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M4 Suzuki>> DISALVO AND M4 SUZUKI EARN SECOND IN VIRGINIA RACE ONE

August 19 2009

 
Team M4 Suzuki came back strong on Saturday at Virginia International Raceway, putting in a pair of spirited rides to collect another AMA Pro Daytona SportBike podium finish and remain squarely in the class championship hunt.

Jason DiSalvo sliced his way up through the field to battle for the win right to the checkered flag, while Martin Cardenas put in a brave ride to finish in the top ten after breaking his right hand on Friday.

After starting from ninth due to his Superpole crash, DiSalvo actually finished the opening lap in tenth following a moment just after the start. However, he put his head down and quickly closed on the huge pack contesting the lead.

The superior speed the New Yorker had shown on his Suzuki GSX-R600 during practice and Basic Qualifying on Friday allowed him to work his way up through the battle and claim the lead as the laps wound down.

In the end, the race evolved into a two-rider showdown with Josh Herrin for victory with Jason just coming up short on a drafting maneuver that would have secured his his first win of the season following a thrilling final lap in which the lead was traded back-and-forth three times.

DiSalvo took the runner-up position a scant 0.010 seconds off the win.

"It was just incredible. To come up from tenth and race for the win was something," Jason said. "It took me a little while to catch those guys because there was a bit of a gap to the front train. Once I got to the pack I just started picking them off one at a time. My bike felt really good; it was really stable on the brakes. It was slippery out there and we were sliding around a good bit at the end. It really took a lot to ride the bike at the end of the race.

"I was strong up in the last section and I thought I might have had the race won, but I left the door open a little bit. I didn't think he'd try to make a pass there because I've been the fastest guy into that corner by a good bit but I should have protected a little more.

"I didn't know if I was going to be able to get him back at the flag. It was close. It was good though. A lot of things went my way in that race, and I put in some good moves and lappers worked in my favor. It paid off pretty good for us. We'll come back tomorrow and try to do one better."

Meanwhile, Cardenas gritted his teeth to pick up a strong ninth-place finish after Friday fears that he may be unable to ride this weekend following his morning fall.

The Colombian kept his title rival, Danny Eslick, firmly in his sights, and only finished two spots behind him to minimize the championship damage.

He now sits second in the Daytona SportBike title hunt, just two points out of the lead.

"I think that was the best I could do today and it was a good result considering the circumstances," Cardenas remarked. "I think I rode well and Danny only finished two positions ahead of me. We'll try to do the same tomorrow or even a little bit better.

"Honestly, the hand was not too painful but it forces me to ride different. I can't push on the outside of my hand so it's very difficult to brake and changing direction is difficult as well. It's costing me a little bit of time, but that's the way it is.

"Physically it was tough too because it was very hot and I couldn't use my hand 100% so I had to compensate with my feet and my other hand. It was kind of difficult."

Team M4 Suzuki will be back in action tomorrow at Virginia International Raceway looking to add to their 2009 trophy haul and championship aspirations.

M4 Suzuki is sponsored by Hotbodies Racing and uses our windscreens and bodywork on all of their bikes. Hotbodies Racing specializes in manufacturing high-performance parts for high-performance sportbikes, and is the North American distribution of KR Tuned performance parts. Hotbodies Racing is the market leader in Undertails, Huggers, Windscreens, Flush-Mount Signals, Megaphone Exhausts and full-race Bodywork. Hotbodies Racing supports the sport with sponsorship around the world and encourages dealer and distributor inquiries. For more information visit: www.HOTBODIESRACING.com.