DORNA COMMUNICATIONS

OCEANSIDE, CA - When you scan the landscape of professional sports you will often see a common thread associated with the top athletes; they all started young. Professional motorcycle road racer Melissa Paris has seen that storyline play out since she landed in racing years ago. Melissa herself started competing as an adult and often thought, “I really want to help an up and coming female road racer. If we could get young girls interested in this sport, we could have a woman champion someday.”

That thought rattled around in her head for years. As the 2017 season approached and Melissa committed to racing the FIM World Endurance Championship, she decided that the time had come to do something about those thoughts. She also knew that the MotoAmerica KTM RC Cup class was the perfect place to make it happen. 

  We got the girls back together! #testingtuesday #girlsracingteam #valencia #gopro #EWC #girlswhorace #yamaha #R1 #R1mafia A post shared by Melissa Paris (@melissaparis13) on Mar 14, 2017 at 7:30am PDT

The results of her dream were an offseason full of planning, phone calls and searching for the right talent. She came up with a simple strategy: look at young women who race the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship presented by AMSOIL at Loretta Lynn Ranch. Through a series of random emails and communications she came across a very enthusiastic young woman and her family. Her name is Jamie Astudillo. 

A Pennsylvania native, Jamie has been a regular podium finisher in motocross for years. She started racing at age 3. Now at 16 years old, Jamie has been living and training at the famed Motocross training facility in South Carolina known as “South of the Border.” Since those initial conversations, Melissa and Jamie have gotten together, at a racetrack, on a couple of different occasions. Jamie has already raced a KTM RC390 at Chuckwalla Valley Raceway in the CVMA series.The race was a learning experience for Jamie and a chance for Melissa to observe the rapid progress of her new rider. 

  I remember when I was little I would go watch the wmx races and go to the podium and say to myself "I want to be up there one day" well I can officially say I've done it! Sooo happy with how my first WMX race went. Got 3rd the first moto and 4th the second moto for 3rd overall can't wait for the rest of the season! I wanna give a big thanks to everyone one behind me. @mad_bros_cycles @ohlinsusa @timwilkie721 @axoracing @bell_powersports @tcxbootsusa #focusontheboots @scottmotosports @hinsonracing @bud_racing_usa @mgxunlimited @mxtire @ridedunlop @icwradiators @evssports @nihiloconcepts @huffdaddie137 @ransdell466 @taylorfutrell thank you to @sobmx definitely would be no where near where I am today without the help I've gotten from all the trainers and everyone there! A post shared by Jamie Astudillo (@astudillo469) on Mar 13, 2017 at 3:26pm PDT

Paris is excited about the season ahead, “Jamie has all the makings of a champion. She’s a hard worker, is open to learning and has that racer instinct you have to have to win. Of course, gridding up against the fastest kids in the country at MotoAmerica events is going to be super challenging. But from what I've seen, she is a quick study, and it won't be long until she is running up front.” 

The plan is to race the entire MotoAmerica season under the “MP13 Racing” banner. Not only will this be Jamie's first year racing, but it'll be Melissa’s first go at being an actual team owner.

As Jamie Astudillo enters a new chapter in her racing life, she is understandably excited "This is all so new to me, from the bike to the tracks, and even using leathers, but I'm super excited to be a part of this team. I'm ready to take on this year and learn as much as I can throughout all nine rounds and just improve as much as I can!”

  #FastgirlFriday Had a ton of fun with Jamie @astudillo469 yesterday. ✊️ First a photo shoot 📸 with @tcxbootsusa , then some training on the KTM RC390 and she capped it all off with some motos at @perrismx . Keep your eye on this girl... she's going places! #fastgirl #motocross #WMX #MotoAmerica #RCcup #girlswhorace #motogirls A post shared by Melissa Paris (@melissaparis13) on Feb 17, 2017 at 9:58am PST

Team owner Paris was happy to continue working with her loyal sponsors for another season! For 2017 the team partners are: Joe Rocket, Moto Geezer, HJC, TCX, Impact Armor, Bike911, Hot Bodies, Maxima, Core Moto, Beta Tools, Silver Piston, Fable, Evol Technologies, MotionPro and American Supercamp 

You can follow MP13 Racing on their social media handles: Facebook: www.facebook.com/mp13racing Instagram: @MP13Racing 

For information on how to be a part of the MP13 Racing team, contact info@melissaparis.com