Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

eMOTOCROSS e A National Championship 125/250cc MX Series: Rounds 7/7 MA Not only di d Mik e Kiedrowski win bo th 250cc Nati on al motos at Troy, he clinched the championship title as w ell. Kiedrowskiclinches fourth title at Troy By Kit Palmer Photos by Kinney Jones /II 6 1ROY, OH,)ULY25 , wa s going for the w in, because if , you win, then the championship will come with it. It's as simple as that," said Team Kawasaki's Mik e Kied rowsk i afte r w inning both 250cc mo tos a nd cl inchin g th e Nati onal Ch ampionship a t Kenworthy's Motocross Park on a hot, humid and sticky day in Ohio. "1his is my fourth championship and (to win) every one of them it seems I've had to work harder and har der ." On this particular day, though , it wasn' t so mu ch the competition th at made clinching this championship hard, it was the weather. The heat and humidity took their toll on just about every rider on the track, including Kiedrowski. While accepting the first-pl ace' tr op hy, Kiedrowski looked down at team manager Roy Turner and whispered, "I've gotta go." Moments la ter, Kiedrowski sa id , "Good nigh t," and fainted while standing on top of the rostrum. He was carried off the podium on a s tretcher and loaded in to an ambulance, but just as he was being load ed in to the ambula nce, Kiedrowski came to, lifted u p his arm, and with a big smile on his face, held up one finger . The relieved crowd cheered like crazy for the new cham p. Kiedrowski was taken back to his pits feeling a bit "woozy" but was otherwise okay. By clinching the 250cc Championship title, Kiedrowski has now earned every AMA National MX title. Kiedrowski won the 1989 125cc title while rid ing for Team Honda and in 1991 as a Team Kawasaki rid er , and he is the reigning 500cc Nation al champ . En ro ute to the 250cc title aboard hi s Shane Nalley-p rep ped 10<250, Kiedrowski has won 12 ou t of 14 m ot os, finishi ng no worse th an th ird. With one round remaining in the series, Kiedrow sk i has an unca tch abl e 336 poin ts, and his teammate Mike laRocco is second with 255. The only rider who co uld keep Kiedrowski in sight today was laRocco, but he could never mount a serious challenge and Kied rowski clinch ed the title by winning the first moto. Kiedrowski led every lap in both mo tes, while laRocco was second both times, finishing approximately five seconds behind his teammate b o th times o u t. Team Hond a' s Steve Lamson used 4-3 moto fin ish es to grab ' third overall. Kiedrow ski coll ect ed $2000 ($1000 each m oto) from the $15,000 250cc class purse, while laRocco earned $1200 ($600 each mo to). ' In th e 125cc Na tio n al , d efendin g champ Jeff Emig moved in to the seri es po ints lead by winning both motos over former-series leader Doug Henry of Team H on da . Em ig - ab oard a Ste ve Butlertu ned, factory-backed Yamaha YZI25 finished only inches ahea d of Eas tern Regional 125cc Supercross Ch ampion Henry in the first moto, and ou t-lasted him in the second moto to score a 1-1 victory. "I' ll tell ya, it was tough out there, and I mean tough," said Emig. " It was hot! For me, this has to be one of my hardes tearned wins yet." Team Suzuki's Damon Huffman, who had never raced at Ken worth y's before, . finished third overall via 6-3 moto tallies. With five rounds still yet to be run in the 125cc series, Emig has a slim threepoint advantage over Henry, 280-277. Th ird in the series with 266 p oints is Camel Supercross Champion Jeremy McGrath, who finished fourth overall (54) despite crashing in both mo tos, Em ig's winning share of the $12,500 125ccclass purse was $2000, while Henry took home $1200. Kied rowski wasn 't the only rider effe cted by th e sa u na-like conditions. Team Suzuki's Phil Lawrence momentarily blacked out in the pits after finishing fifth in the first 250cc mote, then again while riding his bike in the second rnoto, Team Green's Robbie Reynard, who was compe ting in his first race since breaking his wris t at the San Jose Supercross in early June, pulled off the track due to the heat in th e firs t 125cc moto, and Tuf Racing's John Dowd, who finished fifth overall in the 250cc class, said he nearl y passed out while walking back to the pits a fte r the second m ot o. "I'm from Massachusetts; I'm not us ed to th is, " Dowd said. The weather, no d oubt, had a lot to do wi th the spread-ou t finishes in all but the first 125cc moto. Perhaps the only benefit of the humi dity was that it left the supercross-style track, for the most part, very tacky and in overall good condition, with only a little dust forming in some areas late in the afternoon. Neither former 250cc Na tional champ Jeff Stan to n or Ya maha's Damon Brad shaw co mpeted a t Kenw or thy's. Stanton is still resting a sore back, whi le . Bradshaw is nursing a bruised bone in his wrist. 250ccNational Privateer Rick Ryan led the 4D-rider pack into the first turn at the start of the first 30-minu te-plus two-lap 250cc mo to, but by the time the field completed one lap, Ryan had dropped back to the mid-

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