Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

GM orDeROSS WorldChampionship 250(( MX Series:Round 10 ~ T rampas Parker (52) hauled with Vehkonen (2), Yannig Kervella (13) and Puzar during the first moto until he dislocated his shoulder and was forced to retire. A pair of fourth -place finishes gave Dutchman John Van den Berk fourth overall. Van den Berk ran near the front in the first half of moto two until he got tired. 8 " I got a bad sta rt whe n I held seco n d gear too long, " sa id H erring. " I used too mu ch ene rgy co m in g th rough th e pa ck a nd didn 't have eno ug h for lat e in th e ra ce." St anton qu ickl y es ta b lishe d . hi s superi ority when he sho t into the lead a t th e start of rnoto two. Puzar go t a mu ch better.jump and was second whil e Ward , Kerv ell a , Vehkon en , Van den Berk , LaRocco and Herring so rted o u t behind. As a lig h t rain began to fall , Van den Berk qui ckl y mo ved up to challenge Puzar on the first lap, but his Ch est erfi eld Suzuki teamm ate th warted th e early effo rts . Puzar wa s al so p ro b i ng Stanton, stic ki ng a wh eel under him in severa l turns over the first two laps. Then Stanton had eno ug h a nd pulled a way , a nd Puzar let hi m go. " I kne w so mebody was ba ck th ere, but I was n' t wo rried," sai d Stanton. " I co u ld stay with him for two laps, th en I had to back o ff," exp la ine d Puz ar. " I had to think abo ut th e champions hi p. If I wo uld 've been in sha pe, I would 've fou ght with Stan to n for th e lead ." : " I kn ew he'd be th ere for four or five lap s th en fade," sai d Sta nton . V'an den Berk staye d close to Puzar for several laps before he go t by, and the Italian didn 't fight back. Vehkonen had moved up to fourth a nd a lso cl o sed in o n Puz a r , wh i le LaRocco passed Ward a nd pulled Herring al ong with him. A short time lat er , as th e li ght rain ga ve way to a br ief downpour, Ward fell for the fi rst tim e wh en he slid o u t o n a hil l. Vehkon en soo n began having prob lems a nd both L aRocco and H erring slip pe d by. At one point Vehkonen had to paddl e hi s Yamah a up a steep hill. " I got so me stones in th e clutch levers, but th ey graduall y worked free," said Vehkon en. " It sta rted working again and th en everyth ing was okay." LaRocco a nd Herring battled ov fo u rt h and thei r momentum ca rrie th em to Pu zar , Ward - wa s sa m di st an ce beh ind Vehk on en an locked in a baili e with Mortensen an J ohan sson. Bel gian Marniqc Be voet s was a lo ne i n 10th whil e a batt raged beh ind h im between Mi k Fisher, Kervell a and T ichenor. b At th e halfway point Stanton w firm ly in co m ma nd whi le Van de Berk co n tro lle d sec o n d. Bot LaRocco and H erring mov ed b Puzar, swa p pi ng places a few tim alo ng th e wa y wi th LaRocco final ta king co mma n d of third. Vehkoiie held fourth ove r Ward , Bervoets a J ohansson. A l ap lat er Van den Berk dropp severa l positi ons as fir st LaRocco g by foll ow ed by Herrin g a nd th Veh ko ne n . " I got tired, a nd I don't kno why," sa id Van den Berk , " I w ridin g easy wi th no mi stak es, b afte r 20 min ut es I was tired. I h no pow er in my ar ms. I foll o w Vehkonen fo r two o r three laps a th en I was co m p letely finished. " Then as La Rocco was mak in g so me time o n Stanton , hi s race w fini sh ed o n the 12th lap. " I ca me dow n a lillie drop 0 sh ifted a nd noth in g happen ed, " sa LaRocco . " It wo u ld n ' t sh ift." '( With LaRocco o u t, Herring fou himself seven seco nds behind St ant and he was n't abo ut 'to try to coli him lat e in th e race, " I was ha ppy to stay in seco th er e wa s .n o p oint in 'ca tc hi Stanton," H erring sa id, "I was th in king abo ut my overa ll posi t i I was just wo rri ed abo u t points, I j got behind LaRocco and he pass a few rid ers and pulled me a lo ng.' Whil e H err in g let Stanton get a with th e win , Vehkonen mad e a Ii race cha rge th at brought him cI to th e En gli shman o n th e last Herring kept him behind to seco nd and th e same overall.

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