BREA, CA, September 24, 2023 — Suzuki Motor USA and Team Hammer emerged victorious despite inclement weather at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Saturday, with Tyler Scott earning his fourth MotoAmerica Supersport victory of 2023 in difficult wet conditions.
Race Highlights:
- Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki
- Supersport
- Tyler Scott won his fourth MotoAmerica Supersport race of the year with a great ride in the wet.
- Teagg Hobbs earned 8th and picked up valuable wet racing experience.
- Superbike
- Richie Escalante had a difficult race but managed to finish 11th.
- Brandon Paasch crashed out of fifth position but is looking forward to Sunday’s race.
- Supersport
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Tyler Scott (70) fought to another victory on Saturday, eventually earning the win in brutal wind and rain. While several riders showed quick pace, the relentless Scott had a great start from pole and remained a factor throughout with a calculated performance. The Pennsylvanian avoided falling while maintaining his speed, managing a narrow lead, and earning the win despite pressure from rivals throughout the entire race.
Scott gained his fourth win and eleventh podium of his ‘23 campaign aboard the next-generation Suzuki GSX-R750. The proven GSX-R750 once again made up 50% of the top ten finish positions in Supersport.
“The whole race was really on the edge,” said the 17-year-old Scott, who started from pole. “I was passed early, and the leader was starting to get away, so I really started to push under braking and acceleration, using everything I had. I had a few moments and decided to keep a safer pace and maintain second. The leader unfortunately made a mistake in Turn 10 and ended up on the ground.”
Scott may have regained the lead in the middle stages of the race, but the action was far from over as several riders managed to set the fastest lap during the race. None, however, would pass Scott, who won by 0.206 after 14 laps. After winning races with last-lap heroics or dictating the pace from the front, the young rider added a strategic, victory in tough rainy conditions to his list of accomplishments.
“We were in the race lead, but I wanted to keep pushing the pace,” Scott continued. “I knew everyone else may have caught up if I wasn’t pushing. The track conditions got worse, lap-by-lap. The whole Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki team has done a great job. I’m happy with my Suzuki and happy with the team. It’s cold and rainy, but I’m thrilled to see everyone here.”
Teagg Hobbs (79) was eighth in the race, with the young rider unable to find the podium form he has shown numerous times in his first year with the Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki team.
“It was a long race. I had an okay start, but I didn’t have any confidence to push my pace the way I wanted to, given the rainy conditions,” said Hobbs. “This track in the rain is a tough one. It was important to make sure we finished, and we’ll see how things are for tomorrow.”
After scoring his first Superbike podium at the previous event in Texas, Richie Escalante set his sights on a career-first premier-class victory in New Jersey. Escalante started his race in fourth on his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R1000R but fell back at the start and was never able to find his usual place near the front, finishing 11th.
“I want to finish the year strong. The first day, the bike was amazing and then the rain came,” Escalante said. “The rain is difficult for me. I needed more laps, and the conditions were windy and cold. My confidence was not good. We made progress and by the end, we had our fastest laps. I think we may make more progress tomorrow. We will seek more improvements to the bike and give it another shot. I am sorry to my team for not being more competitive, but I was happy to finish the race without destroying the bike, and I feel we improved. Looking to the future, you must be competitive in all conditions, so this is on my list. I want to be a Superbike champion, and know I need to improve my performance in the wet.”
Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki Superbike pilot Brandon Paasch (96) sought to make his mark in the wet race on his GSX-R1000R. Paasch entered the contest with eight top-ten results in ten attempts with the team and looked to earn his fourth top-five, but Paasche crashed out while running fifth late in the race.
Paasch said, “I got up to fifth on the start and tangled with another rider. I lost a lot of ground and wasn’t really able to make it up. I was stuck back in fifth or sixth. I was hoping to be in a good spot at the end and, as other riders had trouble, the race started coming back to me. I knew if I started to push, we might be able to get a good result. Then I hit a bad puddle, the bike hydroplaned, and it sent me to the moon.”
Paasch said he would race on Sunday, despite being sore from the shunt.
The 2023 MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship season will conclude on Sunday at New Jersey Motorsports Park, in Millville, New Jersey.
