The following is from Tytlers Cycle Racing…
It was a successful end to the 2023 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship for Tytlers Cycle Racing which was held at New Jersey Motorsports Park last weekend, the team securing third overall in the final standings with PJ Jacobsen.
Corey Alexander raced to a debut podium in the class in difficult conditions on Saturday before backing it up with a second podium finish on Sunday. Stefano Mesa also rode well, achieving another top ten finish.
A solid fourth on Saturday for PJ, backed up by a second position finish, his eighth podium of the year, was enough to secure P3 overall for the #99 and the team.
Corey finished seventh overall in the final points classification at the end of his debut year In Superbike. Having made the jump from STK1000 where he won the title for the squad a year ago, the #23 showed great speed particularly towards the end of the season and his double podium in the season finale is just reward for his efforts.
Stefano was called up to replace the injured Cameron Beaubier after Pitt Race and once again showed his ability to adapt to any racing situation. A top ten on Saturday in his first wet race on the BMW M1000 RR shows he has a bright future in Superbike. He was unlucky not to finish on Sunday.
Corey Alexander: “It’s been an unbelievable weekend here at NJMP. The weather brought an unexpected variable that played in our favour. The bike worked amazing in both races and I’m super thankful to my guys for all the hard work with all the challenges that have been thrown our way these last few races. Two superbike podiums are like a dream come true. Hopefully we have the opportunity for some more next year.”
PJ Jacobsen: “Starting on Pole was a pretty good start to the New Jersey weekend. I was hunting down Gagne (Jake) but when I passed Herrin (Josh) there was a yellow flag which I didn’t see, and I was penalized to fourth position. That was a huge bummer, but I knew we could make amends on Sunday. There wasn’t much grip on Sunday, and I was sliding all over the place. It was nice to end the season on the podium in P2 and to have Corey up there with me was great for the team. Race one really hurt me overall in the championship as without the penalty given by MotoAmerica I would have been second and not third.”
Stefano Mesa: “Race one was pretty good given the conditions we faced. I was having a good time out there on the bike and lap by lap I kept figuring things out a little. In race two we had a bit more direction for the wet conditions and I felt a lot better on Sunday than on Saturday. I was running fifth and the bike felt great, but we unfortunately had a mechanical – but that’s racing. I want to thank the team for their work, it was another great experience this weekend for me with the Tytlers Cycle Racing team.”
The team of course cannot sign off from the 2023 season without saying a big thanks to Cameron Beaubier who took the team to their first win in their debut race together before mounting what was a serious assault on the MotoAmerica title before bad luck and injury intervened.
The following is from Suzuki…
Suzuki Motor USA and Team Hammer closed out a successful 2023 MotoAmerica season at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday. After Ty Scott won Saturday’s Supersport race for Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki, the team hoped for a repeat performance but tough conditions from a tropical storm made racing difficult. Brandon Paasch and Richie Escalante earned fifth and sixth in a wet MotoAmerica Superbike race.
Brandon Paasch (96) ended Saturday’s race on the ground, but showed remarkable tenacity and rebounded with a solid Superbike class performance on Sunday. The local rider saved his best for the end as he put his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R in the top five on the last lap. Paasch chased teammate Richie Escalante for most of the race but was able to make the move to finish once again in the top five.
“I passed Richie on the last lap, so it felt good to be the top Suzuki finisher,” said Paasch. “The conditions were tough today. It was dryer and the pace was faster, but there were still a lot of slick spots. I felt like I made a few mistakes, but I had some momentum at the end. We had a good year with four top-five results in the last five races. and I learned a lot about how to ride a Superbike.”
Richie Escalante (54) made remarkable progress from Saturday as well. The Mexican racer was off the pace in the wet in Saturday’s race, but much quicker on Sunday. Escalante spent most of the race in fifth position before eventually finishing just behind Paasch.
“It was much better today for me,” said Escalante, after finishing fifth in the season’s final standings, tied with fourth. “Racing in the wet is my weakest area but I had a good start and felt better and more confident today. Honestly, at some points, I felt great. I really wanted to get some more experience on the Superbike in the wet. My teammate passed me on the last lap and so I was sixth. We had a good year, fighting for the podium most weekends. The bike is very competitive, and the team is great, so we will be strong next year. I need to personally make a step this offseason to be even more competitive.”
In Supersport, Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott (70) diced for a podium position after leading the race early but encountered an issue and momentarily stopped on-course. Scott reset his electronics and was able to rise back up to eighth position at the checkered flag.
Scott, second in the final season points, earned four wins and 11 podiums in 2023 aboard the next-generation Suzuki GSX-R750. The 17-year-old finished his first full season in the class strong, and will no doubt be a contender for the championship again next year.
“We were running in the lead pack and had a small problem that fixed itself, so I was able to get going again,” said Scott. “That’s part of racing, and particularly racing in the rain. I went from last to eighth, so we were able to show something. It felt good out there on my Suzuki, and that will help us as we get ready for next year. I really wanted to win the championship this season, but we won some races, finished on the podium often, and had some great battles. Not only did the team do a great job, but we also had a lot of fun competing. We’ll work harder to get stronger and be ready for Daytona next year.”
Teagg Hobbs (79) was 17th in the race. Despite a disappointing New Jersey round, Hobbs showed excellent form in his first year with the team, proving himself as a frontrunner in the difficult Supersport class and earning fifth in the final standings.
“Today’s race was tough, really the toughest of the year for me,” said Hobbs. “I just couldn’t find the confidence in the wet here. We had a good first season and I wanted to close out strong. People didn’t expect us to be as close to the front as we were, and it was great to be in the fight every weekend. I learned a ton, even more than I thought I would, especially about how the frontrunners in the class operate.”
With all four Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki riders making outstanding progress in 2023, the team eagerly looks forward to an even more competitive 2024 MotoAmerica season.
The following is from Tytlers Cycle Racing…
Kayla Yaakov became the first female in the history of American motorcycle road racing to stand on the podium in three racing categories in the final round of the 2023 MotoAmerica Supersport championship.
Having already won in Junior Cup and stood on the podium in Twins Cup, the talented teen who only switched to Supersport a matter of weeks ago was the standout for many at the New Jersey Motorsports Park as she romped to third in Saturday’s opening race before backing it up with a spirited ride to P4 twenty-four hours later.
Qualifying thirteenth after the weather ruined any opportunity of improvement on Saturday morning Kayla remained focused ahead of the first race of the weekend on Saturday and with rain falling, she once again demonstrated her incredible racing skills to cross the line less than two seconds from the win. She set the fastest of the race too!
Sunday saw another strong showing from the #19 Tytlers Cycle Racing Kawasaki mounted rider. She finished fourth, narrowly missing the podium for the second day in a row.
Despite only competing in four races, she amassed thirty-seven points to end the year inside the top fifteen… imagine where she could have finished had she contested every race!
Kayla Yaakov: “I am incredibly happy to have been able to put the Tyler’s Cycle Racing Kawasaki on the box on only my third ever supersport race! It was tricky out there on Saturday with rain, wind, and standing water, but we were able to make the best of it! The team has done an amazing job at getting me comfortable quickly, and I knew rain or dry that we had a great setup and pace for the race. We have made steady progress each session with this bike, and it’s so great to see that all our hard work is paying off. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end off my 2023 MotoAmerica season than with a podium and 2 top five finishes in the Supersport category! I hope for more weekends like this in the future. Thank you to everyone who made this switch to supersport possible but especially the Mesa family for allowing me to step in, Michael Kiley for believing in me, Mike and Zequi for all their knowledge, Steven for pulling us all together, my dad for his endless support, and the entire Tytler’s Cycle Racing crew. I hope that this is first the first of many in this category!”
Michael Kiley – Team Principal: “I’d love to tell you that I’m surprised by the weekend’s results, but you don’t have to spend much time with Kayla to know she’s the real deal. She has a tremendous career in front of her and it is a privilege to be a part of her career growth. What I’m privileged to see and would like to share is what an absolute joy it is to watch Mike (Godin), Zequi (Ezequiel Martinez) and Steve bring all this together. They’d never met Kayla, they don’t speak each other’s language, they use their phones and translate apps to communicate. They’ve invented a language I call MotoSpanglish that allows them to be effective and earn the trust of an amazing young woman who gives it everything on the bike they provide her. If you meet Zequi you quickly learn that when Zequis is happy EVERYBODY is happy. If I’m not the luckiest guy in the paddock – I’d like to meet the guy who is. These are great people and MotoAmerica is the place to be. A huge congratulations to Kayla and all the team.”
The following is from Yamaha…
Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing’s JD Beach scored a dominant victory in today’s final race of the 2023 MotoAmerica Superbike season at the New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville, New Jersey. It was a masterclass performance from the full-time American Flat Track racer who answered the call from the team to fill in for the injured Cameron Petersen at the last three rounds of the season. Jake Gagne finished fourth in the tricky mixed conditions, adding to his points lead in the championship, which he secured two rounds early.
Riders were met with mixed conditions for today’s Race 2, with some sunshine but standing water still on the track. After the lights went out, Beach got another flying start from the third row of the grid into third behind his teammate Gagne. On Lap 4, he made the pass for second and then went to chase down the leader. A couple of laps later, Beach closed the gap and was hot on the heels of the competition, taking over the lead shortly after. He then built a comfortable gap up front and remained unchallenged to add a superbike win this year to his two SuperTwins victories with the Estenson Racing team in the American Flat Track series. The win also marked a second-career superbike victory for Beach aboard an Attack Yamaha R1.
Gagne got another great start in the final race of the 2023 season and slotted into the runner-up spot. The three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion rode a smart race in the tricky mixed conditions and crossed the line fourth to add more points to his impressive 2023 tally, which saw him 148 points clear of the runner-up finisher. It was a stellar season for the Colorado rider who secured his third consecutive title in the premier class two rounds early at the MotoAmerica Superbike tripleheader at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex. Gagne notched 11 superbike wins this season, bringing his career tally to 40 wins during the three-year period.
Richard Stanboli – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“What a great end to the season. Our Yamaha R1s once again showed how strong they are in all conditions. Jake dominated yesterday, and JD did a great job as a fill-in rider, winning in today’s mixed conditions. His progression these past three rounds has been amazing. We wish him success on his potential return to road racing.”
JD Beach – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing
“Today was a dream come true for me. I was really nervous before the race with the mixed conditions, but once the lights went out, I went to work. The team had the bike working great on this tricky track. I’m over the moon about getting another Superbike win to go with my AFT wins this year. I want to thank Attack and Yamaha for giving me this opportunity to come in and fill in at these last few rounds, and also to the Estenson Racing team for allowing me to do it.
Jake Gagne – Fresh N Lean Progressive Yamaha Racing
“It was tricky conditions today, but it was great to finish the year strong. Congrats to JD because he smoked us and rode incredible. It was a great way to finish the year for the team.”
The following is from Westby Racing…
The 2023 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship wrapped up on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park with Westby Racing’s Mathew Scholtz ending up fourth in the standings after moving up one position during the final weekend of the season.
After Saturday’s rain-sodden race one, in which Mathew finished sixth, he and the team were determined to get a better result on Sunday. The precipitation from Tropical Storm Ophelia had diminished, which left the track mostly dry with only a few wet areas here and there.
Mathew and the team decided to start the race on slick tires in hopes that the track would dry out more during the race and enable Mathew to overtake any riders in front of him who had chosen full rain tires, which offer better grip in the wet, but not in the dry.
Unfortunately, the strategy didn’t work out because Mathew was running back in 12th place on lap five, and he crashed out of the race before he could start advancing to the front.
And so, the incident ended Mathew’s day and his season a little bit earlier than he and the team were hoping for.
Team owner Tryg Westby, Mathew, and the entire Westby Racing team want to thank all the fans for the loyal support they showed this year.
The following is from Robem Engineering…
It wasn’t the ending to the 2023 season that either Gus Rodio or Rocco Landers had hoped for, but the pair of Rodio Racing – Powered by Robem Engineering riders performed admirably in their first time racing their Aprilia RS 660s in full wet conditions on Saturday and ended the season on Sunday with a total of six poles, nine wins and nine additional podium finishes between them.
The Sept. 22-24 round at New Jersey Motorsports Park also marked Ben Gloddy’s return to MotoAmerica competition with a near-podium finish after being sidelined with an injury from the Daytona International Speedway round in March.
The Rodio Racing Powered by Robem Engineering riders had a strong start to the round in Friday’s dry conditions. Landers was the fastest rider in Friday practice, as he set a best lap time of 1:27.629 that was about 1.4 seconds faster than the next fastest rider. Rodio finished that session third, and Gloddy was sixth. Later Friday, the team’s riders found even more pace and secured first, second and sixth place on the provisional starting grid. Landers was again at the top of the time sheet with a 1:24.659, Rodio provisionally qualified alongside his teammate in second. Gloddy was the sixth-fastest rider in the session.
Tropical Storm Ophelia began its trek across southern New Jersey Saturday morning, which made for very wet conditions on the 2.25-mile NJMP Thunderbolt track. The conditions allowed Landers’ qualifying time from Friday to earn him his sixth Twins Cup pole of 2023. In the wet conditions, Landers was still among the fastest riders in the Twins Cup field. He finished Qualifying 2 as the second-fastest rider, and Gloddy was 10th-fastest. Rodio was a little off the pace, as he finished the session in 11th.
At the start of Saturday afternoon’s Race 1, it was Gloddy who got the best launch of the trio. He moved up three places during the first lap and ended up running in third place for most of the race. It was a different story for Rodio and Landers who lost several places as the field funneled through the first turn. Rodio finished Lap 1 all the way down in 10th place and Landers in seventh. Those two riders didn’t waste time making up the positions they lost, as Landers had moved up to fifth place by the end of Lap 3 and Rodio was running in fourth place by the end of Lap 6. Rodio’s paced improved as the race went on, and he got by Gloddy on the last lap to secure his 10th appearance on a MotoAmerica Twins Cup podium this year while also putting the fastest lap of race on the last lap. Gloddy held onto fourth place and Landers finished in fifth.
Race 2 on Sunday took place with mixed track conditions as the near-constant precipitation began to subside. Rodio got a good launch and led the field through the first corner. As Rodio and his championship rival pulled away from the rest of the field, Landers was struggling a little for pace and had fallen to fifth place by the end of Lap 2. The race was stopped on Lap 3 due to a crash at the exit of Turn 12, and Rodio got another good start when racing resumed. Though he was able to maintain the lead for the first two laps of the restarted race, Rodio got passed at the start of the next lap. As Rodio was trying to retake the lead, his teammates Gloddy and Landers were running in sixth and 10th place, respectively. Rodio’s race came to a premature end, as he highsided in the same area as the rider whose crash had brought out the red flag, and the race was stopped and later called complete. In the final race results, Gloddy was classified in fifth place and Landers in seventh.
Gus Rodio / No. 96
“I had never ridden the Aprilia in the rain, and we got on the podium on Saturday in a rain race. On Sunday, it was more mixed conditions, and there wasn’t much more we could’ve done. I’d hoped MotoAmerica would delay the race a bit more than they did, but unfortunately that’s not what happened. I put it on the floor trying today, and it was a big one. It’s been an up-and-down kind of season. A lot of things went wrong, but a lot went right too. Overall, it was a good year.”
Rocco Landers / No. 97
“It was an eventful weekend – that’s for sure. It’s too bad we couldn’t win the championship for Aprilia. But it goes like that sometimes. If conditions had been dry this weekend, I think Gus and I would’ve been right up at the front, This season has been hard for me, but I also didn’t think I was going to be racing at all this year. I was trying to get to 50 career wins this year, but I at least got that total up to 48. We’ll see what next year holds. Without Aprilia, I wouldn’t be in as strong a position to move up a class next year.”
Ben Gloddy / No. 72 “It was a good weekend, as I was just coming back from my injury at Daytona. It was a good dry day on Friday, and I ended up qualifying in sixth. I ran most of Saturday’s race in third place, but Gus was able to run me down at the end. Today, with the tricky weather, I just didn’t have the confidence I needed to move up the field. I didn’t have any high expectations for this weekend. I just wanted to have some fun and get back into it.”
The following is from Altus Motorsports…
Historically, the New Jersey round always has the potential for interesting weather, and the final round of the 2023 MotoAmerica season was no exception.
After a difficult season that challenged the team on many levels, Altus Motorsports finished the 2023 season strong and with a solid platform to build on for the future.
Supersport:
Jaret Nassaney continued to improve on his Suzuki GSX-R750 in the New Jersey Supersport races. He qualified 9th in the dry on Friday and only 1.7 seconds out of pole. This is the closest he has been to the top spot all year. Saturday’s qualifying was in the rain, so the team worked on their rain setup for race one. Jaret faced rain for the entirety of Supersport Race 1. After starting from 9th, Nassaney crossed the finish line in 6th. The Sunday weather was only marginally better; a drying track mixed with puddles. In spite of the conditions, he pulled off another 6th place. Both races were his best finishes of the season.
Jaret Nassaney: “I got two 6th place finishes, and I am super stoked with that, given the race conditions! I am very happy to end the season on a high note. The conditions were sketchy, but we rode hard and got it done. I have to thank my Crew Chief Boyd Bruner, lead mechanic William Gerken, and assistant LJ for everything this weekend.”
Junior Cup
In the dry practice and qualifying on Friday, Alessandro Di Mario showed fantastic pace. He qualified in 6th, less than a second off the polesitter. Unfortunately, both of the Junior Cup races were wet. Di Mario struggled to get comfortable on the soaked surface at NJMP. He finished Race 1 in 15th and Race 2 in 20th.
Alessandro Di Mario: “It was a tough weekend. It was my first time with the bike and the tires in the wet. It took me a while, but my pace got a lot better towards the end. We have to work on getting better in these kinds of conditions.”
George Nassaney: “After a very difficult season, it was nice to finish the last few rounds strong. We made a lot of changes this year, and we’re finishing the season with a good crew and a solid trajectory for the future. Preparation has already begun for 2024, and I am currently in discussions with several riders. I hope to have a couple riders signed soon, so we can begin winter testing. I can’t thank everybody enough for their support this year.”
Altus Motorsports is supported by our great family of sponsors: Altus Motorsports, FLY Racing WPS, Suzuki Motor Corporation, Yamaha Motor Company, Barnett, Buy A Jet From Steve Main, Maxima Racing Oils, Moto-D Racing, Bonamici, Hot Bodies Racing, M4 Exhausts, Vortex EK, Motion Pro, SBS Brakes, BrakeTech USA, Inc., Öhlins, K-Tech, RS Taichi, Arai, Yoshimura, Chicken Hawk Tire Warmers, CarbonSmith, Law Tigers Oklahoma, and Altus Factory Racing.
