Josh Hayes Gets Five For Fighting, Wins Fifth Barber SuperBike Race In A Row

2014-06-21 21:57
Barber Motorsports Park was just what three-time AMA Pro SuperBike Champion Josh Hayes needed to put himself back in control of a fourth SuperBike title, as he won Saturday’s SuperBike Race 1 in convincing fashion aboard his #4 Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha R1.

The win launched Josh into a 17-point lead in the standings after coming into the weekend in third place. It was a brutally hot day, with three qualifying sessions followed by a long race, but Josh’s Mississippi roots and topnotch fitness clearly helped him win the day.

“It was hot, greasy, and easy to make mistakes out there,” Josh said. “It was a very hard race in these hot conditions, so I’m happy to finish with the win. Five SuperBike wins in a row at this track seems hard to believe, but I guess you could say that I feel at home here in Alabama. We’ll come back tomorrow and try to make it six wins in a row. I know I’ve got the bike and the crew to do it.”

As for Josh’s teammate and SuperBike rookie Cameron Beaubier, his day was the polar opposite (and, by “polar,” were definitely not talking about the Birmingham-area climate). Cameron lowsided his #2 Monster Energy/Graves/Yamaha R1 while running in fourth place. The 2013 Daytona SportBike Champion was unhurt, but his R1 SuperBike didn’t fare quite as well. The race was red-flagged after another rider crashed, so Cameron’s crew chief Rick Hobbs and the rest of the team worked diligently to get the bike race-ready for the restart.

Unfortunately, they ran out of time, and Cameron was credited with 15th place and enough points for fourth place in the points standings. He and his team will regroup and come back strong for Sunday’s SuperBike Race 2 from Barber Motorsports Park, which is set to go green at 3:00 PM CST.

Source: Yamaha

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