Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

. .MOTOCROSS:.... . A 1251250CCNational C MA hampionship Motocross series · GAINESVILLE, FL MARCH 5 , t was an u nd e rdog' s day a t th e G ai n e s vi ll e Na tio na l Ch amp ions hip Series opener, as the brutally rou gh track conditions at Gator back Cycle Park took their toll on several of the d ay's top contenders and le ft th e d oo r w ide open for a p air of unexpected winners . . Th e sick an d th e wounded, if you wi ll. Though both Je re my McG rath an d Robb ie Reynar d are looked upon as two of the sport's mos t talented ride rs, neither were fav orites en teri ng the series opener. By the end of the day, however, both had sile nced their d oubters and have tw o lon g months to smirk abo u t their respective class victories until the Nationa l series resumes in Californ ia on May 7. Before the race, tw o-tim e Supe rcross Champion Jerem y McGrath admitted that he had been idle all week, as a nasty case of the flu pr evented him from prop - O Round 1: Gatorback Cycle Park erly preparing for the first 250cc National of the yea r. That, an d the fact that the indoor specialist had been looked upon by many as a one-trick dog; caused most to count McGrath out. . Mis take num ber one. Tho ug h h e tired a bit more than u sua l in the o pe ni ng mot o, McG ra th overcame an unch a racteris ticall y bad start and wo rked up to an imp ressive albei t ve ry distant - third-p lace finish. Th ree-time World Ch ampi o n G reg Albe r tyn co ntrolled the bulk of th e ope ning mot o, on ly to su ccumb to the rel en tless pressure of defending 250cc National cha m p ion Mike LaRocco on the penultimate lap . Still, th e South African e n joyed a he althy 40-se cond lead over McGrath at the race's end . Neither rider woul d last more than a few laps int o the second mot o, as both su ccu m bed to wh eel -r el at ed failures. LaRocco retired on the sixth lap with a broken fron t hub, and Alb ertyn struggled with a broken rear wh eel for eight laps before returning to the pits. And all the w hile, g uess w ho was le a d in g ? Tho ugh n a y sayers w ill b e q u ick to poi n t out th a t th e fas tes t tw o rid ers we re on the side lines, there is no denying McGrath's do mina nce in moto tw o. The Team Ho n da /I -SOO-Co llec t rid er took control of the lead on the opening lap and never loo ked back, cruising to the finish with an even tual lO-se cond pad over his rivals and scori ng the firs t 250cc Na tional win of his career. Eve n before LaRocco an d Alberty n retired, McGrath h ad outdista nced the m both by sizable margins. No ifs, ands, or bu ts abo u t it. Forme r 250cc champ Mike Kiedrowski and Honda ' s Dou g Henry finish ed second and thi rd , respecti vel y, in the fina l rnoto, and thanks to the othe rs' bad lu ck, nabbed the same overall positions as we ll. "All th is time; a lot of people have been d oubting me," said McGrath. "I'm one of those kind of guy s who can do By Donn Maeda · Photos by Kinney Jones and Maeda Todd DeHoop (25) lead s Je remy McG rath (3) and Ronnie TIchenor (114) at th e start of the second 250cc National. McGrath won th e moto , earn ing his first outdoor overall. so me thi ng if I want to. Whether those peop le really didn't think I could do it, or they we re just trying to bu ild a fire under me I don' t kn ow, but I'm go ing to give all I've got this year. I'm not corning only t o participate any mo re - I wa nt to d o th e same th in g to the Nationals that I've do ne to su percross." Enough of the 250cc class, wha t of the tidd lers? Known as one of the most naturally gifted, yet most fragile riders in the 125cc class, Reyna rd was maki ng his return to competition after su ffering ad islocated sh ou lder a t th e Orland o Supercross Series opener. Five weeks off a motorcycle caused many to write Reynard off at Gainesville, and some pessimists even wen t so far as to say that the speedy 17-year-old was finished .

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