Photo Credit: Brian Nitto with CycleWorld
MotoSport.com Meen Motorsports rider Jake Lewis settled on second place for the 2014 AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike series after a wet weekend at the New Jersey Motorsports Park grounded him in Race 1 on Saturday.
Lewis entered the final Round of the season just seven points back of Jake Gagne and needed to sweep both races on Saturday and Sunday for the championship. In Race 1, Lewis got off to a good start and was riding third, ready to pass for second when a red flag was called after another rider crashed and needed medical attention. When the race resumed Lewis couldn't get his bike started.
"The bike didn't have power," Lewis said. "It was an electrical issue or something got wet. I didn't even get to race. It was a real bummer."
Lewis bounced back and took fourth in Race 2 which helped him hold on to second-place for the year after Dane Westby finished first in Race 1 and third in Race 2 to close to within just seven points of Lewis. Westby entered the weekend in fifth-place, 40 points back from Lewis.
"I was a little bit disappointed, I definitely wanted to win the last race of the year," Lewis said. "I did the best I could and was in a battle for second and third. We all finished really close to each other."
Gagne took second in Race 1 and first in Race 2 to take the championship. Gagne and Westby each finished the season with three wins. Lewis had two wins, a second- and third-place finish and three fourth-places finishes. Lewis ended the season with 200 points, more than enough to secure the 2014 Roadracing World Young Gun Award which goes to the 18 year-old rider in Daytona Sportbike or the Pro Supersport series with the most points.
"It was a really good season, I don't think anyone expected me to compete for the championship," he said. "It was a big learning year and I learned a lot about myself. I just didn't finish the way I wanted to do. I'll just keep my head up and keep pushing."
2014 AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike Rider Final Standings
- Jake Gagne (244)
- Jake Lewis (200) - MotoSport rider
- Dane Westby (193)
- Danny Eslick (188)
- JD Beach (183)
- Garrett Gerloff (163)
- Jake Zemke (126)
- Jason DiSalvo (124)
- Kyle Wyman (109)
- Blake Young (103)