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/128318
AMA Supermoto Undergo-goes Changes A MA Pro Racing has announced that the 1"'\2004 AMA Supe rmoto Cha mpionsh ip structure has evo lved to mirror a mor e traditional, cumu lative-po ints cha mpio nsh ip whi le still placing emphasis on the season finale. Po ints will be awarded to the top 20 finishers in every 2004 event, with first through fifth place points dou bled at the cham pionship finale. To be eligible fo r th e champion ship finale , the AMA Red Bull Supe rmo to A-G oGo , riders m ust qualify fo r a main event in any of the regular-seaso n eve nts leading up to the last round . Additio nally, former FIM Wo rld Cham pions and any ride r who has earned po ints at an FIM Wo rld Champi on ship even t th at seas on will be eligible to enter the AMA Red Bull Supe rm oto A-Go-Go finale . AMA Pro Racing Supe rmoto Se ries mmanage r Ch ris Bradley said th e change to the championship structure is a positive co mpromise between a winne r-tak e -all finale and a cu mula t ive poin ts cham pionsh ip. "It's impo rta nt that we reward riders w ho commit to the reg ular seaso n wh ile providing a means of entry to tho se riders w ho are co mmitted to ot he r series," said Bradle y. "Plus, unde r the new system, a wo rld champio nship-caliber rider can compete in the final event. That is a huge ben e - Kat ja Poensgen rode Suzuki's Moto G P bike a t t he Valencia test. Un der new AMA ru les, W o rld Supermoto Cha mpion Eddy See I can now participate in t he Red Bu ll Supe rmoto A-Go-Go. The inno vat ive approach that was ad o pt e d for the AMA Supermoto Ch am pionship in the inaugural , 2003 sea so n will continue in 2004. Plans again call for a fall-base d series beginning in midAugust, co nsisting of five to seven events at diverse ve nues lead ing up to the championship finale. AMA Pro Racing expects to release th e 2004 sche du le with in the next few weeks. fit to our fans, w ho will get to see the best riders in the wo rld compete . This rigorous yet flexible qua lifyingprocedure will reward consistency th ro ughout all rounds of the se ries while placing emph asis on the prestigious AMA Red Bull Superm oto A-Go -Go ." Supe rpo le qualifying will re turn in 2004 with the Superpole winne r receiv ing o ne add itional po int at regular season events and five addit ional points at the finale . Rutter, Reynolds Split BSB Wins Honda's Michael Runer and Rizla Suzuki's john Reynolds split wins in the opening round of the British Superlbike Championship, held at the Silverstone circu it on March 2B. In damp but drying track conditions in the first race , Runer took the victory over his teammate Ryuichi Kiyonari and Reynolds, Poensgen Rides A MotoGP Bike with Reynolds' teammate Yukio Kagayama finishingfourth in what was his first race back since breaking his pelvis seven months ago . In the second race , Reynolds took the win, besting Kiyonari and Runer. "I worked hard for my results today, and it was not easy," Reynolds said. "In the first race AUTOGRAPH SIGN ING : At Central Yamaha in Dallas, Texas, on April 16 from 6 to 7 p.m. Team Yamaha's Chad Reed and David Vuillemin, Mach I Yamaha's Ezra Lusk and Heath Voss, Yamaha of Troy's Kelly Smith, Danny Smith and josh Hansen, and the Yamaha Samsung/RadioShack team are schedu led to appear. For more information , call 972/423-40B9. SIGNED: Yamaha's David Vuillemin to a contract with OMS Sports that will see the company represent the Frenchman, effective immediately "I . have a lot more going on these days than I did in the past, so I felt that it would be in my best interest to alignmyselfwith a full-service agency," said Vuillemin. "I chose OMS Sports because they are very experienced. I got a good feelingthe first time I met Fred Bramblen and can see that he has a strong, professional team surrounding him." OMS Sports is a global, fullservice sports marketing agency specializing in athlete representation, strategic marketing partnerships, industry relations, licensing and merchandising opportunities in the world of Extreme Personal Powersports. For more information, contact Pat Schutte at 734/222-0688. OPENED: Cobra Motorcycles' new home page on the World Wide Web. The site can be fo und at the following address: hnp://www.cobramotorcycle.com . I had the speed, but as the race distance went on and the track dried out, my wet tires started to lose grip, and I can honestly say that third was the best result I could have achieved . In the second race I got to the front early and pushed hard. My pit board kept reading plus nothing, so I pushed harder and harder right until the chec kered flag, knowing that both Hon das were snapping at my heels the whole time." AUTOGRAPH SIGNING: At Cycle Pit Stop in Orange, California,on April5 from 7 to 9 p.m. Team Kawasaki'sTommy and Roger LeeHayden are scheduled to appear. For more information, call 7 14/744-4 144. AUTOGRAPH S IG N IN G: At Full Throttle Powersports in Centerville, Utah. on Friday, April 23, from 7 to B p.m. Team Chevy Trucks Kawasaki and Team Pro Circuit Kawasaki's Michael Byrne, Stephane Roncada , Ivan Tedesco and Man Walker are scheduled to appear. For more inlormation, call BO 1/292-1492 . AUTOGRAPH S IG N IN G: At DFW Honda in Grapevine, Texas on Friday, April 16 from 6 to 7 p.m. Team Honda and Works Connection riders Kevin Windham, Mike laRocco, Nathan Ramsey, Travis Preston and Chris Gosselaar are scheduled to appear. For more information, call 866/B3-Honda. OPEN HOUSE: At Southern Ca lifornia Ducati in Brea , Ca lifornia, on April 10, fro m 9 a.m . to 5 p.m. There will be Iree food and drinks , and visitors will have the opportunity to meet Ducati factory AMA road racer Eric Bostrom. There will be vendors and displays, door prizes. special discounts and demo Ducati rides. For more informa- tion, call 714/256-6700 HIRED: Kristin Cheatwood as the marketing coordinator for Maxxis tires , effective immediately. Cheatwood will be responsible for Maxxis' invotvement in promoting events, tradeshows, product promotions, etc. Cheatwood formerly worked for Clear Channel Motor Sports. For more information, call Maxxis at BOO/4-Maxxis. MOV ED: MetalFab , the makers of the Pro Armor brand of protective motorcycle eng ine and control guards. The new address is 1679 N. Maple Street, Corona, CA 928BO. The new phone number is 909/270-05S9 . T he new fax number is 909/270-0519 . www.cyclenews.com Ex-Grand Prix racer Katja Poensgen redou bled here claim to be th e fastest woman o n two w hee ls at Catalunya wh en she became the first of her sex to ride a MotoGP machine . Th e 27-yea r-o ld German blond e rode th e Suzuki GSV-R for two lap s, part of her new jo b as 1V pres en ter fo r the RTL network . "It was so coo l," she said late r. "I was fitted with a microphone in my helmet so I could talk w hile I was riding, but I couldn 't say a word. Th e acceleration is amazing, and on the stra ight - wow! I on ly go t to fifth gear, but it was fast enough lor me . I'd have liked mor e than just two laps, though." Mic hael Scott ,Briefly... , Continued from page 9 the apron. Entering the pit box means that rider's race will be over. Motorcycle industry veteran Tom Mueller has accepted the position of director of bus iness development for Fahlgren Champion, a full-service agency that offers event management. site inte ractive support, fan experiential marketing, med ia relations, and media creative and placement. ''I' m now 'repartn e red' with David Allen, the guy who got me started with AMA Wrangler Supe rcross 20 years ago," said Mueller, who is working for Champion Sports Group out of the Fahlgren advertising offices in Colum bus, Ohio . "Cham pio n is a subsidiary of Fahlgren, and we work with GM Goodwrench, NAPA GMAC, Nationwide, res and also Wix Filters, where we utilize joe Gibbs for endorsement support. Another portion of our business is the ownership and promotion of special events. We just did a cruise with Dale Earnhardt Jr. - it was a huge success with 3 Doors Down doing a private concert on the ship - and are also promoting the 'American Outdoor Experi ence' at Bristol Motor Speedway." Mueller was a former associate editor at Cycle News East, was Wrangler's promotion agent lor AMA Supercross and motocross, and late r served as executive director of the AMA's professional racing subs idiary. For more information, call Mueller at 614/222-2210 , or e-mail tom.mueller@fahlgren.com. Del Amo Motorsports in Redondo Beach, California, has announced the second annual De l Arno Supercross Freestyle Show and Open House. Scheduled for April 10, the day will include sportbike stu nt sho ws, a sportbike exhibition for sportbike enthusiasts to show their bikes , and more. For more information, call Del Arno Motorsports at 310/372-BB91. C YC LE NEWS • APRIL 7, 2004 13