Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

World Champion Eddie Lawson won the Spanish round of the 500cc World Championship; it was the Californian's 27th career GP win. A dejected Kevin Schwantz; he had win number two in the bag. • P.F. Chili (9) leads Christian Sarron (4), Lawson (1) and Niall Mackenzie (6) early. Mackenzie was fourth, Sarron fifth and Chili sixth. World Championship Road Race Series: Round 4 Schwantz's misfortune is Lawson's fortune in Spain By Michael Scott Photos by Patrick Gosling JEREZ, SPAIN, APR. 30 Eddie Lawson scored a victory for common sense· at Jerez last Sunday, putting his title defense back on the rails with his first-ever Honda win in the Spanish GP, and his 27th GP win. But Rothmans' latest recruit 'f · k new It was a gl t. K ' eVln Schwantz had been more than 22 five seconds ahead, with only five laps left, when he threw his Pepsi Suzuki away. Championship leader Wayne Rainey on the Team Lucky Strike ! Roberts Yamaha was second, and ,Team Marlboro Agostini's Niall Mackenzie third, after outdistancing fourth-pla~ed Christian Sarron .on the GaulOlses Yamaha, and leavmg illustrious teammate Freddie Spencer trailing in fifth after a poor start and a lucky escape. Rothmans Honda's Michael 000han crashed on the fourth lap, without exacerbating his hand injur- . ies; while Pepsi Suzuki's Ron Haslam survived being ridden off at the hairpin - for the second time that weekend - recovering to finish seventh behind his assailant PierFranco Chili of the HB Honda team. A huge crowd - many still stuck in traffic jams outside the circuit for most of the races - were twice robbed of the chance of a firecracker fandango in the 250cc GP: first when local hero Juan Garriga stalled his Yamaha before the start, pushing away near the back to fight through to fourth, and second when local hero Sito Pons couldn't find the wherewithall to get past Yamahamounted Luca CadaJora, who scored his first win of the season. Nor was it a good day for Derbi, previously all-dominate in the' smaller classes. But Spanish riders did win here - Herre Torrentegui on the 11 Cobas in the sparse 80cc class, and Alex Criville, also aboard a 11 Cobas, in the 125cc class. The meeting, however, was lacking something ... namely two men who could have changed the result of the 500cc race, and a third whoSe slow recovery from head injuries still cast a pall over the paddock. The Laguna crashes of Wayne Gardner and Kevin Magee have robbed' the championship battle of some spice, while Bubba Shobert was cause for concern among his many friends in the paddock. The truth is that the Spanish GP was really only half a race. And though the result might easily have been the same, it might also have turned out completely differently. 500 Practice It is conventional racing wisdom that the first foreign rounds are no indication of European form. Nobody told Rainey and Schwantz, who dominated practice in the usual way, bickering throughout over the fastest time; although only running a seventh of a second faster than last year's lap record, a much smaller improvement than at Suzuka and Laguna Seca. Rainey ended every session in the lead, going fastest in the third session. Neither ended up feeling overconfident: times were close enough to eliminate complacency. Kenny Roberts was missing Kevin Magee, fof one reason among many others. "We've got a lot of tires to test, and only one rider. It hurts." Rainey was riding superbly, again, right on the edge, and the only one of the 500 riders able to steer with smooth slides rather than the jerky wobbles of the Michelin runners. This smooth transition into sliding mode has long been a Dunlop characteristic, said Roberts. Last year, fading tires bad robbed Rainey of a resounding start-tofinish victory. The questions, of course, were whether the 1989 Dunlops would give him enough drive out of the corners to overtake, and if they would last the distance. He cast imponderables aside, and blamed troublesome rear suspension. "Because my bike is different than all the other Yamahas," (tires, and a shorter swingarm) "I have no reference. I thought I had the suspension right at Laguna, but when I got here it was like a different bike." He had yet another special Ohlins made for him; meantime, he found he went fastest on his slower bike, the one carrying the computer. "I guess we should detune for Jerez," said Rainey. "Though I wouldn't want the other riders to know that." Rainey also spoiled a fine reputation, by crashing in practice. He'd caught Ron Haslam's Pepsi Suzuki, and was obviously not only getting held up in the bends, but (as significantly) was unable to accelerate past on the circuit's short straights. He decided to outbrake him instead. But Haslam was on a fast lap, and it is part of his technique to brake very late. "I had my back wheel in the air trying to stop, then I lost the front," said Rainey. Haslam said, "I could hear him faLling off, but he was corning up inside me, and he just had me down. Then he looked at me as if it were my fault." The pair of them skittledoff at low speed into the sand-trap on the outside of the pit hairpin, and were none the worse for the experience, although Haslam was to relive it all in the race - a inetapysical coincidence. Schwantz was just two-IOths slower, but also struggling. He'd dropped the front of the bike to quicken the steering, which had worked, but had also made the bike unstable. "Now it's really weaving. I've been trying 16 and 17-inch wheels, and I'm still not sure which is best." He was confident, however, about going faster. "I went the wrong way on Saturday. We'\1 go 'back to the way we had it on Friday. . I can win the race, but it's not gonna be a picnic." He and Rainey were the sole users of the AP-Lockhead carbon brakes. But the racing axiom had some truth for two other newcomers to the '89 front rows - Mackenzie and Lawson, hardly far behind. Mackenzie was third, and the last rider to break the 1:49 mark. It was a major step for the Marlboro Yamaha recruit, but not that surprising considering his big improvement among many troubles at Laguna. "Maybe it's because I'm good on slow corners," said Mackenzie. "But I think it's because I'm starting to feel comfortable on the bike. I lowered it a lot at Laguna, and I've lowered the back more here." Although reliably faster than teammate Spencer, it made no difference to his second-string tires. "Michelin are helpful, and I think I get better tires than Haslam and Mamola. BUl the contract for the best tires is for Freddie." Lawson was less than two-IOths down, and in his inimitable way was looking the most relaxed of all, using two thirds of the track where Rainey and Schwantz used every inch and the curbs. Well aware that this was a pivotal race, his condition and his spirit has improved. "I feel as though

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