Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
A second place in Superbike and a win in Sportbike at Homestead-Miami Speedway Sunday earned Butler Machinery’s Robert Jensen Formula USA National Championships in both classes.
Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Vincent Haskovec rode a GSX-R600 AMA Formula Xtreme bike shod with Michelin DOT-labeled tires to victory in the 18-lap Superbike final, but Jensen’s conservative second place on his Michelin-shod Yamaha YZF-R6 was more than enough for him to claim the title.
Later, Jensen took to the track for the main event, the Sportbike race and Championship showdown with Arclight Suzuki’s Jeff Wood. Though there were several Championship scenarios, the situation essentially boiled down to the rider who beat the other would be Champion.
After passing early leader Michael Barnes, Jensen and Wood (who ride a Dunlop-sponsored GSX-R600) had a private duel for the remainder of the 18-lap sprint. Jensen led from lap six, but Wood was only a few bikelengths behind throughout the event. The critical moment of the race came late when Wood was held up by backmarkers. Jensen gained a comfortable cushion, won the race and his second Championship of the day.
Earlier in the day, Hotbodies/Prieto Racing’s Geoff May, riding a Suzuki GSX-R1000 with 16.5-inch Pirelli slicks, lowered the track record from 1:25.0 to 1:24.373 en route to winning the Unlimited Grand Prix over Steve Rapp, who rode a Formula Sportbike-restricted GSX-R750 on DOT-labeled Michelin tires.
Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Rapp came back on the same machine to dominate the Formula Sportbike final, winning by six seconds after leading by as much as 20 seconds during the race. Jensen took second after a race-long fight with Arclight Suzuki’s Scott Harwell, who clinched the Formula Sportbike National Championship at the penultimate round.
Harding Harley-Davidson/Buell’s Dave Estok closed out his 2004 season with a flag-to-flag win in Thunderbike on a Pirelli-equipped Buell Firebolt. Motorcycle Performance’s Ed Key finished second, just holding off Estok’s teammate-for-the-weekend Tim Bermisderfer, brother of 2004 F-USA Thunderbike Champion Bryan Bemisderfer, who DNF the race Sunday.
Final Race Results:
Sportbike:
1. Robert Jensen, Yamaha YZF-R6, 18 laps
2. Jeff Wood, Suzuki GSX-R600
3. Michael Barnes, Yamaha YZF-R6
4. Scott Harwell, Suzuki GSX-R600
5. Scott Greenwood, Yamaha YZF-R6
6. Mike Himmelsbach, Yamaha YZF-R6
7. Geoff May, Suzuki GSX-R600
8. Tristan Schoenewald, Suzuki GSX-R600
9. Barrett Long, Yamaha YF-R6
10. Brian Stokes, Suzuki GSX-R600
Superbike:
1. Vincent Haskovec, Suzuki GSX-R600, 18 laps
2. Robert Jensen, Yamaha YZF-R6
3. Jeff Wood, Suzuki GSX-R600
4. Michael Barnes, Yamaha YZF-R6
5. Scott Greenwood, Yamaha YZF-R6
6. Scott Harwell, Suzuki GSX-R600
7. Geoff May, Suzuki GSX-R600
8. Mike Himmelsbach, Yamaha YZF-R6
9. Heath Small, Yamaha YZF-R6
10. David McPherson, Yamaha YZF-R6
Formula Sportbike:
1. Steve Rapp, Suzuki GSX-R750, 18 laps
2. Robert Jensen, Suzuki GSX-R750
3. Scott Harwell, Suzuki GSX-R750
4. Marco Martinez, Suzuki GSX-R750
5. Michael Niksa, Suzuki GSX-R750
6. Kevin Gordon, Suzuki GSX-R750
7. Carlos Eduardo Macias, Ducati 996
8. Joe Ribeiro, Suzuki GSX-R750
9. Brian Stokes, Suzuki GSX-R750
10. Ryan Gordon, Suzuki GSX-R750, DNF, crash
Thunderbike:
1. Dave Estok, Buell XB9R, 12 laps
2. Ed Key, Suzuki SV650
3. Tim Bemisderfer, Buell XB9R
4. Michael Niksa, Suzuki SV650
5. Jeff Johnson, Buell XB9R
6. Walt Sipp, Buell XB9R
7. Joseph Rozynski, Buell XB9R
8. John Costa, Buell XB9R
9. Jerry Wood, Ducati Supermono
10. Darren Danilowicz, Suzuki SV650
Unlimited Grand Prix:
1. Geoff May, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 5 laps
2. Steve Rapp, Suzuki GSX-R750
3. Marco Martinez, Suzuki GSX-R1000
4. Heath Small, Yamaha YZF-R1
5. Jim Pihokken, Suzuki GSX-R1000
6. Ryan Gordon, Suzuki GSX-R750
7. Hector Jimenez, Suzuki GSX-R750
8. David Mcenery, Suzuki GSX-R1000
9. Kevin Gordon, Suzuki GSX-R750
10. Jorge Rodriguez, Suzuki GSX-R1000
Final Formula USA Championship Point Standings:
Sportbike:
1. Robert Jensen, 137
2. Jeff Wood, 136
3. Scott Greenwood, 105
Superbike:
1. Robert Jensen, 144
2. Jeff Wood, 116
3. Mike Himmelsbach, 90
Formula Sportbike:
1. Scott Harwell, Suzuki, 141
2. Robert Jensen, Suzuki, 117
3. Brian Stokes, 100
Thunderbike:
1. Bryan Bemisderfer, 105
2. Dave Estok, 93
3. Jeff Johnson, 73