Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

T he World Suzuki Cup finals at Road Atlanta proved the value of home field advan tage , proved that production racing produces close finishes , and proved that stock bikes show riders to their best advantage. Rob ert Jenson took the overall win amo ng the 23-ride r internatio nal field of Suzuki stars, the 29-year-old from Chaffee, North Dakota, tak ing a very narrow first leg win and an even narr owe r second place in the two 12-lap races on the 2.2S-mile, 12-turn Road At lanta course. His points added up to 37, five more than those of Washingtonian Jake Holden, w ho finished second and third. "I had to beat Jake [Ho lden) to get the overall," said Jenson , who bea t Holden in the first race by .097 of a secon d. "If Jake finished second, I cou ld get third, but who wants to settle for second or th ird. I wanted to win." The 21-year-old Ho lde n said he was disappointed not to have taken the second race . It was won by 19-year-old Spaniard Javier Fares by .037 of a second over Jenson. Holden was a te nth back in th ird. "I should have had that one ," Ho lden said after his shadow third. "Hat's off to the Spaniard [Fa res) - he was hard on the brake s. Every time I we nt by him on the back straight, he'd outbrake me in [turn ) 10. I thought he was going to go down or make a mistake or something." Fares wasn't eligible for the overall win after a mechanical DNF in the first race. The fuel line on his George Vukmanovichprepared Suzuki GSX· R750 came off early in the first race. Third overall was a points tie between South African Hudson Kennaugh and German Martin Baue r. The nod went to Kennaugh by virtue of his race two fo urt h. The South African had a near highside ea rly in the race after which he discovered a lack of rear grip. "It really let go," Bauer said, add ing that the second race "was a little bit tougher than th e first one. The lap times were faster." Brian Stokes , the third American on the team , managed by longt ime Valvoline EMGO Suzuki crew chief Keith Pe rry, wasn't happy with his pe rforma nce on his ho me track. The 30-year-old from Kingston, Georgia, crashed ear ly in the first leg, aggravating a shoulder injury re cently suffered at a race in Las Vegas. The shoulder was more of a pro blem in the secon d race , with the added co mplication of forearm pump and fading brakes. "I didn't wa nt to do w hat I did the first race ," Stokes said. "I'm okay. I'm disappointed because it's my home track and I really know I can run with those guys. My team mates did great, one-tw o - can't ask for anything bett er than tha t." Canadian Chris Per is crashed hard in the fi rst leg, unhurt, and didn't last long in the second leg, retiring with a broke n footpeg mount that was damage d in the crash . RACE O NE Holden got away first, with Kennaugh an earlysecond in front ofJenson. By the e nd of the first lap,Stokes was in the pits on the far side of the track gett inga quick tech inspection by WERAofficials after crashing late in the lap. Soon after, he was back in the pits. "I haven't started on the Dunlops yet and actually did a hard start on fresh Dunlops,' said Stokes, who no rmally runs Pire ll is. "I need to give them at least a lap before I get on them real good." Spaniard Javier Fares didn't complete the first lap either; his GSX-R750 came to a premature sto p in turn one whe n the fue l line came loose. "I almost cried because of all the work the team put into it," said Flores, the fast qualifier who speaks little English so used a translator. Jenson was in the lead on lap two, and on lap three ther e were three o ut front : Kennaugh, Jenson and Holden running as one. So, it would go to the end . Jenso n too k the lead from the South African o n lap five, and o n lap six they we re jo ined by Ge rman Martin Baue r, with Kennaugh back in the lead. Lap eight en ded with Jenson in front, as he was on the next two befor e Holden took his first lead on the I Ith lap, having passed Kennaugh for second o n the run down the hill to turn 12. By the n, the re were tw o se parate races : Holden and Je nson, and then Bauer in front of Kennaugh. The German said he was dizzy with jet lag, "because normally at th is time, I'm sleep ing at home and not racing. So it' s not really good for me ." His edge was exiting turn seven, the the crest of the hill by the bridge that goes across the track and then was able to get by him. And I think I probably had a bike on him going into the braking zone, lOA. I knew I didn't have to be in front of him. I just needed to be alongside of him, stay to the inside a little bit. Just went in there fairly deep, got it turned, got it stood up, got on the throttle, went over the hill." Ho lden said that Je nson got him going into the turn- I0 left at the end of the back straight. " I thought I might be able to sneak a little move on him going down the hill, but he wanted it," Holden said. Brit Tristan Palmer was a lone fifth, nearly 10 seconds back . "I didn't have the best of starts, and then t he first chicane I got into a tankslapper coming down the hill, and I lost 50 yards. And some others passed me and by the time I passed them back at the back straight, they got like 50 yards on me," the 22-year-old from Birmingham said. "So I was just on me own for the who le race; I couldn't catch it back." RA C E TWO Three riders made a quick break in the second race - Hold en in fron t of Kennaugh and Fares, with Je nso n making his way thr ough the field. Fares to ok the lead on lap three, with Holden close, and then Kennaugh and Jenson. Nothing much changed until the ninth lap, when Holden passed Fares on the even though Fares said Jenso n had the faster bike. "I actually let [Fares) get away from me in a couple of spots and made sure I was fast where I needed to be fast and slow where I could keep Jake [Holden) back be hind me and not let him pass me at the same, more of a on e-line spo t," he said. "I could slow down and the n charge into the corner hard and then get a good drive on the Spanish guy. I was riding it smart and I saved it for the last lap." Fares was strong on the brakes at the end of the back straight. On the final lap, he took the inside line. "I couldn't do anything with it, so I just moved over a little bit and bobbled a little bit at the apex because I almost hit him," Jenson said. "I was trying to get crisscross with him and drive up the inside coming over the hill. But he took the inside, and then I wen t to the outside. 1don't think he got me by more than half a bike at the line." "I to ok a chance, hung it out and won," Fares said. Bauer was content wit h his secure fifth. "It was much harder to keep the pace from the front, but I think now with the fifth and the sec ond race, we are almost e nding up th ird or fourth place, and I th ink it's a good job for the first time here at Road Atlanta ," he said. Brian Stokes was sixth, str uggling with his ailing shou lder and fading brakes. "I was try ing to catch that guy and my brakes started fading, and I was having to pull and pull and pull," he said. "Instead of throwing it down, I backe d off a little bit." The Brits finished w ithin tw o -tenths of each other - Be n Wilson on his spare bike just behind Tristan Palmer. "I think the forks were slightly harder on the other bike; just eve ry time you tipped into the comer she used to bounce back on the spring all the time," Wilson said. "It's good enough that I finished the race. At least 1didn't crash. I'm pretty chuffed." eN ROAD ATLANTA B RASELTO N, G EO RGIA RESULTS: OCTOB ER 1 7 , (From left to right) Bauer, Jenson and Halden celebrate after the first of two races at Road Atlanta. run onto the back stra ight, "because I could see tha t I cou ld run a litt le faster than he could, and so I had to loo k that I can pass him at any time, so it was okay." "In the end ther e, I just lost the tires," Kennaugh said. "The bike became a little unstable, so I thought I'd just back it off a litt le bit for third, and the Ge rman got me , so I was a bit upset about that." Je nson was in front for th e start of the final lap, but he didn't wan t to be. "I wanted to let him get into seven in front and lead down the back straight," Jenson said. "I timed it pretty decent whe re I com e up to him probably just coming over run down the hillto turn 12. The lead was sho rt-lived, with Fores soon back in front, Jenso n now by Kennaugh and closing fast. Ending the I Ith lap it was Fores, Jenson , Holden and Kennaugh, who was now a safe fourth after surviving a near-crash. "It highsided me," Ke nnaugh said. "On ly one hand was left on the bar, and luckily the bike stopped wiggling and I we nt into the grass. I regained it, and then Jenson passed me for third wh ile I was on the gas, and then I just stuck it in fourth because I had no traction in the rear. It really let go." Jenson didn't want to be leading the final lap because he knew he 'd be drafted , www.cyclenEWs.com 2004 RA CE ON E: I . Robert Jenson (USA); 2. Jake Hold en (USA); 3. Mart in Bau er (Germany); 4. Hud so n Ken naugh (South Africa); 5. Tristan Palme r (UK): 6. Tho mas Met ro (France ); 7. Harte Oionisi (h aly); 8 . Roman Stamm (Switzerland); 9. Zeiser Christian (Aust ria); 10. Robert Ulm (Germany); II . Antonio Mancu so (Ita ly); 12. Bruce Rotfo (France) ; 13. Scott Ch arlton (Austra lia): 14 . Akira Tamitsu ji (Japan); 15. Yoshihiro Konno (Japan ); 16. Ze non Nelson (Canada); 17. Brian Stokes (USA); 18. Fra nk Heidger (Germany); 19. Chris Pe ns (Canada); 20. Be n Wilson (UK). Time : 16 rnm., 22 .7 sec . D ist ance : 12 laps , 27 m iles Ma rg in of victory: 0.097 se c. RACE TWO: I. Javier Pores (Spain); 2. Robe rt Je nson (USA); 3. Jake Hold en (USA); 4. Hudson Kennaugh (South Africa); S. Martin Baue r (Germany); 6. Brian Stokes (USA); 7. Tristan Palmer (UK); 8. Ben Wilso n (UK); 9. Zaise r C hristian (Austria ); 10. Anton io Mancuso (Italy); II . llan o Diomst (Italy); 12. Roman Stam m (Sw itze rland); 13. Robert Ulm (Ge rmany); 1<4 . Y hihiro Konno (Japan); IS. Scott os Charlton (Austra lia); 16. Bruce Rollo (Fran ce) ; 17. Akira Tam itsuji (Japan); 18. Fran k He idger (Ge rm any); 19. Ze non N elson (Canada). Time : 16 min.• 17.389 sec . Distance : 12 laps. 27 miles Ave rage speed: 110.<498 mph Ma rg in of vkt ory: 0 .037 sec . OVERALL: I. Robert Jenson (37/ 1 w in); 2. Jake Holden (32); J . (fiE) Hudson Kennaugh (26)JMarti n Bauer (26 ); S. (fiE) Javier Fores (20/1 wi n)ITristan Palmer (20) ; 7. (T IE) Zeiser Christian (14)!1lari Dionisi ( 14); 9. Roman o Stamm (12); 10. Anton io Mancuso ( I I); I I. (TIE) Brian Stokes ( IO)lT"hon= Met ", ( 10); I J. Robe" Ulm (9); 14. Ben Wilson (8); IS. (TIE) Sco tt Charl ton (<4VBruc e Rollo (4) ; 17. Yoshihiro Konno (J); 18. Akira Tam itsuji (2). CYCLE NE WS • OaOBER 27 , 200 4 27

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