Team Yoshimura Suzuki's Ben Spies Wins AMA Superbike Championship at Mid-Ohio

LEXINGTON, Ohio, Oct. 1, 2006 -- Yoshimura Suzuki's Ben Spies won his first-ever AMA Superbike Championship after cruising to a comfortable seventh-place finish at the last race of the season at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, on Sunday afternoon. Spies' championship is Suzuki's 10th AMA Superbike title.

"This has been an awesome season," said Spies. "The Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 has been great this year and I really have to thank my crew for working so hard for me all season. We had a small problem at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) when I broke a bone in my hand, but we've worked through it and brought home the championship. Now we know what to expect next year and we'll just try to go forward and come back strong for 2007."

En route to capturing the 2006 championship, the 22-year-old Texan won an impressive 10 out of 19 races this season. Last year was Spies' rookie AMA Superbike season and he finished in second-place overall. Prior to that, Spies captured the AMA Formula Xtreme championship in 2003, the first year that he rode for the factory-supported Yoshimura Suzuki team.

"This is a great day for Suzuki," said Mel Harris, American Suzuki Vice President Motorcycle/ATV Division. "When we first signed Ben three years ago, we knew he showed great promise. Although we expected championships from him eventually, we had no idea that he'd win the Superbike title in just his second year racing the premier class. It just goes to show that Ben Spies and the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 are an amazing combination."

For more information on Spies and Yoshimura Suzuki, please log on to www.teamsuzuki.com.