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M()T()CR()SS aMaNationar 125/500cc MX Series: Rounds 8/2 sa hJ tr E B E AI O) O) (o C\ a bJl A|r G!tim{.d 9500 lpccrraor! rool .dvrnletc of ih€ m.r-p.dccr w..rh.r coDdiaioru .r SpriDg Crt.l Moro(to.! p. to w.actr Mil(c Irnocco (7) wiD rt l25cc class. Stanton ops atsp,ing Creek t By Chris Jonnum Photos by Steve Berkner and Jonnum 6 MILLVILT, MN, AUG. 16 ((f have yet to win a title in the - - ! 500cc class. I've let them slip I away a couple times, and I don't want to make the same mistake this year," said Honda's Jeff Stanton after posting 2-l moto finishes to earn the overall win in the 500cc National at Spring Creek MX Park. In the past four years, Stanton has amassed three Camel Supercross and three 250cL National -Championships, but the 5(X)cc crown has continued to elude the quiet 24-year-old from Sherwood, Michigan. Stanton limped home secondbehind winner Mike Kiedrowski with a broken transmission in the opening moto, but rebounded with a resounding win in the concluding moto to clinch the overall victory. It was Stanton's sixth 500cc National overall win of his career. Stanton earned 91600 of the $15,000 500cc purse. Stanton entered the race-in a tie for first in the series point standings with Kawasaki's Mike Kiedrowski, and despite garnering the overall victory the story remains the same. Kiedrowski matched Stanton point for point, as he finished the day second overall via l-2 moto finishes. Like Stanton, Kiedrowski took home 91600 for his efforts. "Jeff just flat beat me today, but this is one of his better tracks," said Kiedrowski. "They say the next rhree rounds are good Kawasaki tracks, so I'm still right in there." Third overall was last year's Mill- ville winner and 500cc National Champion, Jean-Michel Bayle, who finished third in both motos. The Team Honda rider was riding for the first time since crashing two weeks earlier at the opening round in Washougal, Washington, where he did not finish either moto. Rounding out the top five were privateer John Dowd, who turned in a pair of respectable fourth-place Iinishes aboard a Kawasaki, and No I een,/ Yamah a,z S i n i sa I o,/ Sco t t,/ Ohlins-backed Larry Brooks, who had a 5-6 moto tally. . Stanton and Kiedrowski each have 92 series points, while Kawasaki's Jeff Ward - who had an off-day, posting a 7-5 score for sixth overall - sits in third in the standings with 74 points. In the l25cc class, Team Kawasaki's Mike LaRocco scored his third- consecutive National win at the facility and padded his series points lead over Yamaha's Jeff Emig. LaRocco handily won the opening moto and finished a strong second behind Emig in the concluding moto to earn the overall wtn. Emig, who had won the three previous l25cc Nationals, suffered a disastrous first moto (he crashed and then had a flat tire) and ended the day fifth overall. "I won my first National here two years ago," said'LaRocto. 'The track is really rough, and I like rough tracks. It feels good to win again. I was starting to get worried there, with Emig winning the last three." LaRocco earned 91600 of the 912,500 l25cc class purse for his efforts. Second overall wenr to Tuf Racing- backed privateer Ron Tichenor, who turned in consistent 3-3 moto finishes and moved into third in the series standings. DGY Racing' his best finish s Doug Henry equaled of the season so far, scoring third overall by placing fourth in both moros. On the Line Racing's Erik Kehoe and Emig rounded out the top five . overall, finishing fourth and fifth, respectively. LaRocco currently sits atop the series standings with 334 points, while Emig trails with 286. Tichenor's day gave him a total of 251 points, moving him past Team Suzuki's Guy Cooper into third in the standings. Cooper had a day he would rather forget, as he suffered crashes and poor starts and finished eighth overall with 6-l I moto scores. An ettimated 9500 spectators turned out to watch the riders do battle on what most agreed was a very tough course. Using the natural hills and gullies of a picturesque valley, the John Martin-owned track also featured a sandy whoop section that gave many riders problems. Weather conditions were ideal for racing, as clouds kept temperatures in the low 80s. Some riders mentioned that dust was a problem, but most seemed pleased with the track. 500cc National Kiedrowski started the first 30- minute plus-two-lap 500cc moto off with a holeshot. Teammate Ward passed him shortly after the start and led briefly, but Kiedrowski quickly got back around before the opening lap ended. As the pack completed the first lap, Stanton had moved by Ward and was right behind Kiedrowski. Bayle was running fourth, a short distance behind Ward, while Dowd was in fifth and Brooks sixth. Bayle soon moved around Ward for third and began to push Stanton, who was in turn giving Kiedrowski fits. Dowd dropped Ward back another spot when he took over fourth on lap three of the l6-lap moro, but by that time Kiedrowski, Stanton and Bayle's battle had already pulled them well ahead of the pack. Stanton continued to hound Kied- rowski for a few more laps before finally moving by midway through the moto. The duo began to pull a slight lead on Bayle, who sat alone in third. "I was trying my best to make the best finish possible, but they were a little faster today," said Bayle. "I rode this morning for the first time since I fell at Washougal, and I am not quite fasq enough. Dowd continued to ride a lonely fourth, while Noleen teammates Brooks and Lance Smail both passed Ward to take over the fifth and sixth slots, respectively, on their 360cc-kitted Yamaha YZ250s. "The 360 was godd on this track, since it's so rough and tight," said Brooks. "I felt like I was racing against the riders, where at Washougal it seemed like I was racing against their bikes." Once he was bumped back to second by Stanton, Kiedrowski tried to get back around the Honda pilot for several laps, but by the l2th circuit Stanton had opened up approximately a four-second advantage. It looked like Stanton was headed for a sure moto win, but the complexion of the race suddenly changed one lap later. As Stanton rode by the mechanics' area, he held up three fingers and pointed to his engine, signaling that his bike had lost third gear. "My bike was stuck. in second, and third is the riding gear on this track," said Stanton. "You use it (third gear) for almost the whole track." a n r3 .,, .; u*;,"*.i%. t