The Heat Is On As MotoAmerica Superbikes Head To Road America

The Steel Commander Superbike Championship Ready To Attack Popular
Road America, May 31-June 2

IRVINE, CA – May 29, 2024 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – The cream of the MotoAmerica Steel Commander Superbike crop generally makes one, possibly two race mistakes a year. Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier has made his, yet he leads the championship by 13 points as the championship moves to inarguably its most popular round – Road America – after two rounds and five races. Predictable? Not entirely. Race fans with short memories? Definitely.

Cameron Beaubier sits atop the Steel Commander Superbike point standings as the series heads to Road America for round three of the championship, May 31-June 2. Photo by Brian J. Nelson

When Beaubier crashed out of the lead at Barber Motorsports Park a bit over two weeks ago in race one, there was plenty of groaning as it handed Attack Performance/Progressive/Yamaha Racing’s Jake Gagne a 20-point lead over the BMW M 1000 RR-mounted Beaubier. The championship was over, blah, blah, blah.

A day later and Beaubier was on the top step of the podium twice after winning both races on Sunday while Gagne struggled mightily with arm pump that left him eighth and seventh in the two races.

Thus, Beaubier will start the first of two Steel Commander Superbike races at Road America, May 31-June 2, with a 13-point lead after two. But if we learned anything from the three-race Barber round it’s that bad days by the cream of the crop no longer result in podium finishes. Instead, a stacked field of Superbikes can mean that a bad result is now seventh or eighth. Or worse.

Which brings us to the age-old Yogi Berra quote of “it ain’t over ‘til it’s over.” This is far from over.

Beaubier was the fastest rider at Barber. Everyone knew it, including race-one winner Cameron Petersen and his teammate and defending series champion Gagne, both of whom took advantage of Beaubier’s miscue to take the top two spots in race one.

Fortunately for Beaubier, and unfortunately for the rest, Barber was one of two rounds (WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca is the other) that will feature three Steel Commander Superbike races. So, although Beaubier started Sunday 20 points behind, he was able to end it with two wins and a 13-point lead heading to Road America.

Gagne’s plight as the series heads to Wisconsin will revolve around his forearms. Arm pump slows the best of them, and Gagne is battling with it now. The long…