Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

[~-----, ,---,:~ _ _ _ _ _ .........---- .J" ~_ -, - -, ~ _ __ =! changes. All went to plan with Mladin leaving the circuit satisfied and looking forward to Daytona. "The test went extremely well." said Mladin. "The 2001 Suzuki GSX-R750 is working great and I'm looking forward to getting to Daytona and defending my title there. We have been plagued recently by poor weather. but the last two tests that we have had have produced some extremely good results. On Wednesday, we had the bike set up the same as we did the week previous and we were able to go three tenths faster. On Thursday we concentrated on our pit stop strategy and I'm more than pleased with how fast we can get things changed on the bike. With the season opener just a fortnight [two weeks] away, things are running pretty strong and I think we're looking pretty good for that first race. " There were four different winners at the National Arenacross in Sacramento. Califomia. February 23-24. On Friday night at the Arco Arena. series points leader Buddy Antunez (Suz) topped the 125cc main. while Rusty Holland (Hon) claimed victory in the 250cc main. On Saturday night, Josh Demuth (Kaw) won the 125cc final. and Darcy Lange (Kaw) won the 250cc main. Antunez still \.oJ enjoys a comfortable series points lead with 865 points to Willoh's 698. LJ J C " o , ,. U [J Shane Esposito (Kaw) won the Pro class at round two of the World Off-Road Championship Series at Speedworld in Phoenix. Arizona. on February 25. Mike Kiedrowski (Suz) was second ahead of Destry Abbott (Kaw). with Steve Hatch (Suz) and Rodney Smith (Suz) completing the top five. o o o o In the February 16 issue of British publication Trials & Motocross News, Alex Hodgkinson reports that Joel Smets and Peter Johhansson's factory KTM MX GP four-strokes will feature electric starters. The starters were added in part because the new single-moto format will make poor results all the more damaging (most of Smets' defeats last year came in motos in which he stalled). The small. under-seat. dry-cell battery weighs less than the now-absent kickstart lever. but the mechanism in the cases adds a bit of weight overall. Once again, Cycle News is offering an award at selected amateur events in 2001 to recognize riders who perform well both on the racetrack and in the classroom. For the new year. the award's name has been changed to the Cycle News Fast Brain Award. but it will function pretty much the same as last ·year. its inaugural season. The first event where the award will be presented is the NMA World Mini Grand Prix. to be held in Las Vegas. Nevada. April 18-22. If you or your child will be contesting the event and would like to be considered for the award. send the applicant's name. address. phone number. racing number. and classes to be contested. along with a copy of a recent report card (very important) to Cycle News. Fast Brain World Minis. 3505-M Cadillac Ave .. Costa Mesa, CA 92626. ~o o o o o The same issue of T&MXN featured an exclusive interview with Belgian Stefan Everts. Yamaha's newest factory fourstroke rider. In the story. Everts calls 2000 - the most difficult year of my life. with the injuries and the personal things I had, - but he speaks respectfully of former sponsor Husqvama. CWhen asked if his former personal and team manager Dave Grant was out of his life. however. Everts would only say. -As much as possible. yes.") Everts says that he passed up a PAMO Honda deal because it would have required him to start the season on a 250cc two-stroke before SWitching to a 450cc four-stroke. but that he is totally at home on the new lower-rewing version of the yz thumper (which features a new crankcase and possibly a longer stroke). o o Speaking of awards. the first-ever XtrEmmy Awards ceremony was held in the Hyatt Regency ballroom at the recent Indianapolis Dealer Expo motorcycle trade show. The program. which benefited the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. is' for videos on motorcycling and affiliated motorsports. and it featured such presenters as Malcolm Smith, Gary Denton. Davey Coombs and Travis Pastrana. The following awards were presented: Full-Length Feature - Seth the Hardway; ATV - Huevos II; Street Extreme - Starboyz: FTP 2; Snowmobile Slednecks y2k; MX/Dirt - Crusty Demons 2000: The Metal Millennium. The event also featured a premiere showing of Travis Pastrana' s Revelation 199. and the presentation of an Honorary Achievement Award to Bruce Brown for his filmmaking excellence and the awareness and respect that On Any Sunday has brought to motorcycling. ~o o o o o Yoshimura Suzuki's defending two-time AMA Superbike Champion Mat Mladin. Aaron Yates and Jamie Hacking recently completed a two-day test session at Willow Springs in Rosamond. California. which the team in a confident mood heading into Daytona. In contrast to recent tests. the Suzuki team had exclusive use of Willow Springs for the two days. The team utilized the test to evaluate modifications made to the GSX-R in the past week as well as fine tuning their pit-stop strategies which will be required at the all-important Daytona 200. Day one saw Mladin take to the track with the bike set up in sprint format. He quickly worked his way into the 1: 19-range. with a best time of 1: 19.3 being set on race tires, according to a press release issued by Mladin' s public relations man. This time was almost three tenths of a second faster than the time he set at the same track last week. Day two saw the team fine tuning their pit stop techniques. with the team working hard on the quick-release mechanisms designed for fast wheel C u 8 o o o o o o o 2 MARCH 7. 2001 • Due I e Telefonica MoviStar Suzuki made it official last week: Spanish tobacco company Fortuna has jumped on board as a sponsor of the team. The bikes. ridden by World Champion Kenny Roberts Jr. and Sete Gibemau. now feature a splash of red on the fairing. marking the arrival of the team's secondary sponsor. Although the tobacco giant has had a long association with top-level motorcycle GP racing. this is its first association with a full factory team. "The Suzuki team has a magic combination - a World Champion and a top Spanish rider." said Fortuna sponsorship chief Drago Azinovic. "We have supn e _. • "Alii han to do is win the rest of the races. and I'll win the championship. That's easy enough, right?" Tlllvis Pullllnll, following II IlIlh-plllce finish cllused bJlII filsl-Ium cIlIsh in Ihe I i!5cc Ellslem /legionlll 5upe/closs III AlIlInlll ported motorcycle GP racing for many years. It is a successful and dynamic sport. Racing has a vigorous and exciting future. Fortuna looks forward to sharing a leading role in that future." Team Honda's Nicky Hayden was spotted with a cast on his left hand at the recent Dealemews Indy trade show. the cast being placed as result of a broken scaphoid that he isn't even sure exactly when it was broken. "I can't wait for Daytona. but the hand is not real good." said Hayden. who drove to Indy to make appearances on behalf of sponsors Arai. Joe Rocket and Jardine. "It [scaphoid] is one of the worst bones that you can break. but a lot of guys have broken them. I'm going to have to get a screw put in it Monday after the 200 and get it fixed right so that I don't have any other problems with it for the rest of the year. It still hurts a lot. and it might bother me a little bit. but I don't think it will affect my performance. I don't know." According to Hayden's brother. Tommy. Nicky had complained of discomfort for some time. and had the hand X-rayed several different times with the results always coming up negative. It took an MRI to find the injury. Tommy Hayden has undergone the same type of surgery to repair a similar injUry in the past. West Honda Pons' Loris Capirossl lapped at 1:40.1 Og to lead the way in last week's official IRTA Grand Prix test in Estoril. Portugal. Marlboro Yamaha's Max Blaggl continued his consistent preseason by clocking the second best time. a 1:40. 149 to top his teammate Carlos Checa. The surprise of the test. however, was Proton's (nee Modenas) Jurgen van den Goorbergh. The Dutchman ended the three-day test as the fourth quickest of the 500cc men. lapping at 1:40.3 on the Kenny Robertsowned KR3 - by far the bike's best-ever performance. Defending World Champion Kenny Roberts Jr.. meanwhile. ended the test seventh on the factory Suzuki. The 250cc GP men were led by Honda's Daljiro Katoh. with the Japanese rider tuming a best of 1;41.0. Toasts of the town dept: Yamaha will again hold its W_kend of Champions event at Daytona with past and present champions taking part in the festivities. The list of champions is impressive: Mike Bell, Broc Glover. Doug Henry. Bob Hannah. Marty Moates. Emesto Fonseca. Marty Moates. Jeremy McGrath. Don Emde. Jamie James. Eddie Lawson, Randy Mamola, Rich Oliver and Wayne Rainey. The champions will be signing autographs on Friday. March 9, and Saturday. March 10. from 10 a.m. to noon at the Yamaha display area at the Speedway. and again on Sunday. March 11. from g to 11 a.m. Former AMA and World Superbike Champion Doug Polen won't be racing this year. but he feels well enough that he could. Polen. who was at the New York International Motorcycle Show to sign autographs at the Ducati display. February 23-25. said he was completely recovered from pancreatitis. a serious pancreas disease that had him hospitalized for five weeks in the fall of 2000. "I ended up having some growths in there. called pseudocysts." Polen said. "One was the size of a softball on the head of the pancreas and one the size of a golf ball in the back. I was in the hospital for five weeks." Polen said his recovery began when he changed doctors toward the end of the stay. "I was able to get a blessing. Absolution. They went away in two weeks [after he left the hospitalJ". he said. - From the day I got out until two weeks later. they did a CAT scan again. They were totally gone. A lot had to do with a change of diets. what I was eating. the amount I was eating." Polen said. The Texan can no longer eat any red meat or fried foods. or drink alcohol. and he has to watch his consumption of fatty foods. -I've gone to poultry. fish, pasta. I feel great." Polen said. The recovery was complete by the end of September. but he was weak for some time afterward. As to whether he'd be racing again. Polen said he currently had no plans. But that could change if the right opportunity came along. Foreign entries at AHRMA Classics Days on Monday and Tuesday. March 56. at Daytona International Speedway equals the mark set in 2000 with 131 entries from 11 different countries. according to AHRMA. England leads the group with 53 entries. followed by Canada. Japan. Germany. France. Mexico. Italy. Sweden. Norway, South Africa and Brazil. Notable entries from overseas include John Cronshaw. multi-time British champ. riding a Norton Manx. Joining Cronshaw from across the pond is Peter Crew. chairman of the Classic Racing Motorcycle Club. England's version of AHRMA. plus Allan Robinson, the secretary/treasurer of the IT Riders Association. and British motojournalist Frank Melling. Racing legends Gary Nixon and Yvon DuHamel will be mixing it up with the "young" guys in the Formula 750 race. Joining them in F-750 will be Motorcyclist magazine's Mitch Boehm and John Long. After putting on an excellent battle on their Honda 750s last year. Adam Popp and Dave Rosno will be back again as well. In the marquee 500cc Premier class. Cronshaw will go up against defending champ Pat Mooney, also Manx mounted. At least three former 500 Premier champions and Chuck Huneycutt. riding a Barber Racing MV Agusta triple. will challenge them. A new version of the AMA/WlII Stoner Swap Meet will be held at Daytona International Speedway in conjunction with the AHRMA Vintage Road Races held in March dUring Bike Week. At the

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