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Parts Canada Superbike Championship Round 6: Atlantic Motorsport Park of the 18-lap race in sixth, but by lap four he was into third and over the next two laps he erased a two-second defICit to Trombino and Crevier. Trombino took the lead from Crevier at the start of lap four and held it until lap eight, when Crevier dived inside him in the turn-eight right-hander at the end of the "Roller Coaster" back straight. Trombino then came under pressure from Tay(Left) Steve Crevier (center1. who clinched the Parts Canada Supel1)lke Championship at round six by winning the race, celebrates on the podium with Clint McBain (lett), who placed second. and Kevin LaCombe (right), who came In third. SHOBENACADlE, NS, CANADA, AUG. 12 teve Crevier will not likely soon forget his 20th Canadian National Superbike victory. Nor, for that matter, will his brother-in-Iaw and Honda Canada teammate Michael Taylor. Neither will the throngs of fans that packed the 1.6-mile Atlantic Motorsport Park circuit and witnessed by far the best race of the 2001 Parts Canada Superbike season. Riding Taylor's RC51 because both of his own bikes had engine trouble, Crevier took the lead from Taylor's CBR929RR on the final lap and held on for a O. 172-second victory in the sixth round of the Parts Canada Superb ike Championship. Right behind them, Frank Trombino finished third on a Yamaha YlF-Rl after also leading early in the race. As well as being the first rider to hit the 20-win plateau in Canada, Crevier's fourth victory of the year pushed him within a whisker of clinching his sixth Canadian Superbike crown. He now leads Suzuki Canada's Francis Martin by 56 points, 302-246, with only one round remaining. A maximum of 60 points are available at each Parts Canada Superbike round 10 for qualifying on pole, and 50 for winning the feature race. Martin placed fourth at AMP on his GSX-Rl000, just over a second behind the lead trio. "It's a little unfair - it was a corporate decision to take Mike's bike," said Crevier, who is married to Taylor's sister Christianne. "He got bumped and I feel really bad about it. He has what it takes to win here." Early in the weekend, the Honda Canada team had discovered both S 58 SEPTEMBER 19. 2001 • c U a (Above) Crevier (1) battles Frank Trombino (31) and Michael Taylor (15) for the lead In the Supel1)lke race at Atlantic Motorsport Park. (Right) Jean-Francois Cyr rode his Yamaha to the Pro Open Sportblke victory in Shubenacadle, Nova Scotia, Canada. Crevier's RC51s were suffering from an ECU problem that caused them to run too lean. On Saturday morning, Crevier was handed Taylor's bike - which didn't sit too well with Taylor, who had qualified his RC51 second on the grid, behind Trombino. The two-time Canadian champion reluctantly took his CBR929RR sportbike to the line. Crevier started fourth after a superlative effort on his CBR600F4i in Friday's pole qualifying session. Trombino and Crevier got the best launches when the Dunlop Starting Lights switched to green, but Crevier led out of the tum-two hairpin, with Trombino, Martin and Kawasaki lX- 7RR pilot Owen Weichel behind. Taylor made a poor start and completed the first lap n • _ os •• lor, who made repeated efforts to duplicate Crevier's move. He was finally successful on lap 12. Now the race was on between the two Honda riders. On lap 14, Taylor looked up the inside of Crevier heading into turn eight but wasn't successful, but on the following lap he got around the twin exiting turn four. Crevier fought back on the next lap, and the two Honda riders went side by side into turn seven before Taylor regained his advantage. Taylor led lap 17 and through the first few corners of the final lap, but a slight bobble coming onto the back straight gave Crevier the opening he was looking for. The championship leader drew alongside and passed Taylor. Taylor was unable to reply over the final half-lap. "Mike was so fast in all the other corners, but getting onto that back straight is a bit difficult," Crevier said. "He gave me an open invitation to put him on the outside and take him into the next comer [turn six]." Trombino stayed right with the Honda pair through the second half of the race but was unable to find a way around the dueling teammates. Martin was off the podium for the first time this year. After running four seconds behind the three leaders at half-distance, he closed the margin down to just over a second by the finish. He was well clear of Weichel, who ran third early on but suffered a couple of big front-end slides and slipped off the pace, crossing the line in fifth, just ahead of a charging Jean-Francois Cyr, on his Yamaha YlF-R6, and maintained third in points, 10 behind Martin. Crevier wrapped up the title in the Yoshimura 600cc Sportbike class with his fifth win in six events. For the second consecutive race, Crevier, Cyr and Suzuki's Clint McBain made up the lead battle. Cyr led the first six laps of the 15-lap race on his R6 before Crevier took over. The Honda racer withstood constant pressure from Cyr until the final lap, when the Joliette, Quebec, racer suffered a heartbreaking low-side just two turns from the finish. McBain had dropped off the lead pace a few laps from the finish but found himself promoted to second place with Cyr's fall, and he also took over second in the standings with one race to go. Kevin LaCombe completed the podium on his R6. Cyr got his revenge in the International Motorcycle Supershow Open Sportbike race, taking his repaired bike past Taylor's CBR929RR two laps from the end to score his first career victory in the class and his second-ever National feature win. Taylor had sprinted to an early lead from pole, but Cyr worked his way into second by the fourth of 15 laps and closed in on the Honda rider from there. Taylor settled for another runner-up finish, while class points leader Trombino made a decisive pass on Martin on the final lap to snatch the last podium spot and increase his points lead to 47 over the Suzuki rider heading to the Shannonville finale. eN Atlaatic MGtorsport ...... ShllhenKadle, NIlVII ~ c.n.da Results: August 1Z, Z081 (Round II PRO S/BK: 1. Steve Crevier (Hen); 2. Michael Taylor (Hon); 3. Frank Trombino (Yam); 4. Francis Mllrtin (Suz); 5. Owen Welchel (Kaw); 6. Jean· Francois Cyr (Yam); 7. Benoit Pilon (Yam); 8. Greg Saki (Yam); 9. Micheel Leon (Hon); 10. Andrew Nelson (Kaw). PRO 600 SPT/BK: 1. Steve Crevier (Hon): 2. Clint McBain (Suz); 3. Kevin LeCombe (Yem); 4. Greg Boki (Yam); 5. Michael Leon (Hon); 6. Andrew Nelson (Kaw); 7. Denis Richard (Hon); 8. Joel McDonold (Yom): 9. Philip Oni.lo (Hon): 10. Mortln Hamel (Kaw). PRO OPEN SPTIBK: 1. Jeon-Froncoi. eyr (Vam); 2. Michael Teylor (Hon); 3. Frenk Trombino (Yam); 4. Clint McBain (SUI); 5. Francis Martin (Suz); 6. Kevin LeCombe (Yam); 7. Greg Soki (Vern); 8. Jeff Williams (Hon); 9. Michael Leon (Hon): 10. Bruce McDonold (Yom).