Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

~ ROADRACE Su erbike Road Race Series: Round 2 I The first lap of the Daytona 200 saw Scott Russell (1) establishing himself as the man to beat; here he leads Raymond Roche (116), Aaron Slight (62) and Eddie Lawson (7). Lawson comes back to win Daytona 200 By Paul Carruthers Photos by Henny Ray Abrams DATIONA BEACH, FL, MAR 7 our-time World Champion Eddie Lawson ended his brief retirement from road racing in style at Daytona International Speedway as he ran down front-runner Scott Russell to win the 52nd Daytona 200 by Arai in his onerace return on the Vance & Hines Yamaha. '1 don't believe it. I'm stunned," said a somewhat modest Lawson. "The bike won - I was just along for the ride. The thing was so fast. That's what won it for F us." 6 Much like last year, this running of the Daytona 200 was a thriller. Last year it was Doug Polen vs. Scott Russell with Russell drafting past in their famous run to the flag. This time it was Russell and the Muzzy Kawasaki who were caught and passed on the final lap, and this time the passing was done by Lawson and the ultra-fast Yamaha YZF750. At the flag, Lawson and his Jim Leonard-built Yamaha were only a scant 0.051-of-a-second ahead of Russell after a hectic last lap strug/lle. So much for Lawson's relaxing retirement. Third place went to Russell's Muzzy Kawasaki teammate Miguel DuHamel, making it an all former Daytona 200 winner filled Victory Lane (Lawson pre- viously won the Daytona 200 in 19$6, DuHamel in 1991, and Russell last year). A third Muzzy Kawasaki finished fourth, in the capable hands of New Zealander Aaron Slight, with two-time World Superbike Champion Doug Polen and the Fast By Ferracci Ducati finishing fifth. Camel Honda's Tom lGpp, Team Mirage's Dale Quarterley, England's Mark Farmer, Yamaha Canada's Jacques Guenette Jr. and Ireland's Eddie Laycock rounded out the top 10 finishers. A pall was cast over the proceedings as word reached the pit area that AMA road racing fixture Jimmy Adamo was killed in his sixth-lap crash. According to eyewitness accounts, Adamo ran straight at the end of the short backstraight that leads to turn six, a left-hand comer which puts the racers back onto the high-banked oval. The 36-year-old New Yorker lost control of his Ducati and struck a section of hay bale-protected wall, suffering massive head injuries. Adamo, who began professional road racing in 1973, is survived by his wife Melanie and two daughters, Danie1le, 3, and Jamie, 6 months. Adamo's death was only the fourth motorcycle-racing related fatality in Daytona International Speedway history. Adamo's tragic accident brought the pace car on to the 3.56-mile race track, and three laps were run under caution flags. Lawson completed the 57-lap, 2DO-mile race in one-hour, 54 minutes and 55.757 seconds for an average speed of 105.936. For his efforts, the 35year-old Californian pocketed $16,500 from the $120,000 superbike purse. Russell, who will be heading to Europe shortly to contest the World Championship Superbike Series, took over the AMA Superbike National Championship points lead with his second-place finish. He leads Polen by a single point, 63-62, after two of 11 rounds. DuHamel jumps to third place in the standings with 56 points. Kipp and Quarterley round out the top five point scorers with 48 and 46 points, respectively. The list of those championship hopefuls who failed to score well is almost as long as those who did. Vance & Hines Yamaha's Colin Edwards, who finished fourth at the opening round at Phoenix International Raceway, failed to gamer points after his YZF750 blew up after only 24 laps; Yoshimura Suzuki's Thomas Stevens was another of the factory men who failed to score after he crashed in the chicane on the 15th lap; the first of the established stars to exit, though, was Camel Honda's Mike Smith - Smith's RC30 fried a clutch at the start and he made it only through the first corner before calling it a day; Fast By Ferracci's Pascal Picotte also had a rough outing, completing only 51 laps after fighting his ill-running Ducati from the get-go. Much of the story-line for this Daytona 200 revolved around tires. For the first time in Daytona 200 history, the leaders actually stopped for new rubber on three occasions. The majority of the race was a cat-and-mouse game of who made the correct tire choice, who was getting the most out of those particular choices, and just how long would the tires last. As it turns out, the first four riders (Lawson, Russell, DuHamel and Slight) all needed three sets of rear tires to go the distance at the pace they were running. A slight drizzle just prior to the start of the sighting lap had some riders scrambling for softer compounds as the sun hid behind clouds, bringing cool and windy conditions. Towards the

• Cover