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Cardenas 4th in the Daytona 200

Posted by Staff
Sunday, 09 March 2008
CARDENAS FOURTH IN DAYTONA 200 Team M4 EMGO Suzuki closed out the 2008 AMA season opener with another fine day at Daytona International Speedway, securing a top-five result in the prestigious Daytona 200 and a top-ten finish in the premier AMA Superbike class. Martin Cardenas put in a heady and consistent ride aboard his Formula Xtreme-spec GSX-R600 in the grueling 200-miler. While many of his rivals encountered difficulties and were knocked out of contention, the Colombian picked up a healthy allotment of championship points for his efforts. Cardenas took the checkered flag in fifth position and was later bumped up to fourth following the disqualification of the original race winner. Last year's Daytona 200 third-place finisher, Michael Barnes, crashed his Team M4 EMGO Suzuki GSX-R600 on lap 11 and was transferred to Halifax Medical Center. Blake Young finished his incredible AMA debut weekend as a member of Team M4 EMGO Suzuki with a ninth-place ride in the AMA Superbike final aboard his Pirelli-shod GSX-R1000. Young won out in a three-way fight for the position with Geoff May and former World Superbike star Akira Yanagawa. Earlier in the week Young finished second in the AMA Superstock season opener and fifth in the AMA Supersport race. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki Crew Chief Keith Perry said, "Top five is always great in the 200 where so much can happen. A lot of guys come out of here with virtually nothing and we still got top five. I can't complain with that." He continued, commenting on Young's performance, "He had a good weekend, no doubt. He's still learning and we're still learning him. We're very encouraged with Blake. He's riding really well." The next race on the schedule takes place on April 18-20 at Barber Motorsports Park near Birmingham, AL. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki will prepare for the event with a test in the near future. Perry explained, "We're going to go test there in about ten days. We're looking forward to hopefully having some decent weather so we can have a successful and beneficial test and be ready to go when the race weekend comes. We always look forward to Barber. It's close to home and we hope we can do well there." from Team M4 EMGO

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