Spies Remains Positive After MotoGP Qualifying

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Press Release Issued By Larry Lawrence Media (July 19, 2008)

MONTEREY, Calif. (July 19, 2008) – Ben Spies qualified in 13th for Sunday’s Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix on the Rizla Suzuki GSV-R with a lap at one minute, 22.127 seconds around Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca’s scenic road course. Spies admitted that he expected to earn a better starting position, but he’s encourage by the fact that he’s close in terms of lap times with the top runners.

“We didn’t end up in the position we wanted to, but we’re only about 3/10ths (of a second) out of fifth-place,” Spies said. “We’ve got our work cut out for us at the start tomorrow for sure, but the bike is getting better. We’ve worked out a few things, so I’m looking forward to see how everything comes together.”

In addition to his MotoGP wildcard ride this weekend Spies is turning double duty, racing the AMA Superbike event as well, where he leads the championship.

“It’s a bit of an issue jumping off one bike on to the other,” Spies conceded. “It is what it is. We still need to try to make the best of it and try to win the Superbike race. If that’s not possible we can do some points gathering this weekend and still be in a strong position for the championship.”

Spies ranked second in practice for AMA Superbike Saturday, behind his Rockstar Makita Suzuki teammate Mat Mladin.

Spies has a busy day ahead of him on Sunday. He’ll be doing a warm-up session on the MotoGP machine before going straight into Superbike qualifying in the morning. He then races the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at 2:00 pm local time before going directly to the grid for the start of the AMA Superbike race.

“It’s going to be hectic,” Spies said. “I knew what I was getting into with this weekend. It’s not an issue of conditioning so much, but the transition from one bike to another that really keeps my attention.”

Spies says he’s a little stiff after suffering a crash on the MotoGP machine on Friday, but adds “It’s nothing I won’t be able to deal with come race time. I’ll be alright.”

The Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix from Laguna Seca will broadcast live on CBS at 5:00 pm Eastern (2:00 pm Pacific). The AMA Superbike race will air tape-delayed on SPEED at 10:00 pm Eastern (7:00 pm Pacific).

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