Montreal, Quebec.
Royal Distributing / MBP Team riders Michael Leon and Tony Stufko left Round 3 of the RACE Superseries, held at Shannonville’s Pro Track this past July 23-24 weekend, with 8 podium finishes split between them!
The highlight the race weekend for Michael was his 2nd place finish in the feature Pro Superbike class. The event was won by Honda rider Jodi Chistie with Franklyn Dominguez rounding out the 3rd spot. It was a breakthrough weekend for the team as Michael was able to keep pace with Jodi for much of the race and even reel him in a little at the midway point. Michael set a personal best lap time during the race. “As the laps wore down I was getting the sense that Jodi still had a little left in reserve. I was pushing as hard as I could without taking too many risks. I felt that I could still push a little harder but I would have been really exceeding my comfort zone. With two laps to go, I decided that it was better for the team to leave the track with a clean bike and build on the success for the next round. I’m so excited that we made so much progress this weekend.” Michael said.
In other action, Michael also won three other races: Saturday’s Heavyweight Sportsman race (a make up race for the one cancelled on May 15); Sunday’s Liquid Thunder race and Sunday’s Heavyweight Thunder race. During the Liquid Thunder, race Michael set a new class lap record.
Four factors to the successful weekend were:
1) Royal Distributing: The team would not be able to compete without the major support provided by Royal Distributing.
2) Tuner Guy Martin and crew Carlos Carrascosa: Guy took advantage of the break between Rd2 and 3 to install a fresh race engine in the team’s Ducati 1198S. Trackside, both Guy and Carlos worked extremely hard throughout the weekend, constantly improving the bike set up. Not an easy task considering the oppressive heat of Friday and Saturday.
3) Elka Suspension: The team made a major step forward with the setup of the Ducati by installing a new Elka rear shock to replace the reworked stock Ohlins unit. “I figure that the new shock is worth at least a second per lap in increased feel on corner exits” commented Michael.
4) Sandy Noce and Dunlop: Sandy from Pro6Cycle is more that just a tire vendor to the team. As usual, he provided continual guidance on compound selection and pressure settings to help get the most out of the tires. Also, this weekend Sandy filled in for vacationing John Sharrard of Accelerated Technologies and helped with suspension and setup advice. The Dunlop tires are awesome. Michael set the new lap record in Heavyweight Sportsman using a soft compound front tire with 60 laps on it!
Tony Stufko also had an outstanding weekend of racing, his best to date. He finished the Amateur Superbike race in 2nd place, his first trip to the Superbike podium. The race was described by the track announcer as the most exciting of the weekend. During the first half Tony ran in third place, right on the tails of National Amateur Sport Bike race winners Aubrey Bailey and Kristopher Garvie. At the halfway point Tony was still following, but a few seconds back. On the last lap, during a hectic passing attempt, the leaders collided and ran off the track while exiting the high speed corner at the end of the back straight. Fortunately, neither rider crashed. Tony was within striking distance and was able to steal second place as the riders re-entered the track. The finishing order was Bailey in first place, Stufko in second and Garvie in third. After the race, Tony said “I am happy with the Amateur Superbike result. I ran a smart race to get on the box and be there in the end to collect the pieces! This result bumps me to third overall in Superbike. Big thanks to Tuner Guy Martin for his hard work in the pits on Saturday that made this all possible”
Tony finished 2nd in Saturday’s Heavyweight Sportsman race (a make up race for the one cancelled on May 15); 2nd in Sunday’s Liquid Thunder race and 3rd in Sunday’s Heavyweight Thunder race.
The team patiently awaits Round 4, which will occur on August 12, 13 &14 with riders competing on the long track configuration at Shannonville.
The Royal Distributing / MBP Superbike Team is supported by Royal Distributing, Martin Brickwood Performance, Dunlop, Pro 6 Cycle, Elka Suspension, Accelerated Technologies, Double Dog Moto, Nexo Sports, Rev-Amp Electrical Equipment, EBC Brakes, Woodcraft, Armour Bodies, Eurocorsa, MRA Windscreeens, Speedymoto, J Precision, AV&V, LG Restorations, CVR Motors, Ottawa Dodge, KS on the Keys, Acceptable Storage, A Acceptable, T_SBK Club, George Seeger, Dave Cody and Quebec Coating.
Tony Stufko also is supported by Windmill Motorsports, Valley Sales and Equipment, Monette Sports / Montreal Ducati and Ottawa Yamaha.
End release.
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Best regards,
Michael Leon
Pro #74
Royal Distributing / MBP Superbike Rider