JUNE 2015

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CONTENTS4 THE AMAZING JOURNEY OF CAREY HART

6 DUNLOP RIDERS RULE IN GNCC

8 RUSSELL RIPS IN AMA NATIONAL ENDURO

10 VICTORY RACES TO THE CLOUDS

20 CHANGING FORTUNES AT ROAD ATLANTA & VIR

32 DOUG POLEN RIDES DUNLOP TIRES LAP OF HONOR AT VIR

34 DUNLOP SWEEPS HANGTOWN AMA MOTOCROSS OPENER

46 BUCKET LIST

48 THE CHAMPIONS

74 SUPERCROSS 2015

82 UPCOMING EVENTS

Hands of a builder, page 10

32 Dunlop Download magazine is published for Dunlop Motorcycle Tires by Vreeke & Associates. www.vreeke.com

Dunlop has gone social, so join the conversation on our Facebook,Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest pages, and check out our

latest videos on the Dunlop YouTube channel. @RideDunlop

ON THE COVER:

Josh Hayes scored an historic

50th Superbike win at VIR.

Photo: Brian “Happy 50th” Nelson

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THE AMAZING JOURNEY OF

CAREY HARTDunlop-sponsored Carey Hart is one of the most iconic characters in our sport. A top

privateer motocross racer, Hart became a household name among extreme athletes

and fans for landing the world’s first backflip at the televised Gravity Games in 2000 in

front of millions of viewers. Still an active freestyle rider decades after that defining

moment, Hart went on to become a successful entrepreneur with a string of tattoo

parlors, his own reality show, the Hart and Huntington clothing company and a

nightclub in the Las Vegas Hard Rock; most recently he became the co-owner with

Ricky Carmichael of RCH Suzuki Racing. New fame came when he married rock star

Pink, and along with it the need for some peace and quiet.

CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO OF HART’S AMAZING JOURNEY

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After five rounds in the 13-round 2015

AMA AMSOIL Grand National Cross

Country Series, one trend became clear,

there’s still plenty of racing ahead, and

anything can happen. However, one trend

is clear: If you want to climb the podium,

riding on Dunlop tires is a great way to

get there.

Dunlop-sponsored Kailub Russell is

riding his Factory FMF KTM in the

premier XC1 Pro Class, and as 2014

champ he’s on a tear to keep that

number-one plate on his bike—can you

say five for five? Russell is absolutely

perfect on the year with every win to his

name for 150 points. And that’s saying a

lot, considering just how grueling these

three-hour-long GNCC events are.

Meanwhile, second place in the

standings with 118 points is another

Dunlop rider: Rockstar Energy Husqvarna

Factory Racing’s Josh Strang. After

nailing down four consecutive runner-up

finishes he had to settle for a fourth-place

finish at round 5, the Limestone 100 in

Springville, IN.

Russell’s Limestone win didn’t come

easily, as rainfall the day before made for

challenging track conditions. Shortly after

the start, he collided with another rider,

went down and restarted dead last.

“It was a tough day straight from the

start,” Russell said after the race. “The

track was slick and a lot worse than I had

anticipated, but it got better and better. It

took me a good bit to catch the leaders,

but it was one of those days you wanted

someone in front of you. That last lap I

knew I needed to minimize mistakes and

ride well, and I was able to do that.”

This latest victory also serves as a career

milestone; it elevated Russell’s GNCC

total wins to 27, surpassing legendary

1980s racer Ed Lojak for third place on

the list of all-time winners.

DUNLOP RIDERSRULE IN GNCC

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RUSSELL RIPS IN AMA NATIONAL ENDURODunlop-shod factory KTM rider Kailub Russell enjoys full control of the 2015 AMA National Enduro Series after

the fifth of 10 rounds finished up in Park Hills, MO. In fact, three of the top five riders in the points standings

were Dunlop-sponsored, including Russell in the points lead, KTM teammate Russell Bobbitt in third and

Andrew DeLong on a Husqvarna in fifth.

There is scarcely a greater test of a rider, bike and tires than an enduro, which requires racers and their

equipment to generate mistake-free speed under wide variations in terrain over six special tests. In the most

recent event, the Lead Belt National Enduro, Russell scored his first overall win of the year in particularly tough

conditions that included slippery woods sections and plenty of water crossings. In doing so, the KTM rider

mastered the course perfectly, winning four of the six tests along the way and finishing second in the other two.

At the finish, Russell had clawed out an advantage of 1 minute and 37 seconds over the second-place rider.

The 10-month-long series revs up again in Upton, WY, on June 14.

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Victory Motorcycles and Roland Sands Design have joined forces to conquer Pikes Peak

with a machine built by Sands and his RSD staff and powered by a prototype engine from

Victory. We caught Sands mid-build and asked him what it was all about.

RSD SPONSORED BY DUNLOP

VICTORY RACESTO THE CLOUDS

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DD: What was the genesis of this project?

RS: Victory is looking to establish a high-performance brand. The obvious

way to do that is through racing and building high-performance products.

They’re doing it with drag racing and now by taking on Pikes Peak with

RSD and a prototype product.

Why did Victory take this on?

They wanna go fast.

A prototype engine is a huge deal. What do you think of that level of

commitment?

It’s a huge amount of effort from a lot of people and it shows Polaris is

committed to the Victory brand. With Indian coming on board it took a lot

of attention initially and Victory was in the shadows, so I see them working

to reestablish the brand while attempting to separate it from Indian. This

motor is a big step in that direction. The guys who have been working on

the project, Alex Opperman in particular, have been doing this project

predominately off the clock, so they really believe in what we’re doing.

What’s the most important at Pikes Peak in terms of the bike?

What’s most important is to make Cycle World’s Don Canet, who’s riding

the bike, comfortable. Of course it’s got to be lightweight and fast and

handle well. Those are all things we’re working towards daily. This project

is really insane because we are building a racing motorcycle in two

months from scratch on a tight budget, so every decision is critical.

Fingers-crossed it works as good as we hope it does.

MY HEART HAS ALWAYS BEEN ONTHE RACETRACK SO THIS IS APERFECT WAY TO GET BACK INTORACING WITH FACTORY SUPPORTDOING WHAT I DO TODAY—DESIGNING ONE-OFFMOTORCYCLES.

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Is Pikes Peak becoming our Isle of Man?

It’s about as close as we get here in the States. There are other hill climb

races, but Pikes is the longest running and the most grand.

What does your bike have that other entries don’t?

I’m not sure what else is coming. But I would venture to say it will be the

only ground-up, hand-built-in-the-USofA prototype motorcycle running up

the hill.

What does this project mean to you personally and RSD?

My heart has always been on the racetrack, so this is a perfect way to get

back into racing with factory support doing what I do today—designing

one-off motorcycles. And this bike being designed specifically for Pikes

Peak is timed nicely with RSD going in a more high-performance direction.

So it’s the right move and an interesting story as well.

What do you get out of this?

We get the satisfaction of building a one-off racing motorcycle with

a beautiful and radical one-off motor from Victory for America’s greatest

road race.

What does Victory get out of this?

They get race cred, the tie-in with RSD and a strong marketing message

that touches both the racing and custom world with what will hopefully be a

successful Pikes campaign and a beautiful finished product. But I think

both those things ring true for both RSD and Victory. We want the same

things out of this. It’s a really good collaboration. Motor just showed

up...got to go!

WE GET THE SATISFACTION OFBUILDING A ONE-OFF RACINGMOTORCYCLE WITH A BEAUTIFULAND RADICAL ONE-OFF MOTORFROM VICTORY FOR AMERICA’SGREATEST ROAD RACE.

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21RIDERS SPONSORED BY DUNLOP20

CHANGING FORTUNESAT ROAD ATLANTA & VIR

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ROGER LEEHAYDEN

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“It was probably one of the lowest points of my career,” said

Yoshimura Suzuki Superbike rider Roger Lee Hayden after the

MotoAmerica race weekend at Road Atlanta. Hayden set pole

for the April 19 event—his first of the year—but with both

races run in wet, at times very wet conditions, keeping a huge-

horsepower motorcycle rubber down was a challenge.

Unfortunately, Hayden crashed out of both Superbike races

held at Atlanta.

Riders who were able to stay aboard and upright in the tricky

conditions capitalized all weekend long. Yamaha Superbike

rider Cameron Beaubier did his first ever Superbike double,

winning both races at Atlanta. He departed the red Georgia

clay with a 30-point lead in the championship.

“I struggled a lot in the wet in the few outings we had last year.

To get two wins in the wet, sketchy conditions today was good

for my confidence. In the first race Josh [Hayes] and Roger

[Hayden] were riding really good and it was a bummer to see

Roger Lee go down. I put my head down and started clicking off

laps. I just kept going, kept going. I had a good feel in the wet. I

didn’t want to throw it down, but I just kept clicking off laps.”

Even Beaubier was shocked when Hayden pulled away and

also when he eventually crashed out. “‘Oh, man, he’s gone,’ I

thought,” said the California rider. “I was struggling a little bit

with grip. I saw Rog crash, then I saw Josh [Hayes] crash. It

was a bummer. I want to race those guys to the finish. I just

kept trucking along.”

The biggest news on Saturday was the return of former

Superbike champion Josh Herrin to the winner’s circle in the

U.S. Herrin, riding a Meen Motorsports R6, won Saturday’s

Supersport race by .482 of a second. On Sunday it was

Herrin’s rival Garrett Gerloff who took home the top

middleweight prize.

Other riders who pulled out impressive results at the

dreary Road Atlanta event were Joe Roberts who won both

Superstock 600 races on his Meen Yamaha, Josh Day who

won the Superstock 1000 contests after being a last-minute

replacement to the Yamalube/Westby Superstock effort,

and Superbike rookie Jake Lewis who finished on the

podium—twice—in his first rain race on the Yoshimura

Suzuki Superbike.

Lewis said, “I was always a good rain rider, but I was having a

tough time getting used to it on the 1000. My parents talked to

me and told me they had confidence in me and reminded me I

was good in wet conditions. I woke up Sunday morning and

decided to push harder and it paid off. I got a lot of my

confidence back racing in these conditions, and it feels great

to be on the podium. Hopefully I can keep it up as the season

goes on.”

In practice and qualifying there was a sound on the track not

heard in some time in U.S. national racing—a Ducati

Superbike, and one lapping very quickly. Young racer Huntley

Nash took a week off college to enter the Road Atlanta

MotoAmerica event on the LTD Ducati. Atlanta is his home

track, and friends and family were on hand to see him qualify

fourth in the wet. A crash and mechanical gremlins killed his

dream of a podium finish in Superbike at Atlanta, but Nash

was back in action at VIR, and always threatening.

The pendulum swung the other way at Virginia International

Raceway (VIR) in mid-May. Yamaha’s Hayes rebounded—

hard—to win both of VIR’s Superbike races, scoring his 50th

and 51st career AMA Superbike wins. Roger Hayden

performed a minor miracle by finishing second in VIR’s second

Superbike race. As the series hits June, Beaubier leads Hayes

131 to 115 in the MotoAmerica Superbike championship

points tally.

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JOSHHERRINJOEROBERTS

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Josh Hayes made history at VIR. He became only the second rider in the 39-year history of AMA Superbike racing to win

50 Superbike races. The first rider to achieve the magical milestone was Mat Mladin. Hayes followed up his historic win

with another victory on the second day of the VIR double-header, bringing his total to 51 wins—all of them on Dunlop tires. 50 WINS

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RIDES DUNLOP TIRES LAP OF HONOR AT VIR

DOUG POLENDoug Polen rode the Dunlop Tires Lap of Honor at the

MotoAmerica race at Virginia International Raceway (VIR), led

the fan ride, signed autographs and presented the Superbike

trophies on Sunday.

Polen came up through the amateur ranks, winning races

across the country before turning pro. He competed in AMA

races before focusing on the World Superbike Championship,

which he dominated in both 1991 and 1992 on a Fast By

Ferracci Ducati. In the 1991 title chase, he set fastest lap at 13

different tracks, a single-season record that remains to this day.

The following year, he not only won the World Superbike

Championship, he also competed in enough rounds of the AMA

Superbike Championship to finish third. In 1993, he was back in

the U.S. full time and won the AMA Superbike Championship.

Two years later, he won the prestigious Suzuka 8 Hours with

teammate Aaron Slight on Honda’s RC45. In 1997, he set his

sights on the World Endurance Championship and won it two

years in a row.

Polen won extensively on Dunlop tires, and he was known as

one of the best development riders in the paddock. He worked

closely with Dunlop to develop race tires throughout his

professional career.

DUNLOP SWEEPS HANGTOWN AMA PRO MOTOCROSS OPENERIf you weren’t on Dunlop tires, you weren’t on the podium. That’s how clear

the advantages of the Geomax MX32 and MX52 were for Dunlop-sponsored

riders at the season-opening 2015 AMA Pro Motocross Championship in

Sacramento, CA, on Saturday, May 16. But that’s not too much of a surprise

since the last four champions in both the 450 and 250 AMA Pro Motocross

series got there on Dunlop tires.

Dunlop has won nearly two-thirds of all AMA Motocross and Supercross titles

since 1972.

The longest-running event on the AMA Pro MX calendar, the annual Hangtown

Motocross Classic is eagerly awaited as the start of the outdoor season. In the

250 MX class, Star Racing/Yamaha’s defending champion Jeremy Martin went

2-1 to edge out Red Bull/KTM Factory Racing rival Marvin Musquin (1-2 motos)

for the overall win, with Team Dunlop alumni Chris Alldredge (5-3) likewise on

the box on his Pro Circuit Kawasaki. Rock River Powersports/Yamaha-

mounted Alex Martin (6-4) and Star Racing/Yamaha’s Anthony Rodriguez (7-6)

rounded out the top five—all on Dunlop Geomax tires.

Then in the premier 450 class, Factory Connection/Honda’s Eli Tomac simply

ripped the field apart, dominating the Prairie City SVRA’s famous loam with

breathtaking efficiency. He won the first moto by 22 seconds and the second

by an astounding 1 minute and 31 seconds, leading all 33 race laps in the

process. Red Bull/KTM Factory’s Ryan Dungey turned in robust 2-2 motos

for second overall, and Jason Anderson (3-7) grabbed third overall in his 450

MX debut for Rockstar Energy/Husqvarna.

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RYANDUNGEY

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JEREMYMARTIN

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MARVINMUSQUIN

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JASONANDERSONCHRISALLDREDGE

One of the most storied names in motorcycle racing

history is returning to the grid so he can cross a few

items off his own bucket list. Three-time World Superbike

champion and MotoGP race winner Troy Bayliss has

signed a deal to race all of the AMA Pro Flat Track Grand

National Mile races in the summer of 2015. Bayliss will

race a Ducati for Lloyd Brothers Motorsports, starting at

the iconic Springfield Mile.

A lifelong dirt track racer, Bayliss has been a fan of

the sport but never raced flat track in the U.S. where

it originated.

“Dirt riding and flat track racing are where I cut my teeth

as a junior,” said Bayliss. “Everything I learned on the dirt

helped me through my career in road racing, and to find

myself back where it all started takes me to my roots. To

race the Grand Nationals will be a challenge, but to

compete with the Lloyd Brothers on the Ducati had to be

done. Flat track is on the up here in Australia. We have

run the Troy Bayliss Classic for the past three years, and

mixing it up with Henry Wiles, Jared Mees and Sammy

Halbert has been great. I really look forward to my time in

the U.S. of A.”

Bayliss will race a Ducati strongly resembling the firm’s

new Scrambler model. His teammate on the Italian

machines will be Johnny Lewis. Bayliss will use his

signature number 21, and the machines will be painted

yellow and white when he rolls his booming twin out

for practice.

Bayliss is no knob-level stranger to the U.S. dirt track

scene—he has trained and raced with Yamaha rider JD

Beach in Kentucky, and has long wanted to enter a Mile.

He feels that the cerebral and precise method of attack

required on the Miles will play into his strengths as a rider.

There’s nothing in the world like racing on the clay miles.

Dirt track is generally regarded as the oldest form of

motorcycle racing in the world; dirt track racing predates

the AMA, and even Harley-Davidson. In the very early

days of two-wheeled sport, motorcycle racing

basically started as dirt track, then moved to board

tracks, and then back to dusty mile bullrings that once

littered the country.

And it is primal: Speeds top 130 mph before riders throw

bikes sideways for the first turn.

When Bayliss checks his first mile dirt track off his bucket

list, he’ll be on Dunlop tires for the first time since he

raced the AMA Superbike series in 2000. Dunlop’s

Sportmax® DT3 is the official tire of AMA Pro Flat Track.

Made in Buffalo, NY, the DT3 was developed by guys like

Jake Johnson, Brad Baker, JD Beach, Bryan Smith,

Hayden Gillim and Kenny Coolbeth.

Bayliss has raced on legendary racetracks from Phillip

Island in his home country of Australia, to Laguna Seca in

California, to Donington Park in England. Now the former

MotoGP race winner will turn a wheel at another less

paved but no less legendary circuit: the Springfield Mile.

Legend has it the fastest riders at Springfield never let

off the throttle.

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BUCKETLIST

WSBK CHAMP BAYLISS TORACE AMA PRO FLAT TRACK MILES

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THE CHAMPIONSThe list of riders who have won AMA Pro Supercross and Motocross Championships

includes virtually every legend in the sport. Name a rider who left an indelible mark

on the record books, and chances are Dunlop tires carried him there.

From 1973 when Gary Jones won the 250 National Motocross Championship on

Dunlops to 2015 when Dunlop-sponsored riders swept all the Supercross titles for

the fifth year in a row, Dunlop riders have won an astounding 136 SX and MX

championships, more than all the other tire companies combined.

Some of the greats broke records and scored multiple titles in multiple classes:

Jeremy McGrath, Jeff Stanton, Ricky Johnson, Jeff Ward, Ricky Carmichael, Broc

Glover, Ryan Villopoto, Doug Henry, David Bailey, Bob Hannah, Ryan Dungey—

the list is seemingly endless.

RICKYJOHNSON

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BROCGLOVER

TRAVISPASTRANAJEREMYMCGRATH

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RICKYCARMICHAEL

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JEREMYMARTINJEAN-MICHELBAYLE

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DAVIDBAILEY

MARKBARNETTJASONANDERSON WILHAHN

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DONNIEHANSEN

TREYCANARD

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JUSTINBOGLESTEVELAMSONBLAKEBAGGETT

JEFFWARD

MICKYDYMOND

JUSTINBARCIA

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JEFFSTATON

ELITOMACJEFFEMIG

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MIKEKIEDROWSKICHRISTOPHEPOURCEL

KENROCZENCHADREED

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RYANDUNGEY

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SUPERCROSS 2015Tight and exciting racing with loads of brand parity

marked the AMA Supercross season for 2015, giving fans

all around the country plenty to cheer about. Inevitably

and inexorably, the top riders in each class—450 SX,

250 SX West and 250 SX East—charged their way to the

head of the standings to decide all three championships

prior to season’s end. For jobs well done, our

congratulations go out to Dunlop-sponsored Ryan

Dungey, Cooper Webb and Marvin Musquin in their

respective championship-winning efforts.

While these early coronations eliminated some of the

suspense leading into the season finale in Las Vegas, there

was still a huge crowd for the East/West Shootout, which

pitted the best of the 250 East racers against the top

250 West riders in head-to-head competition. To nobody’s

surprise, that final night in Las Vegas proved a sure bet for

brilliant racing, with Musquin defeating all comers in the

Shootout to claim top gun honors among all 250 riders.

Meanwhile, Dungey capped off a great year with his eighth

win of the season—a career-best accomplishment—to

close out the long, wearying 450 series.

With that, Supercross 2015 is now history, with more

head-to-head drama coming up quickly for the outdoor

Motocross season.

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RYANDUNGEY

Hard to believe, but KTM’s Ryan Dungey didn’t win a SX race in

2015 until round 5. But by season’s end he had racked up eight

wins in all, in a dominating display of speed and consistency.

DUNLOP NOW HAS 136 CHAMPIONSHIPS INAMA PRO SUPERCROSS AND MOTOCROSS, MORETHAN ALL THE OTHER TIRE COMPANIES COMBINED

MARVINMUSQUIN

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DUNLOP RIDERS HAVE WON EVERY SUPERCROSSCHAMPIONSHIP FOR FIVE YEARS IN A ROW ONGEOMAX MX32- AND MX52-PATTERNED TIRES

Following an injury-plagued 2014, Marvin Musquin more than

made up for lost time by cranking out an early championship

for Red Bull/KTM Factory Racing in the 250 SX East series.

COOPERWEBB

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Yamaha’s Cooper Webb started out hot and stayed hot in 250 SX West

racing. By the close of round 7 he had racked up five wins to amass a

commanding points lead and nail down his first AMA Supercross title.

©2015 Dunlop • P. O. Box 1109, Buffalo, New York 14240-1109 • 1-800-845-8378 • dunlopmotorcycle.com

UPCOMING EVENTSJune 6

AMA Motocross Round 4Muddy Creek Raceway

Blountville, TN

June 6-7GNCC Round 8

Sunday Creek RacewayMillfield, OH

June 12-14MotoAmerica Round 5Barber Motorsports Park

Birmingham, AL

June 13AMA Motocross Round 5High Point RacewayMt. Morris, PA

June 20AMA Pro Flat Track Round 5Hagerstown Speedway

Hagerstown, MD

June 20-21GNCC Round 9

Snowshoe Mountain ResortSnowshoe, WV

June 26-28MotoAmerica Round 6Miller Motorsports Park

Tooele, UT

June 27AMA Motocross Round 6Budds Creek MotocrossMechanicsville, MD

June 27AMA Pro Flat Track Round 6Allen County Fairgrounds

Lima, OH

July 4AMA Pro Flat Track Round 7Du Quoin State Fairgrounds

Du Quoin, IL

July 4AMA Motocross Round 7

RedBud MXBuchanan, MI

July 11AMA Pro Flat Track Round 8Indiana State Fairgrounds

Indianapolis, IN

July 17-19MotoAmerica Round 7

Mazda Raceway Laguna SecaMonterey, CA

July 18AMA Motocross Round 8Spring Creek MX Park

Millville, MN

July 25AMA Motocross Round 9Washougal MX ParkWashougal, WA

August 8AMA Motocross Round 10

Unadilla MXNew Berlin, NY