M4 SportbikeTrackGear.com Suzuki’s David Anthony underlined his status as a Supersport class frontrunner this weekend as the 2015 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Championship brought the nation’s best road racers back to Virginia International Raceway for the first time in a half decade.
Following a pair of largely wet weekends to kick off the season, the weekend’s activities at VIR were instead soaked in sun. The upturn in conditions did nothing to upset Anthony’s outstanding early-season form, however, as the Australian continually ranked near the top of the charts.
Anthony put the M4 SportbikeTrackGear.com Suzuki GSX-R600 second provisionally on Friday before locking down the fourth spot on the grid in final qualifying in Saturday. He then used that launching position to twice engage in hard-fought battles for podium positions, coming up a combined 0.203-second short of a earning a pair of top-3 results.
Saturday’s last-lap duel was decided by 0.200-second while Sunday’s was determined by a scant 0.003-second, as Anthony ultimately furthered his season-long run of top fives with two fourth-place results in Alton, Virginia. He now sits fourth in the standings with 66 points to his credit on the strength of a third, a fifth, and three fourths.
“Everything went really smooth right from the start of the weekend,” Anthony said. “I don’t think I even had to change a clicker on the suspension. All through practice and qualifying, we were up at the pointy end, so I knew we would be there in the races.
“In the first race, I fell a little bit back but was able to charge back up and just missed out on third. And on Sunday, it was another big battle. We went back-and-forth on the last lap, and there was some contact. We ended up just thousandths away from a podium again.”
The early-season success has Anthony seeking even loftier heights. “Going into the VIR weekend, it was the first time I honestly believed I could win, and the weekend only increased my confidence. We’re on the upswing and we’re looking to continue to build from here. Race wins are the goal this year.”
David Anthony and the M4 SportbikeTrackGear.com Suzuki crew will be back in action in two weeks as the 2015 MotoAmerica Championship will next head to Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, on May 29-31.
