Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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By CHICANERY HENNY RAY ABRAMS Laguna Postscript he scheduled date of next year's Red Bull U.S. GP is July 23, 2006. Will it happen? Probably, but not certainly and not without a large infusion of cash. And not without significant improvements. The 2005 Red Bull U.S. GP was a rousing success. The crowds were huge, the racing was sterling, the weather was nonpareil. Could there have been a better result for the home side than a Nicky Hayden-Colin Edwards one-two? Only Edwards-Hayden, if you were in the Yamaha camp. The Red Bull Suzukis were in no position to challenge. Maybe next year they will and the red, white and blue can sweep the podium. Only if T Rossi retires. There was a collective sigh of relief when Nicky Hayden crossed the line on a sun-blessed afternoon with his first Grand Prix victory. Aside from winning the girl in the "Dating Game" on the "Today" show, Hayden hadn't won anything since the AMA Superbike race in August of 2002 at VIR. The next year he moved to MotoGP after being touted by no less than Freddie Spencer and Mick Doohan. Through 37 GPs, their faith hadn't waned. "His confidence will go through the roof now," Spencer said after Hayden's very popular win. "I think this will really help Nicky get that monkey off his back, and I know how critical it is to get that first win." Spencer's first came as a 20-year-old prodigy on the daunting SpaFrancorchamps road course. "Once you get that first one out of the way," Spencer said, "then you know what it takes to win the race, and now is his big chance to really show what he is made of." Some of that was on display in the race. Having one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time stalking, spying, studying, has rattled far more seasoned riders. Rossi plays Sete Gibernau like a two-dollar kazoo. He took Assen from Marco Melandri at his leisure. And it would be hard to deny that there was a hint of the inevitable - that Rossi was biding his time, waiting for the late-race push, the lap record at the end. But in the end he had nothing for Hayden. Nor Edwards, his teammate who could break through with his first win in Donington in two weeks' time. The Texan surprised Rossi in the Corkscrew with a bold inside move that Rossi could- tice, you think maybe some place this track is a little bit dangerous, but in the race you don't think about nothing." Then he gave fair warning. ''And, yes, for sure I follow. Is an important race, because with Colin and Nicky I discover some good points, some good lines, and maybe I'm faster for next year." Maybe? That Rossi will improve is a certainty. It would be nice to believe that the same could be said for the track. Rossi was among the minority who decried the lack of track safety. He and fellow Italian Marco Melandri were the most vocal. Were they confusing danger with difficulty? That was the view of many others, including one former World Champion. The track, Rossi admitted, is like no other on the World Championship trail. But it's not far off some of the other tracks in America, where Hayden and Edwards and Hopkins and Roberts grew up. No one doubts that changes have to be made. But at what cost? Yamaha ponied up $2 million for track enhancements to make this race happen. Certainly the track owners thought they'd done everything they'd been asked to do, and they had. But the changes that allowed the track to be homologated were suggested from drawings, not experience. Wrestling a 990cc four-stroke around the I I varied turns exposed a few problems. None are insurmountable, according to FIM safety boss Claude Danis, who was on the hook for homologating the track this year and heard from the rider safety commission on Friday night. More had to be done, Rossi and Roberts said after a two-hour tour of the 2.238 miles of tarmac. A resurfacing for one thing, but that isn't scheduled until 2007. More run-off on the exit of the Corkscrew. A widening of the run-off in turn six. A leveling out of the wavy run up to the Corkscrew. Runway level is the aim. Turn one needs to be addressed. Danis said the changes are possible. "There are some major works involved, but technically everything is possible - the space is there," he said. The space may be, but what about the money? Nicky Hayden joked that, given the size of the crowd and how much he was charged to park his motorhome, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca must be flush with cash. The truth is that the track charged too little. This won't come as good news to the 150,000 spectators. They can, and should, pay more. And before you start ranting and raving, consider this: The more they make, the more they can put back into the track and donate to local charities. And without it, the race could be imperiled. It's not likely, but it's possible. Higher prices might shrink the crowd slightly. That's a good thing. Traffic was a mess, as were the public toilets and concession lines. T-shirts were sold out on Saturday. Then a few boxes showed up here and there - but only in selected sizes. The bottlenecks at the Dunlop Bridge into the infield were reminiscent of the lincoln Tunnel at rush hour, only more civil. And hooker-free. There were other glitches. Timing and scoring didn't make it to the MotoGP pits on Friday morning, nor to the pit wall until Saturday. The first practice was delayed 2S minutes by marshalling problems. Did I mention the traffic jams? Even Rossi got stuck on his way in. The good news is that everyone associated with the race wants to make it better. Press officer Ed Nichols solicited suggestions in the pressroom. As did Red Bull's Steve Pegram, who promised a bigger and better race next year. Which brings us back to 2006. The riders' laundry list will be presented to the track shortly. Costs will be estimated. Decisions will be made. Yamaha was the white knight this year in support of their SOth anniversary. Their presence was as ubiquitous as it was welcome. Expecting another seven-figure check is unlikely. Sete Gibernau's solution: "Get [Michael] Jordan to pay the whole thing." Jordan and Yamaha aren't the only players in the paddock. 'Honda's first production motorcycle, the 98cc two-stroke Dream D, was built in 1949. Next year will be its 57th anniversary. There are worse reasons to celebrate. eN n't answer. Rossi was asked if safety concerns had kept him from unleashing his full arsenal. His response was that "during the prac- CYCLE NEWS • JULY 20, 2005 87