Updated Post: Picotte Takes Sunday’s Canadian Superbike, Sportbike Race Wins At Mosport

Updated Post: Picotte Takes Sunday’s Canadian Superbike, Sportbike Race Wins At Mosport

© 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

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From a press release issued by series organizers:

BOWMANVILLE, ON Pascal Picotte continued his Parts Canada Superbike Championship winning streak at Mosport International Raceway Sunday by completing a sweep of the weekend Superbike doubleheader. Picotte led all seven laps of the restarted race on his Team Yamaha / Picotte Performance Yamaha YZF-R1 and finished 2.589 secs. ahead of the Honda Canada / Fast Company Honda CBR1000RR of Brantford, ON’s Jordan Szoke.

Kevin Lacombe of Granby, QC completed the podium on his Lacombe Racing Yamaha YZF-R1 after making a last lap pass of the Coors Light Racing / Blackfoot Suzuki GSX-R1000 ridden by Craig Connell.

Picotte’s victory was his fourth in succession and he strengthened his bid for a second straight national title. He now has a commanding lead of 89 points, 259-170 over Szoke with three rounds remaining in the eight-race series. Picotte also swept both ends of a doubleheader at Calgary’s Race City Motorsport Park.

“I didn’t have the greatest start the first time,” said Picotte after claiming his 12th career national Superbike race win. “For the restart we had new tires and I knew I had to get away quickly.”

Picotte, Szoke, Lacombe and Connell were involved in a thrilling four-way scrap for the lead for the first part of the race, which was originally scheduled for 16 laps. Szoke was leading when the red flag came out on lap 8 for a crash involving Maple Ridge, BC’s Steve Crevier.

But on the restart Picotte surged into the lead and was never under threat. He led by almost one second after the first lap and more than two seconds after four.

A poor start left Szoke fourth on the restart but he passed Lacombe on lap 3 and moved into second on lap 6 to score his best finish of the season.

Crevier suffered a minor concussion and bruised back in his fall and did not rejoin the race.

In other action at Mosport, Picotte also stretched his lead in the Hindle Exhaust Pro 600 Sport Bike Championship with his second victory of the weekend on his Yamaha YZF-R6. Crevier was second, 3.037 secs. behind on a Suzuki GSX-R600 and Connell completed the podium aboard his Suzuki GSX-R600.

North Vancouver’s Darren James won a dramatic International Motorcycle SUPERSHOW Amateur 600 Sport Bike feature on his Ruthless Racing Inc. Yamaha YZF-R6, edging Mississauga, ON’s Rudy Raposo and Guelph, ON rider Tyler Kennedy in a last lap shootout.

The Parts Canada Superbike Championship continues at Atlantic Motorsport Park in Shubenacadie, NS Aug. 6-8.

This weekend’s events will be televised on TSN on Aug. 7 and Sept. 11 at 11:30 a.m. EDT and on Quebec’s RDS on Sept. 12 at 12:00 p.m. and Sept. 25 at 11:30 a.m. The action will also appear in one-hour format later this summer on TORONTO1 and A-Channel stations in Winnipeg, Calgary and Edmonton.


More, from a press release issued by Fast Company:

BOWMANVILLE, ON The Honda Canada / Fast Company racing team enjoyed its best outing of the 2004 Parts Canada Superbike Championship season as Jordan Szoke scored a pair of podium finishes at Mosport International Raceway last weekend.

The Brantford, ON rider took his Honda CBR1000RR to a second place finish in Sunday’s second Superbike race of the doubleheader weekend, while a day earlier he scored a third in the first of two Hindle Exhaust Pro 600 Sport Bike races.

Szoke had a fourth in the opening Superbike race at Mosport and ended the weekend second in the Parts Canada Superbike standings after five of eight events.

“I consider Mosport one of my favourite tracks,” said Szoke. “We were so close today. It’s sad we didn’t get it [the win].”

Szoke was race winner Pascal Picotte’s closest challenger on the CBR1000RR and was in front when a red flag halted action after seven of a scheduled 16 laps.

He didn’t get as strong a start when action resumed but fought his way up from fourth at the end of the opening lap to move into second two laps from the end.

Szoke is 89 points behind Picotte, 259-170 with three races remaining in the Parts Canada Superbike season but the CBR1000RR, which debuted this year is starting to show its abundant potential.

Teammate Andrew Nelson of Kars, ON had a ninth and a sixth in the two Superbike races on his Honda CBR1000RR. In the second race he took advantage of an excellent start after the red flag to run fifth after one lap, but was in a fierce five-way battle for the spot. He is now seventh in the Parts Canada Superbike standings with 121 points.

Szoke also challenged for the lead in the first Pro 600 Sport Bike race at Mosport and ran at the front for five of the 14 laps on his Honda CBR600RR before settling for third. Nelson, who had qualified second was forced out after only two laps with a rare mechanical problem.

On Sunday, Szoke and Nelson set the early pace in the wet conditions on the CBR600RR’s, with Nelson leading the first five laps. But as the track dried their rain tires started to wear and they slipped to sixth and seventh at the finish, Nelson ahead of Szoke.

Szoke is now fifth in the Pro 600 Sport Bike standings, just 15 points out of second, while Nelson is sixth.

The Honda Canada / Fast Company team will be back in action at Nova Scotia’s Atlantic Motorsport Park Aug. 6-8.

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