We left Philly at 8 p.m. Wednesday on the last possible flight because I can't miss that many school days. We arrived in London at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, and went straight to the track.
KTM had five bikes waiting and my dad and Artie Meeker (crew for the weekend) went right to work fitting my suspension to the bike.
Two Mazziottos in England: Jimmy Winters Motorsports sponsored us all year and helped out with some great gear for the World Finals.
While they were getting the bike set, all the riders took a good look at the track with Chris Fillmore and Jeremy McWilliams, our all-star coaches. We spent a lot of time on the track walk dissecting the corners and discussing how important the draft would be if we got some sections wrong. Although Silverstone is not very technical, there are tricks to every track and I love getting to walk the track to find those tricks without the bike. It was a long two days of travel and we finally made it back to the hotel at about 8:30 p.m. to get some food, a shower, and a good night’s sleep. Early Friday morning, we set off to the track as "Team USA" to finish off the details, buy fuel, rent transponders and get to the rider meetings. They do some things differently than we do with
MotoAmerica, and there was a lot to learn. KTM had a killer hospitality area set up with catered breakfast and lunch as well as plenty to drink, a place to sit and study track maps, and just chill and relax all day. Very "Factory Racer" feeling and it was awesome hanging out with all the kids from across the globe. I got to talk with some of the kids to get a feel for them. Free Practice 1 was late in the day, at 12:55 p.m., so there was plenty of time to get familiar with everybody, but I just wanted to ride already! It was killing me just sitting there with all the noise and excitement. Finally, we were told to be ready to walk our bikes to pit lane at 12:45. I got suited up and started stretching out, anxious to get on track.
My plan was to follow some of the local kids just to get a feel for the flow and direction. Problem was, once we made it to the grid, we were all piled up in one big group waiting for the lights to go green. In America, we line up single file and are let out in small groups one at a time. Here, the light goes green and the entire group takes off like crazy. I was in the front and got off with a fast group for the entire session and was going fast. Only I was just going fast and not learning. I did okay on the time sheets, but after coming in and looking at the track map I felt lost as to where I could pick up time. I had no marks in my head other than go where the pack goes. After going over the track map with Colin Edwards and Jeremy McWilliams I started to see where I needed to be, but until I ran those lines, I didn't “feel it." One of the things that British Superbike does that is different than MotoAmerica is this: They use Free Practice 2 times for a “Mock Grid and Practice start” that starts the one and only Qualifying session Saturday morning. Problem was, I still did not feel confident and really wanted to ride Free Practice 2 by myself. I wasn’t positive that riding alone would help me because Silverstone is wide and open with a lot of drafting opportunities, but I needed to get it dialed my way. Looking back on it now, I should have made this decision with FP1, but I got caught up in the moment and just let it rip. It was fun but I won't make that mistake again.
After a lot of thinking, I decided to run FP2 by myself. The call was made and the group gathered at the end of pit lane like a pack of angry bees. This time, I just rolled out slowly letting them all go. I cruised for the first lap looking at the sights and seeing the corners without any pressure to go fast or other bikes to distract me. It’s amazing how different a track looks when you’re not in “Go Mode!” As the session went on, I picked up my pace and pushed hard in a few spots to find the limit. I also tried a few different lines and gear choices through the two sections I found most important. We had made a few changes to the bike before this session and they were a step in the right direction. When the clock ran out, I pulled into pit lane feeling much better. My times dropped a bit (by 0.68 seconds), but riding alone had me down to 12th place. I was nine mph down in the speed trap in sector two, and seven mph down in sector four, running without the draft! Knowing that and feeling better about where I was and what was my plan, I felt confident I could run up front and knew how hard I could push for Saturday’s qualifying session. The downside was this: I was gridded 12th for the “start” of the session. Knowing the front guys would make a break and get their fast laps in early, I had to get a good start!
I was twelfth after Free Practice 2, but I had a chance to really look at the track and develop a plan to improve.
Friday night, we were all starting to feel the effects of no sleep, so we chilled at the local pub one block away from the hotel. It was a cool place, with good traditional English Pub style food. I had a salmon steak and English macaroni & cheese while my dad had to try the fish & chips. It was a great experience, all hanging out together as a team, talking strategies, etc. We got to bed at about 10 p.m. and I was out in no time.
Team USA had a great time in England: Hayden Schultz, Braedon Ortt, Justin McWilliams and Gage McCallister. It wasn’t all racing!
Saturday morning, we got to the track early. I had breakfast and studied the track map one more time. The weather was cool and overcast, not really great conditions for going fast. My crew looked over the bike for anything that could cause an issue. They found a few loose bolts in the rearsets, and the rear-brake return-spring bolt was falling out, keeping the brake pedal from fully releasing. It didn't cause any problems on Friday, but it would have if not found, so thanks crew for always looking out!
Ready for Qualifying.
I got dressed early. I think I was the first one ready to go, sitting there on the bike zoning out. The call was made and we pushed our bikes down to pit lane for the warm-up lap. The light went green and I went out pushing hard to keep heat in the tires for the sighting lap. We gridded up in our spots (12th for me) and a green flag waived signaling the “Practice Start.” I got off the line great and was pushing to the front to run with the fast guys when everyone started slowing at the end of the first lap. Here, I find out that after the “Practice Start,” we re-grid (again in 12th) and the lights come on and a real “Official Practice Start” takes place, starting the 30-minute qualifying session. It was confusing but I got a great start and made my way right behind the guys I wanted to be with. I really like the way they do qualifying in BSB because you get to ride with guys you belong behind. After a few laps, the guys I was with slowed and waited for a friend and we were back at it. I felt great and the pace was fast but I still felt in control the whole time. It was smart riding and I liked it. I tagged along for another lap before I decided I needed to get a good one in because now I was running up on the group pretty easy. I laid back for a few corners, and when we came to the last sector I put my head down and went for it. I did a 2:34.608, which had me in P1 for a few laps, at least until Patrik Pulkkinen topped me with a 2:34.288. We were riding in different groups about three seconds away from each other, and I really wish I was with that group because I know I could have gone faster. P2 is good but I wanted the pole.
First- and second-quickest qualifiers for the first KTM RC Cup World Finals: me with Finland’s Patrik Pulkkinen.
After Qualifying, the bikes went to parc ferme just like here in the U.S., only the top five bikes went right on the dyno, and three more from throughout the field. I thought this was a great idea; it really proved we were all equal.
My bike passed the dyno test, so we were good to go. That was it: I officially was P2 for the first-ever KTM RC Cup World Finals! We went back to the KTM compound, looked at the time sheets, and prepared for race one. It was a cool feeling putting a U.S. flag on the front row of the World Finals, but I knew the race would be harder. I had a good lunch at the KTM hospitality tent, hung out with the crew and talked with some of the kids I would be gridded with. Then it was time to get ready for race one. I felt good and not nervous one bit, it was going to be fun and I was ready to go. When we got to staging, I started to get a funny feeling. The bikes were revving (they run no exhaust baffles), everyone’s game face was different, and I was pumped as it was all about to go down. We made our way out for the sighting lap and it was really cool rolling through the field to my spot, P2! I felt really proud about my qualifying effort, but also thought, how cool it would have been to be P1. My crew put the bike on stands and wrapped my tires in warmers but with no generator for power. Most of the field, other than we Americans and a few others, doesn’t even use warmers. In one series, I forget which one, it’s not allowed by the rules: that one I don't like! The pre-grid stuff is just like ours, only faster. The three-minute board came up and I was off the stands ready to go. Just like home, only with a cool English horn sounding the time counting down. With the 30-second board up, I looked over at my crew and gave the thumbs up, the green flag waved, and we were off on the warm-up lap. I pushed hard to get heat in the tires and was back at the grid fast. The lights came on red, went off, and I got a great start. I was first going into turn one, led the first lap, and was pushing hard. Midway through lap two, the pack caught me and swallowed me up coming off Hangar Straight. It’s crazy how much the draft can help you (or hurt you in my case) with these bikes. I stayed up front for the next lap just hanging with the front group hoping we would work together to get a gap. It just wasn't gonna happen, and then some craziness started. I got banged into a few times in the braking zones by divebombing riders desperate to make a pass. I thought: “this is gonna be worse than Miller,” and I was right. In three laps I was hit, stuffed/parked, and block-passed at least five times. On lap five, I missed my turn-in point because I just could not see it with riders surrounding me, and was running out of race track on the exit. You can’t get out of the gas, so I just put more lean angle in but it didn’t work out. I felt the rear come around in slow motion and thought, “Oh, no: This ain't gonna be good.” I almost crashed, slammed my chest and crotch into the tank, and I think I ran over my own right foot. Thankfully, I had on my Impact Armor or I would have been really hurting. I never lifted but my drive was gone and the lead pack dropped me. I fell back to the middle of the second pack, 14th by turn three, and thought, “no way, not staying here!” I put my head down and made some crazy passes. It worked, because one lap later I was back to the tail of the lead pack in 11th. Yes, the lead pack was 11 riders deep and I only had two laps to get to the front! I managed to push hard while keeping my momentum and was in ninth on the last lap. I never saw the white flag (because they don't use a white flag) but knew it was close to the end so I charged hard toward the front. In the end I could only get back to fifth but maybe with one more lap I could have been on the box or even won it. It was not that hard to run the leaders down; the hard part was staying there. I’m not sure why, but these bikes on big tracks like Silverstone and Miller make for stupid racing at times. The draft forces riders to pass to keep momentum and that makes for insanity that slows the pace a lot. Last lap craziness is cool but full race distance insanity is just that: insane. I was happy to see an American win, but I was not happy with my finish. With a big moment like I had it was okay, but I didn't come to England for okay; I wanted to win!
Sean Kelly won the first race for Mexico (even though he lives in Miami) because 13-year-olds aren’t allowed to race in MotoAmerica events. Germany’s Djim Ulrich and Team USA’s Braedon Ortt completed the podium.
Saturday night we all went out again and walked around but split up for dinner; some ate at the English pub again, but we went to an Italian restaurant. English Italian is not the same as Jersey Italian, but it was good and a taste of home when I needed it. We got back to the room early and I just kept replaying the race over in my head: I was not going to let that happen again on Sunday! Sunday the weather was cooler but the sun was out so it felt better. There was no warm up and we went right to Race 2 at 11:15. Everything was the same as Race 1, but the grid was set by lap times from Race 1. Even though I had some good laps, my best lap was only good enough for 11th place (middle of row 4). This was something BSB does that I don’t like. Not because it was working against, but because I feel a rider should be rewarded for his qualifying efforts. After all they are “his efforts,” not the pace dictated by the insanity of big-pack riding, at least on these bikes at this type of track. Anyway, it is what it is and I was on row four but determined. Just like in Race 1, I looked at my crew, gave the thumbs up and when the lights went out I got another great start. It was only good enough for sixth place going into turn one and I went to work fast. I made my way into second place quick going into turn six and was setting up the leader for a pass when I felt the bike come out from under me! I could not believe it; I was taken out on the first lap by a rider who couldn’t get his bike turned and just shoved his front wheel right between my exhaust and rear wheel. Luckily, I slid off-line a bit and was not hit by the 30 bikes behind me. I ran over, picked up my bike but the marshals took it from me, yelling that I couldn’t continue once I had crashed. Just like that, my KTM Cup World Finals were over. I just could not believe it, not even one lap. After a few minutes, I started to calm down and then felt my right hand getting warm and starting to pound. I took off my glove to a bleeding ring finger and stinging pointer and middle fingers. They took me right to the Medical Center and did an X-ray on the spot. It was crazy how fast they took care of me and how professional they were. I was given a pain med and some anti-inflammatory. They told me my fingertips were most likely broken and an injury like this has no real treatment other than ice and Advil. I left the med center with a CD of my X-rays, an ice pack, and some paperwork to give the doctors at home. By the time the race was over and my bike was back in the pits, I was starting to feel a lot of pain. Then the riders started to come back all happy and excited, so I decided it was time for me to go for a walk.
Djim Ulrich of Germany won the second race with Team USA’s Braedon Ortt and Hayden Schultz second and third, respectively. The top seven finished within four-tenths of a second!
I walked around for about an hour in my leathers with an ice pack on my hand. The BSB fans were great, and a lot of them were telling me the usual stuff: sorry about the race, you were riding great, etc. What I realized then was these were not people I knew. They were British fans and they knew who I was, they knew I was the American who was taken out on lap one. That made me feel good knowing that I made an impression, that they knew me by name. It was funny hearing them say my last name with their accents. I went back to the KTM village and congratulated the other riders. I was happy to hear again that Americans were on the podium in P2 and P3 and I thought it was good that Ulrich won the overall. He rode well and deserved it.
My crew: Artie Meeker and my dad.
When things settled down, he came over to me and told me that he was sad that I was taken out and wanted to race me to the finish. He also told me that he learned how to really bang bars riding this weekend and was shocked at the way we ride. I think it was just this circuit that brought out that style of riding because it was like that at Miller, and it has only one long straight, not three. Maybe this KTM Cup World Finals race could be at a different track, more technical, less drafting, for next year. I think that will show rider ability more than this year’s races, but it was still a lot of fun. KTM put on an awesome event and I'm sure the RC Cup races were some of the best all weekend. Overall, I had a great time. I really enjoyed the environment and hospitality of the BSB fans. KTM spared no expense and it showed. Anyone here in the U.S. who is on the fence about joining the KTM RC Cup should know that KTM, as well as MotoAmerica, are doing an awesome job. It showed in England, with the Stars and Stripes at the front of the packs and on the box! It will only get better in 2016, and I hope to make it back for next year’s World Final and get the results I want!
Thanks, Mom and Dad.
Sometimes a stand-up wheelie says it all!
A huge Thank You to: KTM, MotoAmerica, Jen Kenyon, Uli Toporsch, JWM, Colin Edwards, Chris Filmore, Jeremy McWilliams, Artie Meeker, my parents, and everyone who was involved in this awesome event. Job well done! More Next Tuesday! 
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