NEW PAIRING, SAME GOAL FOR RCH SOARING EAGLE/JIMMY JOHN’S/SUZUKI FACTORY RACING IN OAKLAND
CHINO, Calif. (January 29, 2016) – While the rider lineup may have a new wrinkle, the goals remain the same for RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John’s/Suzuki Factory Racing heading into tomorrow night’s Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, at O.co Coliseum in Oakland, Calif.
Following Broc Tickle’s injury last week, RCH team owners Carey Hart and Ricky Carmichael gave the nod to veteran Jake Weimer to fill out the team’s stable as Tickle recovers from a fractured distal radius in his right forearm. An exact timetable for Tickle’s return is still to be determined. Weimer’s status with the team is independent of Tickle’s injury and the Rupert, Idaho native will campaign the No. 12 Suzuki RM-Z450 for the remaining 14 races of the 2016 supercross season.
Following last Saturday night’s race in Anaheim, Weimer spent Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday practicing with the team and getting acclimated to his new surroundings. Despite spending the last seven seasons riding a Kawasaki, Weimer felt comfortable aboard his new machine almost immediately.
“It feels natural,” explained Weimer. “That’s a good word to describe it. I felt comfortable right away. I didn’t feel like an outsider. I chatted with everyone. We had some laughs. It was really easy. I know most of the guys on the team and I’ve worked with some of them before so that’s been easy. It’s been about as easy of a transition as you could ask for. I like the bike. I felt good on it right away. I don’t see any reason why I can’t go to Oakland this weekend and do well.”
The 2010 Western Regional 250SX Class Champion moves to RCH after spending 2015 and the first three races of 2016 with Team Tedder. Prior to last year, the 28-year-old rider spent the previous four seasons with Monster Energy Kawasaki where he finished a career-best fifth in supercross points in 2012. That same year, Weimer finished third in Lucas Oil Pro Motocross points, his best season-ending performance to date in outdoor competition.
Despite having a lengthy professional resume that dates back to 2006, this weekend will mark the first time Weimer will compete on a Suzuki. Still, he paid attention from a distance and is eager to get down to the business of racing his new mount this weekend.
“Of course, you wonder how it’s going to feel and if you’re going to like it,” he continued. “I’ve done this for a while and I enjoy testing. I’m into that side of things. I’ve watched the bike over the last few years. I could tell it was going to be a good machine. I knew that I was going to like it and it has been exactly that. I rode it for 15 minutes and straight away it felt good. Obviously, I don’t have the whole off-season testing on it but, as far as this weekend is concerned, we’ll take it for what it is. I’ll go out there and do my best. I feel confident. I feel comfortable. I don’t foresee any real issues. Of course, there’s going to be stuff to learn as far as race day situations with the team and the bike, but I’m looking forward to it.”
Weimer finished 11th last year but earned top 10s in each of his previous two starts at the venue formerly known as Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Heading into round four this year, he is ninth in points with a season-best eighth-place finish coming two races ago in San Diego.
Even with 53 career 450SX Class starts, 12 top-five and 29 top-10 finishes to his credit, Weimer didn’t want to define success or failure on his first weekend with RCH by pointing to a specific result.
“I’m not going to get hung up on numbers or exact positions,” Weimer said. “Of course, I have goals and things I want to accomplish but I’m not going to get hung up on a certain result, especially for the first race. I believe I can go to Oakland this weekend and do well. I’m comfortable enough to say that. There shouldn’t be any problems but, if things don’t go exactly according to plan, it’s not the end of the world. I have goals and expectations. My best finish this year was eighth and I want to do better then that but, if I leave there 10th, then as long as I learn something on the night and improve myself, that’s what I’ll take.”
For Ken Roczen, rider of RCH’s No. 94 Suzuki, Oakland comes just as he’s beginning to hit his stride. In the season’s first three events, the 21-year-old German rider has finished fifth, sixth and third, respectively. He’s currently sixth in points and coming off his best finish of the year. While Roczen is still working on his first 450SX Class win of 2016, he can point to his 2012 Western Regional 250SX Class victory at Oakland as proof that he knows his way to the top step of the podium at the home of the NFL’s Oakland Raiders.
With a new teammate in tow and his first podium finish of the season in his hip pocket, Roczen is eager to get on the track tomorrow afternoon.
“We’ve been working really hard and doing all the right things so hopefully we can put it all together this weekend,” said Roczen who suffered a nasty incident and finished 15th last year at O.Co Coliseum. “I spent a lot of time this week working on starts and trying get better so I don’t have to spend so much time trying to catch the guys at the front. That’s the one thing that’s been holding me back. It’s been great testing and riding with Jake this week. I’ve known him for a long time so it’s good to work with him. I made a mistake at Oakland last year and it made a big difference in our season. If we can avoid the mistakes this weekend, we can keep getting better.”
Round four of the 2016 Monster Energy AMA Supercross championship will be televised live on FS1 Saturday, Jan.30 beginning at 10 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, 7 p.m. Pacific.
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About RCH Racing …
RCH Soaring Eagle/Jimmy John’s/Suzuki Factory Racing is a professional Monster Energy Supercross and Lucas Oil Pro Motocross team co-owned by 15-time AMA Champion Ricky Carmichael and Freestyle Motocross visionary and entrepreneur Carey Hart. RCH enjoys factory support from Suzuki as well as marketing partnerships with Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort, Jimmy John’s and Bel-Ray. Stay up to date on all the latest RCH Racing news on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @RCHRacing.
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