Warhorse HSBK Ducati Racing’s Loris Baz and Josh Herrin in the top four at Mid-Ohio

  Sunnyvale, Calif., August 16, 2024 — Warhorse HSBK Ducati Racing celebrated a fruitful day on Friday at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, with both Loris Baz and Josh Herrin finishing the day inside the top four.

Baz and Herrin worked together in the afternoon Qualifying 1 session, benefiting the Frenchman, who leapfrogged Herrin in the standings. Baz noted a few issues with the Dunlop front tire performance on his Ducati Panigale V4 R, circulating the 2.4-mile venue 14 times over the day. He ended Friday second overall behind pacesetter Cameron Beaubier.

After a decade off the national calendar, Mid-Ohio saw the 2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship leader Josh Herrin circulate the course 17 times on Friday to finish fourth overall and a start on the front row grid.

2024 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Superbike Qualifying 1 Results – Top 5
P1 – Cameron Beaubier 1:23.904
P2 – Loris Baz (Ducati) 1:24.026
P3 – Sean Dylan Kelly 1:24.179
P4 – Josh Herrin (Ducati) 1:24.241
P5 – Jake Gagne 1:24.852

Josh Herrin (Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati–#2)
“I put some new tires on, but then my teammate beat my time with a tow,” Herrin said with a cheeky smile. “But the bike is working well here. I was nervous going into this weekend, thinking it might be similar to how Barber was a few months back, where we had some problems, but we’re really competitive here.

“We should be good for the race, but I’d really like to get onto the front row. Our gearing is really tall for us to make the bike like we want, so we might not have the start performance we want, so getting on the front row is really important. We’ll be there for Race One.”

Loris Baz (Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati–#76)
“It’s been good. I love the track,” Baz said. “We did a test last week and my confidence is growing all the time. This track is a bit strange for the tire life, where we’ve had a couple of issues with the front, but it’s been ok. I’m always in third or fourth, so I need to make the jump to get to Josh and Cameron’s (Beaubier) pace. Josh helped me in the last session to move into the top three. I tried to help him on the next lap by giving him a slipstream, but it didn’t work out. But it’s ok—Josh knows I will give him some help whenever he needs it. It’s shaping up to be a good weekend for the whole Warhorse HSBK Ducati Racing team.”

Racing action for round eight of the 2024 Steel Commander MotoAmerica Superbike Championship commences at 8:30 a.m. EDT, with Baz and Herrin scheduled to appear on track for Qualifying 2 at 10:20 a.m. EDT.

Race One will commence at 3:10 p.m. EDT on Saturday, August 17, and Race Two is scheduled for 3:10 p.m. EDT on Sunday, August 18, 2024.