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/127686
F round:Road Atlanta inal orse .' s By Paul Carruthers BRASELTON, GA, SEPT 18 i ' here were two stories that unfold! ed at Road Atlanta. One was Scott , Russell 's dominating return to AMA superbike racing, the other was what amounted to a chess match between Australian Troy Corser and Lou isianan Jamie James for the U.S. Superbike National Championship. In the end .it was Corser taking the check mate - when James' effort was derailed by a mechanical failure. Russell, the defending World Super- ' bike Champion, turned in a command0\ ing ride on his Muzzy Kawasaki to score ,...., his second win in two attempts at AMA 00 I racing in 1994, adding his hometown C'l win at Road Atlanta to his victory in the !iJ I season-opening Daytona 200. Behind ..0 him all sorts of race strategies unfolded E as a group of five riders fought over secQ) ..... • ond place, w ith Corser and James 0.. amongst them . Q) In order to take the title, Corser - who CJ) trailed James by three points going into the final round - needed at least two riders to finish between his Fast By Ferracci ~ ~ CJ. 6 T Ducati and the Vance & Hines Yamaha of James. And that's exactly what evolved in the final laps when James' Yamaha started to sputter with a failing exhaust valve, forcing him to drop off the pace. With Desmo-backed Du ca ti 's David Sadowski and Smokin' Joe's Racing's Mike Smith finishing between Corser and James, the title went to Corser - by only a single point after 10 rounds of racing, making him the first non-American to win the AMA Superbike crown . Second place in the race ult imately went to Corser's Fast By Ferracci teammate Pascal Picotte, just ahead of polesitter Colin Edwards II, on the other Vance & Hines Yamaha, and Corser. Then came Sadowski, Smith and James with Muzzy Kawasaki's Steve Crevier, Team Mirage's Dale Q uart erl ey and Muzzy Kawasaki 's Takahiro Schwa filling the tot> 10. The final championship point standings have Corser edging James by a single point, 273-272, with Soh wa th ird with 251 po ints. Picotte's 245 po ints gave the French Canadian fourth in the championship w ith Edwards taking fifth on 239 points. Unfortunately, Russell's victory and Corser 's championship were quickly soured by the horrific accident that left two riders in critical condition. On the final lap of the 25-lap race , Australian Scott Dooh an and Californian Brad Hazen collided under the Go odyear Bridge at over 100 mph with both riders slamming violently into a tire- and haybale-protected wooden sign . The end of the incident was witne ssed by Doohan's brothers, new ly crowned World Champion Michael and h is old er brothe r Colin, with both rushing to Scott's aid . Dale Quarterley, who was racing directl y behind the duo, said : "Doohan drafted under Hazen before the dip (Gravity Cavity) and was three-quarters to seven-eighths by him . I was about 10 bike lengths behind. He (Doohan) let it drift and the two hit. Hazen got out of shape and dropped a foot. He gathered it back up and floored it again . At that point, I caught back up . Hazen blew by, up th e outsid e of Doohan under the bridge and then he reached out and grabbed his (Doohan's) neck. I couldn't believe wha t happened. I remember thinking that I hoped Hazen was hurt because he could have killed Doohan. I'm hoping there has to be a reason. I'm hoping that his brake lever had broken off and he thought he could slow himself down. Why would you do that? He rocketed by Doohan and they ended up both falling to the left (in the right-hand comer) . That's my story and I'm sticking to it. If I had to testify in a court of law, that 's the story I'd have to tell." On Monday, September 19, Doohan was listed in stable condition andHazen was listed in sa tisfactory condition at the Nor theast Georgia Medical Center in ,nearby Gainesville. The race started under threatening skies on the scenic, 2.52-mile racetrack, in front of a crowd estimated at 20,000, with Picotte leading the charge into tum one an d down through the esses that comprise tunis three through five . Smith and the yellow and purple Smokin' Joe's Honda RC45 were giving chase as pre-race favorites Russell and Edwards were both out of the top five. By the time the pack reached the esses for the second time, Smith had taken the lead with Picotte second and Sadowski third . Russell was through to fourth