American Racing News Vol 1, Issue 2 Issue 3 | Page 24

Bryan Smith wins at Phoenix
PHOENIX, AZ - Bryan Smith turned up the heat in the
Valley of the Sun on Saturday by winning AMA Pro
Flat Track's inaugural Law Tigers Arizona Mile in stunning fashion. The "Mile Specialist" lived up to his
nickname, topping defending Harley-Davidson GNC1
presented by Vance & Hines champion No. 1 Jared
Mees by 12.646 seconds in front of a standing room
only crowd at Turf Paradise.
With temperatures soaring above 100 degrees,
Smith, mounted on his No. 42 Crosley/Howerton Motorsports Kawasaki Ninja 650, showed that heat
wasn't a factor for him. The Michigan native set a
blistering pace all day, winning his heat race by a
remarkable 10.942 seconds to start from pole position in the main, and then leading every lap of the
main in flawless succession.
Like Smith, defending series champ Mees showed
speed early to take the win in his heat race by 7.457
seconds. However, the Harley-Davidson-mounted
rider was unable to keep Smith's pace in the night's
main event.
After bolting to the front at the start of the race, No.
65 Cory Texter settled into a rhythm behind Smith
and Mees to earn the first GNC1 podium finish of his
career.
No. 17 Henry Wiles finished fourth after a long battle
with series points leader No. 69 Sammy Halbert, who
finished an eventual fifth. Halbert heads to next
weekend's Sacramento Mile with 73 points, followed
by Mees with 68 points and third-place No. 5 Jake
Johnson with 63 points.

AMA Pro Racing/Dave Hoenig

24 | American Racing News | Motorcycles