Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

ROAD RACE Round 8: A1Ring WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES Koci nski, but by the n rain clou d s had _ over t he ci rc ui t an d some drops had started to fall. Coinciding with the start of the light rain, t he fro nt-ru nners ca me upo n the first lap ped riders. Fogarty, Yanagawa and Slight got around most of them pretty easily, bu t Kocinski almost qashed overtaking one of the slower riders. With the rain com ing down only very gently; lap limes did n't slow very much, though most of the field was showing a bit more caution thr ough t he corners. . Th is sligh t d ampness w as jus t the thing for Kocinski, wh o, in the spread of jus t a few lap s, go t p ast Slight, Yanaga wa a n d th en Fo ga r ty. Sev en laps before the end, Kocinski was the new leader, but Fog arty hadn't given up. And that is wh en it went wrong for the Briton, In one o f the comers , h e got a bit too anxi ous to lead, braked too late and ' ran into Kocinski's Honda. "Com p le te ly m y fau lt ," Fogarty ad mitted. "My bike was not as quick as Kocinski's, and I had to try to make up gro und on the brakes. Afte r he had got p ast me for th e fi rst ti m e, I rea cted imm ed iately, but lost the lead again in the following straight. We approached t h e co r n er al most si de by side. I was hesitating wha t to do, and I picked the worst opti on . I tried to stay in front, but I ran into Kocinski. I cou ld hav e taken us both d own. I was surprised to see that Kocinski managed to stay upright. I sho u ld have settled for points there. I canno t keep throwing points away if I want another world title." Kocinski d id stay upright, but only jus t. He got into the gravel pit and was lucky to get back on the track agai n. He resumed battle in third afte r Yanagawa gathered RACE TWO The first race had offered the expected slips trea m battles, for which th e Oesterreichring (on w hich th e cu rrent A1 Ring is based ) was famous. The second race was a different story, though . The lead ing pack lost one front-runner in the f irst comer, w hen Hodgson went straight and only barely managed to keep the bike upright. He resumed battle in last place before retiring at the end of the first lap. Holeshot man Kocinski stayed ahead for about a lap and a half, but first had to let Yana gawa come by and then , just a short time later, Fogarty. (Above) Fogarty celebrates afler taking the win in the lirst race. (Right) Akira Yanagawa (right) stood atop the podium for the first time this year. It was the f irst time a Japanese rider won a World Superblke round outside of Japan. Here he shares the stand - and his dog - with points leader Kocinski . After four laps, Yanagawa and Fogarty had extended a small lead over Chili, Kocinski , Slig h t a nd Crafar. One lap lat er, Fogar ty took over command and tried desperately to get away. On lap eight, meanwhile, things went very wrong in th e g ro u p chasing th e leaders. Chili mad e a mist ak e braking into one of the slowest corners of the circuit, and as he cras hed to the ground he also took Crafa r out. Chi li was unhurt, but C ra fa r w as carried a way with a bruised leg. though no broken bones. The collision pro vided Fogarty and Yanaga wa with a n extra cushion over the two Cas trol Honda rid ers, Slight and the RG500 ! The basic version of the bike is to be: unveiled at the end of the year in of the big European motorcycle shows and Wednesday that .they had signed 16-year-oid James Toseland fOr the new supersport teem that will make its debut next year. Team the actual racmg bike should be ready by March - just before the Rumi (Ruben Xaus. Marc Garcia) and Team Castrol Honda Austria the move. especially start of next season . It is very likely that the brand-new factory' · (Michael Pequay) were very sur prised since they had been defending the Honda colors in.the series. ilOd team wiD have little or no lime to test tbe bike before it IS put up Suzuki will most probably held ' two factory teams in World that they felt their interests were "damaged by Cestrol Honda. 8gainst the factory Ducatis. H~s . etc .c. Soperb ike racing next year, one with the company's four-cylinder After some phone calls to Honda Europe's office in Rome. they GSXR750~ the .other using a new racing version-of the TL1000 were told tha t a decision concerning the superspo rt program twin . The Hamamatsu factory has not released any offiCial mforIn the meantime . Honda's VTR1000 is unlikely to rove an equalmation about the project, which is likely to announce the JapanIy impressive World Superbtke championship debut '" feel confi -. wo uld only be finalized in the month of September. Still. Team Castro! Honda seemed to have it all worked out pretty we ll. " This ese twin invasion of the World Superbike Champions hip. Behind dent some rtders will try to enter thts bike in some World Champtis an exce llent opportunity forthis ext remely talented yo ung rider onship races ," Cestrot Honda's Neil Tuxworth said. " But we 'll be the scenes, however. !:ievera people have been contacted . SUZl; l ki is talking now to several teams and riders. who might enter the ." running the RC45 'again in the officia~ team. A t the workshop. we . to start an inte rnational career in th e best o f ctrcu mata ncea;" team manager Neil Tuxwort h said. " Four or five extra peo ple will bike'in the cbarnpionship from next year onward. Team Gettolc ee have Keith 'vYhiting working on a VTR1000 engi ne , which was , (with Per-Frercescc Chili) was one of the first candidates Suzuki scheduled to be run at the Isle of Mon Tl' . But that didn't happen. . be taken on. 'but most 'of the existing irifrast'ructu're for the superbike team will also be available to James. .M oreover.. Castr ol. As th ings look ' now , ~e ·might invite Michael Rutter to do some : has· spo ken to, butapperent ly then someo ne in Japan remem Michel in. Honda Europe and Honda R&D in Asaka have pro mised ·be red the disastrous Team _ uzuki ltalla effort in 1995. when S .testing on the bike at the end of the year, but ,we hav~ no lntennq their full support • tbe latt er two ,even returru a fax announcing non whatsoever to race the bike ourselves in the W orld ChampiBruno Ci refici was sent out on a (seml-Jofflctal GSXR750 to give the bike its W orld Superbike debut. Some time before the Austri· · ortship. This is jus t. one of'the projec ts we .ere wo'rking on. We . tjus w ithin two. days' time! Hondo will supply us with the btkes , spare part s and financial support . ~ . " I am .very happy and very an r ound , Suzuki the n 'tal ked to Chili indcp enttY of hie present have had 50'."e cemabafts . pistons'. valves and gears mode by excite d," said Toseland. " I can't believe that at the start of the team. ~Of . course I am intere sted in' any good factory ride, but I . British auppllers . and we arc looking at what the engine is capable am very happy with my team,' and if Heave Ducati. I want to take of. But the machine sure has a big potentia l. as was proven.bythe · year: I was in the Novice class of the CBSOO Honda Cup and now this is happening." Toseland hesteken the British Superspcrt 600 ·my team with me," Chili said. It is understood that Chl,li hopes to .Moriwekl bike, :-vhich qualified wi thi.n the top 20 at the. Suzuka 8, stay where he is:- As .the only ride r on a Ducen satellite factory . Ho,:,r Moreover , the British .Senyo Honda team. which also gets ..Championship by etorm in 1997 , winning the last 'two rounds at . Mallory Park and Knockhill. In between. he finished third on his team. but with a written guarantee from Ducati that he will be supB ,ome support from ~he Bntish importer. willenter a VTR at this mte mattcnat.debut, in the European,Champ ionship S uperspor t plied wrth exactly the same bikes as theactual factory team that is year's BoI d'Or." Thcbikc that is being developed at the Castro! race at Brands Hatch." Several othe r teams had sho wn a very ·run by Virginio Ferrari. Francis Batta. the owner of the very sueHonda team premises is said to produce (up to now) .only some kee n interest in the British youn gster before .he. signed up on cessful A1stare Corona Extra team, was atso approached . but as 120 bhp. Monday preceding the Austrian World Superbike round, among . things look now . a new team under the direction of the German Graeme Ritchie. who had crashed In the first race at B randa them the Yamaha Belgorda team and two otherEuropean teams Suzuki .importer is set to be forme d. 'As to r riders . in addition to Hatch. died in the hospital on Friday following the European Wo rld taking part in the W orld ' Series Super sport. as weH as several , Chili, Carl Fogarty and Anthony Gobert 'are also. 0'; the provisional shopping .list: Fogarty only replied with a "no comment" when he , Superbike round.' He was the second fatal crasher in the' series. · Brit ish S uper sport s and S uperb fke teems, and eve n an Italian after Yasutomo Nagai, and was victim of tht! severed Drake lines - 125cc·Grand Prix team tha t had offered him a four-year contract.' 'was asked about the Suzuki proposal. but the offer seemed on his D ucati 955. cut when' the fender came off the bike' on the According to' the official Honda press release. the Supersport ridChnanciBlly?) intereShng enough for the former World Champion second lap of the race. ., ers would run for an inau'gural world Championship series. even . not to stQn the D:ucati. contract 'Nhich was ' presented to .him for though an ,official world tItle is not likely to be' attributed to the tbe first time at Brands Hatch, and which is said to be worth some Fuel te sts a'fter 'the B rands Hatch (DCeS show'ed" that N iall supersport -category ,' given Dorna 's warnings against an inflation $ 1.25 million. "Carl first wants to thin~ about our offer, ~ explained Mackenzie had used illegal fuel in hts Yamaha. which took him to of world titles in the motorcycJe racing scene. One thing is for Virginio Ferrari. diplon\&hcllily avoiding the' question -f his' ndei had i rostrum position in the -first race, Even though the fuel 'supplier ~ sure. however: the Honda CB RBOO will Only be replaced .with a any other 'options. " He 'has his financial requirements. and he a member of the Repsol group . "edrnitted that .the fuel was not up · neW model at the end of next year. which .means that Tosetend wants to be assured of a full involvement of the factory: and of a to World Superbike fuel specs . MackertZle' 9 teem is making an and other Possible faCtory Honda riders in the supersport cateqonext season. " very closely followed d~eJopment ' of the bike As for Gobert. it seems . unli k~1y that the ' Austrarlan whiz kid will . appro! ogoinst t!'e AM decision. The fuel they used is the obltga:· ry will have to make. do with the current generation of Honda's ' . take a ste p back after havtng reached his fll'l81goal ~ 500cc Grnnd . tory fuel prescribed by the technical commission of the British · best seller . federation. and is else obligatOfY in the British Touring Car Char», · Prix racing . It is expected that some othe r top riders will be pionship . In the cars. it -works fine. but not so in the superbikes, As _ Brands: Hatch . the secondfa~tory Yamaha was ridden by in' a ppr~he~ in the next couple of weeks by Suzuki which run at much higher' revs , The team is now trying to hold the 'young Briton C h ris Walke r " even though so me.bad expected At 'least as ·spectacular as the .cunofficial} anAouncement of - he t , . Wararu Yoshikawa'. NiDlI Mackenzie or even Troy Corser to take ~om~ission responsi ble for the pe~dltlg disqua~fi~tion: : Jl:lpanese twi n's debut is the form It will be 'i n. The new versio n. over until Col in Edwards II had recove red from his 'broken coUar· whIch will probably be called TL1ODOR. will have a full fairing . an Team Castro) Honda sent a minor shockwave through the ~one . "Last week" they opera ted 0", Colin and they have put"a W orld Se ries Sup'erspor t paddock when they ' a n ~ou nced on ·engine ~s~ on the existing one. a,:,d a chas~is cOming from ... new plate -In.· team manager Davide Brivio said. " He left ~ospital Brie'l~-,- - ,~-,- .------'------'-- one at a for

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