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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126255
Villa. way back in the second row, having clocked the sixth fastest lap with Finland's Pentti Korhonen fourth and Kork Ballington fifth . • Cecotto took the lead on the first la p and won as he pleased . Behind him Palomo and Frenchman Patrick Fernandez battled for a second place with the Spaniard pulling awa y on the closing stages. Jose . Cecotto diced ' with Harley Davidson's new bo y Franco Uncini when his gear pedal broke-- a fault that eliminated his teammate, Villa . These misfortunes elevated Tom Herron ahead of Alan North. Ballington left the race in spec· tacular fashion- vsliding off on the second lap and ending up in a foot of warm muddy water in a trackside ...... ..... I-. 0.. < (Top. Left) Pat Hennen wheelies his way to third. (Above) Sheene shouts in victory as Baker grins. ear to ear.IBelow. Left! Sheene passed Cecotto (20), Hennen and . Baker (32) for the 500cc GP win. World Championship Road Race GP Sheene wins in Venezuela; Baker and Hennen second third. , By M ick Woollett SAN CARLOS. VENFZUELA, MAR . 20 "Viva Suzuki! Viva 'Ven ezu ela!" sh o ute d a deligh t e d B a r r y Sheen e from the sun -drenched r ostrum . of the San Carlos circuit, obviously ecstatic over his 500cc class win. The reigning 500cc World Champion had good reason to 14.. be pleased for he Just won the first round in his defense of the title, and it was a race that few in Venezuela ex pected him to win . During practice, when temperatures soared close to 100 degrees in the shade and up to 130 degrees in the searing sunshine, Sheene and his Texaco Heron Suzuki teammates, Pat Hennen and Steve Parrish, had been outpaced by Johnny Cecotto and Steve Baker on the new super-streamlined works Yamahas . Only a great effort in the dying moments of the final practice session, when temperatures had dropped, did Sheene put in his best lap. It was still almost a full second slower than local hero Cecotto who had clocked 1 min . 36.1 sec . but it equalled Baker's best and put Barry on the front row between the two scarlet and white Yamahas. At the start of the race British hearts . sank as Sheene, who had hit his left knee on the ground while scratching for a fast lap. had difficulty starting his Suzuki. Twice the rear wheel locked, and when it did finally fire Sheene was way down with the tail enders. "I said to myself don't panic··I'd been taking it easy during practicing. Remember it was my first race while both Johnny and Steve had both done Daytona. "It took me a while to get the bike sorted out, and to get into the wingof things-vl didn't want to try to go too quickly soon and fall off. "The same applied in the race. I thought to myself 'It's thirty laps-a long way in heat like that- vand anything can happen! ':After a couple of laps I could see Pat Hennen up front dicing with Johnny and Steve. I pegged them back and when 1 caught them we had a great dice. " Steve took the lead and started to pull away and I went with him . "We dropped the other two and there 1 was, ' sitting behind Steve. waiting for him to tire or make a mistake . "H is Yamaha was very good. especially' on the fast curves. but 1 was gaining at the hairpins. "Then 1 got my chance. "About half way through the race Steve got into a slide on one comer· · then he locked his wheels going into the hairpin , and got into all sorts of trouble. "I nipped through to take the lead. After that 1 went as fast as 1 could until I'd opened up a five second lead." said Sheene as he stood under the shower after the race. Behind the two leaders Hennen and Cecotto fought a near identical duel which the Suzuki rider won by 3.9 seconds to claim a fine third place. Early in the race. Tepi Lansivuori had been with the leaders but he retired with ignition trouble and it was Swiss Phillipe Coulon who claimed fifo th place after a long dice with Italy's Virginio Ferrari and Marco Lucchinelli. , A lap 'astem , Fre,:!chman Christian Estrosi beat Steve Parrish for eighth place. . The day had started well for the 15,000 spectators when Johnny Cecot· to on his first step towards regaining his 350cc World Championship by easily winning the class. Fastest in training with a lap at 1 min. 39 sec. . a clear second ahead of Victor Palomo and his elder Brother Jose,Cecotto started as firm favourite . Reigning world champion ' Walter culvert. . Korhonen's Yamaha seized while Chas Mortimer, still recovering from his Daytona crash ' had fallen in prac· tice and did only a .token two laps before pulling in. The 125cc race started and ended sensationally. 'Spa n iard Angel Nieto had been fastest in practice but he made a poor start. West German Anton Mang took the lead chased by World Champion Pier Paolo Bianchi. Bianchi soon took over but with a tremendous display of riding Nieto passed the pair of them on one comer on the third lap . Bianchi lost ground and retired at the halfway stage with clutch trouble . The race settled down into procession by came to life five laps from the end when Nieto screamed in to the pits. Oil leaking from the gearbox had smothered his feet and rear wheel. His crew wiped the bike down and sent hin out again.. now in' fourth place with Mang leading from Marco Massinani and the fifteen -old Venezuelan Ivan Palazese riding with his left hand still weak after a car crash injury. _the crowd loved every minute as Nieto picked his rivals off one by one. First Palazese, then Massinani , who slid off just as Nieto passed him and finally Mang as they started the final lap. Although outpaced in the 350cc class when their handling on the very . bumpy 2.57 mile San Carlos circuit let them down, the Harley Davidsons of Villa and Uncini ruled supreme in the 250cc race. . In practice Uncini was fastest at I min. 40.8 sec. with Villa half a second slower ahead of Femendez and Paolo Pileri on the works Mobidelli . And it was Pileri who shot ahead from the start , stretching a 50 yard lead in the first half lap. The Harleys were soon after him and on lap four Villa took over. A lap later Uncini joined him up front and it looked like a Harley one- two until a ' rear wheel puncture put Uncini out. Villa kept going to win with Fernandez, the young Frenchman from San Tropez, a fine second ahead of the hind riding Palomo. Korhonen took fourth place ahead of Ballington and Herron. The day ended with Sheene's sensational win in the 500cc race. The win puts all those winter arguments into perspective for this was the win of a true master. • Reults: 125cc: 1. A Nieto IBull; 2 . A. Mang IMar); 3. I. PaIaz.... IMorI4. J . Britem (Morl; 5. J . -leebroeck IMorl; 6. G. Perez (Yaml; 7. R. OlevlIITia (VarnI. 25Occ: 1. W . Ville (H·D); 2 . P. Fernandez (Ya m); 3. V. Palo mo (Vam); 4 . P. Korhonen (VarnI; 5. K. Ballington IVaml; 6. T. Herron (yaml; 7. A Nanini (Vaml; 8. O. Chevanier (Yaml; 9. M. lega (Vaml; 10. M. Corradin; IVam). 35Occ: I .J. Cecotto (Vam);2. V. Palomo IVam); 3. P. . Fernandez (Vam); 4. P. Korhonen (yaml ; 5. T. Herron IYaml: 6. A North (Yaml; 7. P. Mezerhane (Yaml: 8. C. Bellon (Yaml; 9. E. Aleman (Yam); 10 . R. Tausani (Yaml. 500cc: 1. B. Sheen. IS uz); 2. S . Baker (Varni; 3. P. Hennen ISuzl; 4. J . Ceccrte (Yam); 5. P. Coulon (Suz); 6. V. Ferrer; ISuzl; 7 . M. lucch;nelli ISuzl; 8. C. Estrosi IS uzl; 9 . S. ParrishlSuzl ; 10 . A.lllorlh Suz ).