Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

ROAD RACE WR O LDSUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES Lavi lla reco r ded h is second zero sco re of th e day of the day. In the firs t ra ce, a broken ex ha us t s p elled th e e nd for him , and in the second race the fuel pump broke very early in the race. c\ Circuit van Drenthe Assen, Holland Results : September 6, 1998 (Round 11 of 12) 38 having rece ived ou ts ide hel p . As C hili h ad go ne d own, the ye llow flags had of c o u rse gon e ou t, preci s e l y a t t h e m oment th at Whitham was overtaki n g Edwa r ds i n th e la s t ch ic a ne . T h ei r re spe ct iv e team s e le c ted n ot to fil e a co mplaint b ecause it wou ld ha ve been almost impossible for Whith am to s top hi s ove rta king m a n eu ver a t that p oint, bu t a n official report from th e m arshals did n't allow th e race directors to ig no re the case. So Edwards w as ba ck in fourth after the j u ry m eeting , with Whitham fifth . A nd even th at wasn' t the end of the " C h il i i n ci d e n t ." Ch ili , o b vio us lv angered, stormed tow ard Fogarty in th~ pits, a n d it a lmost came to a fist fig h t, fir st with a Ducati m ech anic and later with Fogart y himself. Th e drama contin ued later on in th e p ostrace press conference for th e pod ium fin ishers, with th e Ita lian walking in, g rabbi ng the m icro ph one a nd trying to ma ke his poin t clear to th e as sem bled press. Again , it alm ost ca me to a fig h t in fro n t o f an as to nished a u d ie nce. Later o n, after the d u s t ha d se ttled , Ch ili expla in ed w hy he w as so a ng ry . " Fo g a r ty trie d to p u sh m e o ff t h e track two times o n the la st lap," Chili sa id . "Tha t is a very di rty tri ck ; I would not rid e th ose lines. That is th e diffe rence between a p ro fession al rid er a nd a m a dman . I d o n ot bl am e h im fo r m y c ras h i n th e la s t c h ica ne - th at wa s en tirely my fault. I had h oped to ge t o n t h e ins ide, but Foga r ty wa s a lread y th ere. Bu t in this situa tion , I th ink it is be tter th a t I do not go to Ja pan, because the on ly thi ng I wi ll wa nt to d o is to beat Fogarty, w ha tever it ta kes . I ha ve not hin g to lose a ny more ; I ha ve lo st tod a y m y las t ch ances to wi n th e title." Fo r Fogarty, thin gs were m u ch si mpl er. "I was ju st riding d efensively on the la st lap, " h e ex p la i ned after h a v i n g clai m ed his 10th victory a t Assen in six years. "Ju st like (Max) Bia ggi sa id a couple of m onths ag o, it is not m us ical chai rs o ut t h ere . I wa sn 't g oin g to le t h i m th rough after h a v ing led t he ra ce for mos t of the time. I was going to fight for it, And when we came to the last chica ne , I got the re the quickest. I banged the bike into fir st a nd d ove into the firs t corn er firs t. I knew it w asn't going to be ea sy , becau se Chi li ha s always been good her e. As for the cha m p ionship, th ings are qu ite clear: An yo ne w ho wants th e title w ill have to wi n the races in Sugo." With C h ili's d eparture , Slig h t go t home seco nd an d as a result m oved to w it hi n half a point of Corser, w ho finish ed one p lace behind. "It was a hard day a fter the weekend s t a r ted so promi singly ," th e Ne w Zea la n de r said . "W e. jus t fo ol ed o urse lves during qualifying. W e g o t into the first ra ce w ith not enough practice tim e in th e dry. The bik e was chatter in g a ll over th e pl ace. For th e second h eat, I took a tire w it h a softer co ns tr uctio n , (Above) Colin Edwa rds II (45) lea ds Jame s Whitha m (8) and Akira Yanagawa (4) in the seco nd race. Edwards to ok fourth after Whit ha m passed him unde r a yellow flag. (Above right ) Fogarty celebrates after his race-two win. The Ducati rider is -now on ly s ix points be hind champions hip leader Corser . and th at worked good until fou r or five laps b e fo re the e n d . Apparentl y , t h e d ouble swingarm works th e tires harder. I' m going to Su g o with win ni ng in mi nd . I know th er e will be a lot of loca l wild-eard rid ers bu t wi nni ng is what it is all abou t now for th e th ree of u s chasin g the titl e." A cco r di ng to th e lates t r u m o r s , H onda may en ter eight factory RC45s in its home event in o rder to hel p Slight w in th e title, o ne of th em possib ly a n un e xp e ct ed w ild-card r i d e r fro m Gra nds Pri x. Corser took th ird . "I had a sm all p rob lem w ith th e tires Briefl a nd ra n w id e in a corner when I h it neu tral ; th at cos t m e th ir d pl a ce b e cau se Aaron go t in fro nt," Corse r sa id . "I tri ed the best I co u ld ; I had ano the r go a t the en d of the ra ce, bu t th a t di d not w o rk ou t well - in th e ch ica n e I lost m y la st chance . Now th e cha m pi onship will be decided in Su go. " Edwa rds fin ished fo u rth after ha ving been pa ssed "illega lly" by Wh itham in th e last corner. "I trie d m y h a r d e s t to s ha k e off Whitham, Yan agawa and Godda rd, but t here was not hin g I co u ld do, " t h e Texa n sai d. "I'm ha ppy eno ugh with th e day, altho ugh a rostrum finish w as m y a mbition this weekend ." Goddard fini shed seve n th . " I h ad r ehe ars ed m y o ve r ta ki n g move on th e last three laps a nd I kn ew I co u ld have p icked up a t leas t tw o places in the chic a ne , bu t then the ye llow flags ca me out," Godda rd said . "When I sa w the flag, I knew 1 cou ldn't go through "..ith it." Like W hitha m , th e A u s tr alia n had suffered fro m a lack of g rip for the last half of the race. QUALIFYING: t. Pier -Fran cesco Chili (2:09.983); 2. Pe ter God da rd (2:10.213 ); 3. Tro y CON'T (2:10.231); 4. Nei l Hod gso n (2:10.290); 5. C u I Fogar ty (2:10.859); 6. Ja m e s wh i tha rn (2 : 11.636); i . Co lin Ed wards II (2. t 1.759 ); 8 . Aaron Sligh t (2. 13.067); 9. Sco tt Ru ssell (2 :13 .295); 10. A k ita Ya nag .. awa (2: 13 .558 ); 11 . Alessa n d ro G ram igni (2: 15. 148); 12. G reg o rio L.1 VilJ01 (2 :15.7 8 4); 13 . Ig o r [er man (2 : 16.272) ; 14 . Mari o ln n amo rn ti (2:17.622); 15 . No riyu ld Haga (2:18.795); 16. Lu ci o Pedc rc tn t (2:09 .43 5) ; 17 . Erk ka Ko rpi a ho (2 :10 .749 ); 18 . Frederi c Pr orat (2 :12 .265 ); 19 . H ein z Plataci s (2:12.413) ; 20. A nd re w Stroud (2:.1 2.734); 21. Cijsbc rt Spilt (2:14.593. RAC E O N E: 1. Pi.. r-Fran ccs co Chili (Due); 2. Ca rl Foga rty (Due) ; 3. Tro y Corser (Du d ; 4. Aa ro n Sligh t (Hen): 5. Co lin Ed wa rds II (Ho n): 6. Pet er Godd a rd (Suz): i . Aki rn Yanagewa (Kaw): 8. No riyu ki Haga (Yam ); 9. Scott Russe ll (Ya m); TO. Ne il Hod gso n (Ka w ); 11. Alessandro Grn m tg ni (Due): 12. Igo r Icrman (Ka w): 13. Ma rio lnnemora ti IKaw): 14. Erkka Korpi ah o (Ka w ): 15. An d rew Stroud (Kaw ): 16. Hei nz Pla tacis tKa w ); 17. C ijsber t Spilt (Kaw ). Ti m e: 33 min., 28.451 St.'C . Distan ce: 16 la ps , 6ll.006 mil t'S Avera ge spee d: 107.556 m ph Ma rgin o f vict o ry: 0.158 sec . Fasles l lap: Pier-Fran cesco Ch ili. 2:04.526/108.422 mph RACE lWO: 1. Carl Fogarty (Dud; 2. Aaron Slig ht (H e n): 3. Trov Co rse r (Dud; 4. Co lin Edwar ds II (Ho n ); 5. Ja mes Whitham (Suz ); 6. Akira Yanagawa (Kew): 7. Pete r God d ard (Suz ); 8. Nor iy ki Haga (Yam); 9. Nei l u Hodgs on ( Ka w ): 10 . Igor Jerman (Kaw ): 11. Ma ri o Innamorati ( K a w): 12. Er kka Ko rpiaho (K aw ): 13. Andrew Stroud (Ka w); 14. Hei nz Pla tacis (Ka w ). Time: 33 min., 30.118 St."C. D is tance 16 laps, 60.006 miles Av erage speed: 107.467 mph Ma rgin of vict ory : 5.278 sec. Fastest lap: Ca rl Fogarty, 2:04554 /1 08.398 mph WOR LD SUPE RBI KE C HA M PION S HI P POI NT STAND INGS (Afte r 11 of 12 ro un ds): I. Trov Corser (328.5/2 wins): 2. Aaron Slight (328/ 4); 3. Cui Fogarty (322.5 /3); 4. Pier-Fr an cesco Chili (289.5/5); 5. Co lin Edwards II (271.5 /3); 6. Nori yuki Haga (233 / 4); 7. Akira Yaroga wa (1 77); 8. james Whi tham ( 63); 9. Pete r G oddard (1 43 ); 10 . Sc ott Ru ssell (11 5 .5 ); 11 . Neil Hodgson (114 .5) ; 12 . G regorio La villa (82 .5); 13 . Picrgiorgto Bontcmpi (58); 14. Ale sand ro Gramign i s (56); 15. Igor Iceman (47): 750cc market. on the other hand. represe nts only some 60 percent of this number - and the 1000cc market should III' somewhere in between. ••• Yamaha ca n't affo rd to introduce a new 7S0cc superbtke, as this co uld endanger the commercial success of the R1. In this regard. the R6 is a The historic As sen ,circuit will undergo a thorough revamping within the next year and a half. At the end of the season, the media center,will be torn down. and at the end of the 1999 season. the circuit itself will be , altered. The northern loop will be shortened and the southe rn loop modified . bringing the total length of the circuit from the current 3.75 miles to 3.16 mile s. Moreover. the ' circuit will be widened everywhere by about th ree feet. The flrst races o n the new circu it (which will retain the curre nt characteristic of offering the possibility ofa long and a short version) are expecte d to be in 2000. with the 1999 Dutch IT and World S upe rbike much safe r optio n. However, "in orde r to bring thei r name back in the game in the World Superbike ser ies. the Japanese have agreed to bring the." racing version- of,the R7 to the marketplace , with a limited number of these bikes release d and now ready to be ordered. This bike will also be used by the factory team. In this scenario. Noriyuki Haga (who has a two-year contract with Yamaha until the end of 1999) would probably stay in World Supe rbike racing instead of moving to the Grands Prix for Yamaha, S cott Russell's future with Yamaha is uncertain. but accor ding to some. the Georgian has already made arrangements to s hip his camper ro und still being run on -the old cir cuit . back to the St ates in orde r to continue his raCing career "back home ." The 1999 World S upe rbike c a lendar s hould look something like this: April 4. K yalami. South Africa: April 1B. Phillip Island. Australia: May 2. Donington Park. En9land: May 16. Monza. Italy; May 30. Albacete. Spain: Ju ne 15. Nurburgring. Germany; J une 27. Misano. Italy: J uly 11. Monterey. California ; August 2. Brands Hatch. England; August 29. ,A1 Ring. Austria: September 9. Assen. Holl nd; September 19. Hockenheim. a Germany: October 3. Sugo. Japan. The calendar is still subject to fi nal approval by the FlM. With the situation at-Yamaha and Suzuki stillfar from clear. nothing much Things are still very confused concerning the immediate racing future of Suzuki. At Assen . Francis Batta announced that his Alstare Corona Extra team would not only defend its title in next year' s official World Supersport Champions hip (with Fabrizio Pirovano and Stephene Chambon once again in the hot seats). but that he would also enter the official Suzuki team in the World Superbike Champions hip. The bike he plans to be us ing. will not be the TL1OOOR. which is now being developed by tes t rider Stephane Mertens . but the fuel-injected vers ion of the GSX-R750. It is unclear what the racing future oft he Japanese twn or ofthe Harris team is. which has officially represented S uzuki in the World Superbike Se ries for the last few years. According to an insider. the Englishmen will once again enter official fuel-injected GSX-Rs in the, se ries next year. but has changed in the rider market since the A ustrian ro und one week earlier. Both S uzuki riders - Jam ie Whitham and Peter Goddard - have started looking for alternatives nOw that their team's future isup in the air. Honda is in negotiations with its present riders - Aaron Sli ht and Colin g Edwards II - but both are also apparently on the shopping lists of other manu facturers . At A ssen. M assimo Bo rdi presented a financial offer to his three factory riders , Pier-Francesco Chili . Troy Corser and Carl Fogarty but for them. the situation is similar to that of the current Honda teamsters. Aprilla is evidently interested in hiring Chili. The former Grand Prix rider is a very popular rider in his native Italy and also happens to be very fast. and would therefore be highlyvaluable to the Italian company. Aprilia is also said to be interested in having Davide Tardozzi as a team manager. The latter also received an offer from Yamaha to run the 250cc Grand Prix team.' If Tardozzi takes the Grand Prix job. that may bring Virginia Ferrari back into the picture. after the former racer and Ducati team manager had apparently had a falling out with Ducati a wee k ago. At Kawasaki. where Akira Yanagawa is the only s uperbike rider having secured his 1999 ,ri e d thanks to a two-year contract.. Harald Eckl is cons idering keeping Neil Hod qson , but is also looking at other possibiliti s. including Martin Crage . gill or Damon Buckmaster from' the Aust ralian Superbike Championship. this time more like an autono mous team. bein g able to carry ou t chass is - development work themselves. As for the riders who 'might ride on the well-spo nsored Corona Extra supe rbike team, Batta was considering . Anthony Gobert. but was told by Suzuki that he was not an option. With ' Gobert ruled out.' Batta is now lookinq at Aaron Slight. Troy Corse r and Carl Fogarty. ' . . . or Eric ~r Ben Bo stro m. . The, Supersport 'Wo rld Series race was at ieast asexcltinq as the second s uperbike heat. and it was only finally decided in the last chicane. After early-iace leader Wilco Zeelenberg had bee n taken down by Paolo ' Casali. who s uffered from a brake ,problem. the leading trio of Vittoriano Guareschl, Fabrizio Pirovano and Stephane Charnbon put on a grea t 'At Yamaha ..the ";;arkeiing policy is not'likely,to make the racing depart- show. with Chambon and Guareschi fighiing not only.over the race win merit very happy, Afterthe launch of the s uccessful Rl last year. itis now but also over se cond place in the final champions hip point standings. On the tum of the 600cc version of this bike · the R6 - to' be let loose on the ' the last lap. Chambon stormed from third to fi rst place . but got it all wrong market. Which again leaves no room for the 750cc bike. Yamaha's strate- in the final'c hicane. ran off the track and fi nally had to settle for.third. with , gy is clea r: in Europe. the 600cc market is very important and represents G uare schl wi nni ng th e race and takin g the. ru nner-up po si t io n in the . .(all manufacturers included) aboutl 00.000 motorcyd es sold a year. The series.

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