Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne overcame adversity from an early race crash to score his 10th-straight MotoAmerica Superbike victory in today’s Race 1 at the Brainerd International Raceway. Fill-in rider JD Beach had a solid first race back on the R1 and finished sixth.
Although the 2.5-mile track in Brainerd, Minnesota, was new territory for this generation of riders with a 17-year absence on the calendar, it was more of the same as Gagne set the pace early. The points leader led every session en route to his sixth-straight pole position of the year, but his 10th victory of the season did not come easy. He got a bit sideways off the line and was second after the start. Gagne quickly moved into the lead but then lost the rear and went down in Turn 3. More chaos ensued with another rider crashing in the next corner, and the race was red-flagged.
After the restart, Gagne once again slotted into second and moved into the lead on the opening lap. The Colorado rider kept his cool and put in some consistent, fast times to build a gap and cross the line with a 4.6-second margin, expanding his lead in the championship to 74 points.
Filling in on short notice for Josh Herrin, who was sidelined with Covid-19, Beach made progress in each session. He and the team worked on getting the bike set up for the Kentucky rider who races full time in the premier class of American Flat Track. After the restart, he got a good start from the third row of the grid to fifth and then was shuffled to sixth. He battled for that top-five spot and kept pushing but ultimately finished sixth in his first Superbike race since the 2019 season finale at Barber Motorsports Park.
The Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing Team lines up again tomorrow at the Brainerd International Raceway for Race 2 of Round 6 of the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship on August 1.
Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing Team Manager
“The weekend started out unusual with Josh contracting Covid and JD coming in take his place after not racing Superbike for a season and a half. Then Race 1 turned out to be pretty dramatic. Jake had a crash early in the race, and there was a red flag, so we had a quick turnaround to repair the bike, and then he went back out there and got his 10th win of the season. Hats off to him for staying determined and bringing home another first place in tough circumstances.
“JD, with little time on the bike, has systematically improved his pace. Most people would not understand how difficult it is to jump on a bike that they have never ridden and race at a track they have never seen in the middle of the season. His sixth-place finish is not a true indication of his potential. We look forward to both riders racing at the front tomorrow.”
Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“That was a crazy one! In the first race, I made a mistake in Turn 3 and spun the rear around. Luckily, I kind of slid under the bike and was able to get it back to pits after the red flag. The team did a fantastic job getting the bike ready to go just in time, and we were able to make it back out there to fight again. I put in some clean first few laps after the restart and was able to bring home another win for this awesome team and machine.”
Fresh N’ Lean Attack Performance Yamaha Racing
“The first start of the race was just crazy. I was in sixth or seventh coming out of Turn 3 and Gagne was on his butt sliding down the track backwards. Seconds later, I see (Loris) Baz’s bike flipping through the air, and (Cam) Peterson almost lost the front. We had a red flag, and things calmed back down. Once we got going again, I felt pretty good and was just off of the front pack. I felt like I was sticking with them a bit, but then I started losing the front tire a few laps in a row, so I backed it down a bit. I just wanted to finish the race, but as the race wore on, I was closing in on (Hector) Barbera for fifth, so I gave it a little extra and came up short. I learned a lot today, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
