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/128315
"I'm very embarrassed for the sport I love." Pastrana/laRocco Kudos It was nice to see Travis Pastrana back in action at the Daytona Supercross on Speed Channel. After seeing his heat race, I was surprised to see how his patience has developed with his time off, evidenced by his win over Kevin Windham :Unfortunately, he was running a strong second in the main, but he clearly fatigued about halfway through and eventually faded to lOth. I thought I could see his tongue hanging out of the bottom of his helmet! He looked worn out. If Supercross races were only five laps long, Travis wou ld have been Champion long ago. Hopefully, he will stay a little healthier this time and keep up the patient riding tactics - berserking it into the lead usually doesn't win races for TP! Mike laRocco amazes me . If I could be anyone in supercross/motocross, it would be laRocco. Two hundred Supercross races! Who has the second-most Supercross races under his belt? To be his age, racing (and beating) all the top riders from the late 'SOs, and still be a top-three ride r in th is day and age is quite a feat. Keep it up, Mike. Greg S. Reeder Tempe, AI The Yates Incident I am appalled by the way Aaron Yates handled himself after the crash he had with Anthony Fania in the Daytona 200. I watched in disbelief as I saw Aaron Yates continuing to hit Anthony Fania time after time after time! What a negative image is he send ing to the viewers of the Daytona 200. This isn't NASCAR! Speed Channel is doing its best to promote a positive image of Daytona week, and then th is happens . Yates shou ld not be allowed to go unpunished for this one. At least the AMA should place him on probation, and he should be required to take anger manage ment courses. Suzuki should step forward and do something as well. I feel for Anthony Fania, who appears to have come out of this one physically and verbally punished for nothing more than be ing "taken out " by Aaron Yates. Where is your sportsmanship, Aaron Yates? I'm very embarrassed for the sport I love. Jess Aldape via the Internet The Yates Incident II So when is the AMA going to do some- thing about the sad state of professional road racing? The Aaron Yates incident marred an excellent race, and in my opin ion the backmarker was at fault. The AMA tries to make a pro fessional race series , yet allows anyone with a GSXR1000 in his garage to make the starting grid in the longest and argua bly most prestigious race on the sche dule . Why not start a "Superbike B" race? The absence of the 250cc GP race leaves room for another race, doesn't it? That way, the slower riders will still get the exposure they need, but the pros w ill applaud a more competitive race. On a side note, I've grown accustomed to the mediocre Speed Channel coverage (names mispronounced , lack of familiarity with the very riders they are covering) , but was it really necessary for Greg Wh ite to use the 600 Supersport race to plug his own participation in a th ird-string (at best) race series? Paul Sypien Titusville, FL The Yates Incident III I am to tally disgusted at the behavior of Aaro n Yates. Ifyou look at the tape of the crash , you will see that Aaron turned in on Anthony Fania. In racing the rule is that it is the responsibility of the rider passing to make a safe pass. The crash is not the problem - it is Aaron Yates' actions after the crash tha t disturb me . On live lV it clearly showed Aaron kicking another competitor and then giving him a head butt. If you follow the same reasoning as the AMA does for supercross, Aaron should be fined, lose points , and a possible suspension - at the very least. Mr. Yates has tarn ished the sport of road racing. That should not and cannot be tolerated by the AMA. Furthermore, I feel that Suzuki shou ld address this issue, as he is an employee of the company. I will be disappointed if they sweep this under the rug because he is a "factory" rider. What kind of image does this project to the lV viewing public? Was th is the AMA Daytona 200 or the WWE Daytona 200? John Siebler Via the Internet The Yates Incident IV The behavior of Yoshimura Suzuki rider Aaron Yates after the on-track incident during the Daytona 200 was reprehensible. Whether or not Mr. Fania or Mr. Yates was at "fault" for the racing incident is not the issue here. Racing incidents happen Lmten 10 the editorshould be sent 10 Voke" Cycle New" PO Box 5084, Cosio Meso, CA92628-5084; faxed 10 714·751-6685 0< emoiled 10edilo!ikydenews.com. Published letters do not necessarily reRed the posit on 01 Cycle News, Inc. leitersshould notexceed 200 i words, and all are subject to editing. Anonymous letters will not be considered for publication. A111e1ler' ,houldcontoin the writer', nome, oddressand daytime phone number... Editor. and must be dealt with as many other adversities in the sport. How champions deal with that adversity is what sets them apart from the other competitors. Mr. Yates displayed abominably poor sportsmanship after the incident, jumping, kicking, pushing and butting a possibly injured fellow sportsman. Yates displayed this behavior before by lying on an active racetrack at VIR - obviously more concerned about getting back in the race than the safety of his fellow com petitors. In my opinion, the solution is easy. Throw a punch - miss at least one race . It would be easy enough to verify the aggressor fro m co rne r workers and videotape. The impact to the teams and sponsors would keep the riders in line. Physically brutal behavior in directcontact physical sports is embarrassing, but somewhat understandable if you take the physical contact too far. In motorsports there is no such excuse. Aaron Yates is a thug. He needs to be dealt with for the good of the series and the sport. Tom Tracey Bartlett, IL The Yates Incident V Aaron Yates and Rubens Barrichello share one thing in common: They are each number two on the number-one team . Had Aaron understood th is fact more fully, he might have enjoyed a fine secondplace finish at Daytona, much as Rubens' did in Australia in his Ferrari . Too bad . Br uce Armstrong Santa Barbara, CA The Yates Incident VI Let's assume for a moment that Aaron Yates is correct. Rider takes you out, (which he didn't) so you are now authorized to batter said rider. Sounds like Frankie Chili, Neil Hodgson and Eric Bostrom owe Yates a serious butt kicking for last year 's Laguna Seca torpedo job! I'm also certain his sponsors appreciated his ridiculous and criminal ant ics. Note to AMA Pro Racing: Everyone is watching; do the right th ing. Leo Burgo. Benicia, CA The Yates Incident VII I am so disgusted after watching the display of total ignorance put on by socalled "professional racer" Aaron Yates. I hope Suzuki has the balls to fire him immediately. Not only was this accident www.cyclenews.com his own doing, he behaved like a wild animal in the aftermath. He belongs in the same league as Mike Tyson. I also hope the AMA takes action. Th is was a very serious infraction, and I believe they should "yank " his license immediately. No excuses. Sea n Mc Glain Yonkers, NY Scruffy Riders? I viewed both the Daytona Bike Week events and some F I practice and qualifying this weekend. What a contrast in the participants' appearance! The riders are pierced and unshave n (why always a three-day growth?), while the drivers are clean -cut and professional. If I were a poten tial sponsor, three guesses where my support goes! Gregory P. Starr Albuquer que, ~M Helmet Laws Again Mr. Newberry completely misses the po int w ith regards to helmet laws. The issue isn't whether or not one should always wear a crash helmet when riding a motorcycle. The issue is that the government has no business telling us we have to wear a helmet via a law req uiring such . Common sense should dictate th at one should always wear a helmet; Laws should be on the books that protect me from you and vice ve rsa , not me from myself. Mr. Newberry, I am sorry that you feel you must have the government to te llyou what to do and not to do . Yes, seat belt laws violate everyone's freedom just the same as helmet laws. I am not a big fan of the AMA, but the AMA is not discouraging anyone from wearing a he lmet , they encourage everyone to wear a helmet. They are simp ly opposed to laws that tell us we have to wear helmets. It is frightening that there are people out there who think like you do with regards to laws that dictate what we must do or not do to protect us from ourselves, Mr. Newberry. These laws violate our freedom. If everyone thought like you, we would be riding mo torcycles that would encase us in Plexiglass spheres with outriggers that would prevent the bike from turning over. Yes, this was pro posed not too many years ago by our National Highway Traffic Safety Counci l. Carlton E. Rudolph Hughesville, MD CYC LE N EWS • MARCH 17,2004 5