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/128349
Hopkins Back for More Brief'Y··· C seven -time Supercross Champion Je re my Continued from poge 7 alifo rn ian John Hop kins has resigned with Suzuki Moto GP team and will again ride the factory Suzuki in the 2005 Mot oGP World Cham pionship. Ho pkins wi ll start his fo urt h sea so n of McGrath; six-time Snow bo ard ing Champio n Shaun Palmer; X Games BMX gold medalist Dave Mirra; form er 125cc Nati onal MX Champion Mike Brown; CART Champions Paul Tracy and Jimmy Vasser; and fo rme r Supercross and Natio nal MX Champion and IRL Pro Jeff Ward. For more informatio n, visit www.adayinthed irt.com . MotoGP racing next year, his third season The Max xis U.S. Open, which aired on NBC fo r the first time ever, earned an impressive 2.1 overnight Nielsen rating for Sunday's broadcast - making it one of the most watched off-road motorcycle races eve r. accordi ng to Clear Chan nel Entertainment . A milestone for CC E's Motor Spo rts division, the promoter and producer of the race held inside Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden Arena , the Maxxls U.S. Open was the largest-watched off-road mo to rcycle race in the United States since the 1998 Dallas superc ross . On March 23, Clear Channel with the Suzuki team. "I'm really excited abou t comi ng back with Suzuki next season," the 2 1-year-old H opkins said in a team re lease . "T he team made major improve- ments to the bike this locations for each of the dates shortly. For more info rmatio n, visit GN CCRacing.com. Kawasaki's Roger Lee Hayden came a long way this year in AMAracing but knows he has a long way to go to join his brother, Nicky. "I want to end up over here [MotoGP] if I'm good enough," Roger Lee said in the A1pinestars hospitality unit at ValenciaIn Spain, where he was specta ting at the final Moto GP of the season. "I've stillgot a long ways to go. It's definitely a goal of mine. I'm not in no huge rush yet." Roger Lee knows the first tes t is Mat Mladin. "I can't really come over unless we can beat Mladin, because there are IS Mat Mladins over here. As a me ntal aspect of it, Mat Is to ugh all arou nd and with a good team. H ere's a guy who's been the best in AMA.To be the best , you have to go up against the best." NBC anno unced the ir joint partnership on the Dew Action Sports Tour, which begins in June 2005. The Dew Tour, the first-ever, An MY Agusta sate llite team will try to win the 2005 European Supers tock Champi ons hip, according to Cycle News con tr ibutor Paolo Gozzi. Th e Italian co nstruc to r will provide fou r of its 1000cc F4s to UnionBike Gimotorspo rt and facto ry support, with former Euro pean Super stoc k Champ ion Vitto- his first front -row qual- season-long, nationally televised, pro action rio lannuzzo set to the be the team's ifying positio n (secon d in Japan) and his best ever Moto GP finishing res ult (sixth in Port ugal). "I signed just before lunch today, and it lifted a big weight from my shoulders," Hop kins said on Friday, O cto be r 29. sports to ur will highlightthe growing sports and lif estyle of skate boarding, BMX, fre estyle numbe r-o ne rider. He will be joined by Fabrizio De Marco . lannuzzo te sted the MV F4 at Misano in Italy o n Friday, Octo be r 29, with a best lap of 1:39.825 - off the Supersto ck lap record held by Ducati's Lo re nzo lanzi but unde r the 2004 pole time at Misano. "MV is really a fantaslic bike," said lannuzzo. "I think I will be able to stay in front and to win the title again." year, and if we can con- tinue that, I think we can be a real contender next year." Thisseason has wit- Entertainment's M otor Sports division and nessed Ho pkins score "Suzuki's commitment to its racingdepartment is tremendous , and we have new peo ple coming on board with the team bringing fresh ideas to the table." Ho pkins cited Paul De nning, t he new ly named Suzuki team manager for motocrossand live music. After announcing 2005, as a person he 's looking forward to working with . "Paul is really motivate d," Ho pkins said. "H e's determi ned to see the team put in the effort it needs to be success ful. He seems on the ball and rea dy to go . The team' s momentum is already ro lling this year, and I'm o ptimistic that we'll tak e it to the next level in '05." the Dew Action Sports Tour, Clear Channel Entertainment's Motor Sports division and NBC collaborated on the Maxxis U.S. O pen television package . "We cou ldn't be happ ier with ou r initial N BC television production and overn ight ratings," said Ken Hudgens, vice pres ident of marketing for Clear Chan nel Entertainment - Motor Sports . "This is the first ste p in a long relationship with NBC that includes the Dew Action Sports Tour, launching in June of 2005 . Everyo ne in the moto rcycle Industry will benefit from our new relationship with NBC - the team s, the riders , the spo nsors, the fans - every one." "N BC Sports has e njoyed our Clear Channel Ente rtainment - Motor Sports partnership, and between the Dew Act ion Spo rts To ur and the new off-road motorcycle initiative, we expect to do even more in the future," said Jon Miller, sen ior vice president of progra mming, NBC Sports . Racer Productions, produce rs of the Grand Nationa l Cross Co untry Series, has rev ised the 2005 GNCC tentative date schedule that was originally posted at the ser ies we bsite , GN CCRacing.co m. Due to conc ern s over weather, the previously announced November 5-6 date will be rep laced by a new date, Septe mber 10-1 I. As pre viously stated , the 2005 GNCC Series will feature 13 rounds of racing, ' ~fte r dea ling w ith mud and a lack of daylight at ou r tradilional final race date in O ctob er, we decided that racing Australian Steve Martin was also testing at Misano on O ctob er 29, riding a Kawasaki ZX-I OR fo r the Bertocchi tea m. Martin lapped Misano at I;39.099 but stili hasn't made a decis ion on what he'll be riding in next year 's World Superbike Champio nship. The Red Bull KTM U.S. Dakar Team wili take part in the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000, November 17-19, accordingto the team . KelIonWalch, Chris Blais, Scot Harden and Andy Grider willcomprise the team , with a goal of not only winning the event but preparing themselves for the 2005 Barcelona/Dakar Ral ly as well.A specially prepared factory 700cc LC4 has been deve loped for the race, and factory engineers, including KTM rallychief Hans Trunkenpolz, willattend the race. "Last year we rod e the 9S0 twin as a training exercise with the goal of simply finishing the event," U.S. Dakar Rally chief Scot Harden said. "This year, we have a very competitivemotorcyclein the LC4 and are looking for much better results. We know we haveour work cut out for us. Honda, for sure, is a formidable team ; we have a lot of respect for the track record they have eamed in Baja. We do think that hav- in November in Indianais just too big a risk," inganothe major manufacturerentered in the r GNCC trail boss Jeff Russell said. "We don 't want the racers to be stuck in the cold, the snow, or worse , in the dar k, by holding a event will add a lot of interest to this year's Baja 1000." Immed iately following the 8aja 1000, the team willtravel to Tunisiafor team tesling and then on to the Barcelona/Dakar Rally in the beginningofJanuary. race so late next fall." The revised tentative dates fo r 2005 are as follows: February 1213, March S-8, March 12-13 , April 2-3, April 16-17,April 30-May I, May 14- 15, June II 12, June 25-26, September 10- 11 , September 24·25, October 8-9, O cto ber 22-23. Ra cer Productions w ill announce the race Jeff Ward joins RickyCarmichael and Mat Mladin as the first three nom inees for the 2004 AMA Pro RacingSpeed Channe l Athlete of the Year. At 43 , Ward is the oldest Continued on p age www.cuclensws.corn CYCLE NEWS • NOVEMBER 10.2004 ,r 9