Race Report: Round 2 at CVMA – Highs, Lows, and Lessons Learned

Round 2 of the CVMA series was packed with excitement, challenges, and growth for the BPR Racing team. With Bryce Prince, Josh Hayes, and myself on the roster, it was set to be a thrilling weekend. From practice sessions to nail-biting race battles, the team put in a tremendous effort, making it a weekend to remember.

Friday Practice and Saturday Qualifying
We hit the ground running during Friday practice as I focused on dialing in the R1 while Josh got familiar with my R6. Quentin Robles from Next Level Cycles worked tirelessly to ensure every bike was race-ready.

Saturday morning brought a solid qualifying session, where I secured 4th behind Bryce Prince, Corey Alexander, and Jayson Uribe. The stage was set for some fierce competition.

Race 1: Formula Open Thriller
The opening race was action-packed from the start. I slotted into 3rd behind Jayson and Nick Ciling heading into Turn 1. Bryce was hot on my heels, ready to capitalize on any opportunity. As we pushed through Chuckwalla's famous Bowl, the battle intensified—we were nearly three-wide at one point!

Jayson took the lead with three laps to go. I managed to pass Nick on the next lap and closed the gap on Jayson. With a tight move on the final turn before the white flag, I grabbed the lead. However, a small mistake at the Bowl exit gave Bryce the opening he needed to overtake me. With only a few turns left, I crossed the line in 2nd, feeling more comfortable on the R1 than ever before.

Race 2: Open Supersport Showdown
The second race mirrored Race 1 in intensity. Jayson, Nick, and I worked our way up the pack. I made a last-lap pass on Nick but couldn’t catch Jayson in time. Despite that, it was a great race and a strong finish to the day.

Saturday Night Adjustments Pay Off
Bryce and I made some key changes to our R1 setups Saturday night, and the improvements were evident Sunday morning as we warmed up with consistent low 1:45 lap times, even in traffic. The hard work was paying off.

Sunday Drama in Open Supersport
The most challenging race of the weekend came on Sunday. As the lights went out for the start, an unexpected overslow by the front group forced Bryce and me to slam on the brakes. Unfortunately, Bryce took a hard tumble, and I narrowly dodged his bike as it bounced towards me. The incident brought out a red flag, and seeing my friend and teammate go down was tough to witness.

On the restart, I slotted into 4th, chasing Nick, Jayson, and Corey. Corey made a move for the lead, with Jayson following close behind. I passed Nick in the Bowl and began closing the gap. Just as I was about to make a move on Jayson, he signaled a mechanical issue, leaving me in 2nd with a clear path to Corey.

I was closing the gap with a predicted 1:44.0 on my lap timer, but a strong gust of wind in the final turn caused me to tuck the front, resulting in a crash. Fortunately, I walked away unscathed.

Rallying for the Stock 1000 Shootout
With limited time before the Shootout, my incredible team—my dad, Quentin, Louis, and Matty—worked tirelessly to get the R1 back together. They had the bike ready to go, but an unforeseen power issue emerged during rollout, forcing us to pull back for safety reasons. Despite their hard work, we couldn’t make the race.

Ending on a High Note
Though the weekend ended with some setbacks, I was proud to watch my teammate Josh Hayes claim victory in the Supersport Shootout, bringing home a win for the BPR Racing team.

We faced challenges, but our determination remains unshaken. I’m excited to return for the next round stronger than ever, ready to give it my all.