Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

AMAIChevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Series Round 1: Daytona Internatior"jB' Speedway appeared content to let them go. Then, to start the 14th lap, Hayden drifted wide in turn one - just when he'd taken the lead for the first time. "I finally got into the lead and going into turn one I got in hot and I went across the paint stripe I kinda lost the front just for a second and got off the brakes," Hayden said. "When I got back on them I was in too hot. I just kind of stood it up and ran a little bit high." It may have been a mistake - his only one - but it also showed him that he could catch back up, which he did rather quickly. A few laps later, Picotte lost touch with the second group of factory men when he ran straight in the chicane. He pitted immediately with a transmission problem. The team discovered it was an internal shift linkage problem, and Picotte was forced out. '" was right there with the second group," said Picotte. "The bike was fast on the banking and I was saving the tire for the duration of the race. The problem started just before the fuel stop. I was shifting down 10 times instead of five, then I had to start pulling the gear up twice to shift it up a gear. Daytona is always a difficult race. We have to put this behind us and concentrate on the ~est of the season. " /( By the completion.6f the 19th lap, I Roberts and Haydo/l had pulled well clear of Gobert, -who was starting to struggle. He would pit a lap later, earlier than planned. "Nicky is an awesome rider," Gobert said later. "He knows how to preserve his tire. In the second start, when Kurtis and I were going at it, I knew that Nicky was just sort of sitting back and seeing what happened. I was kind of hoping that Kurtis was going to crash or something so I could start getting away. I had to come in early for a pit stop and I lost about 10 seconds or more. At the time I didn't really care, but when you finish second by a whisker I kind of wish that I had come in a lap earlier." Starting the 22nd lap, Roberts smoked the tire badly coming out of turn one in pursuit of Hayden. It was easy to see he was working his tire harder than his teammate. A lap later, Roberts went into turn one hot, with Hayden on his outside. It looked as though the factory Honda team would be taken out in a single incident, but Hayden picked up at the last minute and Roberts was able to get the bike turned before collecting (Above) Gobert and Hayden share war stories on the podium. (Below) Eric Bostrom (32) and Pascal Picotte (21) battled early, bu1 Picotte's transmission failed him after 19 laps. Bostrom went on to finish fifth after struggling to get his Kawasaki to tum all weekend. 10 MARCH 20, 2002· c u e I e n e _ s his teammate. Both had different versions of the near miss. "Two Hondas leading the race like that, I didn't expect it, but I guess I should have expected it," Hayden said. "I went by him and I heard his engine and stood it up. I don't think we made any contact, but it's 200 miles - I think what happened is that I'd sat back and really saved my tires. He'd used his a bunch. The lap before was the first time I'd led through the infield and I think I started to maybe get a little gap through the infield. I think then he really didn't want me to lead through the infield because by then his tire was maybe off, a lot worse than mine. I think he just wanted to get back in the lead before the infield. I think he was pretty desperate to get back in the lead. I just On the restart following a red flag early In the race, Gobert once again got the holeshot and led the pack into tum one. Here, Gobert leads the Hondas of Roberts, Hayden and DuHamel through the Infield - the only place his Yamaha was a match for them. stood it up because we had a long race. Under different circumstances, I may have leaned on him a little bit, but being that we had such a long time I'd stand it up, give him some room and make my pass another time." So, Mr. Roberts, did you get in there a little hot? "No I didn't get in there a little hot," Roberts explained. "What happened was we got in there the same time and he was trying to come down Mat Mladin's crew chief knew it early on Sunday morning. Whether or not he knew it before, Mat Mladin definitely knew it shortly before 10 a.m: There would be no defense of his Daytona 200 title. and his AMA Superbike Championship run had quickly derailed before it had even begun. "I don't think he can ride," Peter Doyle said just before the Sunday moming wann-up session. And he was right. MJadin made a brave attempt, but there was no way. The three-time AMA Superbike National Champion and two-time winner of the Daytona 200 did a single lap during the session, pulled in and got off the bike as his crew readied to perform a practice tire and fuel stop. Then he simply walked away, his wife Janine in tow. And that was it. "You gotta try, just in case," a brave Mladin said. "The pain wasn't really an issue. It was hurting a bit, but I just can't grip." The story had started two days earlier. After qualifying sixth fastest on Thursday, Mladin was highsided from his Yoshimura Suzuki on Friday morning. "I just highsided in the horsesboe," MJadin explained. "I think I highsided pretty late 'cause I was almost about to shift a gear, so it must have happened pretty late. I'm not sure what happened with my ann because my leathers were tom. I think I got my ann caught up somewhere in the bike before I went over because I felt my ann hyperextend the wrong way. I think I got it caught somewhere and that's what tore my leathers - and my elbow popped out somehow." MJadin then underwent surgery on the left elbow at Halifax Medical Center. "I thought I was only going to have to have an ann block to do it," MJadin said. "But they said it was sort of invasive and they had to pull some more skin open and pull it back and clean it out and all that sort of stuff, so they thought it was better to knock me out. I said, 'Okay,' so they knocked me out. I guess there were some bone fragments in there and a bunch of road stuff. I thought I was going to be able to do it (ride), but I can't. I may have damaged some tendons and stuff, but we're not sure because the doctor wouldn't speak to me. He wouldn't even come and see me. I'm not really sure what the problem is. I can't really bend my arm at the moment very much and I just have no grip strength at all. But there are 15 races to go, so it's not over. I don't think it will take that long. It was just a small operation, where they cleaned things out. It can't take that long. I hope not anyway."

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