RAPP SCORES ANOTHER PODIUM FOR PIRELLI IN AMA FX

Rome, GA: It’s a new total of ten podiums for Pirelli for the 2008 AMA Superbike season, with NorCal local-star Steve Rapp finishing third in Saturday’s feature Formula Xtreme race at Infineon Raceway. Rapp’s podium came after a race-long battle with teammate Chad Davies on their pair of Attack Kawasaki ZX-6Rs, until Davies suffered technical difficulties two laps from the end of the race. The FX race winner was Jake Zemke. Rapp said, “It’s great to be racing here with all my friends watching, and finishing on the podium makes it even better. The whole crew did an awesome job.”

Joining Rapp in the “Effects” top ten were four other Pirelli riders. Cory West on his M4 EMGO Suzuki won the battle for fourth against Larry Pegram who was fifth on his Leo Vince/Foremost Insurance Ducati 848. This was West’s first FX race of the season, being drafted over from his regular duties in Supersport. Seventh was taken by Nicky Moore on his Moto Uno Kawasaki while Brain Parriott nosed his BMW AG/Mersoleil Wines/San Jose BMW sponsored BMW into tenth, again showing the nimbleness of the new Boxer. The 2007 Daytona 200 winner Steve Rapp is now second in FX points for the season with Pegram in third and 2008 Daytona 200 winner Chad Davies in fourth.

In Supersport qualifying Blake Young registered fifth on his M4 EMGO Suzuki GSX-R600. Attack Kawasaki’s Steve Rapp will start Sunday’s race in sixth, while Young’s teammate Cory West will grid up in the seventh spot. Sharing the Kawasaki green of Rapp is teammate Chaz Davies in ninth on row three, with Michael Barnes, filling in for the injured Columbian Martin Cardenas, earning tenth on the grid for M4 EMGO Suzuki.

Superstock qualifying saw Robertino Pietri, for the second time in a row, clocking in for a front row start with the fourth place on the grid. This give Pietri two front row starts in a row and two front row starts in total, for his AMA career. Blake Young will launch from seventh on his M4 EMGO Suzuki with Taylor Knapp starting from ninth, and Pietri’s teammate Chris Ulrich beginning his 17 laps of Infineon from the tenth spot.