JD Beach Scores First Win of the Season at The Ridge
JD Beach and Andy DiBrino score breakthrough victories while Mathew Scholtz reclaims the MotoAmerica Superbike championship lead / Jun 29, 2026 /
As the MotoAmerica championship battles resumed in the Pacific Northwest, it was a weekend of breakthroughs and championship momentum for Yamaha BLU CRU riders at The Ridge Motorsports Park. In the premier class, Attack Performance Progressive Yamaha Racing’s JD Beach scored his first Superbike win of the season in Race 1, while Strack Racing Yamaha’s Mathew Scholtz overcame adversity to score a pair of runner-up finishes and reclaim the MotoAmerica Superbike lead. In the Super Hooligan Championship, it was a storybook weekend for BPR Racing Yamaha’s Andy DiBrino, who earned a hard-fought victory and Yamaha's first-ever Super Hooligan win.
Mother Nature also played her hand, bringing rain into the mix and making for challenging conditions on Friday and Saturday. Although Beach didn’t get off to the start he was hoping for, qualifying ninth, he found his comfort zone come race time and got an impressive start in the rain, coming from the third row of the grid to slot into the runner-up spot. The Kentucky rider, who was raised in Washington State, rode a smart race in the tricky conditions, and when the leader crashed out after the halfway mark, he moved to the front. But it was not easily won from there. Under pressure from Cam Petersen, Beach held strong and rode on to secure his third career Superbike win, his first of the season.
“The conditions have been crazy all weekend so far, but I was hoping that if it rained, the race would be full wet, and it was,” said Beach. “This track is really good in the rain. It’s been a little bit of a struggle this weekend with track time. I’ve felt good on the bike, but just haven’t had the pace. I knew the team would give me a great bike for the race, and from the start, the bike felt solid, and I just charged as much as I could. Getting the win is absolutely amazing. It’s something every racer works for day in and day out. To reward the team and my crew for the countless hours they spend working hard feels great!”
It was a rollercoaster weekend for Scholtz at The Ridge. After a big crash Saturday morning, Scholtz bounced back to qualify third and, from there, grabbed the holeshot in Race 1. He dropped back to fourth in the opening laps, and with not much time in the wet, rode a calculated race, and in the end, moved up to the runner-up spot with riders ahead crashing in the latter half of the race.
“The Ridge Motorsports Park is definitely one of my favorite tracks on the calendar,” said Scholtz. “I look forward to coming here every year. We knew heading into the weekend that the weather wasn't gonna be good on Friday and Saturday. We didn’t have too much of a rain setup on our package just yet, so it was vital to get those Friday sessions, and everything worked out well for us. Then unfortunately, in the Saturday morning practice session, I had a really big high side and totaled the bike. I’m thankful for the Strack Racing guys for rebuilding the bike and getting me out there to make qualifying, and we put it on the front row. Then we had a downpour just before the first race, and the goal for us was just to try to salvage some points. We were stuck in fourth place, and I would've been happy with that, but unfortunately, two other riders went down and pushed us up to second place, and we managed to get some more points on the championship contenders around us.”
Beach’s teammate Bobby Fong had a tough start to Round 4 of the Superbike Championship. After qualifying fifth, he got a top-five start to Race 1 and unfortunately had a technical issue, but was able to salvage points with a sixth-place finish.
It was a new day on Sunday with dry weather, but also another rocky start for Scholtz with a big crash during the morning warm-up. Despite the adversity, the team rallied, and Scholtz got another great start to Race 2 and quickly claimed the lead
“Sunday morning unfortunately started off with much of the same beat,” said Scholtz. “I had a big crash in the warm-up, and the Strack Racing team had to rebuild another bike heading into the second race. We went in with unknown components on the bike, so I wasn't sure what the feeling was gonna be, but I got off to a good start in second place, and got up to first, and I just tried to get into a decent rhythm.”
The back-to-back Supersport Champion controlled the pace at the front of a multi-rider lead group that included fellow Yamaha riders Bobby Fong and JD Beach, along with a charging championship rival, Sean Dylan Kelly. In the final laps, his title rival passed Fong and closed the gap. Scholtz did what he could to hold him off, but on the final lap, Dylan Kelly made an aggressive move at the top of the hill, moving Scholtz wide and into second.
“The pace was a little bit slower than I would've liked, but I was just focusing on trying to defend – every lap, every corner – and I led until the second-to-last corner when I was overtaken by Sean (Dylan Kelly),” said Scholtz. “It was a harsh move, but it was fair. That's racing. Usually, I'd be upset at the situation, but to bring the bike home in second place after not knowing if we were going to make it to the grid, I'm overjoyed and thankful for the Strack Racing team and what they've done for me. I feel that the new swing arm that we used in the race can be of some benefit to us. I'm looking forward to Laguna Seca and am just thankful that we got the championship lead back this weekend. We can try to continue this form for the rest of the year.”
Fong bounced back in Race 2 after a frustrating opening race, showing the pace to battle at the front. He made his way through from fifth on the opening lap to second around the halfway mark. In the mix in that lead group, he finished just shy of the runner-up spot, earning his fourth podium finish of the season. The Northern Californian heads to his home race at Laguna Seca fourth in the standings and 39 points from the leader.
“I'm happy to be up here,” Fong said about the podium finish. “I didn't make too many moves. I was just kind of there the whole race. I didn't make it too exciting, but we did the best we could. We had a little bad luck yesterday, but I’m looking forward to my home race at Laguna. We're looking forward to a little week break and then getting straight back to work.”
Beach also made an impressive charge towards the front, coming from the third row of the grid to sixth early and joining the battle at the front. He ultimately finished fourth, leaving Washington third in the standings, trailing by 34 points.
In the Super Hooligan National Championship, it was a dream realized for BPR Racing Yamaha’s Andy DiBrino in front of the home crowd at The Ridge. After finishing runner-up in a hard-fought battle in Race 1, the rider from the Pacific Northwest got a good start to Race 2 in second, but was shuffled to third early. It was another heated battle with multiple riders jockeying for position at the front, but DiBrino stayed in the fight, and with three laps to go, he made the pass for the lead and built a gap to secure his first win aboard the BPR Racing Yamaha MT-09 SP. The victory marked Yamaha's first-ever Super Hooligan win, making the emotional home-track triumph even sweeter. His 2-1 result over the weekend also moved him into the thick of the title fight, with DiBrino leaving his home track third and 15 points from the leader. Joining him on the podium was teammate and BPR Racing Yamaha Team Owner, Bryce Kornbau, who finished third.
“I’ve been having so much fun riding this BPR Racing Yamaha MT-09,” said DiBrino. “It’s been a dream of mine to win a race at my home round, and I’m so happy to have finally accomplished that. I knew halfway through the race I had the bike underneath me to get the job done, and I went to work. Once I got to the front, I gapped the competition. I’m super proud to get this win in front of so many friends, family and local fans, and to get Yamaha their first win in the series.”
In Supersport, Strack Racing Yamaha’s Blake Davis rebounded from a seventh-place finish in Race 1 to earn a top-five result in Race 2. Unfortunately for Liberty St. Yamaha Racing’s Dominic Doyle, it was a tough outing at The Ridge with a pair of DNFs while battling inside the top 10.
It was a strong weekend for Yamaha BLU CRU Estenson Racing’s Sam Drane, who returned to the podium in the MotoAmerica Talent Cup. The young rider from Australia got a good start to Race 1 inside the top five and made his way to third in the opening laps, ultimately finishing in the runner-up spot after the rider ahead crashed in the final corner. In Race 2, he got another top-five start, but lost some time on the group fighting for the podium and rode on to secure fifth.
The MotoAmerica Superbike Championship heads to the iconic WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, on July 10-12.