Sunnyvale, Calif., May 2, 2021 – The first round of MotoAmerica 2021 saw a mixed bag of results for Ducati duo Kyle Wyman and Loris Baz.
Under bright blue skies at the world famous Road Atlanta, Wyman led the Ducati charge with a fifth in race one and sixth in race two on the gorgeous Panera Bread Ducati Panigale, ensuring the Arizona resident will leave the Peach State eighth overall in the standings heading to round two at VIR.
Unfortunately, for Baz, it wasn’t the weekend he’d hoped for on his MotoAmerica debut. After qualifying an impressive third, Baz engaged in a fierce battle with Yamaha’s eventual race winner Mathew Scholtz for the lead in the opening race but crashed at turn 10A, ending his race with five laps to go.
It was looking good for Baz in race two before a technical issue pitted him for repairs. He eventually finished 20th with Yamaha’s Jake Gagne taking the race win.
2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Standing – Top 5
P1 – Mathew Scholtz (Yamaha) 45
P2 – Josh Herrin (Yamaha) 32
P3 – Bobby Fong (Suzuki) 31
P4 – Cameron Petersen (Suzuki) 26
P5 – Jake Gagne (Yamaha) 25
P8 – Kyle Wyman (Ducati) 21
P24 – Loris Baz (Ducati) 0
Loris Baz (Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati New York – Ducati #76)
“For sure, it was not the weekend we wanted,” Baz admitted. “But we will keep the head up. The guys in the team did a strong job. I needed a better start in race two than on I did on Saturday and got it, but I still don’t have a good feeling on the new tire. But once the tire started to drop, I felt so good. The feeling was awesome on the Ducati. I went P3 but then we had a technical issue, so I had to come in and change the part. I am disappointed, but once again, I will keep the head up because there is still 450 points in this championship on offer. We’re alive and we’re going make it up. We will work harder and we will come to VIR stronger than ever.”
Kyle Wyman (Panera Bread Ducati – Ducati #33)
“In race one I got off to a pretty decent start from the third row and ended up in a battle for seventh with Hector Barbara,” Wyman said. “I was pushing hard from there. We had some issues with edge grip on the bike. I was just trying to bring it home and get some good data for the guys and with some attrition we ended up top five, so I was pretty happy with that considering how little time we’ve had on this new bike.
“Then in race two we started from fifth thanks to the first race finish position and I got a really good start but spent the race getting more acquainted with the Panigale. I started gaining some decent pace in the middle of the race, but again, I just need more time on the bike and need to test get more confidence. Thanks to my guys, they built me a great bike and we’ll be ready for VIR in a couple of weeks.”
Round two of the 2021 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship will be held at Virginia International Raceway on May 21-23, 2021.
