SportBike title to be settled in New Jersey

From AMA Pro Racing

MILLVILLE, NJ - The biggest motorcycle road racing event to date at New Jersey Motorsports Park (NJMP) will take place this Labour Day Weekend, September 4-6, when the 2009 season finales for AMA Pro National Guard American Superbike, AMA Pro Daytona SportBike and AMA Pro SuperSport are run on NJMP's Thunderbolt Raceway. The three-day AMA Pro Superbike Championships event also includes the penultimate round of the 2009 AMA Pro SunTrust Moto-GT series in a jam-packed holiday-weekend schedule of six races.

Mat Mladin (No. 1 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) wrapped up the 2009 American Superbike Championship one race ago at last month's Suzuki Big Kahuna Nationals at Virginia International Raceway (VIR). The Australian's strong season also helped his Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura team clinch the 2009 American Superbike Team Championship and anchored Suzuki's 2009 American Superbike Manufacturer Championship as well. 

In recognition of the championship season and his outstanding career, Mladin will carry the traditional Champion's No. 1 on his Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 at this weekend's AMA Pro Superbike Championships. The event will be both Mladin's debut and farewell in New Jersey as the record seven-time AMA Pro American Superbike Champion is retiring at the end of the weekend. He has left a lasting mark on the sport, including this year's unmatched record of 10 wins that started with a streak of seven in a row to open the season.

While Mladin has the title sealed, several other top American Superbike riders and 2009 race winners will be battling for the final championship podium spots this weekend. The top contenders include Mladin's teammate Tommy Hayden (No. 22 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) and five-time 2009 race winner Josh Hayes (No. 4 Yamaha Motor Corp. USA Yamaha R1). Hayden is second in the championship and leads Hayes by just four points, 348 - 344.

Although the oldest of the three racing Hayden brothers is still winless in his American Superbike career, he has finished in the top three in half of the year's 18 races. Hayes trails only Mladin on the 2009 race win list and his dominating weekend at the Big Kahuna followed a similar sweep at Mid-Ohio in July. Hayes also put a stop to Mladin's 2009 race win streak, and Suzuki's multi-year lock on the American Superbike division, with a breakout victory in Race 1 at Infineon in May. 

Hayes teams with Ben Bostrom (No. 2 Yamaha Motor Corp. USA Yamaha R1), who is fourth in the championship with 315 points. Bostrom joined Hayes on the box at both Big Kahuna finals with a pair of third place showings that are part of a strong streak of eight podium finishes in the last 13 races.

Three-time 2009 race winner Larry Pegram (No. 72 Foremost Insurance/Pegram Racing Ducati 1098R) is fifth in the championship with 313 points and is the final rider with a realistic chance to crack the top three in the final standings.

Blake Young (No. 79 Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000) joins Mladin and Hayden on the powerhouse Yoshimura Suzuki team. The 21-year-old overcame severe injuries to his left pinkie and ring finger in a Sunday final accident at Barber Motorsports Park to remain a threat for his first American Superbike win at every race.  His best run of the year came in the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on the July 4th weekend where he led the most laps for the first time this season before finishing second to Mladin.

Aaron Yates (No. 23 Brand Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000) and his Jordan Motorsports teammate Geoff May (No. 54 National Guard Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000) both head to New Jersey looking for their first victories of the season. Second-place finishes by Yates in the Sunday final at Barber and Saturday at Mid-Ohio are the best showings of the year for the Jordan team. May's best results this season have been three third-place showings within the year's first five races, including both rounds at Road Atlanta in April.

Two top privateers that have consistently raced and been ranked in the American Superbike top 10 this season are looking to hit the podium at New Jersey. Jake Holden (No. 59 Holden Racing Honda CBR1000RR) has been racing his own Honda under Corona Extra colours for the majority of the season and scored a career-high fourth place finish in the Sunday final at Topeka. The other quick privateer is Taylor Knapp (No. 44 Taylor Knapp Racing Buell 1125RR), who Holden led across the finish line on Sunday at Topeka.

Holden first returned to the Corona Extra team when he filled in capably for Neil Hodgson (No. 100 Corona Extra Honda CBR1000RR) earlier in the season. Hodgson has recovered from a post-Daytona motocross training injury to score sixth-place finishes at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and in the Sunday finals at Topeka and Road America. The results were the former World Superbike Champion's best showings since taking second in the Daytona opener.

While Mladin, Rockstar/Makita Yoshimura and Suzuki have wrapped up their respective American Superbike Championships, all three titles in AMA Pro Daytona SportBike will be decided this weekend. Each championship will likely come down to a battle between points leader Danny Eslick (No. 9 GEICO Powersports/RMR Buell 1125R) and 2009 race-win leader Martin Cardenas (No. 36 Team M4 Suzuki GSX-R600). Eslick and the No. 9 RMR Buell team are on top of the rider and team entrant standings with 357 points, 17 ahead of Cardenas and the No. 36 Team M4 Suzuki.

The dominant duo has combined to win 13 of the 18 Daytona SportBike race this year, with Cardenas one up on Eslick in the win column with seven victories. The riders were actually tied for first in the championship heading into the Big Kahuna weekend only to see Cardenas suffer a compound fracture of his right hand in a Friday morning practice crash at VIR. The tough Colombian raced despite the painful injury but could do no better than finishes of ninth and 11th, losing valuable ground to Eslick.

Josh Herrin (No. 8 Team Graves Yamaha YZF-R6) is third in the championship with 321 points and is the only other rider alive in the title chase heading to the finale. He dealt himself into the Daytona SportBike championship picture big time with a weekend sweep of his own at the Big Kahuna.

Herrin's teammate Tommy Aquino (No. 6 Team Graves Yamaha YZF-R6) hit the podium for the first time this year at Mid-Ohio, finishing third just behind Herrin on Saturday. Aquino backed it up with additional third-place showings in Race 1 at Topeka and in the Sunday final at VIR.

Jamie Hacking (No. 88 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R) is fourth in the championship with 274 points. Although still looking for a 2009 win, Hacking may be one of the most consistent riders in AMA Pro Road Racing. He has finished out of the top five just seven times in his 16 races this season, out of the top-10 just twice and his best results have been five second-place showings, including most recently on Sunday at Mid-Ohio.

His teammate Roger Hayden (No. 95 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R) has season-best results of second in the Saturday finals at Road Atlanta and Road America.

Joining Cardenas and Eslick as 2009 race winners are Bostrom, who has gone a perfect two for two in Daytona SportBike cameos on his No. 1s Graves Motorsports Yamaha YZF-R6, and Canadian rider Chris Peris (No. 10 Erion Racing Honda CBR600RR). Bostrom won both the season-opening Daytona 200 and at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in his only scheduled Daytona SportBike races of the season. Peris won Race 1 in the rain at Road America and also has a third-place finish at Road Atlanta to his credit.

Peris is teammates with veteran Honda rider Jake Zemke (No. 1x Erion Racing Honda CBR600RR) who finished fourth in Race 1 at VIR for the third time this season. Zemke also factored into Erion's strong Road America weekend with a season-high finish of second in the Sunday final.

Cardenas partners with the equally quick Jason DiSalvo (No. 40 Team M4 Suzuki GSX-R600) who has six podium finishes and a series-leading five poles so far in 2009. DiSalvo has season-high second-place finishes behind Cardenas in the Saturday final at Barber and the Sunday race at Infineon. DiSalvo rounds out the top five in the championship with 261 points.

Chaz Davies (No. 57 Factory Aprilia / Millennium Technologies Team Aprilia RSV1000R) has been this year's main Aprilia threat and scored a season-high finish of second at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Davies teams with Australian Aaron Gobert (No. 97 Factory Aprilia / Millennium Technologies Team Aprilia RSV1000R) as the only two Aprilia riders in the field.

Both the East and West division championships have been clinched in AMA Pro SuperSport but several young riders will be looking to end the season on a high note in Sunday's season finale. Josh Day (No. 4 Team E.S.P. Yamaha YZF-R6) clinched the East title with his third consecutive victory of the season at VIR just one event after Ricky Parker (No. 96 Team Graves Yamaha YZF-R6) wrapped up the West crown with a fourth-place finish at Topeka.

Both champs are entered at New Jersey where they will battle with fellow 2009 race winners Leandro Mercado (No. 92 Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R) and Garrett Carter (No. 31 Garrett Carter Racing Yamaha YZF-R6). Russ Wikle (No. 5 Roadracingworld.com Suzuki GSX-R600) and Huntley Nash (No. 15 LTD Racing Yamaha YZF-R6) have each hit the podium at least once this season and could factor into the action in New Jersey.

Next up on the SuperSport schedule is the National Championship Shootout at Daytona International Speedway, October 16-18. The lucrative non-points race is open to any rider that has run at least one SuperSport race this season, with the winner earning the title of SuperSport National Champion.

Although the AMA Pro SunTrust Moto-GT season will not conclude until the Daytona event in October, one top team could leave New Jersey with a clinched championship. The GT2 class leading No. 77 Touring Sport Ducshop Ducati PS1000LE has had a near-perfect season and could leave New Jersey with the team title in the bag.

Part of the No. 77's impressive season was an overall victory at Road America, the first time a GT2 class bike beat the faster GT1 machines in a race. Although that could happen again in New Jersey, the GT1 teams are expected to be the overall pacesetters. Leading that class is The No. 14 Crozier Motorsports / R&B Motorsports Triumph Daytona 675 of Mark Crozier and Scott Jensen. The No. 14 claimed the overall and class victory at VIR to become the first GT1 repeat race winner of the season after also finishing first at Barber in May. 

The No. 14 Crozier team leads the GT1 standings with 140 points, just 11 clear of the No. 41 Liberty Waves Racing Buell 1125R of Eric Pinson and Eric Haugo. Liberty Waves is winless this season but top consistency has kept them in title contention. 

Action begins with practice, qualifying and Superpole qualifying on Friday, September 4, and continues straight into the weekend with three races each day on Saturday and Sunday. The SunTrust Moto-GT enduro on Saturday, September 5, at 11 a.m. will be followed by the first finals for American Superbike at 3 p.m. and Daytona SportBike at 4:10 p.m. Sunday, September 6, will see Daytona SportBike roll off first at 2 p.m., SuperSport following at 3:10 p.m. and American Superbike closing the weekend at 4:20 p.m. The Superbike and Daytona SportBike races are each 23 laps for 50 miles on the 2.20-mile Thunderbolt circuit while the SuperSport race is a 19-lap distance for 40 miles.

All of the action from the AMA Pro Superbike Championships at New Jersey will be featured in a pair of same-day telecasts on SPEED. Saturday's American Superbike and Daytona SportBike finals and other action will be shown that night in a two-hour show at 7:30 p.m. ET (4:30 p.m. PT) while Sunday's premier class races and other highlights will air in a two-hour show that evening at Midnight ET (9 p.m. PT).