AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike
Jake Gagne of the RoadRace Factory/Red Bull team won the AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday, a surprise win for the class rookie. Gagne showed fine form in a wet race to take his first AMA Pro victory. He topped Dane Westby of the M4 Suzuki team and Cameron Beaubier (Y.E.S./Graves/Yamaha) in a race delayed by weather issues. Martin Cardenas clinched the championship for M4 Suzuki in the race as he became a two-time class champion.
Westby earned the lead on the start and Gagne harried him for ten laps until he made the pass for the lead. The young rider eventually fomented a lead of over seven seconds as he dominated the second half of race.
“Right away, I knew how fast we’d go. I got in behind Dane, and we took off. I saw we had a couple of seconds. I tried to get by Dane and see what I could do and did a couple of laps to pull a gap. I was able to pull it home. I was hoping for a podium, but a win is even crazier. I can’t wait to get to NOLA and try it again.”
“I tried to be conservative and was a little more conservative than necessary. I had some tire left at the end,” said Westby. “That’s all there was to it.
“To tell the truth, I was riding a little tense and nervous,” said Beaubier.
Cardenas finished fourth, enough to ensure he’d win the 2012 title. The Colombian, who is the 2010 champ, earned seven wins on the way to clinching the crown this season.
“The championship was great for us. We took advantage of the points we had,” said Cardenas. “We came here to Miami with the mission to win the championship. I focused on trying to clinch it, and I’m very happy.”
David Gaviria (Kneedraggers.com Yamaha) earned his best GoPro Daytona SportBike finish yet in fifth, as did Kris Turner (Turner’s Cycle Racing). Huntley Nash (LTD Racing) equaled his best class finish in seventh.
2012 Homestead-Miami AMA SportBike Race 2 Results:
| Pos | No. | Rider(s) | Team | Bike | Interval | Gap | Best Lap | Points |
| 1. | 132 | Jake Gagne | Road Race Factory/Red Bull | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 23 Laps | WINNER | 1:31.986 | 0 |
| 2. | 5 | Dane Westby | M4 Suzuki | Suzuki GSX-R600 | 7.126 | 7.126 | 1:32.435 | 0 |
| 3. | 6 | Cameron Beaubier | Yamaha Extended Service, Graves, Yamaha | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 14.248 | 7.122 | 1:31.922 | 0 |
| 4. | 36 | Martin Cardenas | GEICO Suzuki | Suzuki GSX-R600 | 38.340 | 24.092 | 1:33.716 | 0 |
| 5. | 175 | David Gaviria | Kneedraggers.com/Triple Crown Industries | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 42.804 | 4.463 | 1:33.588 | 0 |
| 6. | 38 | Kris Turner | Turner`s Cycle Racing | Triumph Daytona 675 | 58.386 | 15.582 | 1:33.899 | 0 |
| 7. | 75 | Huntley Nash | LTD Racing | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 1:02.987 | 4.601 | 1:34.378 | 0 |
| 8. | 56 | Austin Dehaven | Kneedraggers.com/Triple Crown Industries | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 1:05.013 | 2.025 | 1:34.232 | 0 |
| 9. | 95 | JD Beach | Road Race Factory/Red Bull | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 1:14.111 | 9.097 | 1:33.491 | 0 |
| 10. | 52 | Joey Pascarella | Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki | Suzuki GSX-R600 | 1:20.014 | 5.903 | 1:33.847 | 0 |
| 11. | 29 | Barrett Long | Longevity Racing | Ducati 848 | 1:24.051 | 4.037 | 1:35.236 | 0 |
| 12. | 39 | Nicollas Ferreira | DMS Racing | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 1:33.704 | 9.652 | 1:36.154 | 0 |
| 13. | 46 | Shane Narbonne | MOB Racing | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 22 Laps | 1 Lap | 1:36.442 | 0 |
| 14. | 72 | Bryce Prince | Rotobox/Nexx | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 3.044 | 3.044 | 1:36.415 | 0 |
| 15. | 7 | Fernando Amantini | Team Amantini | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 29.460 | 26.416 | 1:37.774 | 0 |
| 16. | 42 | Kenny Riedmann | Sturgess Cycle Triumph | Triumph Daytona 675 | 40.587 | 11.127 | 1:37.402 | 0 |
| 17. | 61 | Michael Beck | Team Beck Racing | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 41.486 | 0.898 | 1:37.637 | 0 |
| 18. | 40 | Jason DiSalvo | Team Latus Motors Racing | Triumph Daytona 675 | 21 Laps | 1 Lap | 1:34.538 | 0 |
| 19. | 124 | Tommy Aquino | Kneedraggers.com/Triple Crown Industries | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 20 Laps | 1 Lap | 1:34.865 | 0 |
| 20. | 50 | Bobby Fong | Meen Motorsports Racing | Yamaha YZF-R6 | 9 Laps | 11 Laps | 1:42.853 | 0 |
| 21. | 13 | Melissa Paris | MPH Racing | Suzuki GSX-R600 | 4 Laps | 5 Laps | 1:46.786 | 0 |
| 22. | 57 | Cory West | Riders Discount Vesrah Suzuki | Suzuki GSX-R600 | 1 Lap | 3 Laps | 2:04.796 | 0 |
| 23. | 98 | Jake Zemke | Ducshop Racing | Ducati 848 | DNS | DNS | -no times- | 0 |
| 24. | 20 | Benny Solis | Kneedraggers.com/Triple Crown Industries | Yamaha YZF-R6 | DNS | DNS | -no times- | 0 |
