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/127383
Russell, who made a mockery of th e field in the 750cc Supersp ort race at Daytona, should have an easy time winning that championship. Vetera n Dale Quarterley rode hi s The Boys-backed H on da RC30 to a sixth in th e Daytona 200, and if the New Englander ha s any luck at all he will do well in the cha mpionsh ip. T he hard-riding Quarterley finished seven th in the championship last year with his best result -r- a fifth - coming a t his home track of Loudon . Others worth noting in th e scrap for the superbike crown are Canadian 's R euben. McMurter a nd Jacques Guenette. McMurter, seventh at Daytona, will again ride his McMurter Racing Honda RC30s in the series while also' competing in Ca nada. Guenette will concentrate on th e AMA series while riding the second Rob Muzz y-fettled Kawasa ki ZXR750R, and will also likely finish second to Russell in the 750cc Sup er sport championship. Team Yoshimura Suzuki didn't fare ' well at Daytona with WERA Formula USA Champion Mike Smith crashing out early and class rookie Tommy The 600cc Supersport Series should provide close racing all year; here Miguel DuHamel leads Jamie James at Daytona. Lynch ,fin ish in g 16th. You don 't, however, win a ny ch a mpionship without having a great deal of talent, and we probably haven ' t heard th e last ' from Smith. N ei th er Yama h a FZR 750 R Rmounted T o m Kipp (Wisecosponsored) or Pascal Picotte (Yamaha Canada-backed) fin ished the Daytona 200, but both were in the hunt before mechanical problems (Kip p) and a crash (Picotte) took them ou t of th e race. . Mad Dog 's Mike Harth was ano ther who experienced problems at Daytona, although he did fin ish 14th , but we can expect strong finishes from all three du ring the season. The second Honda team receiving at least some assistance from American Honda is the Two Bro thers Racing sq ua d. With Honda RC30s prepped by Mike Velasco , three-time -Wor ld Champion Freddie Spencer and Florida's Jeff Farmer both hav e the opportunity to finis h st ro ng in 199 L Mechanical ill s forced Spen cer out of the Daytona 200 while Farmer crashed and broke his wrist. Both are expected to retu rn for Lo udo n, a lt hough Farmer's best finishes are expected to com e in the 600cc Supersport class. The 250cc Grand Prix championCalifornian Nick Ienatseh (24) is one of the favorites to capture a close 250cc Grand Prix National Championship. ship will likely com e down to a battle between the Yamaha TZ250s of California's Nick Ienatsch and New Eng- Pro T wins GP2 actio n is usually al ways close. Daytona was no exception as Crai g Shambaug h leads the way. lander Chris D'Alusio. Bu t don ' t count out forme r U.S. GP winner Jimmy Filice, although the for mer dirt tracker has dug himself quite a hole after not competing at Daytona. The only rider who may have an easier time than Russell in the 750cc Supersport Cha mp ionsh ip will be Po len in the Pro Twins GPI Championship. Polen and th e Fast By Ferracci Ducati should make for som e bori ng racing, at least at the front, in the premier portion of the Twins class. The GP2 class, however, will li kely be fou ght out between many, including perennial class favorite Craig Shambaugh, Scott Williams, Robert Griffiths, and the rest . . . The tightest championship fight will likely be in the 600cc Supersport Seri es with Du Hamel, James, Amaiz, Kipp, Michael Barnes, and a horde of others battlin g all season long. An d let 's not forget the always competitive U.S. T win Sports Series. This again should be a"Nigel Gale, T ripp Nobles, Scott Zampach, Kevin Rentzell battle, much like Daytona and the more recent round at Road Atlanta. Ninety-eight days later, here we go again .. . Cl'I