TEAM SUZUKI, ROCZEN & RM-Z STAY ON TOP
July 19, 2016
RACE WEEKEND AT A GLANCE
The Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship traveled north to Spring Creek MX Park in Millville, Minnesota for Round 8 of the series. Ken Roczen rode his RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John's/Suzuki Factory Racing RM-Z450 flawlessly to sweep the 450 Class motos and earn his sixth overall victory of the season. Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing’s James Stewart also made his long-anticipated return to racing. Weekend highlights include:
- Ken Roczen dominating yet again, going 1-1 aboard his RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John's/Suzuki Factory Racing RM-Z450 at Millville, winning the national and extending his series lead to 55 points with four rounds to go.
- Yoshimura Suzuki’s James Stewart scoring a strong top-10 in the first 450 moto at Millville and ending the day 15th overall in his comeback to the series.
- A total of eight Suzuki riders making the national at Millville – six on Suzuki RM-Z450s in the 450 class and a pair of racers in the 250 class on Suzuki RM-Z250s.
- In MotoGP action in Germany, both Team Suzuki Ecstar riders, Maverick Viñales and Aleix Espargaro, overcame challenging weather and changing track conditions to score world championship points riding their Suzuki GSX-RR race machines.
An Unbeatable Combination: Ken Roczen & RM-Z450
Ken Roczen scored his sixth outdoor national victory in eight starts Saturday at Spring Creek MX Park on his RCH Suzuki RM-Z450. What made Roczen’s 1-1 race day especially notable was the fact that he collided with another rider which resulted in a bent shift lever. In spite of not being able to shift as much as he would have liked, Roczen used the wide power-band of his Suzuki RM-Z450 to make a serious charge through the field to get to the front early in the second moto.
"Today was tough as we were faced with a few challenges throughout the day, including a bent shifter during the second moto," said Ken Roczen, who used brilliant line selections in the rough conditions to make his way to the lead. "I didn’t shift a whole lot. I tried to stay in the same gear and ride my own race.”
Broc Tickle, Roczen’s RCH Suzuki teammate was working toward a strong finish in the first moto when another rider crashed in front of him. Unable to avoid the rider, Tickle also went down. He was not able to race the second moto, but hopes to be ready to race next week at Washougal.
James Stewart Returns to Racing on his Yoshimura Suzuki
Proud father of a new baby boy, James Stewart was back to racing Saturday at Millville. In spite of a long layoff, he showed some of his characteristic raw speed on the Yoshimura Suzuki RM-Z450 to finish a very credible 10th in moto one. His lack of seat time caught up with him in the second moto, and he pulled out, finishing 15th overall. Still, Stewart was encouraged with being competitive, and he feels even better results are ahead.
“I’m happy to be back out here racing,” James Stewart said. “I know what I need to do and that’s get more seat time to be able to race. The track was tough all day, especially in that second moto. I want to thank the team. I’m going to keep pushing here and building up, and I think Washougal should be better for sure.”
Other Suzuki riders making the Millville National were, in the 450 class, Austin Howell (Howell Racing Suzuki), Ronnie Stewart (MicroBilt/PRBC Suzuki), and Alexander Nagy (Nagy Racing Suzuki) riding Suzuki RM-Z450s. In the 250 class, it was Kyle Cunningham and Jimmy Albertson, both aboard MotorcycleSuperstore.com’s Suzuki RM-Z250s.
Team Suzuki MX Riders Look Ahead to Washougal National
COMING UP: Team Suzuki will be on hand as the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship continues next weekend when it returns to the West Coast and Washougal, Wash., for the ninth round of the 2016 season. The Washougal National will host the prestigious championship on Saturday, July 23. Live coverage begins at 1:00 PM Eastern on
www.promotocross.com. The motos can also be viewed on MAVTV and NBCSN.
On Friday, July 22, you can meet and get autographs from select Team Suzuki riders during a dealer appearance at Pro Caliber Vancouver, 10703 NE 4th Plain Rd., Vancouver, Wash. from 6:00-7:00 PM.
Team Suzuki Ecstar Scores in Tough Conditions in Germany
Team SUZUKI ECSTAR’s Maverick Viñales and Aleix Espargaró scored in Sunday’s drama-packed German MotoGP World Championship ninth round at Sachsenring. The race saw both wet-and-dry conditions and a necessary pit-stop with nine laps to go to change from rain tires to slicks when the racing line dried out. The end of the race saw both riders score championship points with Viñales in 12th place and Espargaró in 14th.
Team Suzuki ECSTAR racers Aleix Espargaro (41) and Maverick Vinales (25) endured difficult conditions at a wet-then-dry MotoGP race in Germany.
COMING UP: Team SUZUKI ECSTAR racers will compete in Round 10 of the MotoGP series on Aug. 14 at NeroGiardini Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich, at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria.
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