Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Shane Watts scored the overall win at round three of the combined AMA National Hare Scrambles Championship and Grand National Cross Country Series in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, on April 11. Fred Andrews (Kaw) was second, followed by Rodney Smith (Suz), Barry Hawk (Yam) and Robbie Jenks (Yam). Brian Brown (Kaw) rode to victory at the fourth round of the AMA National Hare & Hound Championship Series in Jericho, Utah, on April 10. Greg Zitterkopf (Kaw) led most of the race before getting passed by Brown. Zitterkopf crossed the finish line in second place but was disqualified for missing a section of the course during the bomb run. (Zitterkopf reportedly did not attend the rider's meeting and was unaware of a section that the riders were required to ride through.) Destry Abbott (Kaw) was awarded second overall, followed by Ty Davis (Yam) and Shane Esposito (Kaw). Raymond Peters (G-G) won the opening two rounds of the AMA/NATC Observed Trials Series, held in Muenster, Texas, April 10-11. Peters topped Geoff Aaron (Bet) both times out, with Ryon Bell finishing third in both rounds. Peters leads Aaron, 60-50, after two rounds. Steve Hislop, Chris Walker and Bertrand Sebileau teamed up to give Kawasaki the victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in Le Mans, France, on April 11. The trio completed 787 laps to defeat the Suzuki team of Phillip Dobe, Arnaud van den Bossche and Thierry Paillot finished second, seven laps behind, with the third-placed Suzuki team of Terry Rymer, James Whitham and Jehan D'Orgeix finishing third, 27 laps behind the winning trio. Troy Bayliss (Duc) and James Haydon (Suz) split wins in the second round of the British Superbike Championship in Thruxton, England, on April 5. Bayliss topped Haydon and Chris Walker (Kaw) in the first leg, with Haydon winning race two over Walker and Bayliss. After four races, Haydon leads the championship ahead of Walker, 81-76, with Bayliss third with 52 points. Gary Hicks (GM) scored a rare double victory during the International Speedway regular season opener at the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa, California, on April 10. Hicks won the fiveman Scratch main, with Andy No,!th:rup (Jaw) and Bobby "Boogaloo" Schwartz (GM) finishing second and third, respectively.In the Handicap main, Hicks came from the 50-yard line to take the win ahead of Brad Oxley (GM) and Schwartz. I iI! ; :ii Q • 8! Jeff Johnson (Tri) was a double winner at the opening-round TT for the West Coast Vintage Flat Track Series at Willow Springs International Raceway in Rosamond, California, on April 10. Johnson beat race promoter Eddie Mulder (Tri) in the Modern 501-750cc class and also won the IS-lap "sweepstakes" race that Mulder added as a bonus. The second round, scheduled for April 11, was canceled due to rain. That round has been rescheduled to run at Willow on April 25, one day after the West Coast Flat Track Series season opener at Perris Auto Speedway in Perris, California. For more information, call 805/268-0105. James Stewart (Kaw) and Mike Alessi (Kaw) were the top prize-winning riders N at the 28th Annual NMA World Mini GP ~ in Las Vegas, Nevada, April 10-11. Stew"" art won the 80cc (12-13) Stock, 8lkc (122 13) Modified and Supermini classes Bervoets wins Dutch GP T eam Winfield Kawasaki riders Marnicq Bervoets (right) and Pit Beirer filled the top two steps on the podium at the Dutch 250cc GP at Valkenswaard, Holland, on April 11. In the first moto, Beirer recorded his second moto win of the threerace-<>ld F1M World Championship 250cc MX Series. '1 got a good drop off the start, but a few riders passed me on the straight," Beirer said of the early stages of race one. '1 was lying in .sixth, but I knew that I had good speed and condition, so [ could wait and watch the race develop. Mamicq (Bervoets) was chasing the leader, and they both know the sand better than me. Then Marnicq crashed, and [ then had to push for the lead." Beirer chased down Dutchman Remy Van Rees and passed the Kawasaki rider for the win. Van Rees held on to finish second, followed by Bervoets, who crashed early in the race. '1 was really pushing for the lead when I hit a rock lying in the track," Bervoets said. 'lt knocked me into the tires and I crashed heavily. I only bent back the radiator plastic, but it kept catching my leg and knee. It was painful and was slowing me down in the corners. Once it was gone, I was able to come back onto the pace, but after a fall, it is difficult, especially in the sand." Finishing fourth in the moto was another Dutch sand specialist, Leon Geisbers on the Winfield Suzuki, followed by Honda's Frederic Bolley. Finishing well back in the- p~ck after getting off to a bad start was Pamo Honda's.Ryan Hughes. In the second moto, Bervoets and Beirer got away together off the start, and Bervoets went on to win while 'Beirer chased in second. Bolley, however, came up and started challenging the Kawasaki rider and eventually pasSed him through a mudhole. BoJley ended up finishing second to Bervoets, followed by Beirer. Hughes had a much better outing this time, finishing fourth, ahead of Van Rees. Had Beirer finished in second in the second moto, he would've had the overall. "That was on my mind," Beirer said of the second moto. "I felt strong, but [ was making a few mistakes with Bolley behind me. When he got through, I felt completely different - my confidence came back and [ felt relaxed. The overall would've been nice, but for me, consistency is much more important at the moment." After three rounds, Bolley still leads the points chase with 98, followed by Beirer and Bervoets, who share 85 points, and then Hughes with 68 points. while Alessi won the 60cc (9-11) Stock, 60cc (9-11) Modified and 80cc (7-11) Modified classes, as well as the' Race of Champions. The top Pro was Ivan Tedesco (Yam), who topped the 125cc Modified Pro, 250cc Stock Pro and 250cc Modified Pro classes. Travis Pastrana (Suz) made his return to racing, topping the 250cc Modified Intermedia te class. Last year's World Mini Champ Jonahton Shimp (Yam), won the 125cc Open Intermediate and 125cc Stock Intermediate classes respectively. . Road racer Chris Rogers, 27, died in a house fire at his home in San Diego, California, on April 7. According to reports in the San Diego Union, a burning candle sparked a fire that engulfed Rogers' home while he slept. Firefighters arrived shortly after the fire broke out at about 1:05 a.m., but there was nothing they could do. Rogers won the 1994 WERA Formula Three' Championship. Rogers had recently retired from racing to concentrate on earning a business degree. Former Hare Scrambles and GNCC Champion Scott Summers was injured on April 6 while practicing on his personal track at home in Kentucky. The accident required helicopter transportation to the University of Cincinnati Hospital's Trauma Center. Original EMT • concerns about possible back and internal injuries proved unfounded, but two hours of surgery were required for multiple fractures to his left femur and hip. Preliminary estimates for recovery is eight to 12 weeks. Cards and letters may be sent to Summers Racing, attn. Scott Summers, P.O. Box 93, Petersburg, Kentucky 41080. Five-time 500cc World Champion Mick Doohan goes into the opening round of the 1999 season full of cautious optimism, In Indaiatuba, Brazil, for round three of the F1M World Championship 12Sec MX Series, defending champ Alessio Chiodi, on the factory-backed Husqvama, scored the overall win after trading moto wins with Yamaha rider Claudio Federici. Chiodi went 2-1 and Federici 1-2. Third overall went to Honda's Mike Brown, who posted a cO\J,ple of third-place finishes. In the first moto, Federici took the checkered flag 11 seconds ahead of Chiodi, with Brown finishing a distant third. Fourth in the moto went to Belgium's Patrick Caps, on a Honda, and. fifth went to Italy's Ivan Lazzarini, who rode a TM. Chiodi came back to win the second moto by 14 seconds over Federici and Brown, who again finished well back of the two front-runners. Italians Thomas Traversini, on a Husqvarna, and Erik Camerlengo, on a Yamaha, rounded out the top five. Honda rider Jeff Dement went 10-6 on the day for 10th overall. In Castineau-de-Levis, France, the F1M World Championship 500cc MX Series got under way, with Husqvarna's Yves Demaria capturing the overall win. Demaria traded moto wins with Yamaha rider Alessandro Puzar, who was making his debut on the YZ400 thumper. Rounding out the top five overall were defending champ Joel Smets, Yamaha jockey Andrea Bartolini, and KTM-mounted Shayne King. In the first moto, Puzar came from behind to pass Demaria for the win, crossing the finiSh line less than two seconds ahead of the French Husqvama rider. Finishing right behind Demaria was Smets, followed by King and Bartolini. The finish was even closer in the second moto, with Demaria pulling off the win just .52 seconds ahead of Puzar. "I pushed Demaria really hard and even got alongSide him on the final lap," puzar said of the climatic finish, "but he had an ideal line for the next corner, and we would've probably crashed if I'd tried to force my way through." Finishing well off the pace in third was Bartolini, followed by Smets and KTM rider Peter lohansson, who did not finish the first moto. Former World champ Trampas Parker piloted a KTM to 12-10 moto finishes, giving the American lOth overall. Despite being credited with the overall, puzar is tied with Demaria for the series points lead, with Smets in third with 28. following an indifferent and inconclusive first outing on the 1999 Honda NSRSOO at the final!RTA test at Motegi in Japan a few weeks ago, according to Cycle News contributor Darryl Flack. ''I'm actually enjoying it more than ever, really, but it's tougher staying on top than it is getting there," Doohan S{lid. "Every year, I've got to pick it up a little bit to try and stay out in front. These younger guys, they're getting quicker and more experienced, SO it is more difficult finding different avenues to actually stay in front." And after revealing that he's considering racing through to the end of 2000, Doohan also said that while he has no chance of equaling Giacomo Agostini's eigh t 500cc World titles, eclipsing the Italian legend's 68 race wins.!s within reach. "Yeah, as far as race winS go, it would be good to try and get close to that," Doohan said. "A few years ago, I won 12 races in a season, and I guess if I had a good year this year, I could get close. But realistically, it's 14 race wins to equal (Agostini's record) and 15 to be in front of him, and that's a lot of races - a lot of people never win that many races in their careers, so we'll take it one step at a time." Commenting on Giacomo Agostini's formidable record, Doohan acknowledged his place among the greats but contends that it is now more difficult to dominate. "Agostini was a great motorcycle racer, but that was done in a different era," Doohan said. "But these.days it's definitely a lot more competitive as far as machinery goes; everyone's pretty much on the same kind of motorcycle, so it's definitely a lot tougher to get a win in the bag." With Max Biaggi and Kenny Roberts Jr. lapping quickly at the !RTA tests, Doohan was quick to acknowledge their collective threat, but he also sent out a warning that winning a World Championship is about consistency, not just siz- zling lap times on qualifying tires. "Last year, Yamaha was definitely the motorcycle to be on," Doohan explained. '1t had some good riders on them, but they didn't have the experience. They've got some experienced guys now, and the guys on it last year have got a bit more experience. Suzuki has been working really hard over the off-season to get their motorcycle up and running. They've both been running really well in testing, but at the end of the day, it comes down to more than just a lap and more than just a good test. It comes down to being consistent, and hopefully, even though we're not starting the season with the motorcycle we would really like to have, I think at least we'll be half-consistent. I think that will be our strong point. It's definitely going to be an exciting season as far as the spectators are concerned, because of how close it will be and a few more manufacturers and a few more young guys. It should be grea t." Doohan also denie(1 that the birth of his first child, expected around August of '99, would slow him .down. "That's been around in racing for many years - half-a-second for the first child, a second with marriage, so on and _ so forth," Doohan said. On April 11, according to Cycle News correspondent Darryl Flack, former 500cc World Champion Wayne Gardner had to be physically restrained from confronting another driver after he was involved in an accident during the Adelaide 500km V-Eight Supercar race, which is run in two 250km races over one weekend. Living up to his" aptain Chaos" nickname yel again, Gardner got caught up in .a first-lap melee that dropped him to last place in his CocaCola Commodore. After fighting his way through ·the field, Gardner collided with John Briggs, who was re-entering the track after running off on the exit of a

• Cover