From a press release issued by the Plummer-Menapace Group on behalf of Pirelli:

PIRELLI RACING’S HUGE WEEKEND:

1st And 3rd In World Supersport, 4th In World Superbike, 1st In WERA Nat’l Endurance, 1st in Five WERA National Races, 1st And 3rd At World Motocross Opening Round

(Rome, GA) Racers dream about weekends like this. And Pirelli tires just had one at both the world and national levels roadracing and motocross.

Young Aussie Chris Vermeulen and his Pirelli DOT Supercorsa-shod factory Ten Kate Honda 600 won his first-ever World Supersport race in his home country’s round at Phillip Island. Belgarda Yamaha’s Jurgen van den Goorbergh, also on Supercorsas, took third, giving Pirelli two of the three podium finishes and five of the top 10 World Supersport positions. In Phillip Island’s first World Superbike race of the weekend, Pirelli’s Steve Martin had both his and Pirelli’s best series finish with a fourth.

At home, Pirelli-sponsored Vesrah Suzuki and riders Mark Junge, Tray Batey, and John Jacobi, took the overall win and first in Heavyweight Superbike at the opening round of WERA’s National Endurance Series at Jennings GP in Florida. Team Northern Getaway also gave Pirelli a third in Heavyweight Superbike. Pirelli and Team InfoTech riders Nicky Wimbauer, Bradley Champion, and Bobby Miosek took fifth overall and first in Mediumweight Superstock on their Yamaha R6. Ricochet Racing and Ray C’s Racing completed the Italian tire company’s sweep of the Mediumweight Superstock endurance podium.

In the Jennings WERA National Challenge races, Tray Batey, his Vesrah Suzukis, and Pirelli tires, won three of the weekend’s 10 races: 750 Superstock, Heavyweight Twins, and the Pirelli-sponsored Formula 1 final. Bradley Champion and Bill St. John completed a Pirelli sweep in Heavyweight Twins. Mark Junge, also on a Vesrah Suzuki, won Open Superstock, and Bradley Champion won Lightweight Twins, giving Pirelli five wins for the weekend. First-year Expert Martin Musil put his Suzuki SV650 right behind Champion’s to give Pirelli the top two spots on that race podium.

Meanwhile, across the pond and in the dirt, Pirelli’s 250cc World Motocross Champion Mickael Pichon, picked up where he left off last season, winning his tenth straight MX GP race at the first round of the new Motocross GP World Championship series in Spain. Pirelli’s other 2002 World MX champion, 500cc class champ Stefan Everts, finished third riding a works Yamaha/Pirelli 450 four-stroke in the brand new, combined “Motocross” class that puts 250cc two-strokes against 450cc four-strokes, eliminating the separate 250cc and 500cc classes of prior years. Pichon was aboard his factory 250cc two-stroke Suzuki in Spain.