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/127558
Larry Brooks (17) grabbed the holeshot at the start of the 2O-lap main event ahead of Jeremy McGrath (15), Steve Lamson (21), Jeff Matiasevich (il) and Erik Kehoe (22). and ran as high as second before suffering from arm fatigue and fading off the leaders' pace. The combined Eastern/Western Regional 125cc portion of the event featured a surplus of emotion, as Western Regional rider Jimmy Gaddis earned his fust-ever 125cc Supercross win in his debut ride aboard the Team Splitfire/Mattel/Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX125. Just as Bradshaw did in the 250cc main, former Suzuki factory rider Gaddis assumed the lead on the opening lap of the 125cc feature and romped away with a convincing win. "This is great," said an overjoyed and tearful Gaddis. "This year is like a second chance. I went from being a factory Suzuki rider to being a privateer, and being on this team gave me new hope. 1 can't believe it." For his win, Gaddis coUected $2000 of "the $10,000 12Sec purse, but more importantly, earned the bragging rights until the next combined Eastern/ Western Regional at the March 27 DaUas Supercross. Finishing second and third, respectively, were Team Suzuki's Phil Lawrence and Honda's Doug Henry. The race served as the first round of the Western Regional series, and Gaddis holds the' point lead with 25, three points ahead of Lawrence with 22. Henry's third-place finish handed him the lead in Eastern Regional series point standings, as last week's 12Sec Eastern Regional victor, Suzuki's Ezra Lusk, finished fifth at Houston and dropped to second in the series points chase. Henry, though, only enjoys a one-point advantage over Lusk, 42-41. 250cc Heats Erik Kehoe grabbed the holeshot in the first of two eight-lap heat races that each offered four direct transfer positions to the main. The Honda of Troy rider enjoyed the lead for only a lap, though, as Kiedrowski, Cooper, privateer Suzuki rider Larry Ward and Bradshaw aU freight-trained past him on lap two. "I was riding a little tight and made a lot of mistakes," said Kehoe. Once into the lead, Kiedrowski tried to open a gap on his rivals, but Cooper Guy Cooper (7) topped Mike Kiedrowski (3) and Damon Bradshaw (8) in the first heat race. Cooper raced to second in the feature. glued himseU to the leader's rear fender. Meanwhile, Bradshaw searched for a way past Ward, who matched Bradshaw's every passing attempt until lap four. Ward swapped sideways as he jumped over a small triple jump and landed completely sideways on the face of the third jump. Rather than crash, though, Ward held on tight and somehow his bike swapped straight enough for him to continue. But that was all Bradshaw needed to sneak past, and he sped off after Kiedrowski and Cooper. Within one lap, Bradshaw closed to the rear of Cooper, but found himself trailing Kiedrowski when Cooper hit the afterburners and roosted into the lead. The action during the remaining laps kept the crowd on its feet, as the three riders were never separated by more that a few inches. As soon as he moved into the number one position, Cooper began to wave to the crowd and show off, even though Kiedrowski and Bradshaw were just a hair behind. Bradshaw mounted a charge on the last lap that carried him past Kiedrowski and into second, but he came up short on a double jump while trying to overtake Cooper, who went on to score a popular win. Bradshaw was second over Kiedrowski, while 125cc National MX Champion Jeff Emig overtook Ward late in the race to earn the fourth direct transfer. When .questioned about his racelong antics, Cooper replied, "Man, that was great, wasn't it? Damon and Mike don't like getting beat by me in a heat 7