Team Tytlers Cycle Racing and Stefano Mesa have just completed rounds three and four of the 2023 Super Hooligan National Championship at The Ridge Motorsports Park. The experienced Colombian rider crossed the line in sixth place at the end of the seven-lap, second race of the weekend, aboard the Energica Eva Ribelle RS sporting the new, striking PETRONAS colours and equipped with the Kit Corsa Clienti. However, both the first and second placed Indian motorcycles and their riders were disqualified due to a technical breach, leaving Mesa in fourth position.
Mesa was able to maintain his position at the start as the Super Hooligan field entered the first chicane and maintained a solid pace throughout the encounter, while keeping seventh-place rider AJ Peaslee (riding an ICE-powered KTM machine) at bay right up to the chequered flag. He did so by using the rear brake to back into the corner – all without having the use of the clutch.
Race one saw Mesa crossing the line in seventh place after starting from the back of the grid – dramatically cutting “like a knife through butter” (as one of the race announcers exclaimed) as he rapidly made his way up to eighth position and then gained one more place just before the chequered flag. He was able to make his final move on Peaslee in part because the latter – by his own words – had a hard time hearing him coming through!
All in all, this was an exceptional performance for rider #137, considering the dramatic crash he had in the Supersport race only a couple of hours prior. Unfortunately, the hard-won result was voided due to a technical rule infringement (sensor).
The level of performance shown at the spectacular, Washington-state venue, provides a welcome boost of fresh confidence for the team, now looking forward to the upcoming event taking place in a fortnight’s time at Monterey’s own WeatherTech Laguna Seca Raceway.
The team will use the time available to digest the experience gained at The Ridge, in order to continue optimising the technical package for what is, in many respects, a very different challenge for Energica. For this is a series where ICE and EV share not only the same track but also identical spec-tyres – all while diverging significantly when it comes to technology and specs.
In Stefano Mesa’s own words “The electric gives me a smoother acceleration and much easier control and focus because I don’t have to shift in order to have the right horsepower or torque at the rear wheel; on the other hand, the bike makes so much torque that we have to find a way to tame it for a course like this, with so many turns and so many twists.”
Energica’s presence as the first and only electric motorcycle manufacturer in the full series keeps attracting an intense level of attention and curiosity from fans, motorcycle enthusiasts, fellow racers and other insiders. As one spectator said to his friends while walking past Tytlers Cycle Racing’s tent “this is the future”. The team is looking forward to meeting the fans at Laguna Seca, with a surprise in store.