Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.
By Beth Wyse
Vesrah Suzuki won a shortened 4-hour Dunlop/WERA National Endurance Series race at Nashville Superspeedway; the race was red-flagged with 30 minutes remaining.
The Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R1000 ridden by Tray Batey, Mark Junge and John Jacobi won by a 2-lap margin of victory over second-place Army of Darkness’ Mark Crozier and Sam Fleming on a Suzuki GSX-R600. Vesrah has taken the overall win in all three rounds this season.
Team InfoTech/Valter Moto took third overall, the team’s first podium, and the Mediumweight Superstock class victory on a Yamaha YZF-R6. Bradley Champion and Nicky Wimbauer rode. The team was in second behind Vesrah through the first hour of the race.
In Heavyweight Superstock, Team Xtreme II was the top team with Rob Palmieri, George Gentle and Greg Moore finishing seventh overall on a Suzuki GSX-R750.
Tight Squeeze II earned its third consecutive Lightweight Superbike class win, with riders Martin Musil and Chris Normand on a Suzuki SV650, finishing 11th overall.
The race was red-flagged at 2-1/2 hours when Neighbor Of The Beast’s Roman Kilgore and XZ Racing’s John Gerl collided and crashed in turn one, both ending up in the hospital. Kilgore was hit by a bike in the incident and suffered three pelvic fractures, two non-displaced and one displaced. Gerl suffered a head injury. Updated condition reports were not available at post time.
Many racers expressed dislike for the track, which combines a NASCAR oval with a tight infield road course. The rough transitions between the banking and the infield course, few passing opportunities and a profusion of walls were among the complaints.
OVERALL RESULTS:
1. Vesrah Suzuki (Mark Junge/Tray Batey/John Jacobi), Heavyweight Superbike, Suz GSX-R1000, 139 laps
2. Army of Darkness (Sam Fleming/Mark Crozier), Mediumweight Superbike, Suz GSX-R600, 137 laps
3. Team InfoTech/Valter Moto (Bradley Champion/Nicky Wimbauer), Mediumweight Superstock, Yam YZF-R6, 137 laps
4. Team Xtreme (Billy Ethridge/Mark Edwards), Heavyweight Superbike, Suz GSX-R1000, 135 laps
5. Taylor Knapp/Ray C’s Racing (Fritz Kling/Larry Denning), Mediumweight Superstock, Yam YZF-R6, 135 laps
6. Team Velocity Racing (Chuck Ivey/Steve Breckenridge/Reuben Frankenfield), Mediumweight Superstock, Suz GSX-R600, 135 laps
7. Team Xtreme II (Rob Palmieri/George Gentle/Greg Moore), Heavyweight Superstock, Suz GSX-R750, 134 laps
8. Velocity Crew Racing (Kevin Perkins/Paul Youngman/John Joseph), Mediumweight Superbike, Suz GSX-R600, 133 laps
9. B&S Endurance (Brian Dalke/Jeremy Dunn/Scott Harwell), Mediumweight Superstock, Suz GSX-R600, 133 laps
10. JLR Racing (Larry Dulaney/James Stroud/Ricky Ford), Mediumweight Superstock, Hon CBR600F4i, 133 laps