Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

IClockwl.. from topl R8.,dy Mamole lead. Berry Sheene mend Kork Bellington lSI. Marco Lucchlnelll didn't have a good day. Mamo" and "Cowboy" Kenny Roberta. World Winter Cup Road Raee Series: Round X Mamola, Sheene share glory at Donington Park By Hanny Ray Abrams CASTLE DONINGTON, DERBY, ENGLAND, AUG. 50 America's Randy Mamola and Britain's Barry Sheene split wins in the two rounds of the accident-marred Jody Scheckter World Motorcycle Winter Cup Road Series Race at Donington Park as controversy surrounded the overall series winner. Team Ingersoll Heron f S k i 'd M 1 actory uz,u n er am~ a 12 placed second In .the. second leg, while Sheene pla~ thll'(~ In the first leg. By the grand pnx sconng system Mamola s~d ~ave been a~arded the overall senes Win, but the title went to Sheene on the basis of aggregate time. Mamola protested, the ove~all title was t~ from Sheene, and It was then dectded that there would be no overall title. The overall title was only given at the insistence of Thames television who were broadcasting the event live. Th·tl 'ed h d' t e ~I e cam no cas awar '.J~s a massive amount of valuable pubhclty. For Yamaha's Kenny Roberts it was a bad day. In the first leg, while in fourth place, his rear tire broke loose in the "Old Hairpin" comer and he took an off-track excusion through the grass. He rejoined the race, but at uncompetitive speeds with tire troubles and finished fifth. On the third lap of the second leg he went down in the fast ril(ht-left chicane with his works square Yamaha catching fire. He scraped up a few fingers, but his. bi~e was. covered in fire exungwsher residue and he was through for the day. American Dale Singleton had an off-weekend also. In timed practice Saturday, he went down in a 100 mph dogleg left hand tum and was trapped under his RG-7 Suzuki as it slid down the track. He and Italian Graziano Rossi, who had crashed earlier, took rides to the Royal Derbyshire Infirmary. Rossi suffered a concussion and was released. Singleton suffered the loss of two toes. A d' 1 'd ccor Ing to severa n ers, start money was to be awarded to those who came to the grid for both races. If you did~'t make both starts you were to receive only one· tenth of the va!u.able start. money. Only 18 of the o~S'nal 29 nders .made the second god and only 15 fimshed. The idea of the World Motorcycle Wimer Cup series was to get the top 500cc riders together for a series of races around the world. Starting out as an ambitious series. the jody Scheckter brainchild quickly became a threerace series, but was reduced to two races when the Kyalami circuit in South Africa backed out. The series became two separate races here at Donington, although most all of the riders, fans, and journalists were still confused about the series at day's end. "Every top rider is here," Scheckter said. ''I'd like to run four races next year with one in America. It seems that Laguna Seca is the best track as far as fan support goes." Scheckter also took a lap around the track in a rainsuit on Lucchinelli's Nava Olio Fiat factory Suzuki on Sarurday. In the first timed practice, the factory Suzukis of Mamola and Crosby led the way ahead of the factory mounts of Robens and Sheene. Mamola was on a new square· tube framed Suzuki, much like the factory Yamahas. Built for increased rigidity. Mamola was the only factory rider that Ilad one. Mamola and Crosby stayed atop the !¢d positions with Sheene, Roberts, and the new 500cc World Champion Marco Lucchinelli filling out the front row. Four riders were lost to attrition in practice. There was confusion among the riders as they lined up for the first leg. "I thought it was a push-stan until I got to the line, then I found out it was a clutch·stan. I heard Scheckter ask Sheene what he wanted, a push-stan or a clutch-stan, and Sheene said a clutch·stan. The clutch-stan means that everyone gets the first corner at about the same time. It was a scary first comer," Roberts said. Roberts made it through the first comer unscathed. but was in eighth place. The partisan crowd went wild as Sheene came through in the lead ahead of Mamola and Lucchinelli. Those three were moving in unison around the track with no one having a clear advantage. On the eighth of 25 laps Roberts went off the track when his "rear tire cut loose," losing several places. Graeme Crosby moved up to join the fray as Kork BaUington on the long-wheelbase monocoque factory Kawasaki pressured Roberts for fifth. The race was run at a relatively slow pace as the afternoon sun had heated up the track surface, making traction elusive. "Croz" soon joined the leaders and the announcer was exuberant in referring to the four-man, eight·wheel, 16·cylinder" racing machine that was out front. Ballington dropped out with a broken disc valve leaving Roberts to fight off the advances of SonautoGalouises rider Marc Fontan. "Lucky" Lucchinelli had outbraked Mamola for the lead at the two· thirds point and looked headed for certain victory, although he could put no ground on Mamola and Crosby, now up to third. But just as quickly as he took the lead, he lost it and feU back to third behind Mamola and Crosby. In the first tum of the last lap LucchineUi went in too hard, and was pitched over the bike and onto the grass apron. He suffered minor heel injuries and was later walking around the pits on crutches. Sheene, who stopped after the race to check on Lucchinelli, inherited third behind Mamola and Crosby. Franco Uncini had ovenaken Robens for fourth wiith Fontan finishing sixth. "We did pretty much standard procedure," Sheene's mechanic Erv Kanemoto said. "We just changed tire compounds." Roberts bemoaned his lack of tires. ''I'll do exactly what I did in the first race. I have to use the same tire." Mamola led the charge of the second heat with fellow Californian Roberts tucked in behind and Sheene and Crosby trailing. On the third lap Roberts went down' in the park chicane with his bike catching fire. It was quickly put out, but both were through for the day. A few laps later the race was stopped when Sadao Asami high-sided with his Yamaha catching fire near the track. He, too, was all right, but unable to continue. The race was delayed for 50 minutes as the track was cleaned and the mechanics once again worked over the machines. It was decided that due to excessive tire wear the race would be run only 15 laps making the second leg a total of 21 laps. Mamola continued where he left off in the second restan with Sheene and Ballington close by. Ballington had chosen the shon·wlieelbase mount for the second heat. "I rode the long-wheelbase one in the first heat and in four laps the rear tire was rubbish. This one is a couple of inches shoner and it doesn't go off so. quickly," the Australian Ballington said. The crowds roar traveled the length of the circuit like a thunder-cloud as it was obvious that Sheene had taken the lead. The 51·year·old Sheene sped by the 21-year·old Mamola in the 100 mph downhill left-hand Craner's Curves. Once again it was a tire problem that stopped Mamola's charge. "Once the tire reaches a cenain high point during racing it stays there, But after it cools down it won't reach that level again," Mamola explained. ..Mter it cooled down when we stopped for the red flag it wasn't the same. And I didn't have another one of the same compound to replace it with. " Sheene set a race record on the lOth lap. but a hard-charging Crosby in third place broke it a few laps later with a clocking of I: 14.40 seconds; still a tenth off Mamola's track record. As is his custom Sheene did a wheel· stand down the entire length of the front straightaway as the fans shouted their approval. A few seconds later Mamola and Crosby came into view and it was Mamola at the line in a photo finish. BaUington. Uncini, and "jumpin' jack" Middelburg followed. Sheene, who had won his first GP in two years a few weeks earlier in Sweden, was effusive on the victory podium. Sheene was declared the overall champion as millions watched it live on television. He was declared the winner for having spent 2.95 seconds less of actual race time on the track. The decision was questioned since the second leg was restaned and then run only 15 la~. Mamola protested and it was decided there would be no overall winner. "The track has decided that there will be no overall winner. It was done merely for the purpose of Thames television," a track spokesman said. "There have been so many decisions in the last hour that I don't know what's going on," Mamola said. "The race was supposed to be run on points and I had 27 to Barry's 25. I don't want to take anything away from Barry. He rode a good race, but he shouldn't have been the overall winner. They said there would be no overall winner so we withdrew the protest. After we did that, they gave the overall win to him. I don't care anymore. I'm going home for three weeks .", Results RRST lEG: 1. R8ndy M-.nolI lSuz); 2. Gr_ ISuz); 3. Ilorry S-.e IVom); 4. Franco Uncini (Suzl; 5. Konny Robens IVom); 6. MIre _ (Yoml; 7. Keith _ IVoml; 8. S_ _ IVoml; 9. JD lSuzI; 10. Chrio Guy ISuzl. 2nd lEG: I. Ilorry ~ IVoml; 2. R8ndy M-.nolI lSuzI; 3. Gr-..o Crooby ISuzl; 4. Kart< a.IIinglDn IKM; 5. _ Undni lSuz); 6. JD M ~ lSuzI; 7. _ Flu lSuzl; 8. MIre _ IV....; I. S-_ IVomI; 10. Stu"'.->I ISuz). Crooby -.rv

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