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/127180
Kawasaki (ah, but if the Japanese factory . comes back to GPs in the -125cc class in 1990as forecast . , . ?), Donnie McLeod's retirement in disgust after being passed over for th e umpteenth time for a works b ike, a nd Rob McElnea an d Roger Burnett 's defection to the Superbike series, where they 'll be joined by suc h as Ra ymond Roch e, Patri ck Igoa a nd Gusta v Rein er - and maybe o th ers like Alex Val esi if hi s deal to run th e '88 works 500 Cagivas does n't co me o l£. Wh ew th at 's quite some sha ke-ou t, isn't it? How ever, there's no disputing' th at we're about to witness potentially th e most exciting G P season since the mid60s, in wh ich for eca sting th e likely champions is even more ofa lottery than previous years. However , embo ldened by th e fact th at last year I managed to get three right o u t of four in the so lo clas ses (and I d id say I th ought Eddie Lawson wou ld be cham p ion if th e Honda wasn 't good eno ug h to allow Gardner to defend . his title effectively. wh ich proved to be the case), let 's see if we can 't make some predictions. Easy o nes lirst : Aspar to cakewalk th e 80cc ti tle on the Derb i, a nd to retain his 125cc titl e after a ti tanic struggle not o nly with Gianola but teammat e Miralles, Spaan and Gresini as well. All of th ese ma y well win a ra ce, but Aspar will be champion again because he's th e best rider, especially o ver a wh ol e seaso n, and Derb i's tech nica l advantage may well be narrowed but not o verta ken by th e rest, 'G lad though I am to have a British World Champion in sideca r ace Steve Webster (a nd passen ger T ony H ewitt), the re's no doubt of Biland's su premacy last year and I suppose he ought, on th e ba sis of thi s, to regain the title in '89 "". but that o ne really is a toss of th e CO i n . In the 250s, I make the main protag· onists to be Pons, Garriga, Reggiani, de Radigues, maybe Wimmer and Cadalora wh en he feels like it, Kocins ki would be a strong challenger for the title if he d id the full season, but sad ly that seems unlikely. 1£ Yamaha gives Garriga a properly-com petitive bike which won 't just be a rolling testbed for th e 500, he'll win, o therwise l tip Reggiani for the title, The 500s are more difficult, because not only is th ere th at big question ab out Spencer's fitness and undimmed ability, but so much depends on th e relative performances of bikes and tires. 1£ th e Dunlops work, both Rainey and Magee will be strong contenders for race Wins, but .. . will they ? The main protagonists for overall victory in the title chase will be Lawson, Gardner, Spencer if fit , Schwantz, Mamola (de pe ndi n g how soon Michelin giv e him the best tires, Rainey (see ab o ve), a nd as outsiders Magee (ditto), Sarron (No cra sh , Chris), Chili (Pirellis?) and Mackenzie (Ago' s number two ?). At th e end of it all, I think it 'll come down to just three: Lawson, Gardner and Schwantz - no Freddie, be cause ' I honestly don 't think his stamina will be up to a lfi-race season. I'd love to see another Suzuki World Champion , just as a change for one thing and lor another because I think Krazy Kevin is the most exciti ng rider in th e 500cc class today - bu t I somehow do n't thi nk he 's ready yet to go the whole -season in contention for a title without the sort of mistakes that can cost you the championship. T hat leaves the o ld double ac t of Eddie . and Wayne and honestly - who really knows? Wayne has better connections at HRC - but Eddie has Erv, I just flipped th e coin - Wayne it is to win and make the Gardner T-shirt worn at Goiania in the last GP of '88 come true: " Mine in '89." Yeah - I reck on, ma te. _ Go ahead, subscribe! You've Earned I ! (Effi~ To get Cycle News delivered to your door every week, , fill out the subscription coupon on page 3 , 57