American Racing News Vol 1, Issue 2 Issue 7 | Page 25

Brad Baker clinches the win at the
Ramspur Winery Santa Rosa Mile

Santa Rosa
AMA Pro Racing | Brian J. Nelson

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (Sept. 25, 2016) – Brad Baker may have won the battle at the Ramspur
Winery Santa Rosa Mile presented by Triumph,
but Bryan Smith won the war. It was a dominant
win for Baker, the No. 6 Factory Harley-Davidson XR750 rider crossing the finish line 10.5 seconds clear of Smith.
“I can’t even describe the way it feels,” Baker
said. “It’s been a roller coaster of a year. And it
seems like every time, I’d have an eight ball. If
anything that could happen badly, it did.
It was the battle for second though, that had
everyone captivated. A thrilling battle in the final moments which served as the climax of a
season long battle for the Harley-Davidson
GNC1 presented by Vance & Hines Championship between Smith on the No. 42 Kawasaki
Ninja 650 and Jared Mees on the No. 1 HarleyDavidson . Mees put up a great fight, but Smith
was not going to let his first Grand National
Championship slip out of his grasp once again.
Smith finally had his fairytale ending, but describing what it felt to win his first GNC1 Championship was not easy for the Flint, Mich. Rider.
“It’s something you can’t explain,” Smith said.
“To win it and come down that close, I would
have liked for Jared (Mees) not to catch me. My
heart rate went to about 360 that last lap. I had
also all of my friends and family out here and all
of my friends who are like family, including my
whole team. It means so much to have them all
here supporting me. Thanks to all the fans, all
my friends and everybody that’s been behind
me since I was a seven-year-old punk in Scotty
Parker’s garage. Everybody back home watching, including Scotty Parker, thanks man, I love
you. I wouldn’t be here without you.”