Cobb Thrilled With Historic Motorcycle Racing Win Over Polen
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., (March 8, 2005) – Ted Cobb never dreamed he’d get a chance to race against two-time World Superbike Champion Doug Polen. On Tuesday Cobb finally got his chance to race Polen and he made the most of it. Cobb took a close victory over Polen in a round of the Thruxton Cup Challenge, part of the American Historic Motorcycle Racing Association races taking place at legendary Daytona International Speedway.
Cobb, a riding instructor at the Kevin Schwantz Suzuki School, followed Polen the entire race and made his move out of the draft on the tri-oval to take the win by a few feet. “Following Doug it looked like the Fourth of July he was kicking up so many sparks,” Cobb said. “Just watching his lines was a great experience. He obviously has a lot of talent. If he had more time on the bike I’m sure he would have been a lot faster.”
Polen smiled after the race even though he came up a few feet short. “That was a blast,” said Polen, who last raced at Daytona in 1997. “Just being here was worth it. Daytona has made so many improvements since I was here. I had fun riding the Triumph. I was dragging parts all over the place. I wore down the bolts that held on the belly pan and that fell off.”
Cobb admitted that his Triumph was geared to utilize the draft and that’s what won him the race. He said someday he could tell his grandkids that he beat Doug Polen. “I won’t mention that it was on a 60 horsepower bike at a historic race.”
Tuesday’s races:
Jay Springsteen was nipped at the line in the Formula 750 final. Tim Joyce beat “Springer” in one of the closest races of the day. “I kept missing downshifts going into Turn 1,” Joyce said. “I’d run wide and Jay would get away from me. On the last lap I knew I was where I needed to be to get the draft and it worked out. What can I say about getting to race with Jay. It was great.”
Springsteen and Gary Nixon had their rematch in the race dubbed the ‘Battle of the 9s’ since both riders ran the number during their pro careers. On Tuesday, Springsteen nipped Nixon at the start/finish line completing a sweep in this year’s ‘Battle of the 9s’ races. It was a photo finish between Springer’s 1960s era Harley-Davidson and Nixon’s classic Triumph. “I knew he was coming,” said Nixon about Springteen’s lap-lap tri-oval charge. “I had everything tuck in. If you’ve ever raced with Springsteen it’s an adrenaline rush for sure.”
Tickets for any of the motorcycle races at Daytona International Speeedway are available online at ~http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com~ or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.
AHRMA Classic Days Vintage Road Races results
RACE 1 (Final Results) 200 GP 1. Dennis Poneleit, Marrietta, S.C., 68 Honda CB 2. Sakis Vasilopoulos, W. Palm Beach, Fla., 67 Yamaha 3. Bob Hayes, St. Augustine, Fla., 67 Yamaha
Pre 1940 1. Norbert Nickle, Shawnee, Kan., 39 BMW 2. Art Farley, Chelsea, Mich., 39 Harley WLDR 3. Ralph Wessell, Port Orange, Fla., 37 Indian Sport
Production Lightweight 1. Dwayne Fox, Hernando, Fla., 71Honda SL 2. John Regan, San Francisco, Calif., 71 Honda CB
RACE 2 (Final Results) 500 Premier 1. Pat Mooney, Sorrento, Fla., 62 Petty Manx 2. David Roper, Hicksville, N.Y., 61 Norton Manx 3. Greg Nichols, Putnam, Conn., 61 Norton Manx
Triumph Thruxton 1. Ted Cobb, Cumming, Ga., 05 Triumph 2. Doug Polen, Camarillo, Calif., 05 Triumph 3. William Stranahan, Columbus, Ohio, Triumph
RACE 3 (Race Results) BOT Formula 1 1. Robbie Nigil, Canterbury, N.H., 04 Ducati 2. Dario Marchetti, 00 Ducati 3. Chris Voelker, Templeton, Calif., 99 Ducati
BOT Formula 3 1. John Staska, Fargo, N.D., 00 Kawasaki 2. Matt Winnacker, Fulton, Mo. 3. Dan Hankle, Columbus, Ohio, 00 Suzuki SV
Super Mono 1. Gary Dipietro, Bayville, NY, 04 KTM SMR 2. Randy Shank, Manheim, PA., 7 Knight Rotax 3. Mike Parker, Goshen, Ark., 04 KTM SMR
RACE 4 (Final Results) 250 GP 1. David Roper, Hickeville, N.Y., 66 Aermacchi 2. Paul Germain, Winnipeg, 68 Yamaha 3. Chuck Davis, Muskegon, Mich., 69 Harley
Class C – Foot 1. Greg Nichols, Putnam, Conn., 49 BSA 2. Fred Mork, Martinez, Calif., 39 Norton Manx 3. Norbert Nickle, Shawnee, Kansas, 39 BMW
Class C – Hand 1. Art Farley, Chelsea, Mich., 39 Harley WLDR 2. Tim Droege, Columbia, Pa., 39 HD/WLD 3. Scott Olofson, Fairview, N.C., 37 Indian Scout
RACE 5 (Final Results)
350 GP 1. David Roper, Hicksville, N.Y., 70 H-D Spring 2. Bob Daniels, Gainesville, Fla., 68 Ducati 3. Eric Pritchard, Chasehaven, N.Y., 64 Ducati
Formula 125 1. Shannon Silva, Kenner, La., 77 Honda MR 2. Greg Steinbeck, Little Rock, Ark., 77 Honda MT-R 3. Glen Christianson, St. Benifacius, Minn., 73 Yamaha
Vintage Superbike Light 1. Dave Bourbeau, Royalston, Mass., 79 Suzuki 2. Gordon Hamilton, Novi, Mich., 78 Yamaha SR 3. Jim Killy, Oxford, Ohio, 78 Yamaha
RACE 6 (Final Results) Classic 60’s 1. Josef Brenner, Elkridge, Md., 54 BSA Goldstar 2. David King, York, 60 Norton 3. Gordon Menzie, San Diego, Calif., 61 Norton Manx
Classic 60’s 650 1. Brid Caveney, Salinas, Calif., 62 Manx Triton 2. John Tibben, Victor, Iowa., 59 Harley KHK
Production Heavyweight 1. Craig Knapp, Wellington, Nev., 72 Triumph 2. Malcolm Dixon, Houston, Texas, 70 Triumph T120
Sportsman 350 1. Eric Cook, Richmond, Va., 72 Honda CL 2. Jason Bessey, Okeechobee, Fla. 3. Scott Turner, Dunedin, Fla., 68 Honda
RACE 7 (Final Results) Formula 250 1. Mark Watts, Santee, Calif., 70 Yamaha TD 2. Craig Breckon, Sparta, Mich., 70 Can Am 3. Shannon Silva, Kenner, La., 77 Honda MT
Formula 500 1. Christopher Spargo, Minneonka, Minn., 72 Yamaha TR 2. Rich Levert, Port Angeles, 72 Honda 3. Charles Easterling, Orlando, Fla., 76 Yamaha
Sportsman 500 1. Buff Harsh, Atlanta, Ga., Honda 2. Don Jagger, Centerburg, Ohio, 71 BSA B-50 3. Patrick McGraw, Durham, N.C., 69 Triumph
RACE 8 (Final Results)
BOT Two-Stroke 1. Thomas Fournier, Brockton, Mass., 04 Yamaha 250 2. John Long, Miami, Fla., 03 Yamaha 3. Barrett Long, Miami, Fla., 03 Yamaha
BOT Formula 2 1. Matt Winnacker, Fulton, Mo 2. Kiyo Watanabe, Burbank, Calif., 04 Suzuki 3. William MacMartin, Compton, N.H., 01 Duc MH900c
SOS Two-Stroke 1. Dave Rosno, Eagle, Wisc., 93 Honda 2. Douglas Donelan, Rockville Center, N.Y., 95 Honda RS 125 3. Aaron Phinney, Belmont, Mass.
Super Mono 2 1. Chuck Campbell, Hickory, N.C., Yamaha TZ 2. Colin Fraser, North York, 01 Yamaha 3. Chris Jensen, Fords, N.J., 01 Yamaha
RACE 9 (Final Results)
Bears 1. Tim Joyce, Fort Walton Beach, Fla., 1973 Tri 750 2. Greg Nichols, Putnam, Conn., 67 Tri Rickman 3. John Magyar, Belvidere, Ill., 68 Norton
Vintage Superbike Heavy 1. John Staska, Fargo, N.D., 76 Suzuki 2. Will Harding, Gainesville, Fla. 3. Jeff Hinds, Lewis Center, Ohio, 74 KZ
RACE 10 (Final Results)
Formula 750 1. Tim Joyce, Ft. Walton Beach, Fla., 1972 XRTT750 2. Jay Springsteen, Lapeer, Mich., 72 Harley XR 3. John Ellis, Middleville, Mich., 72 Yamaha
Sportsman 750Falif., 99 Ducati
BOT Form 1. Jesse Morris, Phoenixville, Pa., 68 Triumph 2. Geir Jacobson, 3150 Tolvsrod, 72 Triumph 3. Mark Nadelkov, DeLand, Fla., 72 Yamaha
RACE 11 (Final Results)
Production Singles 1. Gary Dipietro, Bayville, N.Y., 04 KTM SMR 2. Robert McLendon III, Pensacola, Fla., 03 Honda CRF 3. William House, Lakeland, Fla., 96 MZ Skorpion
Sound of Thunder 1. Fred Eiker, Santa Fe, N.M., 02 Ducati 2. Goshi Ashikari, Yokohama-Shj, 02 Triumph 3. Robbie Nigl, Canterbury, N.H., 04 Ducati
RACE 12 (Final Results)
Formula Vintage 1. Jay Springsteen, Lapeer, Mich., 72 Harley XR 2. Gary Nixon, Phoenix, Md., 72 Triumph 3. Kyle Campbell, Homer, Ga., 70 Honda CR
Vintage Superbike Middle 1. Brian Sawyer, Lexington, Ky., 72 BMW 2. George Irish Jr., Stafford, Va., 81 Suzuki 3. Gordon Hamilton, Novi, Mich., 78 Yamaha SR