Monster Energy Graves Yamaha Road Atlanta 2012
Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha Rider Tommy Hayden Finishes Second In Daytona SportBike At Road Atlanta
Braselton, GA April 22, 2012 – After a third-place finish in Saturday’s AMA Pro Go Pro Daytona SportBike Race 1, Tommy Hayden moved up a notch on Sunday and finished second in Race 2 on his #8 Yamaha Extended Service/Graves/Yamaha YZF-R6.
Just like in yesterday’s race, Tommy got another great start, which put him into second-place on the first lap.
“I’ve always been a pretty good starter,” said Tommy after the race. “It goes back to my flattrack days where, if you don”t get a good start, your race is lost. Good starts are obviously important in this class, too, so it”s something I focus on.”
As is a Tommy Hayden trademark, he rode smoothly in second place and maintained a gap of just 2/10s of a second throughout virtually the entire race, until he encountered a lapped rider on final go-around on the track and had to make the pass in a less-than-ideal spot. That slowed Tommy just enough that the win became out of reach.
“Over the past few years, I’ve been racing in SuperBike, so I’m still transitioning to the R6,” Tommy added. “It’s a fast bike, though, and really fun to ride. I”m happy with the progress we”re making, and I”m looking forward to Infineon.”
Tommy currently sits third in the championship points standings after two rounds and three races.
Tommy will, once again, be riding for the Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha team at the next race in just two weeks when AMA Pro Racing visits the wine country of Sonoma, CA, for the Great Clips West Coast Moto Jam at Infineon Raceway on May 4-6.
Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha’s Hayes “Rode” Atlanta To A Dominant Win; Teammate Herrin Finishes Third
Braselton, GA April 22, 2012 – Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha rider and two-time reigning AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Champion Josh Hayes raced his crossplane-crankshaft YZF-R1 to a dominant win in Sunday’s SuperBike Race 2 at Road Atlanta. His teammate Josh Herrin also got on the podium with his #2 R1 for the second time in as many days, notching another well-earned third place.
Josh Hayes made up his mind to get to the front as quickly as possible and try to create a comfortable lead, which he did in short fashion. On Lap 6, Josh clicked off a lap of 1:24.922, which was nearly half a second faster than his pole-position-winning lap on Friday. He maintained a blistering pace throughout the race, pulled a sizeable gap on second-pace Blake Young, and continued to stretch out his lead to more than 5 seconds. As lapped riders came into play, the gap closed up just a bit in the closing laps of the race, but Josh spurred his R1 on and won by a dominant 5.214 seconds ahead of Young, who finished in second.
After accepting the stylish surfboard trophy for being the “Big Kahuna” at Road Atlanta, Josh commented, “I’m glad to put one together here today, and get the win. We changed a few things on the bike for today’s race, and we were able to put down some really good laps. It’s a lot easier on my ticker to get away a little bit and ride my own race. After yesterday, I didn’t expect it to go that way, but I’m happy that it did.”
Just as he did yesterday, Josh earned another valuable bonus point for leading the most laps in today”s race. With those two bonus points, the bonus points for his pole positions at Daytona and Road Atlanta, and his two race wins so far this season, Josh is, once again, leading the SuperBike season championship.
Josh Herrin, who lives in Dublin, GA, not far from Road Atlanta, ran in second place at the start of the race, narrowly missing out on his fourth holeshot in as many races. Josh got into third behind his Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha teammate and Young, and then he maintained his position all the way to the end of the 20-lap event. In just the second SuperBike round of his career, Josh had a memorable weekend in front of a throng of family and friends as he earned a pair of podium finishes and has clearly built momentum as AMA Pro Racing heads to the West Coast for the Infineon Raceway round.
Josh said, “It was a really good race, and I had fun. It was good keeping Josh and Blake in my sights at least for the first few laps. I’m happy to get on the podium twice here in front of my home crowd. The R1 is just an awesome bike to ride. I can’t wait to get to Infineon.”
The Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha team”s next race is in just two weeks when AMA Pro Racing visits the wine country of Sonoma, CA, for the Great Clips West Coast Moto Jam at Infineon Raceway.
Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha Riders Hayes & Herrin Both On SuperBike Podium At Road Atlanta; Hayden Also On Podium In Daytona SportBike
Braselton, GA April 21, 2012 – It was a day filled with podium finishes for the Yamaha U.S. Road Racing Teams in AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike and AMA Pro GoPro Daytona Sportbike.
Reigning two-time SuperBike champion and Road Atlanta polesitter Josh Hayes finished second on his Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha YZF-R1 in the hotly contested SuperBike race one. His teammate Josh Herrin, who lives in nearby Dublin, GA, earned his first podium in only the third SuperBike race of his career. Josh got the holeshot twice and led from the start in both legs of the race, which was red-flagged when race winner Blake Young took a spill on lap 14 of the 20-lap event. Blake, Josh Hayes, and Josh Herrin all battled for the win, and Blake ultimately notched the victory.
Along with the bonus point that he earned for qualifying in pole position, Josh Hayes also earned an additional bonus point for leading the most laps (13 of the 20) in the race. Josh and Blake are now tied for the lead in the championship.
After the race, Josh Hayes said, “Big congrats to Blake on the win. It was a hero ride for him, and my hat’s off to him. My team gave me a good, competitive bike today, and we led the most laps…but unfortunately not the final lap. So, we’ll look at things tonight to see what we can do to move up a position in tomorrow’s race.”
Josh Herrin said, “When the red flag came out, it gave me a second chance, and I gave it everything I had. I wanted to get on the podium here at my home race in front of my fans. So, I’m happy, and I can’t wait for tomorrow.”
HAYDEN THIRD IN JUST HIS SECOND DSB RACE FOR YAMAHA EXTENDED SERVICE/GRAVES/YAMAHA TEAM
Tommy Hayden, who is substituting for the injured Garrett Gerloff, rode Garrett’s #8 YZF-R6 to a remarkable third-place finish in just the second AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike race of the young season.
About the race, Tommy said, “I got a great start, which was something I was focused on. My plan was to get up there with the front group and see what we could do. We’re getting there session by session. The bike’s really fun to ride, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s race.”
Tommy Hayden and his Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha R6 will start Daytona SportBike Race 2 tomorrow at 2:15 PM EST, and SuperBike Race 2, featuring Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha riders Josh Hayes and Josh Herrin, will go green at 3:30 PM EST. Check your local TV listings for Speed TV’s telecasts of both of tomorrow’s races.
Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha Riders Hayes & Herrin Both Qualify On SuperBike Front Row At Road Atlanta; Hayden Fifth On Daytona SportBike Grid
Braselton, GA April 21, 2012 – In final qualifying for AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike at Road Atlanta, Josh Hayes won the pole position on his crossplane-crankshaft Yamaha YZF-R1. His teammate Josh Herrin will also start on the front row for this afternoon’s SuperBike race. And, in Daytona SportBike final qualifying, Tommy Hayden was fifth-fastest and will start on the inside of the front row, just behind the pole winner.
Josh Hayes, who captured seven poles last season on the way to his second AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Championship in a row actually earned the pole position and important bonus point based on his fastest time in Friday’s first qualifying session.
Josh Herrin, who lives in nearby Dublin, GA, improved on his qualifying time from yesterday, and he will start from third position on the grid in his first-ever Road Atlanta SuperBike race later today.
Commenting on his final qualifying session, Josh Hayes said, “Conditions were a little bit different this morning than they were yesterday, so I was glad to get in my fastest lap on Friday. I went out and practiced a couple of starts, too, so I’m ready for the race.”
Josh Herrin said, “I was pretty excited about my fast lap and being able to improve on my quickest time from yesterday. I like the way my R1 sounds at this track. I have 50 friends and family coming here, so I’m really looking forward to the race.”
HAYDEN MOVES UP IN DSB
In AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike, Tommy Hayden and his crew worked diligently to improve on their position from Friday’s qualifying, and it paid off. Tommy, who is substituting for the injured Garrett Gerloff (also on hand at Road Atlanta to meet fans and sign autographs, but not quite ready yet to climb back aboard his #8 YZF-R6), moved up the chart around the middle of the final qualifying session and put himself comfortably in fifth.
Daytona SportBike Race 1 will go green later today at 2:00 PM EST, and SuperBike Race 1 will follow DSB at 3:15 PM EST. Check your local TV listings for Speed TV’s telecast of both of today’s races.
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Tags: ama pro racing, big kahuna, Graves Motorsports, Josh Hayes, Josh Herrin, Road Atlanta, Tommy Hayden, Yamaha R1, Yamaha R6
