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19th BeN:y SupeN:ross Palais Omnisports STORY AND PHOTOS BY GEOFF MEYER PARIS, FRANCE, NOV. 9-11 ljj) avid Vuillemin is the undisputed L!!J King of Bercy. Having won last year's crown without being beaten, Vuillemin did the same this year despite a relatively off 2001 American season. Winning his three qualifying races, then blowing away the field to win all six main events, the Frenchman scored a total of nine wins in nine starts, just as he did one year before (Vuillemin was also the '99 Bercy champ, though he only won one moto then). So dominant is the Yamaha rider here that some are even calling him the best Bercy champion ever. "Of course,- winning Bercy is always important for me," Vuillemin said after his win. "I love this place the crowds are so exciting. This year we did not have so many riders from America, [but] it did not matter to the crowd. They just wanted to see good racing, and that is what they got. I've been training now for a month, and I still have some stuff to do. 1know this race is not as important as when we get to America in January. I'll be ready then; that's what really counts." Vuillemin had little trouble this year due to two major factors. First, the lineup for the 2001 Parisian event was somewhat weak compared to previous years, with only Vuillemin, Jeremy McGrath, Stephane Roncada and Nick Wey representing the regulars from the AMA series. Australian Chad Reed did bring something different to the Bercy event, although at 6 NOVEMBER 28. 2001 • cue 19 years old and in only his first full international season, the young Aussie had some problems against his more experienced competition. Another aspect that favored Vuillemin was that McGrath - so far, the one rider to beat Vuillemin at Bercy - suffered severe arm pump all weekend long, never getting in a real position to race with Vuillemin. "I don't know," McGrath said. "Sometimes this track is slippery, and I have trouble with arm pump. It hap- pened in again this is. David though, as 1997, and it happened year. I'm not sure what it [Vuillemin] rode great, he always does at Bercy." DAY 1 Friday's action was perhaps the most interesting, as Vuillemin, McGrath, Roncada and Reed all gated poorly, making for action-packed heats and finals. The first qualification heat really set up the complete weekend, as Vuillemin won ahead of Reed, Mickael Maschio, Weyand Mattieu Lalloz. Vuillemin appeared to be in good form, never giving Reed a chance to pounce on the lead. "It was an easy race," Vuillemin said. "I had a great start, and Reed was close early. It was so cold in the tunnel that my bike was a little lean, so we will make some changes to the setup. The track's a little easy, but that's going to make good racing for the crowd. Once 1 did not have to do too much, 1 could find some lines for the finals." Reed was not so happy with second place. The teenager never got close enough to fight with Vuillemin, though he did take some mental notes. "I didn't get a good start," Reed said. "I pushed on into second place behind Vuillemin. 1 could see him there and was trying to learn some things from him. In some places I was quicker than him, and in the places he was quicker, I was able to learn some quicker lines from him. My condition is not good; I've been back in Australia the last six weeks and pretty much doing nothing, and I could feel that just riding around in practice." In the second qualification race, McGrath won ahead of Roncada, although the French rider gave the legend a real fight. The two battled for the lead, with McGrath finally getting the better of Roncada. "Man, my arms are killing me," McGrath said. "The track is a little slippery in the tunnel, and I'm having problems with that. I just have to ride a little easy and see what I can do. I had a good start and then made a mistake, and Roncada came close.