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/128409
In fact, 1pI1ld0i liP till about the fate of the twInI .... .,." the singles, where there.,. mII11 mcn«!lil"MJI"l!\" terms or available eeppment. In dle ~ _ brand, Harley-DavicIson, t.s damIl ill d jrirlIIlliIIy ", ngforthe ....",...., out. Even at 38 yean old, ~1lI~t...-IO\.Il" ~rul enthusiasm ~.~~ I;lII1 out·hustle the _QlIIr. pneratlon of rldhave taken to the new~ mototross-blke-based machines like ducklings to water, and beat chern in that game just as easily as he could when using )Its . . and experience to win on his ,',ifni!ec 1'llIdoy-0avIds0n XR750. "l was capable of beating them last year, I just didn't,.. Carr says, "We struggled with our KTMs last year, dialing them in, and I don't ride them as much, obviously, as I did on the WoodRotaxes that I rode through the years; but we'll certainly put a lot of time in on those bikes if we ut a deal together to go race - what- I!I""'!==~~~ :: But don't misconstrue Carr's respect for the roots of a motorcycle culture, in which he has played a large part, as a condemnation of AMA Pro Racing's new deal. He is also a pragmatist, and he sees the need for change, The pitch is one thing, though, The challenge is finding the strike zone, "The scary part is that they're betting the entire history of the sport on this change," Carr says, "Hence, the reason for them to have to go out and market it better, They have to make this work now, They've put themselves in that position," The new deal puts everybody involved in the sport in a much different position, including Carr, who had been looking forward to getting a crack at an unprecedented sixth AMA Grand National Championship title, Under the new format, he won't get that chance - at least not in the spirit of the traditional series, In hindSight, he did have the opportunity once before, After winning his second career AMA Grand National title in 1999, Carr made a lucrative business decision and elected to chase after the inaugural Formula USA National Dirt Track Championship in 2000, which he handily won, However, conflicting rounds forced him to miss two AMA races, and Carr wound up just a few points shy of Joe Kopp in the AMA series, It spelled the difference between what could have been and what may never be, "In that respect, as far as the record books, I'm a little disappointed," Carr says, "I mean, if you go look in the record books, it doesn't say that I didn't complete the season in 2000, and that I was off at an F-USA race for two weekends, I know that, and the purists know that, and I don't have any regrets about the decision I made in 2000, At that point in time, for Harley-Davidson of Sacramento and Chris Carr, that was the best business move we could make, In the end, sometimes you have to think about business, and I'm sure that's what's happening with the AMA They need to improve the business of flat track. As long as the changes can improve the business for everybody involved in flat track and not just AMA Pro Racing, then I'm all for the change," And that is his stand, whether or not he elects to contest both series, As of right now, Carr says he has not made a decision on whether or not to race for a singles title, it sense, not only competitively t makesis. As long as I can wort< out a but financially as well, I would relish the opportunity to go after the singles championship as well as the twins," I default for over a decade. In fact, tNt ... non-~ rider to win the AMA Gnand NatiOnlII ~ was the late RIcky Graham, the Honda RS15O-mcMtnled star wrestled the number-one plaia fIWfl'I from In 1993. Since then, Harley has had a virtual'1ock on the title - even though the factory team has come up dry for the past seven seasons; Scott Parker was the last Hatley factory rider to win the championship, In 1998. "There are several issues on the V-twln side, 8Ip8CiaIIy as It pertains to running XR750s, that need to be addressed," Carr says. "The first one Is that _ pr0bably shouldn't even be running XR750s unlellS they're going to build one and put It on the "-'oom lIoor, which I don't suspect is Pili to happen. They're ping to have to come up with a replacement for it. However, I do think that it's AMA Pro Racing's responsibility to make sure that it meets the Class C ~tI that are similar to what Suzuki and Aprilia. and tnt other twin that has attempted to run at the 1000cc level. to meet it. They're [Harley-Davidson] going to have to be able to produce a motorcycle that is competltlve off the showroom floor, in the price range of what it Is to alit a TL I000 or an Aprilia Mille· whether you get It from the wrecking yard or from the showroom floor - to tum It C!rr family home, The 3000 square-foot house and 1200 square-foot located an five acres in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania, near Reading. c.rr