Joe Kopp weathered two restarts and came away with the win in round eight of the AMA Pro K&N Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com at I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Michigan on Saturday night.
The Latus Harley-Davidson/ENI USA R&M/Lloyd Brothers Motorsports-backed Kopp was back aboard his trusty Harley-Davidson for the win.
“It felt good to be back on the Harley for this kind of track [a tight, grooved half mile],” said Kopp after leading all 25 laps of the National.
Zanotti Racing’s Jake Johnson had led the first start, but oil on the track aborted that attempt. Kopp made the most of his second chance and was pulling away from Johnson and Harley-Davidson factory rider Kenny Coolbeth when the second red flag came out with Kawasaki Monster Energy Drink’s Bryan Smith crashing in turn two. Smith was able to make the restart.
Kopp picked up where he left off, but Johnson and Coolbeth were able to stay much closer this time, but neither were able to capitalize.
Kopp’s win gives him a 13-point advantage over Johnson with KK Supply’s Henry Wiles and King’s Kustom’s Sammy Halbert just a few points back.
In the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Championship, series leader Jeffery Carver rode his Van’s Yamaha to a convincing win over defending series champion Brad Baker and holds a commanding 28-point lead after eight races.
The AMA Pro K&N Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com moves to Calistoga, California, for round nine on July 31.
