Gus Rodio put on a dominating performance at the MotoAmerica STG Junior Cup event at his home track at New Jersey Motorsports Park and in the process chipped away at his championship points deficit, setting the scene for an exciting finale in two weeks. Gus was fastest in the Free Practice session, leading by over a half second. He continued his onslaught in Q1, stretching his advantage over the competition by 0.614 seconds, securing the provisional pole position. In Q2 Gus maintained his dominance, claiming the pole with a best time of 1:29.995, the only competitor to run in the 29’s. Race 1 provided some of the best racing of the season, with Gus leading much of the race he executed an incredible last lap, last turn pass after slipping to 4^th to win the race by 0.016 seconds. In a wet and restarted Race 2 Gus rode a conservative race on a wet setup to finish 2^nd and gain valuable championship points, setting the fastest race lap time on the last lap.

Gus Rodio (96) aboard his Rodio Racing Kawasaki Ninja 400. Photo by Brian J. Nelson, courtesy of Rodio Racing.

Gus Rodio: “What a weekend in front of the home crowd! I look forward to every weekend at the track, but this one’s always special. When all your people come together and support what you love it just hits different! A solid weekend leading every session but Race 2, where I finished P2. This was my first MotoAmerica podium in the rain with the fastest lap of the race. I was even able to get into the 29’s in the dry which has been a goal of mine for a long time. We’re now only 20 points out of the championship, after starting with 50 going into NJMP. Excited to attack Barber Motorsports Park!”

Gus heads to the season finale at Barber Motorsports Park in two weeks in 2^nd place in the championship, 20 points behind the leader with 50 points available.

Anthony Mazziotto struggled early in Free Practice, but rebounded to 4^th place in Q1, 0.673 seconds behind the fastest time. In Q2 Anthony shaved a bit of time but dropped to 6^th place, 0.676 seconds behind. After setup changes, Mazziotto ran as high as 3^rd place in the single REV’IT! Twins Cup race of the event, matching the fastest time of the race winner, but finished 5^th after an encounter with a backmarker.