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Florian Wedenig was the 2009 Vice Supermoto Dunlop Junior Cup Champion and he holds the 2010 Semi-Pro Speed Cup Championship title.
One year of racing experience is roughly equivalent to a handful in the real world. It's sort of like dog years, only with racing, the need for an accelerated education is far more dramatic and the learning curve tightens much quicker. K&N Race News first reported about team Honda Austria last year around this same time (Team Honda Austria Rules the European Supermoto Race Scene), and half way through the 2011 Supermoto season they are still rocking the Supermoto scene.
2009 Austrian S2 Supermoto Champion, Andi Rothbauer, once again looms large in the championship point standings in 2011.
Team veteran, Andi Rothbauer continues to compete in the International Class Open, and teammate, Florian Wedenig, marks 2011 as his first full professional season in the International Class S450. Among his many accomplishments Andi lists his 2009 Austrian S2 Championship near the top. Andi competed most of 2010 with a badly injured shoulder, yet still managed to finish third overall in the same championship, but this year he wants that championship back.
At 19-year-olds, Wedenig brought his own impressive resume to the team, he was a top national and international Supermoto Instructor and Supermoto Stunt Rider, with a few amateur titles. "He was very delighted to get the chance to get a spot at Honda Austria," Andi remarked. "He has made huge steps forward in the last year and a half, and he really wants to become State Champion within the next year or two!"
Rothbauer says he is looking forward to the second half of the season and feels confident at his chance at another Austrian Supermoto Championship.
New to the team this year are Honda Austria Team Managers, Michael Rohrmair, and Markus Rottensteiner, and both present an ideal fit with the team. Last weekend the fourth round of the Austrian State Championship was held in Kaltenbach, Tyrol, high up in the Austrian Alps. The event organizer, Pro-Motor, created a "very slippery" Supermoto track in the parking lot of the Hochzillertaler Liftstation and neither Andi, nor Wedenig, could find traction at first.
"We just didn't find any grip, the tarmac was really slippery," commented Andi. "Our Round 4 results were not that bad though, but I know we are just on the way back to the top, we know we are able to win, and that's what we are fighting for. I am still focusing on the title, and know that it is still possible, so I will do my best to achieve that goal! The next two tracks are tracks I know very well and like a lot, so let's see what comes around and in the end, when we count the points."
Wedenig's second overall in round four of the Austrian State Championship was his best finish to date in the International Supermoto Pro Series.
Despite traction issues both riders where able to secure points in that race, and at the mid-season break both riders currently hold onto fourth place in their respective class point standings, and both are within championship striking distance.
"I am still overwhelmed by taking the second overall in the fourth round of the Austrian State Championship, which is my first ever top-three result in the International Pro Series," Wedenig said. "The last year and a half with Honda has been a dream come true, and now I am already fighting for wins, how great is that? I can't do that without my great sponsors such as K&N Filters!"
The seven race Austrian Supermoto season begins in May runs through October. Both riders will continue practicing, testing and attending several other races during the break. Wedenig plans on racing at the Supermoto Euro Indoor Master in Tyrol on August 20th and Andi will race in the South Bavarian German Championship in Fridolfing, Germany on August 13th. The Austrian Supermoto season goes back in high-gear at the end of August.
Mike Edwards deemed "King of the Mountain" at Bandimere Speedway
It was quite a battle in Pro Stock between K&N's Mike Edwards and Allen Johnson throughout the entire NHRA National Event at Bandimere Speedway, but by the time the dust settled Edwards prevailed with the title "King of the Mountain," as many of the competitors refer to the championship at the Colorado facility.
Mike Edwards' Penhall/K&N Pontiac GXP at Bandimere Speedway
Edwards came out strong during qualifying and when the first two sessions were in the books Friday evening, he not only held on the number one position, but had made the quickest passes during each of the sessions, also gaining the maximum championship qualifying bonus points. Edwards best run of the day came during the second session when he posted a 6.989 at 196.50 in his Penhall/K&N Pontiac GXP.
"We're just going to have to make two solid runs on Saturday if we expect to hold on to the top spot," Edwards said Friday evening.
"It's not like we'll just be working on our tune-up for Sunday's eliminations. I've been racing for 30 years, and I just love racing here at Bandimere Speedway. It's always a challenge to make your car run real fast here, and I think that's why I like competing here so much."
Lurking in the shadows was both Allen Johnson and V. Gaines. Both teams were able to step up their programs for Saturday's qualifying sessions, finishing one and two for Sunday's eliminations. Although their runs pushed Edwards from his number one spot, he also managed to improve on the previous day's numbers and went into race day at number three after posting 6.986.
While Edwards may have missed out on the number one qualifying position, it certainly did not deter his team from making things happen on Sunday and it started with his first round match up against "The Professor" Warren Johnson. Edwards was able to make the most of his rather large starting line advantage and give the other teams something to think about with his quickest pass of the weekend and second quickest of first round when he put a 6.974 on the board.
The good first round number would also give Edwards lane choice in his Penhall/K&N entry for the round two pairing with Jason Line. Line was looking for a win on his birthday and thanks Edwards' slight edge on the tree and even quicker than his round before ET, would have to wait until next year to try again.
Edwards continued to not only outdo his competition on the starting line, but just flat outrun them. Even with the very high altitude the team's face when running at the Bandimere track, nearly 10,000 feet of adjusted altitude, Edwards and his crew seemed to have found something and made it work for them.
The final would pit Edwards and Allen Johnson in a battle of the 'Pro Stock Titans' and it would be their fourth meeting in a NHRA Pro Stock final. For the last several years, Johnson has been quite dominate during the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals and was looking to continue his fortune.
The driver's didn't disappoint and made it an exciting final all starting with a little staging dual, after both drivers lit the pre-stage and then took their time, before either made the move to stage. Whether Johnson had bumped in just a little deep or flinched, his uncharacteristic .009 red-light sent Edwards to the winner's circle for the third time this season and the thirty-first of his NHRA Pro Stock career.
The victory put Edwards a mere six points shy of Pro Stock leader Jason Line, with four events remaining before the NHRA Countdown begins.
"We might walk away with the Wally but Allen Johnson is still the king of this mountain," Edwards said after his victory. "It's so sweet to race up here. The Bandimere Family does such a great job with this track and the Mopar people do just a great job with this race."
The event at Bandimere is only the beginning of the three races in a row with the NHRA teams headed next to Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California for race two and now Edwards with his eye on a sweep.
Darrell Wallace Jr. wins the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race at Columbus Motor Speedway in Ohio
Darrell Wallace Jr. won the inaugural NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race at Columbus Motor Speedway in Ohio and breathed some life into his championship pursuit.
NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Racer Darrell Wallace Jr.
A week after posting one of his worst results in his NASCAR K&N Pro Series East career, Wallace took the lead early in the Jegs 150, at Columbus Motor Speedway, and won his second race of the season.
More importantly, Wallace moved into third place in the East Series standings and closed to 100 points behind series leader Max Gresham.
Wallace was coming off a 30th-place finish at New Hampshire International Speedway on July 15. Gresham, meanwhile, won the race at New Hampshire and built what looked like an insurmountable lead in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East standings.
Gresham finished seventh at Columbus Motor Speedway and saw his lead trimmed a bit. Brett Moffitt was third, his third podium finish in a row, and is second in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East standings, 80 points behind Gresham.
Darrell Wallace took the lead early in the Jegs 150 and won his second race of the season.
Gresham won the pole for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Jegs 150 and led the first 34 laps of the race. Wallace passed Gresham on lap 35 and held the lead for the rest of the race.
Rookie Alex Bowman was the only driver to challenge Wallace for the lead over the second half of the race, but couldn't get passed him.
"Alex Bowman gave me a run for my money there," Wallace said. "He had a good run on me and I just want to thank him so much for running me clean. I got into him at Bowman Gray but we talked about it earlier and it's all good."
Bowman finished second in the race, followed by Moffitt, Matt DiBenedetto and Daniel Suarez, a rookie from Mexico, in fifth. It was the best career NASCAR K&N Pro Series East finish for Suarez.
The Columbus Motor Speedway race Jegs 150 will be broadcast on Speed on Aug. 6 at 6 p.m. ET.
The next NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race is at Greenville Pickens Speedway in South Carolina on Sept. 5.
Belli has raced Pikes Peak three times and has never finished off the podium.
The still icy Colorado Springs air bites hard at 4:30 in the morning as racers prepare for the 89th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on June 26. The world's most famous hill climb event, nicknamed "The Race to the Clouds" broke a bunch of records this year, and may well go down as the most successful of them all since the race began in 1916. On a morning that has even the sun reluctant to emerge from behind the Rocky Mountains, Italy's Marco Belli and his Zaeta ready themselves for their assault up the big dog.
The Zaeta DT 530 continues to gather attention with its impressive showings by Marco Belli at events such as the 2011 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
After all the usual suspects, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Ducati, BMW and all the others, took their runs up the infamous 12.42 mile course to the 14,110-foot summit, it was Belli and his Zaeta DT 530 taking third place in the 750cc class and a remarkable seventh place overall (over 90 motorcycles from 125cc to 1200cc).
"I competed with my own bike, a Zaeta DT 530, which I built by myself," Belli told K&N Race News. "I'm directly involved in Zaeta project, which is a flat-track racing bike, now available on the market." Zaeta also offers a street legal model.
Belli and his Zaeta took third place in the 750cc class, and a remarkable seventh place overall.
The Ouroboros Zaeta is the dirt track bike preferred by Valentino Rossi's son Graziano. It was in fact Graziano and Paolo Chiaia that created the Italian-made 530cc single-cylinder.
"This was my third time at Pikes Peak," Belli said. "In 2007 I got second, and in 2008 I also got third, all in the 750cc class."
Not surprisingly, Belli is a very accomplished flat-track racer, "I won three English National Championships (2005, 2007, 2008), three Italian national titles (2001, 2002, 2010), and two European Mefo Cup (2008, 2010)." Belli has also raced flat-track in the US, "I raced AMA flat-track (amateur and Pro), and I also raced in the Nashville, Tennessee AMA Supermotos one time," the K&N sponsored rider added.
Belli currently leads the Italian Flat-Track Championship. "We have already got three races," Belli says, "And there are four more to finish. When I think about it, I feel like I've always used K&N products. My first bike was a moped 50cc Piaggio, which I learned to tune in my garage, and as I grew up I always thought about replacing every stock filter with K&N's."
Allen Johnson grabbed his second pole in a row at Bandimere Speedway
It certainly wasn't easy and didn't come right out of the box, but NHRA Pro Stock Driver Allen Johnson showed during the second day of qualifying during the Mopar NHRA Mile High Nationals, that he and his team have got what it takes for high-altitude tuning when they grabbed their second pole in a row at the event.
NHRA Pro Stock Driver Allen Johnson at Mopar NHRA Mile High Nationals
Pro Stock qualifying for the Bandimere Speedway event was dominated during the first day of activities by eventual event champion, K&N's Mike Edwards after he made the quickest passes of both sessions one and two to hang on to the number one position, at least overnight. Johnson struggled during the first session, pushing the clutch in early and coasted to a 9.249. In session two, Johnson and his team looked more like themselves when they made a serious threat to steal away the number one from Edwards, but they would have to wait until Saturday to make that happen.
Saturday was a whole new ballgame for the driver from Tennessee. During the third session, Johnson jumped up to grab the number one spot, just edging Edwards by five thousandths of a second, with his 6.983. And he and his Mopar sponsored Dodge Avenger weren't finished just yet.
With an adjusted altitude of nearly ten thousand feet, these naturally aspirated Pro Stock engines don't have a whole lot of 'air' to work with and their performance is affected much more than the nitro classes. Johnson and his team still had a few tricks up their sleeve thanks to the extensive testing they have conducted in these conditions and it truly showed in the fourth and final session.
As the pairings go in professional qualifying, Johnson and Edwards were one and two on the sheet coming into the final session and would run each other as the final pair. Edwards made a good run and picked up another two-thousandths, but it would be Johnson making the biggest leap and jockeyed back to the back to the pole that V. Gaines tried to take away in the pair just prior.
"We've tested a lot at this track the last few years and have built up a lot of very valuable data that has contributed to our success," he noted after qualifying was completed on Saturday. "We feel that this is our race, and we do everything we can to perform at our very best level. Tomorrow's conditions should be very similar to what we had today, and we actually left a little bit on the table on that 6.97 run. So there's a chance that we could improve slightly during Sunday's eliminations."
While the number one qualifier was the first for Johnson since the points were reset for the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge just three races ago at Norwalk, it was his second of the season, seventeenth of his career, not to mention his third at this very event. With the Denver number one, Johnson acquired the maximum qualifying points of one-hundred and seventy-five, along with the widely appreciated $3,000 low-qualifier bonus check from K&N Engineering.
"You get better with every run. Hopefully you improve with every run. Dad tunes these Hemi engines better with every run. It's a progression. It isn't that we are pulling a rabbit out of the hat, we're just getting better," said Johnson.
It's still anyone's game for the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge, but each driver takes each and every race as serious as the next. With a $50,000 payday for the Challenge Champion, the biggest single day payout for any NHRA professional category, each qualifying point is precious to guarantee one's spot in the elite eight. Currently, Erica Enders sits at number one with Jason Line behind fifteen points at number two and Mike Edwards, Greg Anderson and Allen Johnson wrapping up the top five.
The Bandimere event kicked off the "Western Swing", a three race in a row portion of the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle schedule. Next the team's head to Infineon Raceway, in Sonoma, California before wrapping up the "Swing" the following week in Seattle, Washington.
