The pace was hectic with an all-new two-day format, but JD Beach continued to make progress in his debut MotoAmerica Superbike season, finishing fourth in a challenging race one on Saturday, May 4, at VIRginia International Raceway.
Although Beach didn’t get his signature holeshot in the race, he was right there in the mix of the lead group aboard his Attack Performance Estenson Racing Yamaha YZF-R1. It was a battle for fourth with the dirt track/road racer ultimately losing position, albeit not far behind the “Factory Four”. The heat of the afternoon made for some challenging conditions but he put his head down and kept it. Around lap eight, Beach was able to retake fourth and hold onto it to score his fourth top-five finish in 2019.
While the weather forecast looks ominous for tomorrow’s race two at VIR, Beach and the team look to continue their forward progress rain or shine.
JD Beach – MotoAmerica Superbike #95:
“It was a crazy day because we were on track four times. It was real packed, but it ended up being a good day. We started out quick. The bike was good. I think for the race we struggled a little bit with the front tire. I don’t know if it was the setup we had or if it was just the track temp coming up a lot for the race. It’s kind of hard to say. I was struggling a lot. I felt like I was going to lose the front at every turn. It made for a tough race. We closed the gap a little bit to the front guys, but not as much as I would have liked. Every time we get on the bike and every race we do, we’re getting quicker and we’re getting closer. We’re definitely moving forward. We just have some more work to do, but I think the steps that we are taking are good.
“Wet or dry tomorrow, I don’t really care. I think the little bit of time that we’ve had on the bike in the wet, the bike felt great. For me, I prefer to race in the dry just because it’s a little bit more fun, but if it’s wet, dry, it doesn’t matter. We’ve got to race either way, so it’ll be fine.”
MotoAmerica Superbike race two at VIR will be aired on FS2 Sunday, May 5 at 6:30 p.m. ET. You can also stream all the action live on MotoAmerica Live+ starting at 10:15 a.m. ET.
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