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/126798
David Bailey won his heat race and took third in the main. Rick Johnson overcame the flu and passed Ron Lachien early in the final to capture the win. Honda's Johnny O'Mara bumped the starting gata in the main and had to work his way up through the pack to finish second. spectators. Newly-crowned U.S. Supercross Champion O'Mara and Honda's David Bailey finished second and third. The race was originally scheduled to be held in a large stadium, but Inte.....tional S.~erero88: Johnson iams in Japan By Kit Palmer OSAKA. JAPAN. NOV. 17 Team Yamaha's Ricky Johnson beat Team Honda's Ron Lechien and Johnny O'Mara and endured the flu to win the Japan Super10 cross in Osaka, before a crowd of over 20,000 because of a conflicting sports event in the stadium, the track was moved to a nearby open field. Huge amounts of dirt were brought in, to duplicate the course builtforthe Anaheim (California) Supercross held January of . this year. However, there were 'no' bleachers or built-in seats of any kind for the spectators; instead, earth around the track was beveled upwards for the fans - who paid over $25 admission - to stand on. Practice started Friday with O'Mara and Bailey racking up the fastest lap times - just over one minute per lap. Johnson was feeling the effects of the flu and wasn't riding up to par. Kawasaki's JeH Ward clipped a rock with his front wheel and crashed. Saturday's practice session was completely a diHerent story - Johnson had the fastest lap times, about two seconds faster than O'Mara. The racing format was almost the same as U.S. supercross races except there were three heat races instead of four, and there were no quarter-finals. Also, the heat races went for IS laps instead of the usual eight. The main had the standard 20 laps. In the first heat, Bailey grabbed the holeshot, while Yamaha's Keith Bowen closely followed. For the remainder of the race, Bowen stayed close and challenged. According to Bowen's teamma.te, Johnson, "He (Bowen) rode his best of the season. Keith hung in there and pushed Bailey all the way to the end." Bailey held on to take the win ahead of Bowen, Kawa aki's Billy Liles and Eddie Warren. . , The second heat race featured a duel between Johnson and Lechien. The Yamaha pilot jumped into the early lead, while Lechien pressured from behind. Lechien kept threatening until he fell about halfway into the race. This gave Johnson plenty of breathing room to cruise and take the win. Lechien recovered to take second ahead of Yamaha rider Jim Holley and Kawasaki's Goat Breker. Yamaha's Broc Glover stole the holeshot at the start of the third-andfinal heat race followed 'by O'Mara and Ward. Soon after, Glover got out-of-shape and went oH the track, handing O'Mara the lead. Glover recovered in third, a few inches behind Ward. Glover then put heavy pressure on Ward, but when Glover tried to pass Ward through the whoops, the two riders collided and crashed. BOth bikes ended up lying directly on top of Ward. Glover managed to pull his bike out of the heap and continue on, but Ward wasn't so lucky. Ward's ribs hurt so much that he decided not to re-enter the race. At first Ward thought he might have broken, or at least cracked a couple of his ribs; as it turned out, he did neither. Ward sat out the rest of the races. O'Mara cruised on to take the win ahead of Glover and Breker. The start of the main saw Lechien roost out of the first turn in the lead with Bailey and Johnson second and third. O'Mara bumped the starting gate and got a mid-pack start. At the end of the first lap, Johnson slipped underneath Bailey, passing him for second. "After I passed Bailey," said Johnson, "I set after Lechien and reeled him in. During the second lap, I weaseled by Lechien in a soft right tum just before the doubles. He stayed real close to me for about the next three laps before he crashed near the same place I had passed him. I think his front wheel washed out or caught a rut as he started to jump the double jump." According to Roger DeCoster, Team Honda's Motocross Consultant and (ive-time 500cc World Champion, "A lapped rider moved into Lechien's way, so he used a diHerent line. His front wheel washed out and he crashed." In the crash, Lechien broke his little toe. "After Lechien crashed," said Johnson, "I had a huge lead. Then O'Mara took second and I had about 15 seconds on him. The closest he ever got to me was about II seconds." At the finish it was O'Mara who took second ahead of Bailey and Glover. "Friday, when I had the flu, nobody thought I had a chance to win, including myself. But Saturday I felt much better and didn't have any problems," said Johnson, who took home $7000 (or his win. • Results FINAL: 1. Rick Johnson (Veml: 2. Johnny O'Mere (Honl: 3. Oevid Beiley (Hon); 4. Broc Glover (Yem); 5. Keith Bowen (Vem); 6. Jim Holley (Vem); 7. Kern Howenon IKaw); 8. Eddie Warren (K.w~; 14. Ron Lechien fHon).