The AMA Pro Racing series heads to Laguna Seca for the penultimate event of the 2011 racing season. The AMA riders will be joined by the MotoGP this weekend for three days of racing action on the California coast.
Josh Hayes will be fighting to retake the lead from Blake Young this weekend. Hayes has enjoyed the top spot in the points standings for the majority of the season, but after a rare non-podium finish at Mid-Ohio, Blake Young was able to take an 11 point lead.
The AMA Superbike race at Laguna Seca is even more important now that the VIR round has been cancelled. The Superbike riders have just three more races this season to score points.
Tommy Hayden can still mathematically win the championship, but he would need for both Young and Hayes to make some big mistakes over the next three races. Instead, Hayden will work to keep Martin Cardenas at bay during the final stretch of the season. Hayden has 46 points over Cardenas at the moment, so he should be able to cruise to a third place championship finish.
Larry Pegram, Ben Bostrom, and Roger Hayden, will be fighting over fifth during the remaining races. Pegram currently holds the fifth place spot, but the Michael Jordan Motorsports boys are close behind. Bostrom, who is pulling double duty this weekend with a wild card entry into the MotoGP race, is currently two points behind Pegram in 6th. Roger will also be gunning for the top five, as Hayden is coming off of his best weekend of the season and looks like he has finally found a competitive package.
AMA Superbike fans will get to watch the race live, even if they aren't in attendance at Laguna Seca. Since the Superbike race is running in conjunction with the MotoGP, SpeedTV will be broadcasting the event live. You can tune in at 3:45 on Sunday to watch the Superbike race.
