Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

eROADRACE e My bike too," said Falappa on the rostrum. He added: "After my accident (in Austria - 1990) my condition very bad, but now it is better." Russell was happy enough with his performance: "I ran my race. It's my best finish to date in the World Superbike Championship. I was hoping for a dry race, but it didn't happen." The Muzzy rider later revealed a rear tire traction problem. "It just wasn't hooking up," he said. "There was less water to clear in the second race but the tire was worse." Aaron SIi~t (6), Baldassarre Monti (17) and Fred Merkel (27) argued over sixth in race two. Slight won that battle. 18 over. He lost over a minute in the stop but rejoined the race without losing a lap. Gschwender stopped on the sixth lap with a fogged-up face shield. Unlike Mertens he had no spare helmet waiting for him. On the ninth lap, Whitham threw it away at Paddock Bend and Pirovano almost immediately lost the third place he inherited when he crashed at Druids, highsiding on the way out. He remounted but would not ,:egain enough ground to finish in the points. All this left Russell in third behind Falappa and Morrison. Fourth place was developing into a hectic battle between 20-year-old British prospect Michael Rutter and the experienced Adrien Morillas. Slight was sixth, with Merkel some ways back in seventh place, followed by lindholm and Jefferies, another British 20-year-old. . Monti had been running with Slight, but his motor quit when water got into the system. Rutter joined the retirement list when water turned his engine into a twin. He parked at the pit lane entrance and fiddled with the petrol petcocks. The bike then picked up and he continued for half a lap, until it stopped again. This time he parked it at Surtees. Falappa, out front, was looking superb, using the super traction of his Miche1ins to build a 36.s:Hecond margin at the finish. He had little to say at the end of the race, excusing himself for the celebratory post-race interviews by saying he was very cold. In fact he was shaking badly and looked close to hypothermia. On the 17th lap, Russell came out of Clearways on Morrison's back wheel and had enough drive to pass along the top straight as they sped towards Paddock. Morrison held on for a couple of laps, but finished the race a second adrift. "When the rain came on we just dragged a pair of wheels with some old wets already fitted, out of the truck," Morrison said "I was going as fast as I wanted out there and when Russell came by I was happy to let him go." Fourth was Morillas, then came Slight, Mertens and Merkel. Falappa had lapped the rest of the field. Farmer took eighth, Jefferies ninth and Nobles finished 10th on the RC30 - in front of Garriga! Race Two The rain had abated slightly for the second leg, although the track was still awash. Pirovano got away again well but this time had to play second fiddle to Falappa. Moineau was an early faller, at Surtees, talcing Lucchiari out wide in the process. In one lap, Falappa had pulled almost three seconds on the pursuers led by Russell, Pirovano, Farmer, Whitham, Gschwender, Mertens, Slight, who messed up at Oearways and lost several places in the process, lindholm, Morillas, Monti and then three Brits Morrison, Rymer and Rutter. Farmer got by Pirovano on the third lap and was closing rapidly on Russell, but lost it at Paddock on the sixth lap. At the time, he had been one of the fastest on the track with a 1:47.45. Bontempi was already out by then, with a derailed chain for the second time in the day. And lindholm was in the pits with water in the electrics. Up front, Falappa was simply motoring away from the pack. Russell was grimly hanging on to second place, Pirovano was still third while Slight was looking to lose fourth as Mertens piled on the pressure. Morrison crashed at Surtees for the second time in the day and McElnea was out of the race by the seventh lap. He had his clutch lever taken off at Druids on the first lap then fogged a visor. He pulled in after six laps. On lap eight, the fourth-place fight with Slight and Mertens now included Rymer and Whitham, the two Brits closing a lot of ground in one lap. And both got by Mertens in successive laps as the Belgian.looked to be in trouble. Then Whitham crashed out on the exit of Clearways. Slight was dropping off the pace, struggling with tires, which left Mertens and Rymer to chase after Pirovano. "We've had a bad run with tires today," Slight later commented. "In the second race my rear was worse than the first. There was less rain, I used exactly the same tire, but I had less grip, I'd roll it off and the rear would come around on me." By now Falappa had forged a 22-second lead (after 14 laps). Russell, although unable to chase the leader, looked locked into second so it was no surprise that all attention focused on what was now a third-place battle with Pirovano, Mertens and Rymer. But Rymer had decided to back off a little and wait for one of them to fall down as they pushed the limits of adhesion. On lap 18, Mertens had gone ahead but Pirovano drove hard under the Belgian at Surtees and won the drag race toward Hawthorn. Two laps later, Mertens got inside at Clearways, Pirovano pulled back inside along the start straight, to pass on the approach to Paddock, only for Mertens to retake third inside at Surtees. And a lap later, Mertens pulled an seemingly impossible late braking effort to prevent the Yamaha from going ahead at Paddock. It was all thrilling stufHor the cold, wet fans. With three laps left, the rain came on really hard once again and almost caught out several riders..Russell got into a huge two-wheel slide at Clearways, then Pirovano was nearly highhanded a split second later in the same turn. That looked to have handed third to Mertens, but as the battle reach Druids, the Ducati rider overshot on the brakes and handed the position to Pirovano. Falappa finished an impressive 19.01 seconds clear of RusselL "I like to thank you Michelin, my tires very, very good. Pirovano held on to third from Mertens. Rymer was fifth over six seconds off the third-place duel. "I was saying 'don't crash, pick up points: " said Rymer."I managed to pass Aaron, then me and St~phane caught Pirovano. I was getting some big front end slides, but I've got to say the tires were working well considering the state of the track. I just backed off when the other two started going for it. I was expecting at least one of them to go down. 1 just wanted some points." Slight finished sixth. "My rear just didn't hook up," said the dejected Kiwi. "I scored one more point today than I scored in the (opening) Albacete round last year and then I only finished one race." Merkel took sixth, then came Garriga and DeStefanis - who frankly disappointed on the Yamaha after his brilliant wet weather performance last year on the Ducati at Monza. So, with two races down, Falappa enjoys a six-point advantage over Russell. Michelin appeared to have an advantage in the wet, but little else can be deduced from this first round. Apart from the Muzzy Kawasaki team, which has done preseason testing and looked good in the dry qualifying, the remainder of the superbike regulars look to have some homework before the championship resumes at Hockenheim on May ~th. It's a fast circuit. Last year Polen dominated on the Ducati. Well find out there whether the Kawasakis have closed the gap on the booming red &ants. m Results QUALIFYING: 1. Scott Rus••U (1:29.61); 2. Baldassam! Monti (1:29.90); 3. Aaron Sli~t (1;3Q.26); 4Giancarlo Falappo (1:30.36); 5. J..roe Whitham (1:30.~); 6. Step~ane Mertens (1 :30.45); 1. Brian Morrison (1:30.47); 8. Carl Fogarty (1:30.57); 9. Brian Bontempi (1:30.76); 10. Fabrizio Pironno (1:30.77); 11. Rob McElnea (1:30.93); 12. Mark Fanner (1:30.88); 13. Roy Stringer (1:30.91); 14. Terry Rymer (1:31.26); 15. M. Lucciari (1:31.45); 16. Juan Garriga (1:31.47); 17.. ens Lindholm (1:31.52); 18. Udo Mark (1:31.74); 19. Adrian Morill.. (1:31.76); 20. Fred Merkel (1:31.77); 21. Daniel Amatrian (1:31.54); 22. Joey Dunlop (1:32.62); 23. M. Uewellyn (1:32.65); 24- M. Rutter (1:32.65); 25. Herve Moineau (1:32.76); 26. B. Metzger (1:32.79); 27. D. Jefferies (1:33.02); 28. Emst Gochwender (1:33.11); 29. Tripp Nobles (1:33.16); 30. A. Proocuilli (1:33.70); 31. A. BucJtindwn (1:33.24); 32. Jeffry DeVries (1:33.41); 33. V. De St.1anls (1:33.42); 34. J. Barton (1:33.59); 35. J. Ve

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