Race Highlights:
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki
- Superbike
- Xavi Forés was fast in all conditions, taking the GSX-R1000R to third in the wet and seventh in the dry.
- Brandon Paasch charged from outside the top 20 to finish inside the top ten.
- Supersport
- Tyler Scott fought back to claim a podium after missing out Saturday due to electrical issues.
- Teagg Hobbs finished sixth on Saturday, less than four tenths removed from fourth.
- Joel Ohman continued to learn as he measured himself against the nation’s top pro racers in the wet and dry.
Reigning Supersport champion Xavi Forés (34) demonstrated his world-class skills as he continued to adapt to the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R. On Saturday, Forés utilized his wet weather experience to secure a podium finish in third. He came back Sunday to charge as high as fifth in the dry before fading to seventh late.
Xavi Forés (34) earned his first MotoAmerica Superbike podium at The Ridge.
Forés’ Saturday podium saw him become the first rider to earn podium finishes in MotoAmerica Superbike, World Superbike, British Superbike, and the IDM German Superbike championship.
“Overall, we made good steps forward with the bike this weekend,” said Forés. “I felt strong on my Suzuki in the wet and the dry. We are now much closer to the top guys, and hope to use the data we’ve gained to continue to close that gap. I used my experience in the weather to choose the tires Saturday and that paid off. I initially attempted to fight for the win, but I had to take too many risks and I wanted to bring the bike home with a podium. This is a nice achievement, and I’m happy.”
Brandon Paasch (96) ran off track on the opening lap of Saturday’s wet Superbike contest, but still managed to slash his way up from 24th to finish ninth aboard the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R in the short, eight-lap race. Paasch came back Sunday to earn a top-ten result in the dry as well, making a pass on the final lap to claim tenth.
Brandon Paasch (96) earned two top-ten results using an all-new setup.
Paasch said, “We had two top ten results and didn’t crash, so the weekend went pretty well. On Saturday, I was bumped off my line and ended up last by 30 seconds, but came back to ninth. The conditions and my lack of patience caught me out from getting an even better result. In the dry race on Sunday, we tried an all-new setup on the bike and l learned a lot about what I want from a bike. We had a good battle for tenth with a quality rider, and I feel good about the result. We’re still improving, and I want to earn a podium. It’s going to be challenging, but we can do it.”
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott (70) joined Forés in claiming a top-three finish on the weekend, racing the next-generation Suzuki GSX-R750 to the box on Sunday afternoon. The result came as vindication after leading Saturday’s Race 1 and racing in the podium mix before an issue forced him down to eighth in a contest waged in the rain. Scott fought back on Sunday to take a scrapping third under ideal, sunny conditions.
Tyler Scott (70) put the Suzuki GSX-R750 on the podium in Washington, the team’s second podium of the weekend.Teammate Teagg Hobbs (79), meanwhile, enjoyed a better day on Saturday. The Supersport pilot earned a hard-fought sixth aboard his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R750 on Saturday after fighting in a three-rider battle for fourth. He came back Sunday to narrowly miss out on the top ten, losing a position on the final lap to come home in 11th.
Teagg Hobbs (79) ran hard all weekend, finishing sixth on Saturday and 11th on Sunday.
Hobbs said, “It was not good for us. Race 1 was okay, and I missed the ball on the setup today. It made for the roughest race of the year. We’ll go to Laguna and use the setup we had when I did well there last year and have a better idea.”
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s third Supersport runner, Joel Ohman (92), showed continued improvement, learning with every session both in the wet and the dry conditions.
Joel Ohman (92) continues his progression in the competitive Supersport class.
“I think we had a positive weekend,” Ohman said. “I felt this was the best setup for me yet this season, and I did a personal best in qualifying by 0.7 at my home track. We were able to identify the areas I need to improve in to gain more speed, and we have a good direction. The team had made some crew changes before the race with some additional help, and it went well. Race 1 was what we wanted. Race 2, I didn’t have as good of a start, but I learned a lot as I got laps in. I feel we’re making forward progress.”
The Suzuki road race teams now head to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, in Monterey, California, on July 12-14, for the next round of the 2024 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship.
For Suzuki road racing news, results, and team updates, visit suzukicycles.com/racing/road-racing. For more information and updates on Team Hammer, visit teamhammer.com.
Photos By Brian J. Nelson
ABOUT TEAM HAMMER
The 2024 season marks Team Hammer's 44th consecutive year of operating as a professional road racing team. Racebikes built and fielded by Team Hammer have won over 130 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National races, have finished on AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National podiums over 360 times, and have won 11 AMA Pro and MotoAmerica National Championships, as well as two FIM South American Championships (in Superbike and Supersport). The team has also won over 130 endurance races overall (including seven 24-hour races) and 13 overall WERA National Endurance Championships with Suzuki motorcycles, and holds the U.S. record for mileage covered in a 24-hour race. The team also competed in the televised 1990s Formula USA National Championship, famously running "Methanol Monster" GSX-R1100 Superbikes fueled by methanol, and won four F-USA Championships.
ABOUT VISION WHEEL
Founded in 1976, Vision Wheel is one of the nation’s leading providers of custom wheels for cars and trucks, and one of the first manufacturers of custom wheels and tires for ATVs, UTVs, and golf carts. Vision Wheel looks beyond the current trends and to the future in developing, manufacturing, and distributing its wheels. Vision’s lines of street, race, off-road, American Muscle, and Milanni wheels are distributed nationally and internationally through a trusted network of distributors. Vision Wheel also produces the Vision It AR app to allow users to see how their wheel of choice will look on their vehicle before purchase and installation. For more information on Vision Wheel, visit www.visionwheel.com.
