Bauman Wins Race, Mees Takes Crown as Lawrence just missed the main in opening night Short Track action in Las Vegas
Twenty year old Brian Bauman of Salinas, Ca took his second career National victory in the final AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National of the season, piloting his Honda for a green lights to chequered flag win in Harley-Davidson GNC1 class action, presented by Vance and Hines, at the Orleans Casino in Las Vegas on Friday night, November 20.
Unretired 47 year old Joe Kopp of Mica, WA made his sole start of the AMA Pro National Dirt Track season a success, the Triumph Team Manager piloting a unique Husqvarna FC450 to a solid second In what turned out to be a somewhat processional race around the very dusty, tenth of a mile oval, Bauman took control early and was never seriously challenged.
In what turned out to be a somewhat processional race around the very dusty, tenth of a mile oval, Bauman took control early and was never seriously challenged.
Recently crowned Flat Track Canada National Champ Doug Lawrence got a poor start in his heat race, number five of six, but managed to work his way up to place a respectable third. That result moved Lawrence onto the front row of the crowed 12 rider Semi race, and the Champ needed to place in the top two to make it to the main.
While Lawrence again moved through the field, it wasn’t enough to earn him a spot in the 12 rider Main event. Instead, Lawrence’s moved on to the GNC1 “B Main,” and after a rough start, he worked his way up to net sixth. Due to the very short track length and small Feature field, the top four riders in the “B Main” were awarded National points, so Lawrence more or less wound up just short of Qualifying for the National.
“The track slowed down a lot, we changed the gearing, we were trying to work it,” explained Lawrence post racing. “My races went Ok, but just Ok – positioning is everything. The track was getting rutted, and you really needed to hit things straight, and when you’re in traffic, that’s hard to do.”
Lawrence will return to the same tenth of a mile, custom designed dirt oval tomorrow, since the Northern National Champ earned an invitation to take part in the first ever Superprestigio of the Americas. This unique event, based on a recent Spanish format, has a ladder system for flat track stars and a separate series of qualifying and heats for non-dirt trackers, leading to a combined “world” final.
Third overall in the main belonged to Jared Mees, the popular Clio, MI racer having earlier in the evening clinched his second straight, and third Grand National career, overall National Title.
“Some of the best laps I did all night were in the final,” smiled the victor. “I made a few mistakes, but I did well when it counted, I did well with the lapped traffic. I’m really excited that this result gets me in tomorrow’s race.”
Photos by Colin Fraser
Kopp explained that “I came here to have fun, I’m not really racing for a paycheck anymore. It was my only outing of the year with these guys, and I wanted to make it count. The Husky worked really well, it was just awesome. Maybe now the Promoter will invite me to ride in the Superprestigo tomorrow!”
Mees admitted that it was nice that the title battle pressure was diminished after arch rivals Bryan Smith and Kenny Coolbeth fell during Semi qualifying action, ending their chances for the crown. However Mees “came up a little short, Bauman split so quick, and it took me about five laps to get down to the bottom (racing line), really get into the groove.”
“It was really backyard racing, so I built a track in my backyard to get ready,” stated Mees, who trained with several other Pros, including Lawrence. “It really was lots of fun preparing for this race. But my biggest fear was what happened to (title rival) Bryan, and I’ve been there racing little tracks, on concrete, on ice.”
“It’s great to finish up the year with the number one plate, we only got the one win, but we were always competitive, and consistency is what gets you Championships. Consistency pays off.”
Sponsorship for the Lawrence Racing 2015 AMA Pro effort comes from John Briggs Motorsports, Town Moto, Brooklin Cycle Racing, Jon Castin, Triple J Racing, American Harley-Davidson, Arai, Troy Lee Design, SIDI boots, Motion Pro, West Coast Hot Shoes, Works Connection, Klotz, Saddlemen and JS Marketing.
