Ben Spies
Ben Spies [ spi ː z bɛn ] ( born July 11, 1984 in Memphis, Tennessee ) is a former American professional motorcycle racer.
In the 2013 season, he went on a Ducati Desmosedici GP13 of Pramac Racing Team in the MotoGP class of the Motorcycle World Championship at the start. Between 2006 and 2008, Spies won three times on the Suzuki American Superbike Championship.
Because of its habit far abzustrecken the elbow when driving from the body, Spies is nicknamed Elbowz.
- 2.1 Title
- 2.2 In the World Motorcycle Championship
- 2.3 In the Superbike World Championship
- 3.1 External links
- 3.2 Notes and references
Career
Ben Spies began at the age of five years to ride the motorcycle. Until his tenth birthday, he won 27 races in a row until 1999, he won three Amateur Championships.
U.S. Championship
In 2000, Spies was a professional racing driver and joined the team Valvoline Suzuki in the U.S. Championship. His best finish this season he reached fifth place in the AMA 750 Supersport Series at Pikes Peak International Raceway and won the AMA Horizon Award for road racing. In the 2000 season, Ben Spies also denied his first race in the U.S. Supersport Championship, in which he qualified immediately for the front row. In 2001 he won the Superstock race at Pikes Peak and drove a four more podium finishes.
2002 Spies joined for Attack Suzuki along with Jason Pridmore in the Supersport class and came up three times in the top five. In the AMA Formula Xtreme U.S. Americans continue to get four top -5 finishes, although he was afflicted for much of the season to a knee injury. In the 2003 season, Ben Spies won for American Suzuki with five race wins the AMA Formula Xtreme Championship. In the Supersport class, he won the race at Road Atlanta. 2004 drove for Spies American Suzuki Supersport Championship and won the race at the Infineon Raceway. In the AMA Superstock Championship he won at California Speedway and Road Atlanta.
In the 2005 season, Ben Spies made his debut in the Suzuki Yoshimura Suzuki factory team, where he took on a GSX- R 1000 in the AMA Superbike Championship. His teammate was the five -time champion Mat Mladin from Australia. Spies won at California Speedway his first AMA Superbike race and he drove a 13 other podium finishes. The championship ended the Americans in his rookie year as runner-up, with only 22 points behind Mladin. He also reached several placings in the top five in the Supersport class.
2006 Ben Spies secured with ten race wins and seven additional podium finishes out of 19 races for the title. In the final standings, the then 22 - year-old with 649 points, a full eight points ahead of his teammate.
In the 2007 season, Ben Spies and Mat Mladin teammates delivered, continue with Yoshimura Suzuki, one of the closest title fights in the history of U.S. Superbike Championship. Spies was worse than second place in any race of the season and won the title by just one point ahead of Mladin by a victory in the final race at Laguna Seca. In addition, the Americans secured with seven wins and the title in the Superstock class.
2008 Ben Spies defended his title again and set with seven race wins in a row setting a new record in the AMA Superbike Championship on. The Americans won the title virtually on the Green Table, after his team-mate and main rival Mat Mladin because of an irregular crankshaft both at Virginia International Raceway won victories got denied and his appeal in the course of the season was rejected under curious circumstances, which Spies helped to an insurmountable points lead. He thus became the fourth driver in the series' history to have won the title three times in a row.
MotoGP class
Due to its strong performance in the U.S. Championship Ben Spies was interesting for the Motorcycle World Championship. In October 2007, he graduated in Japan its first test on a MotoGP bike.
On 22 June 2008 he played at the British Grand Prix at Donington Park in his first race in the MotoGP class. The Americans replaced at Rizla Suzuki for the injured Italians Loris Capirossi and finished the race in 14th After further tests on the MotoGP Suzuki denied Spies as a wildcard rider both in the United States grands prix. In Laguna Seca he was doing eight, in Indianapolis, he finished in the rain a strong sixth place, beating both Suzuki factory rider.
Ben Spies in 2007 expressed the wish, in 2009 permanently in the MotoGP class to go to the start, what seemed to him to plan also firmly Suzuki. In August 2008, the Japanese but their two riders Chris Vermeulen and Loris Capirossi confirmed for 2009.
Spies ' management felt itself in late summer 2008 to look at other options, so he was at JiR Team Scot, the team of Fausto Gresini and a Ducati customer team in the conversation. Even a change to the Ducati factory team in the World Superbike Championship as a replacement for Troy Bayliss seemed possible. All of these options eventually failed to Spies ' salary demands, who wanted to maintain its high level of earnings from the U.S. Championship.
2010 finally Spies was then permanent starter in the MotoGP World Championship. He played his first season in French Tech3 team on a customer - Yamaha. With 176 points he could finish the year in sixth position. At Silverstone and Indianapolis also reach places him on the podium. At the same time he was honored with the performance of the best newcomers with the Rookie of the Year Award. Spies was a result of this performance offered a contract for 2011 in the Yamaha factory team.
On June 25, 2011 Spies in Assen celebrated his first victory in the Moto GP. He managed a few more times to finish on the podium. Another win did not materialize as he was overtaken by Casey Stoner at the season finale in Valencia on the final stretch and crossed the finish line in second place with a narrow gap of 0.015 seconds. He finished the year in fifth place with 176 points.
Also for the 2012 season went Spies continues at the side of Jorge Lorenzo for the Yamaha factory team, but could not meet the expectations of the team and was replaced for the 2013 season of Valentino Rossi.
In 2013 he started on a Ducati of the Pramac Racing Team. Following a drop in the 2012 and 2013 season, he had to have surgery on both shoulders and could therefore participate in only two races in 2013. His contract for 2014 with Pramac Ducati was dissolved.
Superbike World Championship
On 1 October 2008 was officially confirmed that Ben Spies compete in the 2009 Superbike World Championship and would go for the company headquartered in Italy, Yamaha Factory Team Yamaha WSB by Massimo Meregalli. His team mate, there was the Briton Tom Sykes.
Spies went with the 13 previously discharged events a ten pole positions and set so that the record of his compatriot Doug Polen from the year 1991. He won on the all-new Yamaha YZF -R1 13 of the 26 runs. On 6 September, the Americans took over the ranks one and two at the Nürburgring for the first time the championship lead. In the overall standings before the final race has ten points behind the leading Ducati riders Noriyuki Haga.
October 25, 2009 Ben spit decided at the final round of the SBK Portimao in the title for themselves. In the first race he drove out a superior start-finish victory, while Noriyuki Haga turned out after a fall. In the second race he pulled out of the tackle of the top group, and came as 5th in total. Haga was second in the second race and had 6 points behind in the final result. Ben Spies is the first driver who in his rookie season Superbike World Champion and was also the first Yamaha World Superbike champion.
Statistics
Title
- American Formula Extreme Masters: 2003 Suzuki
- American Superbike Champion: 2006, 2007, 2008 Suzuki
- American Superstock Champion: 2007 Suzuki
- Superbike World Champion: 2009 Yamaha
- Rookie of the Year: 2010 MotoGP at Yamaha ( 6th place)
- 1 Grand Prix victory
In the World Motorcycle Championship
(As of end of season 2012)