Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126314
" " 32 one year. Mikkola led the point standings going into Carlsbad, a race that could be critical to the title. Some people were beginning to think that despite the fact when everyt hing was working right, DeCoster was undoubtably the fast est man on the track that he would have good enough luck to win the overall at Carlsbad . Aga in. th e biggest hope for an American win was Brad Lackey who was continuing to improve every year and was in sixth spot in the point standings going into Carlsbad. He was not the only American hope in 1975 , however; several Am erican riders were now forces to be reckoned with by the European riders. particularly on their home ground . Roger DeCoster won the first moto ahead of Brad Lackey , Gerrit Wolsink and surprising Rex Staten, who led for the first two thirds of the race and was hanging in for second after a motor mount broke causing the engine to vibrate. Staten killed the engine on the final lap, losing two positions in the process to finish fourth. The hopes for an American win at last were squashed in the second rnoto when Lackey's Husqvarna broke causing his retirement. Mechanical gremlins also got to DeCoster , and the best he could finish in the second moto wass ninth! Gerrit Wolsink moved up to take the win in the moto and overall for the second year in a row. Again, Wolsink had not been that strongly rated at the beginning of the race ; he was racing with an inflamed eye caused by dirt getting under the Dutch dentist's contact lenses at the French GP a week before. Tony DiStefano, 250cc U.S . Champ, took third in the second moto ahead of Mikkola . Mikkola had a bad start in the first race and could only climb to eighth . . O verall , it was Wolsink, DeCoster. Karsmakers and Mikkola with Jim Weinert in fifth spot overall heading a solid group of American riders who occupied the positions from fifth to 15th overall! American motocross had come a long way indeed in five years . The points he earned at the USGP brought DeCoster up to tie for the points lead with Mikkola . He then went on to claim his fourth world title at the end of the season. In 1976 , Gerrit Wolsink kept his Hang Ten U.S . Motocross Grand Prix win strea k going with his third consecutive victory at Carlsbad. The points he earned also kept aliv e his hope of taking the 500c<: World Championship title. He was virtually untouchable that year, winning both motes by wide margins and leading all but one lap of the day . "I had a perfect day. I didn't make any mistakes. It track believing that Mikkola had won the race, He had was just one of those days when nothing goes wrong." scored more GP points (by one) than Wolsink and was he said after the race. thinking that , based on his win in the -final moto, he The opposite was true for DeCoster, who had looked was the overall winner. But Wolsink was declared the set to win during the three previous years. He was official winner by 15 seconds over Mikkola. never in the hunt as a broken foot peg cause his The first moto went to Team Honda's jim Pomeroy. retirement on th e fifth lap of the first moto . He got a who pulled . out a strong lead and held off Roger ( bad start in the second moto and finally retired with a DeCoster to take t he win! But Pomeroy got involved in hopelessly kinked front brake cable. a first turn crash in the second moto and retired. Brad Lackey brightened everyone's day by finishing Honda teammate Brad Lackey (7 ·4) was third overall. second overall. He took third in th e second moro and DeCoster finished runner- up in the first moto ana overcame a hard crash (which also involved was running second in the final moro right on leader DiStefano on the second lap of the first moto) to finish Brad Lackey's tail at just over halfway. through the seventh in the first moto . Pierre Karsmakers, on race. There was no doubt in anyone's mind concerning a Honda, ended up third overall for the day. the outcome of that battle. Then suddenly Lackey Wolsink's incredible run of luck cont in ued at the crashed at the bottom of one of the short steep 1977 Carlsbad race. The points system was changed ; downhills, and DeCoster, left with no place to go, ran now all of the motos count toward championship at right into Lackey's bikel DeCoster got up and rolling the end of the year. In the beginning of the World first , but the forks on his Suzuki were bent. He retired Motocross Championship, each moto was -sco red on after one more lap . His bad luck at the Carlsbad track the O lympic syst.em. (one point for first. two for is an incredible as Wolsink's good luck, and many ' second , erc.) and the rider with th e lowest total who people now speak openly about "Deflosrer's Carlsbad also finished both mOlOS was the overall winner . GP Jinx" in much the same way. I points were paid accordingly . The GP points pay only Interestingly enough , for the same years - '73 the top 10 riders on a scale of 15 , 12 , 10, 8, 6, 5, 4 , 3. through '77 - they spoke of Ken Roberts' Daytona 2, I. Jinx . Since 1978 was the year Kenny finally won Then , several years ago , many riders objected, Daytona , perhaps it will also be the year that Roger stating that too many things could go wrong in one of DeCoster finally wins Carlsbad! That feat might not be the ra ces and even though a rider finished well in one as easy as Roberts' win at Daytona , however. Though race, he gained no points for his effo rt. So, the F1M DeCoster is still rated by many as the best 500cc ruled that all the mOlOS would pay points for the daily motocross ra cerin the world , 1978 is the first year that finish. but only half plus one of the ra ces run for the he is not figured to be one of the top two riders (at least) with a chance to win the World Championship, year would count for the championship. Each country set up their own supplementary rules but rather as more of a third bet behind Mikkola and for de ciding an overall winner , based on several F1M · Lackey. approved methods. Most of the time this practice . Partisan as the U.S . spectators certainly are, if there doesn't present too many problems. Either the is anything more of them want to sec - even above a Olympic points system or the GP points system is used win by DeCoster to break his jinx - it is a win by Brad to score the races. Time is used to break ties , or Lackey who has finally come into his own on the 500cc sometimes the best finish in the final moto of the day. World Championship circuit. Certainly you can't At the USGP in 1977 , the Olympic system was used count out th e strong Finn , Heikki Mikkola, who likes to determine the official overall but the secondary to winany race but would also like to make up for last system (used only in cas e of a tie) was th e total number year's overall second placing he was given. Then too, of laps completed by both riders. If still tied , then a you really can 't count out th e Dutch tooth doctor total of the times for both mOlOS was used for the Gerrit Wolsink, who would as soon win his fifth USGP in a row as walk on water . decision. As luck would have it, there was a tie for the win The only thing you can count on when the flag falls between Gerrit Wolsink and Heikki Mikkola . Wolsink June 4 at Carlsbad for the sixth running of the USGP , had a third and a second in the two motos while now called the Bel -Ray USGP of Motocross, is that it Mikkola had a fourth and a fir st. Many people left the will be one hell of an exciting race. •