They should be happy in Hamamatsu. It was a hat trick in Texas when Suzuki set the bar thanks to victories by Alex Rins in MotoGP and Toni Elias and Josh Herrin in MotoAmerica.
That’s right, because in the second race of the American series it was the Glendale rider who finished ahead of the rest on his second largest team, the Yoshimura Factory GSX-R. We said they should be happy in Japan, even though the team with its many Japanese technicians is based in Chino, California.
In a race that was close from the first to the last lap, J.osh managed to beat his teammate and Beaubier and unexpectedly increase the pace: “We rode a different tire today – said Mistress at the press conference after the race – my bike was a rocket today. Hopefully the team stays the way it is and we can fight all year and get as many 1-2. It feels so good to be able to win for Suzuki. Two wins this weekend. They won a MotoGP race so it’s a big day for them. “On such a bumpy track, to be honest, choosing the right Dunlop tire to absorb shock and maintain grip was fundamental at CoTA.
Elias and Beaubier couldn’t stop Herrin, who has now won seven races in the Superbike class. Of course, Josh was no stranger to the World Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing staff as the Californian raced in Moto2 in 2014. Now Toni and Cameron have the confirmation of a third competitor in the battle for the title.
From fourth place for Garrett Gerloff to ninth place for Travis Wyman, the gaps between the motorcycles got bigger: Yamaha, Suzuki, Ducati, Kawasaki and BMW paint the multicolored picture of Wayne Rainey’s MotoAmerica. In this group, the Panigale V4 R rode with its head held high as a “broken in” bike and with direct factory support.
Of the riders on the grid, 14 walked the route, but JD Beach wasn’t one of them. The South African Mathew Scholtz was penultimate and clearly in trouble: The lanky driver and his black and gold R1 could not repeat the winning performance from 2018.
Driver standings: Elias 90 points, Beaubier 77, Mistress 49.