Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

SUPERCROSS TOYOTA TRUCKSITHORIPARTS UNUMITEDAMA SUPERCROSS SERIES ~ .. ', .. :.', '~"" ~' -:.•.. .- -:-- --.J .~.-', simple: to win and hope that McGrath finished third or worse, thus preventing McGrath from clinching the title before the ser.ies finale at Las Vegas next week. Lusk's plans worked only halfway, as he did his part by coming from behind to win, but he could do nothing about McGrath's second-place and title-clinching ride.. . "I suffered tonight; I don't know what to say," Lusk said. "I had an ice pack on my shoulder all day. Man,,I don't know what to say - I gave it 100 percent. I took it all the way to the end until he wrapped it up. At least I can go home and say I gave it 100 percent. Next year, if I stay healthy, they're going to have problems." For McGrath, his fifth SX title was sweet revenge. ":rhere were a lot of people w'ho didn't think I could do it (win the SX title) again," said McGrath who last won the crown in 1996. "They thought Jeremy McGrath was washed up, (and) this championship is for all the people wno said that. I want everyone who thought that I was washed up, thought that I was old, thought that I couldn't do it again to eat crow, 'cause I knew I had it in me. I just had to get the right combination, and the puzzle was put together, and we did it." So how does McGrath compare this championship with his previous four? "It's different," he answered. "It's a different championship than all of them. It's sweet revenge for sure." "It feels great," said Chaparral/ Yamaha team owner Dave Damron, "to win a championship in only our third ye.ar. I mean, Jeremy is a lot of it, no doubt about it. All we did was give him an opportunity to be at a comfortable place, got the right bike underneath him, and he did the rest. We're very happy. What a commercial for us; that's why we're here. Now we're going to win both outdoors (titles) - 125 and 250." By Kit Palmer Photos by ~inney Jones IRVING, IX, APR. 25 verybody wanted to win this one. Team Honda's Ezra Lusk want00 ed to win the Dallas Supercross to 0\ keep his supercross title hopes alive. ~ Chaparral Yamaha's Je.remy McGrath wanted nothing more than to clinch his unprecedenred fifth AMA Supercross title on network television, as the race was going to be taped live for next-day coverage on ABC's Wide World of Sports. Yamaha's Doug Henry wanted to put his Yamaha into the winner's cir- de and give his four-stroke machine some national exposure. And Team Suzuki desperately wanted to put at least one of its riders - Larry Ward or Mickael Pichon - on the podium and on television to perhaps help salvage what has been a somewhat disappointing supercross season for the team. But when '111 was said and done, it was Lusk, on his Mike Gosselaur-tuned Honda CR250, who proved that he wanted to win just a little bit more than everybody else, as he ignored the pain of a separated shoulder and went on to win his fourth supercross race of the year in front of a record 40,127 super- Back on top: Jeremy McGrath clinched his fifth AMA 250cc Supercross title with a second-place finish at Dallas. cross fans at Texas Stadium. The Georgian took the checkered flag some five seconds dear of McGrath, lapping up to 12th place in the process. Unfortunately for Lusk, the win wasn't enough to prevent McGrath from clinching his fifth AMA Supercross title and giving Yamaha its first SX title since 1980, when Mike Bell won the chiunpionship. It was also McGrath's first title with tuner Randy Lawrence. Lusk's plans going into the Dallas race were Giving it his best shot, challenging both Lusk and then McGrath for the lead for the first half of the race, was third-place finisher Doug Henry. Henry had the television executi~es smiling as he kept things in~resting for the first 10 or so laps. He passed Lusk for second early on, then came up and challenged McGrath for the lead. The two riders battled back and forth on the slick and tough Dallas track; then Lusk Came back up and pass'ed them both. From that point on, Henry seemed to give up the fight as he dropped off the lead pace ever so slightly, seemingly content to finish on the podium for the third time this year. "I got a good start and had a lot of fun," Henry said. "The four-stroke was working really good tonight and I'm glad to get on the podium. I made a couple of mistakes and that took a lot out of me, so I just tried to ride consistent the second half of the race. A little conservative, but it worked our okay." Finishing fourth was Lusk's Honda teammate Steve Lamson, who battled with Hond q of Troy's Mike Cra.ig for most of the race. Craig was running

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