Barnes Gets Second XR1200 Win at Homestead
Henny Ray Abrams | September 23, 2012
HOMESTEAD, FL, SEPT 23 – KLR Group/Spyke’s Harley-Davidson’s Michael Barnes passed Bartel’s Harley-Davidson/Scrubblade’s Tyler O’Hara on the final lap to win the Vance & Hines XR1200 race on a sunny afternoon at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Those two plus Travis Wyman (Harv’s Harley-Davidson), Suburban Harley-Davidson’s Benny Carlson, and MOB Racing/Teterboro Rams’ Jake Holden, broke away from the 14-rider pack early in the 11-lap race. O’Hara led the first seven laps before Wyman took the lead on the ninth lap in the left off the back straight.
Holden left the group when the belt on his XR1200 fell off.
O’Hara was back in front starting the final lap, but Barnes had other ideas. The veteran from Boca Raton ran down the short back chute side by side with O’Hara, holding him off into the left. Soon they came up on a waving yellow, which prevented O’Hara from making a move. Then it was up to Barnes to get through the final few corners and drive to the stripe.
The margin of victory was .131 sec.
Travis Wyman finished third and Benny Carlson was fourth.
Kyle Wyman, Travis’s brother and Barnes’ teammate, didn’t start the race after suffering a wrist injury in qualifying. That shook up the point standings. With two wins, Barnes now has 1090 points, two up on O’Hara with only the series finale at New Orleans Motorsports Park remaining.
Vance & Hines XR1200 Results:
1. Michael Barnes
2. Tyler O’Hara
3. Travis Wyman
4. Benny Carlson
5. Michael Corbino
6. Shane Narbonne
7. David Estok
8. Barrett Long
9. Josh Chisum
10. Eric Haugo
Henny Ray Abrams | Contributing Editor
Abrams is the longest-serving contributor at Cycle News. Over the course of his 35-some years of writing and shooting photos, he’s covered events from MotoGP to the Motocross World Championship - and everything in between.
