(NEWS RELEASE)

Team Hammer improved on Sunday to finish the penultimate round of the 2013 GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing season.

GEICO Motorcycle Road Racing’s Dane Westby built on his fifth-place finish in Saturday’s Daytona SportBike race, running nose to tail with M4 Hotbodies Racing’s Benny Solis in Sunday’s multi-rider fight for fourth place; both Westby and Solis aboard CBR600RR Hondas prepared by Team Hammer.

Westby held fourth with Solis a close fifth in the run to the white flag. But Westby mistook the white flag for the checkered flag and slowed down after crossing the line, instantly dropping back to seventh and handing fourth to Solis. Westby quickly realized his mistake and fought back into sixth at the actual checkered flag.

Solis, who had qualified 16th for the SportBike double-header and finished 10th on Saturday, earned a hard-earned fourth in Sunday’s 23-lap race, securing the position at the line by a 0.04-second margin.

After the race an elated Solis said, “That’s my best DSB result yet. It feels good. The guys were pushing really hard and I could hear their bikes behind me. It was fun and I learned a lot from Dane when we went out and worked together in practice, which helped me a lot in the race.”

Californian Solis is looking forward to the upcoming season finale at Laguna Seca, anxious to capitalize on his improving form. “I love that Laguna Seca is the final race. The last time we were there we struggled a little bit because this whole season I’ve been trying to find the right set-up and chassis balance to suit my style. We hadn’t hit on it and I crashed a lot trying to go fast. At Miller and afterward, we’ve made a lot of improvements. Now that the bike feels more settled for me I think we’ll be good at Laguna. We have to work even harder since it’s the last race, but I’m excited that the bike feels as good as it does now.”

MPH Racing’s Melissa Paris started 22nd but again improved on her grid position, adding to Saturday’s 16th with a Sunday 17th on her Team Hammer Contract Services-prepared Honda CBR600RR.

M4 Broaster Chicken Racing’s Chris Ulrich finished 14th in Sunday’s AMA Pro Superbike race after earning 13th the day before, but went faster in the Sunday race despite continuing electronics issues.

Team Hammer will complete the 2013 GEICO Motorcycle Road Racing season on September 27-29 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca as AMA Pro shares the spotlight with the Superbike World Championship.

About Team Hammer: In 2013, Team Hammer, Inc. is competing in its 33rd consecutive racing season, and is marking its seventh year of offering technical and logistical support through its Contract Services Department. Riders on Team Hammer-prepared racebikes have earned 59 AMA Pro National race wins; 135 AMA Pro National podium finishes; 5 AMA Pro Championships; 133 Overall National Endurance race wins; 13 National Endurance Championships and assorted other race wins and titles.