Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki rider Aaron Yates earned his third Superbike podium of the 2007 season in the finale of the AMA Superbike championship series at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Yates, who finished third, bettered his fourth place, front row starting position after qualifying his Suzuki GSX-R1000 in a time of 1:24.267. This was Yates’ fifth front row start for the Jordan Suzuki team in the series premier Superbike class.
Yates, who joined Jordan Suzuki at the start of this season’s 19 race AMA Superbike series, has been instrumental in helping the team develop its Superbike program. “It’s what I like to do, ” stated Yates. “I like changing stuff, making it better and I’ve spent a lot of time with a factory team, so I know what they are doing over there. I think I brought some information to the Jordan team, along with having the knowledge of what works well on a motorcycle. ” Jordan Suzuki recently announced that Yates has renewed his contract for the 2008 season.
In July at Laguna Seca, the Jordan Suzuki team participated in an abbreviated AMA class schedule alongside the U. S. Grand Prix (MotoGP), competing only in Sunday’s 28-lap (100K) Superbike event. At that time, Yates earned the team its first AMA Superbike podium with a third place finish. Yates later earned a second podium in the premier class at Virginia International Raceway with another third place finish. Yates entered this weekend with a five-point deficit for third place in the overall championship points. Sunday’s strong finish moved him within three points of third place, yielding him the highest finish for a privateer rider in over 10 years.
”There are a lot of things that affect the way a bike goes around a track: temperature, fuel load etc., so we have some challenges to work on in the off season, ” commented Yates. “We need to work on making the bike as strong at the end as it is in the start of a race. If we do, we’ll definitely have something for those others guys next year. ”
This was the last weekend of AMA Superbike road racing, concluding the 11 stop race series at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Racing resumes March 5-8, 2008 at Daytona International Speedway.
Legendary NBA star Michael Jordan formed Michael Jordan Motorsports in 2004 as a result of his passion for motorcycle racing. His mission is to bring a new level of excellence and style to the motorcycle racing industry.
| 
|