on a great motorcycle like this Ducati 1098R."

Bostrom stayed in front of the tight group of riders that also included Young, his teammate Tommy Hayden (No.  22 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) and Aaron Yates (No. 23 Brand Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000) that battled in the top five throughout the race.

"It's a great track, and there are passing spots here believe it or not," said Bostrom, who finished second for the second consecutive race and third time this year. "The bike was fantastic, and the R1 did a good job. The rider just kind of sat on it and rode, and I was hoping to obviously race for the win. I did think I could catch Larry. Blake and I had a bit of a battle going, and Larry jumped out there and put in really, really fantastic laps. We can't let him do that for the next one, and tomorrow's a new day. We will just start again tomorrow. I am pretty much over second place already."

Young was in the thick of the battle for the final podium spot throughout the race and was under heavy pressure from Hayden and Yates in the closing laps.

"We just ran out of time a little bit," said Young. "I wish we would have got more time on the bike. I think we missed the set up a little bit, but today was a really good race. We jumped in behind Ben, learned what he was doing and made some improvements. I switched up my riding style a little bit and tried to help the bike out as much as I could. I am happy with the way the race went. We learned a lot today on our setup and what to do for tomorrow. So I am going to chalk this one up and go after it twice as hard tomorrow."

Hayden finished fourth and Yates completed the top five.

Sunday's American Superbike final will close the Tornado Nationals weekend at 4 p.m.

Race Results
1. Larry Pegram (Foremost Insurance · Pegram Racing Ducati) Ducati 1098R 20 Laps
2. Ben Bostrom (Yamaha Motor Corp. USA) Yamaha YZF-R1 +2.184
3. Blake Young (Rockstar · Makita · Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +2.457
4. Tommy Hayden (Rockstar · Makita · Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +2.653
5. Aaron Yates (Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +3.197
6. Josh Hayes (Yamaha Motor Corp. USA) Yamaha YZF-R1 +7.472
7. Jake Holden (Holden Racing) Honda CBR1000RR +13.629
8. Geoff May (National Guard Jordan Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +18.164
9. Taylor Knapp (Taylor Knapp Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +34.852
10. Neil Hodgson (Corona Extra Honda) Honda CBR1000RR +36.100
11. Chris Ulrich (Roadracingworld.com · Suzuki) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +50.817
12. Scott Charlton (Aussie Dave Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +52.824
13. Scott Jensen (Moto Garage Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:18.580
14. Shawn Higbee (Higbee-Racing.com) Buell 1125R +1:19.092
15. Dominic Jones (Moto Garage Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:40.284
16. Ron Hix (Hix Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +1:40.599
17. Dean Mizdal (M Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 19 Laps
18. Eric Haugo (Liberty Waves Racing 2) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +0.699
19. Reno Karimian (Team Reno) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +10.594
20. Josh Graham (Moto Garage Racing) Yamaha YZF-R1 +49.681
21. Walt Sipp (Walt Sipp Racing) Buell 1125R +58.771
22. Michael Laverty (Celtic Racing) Suzuki GSX-R1000 +6 Laps
Race Time: 32:29.864
Margin of Victory: 2.184
Best Race Lap: Larry Pegram (1:36.250)

Point Standings (Top 20)
1. Mat Mladin 390
2. Tommy Hayden 282
3. Ben Bostrom 271
4. Josh Hayes 260
5. Larry Pegram 255
6. Blake Young 222
7. Aaron Yates 214
8. Geoff May 212
9. Taylor Knapp 139
10. Jake Holden 127
11. David Anthony 120
12. Chris Ulrich 110
13. Neil Hodgson 105
14. Aaron Gobert 87
15. Scott Jensen 82
16. Michael Laverty 72
17. Hawk Mazzotta 69
18. Ryan Elleby 55
19. Mark Crozier 42
20. Shane Narbonne 39