Cycle News

Cycle News 2015 Issue 35 September 1

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/564551

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 95 of 129

VOL. 52 ISSUE 35 SEPTEMBER 1, 2015 P95 Briefly... qualifying," Isenock said. "When it came down to it the track changed in a way we were not expecting and we simply missed the setup. In the heat race the line I was using in qual- ifying wasn't the fastest way around the racetrack so I moved down with everyone else and finished one spot out of a transfer. For the semi we made some changes that we thought would be ideal for running the lower part of the track, but come race time I got a horrible start and some electrical gremlins showed up mid-race so that pretty much ended our chances right there. All in all it was a much needed learning experi- ence for the team, the bike, and my- self. Moving forward we are going to take that info, do some testing in the next couple weeks, and be ready for the national in Delaware." The crowd turnout at Charlotte was not what promotor SMI hoped for with estimates putting the crowd at around 4000. Even though the turn- out was on par with most of the events in the series this year, that number of fans fairly rattles in a venue that can hold 14,000. SMI, the promotional company headed by former AMA Su- perbike star and Motorcycle Hall of Famer Steve McLaughlin, also pro- motes the Sacramento Mile and the November 20-21 combined Las Ve- gas AMA Pro Grand National Finale and Superprestigio of the Americas. While no local riders made the GNC1 event, two Carolina riders made the GNC2 Main at Charlotte—Robert Lewis, from Tarboro, North Carolina, and Lloyd Widener from Trenton, South Carolina. BAUMAN'S FIRST In the GNC2 main event, Bron- son Bauman took advantage of a staggered restart with 10 laps to go to earn his first career AMA Pro Flat Track win. Bauman completed the stellar victory aboard his number 30Z Lombardi's Harley-Davidson machine after starting from second on the grid, passing Andrew Luker on the eighth lap and finishing just in front of Davis Fisher. Luker, riding the number 11Z Kennedy Racing Harley-Davidson, opened up a large lead on the first lap of the race before he saw the red flags fly on lap eight, allowing his competitors back into the race. Although Luker was able to get the holeshot following the restart, he never could gather his momentum back, and he slid all the way back to an eventual fourth place finish. "It feels awesome to get this win," said Bauman, who is in his third year of racing the Grand National support class. "There was a lot of tough competition and Davis [Fisher] is always running up front. There's so many more, I got a bad start but I started working my way up. We got the red flag and fortunately I got a good start off of that. When I saw the white flag, I was just ear-to-ear saying 'don't mess up, don't mess up,' and then I came around and got the check- ered flag for the first time ever." Number 67M Parkinson Broth- ers Racing Kawasaki competitor Fisher battled hard with the top five on the way to his runner-up result. He'll leave Charlotte with a stranglehold on the GNC2 points lead. Fisher sits 27 points ahead of Bauman in the standings, 157-125. Rounding out the podium for his best performance of 2015 was Ryan Varnes. The number 68A Var- nes Racing Kawaskai pilot looked impressive all night and edged out a charging Luker on the final lap by .187 seconds. Number 27U Miller Motorsports pilot Jamison Minor rounded out the top five. front for four laps. Smith was just back in the lead when Jef- frey Carver, Jr. crashed going into turn four, bringing out the red flag. On the restart Smith Dash for Cash. In the final however, Smith found himself in a battle. Smith led early but then Zanotti Rac- ing's Coolbeth moved to the Bronson Bauman scored his first national victory in the GNC2 final at Charlotte on his Lombardi's Harley-Davidson- backed XR750.

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Cycle News - Cycle News 2015 Issue 35 September 1