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/126950
Erv Kanemoto and three-time World Champion Freddie Spencer discuss technical matters during a GP practice breek; can they bou.nce back? while finishing second in the title chase. . ' Gardner claimed the Honda wasn't as good as the Yamaha and he may have been right, but the problems he had with the Y-four have reportedly been corrected. Gardner was hun recently at a test session in Australia and how much the torn lig-dmeots in his ankle affect his season start won't be known until Suzuka. Gardner goes well at Suzuka and he, along with Taira, must be considered a favorite at the season opener. Joining Gardner on the Rothmans Honda learn is Shungi Yatsushiro. The Japanese champion "rode in a few selected Grands Prix last year with his best finish beinga seventh in Austria. England's Roger Burnett will also be on a Honda Y-four with Rothmans colors, but Burnell will campaign from a different team than Gardner and Yatsushiro. Burnett finisht.od seventh in the Dutch Grand Prix last year. Team Lucky Strike Roberts Three-time World Champion Kenny Roberts will take his Yamaha V-four-mounted team to Europe for its second season in 1987. The Roberts squad was impressive in its debut year last season with Randy Mamola and Mike Baldwin finishing third and fourth in the championship, respectively. The team will switch to Dunlop tires for the upcoming season, and whether this will help or hamper the team remains to be seen. The top teams last year used Michelins as the Dunlops were not at the top level; off-season testing and changes may see that change, however, and Roberts must feel confident to make the switch. Mamola won the wet Belgian Grand Prix last year whill' finishing second in Italy, ¥ugoslavia, Holland and France. In the wet he remains a constant threat, but in the dry Lawson and Gardner seemed to have the edge. Baldwin was the surprise of the season last year as he finished fourth , Two-time and "current 500cc World Champion Eddie Lawson and tuner Kel Carruthers are confident in their chances of repeating in 1987. in the title chase by finishing third in five separate Grands Prix. A second year on the Yamahas should give both Mamola and Baldwin better results. Gauloises Yamaha The French team returns with Vfour Yamahas in '87 with Christian arron, once again, soloing the effort. Sarron finished sixth in the '86 championship after struggling with McElnea for the position all year. Sarron was also involved in epic battles with Baldwin and the Baldwin/Sarron/ McElnea duel at Monza was a classic. As has plagued him throughout his career, crashes once again hampered Sarron's performance. He did, however, put together two third place ride in Belgium and France. Sarron's Yamahas will wear Michelins again in 1987. Cagiva The team to watch for drastic improvement in the upcoming Grand Prix season is Ca~iva. The Italian team got aggressive in the off-season and hired Belgian Didier de Radigues and Raymond Roche to ride the Yfours. De Radigues best performance came at Silverstone where he finished second behind Gardner in the rain. De Radigues is switching to Cagiva £rom his Chevalljer/Honda mount and 1987 will probably also see him switch to Michelin tires. Roche comes to Cagiva after a relatively unsuccessful year on the threecylinder RSSOO Honda. The Frenchman did get theopponunity to sample Spencer's V-four after the champ's wrist injury, but he never came to grips with the power characteristics of the bike. Roche has showed promise at the Grand Prix level, but his last two years, first on the Marlboro Yamaha and last yearon the RS, have seen him drop in the rankings. Skoal Bandit Suzuki After lqsing both Roche and Mackenzie to rival teams after the two had "committed" to the English-based team, Skoal personnel were sent look- Team boss Kenny Roberts talks with team rider Randy Mamola (center) and Rothmans Honda's Wayne Gardner (right). ",,----------