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/128306
(Left ) David Pea rson (pictured) and teammate Brian Brown ca ptu red the overall win at the Las Vegas 200. It was their only w in of the se ries. (Below) Brown led off for his team, g iving teammate Pea rson lot s of b reathing room. Precision Concepts XR650R, and Abbott. (The three teams were the only Open Pros entered.) "We had the luck of the draw this time, I guess, " Brow n said. "We ended up taking off first and dusting everybody out." Right from the start, the Brown and Pearson team steadily increased the ir lead. "Today just went really flawless for me and Brian," Pearson said. " Brian started, and he came into the first pit and had put a minute on Destry. I went out on my section, and I put a minute on Shane, so at that point we were pretty much two minutes up on them [after one complete lap). "On the last loop for me , I didn't know how far they were behind me ," he battle for the Best in the Desert's Silver State Ser ies Championship came down to the seventh and final round with the running of the Las Vegas 200 . Two teams came to t he start line with a chance of winning the title, and the scenario was simple - whoeve r fi nished ahead of the other would be crowned "best in the desert" for 2003 . Kawasaki Team Green's Shane Esposito and Destry Abbott and Team Honda's Steve Hengeveld and Johnny Campbell were all but tied in points going into the race, but things seemed to be tilting in the Kawasaki team 's favor before the race even got under way. That 's because Campbell showed up at the race still bothered by a sore thumb that he injured the previous week at the Baja 1000, so teammate Hengeveld was forced to ride solo, wh ich is a lot to ask from one person in such a long race and with so much on the line. While much of the pre-race fuss focused on the two title-contending teams, neither of them would come away with the day's win. Instead, that honor would go to Kawasaki's other team of Brian Brown and David Pearson , but Esposito and Abbott didn't mind that they didn't win; that 's because they finished second and, more importantly, one position ahead of Hengeveld, which gave them their second straight Best in the Desert title. T 68 JANUARY 14.2004 • Esposito and Abbott retain the number-one plate alter a lastrace, Las Vegas 200 showdown "Our goal was to win the championship," Abbott said. "We didn't care if we finished second ; we wanted to beat the Honda ." When all was said and done , and after figuring in the throw-away rounds , Abbott and Esposito edged out Campbell and Hengeveld by one point, 225-224, on their Chevy TrucksllMS/Maxima KX500. As far as the race, Brown and Pearso n, also on a Chevy TrucksllMS /Maxima-backed KX5oo, completed the three 7 I-mile-loop course in four hours , 24 minutes and 21 seconds, while Abbott and Esposito went 4;29;16 and Hengeveld 4;30: 17. The first three teams were well clear of the rest of the 95-rider field. The N5 -machine with Brown at the controls got waved off the start line first, foll owed in 30-second inte rvals by' Hen eveld, on the t.l CYCL E NEWS 40th Anniversary