In what was shaping up to be a fantastic weekend for Team RidersDiscount.com and Jake Holden Racing, it was a truly mixed bag of fortunes. Cameron Beaubier vindicated his bad luck from last year with a second place finish in Daytona SportBike while Jake Holden required a stay in the hospital. The weekend started off well for both riders in the Daytona SportBike class. Cameron put his Yamaha YZF-R6 at the head of the second row in qualifying while Jake’s Ducati 848 EVO was less than a second off pole with the sixth fastest time. Holden had his work cut out for him doing double duty for his highly anticipated return to the American SuperBike class on the RidersDiscount.com BMW S1000RR. And even with his limited experience riding the bike, the team was able to give Jake a setup that was good enough for eighth fastest overall late in qualifying.
In Sunday’s Daytona SportBike race, it all came apart for Jake Holden. A close pass by Dane Westby in the Andretti Hairpin put Jake on the ground where he was run over by another rider who had no where to go. The crash red-flagged the race and Jake required a trip the hospital with two broken ribs and a lacerated spleen. Doctors noted that, thanks to Jake’s excellent physical condition, there would likely be no long-term issues as a result of his injuries. Worst of all, Jake didn’t get a chance to run in the American SuperBike class at Laguna.
In an odd twist, it was this crash that gave teammate Cameron Beaubier the break he needed to redress the bad start he got on the first green flag. Cameron took full advantage of the restart where he soon hounded first, race leader DiSalvo and then made his way to the front. But he was only able to lead one lap before Danny Eslick and took the lead. With the laps winding down, Cameron planned on biding his time but then a second red flag ended the race before he wanted to make his attack, forcing him to a second place finish.
Jake Holden – “I was super excited to ride the RD BMW S1000RR at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca after testing it with the RidersDiscount.com guys. First session out, I was seventh quickest, right behind Larry Pegram on what was, pretty much a stock BMW compared to his! The Ducati 848 EVO was feeling pretty good and though we qualified in sixth, I had more in me for sure. Right before qualifying, we threw some new forks in the RidersDiscount.com BMW and picked up six-tenths on the track, so that put us in eighth overall. That placed us right next to the Foremost Insurance BMW which was the only S1000RR that was faster than us.
As it turned out, Sunday was just not my day. We had some small issues with the motorcycles that left me with no warm up time. I knew my Ducati could put me on the podium on the race track where I had my first AMA career win. I got a good start running around fifth place. And then going into turn two I was clipped on the inside by another racer and that put me on the pavement. After that, another racer ran into the back of my body.
Now, I have two broken ribs and a small puncture in my spleen. There’s also a little fluid in my left lung. It’s been a year of highs and lows but I have to thank my crew, all my sponsors and RidersDiscount.com for sticking with me. Everyone has been working so hard to make things happen and with all this support, it’s helped us keep up the fight!”
Cameron Beaubier – “We were struggling in Friday practice with a number of things, but the team got it worked out for qualifying where we finished fourth fastest overall. I had a bad start but we got another chance after Jake’s unfortunate red flag. In the second start, we shuffled around a bit on the first lap and then made a push to get up there with DiSalvo. I passed Herrin and then got DiSalvo going into the last corner but then Eslick made a pass on me going into the second corner. I hung on the back of Eslick and we pulled away a little from DiSalvo. I just wanted to wait for the laps to wind down to make a move but then another red flag came out. I am super happy with second place here though, and I can’t thank everyone at Jake Holden Racing and RidersDiscount.com enough! Now I’m just looking forward to the last race at New Jersey Motorsports Park in September.”
Breeann Poland, team owner – “This season has been an interesting one
to say the least. First, we lost our title funding and through the help of our fans, existing sponsors and RidersDiscount.com – we’ve been able to keep going. Unfortunately, luck hasn’t been on Jake’s side this year. I was hoping that this weekend would be different. After some minor adjustments on both Jake’s and Cameron’s bikes, we looked as though we could’ve had some good results for both of our riders. Jake’s crash was a hard one for him and everyone rooting for him throughout the paddock. I was excited to see him ride the RidersDiscount.com BMW S1000RR in the American SuperBike class but it just wasn’t in the stars for us. I am hoping for a speedy recovery for Jake and maybe he will get the chance to race at the final round in New Jersey! Cameron is looking for a win now that he has the team and sponsors like RidersDiscount.com behind him. I am sure that it can happen!”
Brian Gibson, owner RidersDiscount.com – “It was a challenging weekend for the entire team on two fronts. First, we are ecstatic to see Cameron on the box yet again and at the same time, saddened to see Jake’s weekend spoiled before the first lap of the DSB race was completed. He didn’t even get a chance to run in American SuperBike, but at least he has a lot of time to get back to fitness for the last race of the year at New Jersey Motorsports Park. It was a blast watching Cameron hound Eslick and it looked as though we had something for Danny but the red flag again cut it all short for us. Still, we couldn’t be happier with his performance on the track. Now we’ve got a few weeks to go before the last race of the 2011 AMA season where Cameron has a chance to finish third overall in his first year in DSB. And after the way Laguna worked out for Jake, we want him to have another crack at the throttle so he can cap off a roller coaster year with some good results.”
With a long lay off between Laguna Seca and the final race of the year, Jake Holden Racing and Team RidersDiscount.com have plenty of time to analyze everything that happened last weekend in preparation for the next event. At this time, it’s up to Jake to see if he’s ready to ride in time for NJMP. Cameron, on the other hand wants another shot at getting his first DSB win in New Jersey. For updates on the team, Jake’s recovery and other news, check out facebook.com/ridersdiscount and facebook.com/jakeholdenracing
Cameron Beaubier would like to thank his sponsors: Red Bull, RidersDiscount.com, Kevin Schwantz Motorcycle Riding School, Alpinestars Apparel, Bazzaz Performance, Top 1 Oil, Leo Vince Exhaust, Specialized Bicycles, Catalyst Reaction Suspension Tuning, Jesse Koeller, Penske Shocks, Moto Wheels, Corsa Dynamics, TAW Performance, Brembo, Militant Moto, Stockton Optometry, CRG, TechSpec USA
Jake Holden would like to thank his sponsors: RidersDiscount.com, FMF Exhaust, Motul Lubricants, Shoei Helmets, Cortech Apparel, Sidi, Held, Motion-Pro, Liquid Performance, Vortex Racing, Bazzaz Performance, SharkSkinz Bodywork, Zero Gravity Windscreens, Vicci, Goodridge Brake Lines, Speedy Moto, K & N Engineering and Penske Shocks
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