KNAPP DOUBLES UP AMA SUPERPOLES

Eslick Qualifies 14th in Daytona SportBike

Millville, NJ (Sept. 4, 2009) Latus Motors Racing's Taylor Knapp became just the second rider in AMA Pro Racing competition this season to qualify for Superpole in both the American Superbike and Daytona SportBike classes at the same event Friday at New Jersey Motorsports Park.

Riding the new 1125RR in the American Superbike qualifying session, Knapp set a 1:22.866 lap time to qualify ninth for Saturday and Sunday's double-header races. Less than a half hour later, he switched mounts to his Latus Motors Buell 1125R and ran a 1.24.510 to qualify seventh in the Daytona SportBike class. Factory Yamaha rider Ben Bostrom earlier achieved the rare feat at the season opener in Daytona.

"It meant a lot to put both bikes in Superpole. It was definitely cool, and it's good for Buell," Knapp said. "In [Daytona] SportBike I came into Superpole in ninth and came out in seventh, so I made some ground up and we're solid for tomorrow."

"It's hard," Knapp said about running back to back races in both classes, as he's done for most of the season. "I've just got to go all out in race one, but I don't want to conserve anything for the second race. I've got a little bit of a break to clear my head, and then go all out again. When I'm done I'm beat, but that's the only option."

Knapp nearly missed making the 10-rider Superpole shootout in Daytona SportBike after crashing early in the Basic Qualifying session.

"I went out in Daytona SportBike and I thought I was still on that Superbike, but the tires were not quite as good," Knapp said. "My mind was still in the slicks mode, so I just threw it in there a little too early and tucked the front. We had to get the backup bike and luckily that was all ready to go."

Knapp was joined in the American Superbike Superpole session by Cory West, who is racing a Buell 1125RR for the first time this weekend. West qualified a position ahead of Knapp in eighth with a 1:22.649.

"I got to ride yesterday for the promoter practice, and came to grips pretty quick with the race track. We started throwing good tires on it this morning and got down to some pretty decent lap times and managed to get it into Superpole. Everybody's real happy and I'm glad that me and Taylor both could get into the top ten."

Despite having his fastest lap disallowed in Basic Qualifying for passing the pace bike on track at the start of the session, Bruce Rossmeyer's Daytona Racing/RMR/GEICO Powersports rider Danny Eslick, who qualified 14th, saw his chances of winning the 2009 AMA Pro Racing Daytona SportBike championship improve with the unexpected withdrawal of his main rival, Team M4 Suzuki's Martin Cardenas, who trailed him by 17 points coming into the weekend.

Cardenas, who broke his right hand last month in practice at the AMA Pro Race at Virginia International Raceway, practiced on Friday but withdrew from the weekend's event mid-way through the qualify session citing pain and danger of infection in his unhealed hand. Eslick's closest remaining challenger, Graves Yamaha's Josh Herrin, who lies 36 points back, qualified third on Friday.

In other qualifying results Friday, Eslick's teammate Michael Barnes qualified his GEICO Powersports/RMR Buell 1125R in 25th in Daytona SportBike Basic Qualifying, while Bartels' H-D/Buell/Higbee-racing.com's Shawn Higbee qualified 22nd in American Superbike. In Moto-GT, the James Gang/Hoban Brothers Racing team of Paul James and Shawn Higbee qualified in fourth position in the Moto-GT1 class, followed by the Liberty Waves/H-D/Buell of Antelope Valley squad of Eric Pinson and Eric Haugo in sixth. In Moto-GT2, the Old Glory H-D/Buell team of Jaycent Gebers and Dennie Huff qualified seventh.

Founded by visionary motorcycle designer and former privateer racer Erik Buell in 1983, Buell Motorcycle Company, a subsidiary of Harley-Davidson, Inc., produces sport motorcycles, motorcycle parts, accessories and apparel, including the 1125R superbike, 1125CR cafe racer, and air-cooled XB-series Ulysses, Firebolt, and Lightning. To learn more about Buell motorcycles, or to locate the dealer nearest you, log onto www.buell.com