Defending Champ Pops The Cork In Wine Country

Josh Hayes wasn't the fastest rider off the line, but, as has been the case over the past year, he was the fastest to the finish line … even on a backup bike.

Tommy Hayden got the jump on polesitter Hayden when the green flag dropped Saturday on the AMA SuperBike race at Infineon Raceway. Hayden wasn't up front long and by the second lap he was looking at Hayes' tailpipes.

"I made a couple mistakes and that cost me a few seconds. From there I had no chance to come back," Hayden said.

Hayes swept both races at the Sonoma road course last year en route to a AMA SuperBike championship. 

"I said when I got here that we've set the bar pretty high but I'm really glad we're maintaining," Hayes said. "We'll come back tomorrow and hopefully make them wait another year before someone else wins."

Hayes' weekend didn't start well as he fell off his bike during Saturday's qualifying. Hayes slid across the asphalt and his Monster Energy Graves Yamaha flipped three times before coming to rest. He wore the scars from that crash on his left hand all day.

Hayden finished second and Martin Cardenas powered his way from sixth to third place.

"I had (Hayden) in front of me and I felt confident that I could stick with him," Hayes said. "I got a little antsy on the first lap and he jumped on me. … Last year I was fifth or sixth going into Turn 2 on the first lap. This is much better than that. I'm not sure I could have done that again and won."

Hayes slipped as far back as third, but quickly worked his was back into the lead. "I made sure I stayed close with him. I'm a little more comfortable and competent whenever I'm in front," Hayes said.

Hayes was a little more comfortable once he was in the lead, but Hayden made sure he couldn't rest on his laurels. The two pulled away from the rest of the field to make it a two-man race, though the ending wasn't in much doubt.

Hayes was hoping to celebrate with his wife, Melissa Paris, in the winner's circle. He could have used a little extra muscle as he struggled to pop the cork on the bottle.

Paris, a Concord native and Clayton Valley High grad, finished a disappointing 19th out of 23 in the Daytona SportBike race earlier in the day.

Jason DiSalvo and Jake Holden gave Ducati a 1-2 finish in the SportBike class, with Danny Eslick third. It was DiSalvo's first career win at Infineon Raceway.