After being involved in a horrific crash at Daytona — a crash that could easily have killed his younger brother — Anthony Gobert came back to ride perhaps the race of his life in the Daytona 200, finishing third despite his injuries and his concern for his brother’s well being. Well, younger brother Aaron is progressing quite well according to Yamaha, and older brother Anthony’s AMA Superbike championship hopes are alive and well.
Although Honda’s Nicky Hayden, winner of the Daytona 200 two weeks ago, and in the middle of a five-race winning streak going into the Yamaha Superbike challenge at California Speedway on April 5 through 7, is the odds-on favorite to take the AMA championship this year, Gobert will be nipping at his heels the whole way. Indeed, at tighter circuits where Gobert’s horsepower deficit to Hayden is less of a factor, Gobert may be the man to beat, and Gobert may be the man to beat during the double-header at the Yamaha Superbike challenge (two AMA Superbike races back-to-back, on Saturday and Sunday).
Gobert appears to be a different man this year. He really seems focused on working hard and winning. The winning part of this equation has always been on Gobert’s mind, but the working-hard aspect has been missing, at times. Daytona showed Gobert will hang tough throughout the series, and his third place showing behind the dramatically faster Honda of Nicky Hayden keeps him close in points while the series turns to a circuit far more favorable to the Yamaha than Daytona.
