Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

THQ World Supercross GP Series/AMA Supercross Series Round 3/1 : Edison International Field HEAT 1 (8 laps, 1·4 transfer): 1. Chad Reed (Yam): 2. David VuilJemin (Yam); 3. Tim Ferry (Yam); 4. Mike LaRocco (Hon): 5. Michael Byrne (Hon); 6. Ernesto FonsecI:l (Hon); 7. Mike Brown (KllW); 8. Joaquim Rodrigues (KTM); 9. Daryl Hurley (Suz); 10. Greg Schnell (Yam); 11. Michael Blose (Y8m); 12. Casey Lytle (Yam); 13. Heeth Voss (Yam); 14. Clark Stiles (Hon); 15. Brian Mason (Yllm); 16. Ted Campbell (Hon); 17. Mike Corder "This weekend, I felt okay, but I hated the track," Reed said somewhat surprisingly, considering his performance. "The dirt's terrible. You know, I like the East Coast; it's a lot more like my house in Australia, and I'm (Hon); lB. Rene Reyes (KTM); i9. Lorry Ward (Hon); 20. Bobby Bonds (Hon). Race lime: 7:51.334 living back in Florida with Timmy, so I've been doing a lot of riding back Margin of Victory: 7.725 sec. HEAT 2 (8 laps. 1-4 transfer): 1. Ricky Carmichael (Hon); 2. Sebastien Tortelli (Suz): 3. Stephane Roncada (Suz); 4. Ivan Tedesco (Yam); 5. Grant Langston (KTM); 6. Keith R. Johnson (Yam); 7. Ezra Lusk (Kaw); 8. Ryan Clark (Yam); 9. Paul Carpenter (Hon); 10. Damon Huffman (Hon); 1l. Nick Wey (Yam); 12. James Povolny Jr. (Hon): 13. Joe Oehlhof (Yam); 14. Steve Boniface (KTM); 15. Marco Dube (Han); 16. Travis Pastrana (Suz); 17. Chris Barrett (Hon); 18. Dave Castillo (Yam); 19. Josh Coppins (Hon); 20. Jason McCormick (Hon). Race Time: 7:58.646 Margin of Victory: 2.415 sec. SEMI 1 (6 laps, 1-5 transfer): I. Fonsec8; 2. Brown; 3. Byrne; 4. Hurley; 5. Ward; 6. Voss; 7. Rodrigues; 8. Schnell; 9. Mason; 10. Lytle; 11. Corder; 12. Campbell; 13. Blose; 14. Stiles; 15. Reyes; 16. Bonds. Race Time: 6:07.866 Margin of Victory: 2.669 sec. SEMI 2 (6 laps, 1-5 transfer); 1. Pastrantl; 2. Langston: 3. Clark: 4. Johnson; 5. Boniface; 6. Carpenter; 7. Povolny: 8. Coppins; 9. Huffman; 10. Oehlhof; 11. Lusk; 12. Dube; 13. Castillo; 14. Wey; 15. McCormick; 16. Barrett. Race Time: 6:06.529 Margin of Victory: 3.016 sec. LCQ (6 laps, 1-2 transfer): 1. Lusk; 2. Voss; 3. Rodrigues; 4. Povolny; 5. Campbell; 6. Schnell; 7. Coppins; 8. Wey; 9. Carpenter; 10. Lytle; II. Mason; there, and I'm looking forward to going back east. "I wanted to be in this position for a long time," Reed added, "and now that I get here, unfortunately Ricky crashed. But the good old saying, 'You gotta be in it to win it' - if that had been me in the back and coming through to second, it'd be the same. I'm just looking forward to next weekend, and there's been so much talk from people thinking that maybe I can be the one that beats Ricky, and tonight I beat him and he was on the ground, so maybe it wasn't fair, so I really want to beat him fair and square." eN Edison International Field Anaheim, California Results: January 4, 2003 (Round 3/1) 12. Dube: i3. Blose; 14. Oehlhof: is. Stiles; i6. Huffman: 17. Castillo; 18. McCormick; 19. Corder: Boost MobilelYamaha/Troy Racing's Brock Sellards showed up at Anaheim but didn't suit up. Sellards, who was hoping to make his debut on his new team a good one. was forced to sit out the evening's racing after suffering an injury while practicing on Wednesday. "1 overjumped a jump and landed into the face of a table· top. - Sellards said. "I ended up kind of landing on my butt and smacking my neck at the same time. and I compressed my neck. I did one lap on press day £ThursdayJ. and when I went to do the triple, I had muscle spasms in my back so bad that I nearly fell off. I could barely ride back to the pits and had to have help to get off my bike. I called it a day." Sellards, who is going to ride the 250cc class in the West and the 125cc class in the East, says that he should be able to ride at the next round in Phoenix. Former Team Green manager Mark Johnson has been named team manager of the Chevy Trucks Kawasaki race team. taking over the helm formerly held by Bruce Stjemstrom, who has held the managing position since 1997. Stjemstrom will now focus on his full-time duties as Kawasaki's director of pro racing. Johnson will oversee the day-to-day activities of the 18·man team led by star riders Ezra Lusk and James Stewart Jr. He returns to Kawasaki, where he was employed from 1978 to 1996, after spending the past six years directing CART and IRL teams for Precision Preparation. Inc. and Team Rahal. "Mark is a perfect fit for Team Chevy Trucks Kawasaki," Stjemstrom said in a press release from Kawasaki. "His automotive management experience coupled with his previous success at Kawasaki and knowledge of motorcycle racing will make for a very smooth transition. He brings a lot to Kawasaki." Stjemstrom was named director of pro racing in 2001 and pulled double duty as the professional motocross team manager until Johnson's hiring. In his new position. Stjem. strom oversees the managers of each of Kawasaki's professional racing teams, including Team Kawasaki Road Racing. Team Kawasaki Jet Ski and Team Chevy Trucks Kawasaki, and he will focus on the overall direction of Kawasaki racing properties. Stjemstrom was instrumental in the formation of the partnership between Kawasaki and Chevy Trucks. which has been the title sponsor of its professional and amateur race teams and the official truck sponsor of Team Pro Circuit/Kawasaki since 2000. We spoke with Johnson at Thursday's press conference. "Basically, this all came together just 'a few hours ago,'" he said. "I enjoyed working at PPI and, more recently, with Rahal Racing, but my future with Rahal included a lot more traveling, and I didn't want to spend any more time away from my family. Everything just came together here, and I'm really happy to be back with Kawasaki.·· 15, 2003' III U III • e n e (Hon). Race Time: 19:56.980 Margin of Victory: 24.030 sec. THQ WORLD S(JPERCROSS GP POINTS STANDINGS (After 3 of 17 rounds): 1. Chad Reed (66/2 wins); 2. David Vuillemin (65/1 win); 3. Tim Ferry (57): 4. Sebastien Tortelli (50); 5. Grant Langston (41); 6. Mike lzlRocco (38); 7. Ryan Clark (30); B. (TIE) Jeremy McGrath/Keith R. Johnson (29); 10. Heath Voss (24): II. Damon Huffman (22); 12. Andrew Short (20); 13. Jooquim Rodrigues (14); 14. Erick Vallejo (13); 15. Monuel Rivas (11); 16. Stephan Demartis (8); 17. (TIE) Kyle Lewis/JeanSebastien Roy/James Povolny (7); 20. (TIE) Jason McConnickjJoe Oehlhof (6). AMA S(JPERCROSS SERIES POINTS STANDiNGS (After I of 16 rounds): I. Chad Reed (25/1 win); 2. Ricky Carmichael (22); 3. Tim Ferry (20); 4. David Vuillemin (18); 5. Sebastien Tortelli (16); 6. Emesto Fonseco (IS); 7. Ryan Clork (14): B. Ezra Lusk (13); 9. Heath Voss (12); 10. Stephane Roncada (11); 11. Keith R. Johnson (10); 12. Ivan Tedesco (9); 13. Steve Bonifece (8); 14. Lerry Ward (7); 15. Daryl Hurley (6); 16. Mike Brown (5); 17. Mike laRocco (4); 18. Grant Langston (3); 19. Travis Pastrana (2); 20. Michael Byrne (1 ). Upcoming Rounds: Round 4/2 - Phoenix, Arizona, January 11 Round 5/3 - Anaheim, California, January 18 One of the main stories at Anaheim I was the retirement of seventime Supercross Champion Jeremy McGrath. This was the first time McGrath did not start a 250cc main event since he joined the 250cc class in 1993 - that is. of course, if you don't count the Las Vegas Supercross in 1995, when many of the riders voluntarily sat out the main event when the stadium' slighting failed. Despite not suiting up to race, McGrath was kept very busy throughout the day. signing autographs and participating in many other activities, which included the evening's opening ceremonies. McGrath was also recognized for his positive impact on the sport of supercross by being awarded the Mickey Thompson Award of Excellence dUring an intermission. Mickey Thompson's son, Danny, awarded the plaque to McGrath. McGrath's popularity was quite evident by the incredibly long line of autograph seekers that wrapped around, and beyond, the Bud Ught KTM pits. At the end of the night. McGrath said he enjoyed signing the thousands of autographs and hanging out with his fans. -It's been real busy. but a lot of fun. ,. McGrath said. "My fans have always been very important to me. and if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be where I'm at now. I want to show them my appreciation." McGrath will attend and be a part of the opening ceremonies at all 16 rounds of the THQ World Supercross GP and AMA Supercross Series in what will be known as the McGrath farewell tour. Another rider who was unable to ride at Anaheim was Moto XXXlYoshimura's Kyle Lewis. Lewis crashed while practicing earlier in the week and suffered a serious wrist injury that will keep the CRF450R rider sidelined for the rest of the series. Lewis underwent surgery to repair his damaged right wrist, which required the implant of two pins. JANUARY MAIN EVENT (20 laps): 1. Chad Reed (Yam); 2. Ricky Carmichael (Hon); 3. Tim Ferry (Yam); 4. David Vuillemin (Yam); 5. Sebastien Tortelli (Hon); 6. Emesto Fonseca (Hon); 7. Ryan Clark (Yam); 8. Ezra Lusk (Kaw); 9. Heath Voss (Yam): 10. Stephane Ronclldll (Suz); 11. Keith R. Johnson (Yam); 12. Ivan Tedesco (Yam); 13. Steve Boniface (KTM); '14. Larry Ward (Hon); 15. Daryl Hurley (Suz); 16. Mike Brown (Kaw); 17. Mike laRocco (Hon); 18. Grant Langston (KTM); 19. Travis Pastrana (Suz); 20. Michael Byme Steve Lamson's return to the 125cc class was a huge disappointment for the former two-time 125cc National MX Champion. The 30-year·old rider failed to qualify for the 125cc main after falling in his heat race, though he was in a position to transfer before going down· twice. In the LCQ, Lamson rode around in fifth, where he would eventually finish one spot out of a transfer. Not only did Lamson not make the main. but any hope he had of earning the $1 million bonus from his ECC team for winning the West Coast Championship went up in smoke. (He will, however, still have a chance at the dough in the outdoor Nationals. where he'll again compete in the 125cc class.J For being the closest nonqualifier, though, Lamson was awarded the $125 Asterisk Medic Card. The last time Lamson competed in the 125cc class in a supercross was 12 years ago as a member of the Peak/Pro Circuit Honda team. BRIEFLY••• 12 20. Reyes; 21. BZlrrett; 22. Bonds. Race Time: 6:08.902 Margin of Victory: 2.207 sec. McGrath's announcement to retire has had a lot of eRect on a lot of people, mostly emotionally, but for some people, physically, as well. Take cameraman Dan Walsh of Upfront Communication for example. Walsh and his crew had been working on a DVD for KTM, KTM dealers and the media for well over two months when he got the word that McGrath, who was featured on the DVD, had retired. "We were literally putting the stamp on the package to send out the master to be duplicated when I got the news," Walsh said. -We'd been working on the DVD for over two months and even showed a sneak preview at the KTM dealer show last August. We also had a commercial with Jeremy, but that's now going into the private stock. But you know, we aren't mad or anything like that. Thafs just the way it goes. and we're really happy for Jeremy. " As always, the opening round of the AMA Supercross Series brought out a huge crowd and many famous names from both inside and outside the motorcycle industry. Anaheim I was report- _ s David Vuillemin rode quietly near the front most of the night. He ended up fourth and now trails teammate Reed in the THQ World Supercross GP Series points standings by one point. edly sold out by Thursday. and the official count was 45,050. Some of the more famous people seen hanging out in the pits included road racers Max Biaggi, 250cc World Champion Marco Melandri, the Haydens and the Bostroms, dirt tracker Johnny Murphree, former National Enduro Champion Steve Hatch and former National Hare & Hound Champion Destry Abbott, who, earlier in the day, teamed with Shane Esposito to win the Parker 400. There were a couple of other nonmotorcycle racers in attendance that you might've heard of - Troy Glaus and Troy Percival of the World Champion Anaheim Angels. Former Supercross Champion Jeff Emig had the honor of interviewing the two World Series superstars from the stadium's podium. It seems that one of the newest trends in supercross is the hiring of personal trainers and/or riding coaches by top riders. Sebastien Tortelli has former Supercross Champion Rick Johnson; David Vuillemin has hired David Bailey; Travis Pastrana utilizes Gary Bailey's services (which he has for several years); Chad Reed works closely with Jeff Spencer. and Tim Ferry has been working closely with fellow Floridian Ronnie Tichenor. "Ricky Carmichael hired a personal trainer [Eldon BakerJ, and it seems to work for him," Tichenor said. ''I've been working with Tim since just before Budds Creek last year. Jeff Spencer is actually Ferry's trainer, but I work on riding technique with Tim. This has seemed to help with his riding. " Speaking of TIm Ferry, the factory Yamaha rider is now riding with a significantly modified seat on his VZ450F. Despite being of average size, Ferry has lowered the seat by 8mm. "He did that mainly for the starts and feel, - Yamaha's new team manager Jim Perry said..,He can get planted in the seat a little better for the starts, which, in supercross, is such a big part of the race.- Back in Black: The new Subway MX Racing Team made quite a shOWing at Thursday's press day, equipping its team bikes with yellow Michelin tires but opting for the more traditional black rubber for Saturday's racing. "The yellow tires don't quite have the best compound for here," said one of the team's two riders. James Povolny. "But for press day, they're good for getting a lot of attention. If the conditions are right. we could use them [in a race situation] down the road." According to the team's manager, Chuck Schultz, it took over two years to develop the yellow rubber. "The yellow tires are actually pretty good· good enough for you and me - but for these guys, they" re not quite there yet." Both Schultz and his wife are involved with the Subway company, including owning their own Subway restaurants. Saturday's practice sessions were just as, if not more, enter· taining than the evening's main event. "There were a lot of head games going on out there," Ricky Carmichael said following the two sessions. "I don't think anyone's showing everything yet.·' It appeared that none of the top riders wanted to ride close to one another for any length of time as they circulated what turned out to be a very technical and tricky Anaheim track. FollOWing the first 250cc practice session, Carmichael clicked off the qUickest time just under 60 seconds - followed closely by Chad Reed. Tim Ferry, David Vuillemin and Travis Pastrana. In the second session, Pastrana busted out the fastest lap over Carmichael. But, when continued on next page

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