MID-OHIO HOSTS AMA PRO RACING BIKES ON JULY 17-19
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jesse Ghiorzi, jghiorzi@midohio.com, 614-793-4620 MID-OHIO HOSTS AMA PRO RACING BIKES ON JULY 17-19 DUBLIN, OH (July 14, 2009) - Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, owned and operated by TrueSports, Incorporated, is hosting the American Superbikes of AMA Pro Racing as part of the Honda Super Cycle Weekend presented by Dunlop Tire on July 17-19. For the 19th year, the nation's premier two-wheeled series takes over the Lexington, Ohio-based track. The weekend full of races is highlighted by the Wiseco Superbike 100 Doubleheader, featuring the series' top class, the AMA Pro American Superbikes. With a 50-mile race on Saturday and another on Sunday, there will be two chances for the field of riders to end class points leader Mat Mladin's recent dominance of the circuit. The Australian Mladin swept the last two seasons at Mid-Ohio and captured a win in the second leg in 2006 for a five race streak. Columbus-born Larry Pegram hopes to perform well at his down-the-road track after capturing his first win in a decade last month at Road America. "I always love coming to Mid-Ohio. For one; it's a great track, and two; it's my home track. Just like every, year I have a ton of family and friends coming and I really would like to have a good race." The Foremost Insurance Pegram Ducati rider currently sits in fourth place; 164 points back form the top spot. Mladin will also be tested by teammate Tommy Hayden, who has finished on the podium six times in 2009 but has yet to capture his first victory, as well as Ben Bostrom, the Yamaha factory rider who has notched a Top-10 in every race this season. Mladin has finished first in 10 of 12 races so far with the only exceptions being Pegram's win at Road America and Yamaha's Josh Hayes taking the checkered flag at Infineon Raceway. In other action, the Daytona SportBikes take to the track for their own set of doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday. First place rider Martin Cardenas looks to extend the 39-point lead his Suzuki enjoys over Jamie Hacking of Monster Energy Attack Kawasaki. Cardenas has put together a nice season with six wins including five in his last seven races. Nipping at Hacking's heels is SuperSport graduate Danny Eslick, just four points out of second place on the strength of three wins early in the season. Supporting class AMA Pro Moto-GT showcases a variety of makes and models with over 40 two-wheeled beasts taking the track for the Saturday, July 18 two hour race. Its split class system with two riders sharing riding duties makes it a fun event to watch for the casual fan. On Sunday, July 18, the SuperSport class and its up-and-coming riders between the ages of 16 and 21, loop around Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The amateur SuperSport class is led by 17-year old Leandro Mercado, who has two wins in 2009. The on-track bike action is not just for the professionals, however, as Mid-Ohio celebrates its 19th straight year of the dealer ride promotion. This opportunity allows riders from all walks of life to take a lap of the track on Sunday, July 19 during the lunch break. With over 140 dealers spanning eight states participating, 2009 is set to be one of the biggest in almost 20 years of dealer rides. TrueSports, Inc. is a privately held motorsports entertainment enterprise. Founded in 1981 and headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, the company owns and operates Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and The Mid-Ohio School and promotes a wide variety of motor racing, driver and rider instruction, and corporate and family entertainment events throughout the year. Tickets, schedules and more information are available by calling 1-800-MID-OHIO or visiting www.midohio.com. AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. From its Daytona Beach headquarters, the organization operates and manages AMA Pro Road Racing, which includes AMA Pro American Superbike, AMA Pro Daytona SportBike, AMA Pro SuperSport and AMA Pro SunTrust Moto-GT. AMA Pro Racing also manages and works closely with the day-to-day operational organizations of the AMA Pro Flat Track Championship and the AMA Pro Supermoto Championship Series in addition to other two-wheel and ATV series. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com. ### TSI logos 09.JPG