AMA Pro Road Racing: Alabamy (Spoilers, y'all)

In addition to picking up the race coverage, kudus to CBS for also presenting a decent pre-race 1/2 hour show.

Ulrich signed Roberts to a contract last month after he almost beat James Rispoli at a WERA race at Barber. Rispoli was on a DSB spec bike and Roberts was on a SS spec bike.

I thought he was doing non-conflicting weekends in the AMA/DMG. Is he supposed to go full time, now?

One thing for sure, John Ulrich knows he's got a hot prospect on his hands.

Don't know, but there are only 2 conflicting rounds left this season: Mid-Ohio/Sachsenring & Laguna WSBK/Aragon.

The RBRC makes those kids sign a pretty iron-clad contract so I imagine Ulrich took that into account.

It was said over the PA that he would do two more AMA rounds this year.

John has enough experience to see kids potential very early. If my memory serves me right he caught Spies early and helped him get his ride with Valvoline Suzuki.

Hope this Roberts has the right people around him so he can meet his potential and keep his nose clean. Anthony Gobert had the skill to do many great things but got a taste of the wrong stuff and liked it too much. Sad for all.

I don't actually know, but somebody is spending a fortune on getting Joe his rides. They are all pay-to-play and appear well scripted. Maybe the JU seat is different, but maybe not. My point is that somebody behind him has pretty deep pockets (parents?), so it's not like the Go Show or anybody like him. Gobert, Mladin etc. never had anybody behind them, except for what they could muster in the paddock.

Roberts (like Elena, Rispoli etc) seems to be very well managed. Add in that he is clearly more talented... :eek1

I think he has a very big future.

Not to disparage the kid or suggest his potential isn't anything but sky high, but his performance in RBR's isn't nearly so dominant as he was this weekend with the AMA.

This. I'm glad to see a lot of excitement about anyone in the US racing scene. However, I think its too soon to anoint Roberts as our next great hope.

He is the only thing on the horizon at the moment.

Don't know where you get that idea. What makes Roberts so special? Beach, Gagne, Solis and Beaubier all outperformed Roberts in RBRC and Gerloff's Supersport debut in 2011 was even more impressive. Roberts still needs to prove he belongs with those guys.

You are correct in that Gerloff had a similar debut at the 2011 NJMP. But he hasn't shown the same relative speed until race two last week. I think Roberts has demonstrated that he is already has enough speed to compete with the others you mention. Sure maybe his racecraft might not yet be at the level of a couple, but we know he has a lot more than most at this stage.

Barber is a very technical track. It requires different suspension settings, what with all the downhill braking zones mixed in with those long and undulating turns on the side of the tire. Gearing is even a risk. Add in that Joe had never raced there before, and we can agree he made a big statement with his lap times alone. We know he will be a force. Just like we knew Gerloff would be after 2011 NJMP.

Beaubier, Gagne, Gerloff and now Roberts are the new faces of the series. I hope at least one of those faces will be bumped up to Superbike and soon. That grid needs help.

Hey, it's only Thursday, but Roberts is showing great speed in Europe at the latest MotoGP round. Maybe not the greatest speed, but fast enough to be a threat.

My #1 son tried one season racing a TZ125, Aprilia Cup bike, TZ250 and a Gixxer 600. There were a few great highlights, but the season was a bust. No fun either...

For Joe to jump back and forth between Moto3 and SS600 is very hard. I am super excited that he is so easily fast in both. He is the next big thing.

According to Larry Lawrence in Cycle News, Keith Code had the novel idea of preparing Joe for a heavy 600 by having him ride an even bigger 1000. After that the 600 felt like a toy.