Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

ROAD RACE' . World Chartlpionship Superbike Road Race'Series Round 7: Brands Hatch (Lett) John Kocinski finished third in the first race but crashed out of the second. (Right) Neil Hodgson has a little fun at the expense of regular mohawk wearer Aaron Slight. (Bl!Iow) Chili (center), Gobert (left) and Kocinski (right) celebrate after the first race. In the closing stages of the race, Corser led comfortably over Chili, a lonesome Edwards and an equally solitary Gobert. Only Slight was getting a run for his money as he had to try to fend off the attacks of Casoli and Yamaha's Wataru Yoshikawa for most of the race. Finally, Corser took victory and revenge. "I used the same bike as in the first race, but we put a new engine in, " he said. '1 did, however, put on a slightly softer tire. 1 wanted to get away as fast as possible in the first laps in order to have a big enough gap to slow down a bit in the closing stages. Actually I'm pretty happy that 1 made it to the finish because on the last lap 1 was getting so excited that 1almost went over the handlebars." Bri:efly_ ..._.__ Maurlzlo Flammini allowed tis a glance, over his shoulder at his 1997 plans for World .Superbike racing. The series will once again be run over =me '12 races hext year. the first one of which will probabiy be ,run in Australia in the beginning of April. Where exactly the series will open is still unclear. Phillip Island is a candi· date, but so is Eastern Creek. The Indonesian and Japanese rounds prqbably Will be the last races of the season. AccorCling to Flammini, the Laguna Seca, ,Donington Park and -Brands Hatch races are already confinmed. Tlie Belgian and French. superbike fans once again will have to cross their respectivll borders to see the fastest fourlstroke men in action. Some other projects cOnceming the near future for four·stroke racing concem the technical rule., From next year onward, the rules for the superbike and the Supersports categories will be more geared'for each other. "This wou,ld offer several advan-' tages," said Flammini. "The racing kits could be produced in larg· er numbers and in a cheaper ';"ay, riders would be able to enter' national as well as World SUPerbike. events -rith the same bike; and finally life would be made a bit easier for the technical·scruti· neers... Despite the fact that Jakarta has suffered from several riots in the last. couple of weeks, Mauriiio Rammini is confident that the World Superibike Fratemity won't notice any of it when they go to' Indonesia in a few weeks. "The problems are limited to some spe· ciflc areas in the city," he said. "And the situation is quiet now. The government has given us guarantees conceming the safety of the World Superbike gvests." Irs nioe to ,know that the Sentvl cir· . cvit belongs to a son of President Suharto. . . . . Flamrpini was less' talkative about. his' Grand Prix project;'. "We are still very much interested in the pr(lmbtion of the. l;)rands Prix.", he admitted in 'Brands. Hatch. ".At the eod'of .1991 we already made·an·offe~ of $31:5 million, but this .offer arrived too late at the FIM heaqquarters, But I can not tell anything. about the. . current situation,"' Flammini did explain that if Grands Prix and' World Superbike races were ever promoted by the 'same ,group., . tlie two ,series would alwaYs run .separatelx, "Tbese ~~e l\.lIo com· pletely different,~ategories: based upon two different phiiosoP.hies. and aimed at.a different pub.lic," be said. "Moreover, it would rot be cor;nmercially' interesting to merge both c.hampionships. YOlt can rea~h a far broader audience with two series 1>f t2 races t!)an Chili was second, complaining of carburetion woes. "The carburetion on my bike was not perfect," the Italian said. "So 1 preferred to keep second place instead of trying to get past Troy." Edwards had hoped for more than ,third. ''I'm getting sick of getting second, third or fourth," he complained. "1 was pretty confident after my 5uzuka win, so 1 can't really be very pleased. To stay with the more powerful Ducatis, the bike and 1 have to be lID percent for the whole race. The bike wasn't quite handling how 1 wanted it to, but I still finished on the podium." Gobert took his Kawasaki to fourth position. "The rear tire blistered and that's the reason why 1 didn't get closer with only one series... Promotor. team oy;ner Alfred Inzlnge, ann'ounced in Brands Hatch that bis (yetta be fonmepl Grand Prix leam will enter factory Yamahas in the 500cc class. "We have also spoken to: Suzuki and Honda, but the Yamaha option seemed' a be\ter long·term' sqlution \0 us,' he said. "Troy (Corseel will' have full factocy bikes at his disp·Qsal. (Jean·Michell Bayle or

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