Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

~ ~ ::l « a:: w ~ z e 0 .Z « z « ~ 0 ~ w 00 ii: ... 0') :I: ....-4 ~ ~ > CD ~ ~ ....-4 .... ~ tJ) 0 ~ 0 ..c :I: lL 8 ~ ;> 0 Z (Above) J,eff Ward had no problems winning the main. (Below) David Bailey (1) tried to pass Broc Glover but crashed instead. with the winner of the race taling home $30,000. Honda's Ron Lechien finished second. Insport/Wrangler Supereross Series Round IS: Ward wins Superbowl By Kit Palmer LOS ANGELES, CA, NOV. 3 The Supercross classic is back. After a twoyear layoff, the Superbowl of Motocross sponsored by Miller High Life and Coca Cola - returned to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Over 62,000 spectators witnessed Kawasaki's newly-crowned I 25cc National MX Champion jeff Ward work 10 his way up from a fourth-place stan. to tak.e the victory; however, team Honda's Johnny O'Mara wrapped up the InsportlWrangler Supercross Series Championship_with a second-place finish. Team Yamaha's BrocGlovercrashed while bidding for the lead and ended up finishing fifth in the main, but Glover came back to easily win the Miller Masters Challenge race immediately following the Superbowl final, which had the highest paid purse in motocross or supercross history. The overall purse was $50,000 Qualifiers The evening was kicked off with the start of the first qualifier that saw privatet;r Yamaha rider Warren Reid steal the holeshot with Lechien close behind. Early into the first lap, O'Mara ducked inside of Lechien through a pair of jumps just after a tight right-hander. Once into second, O'Mara quiclc.ly reeled-in Reid and passed him a lap later, just before the peristyle jump. A half-lap later, Lechien slipped past Reid in the whoops and caught up to O'Mara. Lechien knew that O'Mara wanted to place at least .a second to be able to clinch the Supercross championship, so Lechien put on the pressure hoping O'Mara would take it easy - but the 0' show didn't. O'Mara managed to keep his teammate behind during· the eight-lap race to. tak~ the win. Reid finished third ahead of Kawasaki's Billy Liles, Honda rider Billy Frank and Craig Canoy (Hon). The start of the second qualifier saw team Honda's current 500cc National MX Champion David Bailey capture the holeshot with Glover hot on his rear fender. In third was Suzuki rider Rick Ryan. A lap later, Glover made a move through a tight ess section and stuffed Bailey hard intO the hay bales. However, Bailey wasn't out of it just yet. The Honda rider stayed close to Glover while Kawasaki factory rider Goat Breker worked his way into third. In the last lap, Bailey tried to stuff Glover in the same spot where Glover had stuffed him, but Bailey was unsuccessful. Instead, Bailey's front wheel washed out causing him to crash. Bailey quickly recovered holding on to second. Glover won ahead of Bailey, Breker, Honda rider Erik Kehoe and Ryan. "He got real close to me there at the end," said Glover. "He started to set me up through the front straight and through the next couple of turns. When he tried to stuff me, I think his front wheel washed out." The third qualifier featured a duel between new 250cc National MX Champion Rick Johnson and Suzuki's two-time Superbowl winner, Mark Barnett. Johnson, on his production-based 1985 YZ250, barely edged Barnett's works Suzuki to the first turn, but Barnett rammed his way through the first left-hand turn and stuffed Johnson in the following right turn. This caused Johnson to slow, letting Honda rider Jeff Hicks into second. Johnson quiclc.ly passed Hicks and set after The Bomber. For the next two laps, the battle for the lead was fierce, then Johnson pulled up along side of Barnell through the triple jumps and preceeding left turn and passed the Suzuki rider through the whoops section. From this point on, Johnson started to pull away slightly. On the final lap Johnson got out of shape through the whoops and went off the track, allowing Barnett to motor on by. Johnson re-entered in second. Barnett took the win ahead of Johnson, Hicks Honda rider Eric Hall ahd Yamaha-mounted Allen Semar. Later on in the evening, though, it was announced that Johnson actually won the moto and that Barnett finished second, because the race went one lap too many by mistake. Ward captured the holeshot in the fourth qualifier only to be passed by Yamaha rider Jim Holley as they came oU the peristyle jump a few turns later. This move surprised the crowd; then Ward tried to pass Holley. Holley, however, held on to his lead, following in third and fourth were free agent (no longer riding for Team Tamm) Honda rider A.J.

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