2010 rockstar makita suzuki road racing team media kit

8/13/2019 2010 Rockstar Makita Suzuki Road Racing Team Media Kit

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2010ROADRACING

MEDIAKIT

CONTACTINFORMATIONAcorn Woods CommunicationsCassandra [email protected]

American Suzuki Motor Corp.Pat Alexander

714.996.7040

[email protected]


2/11

Rockstar Makita SuzukiRacing is readyto carry its championship momentum

into the 2010 season. The team has the

advantage of the race-winning GSX-R1000,

talented riders, and a tireless crew who are

masters of keeping the machines running at

optimum performance. The fact that theyve won

seven consecutive Superbike championships is a

testament to the teams dedication to winning.

Tommy Hayden

Two-time AMA SupersportChampion Tommy Hayden

returns to Rockstar Makita Suzuki for 2010 in the Pro

American Superbike class. Hayden, whos 31 years old,

won the AMA Supersport Championship two years in

a row, in 2004 and 2005. In 2009, Hayden had his best

showing in the AMA Pro Superbike class, finishing third

overall and making it to the podium in half t he races of

the season. Hayden finished 8th overall in the 2008, and

raced both Superbike and Supersport at the start of

that season.

Blake Young

Blake Young is readyto launch his second ye ar on theRockstar Makita Suzuki Racing team following a great

2009 rookie season in which he proved his position

among the top road racers in the nation in the AMA

Pro Superbike series. Young was on the podium four

times in 2009, taking the second spot three t imes. He

showed the world the speed and talent he possesses

and how he earned a spot in the premier Superbike

class and onthe Rockstar Makita Suzuki Racing team.

The 22-year-old Young is working with 2009 Superbike

Champion Mat Mladins Crew Chief Peter Doyle, and

together theyre aiming for the top spot.


3/11

SUZUKI AND YOSHIMURATOGETHER ON THE TRACK

Suzuki and Yoshimura have been very

successful partners in racing for over thirty

years. What started out as a small program

for Yoshimura to develop some racing

engines for Suzuki has turned into arguablythe most dominant partnership in American

road racing history.

Suzuki started racing in Japan in the

1950s. However, in the 60s, Suzuki really hit

its stride at races such as the venerable Isle

Of Man TT. Success came quickly for Suzuki

with numerous titles and race wins in all

categories. It was clear to the enthusiast

that Suzuki engineering was being validated

with race wins. In the 1970s, Suzuki formed

an alliance with Hideo Pops Yoshimura anda new dynasty was formed in road r acing.

Pops was truly one of the pioneers of AMA

Superbike racing. In fact, many claim that

he is one of the founders. Yoshimura and

Suzuki were winners from the beginning and

soon to become one of the most successful

teams in the history o f U.S. Superbike

racing, winning a record number of AMA

road racing title s. Yoshimura and Suzuki

were also winning championships in the

Japanese Superbike Championships, and the

prestigious Suzuka Eight Hour event. It wasclear that the team of Suzuki and Yoshimura

worked, and worked well. The combination

of great Suzuki products, engineering, and

performance c ombined with Yoshimuras

ability to field a competitive team meant

trouble for everyone else in the paddock.

Amidst this environment, production-

based motorcycle racing exploded. Club

racing was huge and business was good

for both Suzuki and Yoshimura. The first

GS750s came out in 1978 and Suzuki and

Yoshimura started racing and winning on

them right away. Steve McLaughlin won

the Daytona Superbike race on a Yoshimura

Suzuki. The next year, Yoshimura riders

Ron Pierce, Wes Cooley and David Emde

finished one-two-three at Daytona, marking

the first time a single team had sweptthe podium in an AM A Superbike national.

Yoshimura Suzukis won four straight

Daytona Superbike races from 1978 to 1981.

Yoshimura also found the time to prepare

racers for the Suzuka Eight Hour. In 1978,

Wes Cooley and Mike Baldwin won the

inaugural Suzuka Eight Hour on a Yoshimura

Suzuki. The race would become the most

prestigious single event in Superbike racing.

Moving forward, virtually every famous

motorcycle racer has at one time raced forthe Yoshimura Suzuki road racing team.

Numerous race wins throughout the years

and a lot of ti tles had guaranteed this

partnership a place in r acing history. Then,

a young Australian named Mat Mladin came

to town.

Mat and Yoshimura bonded in an

unprecedented way and dominated

Superbike racing completely for the last

11 years. Mat holds virtually ever record

imaginable in Superbike with more wins,

poles, laps led... you name it. Yoshimura haswon ten of the last eleven Superbike titles,

seven of them earned by Mladin. Yoshimura

Suzukis Ben Spies captured the other three

before heading off to wow Europe.

Suzuki and Yoshimura, although separate

companies, share a common bond that

make the relationship work. They are

dedicated to hard work , intelligent design

and engineering process, utmost quality,

and continual improvement. Perhaps more

important is the simple love of racing. There

is no better feeling than working hard and

winning. It is what we all strive for.


4/11

TOMMY HAYDEN

Im expecting big things.

Im excited for the 2010

season and to make

it happen.


5/11

Born July 14, 1978.Married. Tommy Hayden lives in Owensboro, Ky.,

where he was born and raised. Hayden and wife Christie have

two young daughters, Olivia and Klaudia. He enjoys bicycling

and golf when not racing. Hayden is part of a big racing family

that includes his parents, Earl and Rose, his brothers, 2006

MotoGP Champion Nick and AMA Superbike racer Roger Lee,

as well as his sisters, Jenny and Kathleen. Although Hayden

spends a good portion of his year testing in Southern California,

the Kentucky native prefers to be home with his family.

BiographyTommy Hayden returnsfor his fourth year on the Rockst ar Makita

Suzuki team. Hayden is now the veteran of the team, and he and

his GSX-R1000 are poised to take the top spot in 2010 to keep that

championship tradition alive and well. Hayden had a successful 2009,

finishing third overall in the AMA Superbike series and get ting up on

the podium in half of the races. His plan for 2010 is simple: Rule the

track, own the podium.

In his fourth year aboard a Suzuki race machine, Hayden is ready to

race. 2009 was a good season, said Hayden. But I feel like we lef t

room for improvement. Im expecting big things so Im excited for the

2010 season to get here and to make it happen.

Hayden finished on the podium in half the races in 2009 and finished his

career-best third overall in the Superbike series. At the last race in New

Jersey, Hayden lowsided on the third to last lap but came out uninjured.

Hayden says hes ready to erase that memory and replace it with a new

one. Hes excited for the 2010 season to start so he can do just that.

Hayden and his crew have the No. 22 Suzuki GSX-R1000 right where

they want it. After early season testing, Hayden was happy with

the bike. So far, so good, Tommy said. Testing has been going well

and things have been pretty smooth. So far its been positive, and

feedbacks been pretty good. Im happy. Its a differ ent bike this year,

but not a drastic change. The horsepower is improved; I can definitelyfeel the difference.

Tommy Hayden and the GSX-R1000 are ready to raceand win.

TOMMYHAYDEN

#22 Rockstar Makita Suzuki

GSX-R1000

AMA Superbike


6/11

Im looking forward to

working with PeterDoyle and to getting

that first race win

under my belt.

BLAKE YOUNG


7/11

BLAKEYOUNG

#79 Rockstar Makita Suzuki

GSX-R1000

AMA Superbike

Born September 20, 1987.Single. When not racing motorcycles,

Blake Young spends time on the road riding his bicycle, or of f-road

on a mountain bike or MX motorc ycle. The 22-year-old Madison,

Wisconsin, native is set to start his sophomore year on the Rockstar

Makita Suzuki Racing team and will again be competing in the AMA

Pro American Superbike class.

Biography

Blake Young will starthis second year on the Rockstar Makita Suzuki

Racing team following a great 2009 rookie season in which he provedhis position among the top road racers in the nation in the AMA Pro

Superbike series. Young was on the podium f our times in 2009, taking

the second spot three times. He showed the world his speed and talent

and how he earned a spot on t he Rockstar Makita Suzuki Racing team.

This year, Young is working with 2009 Superbike Champion Mat Mladins

Crew Chief Peter Doyle, and together theyre aiming for the top spot.

Young has been racing motorcycles for most of his life, and his dream

was to be in the premier Superbike class. With his rookie Superbike year

behind him, Young is ready to take that dream and the lessons learned in his

first year to go full throttle into the 2010 season.

From his start as a child in dirt track as a full-time road racer at age 15,

Young has always believed in finding the fastest guys, no matter what classthey were racing, and chasing them down. My dad Steves idea was to

chase the fastest racers around, no matter what series they r aced. And

as a professional racer in the AMA ranks, Young did much the same, testing

the competition in Supersport, Superstock, and Formula Xtreme classes in

the last three years of racing.

In the 2008 season, Young raced his Suzuki GSX-R1000 to his first pro

victory in the Superstock class, along with earning four podium finishes.

And he closed the season with another pro vic tory on his Suzuki GSX-R600.

In 2009, his first year in the Superbike series, Young finished sixth ov erall

and hit the podium four times. He missed one race after being injured at

the Birmingham, Alabama, round of the series, in which he needed surgery

to repair his pinkie finger. He returned in time for the Road America stop in

Elkhart Lake, Wis., which is close to his hometown.


8/11

Peter Doyle knowsfirst-hand what it takes to build a championship season.

After working with Mat Mladin and his Suzuki GSX-R1000 since 2001, Doyle

has the skills and the experience to build another great season for Rock star

Makita Suzuki in 2010. Doyle will be acting as both team manager for the

entire team as well as cr ew chief to second-year racer Blake Young.

Lets face it: life without racing would be absolutely boring Doyle said.

Ive been involved with racing nearly my whole life, and I wouldnt want it any

other way. Ive gotten to work with some great people, some great r acers,

and competing at this level is re ally rewarding.

Biography

Doyle started offin the motorcycle industry in Australia, working

for a manufacturer for more than two decades (he star ted in the parts

department as a teen). By the early 1980s, Doyle was a World Grand Prix

and motocross mechanic, and from there he moved up to being a road race

team manager and motocross team manager in the late 1980s and early

1990s. In his time as a manager in Australia, Doyle collected 11 road race

championships, a Suzuka 8 Hour win, nine motocross championships and

four Supercross Masters titles. Mladin asked Doyle to come Stateside to be

part of his cre w in 2000, and Doyles been part of the legend since then. Hes

leading the team into 2010 without

hesitation.Weve got two very talented

racers this year on the team, and

theyre very diff erent, Doyle said.

Tommy is e xtremely consistent

and seasoned, and Blake is a little

more free-spirited and aggressive

on the track. I think they are a good

compliment to each other and can

both take something from the other

to better themselves and their racing.

I think with the bike where its at, where

we know its championship-worthy, we can

have a really good season.

PETERDOYLE

Team Manager

Crew Chief, Blake Young

Don Sakakura Race Director

Peter Doyle Team Manager

Rich Doan Team Coordinator

Hans Laske Transportation

Tommy Hayden

Daisuke Hashimoto Crew Chief

James Hashimoto Chassis TechnicianBryce Eikelberger Chassis Technician

Yuta Shimabukuro Engine Management / Data Acquisition

Blake Young

Peter Doyle Crew Chief

David Sanders Chassis Technician

Rhett Lougheed Chassis Technician

Herschel Auxier Engine Management / Data Acquisition

Henry Yokota Engine Development / Maintenance

Steve Meyer Engine Development / Maintenance

ROCKSTAR MAKITA SUZUKI CREW


9/11

GSX-R1000On the racetrack,the GSX-R1000

simply cant be beat. Winning 10 of the

past 11 championships in the AMA Pro

Superbike series, this elite machine is

at the top of its game. The GSX-R1000

has the best of the best technology

and latest innovations, all wrapped up

a great-looking body that make this an

instantly re cognizable head-turner.

The GSX-R1000s 999cc engine is

designed to maximize combustion

efficiency wi th more torque and power

across the rpm r ange, which leads to

excellent throttle response and ultimate

go. Maybe thats why this bike has

won six str aight championships. Its

got an impressive microprocessor in

the ECM that runs the adv anced engine

management system, ensuring the rider

always gets the optimum performanceout of this bike. The low- and mid-r ange

performance is outs tanding, the power is

smooth and confident, and the handling

is consistently solid. Put it all t ogether,

and the GSX-R1000 is a pure winner.

THE REIGNING CHAMPION


10/11

TEAM SUPPORT 2010 AMA PRO SUPERBIKESCHEDULE

DATE VENUE / LOCATION

March 3-5 Daytona 200

Daytona Intl. Speedway, Daytona Beach, FL

March 26-28 Suzuki Superbike Challenge

Auto Club Speedway, Fontana, CA

April 16-18 Superbike Showdown

Road Atlanta, Braselton, GA

May 14-16 AMA Superbike Showdown

Infineon Raceway, Sonoma, CA

June 4-6 AMA Superbike Doubleheader

Road America, Elkhart Lake, WI

July 16-18 Super Cycle Weekend

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, OH

July 23-25 Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix

Mazda Raceway, Laguna Seca, Monterey, CA

August 13-15 Superbike Nationals

Virginia International Raceway, Alton, VA

September 3-5 AMA Superbike Weekend

New Jersey Motorsports Park, Millville, NJ

September 24-26 Superbike Classic

Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, AL


11/11

TEAMGALLERYRockstar Makita Suzuki

Team image usage

A gallery of photographs of

the Rockstar Makita Suzuki

Team riders is available for

reproduction on the enclosed

CD (for editorial use only).

These high-res photos include

headshots, bike shots and a

variety of indoor and outdoor

action shots.

BLAKE

YOUNG#79Rockstar

Makita

Suzuki

GSX-R1000

AMA Superbike

TOMMY

HAYDEN#22Rockstar

Makita

Suzuki

GSX-R1000

AMA Superbike

2010 rockstar makita suzuki road racing team media kit

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