Under the Kawasaki Tent

Hard to Grasp
When the race ended Saturday afternoon, the Attack boys were sitting with an impressive second and third-place finish. At about 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time, the team was notified by the AMA that the race winner was disqualified. This put Davies and Rapp on the top two steps of the podium.

“I didn’t believe it at first,” said Davies. “I thought Richard was joking but then I started getting more and more phone calls and I kind of started thinking it was true. Its still hard to accept since the other team will most likely fight it, but once its official I think it will start settling in.”

We Race to Race
Rapp was obviously excited to move up a spot to second-place, but he expressed that he is a racer and would have loved to have been able to race to that finish.

“It’s not exactly how I would want win or move up to a better spot,” said Rapp. “I’m a racer and generally racers want to go out there to try and finish their very best. Of course I’m happy to finish second. If we look past this race, it will definitely help us in the chase for the championship.”

Two for Two
For the second-straight year, Attack Kawasaki swept the top-two spots in the prestigious Daytona 200.

“I know our team is capable of this as we showed last year,” said Team Manager Richard Stamboli. “This is obviously huge and shows we are just as talented and ready to win the championship this year.”

Pit Stops
The Daytona 200 is the only race on the AMA Superbike circuit that requires pit stops. With the exception of two people, the Attack Kawasaki crew was completely new. The crew could breathe a small sigh of relief since the team was under the experience of Team Manager Richard Stamboli.

Delays
When the teams arrived to the track on Saturday, they were met with incredibly high winds that eventually forced the rescheduling of the AMA Superbike race and caused a shortened time period between the practice session for the Daytona 200 and the race.

Last Minute Repairs
During the 20 minute warm-up before the Daytona 200, Rapp experienced a minor crash. Since the practice session was delayed, the crew had very little time to fix what they needed. In less than an hour, they had the bike ready to finish on the podium.

Getting in the Zone
Davies waits in the pit area for the start of the Daytona 200. He remains extremely calm and focused prior to one of the biggest motorcycle races in the world.

Finally Racing
Unlike last year and much of his career, Hacking is only racing in the AMA Superbike class. He had a great start and was able to hang on for a top-five finish.

“I was really happy with my start,” said Hacking. “I’m not extremely happy with the result but it is definitely better than last year where I crashed out of the race, right out of the gate.”

Nursing the Arm
After crashing on Thursday during the superbike qualifying session, Hayden continued to race through the injury. Following a mid-pack start, he kept up the pace and finished in eighth.

“It took me awhile to get going and once I did I was pretty far back,” said Hayden. “Once I got in a rhythm, I started picking people off. I actually followed my brother for most of the race and he was able to pull me along. I got a finish here which is more than I can say for the last two years, so that’s always good.”

Late Start, Missed Flights
The high winds that came in overnight to the Daytona International Speedway caused the postponement of the AMA Superbike race. Not only was the superbike race rescheduled, the Hayden family had to change their flights since they missed their evening flight back to Owensboro, Ky.

AMA Superbike Series
Daytona International Speedway - Daytona Beach, Fla.
March 8, 2008

AMA Formula Xtreme Series
1. CHAZ DAVIES, KNIGHTON, UK, ATTACK KAWASAKI
2. STEVE RAPP, MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIF., ATTACK KAWASAKI
3. Larry Pegram, Pataskala, Ohio, Ducati
4. Martin Cardenas, Medellin, Columbia, Suzuki
5. Richard Cooper, BMW
6. Brian Parriott, Calistoga, Calif., BMW
7. Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Suzuki
8. Bostjan Skubic, Ljubljana, Slovenia, Yamaha
9. Steve Atlas, Irvine, Calif., Honda
10. FERNANDO AMANTINI, CARACAS, KAWASAKI

AMA Formula Xtreme Points Standings
1. CHAZ DAVIES, KNIGHTON, U.K., ATTACK KAWASAKI, 37
2. STEVE RAPP, MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIF., ATTACK KAWASAKI, 32
3. Larry Pegram, Pataskala, Ohio, Ducati, 29
4. Martin Cardenas, Medellin, Columbia, Suzuki, 27
5. Richard Cooper, BMW, 26
6. Brian Parriott, Calistoga, Calif., BMW, 25
7. Bobby Fong, Stockton, Calif., Suzuki, 24
8. Bostjan Skubic, Ljubljana, Slovenia, Yamaha, 23
9. Steve Atlas, Irvine, Calif., Honda, 22
10. FERNANDO AMANTINI, CARACAS, KAWASAKI, 21

AMA Superbike Class
1. Matthew Mladin, Henderson, Nev., Suzuki
2. Ben Spies, Longview, Texas, Suzuki
3. Jason Disalvo, Stafford, N.Y., Yamaha
4. Tommy Hayden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki
5. JAMIE HACKING, DENVER, N.C., MONSTER ENERGY KAWASAKI
6. Aaron Yates, Milledgeville, Ga., Suzuki
7. Neil Hodgson, Isle of Man, UK, Honda
8. ROGER HAYDEN, OWENSBORO, KY., MONSTER ENERGY KAWASAKI
9. Blake Young, Waunakee, Wisc., Suzuki
10. Geoff May, Gainesville, Ga., Suzuki

AMA Superbike Points Standings
1. Matthew Mladin, Henderson, Nev., Suzuki, 38
2. Ben Spies, Longview, Texas, Suzuki, 32
3. Jason Disalvo, Stafford, N.Y., Yamaha, 29
4. Tommy Hayden, Owensboro, Ky., Suzuki, 27
5. JAMIE HACKING, DENVER, N.C., MONSTER ENERGY KAWASAKI, 26
6. Aaron Yates, Milledgeville, Ga., Suzuki, 25
7. Neil Hodgson, Isle of Man, UK, Honda, 24
8. ROGER HAYDEN, OWENSBORO, KY., MONSTER ENERGY KAWASAKI, 23
9. Blake Young, Waunakee, Wisc., Suzuki, 22
10. Geoff May, Gainesville, Ga., Suzuki, 21