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/126981
Honda's Wayne Gardner (2) leads defending champ Edd ie law son (1 ), Rob McElnea (5 ), Taka hiko Taira (2 1), Randy Mamola (3) , Didier de Radigues (7) and Christian Sarron (6) at the start of the 500cc GP . Japan's Tadahiko Taira put himself on the 500cc rostrum for the f irst time in his career after f inishing t hird. World Championship Road Race Series: Round 11 Gardner .r olls on in Czech GP By Henny Ray Abrams BR NO, CZECHOSLOVAKIA, AUG. 23 Rothmans Honda's Wayne G ardner contin u ed to put ground on his pursuers in the 500cc World Championship points race wi th an easy win in the Czechoslovakian 18 Grand Prix. It was Gardner 's si xth win of th e year a n d ยท I' a I th a ug h t h e f Ina margm was only 1.87 seconds over the late- charging 'Y orl ? Ch ampion Edd.ie La wson , his victory was never 10 doubt. Earning his first podium ever in the 500cc class was Lawson's Marl- boro T eam Agostini teamma te Tadah iko Taira in third p lace wi th Team Lu cky Stri ke Rob erts ' Randy Mamo la fourth after an early off-track excursion a nd HB Honda 's Nia ll ' MacKenzi e fifth . With fo u r ro u nd s re ma i n i n g , Gardner leads Ma mo la 135 to 109 wit h La wso n th ird a t 103 points. After finish ing seventh a t th e previous G ra nd Prix in Sweden, H onda's Freddie Spe ncer had his string of unb elievably bad lu ck conti nue when he los t the so ft contact len s in h is right eye o n th e wa rm -up lap. H e wa s run nin g eighth whe n just past m idra ce h e over-ran a corner dropping him well back a nd he would eventually finish 11th. The race was th e first to be run on the new 3.352-mile Brno track which rep laced th e road circu it last used in 1982. The track has 14 turns, six left s a n d eigh t r ights, a n d, because of their decreasing rad ius, the riders were forced to use the front wh eel to steer more than the rear. It would ca use many riders to alter their riding styIe. T he track is built into the ro ll ing cou ntryside outs ide of Brn o, the ' second la rgest city in Czechoslova kia, and it ma kes spectator viewi ng ideal. Although the re a re accom modations for 185,000 in th e sta nds, m ost of th e cro wd estim ated a t 180,000 chose to sit o n the hillsides. (T here was such a n exod us from East Germany that officia ls closed th e border o n Sat urday with a 12-mile "long line of people waiting to cross.) West German y's T oni Mang, o n th e Ro th rnans H onda, scored the most popular win of th e day, in the 250cc class. The fo r m er World Champ ion wo n hi s seventh race lead in g most of th e way a nd beati ng Dominique Sarr o n by 3.43 seconds after 21 la ps (77.5 1 miles) of racing. Sarro n sn uc k in to second on the last la p whe n Sito Pons ma de a mis take lettin g Sarro n a nd third-p lace Carlos Cardus pas t. Card us was .27 seconds behind Sar ro n with Pons .18 seconds back in fourth a nd fifth-pl aced Luca Cada lora jus t :35 seconds behind. Mang stre tched his adva ntage over Reinhold Ro th in the 250cc World Cha mp io nship points race, 11 2 to 89, wh en Ro th fell on th e last- lap, remou n: ing to fin ish 10th. Pons is a distant third wi th 65. In th e I 25cc class, C ar elli 's Fausto Gresin i d id the inevi table today, cli nchin g the Wor ld Championshi p by winning his ninth race in a row . By win ni ng every race th is season h e 's ea rned 135 p oints wh ile team mate Bru no Casanova, second today 12.06 seconds back, has 88. Andres Sanc hez-Marin fin ished third some 34 seconds behind Casanova. In th e 80cc class, Krauser Racing's Stevan Doer flin ger wo n h is-firs t race of the season bea ti ng Derbi's Jorge Martinez by 9.36 seconds aft er 47 miles ' (14 lap s) of racing. Martinez, who has already clinche d the 80cc title, was well a head of th ird-p laced Gerhard Wa ibel who stands seco nd beh ind Martinez i n th e point sta ndi ngs. Theoretically, sin ce none of the 500cc riders had seen the circu it befo re th e race weekend no one would have an unfair advantage. But since it featured a number of near goo second and third gear comers