Winning a Supermoto race the hard way

That's the lesson from Monday's Supermoto race at New Smyrna Beach Raceway, as demonstrated by AMA pro racer Mark Burkhart. The Ohio-based Graves Yamaha racer grabbed the holeshot and opened up a huge gap on the field, led by chasers Kurt Nicoll and Day Casey.

It looked like a runaway until Burkhart lost the front wheel in a tight chicane right in front of the stands and remounted with only a few bike lengths on Nicoll, who passed early second-place runner Casey.

"I just grabbed too much front brake I guess," Burkhart said. "I just tried to stay focused.''

In the final two laps, he kept a gap, but Nicoll made him earn it, hounding Burkhart all the way to the finish.

"I'm pretty good at managing pressure,'' Burkhart said. "It all worked out."