Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128241
o ~ o \.AI" o o o o o o o o o o After rid ing t he Honda RC21 1V for th e first time on Tuesday. November 4. at the Catalunya circuit in Spain. Colin Edwards may need a plastic surgeon to remove the smile from his face. "It was awesome," Edwards said on Friday. November 7, from his home in Conroe, Texas. "I got so accustomed to the Aprilia and the way it works, I forgot what last year's bike felt like. Everything on that thing [the RC21 I VJ is so sano; everything is in the right place. It's hard to describe. It's like when you open that new toy and take it out of the box and everything's perfect." Although the track was "green " and he was pain ting blac k marks in every corner. Edwards didn't waste any time in getting on the race pace. His best lap was a I :45.3, a tenth of a second quicker than Valentino Rossi's best lap from this year's MotoGP at the Spanish racetrack. "It was the first time in four years that I'd used a 17-inch front tire, so I was a bit concerned about that," Edwards said. "I was nowhere near the limit, but the front never moved. It was incredible. It felt really good, really comfortable. It actually felt slower than the Aprilia because the Aprilia always wanted to loop out. This thing would barely wheelie. It Continuedfrom page 2 heim Stadium in Anaheim. California. with t he fir st round o f the 16-ro und AMA Supercross Series. Fo rmer W o rld Formula O ne Ch amp io n N iki Lauda we nt to t he M ot oGP in Valencia. S pain, last we ekend , and he came away impressed . Lauda , who had already seen the German Grand Prix at the Sac hs enring, liked wha t he saw . " MotoG P is at the moment leading Formula 1 as a specta cle because it's much better." Lauda said on Fl -Uve.com. " You can see more racing... it's just better - it' s lncredtble. In a way the two sports are not different from the po int of view that you always have to go to the limit. and some guys can do that better t han t he othe rs. [Valentino! Rossi is outstanding at it - like Schumacher in t hat respect -" but it' s very close up at the front. Sete [G ib ern aul . fo r exa mple , I apprec iate , M ax Biaggi.. . th ere is a good group of famous people fighting each other, and I t hink it' s the best you co uld have . You see t he spectato rs here - the interest is huge . so yo u co uldn't hope for more. I think Rossi is incredible. It is going to be interesting to see now where he changes to because he is starting all over again. but I understand why he is doing it. It is a new motivation for him. " Lauda said that he enjoys watching every round of the . series in the comfort of his own home but to ld F l -Live .com that th er e is nothing quite like being at trackside on race day. " I really like watc hing the braking - they way they slide. On television it is covered really we ll. I must say. You can see the way they are fighting with the machine that's what makes it so interesting . But the most incred ible thing is being here and list ening to the so und . They don't sound like motorcycles - they sound like hell mach ines! You ca n see the power wh en they acceler ate - they can barely keep the front wheel on the ground. I also enjoy watching the smaller classes - 125 and 250 . From ve ry aspe ct it's j ust a great spectacle to watc h." indust ry. " said Ken Hudgens, vice president. marketing. Clear Channel Entertainment - Mot or Sport s. " ESPN is co mmitte d t o grow ing the sp ort . and t hi s is another demon stration of their dedication t o THQ World S uperc r o s s GP I A M A Super cr oss Series. This is th e fi rst of more good new s on supe rc ross t elevi· sion. o o o o o o o 'I Former World Champion Fabien Foret has signed to race an offic ially supported YZF-R6 for Yamaha Belgarda Team in the 2004 Sup er sport W orld Ch ampionship . Foret has proven credentials in the class. having wo n the world ti tle in 2002. He comes to the team afte r a season on factory Kawasakis that saw him end up ninth in the overall standings . The Frenchman is no stranger to Yamaha. having finished secon d in bot h the 1999 French Superbike and Superstock championshi ps on boa rd R-series mode ls. Speaking about his retum to Yamaha. Foret commented: " I am very happy to sign for Yamaha Belgarda because I know how co mpet itive the bike is already, and so I will be able to concentrate o n tryi ng to wi n t he wo rld title st raightaway. I cannot wait for next wee k's tes ts [November 11-13l whe n I'll be able to throw my leg over the R6 for the first time. I am sure that the YamahaForet partn ership is go ing to be a very success ful one, which will give us all a lot of pleasure." Co mpleting the cos mopolitan Belgarda line-up wil l be Jurgen van den Goorberg h . As announced earlier this year, the team was keen to retain the Dutch rider afte r a stri ng of strong perfo rmances in his debut W orl d Supersport seaso n. Despite haying no previous fo urst ro ke experience, van den Goor bergh finished third in the final standings. Yamaha Belgarda Team will not be the only official Yamaha team in the 2004 championship. Yamaha Motor Germany will field Kevin Curtain to race alongside Christian Kellner on a full-time basis next seaso n. W ith nine Australian titles and tw o W orld Supersport race vict or ies to his name. Curtain brings a great deal of experience to the team. For Kellner. 2004 will represent a sixth co nsecutive year wit h Yamaha. The 31 -year-old ended the 2003 campaign sixth in the championship. taking a victory in round three at Suqo , Japan. o o o o o o o o o o o o u Be g in ni ng N ov ember 17 . Fair plex Mo t o c ro s s will be clo sed on Mondays and Wednesdays. The track will be available to industry on tho se days. The new hours are Tuesday. Thursday and Friday, 11 a.m. to 8:50 p.m. ; Satu rday . 10:30 a.m. to 8:50 p.m: and Sunday 10:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. For more information. visi t www.fairplexmx.com . All riders at Fairplex M otocross will be able to watch the FMX W orld Championships for free at Fairplex, November 15-16. o o o o o o o Clear C hanne l Ente rt ainment' s M oto r Sport s has annou nced th at ESPN2 will host same"day a iring of the open ing round of THQ World Supercross GP from Seville, Spain, on December 6 at 8 p .m. EST in the United St ates. Fans in the USA will be able to watch the world 's to p supe rc ro ss ride rs com pete in t he ope ning ro und of inte rnationa l co mpetitron from the Est adio Olimpico , a mere fou r hours after the race is co mplete d. " Same day, Saturday night ESPN2 airing o f th e o pe ning round o f THQ W orld S upercro ss GP from Seville , Sp ain . is another monumental leap for the fans, riders . sponsors and the entire motorcycle o :0 o ] ] 86 NOVEMBER 19. 2003' cu e Former British League and current American spee dway ace Charles uDukie" Ermolenko has announced t hat he is putting the finishing tou ches on his new oval track training facility , Lake Elsinore Speedway . lo c at e d o n th e grounds of Lake Elsinore Motocross Park in Lake Elsinore. Califomia . "The track is • e n e vv s was a lot like going from the RC45 to the twin [RC51] . Same thing · you can j ust concentrate on where you're going." Edwards gets a break in his schedule until taking part in the Aprilia ride day in Florida, Novem· ber 15- 16. His first "real" test on the RC211V will be at Valencia in Spain, December s- II . "This test was just to get the handlebars in the right place... things like that," Edwards said. Paul Carruthers just under a quarter mile . " Ermo lenko said. "The straights are real wide, and the turns are real wide . People can com e out and pay $3 0 and ride all day. W e have wat ering and grad ing available all day . " Ermolenko also said that he is continuing his Speedway Academ y at the new track. " I have had over 150 st ude nts co me throu gh th e sc hoo l, and now we are expanding it . " Ermolenk o said. " I am in th e proc es s o f procu rin g a fl e e t o f XR1OOs so that we can inco rporat e my version of a [flat track] sliding school ." Lake Elsinore Speedway is open Friday t hrou gh Sat urday fro m 9 a.m . 't il dark . For more information, call 714/23 2-2567 . C lear Ch annel Ent ert ainme nt 's M ot or Sport s division and KTM Nort h America Inc. recently sig ned a three -year agree ment to present the KT M J r" Superc ross Cha llenge at the THQ W orld Supercross GPI AMA Supercross Series events. extending their involvement in the sport . Introduced to Supercross in 1997. the KTM Jr. Supercro ss Challenge has been a significant part of the Supercross program. Over the years, more than 1500 kids between the ages of seven and eight have experienced the perks of be ing a fac t o ry ri der for a day. " The KTM J r. S up erc ro s s C ha-lleng e is o ne o f th e proudest accomplishments of KTM North America, " said Selvaraj Narayana. vice president. KTM Nort h America Inc . "To work wit h the yo uth of Am er ica and to demonstrate their skill. ability, pride and passion for the sport in front of hundreds of thousands of Supercross fans is tru ly an ho no r . W e are lo o k ing fo rw ard t o w orki ng with our co llea g ues at C lea r Channel for the next three years to take this program to all new levels." At each Supercross race, 15 riders are random ly selected to com pete in front of the sizeable crowds at the Clear Channel Enterta in m en t - M ot or S po rt s -p r o d uc e d eve nt s. Kids can reg ister at the ir local KTM dealership s across A meric a. The chosen riders and families are treated to a full factory day at the Supercross race. Each rider competes on identic ally prepared KTM 50 Pro Sr. Sportmotorcycles and receives Thor riding gear, team wear and Scott Goggles. In addition , each rider receives a # 100 EE Savings Bond . For more in f orma t ion o n KTM . log on t o www.ktmusa.com . The FIM has announced that the Brands Hatch round of the World Supersport Championship (a sc hedule that wa s rel ea sed las t week) has been moved from July 25 to August 1. In addition. the FIM has announced t hat W orld Sup er - sport rounds will be held at all the European races and also at Phillip Island in Austra lia. A round in M ont Trem blant . Canada. is yet to be confirmed, according to t he FIM . Fo ur peop le w ere s ho t a nd kill e d at Superbike Motorsports in Spart anbu r g , S o u t h C ar ol in a o n Thursd ay . N ov ember 6 . Repo rt edl y , th o se killed we re Sup erb ike M o t o r spo rt s owne r Scott Ponder, 30 . and his moth er, Beverly Guy , 52 . as well as employees Brian Lucas. 29. and Chri s Shubert. A M A S po rt s , th e amateur and pro-am com petit io n division of th e A M A . has anno unc ed the secon d an nua l AMA Nationa l In d o or Tria ls Champ ionship. presented by OG Productions of Winters. Califomia. The event will be held on Saturday , December 6. 2003. at the Cow Palace in San Francisco. W ith riders representing both the Canadian Motorcycle As sociation and the AMA, the 20032004 AMA National Indoo r Trials Championship will be a continental championship as w e ll. " O ur secon d se aso n fo r th e indoo r trials championship will be a great showcase for North America's top riders, and the series is growi ng. with a second and final event planned for May of 2004, " said Douglas Neubauer, director of AMA Sport s. "Especially with the organizer' s expe rie nce in putti ng t og eth e r lo cal . national and Worl d Championship events. we believe that the AMA National Indoor Trials Championship has a bright future." Riders eam their invitation to compete in t he 2003 AMA N at ion al Indoo r Trials Ch am pion sh ip based o n t heir performances in th e 2002 AMA/NATC Ryan Young Products National Ob served Trials Championship Series. As in international competition. there will be one "wild card" entry allowed by the organizer and AMA Sport s. G eoff A aro n. seven-time AMA National Ob served Trials Champion. first Indoor National Champion, and 2000 AMA Sports Ath lete of the Year is scheduled to compete in the 2003-2004 AMA National Indoor Trials Championship. Joining him in th is second annual competitio n will be Ryon Bell, Chris Florin, Raymond Peters, W ilson Cra ig , David Ch aves and And y Johnson. The 200 3-2004 AMA Nat ional Indoor Tria ls Cha mpion sh ip course will co nsis t of seven standard sec tio ns and two heads-up race sectio ns in the event's three-hour program. For more information about the 2003 AMA National Indoor Trials Championship, call (80OJ 341-3412 , or CN visit www.mototrials.com.