Check back for frequent updates from the combined MotoGP/AMA Pro Road Racing weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
PROGRAMMING NOTE: SPEED will provide two days of LIVE coverage from the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Catch Qualifying LIVE on Saturday, July 20 at 5:00pm ET and then tune into Sunday's LIVE race coverage starting at 4:30pm ET. #MotoGPonSPEEDBy Comparison Dorna is on the verge of having an American problem in MotoGP. Despite an intense effort to grow the sport Stateside over the last several years, in 2014 the MotoGP Championship could find itself with more American races than American riders. 2006 World Champion Nicky Hayden has been told by Ducati that he will not be brought back in '14 and is, for the first time, seriously considering a move to World Superbike. Former MotoGP Rookie of the Year and one-time race winner Ben Spies is the paddock enigma. Coming off a disastrous season with Yamaha, Spies had his bags packed and was headed back to World Superbike before a change of heart saw him link up with Ducati and placed inside the Pramac organization. However, the Texan has been sidelined with injuries much of this season and -- fairly or unfairly -- insiders have started to question his interest in racing MotoGP long-term, while others are concerned with the state of his shoulder. And fellow former World Superbike king Colin Edwards has been relegated to the ranks of the CRTs where he's scooped up as many MotoGP top tens over the last two seasons as AMA Superbike star Roger Hayden boasts on his career tally -- one. It's possible that American's best hope for a return to Grand Prix glory is racing this weekend, albeit not on the big stage. Daytona SportBike dominator Cameron Beaubier continues to show rare talent and the mindset required to excel at the highest levels. Superbike stars continually praise the developing rider and regard him as a world-class talent. Top Moto2 teams did some talent scouting in the AMA paddock a year ago. If they do so again in 2013, you can bet Beaubier will be the primary target. And while a graduation to the Monster Energy Graves Yamaha Superbike team also makes a whole lot of sense, a 2014 switch to a front-running Moto2 team might be the perfect move at the perfect time for the Californian to continue his rapid rise and eventually deliver American fans a new hero to cheer for at the pinnacle of the sport. What some AMA fans might not know -- and what some GP fans/insiders might remember too well -- is the fact that Beaubier was already once a factory Grand Prix pilot. He spent one year with the Red Bull KTM 125cc team in 2009, and after an unspectacular campaign, found himself competing in AMA SuperSport the following year. They say your first job in racing is to beat your teammate. But what if your teammate is a generational talent? And even worse, what if no one yet realizes that fact? Well, the unfortunate reality is, even if you are a genuine top-flight talent, you're likely to get your tail kicked by comparison, and people will probably assume that your bike is more capable than it really is. And ultimately, your career is likely to receive a pretty substantial set-back. In 2009, 16-year-old Cam Beaubier was teamed with 16-year-old Marc Marquez. Making matters that much more difficult, Marquez already had a year's worth of GP seasoning under his belt. The Spaniard -- who now stands as a MotoGP phenom, race winner, and championship leader -- earned a couple poles, a podium, and finished eighth in the points that season. Beaubier, meanwhile, collected just three points and was shown the door. Some parallels exist that prove that world-class (and world championship) caliber talents can recover from such an unfortunate start. In 2008, after claiming four-straight Champ Car World Series titles, Frenchman Sébastien Bourdais finally got his first real shot in Formula 1 with the Scuderia Torro Rosso outfit. A kid named Sebastian Vettel got his first full season that same year in the same team. The comparison was not kind to Bourdais. Vettel became the youngest-ever driver to win a F1 race at 21-years-old and was named Rookie of the Year. Vettel is now working on his fourth consecutive Formula 1 title and rewriting the record books. Bourdais career was sidetracked but he eventually reestablished himself as a preeminent sports car pilot and is coming off a pair of Indy Car podium finishes. And consider the career of Tom Sykes. A British Superbike hotshot, Sykes was drafted into an all-rookie team on a works Yamaha in 2009. The other rookie? Ben Spies. Spies stormed through the championship, claiming 14 wins, 17 podiums, 11 poles, and the championship -- arguably the greatest season in SBK history. Sykes, meanwhile, finished ninth with a best finish of fourth. Spies' incredible form masked the fact that the YZF-R1 was not an especially strong racebike at that stage of its development. Spies ran off to GP and Sykes was dumped. Yamaha then discovered the actual state of the R1 as Cal Crutchlow, James Toseland, Marco Melandri, and Eugene Laverty came nowhere near matching the standard set by Spies on a less refined version of the racebike. Remove Spies from the equation and Sykes' rookie season was decent enough. However, he paled by comparison and was fortunate to cling onto his World Superbike career as PBM Kawasaki offered him a ride. What was a somewhat unfancied gig was transformed into one of the paddock's best after Kawasaki took the effort in house and worked hard to develop a new ZX-10R. Sykes' reputation has also since been transformed as he came up a point short of winning the '12 title and currently heads the 2013 Superbike World Championship. Beaubier may very well have the skills to develop into a MotoGP superstar. Not matching a more experienced Marc Marquez in 2009 is probably a forgivable sin.Combined SuperSport QP The provisional SuperSport top ten stood after the typical misty morning conditions at Laguna Seca prevented any riders from improving on their Friday afternoon best. The SuperSport race will take place this afternoon at 1. Tomas Puerta (Yamaha) 1:29.736 2. Jeffery Tigert (Yamaha) 1:29.749 3. Joe Roberts (Honda) 1:29.798 4. Corey Alexander (Suzuki) 5. Cameron Gish (Yamaha) 6. Stefan Mesa (Yamaha) 7. Wyatt Farris (Yamaha) 8. Ryan Matter (Yamaha) 9. Charles Weaver (Yamaha) 10. Travis Ohge (Suzuki)
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