Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

ROAD RACE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ROAD RACE SERIES This'~~'~ hi' ~~c~;dance'with C:ri~e's plan. "All weekend we concentrated on getting a really good top speed. My plan was to take the lead on the last lap at Signes." That's just what he did, with Checa inches behind and Doohan on his back wheel as they ran into the twisty second half of the lap, Doohan was bamboozled throughout by his speed disadvantage. "I knew if 1 passed them on the twists, they'd come blasting back past me down the Mistral," he said. So he concentrated on siZing them up for the final bends. lf he had been able to pass Checa a corner or two earlier, he may have been able to attack Criville and win the race but it didn't work out. Criville instead had a little slide, slowing all three of them up so they tripped over each other a little. He was thus third running into the last corner. Able to fight nard as well as run away to win, his final move on Checa was as tough as anything you'd see in a production-bike or 125cc race. n won him second, but Criville was unassailable. "This is turning out to be a tough championship," Doohan said later. Checa was disappointed. "I thought I could win the race," he said, "but 1 made two mistakes. The second was to give Mick some room at the last corner." With Kocinski and Biaggi next, there 'was a six-second gap to the next. group the two Yamahas and the lone Suzuki hanging on behind. Abe did manage to get ahead of Cadalora once or twice, but he la ter blamed an exotic problem for· a lack of power: Dust thrown up from the reflective paint as he followed other riders got into the engine and affected his spark plugs. Aoki just didn't have enough to attack. "The Suzuki lacks just a little grip when you open the throttle, so 1 had. to ride very hard on the brakes," he said. This trio was covered by less than three quarters of a second. Simon Crafar was another three seconds down, unable to do better because of an intermittent misfire at speed. Then .ca'me a lonely Sete Gibernau, also complaining of engine problems, with the pained Regis Laconi trailing in behind, followed at some distance by Ralf Waldmann and, five seconds back, Modenas teammate Kenny Roberts Jr. Roberts had been left at the start after stalling his engine, and said later, "At least 1 had some fun coming through from last place." Juan Borja was 14th, with Jurgen van . den Goorbergh taking the last point. '1 had a good start," Goorbergh said. "Then I almost crashed when Borja cut across me. After that, [ had to follow him the whole race. 1 just couldn't quite catch him." Garry McCoy was 17th and out of the points for the first time since he crashed in·Japan. Matt Wait was 18th, second to last and one lap behind. Barros retired after dropping back to 12th with handling problems; Eskil Suter crashed out on theMuZ. Criville leads Doohan by two points in the championship, 92 to 90. Biagg! is third on 88, with Checa on 70 and Kocinski on 43. 250cc GRAND PRIX ~ It was always going to be an Aprilia benefit. Nobody could have predicted just how completely winner Harada would control the race. He'took off in the lead, with Rossi on his back wheel, and the pair pulled away easily from the pack. Capirossi, meanwhile, got off the line slowly after experiencing engine problems on the warmup lap - he was 15th on the first lap, and it took until lap seven before he was through and in third place, almost seven seconds arrears. Nor was he noticeably catching up to the leaders.. How could it be, then, that 10 laps later he should move from a distant third into the lead? Because of an extraordinary performance from Harada, who slowed right up on the Mistral straight - forcing the close-following Rossi to sit up to take avoiding action - and then deliberat~ly ran wide into the first corner, leaving the teenager no choice but to overtake. A disbelieving Capirossi had also caught right up as a result, and it was he Doohan works for it A 8 gain an all-Honda frpnt row, and again a battle royal for pole position. AJld again (for the thUd time) the winner was Mick Doohan, by a margin of less than a tenth. Carlos Checa was his main rival, ha\

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