Elkhart Lake, WI – June, 2009 – The Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies Team scored a top ten finish at Road America in what was otherwise an extremely difficult weekend. Saturday’s Daytona SportBike Race One Saw the unveiling of a special set of “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” bodywork, helmet, and leathers on Ben Thompson’s number 97 Aprilia RSV1000R, but it wasn’t long before it was “transformed” into an earth mover. Sunday’s Daytona SportBike Race Two was much better with Chaz Davies finishing eighth and Ben Thompson making up over ten positions to finish twentieth.
Ben Thompson struggled during the first part of the weekend to qualify in the thirty-first position. Davies once again made Superpole and qualified in the fourth position. This is the forth weekend in a row that the team has qualified on the second row.
Daytona SportBike Race One was held in abysmal conditions with heavy rain and cold temperatures. Ben and Chaz both got great starts, moving up several positions in the first couple of corners. On the exit of turn five Chaz Davies moved into the lead and started to build a gap over the competition. Unfortunately, Chaz crashed going into turn eight and Ben crashed at almost exactly the same time on the exit of turn seven in the slippery conditions. Both riders were un-hurt but the team was disappointed about both riders crashing out of what could have been a pair of great finishes.
Daytona SportBike Race Two saw much better conditions and the team were excited about not having to contend with the variables of a rain race. The team was able to find a solution to a lot of the problems Thompson was having earlier in the weekend and Ben’s dry set up was much better. Thompson got a great start and was passing riders with every lap. At the finish, Ben passed over ten riders to finish twentieth and he dropped over second off his qualifying time. Davies got a great start and was battling with the lead group early. Davies fell into a race long battle for fourth but in the end, had to settle for eighth position after a problem with false neutral.
Chaz Davies – “We had a good bike this weekend and we had really high hopes that Road America was going to be a good track for us, it just didn’t work out. This is the way racing goes sometimes. The Millennium Technologies crew helped out a ton this weekend and of course I really want to thank Rocky Stargel and Jimmy Le for all of their hard work.“
Ben Thompson – “We were behind the eight ball all weekend with track time and set up. We got some stuff figured out Saturday morning and then it rained and we crashed in the first race. The second race was better, but when you are starting that far back there are so many laps to pass people. Laguna Seca is my favorite track and I am very excited about our chances there. Thanks to Michael Godin and Marty Ashmore for all their hard work this weekend and to everybody at Millennium Technologies and Aprilia for their support and hospitality.”
Kevin Hunt (Team Owner) – “The results are not what we wanted them to be, but in the end it was a good weekend. We had a great promotion with Aprilia and Paramount Pictures for the “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” bike and we also unveiled the new RSV4 for the huge crowd at Road America. Both riders came away un-hurt from their crashes and we lead a race for the first time this year. The bike is getting better every round and I know we will be on the podium soon. A very big thanks to Millennium Technologies and Aprilia for all their support. We couldn’t do it without you.”
The Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies Team is proudly sponsored by:
Aprilia USA, Millennium Technologies, KWS Motorsports, Pit Bull, LeoVince Exhaust, Motion Pro, Bazzaz Performance, Sebimoto Bodywork, Yoyodyne, Slednecks, EK Chains, Motul, Performance Friction Brakes, Worldwide Bearing, K&N Filters, Zero Gravity Windscreens, Suzuka Tire Warmers, Stomp Grip, Hel Brake Lines, Spider Grips, ETI FuelCel and ASV Inventions.
For Information: http://www.kwsmotorsports.com