Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

we were riding. I ran off the track in Elkhart, got some brake fade at Loudon when I was battling for seventh or sixth, and at Mid-Ohio we got knocked off. At Brainerd we had an out-of-round front tire when we were fourth or fifth fastest in the morning - faster than Doug (Chandler) qualified on pole - so we should have had a good race there. We had a lot of bad luck and kept having problems. . In a single season, you've gone from four-stroke rookie to totally leaving the 250cc class behind. Will it feel strange not to race a 250 this year? I would miss the 250s if it wasn't in America, I would imagine. But that class is pretty dead here and the tracks don't suit the 250s. The tracks here are so rough, I just got beat up last year switching between the two. To go anywhere in America, I think you have to be on a four-stroke. I'm not worried about going to Europe for a little while now because I've been over there. I want to stay here an'd 1 think we can definitely win some championships this year. Q A was the experience you gained in Europe helpful? Do you regret gomg, or was it the right thing to do? We had some good years over there, before we went to the GPs. The GPs started off bad and the snowbalJ effect kicked in and it just got bigger and bigger. The year just kept going worse and worse. Then we got some stock Hondas and they shouldn't even be out in the GP class. You can't show up with a bike that's 20 pounds heavier than everything else and 20 horsepower down - that's not going to work. The experiences up to last year were good, I imagine. When I hurt myself in '96 at Mid-Ohio, we still finished seventh or eighth in the European Championshlp, and I missed two races. We had some good years over there, but some inciaents kept us from doing better. Q A But at least you were able to get a lot of track time... Actuall y , you don't get to ride too much because the races were spread out so much. You get more track time at the race track because there's not as many classes. And you don't have any red flags, so you have 35, 45 minutes of just solid riding, and the tracks were really nice. The tracks are good here, but some of them are too small. You also don't get as much practice time here as you should, just because of all the classes and how they need to run the series. Q A winning the 600 championship this year. You know Eric (Bostrom) and Miguel (DuHamel), once he comes back, are going to be really strong. And Nicky (Hayden) and the Yamaha guys. I'm not sure how that bike is yet because I haven't seen it much on the race track. Then there's (Aaron) Yates on the Kawi, and (Mat) Mladin and Steve (Crevier) on the Suzuki - it's going to be really tough. But Honda's definitely a great company in the Supersport series and we definitely have a shot at it. can you tell a major difference between the new CBR600 and last years? A There's no comparison. It's so dif..t"\Jerent. It's not the Honda 600 anymore - it's a brand-new, completely different motorcycle. So me and Nicky and Eric came in and all started out about the same. Eric is going faster than us right now, but we're catching up. It's better everywhere. It's lighter, it's faster, it steers better, it hooks up better. It's just a much better package. Q Q What are your long-term' goals? • I definitely want to be back over in Europe and win a World Championship. But I don't think anyone here doesn't want to do that. I'd like to get on a superbike next year and maybe win an AMA Superbike Championship before I go to Europe - if that's possible. Grand Prix racing is still something I want to . do. Not right now, but in a couple of years - definitely. A .QIt sounds like we may see more of your dad this year. Can he help you at this point in your career, with your riding, or are you past that? l think anyone can help - if they can point something out to you in the way you need it pointed out to you. For sure he can help. He's helped Wayne (Rainey), he's helped Kenny (Roberts Jr.), he's helped John (Kocinski). He's helped plenty of people. I don't know if he's coming to more of these races, but I'm sure if he does, it will be a help. A Do you communicate much with your brother? Normally, yeah. it's hard because some club racA at WillowKenny didonButfour-stroke, Springs a ing but that's his only four-stroke experience, really. He also did the Suzuka 8 Hours on one, but he's never ridden a 600 or a 900, so it's different. It's still a motorcycle, so that helps. 1 talk to him a lot. . DO you train with a lot during Q Yeah. We've trainedhimwhile togeththe off-season? . a A er. We'vetbeen at the at everyday together. Tha helps. Being the gym gym helps. What from win Q It's notwill it takethis likeyou toyear, a championship year? going to last have to too A where you don't be goingwinhave many races. I think you're to to win some races, and you're going to have to be at the front all the time. You'lJ have to be like Doug (Chandler) and win quite a few race, but you're gonna have to be there every race. There are just too many guys who are too strong to not do that. Not having to deal with the 250 should help. I talked to Wayne (Rainey) and he told me the best thing to do would be to get off that 250. He said when he did it in '84, rode a two-stroke and a four-stroke, he said it hurt both. There's nothing you can translate from either bike to the other. I couldn't do that un til Vegas - I concentrated on the 600 and I learned some things that would have come a lot earlier if I didn't have to ride the 250 right after the 600 in practice and right before it in the race. It was really hard. Q A A lot of people credit much to the Q Bostrom's superbike successof Eric outings he had on the CBR900. Do you think the Xtreme bike will help your riding? I think Eric believes it helped him. He liked riding the Xtreme bike, and he said it was a fun bike to ride. The 900 is obviously a good bike, and it wins races. The Yamahas will be stronger this year and I don't know what Kawi is doing, but I know our bikes will be better. It should be a little closer this year with me and Nicky (Hayden) out there, and I'm sure someone else will be up there. Hopefully, me and Nicky can finish one-two all year. A It looks like all the riders in the Honda camp get along really well. Is at the case? Oh, yeall. I was friends with Nicky (Hayden) before he was even over here. I'm at Eric (Bostrom) and Ben's house a lot, so me and Eric and Ben aI)d Miguel have a' good relationship. All four of us get along fine. If one of us didn't win and the other one did, we're going to be pretty happy for them. As long as they win, not Yamaha or someone else. A Are there specific things that you know you have to improve? There are definitely areas. We're alJ close in lap times, but I can see some parts where I'm really struggling right now. It has to do with the new bike and how I'm riding the thing right now. If I figure out those areas, which I know I'm going to, we should be right there. As soon as we get the bike to the next level, I can definitely improve. We're different from the Honda team in tha t we use Ohlins and some other things that they don't use. ['m trying to figure out our bike. Q A Has it been difficult for you, being Kenny Roberts' son, and Kenny Ro erts Jr.'s brother? It's always difficult. It's probably . e being a Hayden right now. You get some advantages and you get a lot of disadvantages that come with it. The advantages are that I've always been around people who have won cllampionships. ['ve seen what they've done, and I know what I have to do - what I have to do more of and less of. That definitely helps. _ Is your goal to be on a superbike? Oh, definitely. r want to be on a superbike next year - for sure. And I think it's definitely possible. I think we have a good shot at A 19

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