Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Sorting out the truth from the BS is difficult when the subject is the controversy at last weekend’s GSX-R World Cup Final, simply due to the number of conflicting stories told by various participating or interested parties.

But one uncontested fact stands out: No racer participating in the 2004 GSX-R World Cup Final at Road Atlanta turned a wheel on the racetrack with suspension parts known to be illegal. The controversy over alleged fork and shock modifications took place prior to the start of GSX-R World Cup practice, and the suspect pieces were replaced before any of the GSX-R World Cup riders went on track.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Ed Key, Steve Rapp, Jeff Wood, Robert Jensen and Edward Lis won races and CCS National Championships Saturday at the Race of Champions at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.

Motorcycle Performance’s Key, 49, won two more winner-take-all run-offs, bringing his total for the weekend to five races and five CCS National Championships won. In the Lightweight Supersport race, pole-sitter Key held off Robert Fisher, who started from row six of the grid, to win by 0.8-second on his Pirelli-equipped Suzuki SV650. Riding his SV650 Superbike, Key later withstood another strong challenge, this one from Stephen Servis, to win in Lightweight Superbike.

Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Steve Rapp rode Michelin’s newest DOT-labeled production race tires, the “Power Race,” to victory in the Heavyweight Superstock final, the tires’ debut event. Starting on row nine of the grid, Rapp passed Wood, Scott Harwell, Jensen, Geoff May and several others on his way to a 0.5-second margin of victory.

Wood won the twice-restarted Middleweight Supersport sprint by three seconds on his Dunlop-equipped Arclight Suzuki GSX-R600, beating Jensen, Harwell, Scott Greenwood and Michael Barnes.

Butler Machinery’s Jensen rode his Michelin-fitted Yamaha YZF-R6 to his first win of the weekend in the Yamaha-contingency-paying Middleweight Superbike contest, topping Barnes, Greenwood, Mike Himmelsbach and teen Tristan Schoenewald.

Riding a Dunlop-slick-shod Suzuki GSX-R750, East Coast Superbikes’ Edward Lis, 46, won his first-ever National Championship in the controversial Heavyweight Superbike final. Former track record holder Marco Martinez won the race on the track, but because he failed to acknowledge a black flag (brought about by his machine smoking), Martinez lost the win.

From a press release issued by the FIM:

Paris, October 23 2004

FIM Centenary Congress – Paris 2004

The 122nd Congress of the FIM ended today with the last session of the General Assembly, in the presence of delegates from 76 countries. The General Assembly unanimously approved the reports of the Commissions and Panels as well as the 2005 budget. Mrs. Andrea Coleman made a presentation on the current situation of the Riders for Health programme “Bringing Health to Rural Africa”.
– Within the framework of the FIM Centenary celebrations, the six founding Federations of the Fédération Internationale des Clubs Motocyclistes in 1904, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany and Great Britain, received special commemorative plaques. Moreover, a representative of each member Federation of the FIM present, as well as the FIM promoters, received a Centenary medal.
– Two 2004 World Champions, whose Championships finished earlier this year, received their medals: Janne Tapio (Finland, Snowcross World Champion), and Dimitry Bulankin (Russia, Ice Racing World Champion).
– The Fair-Play Trophy was awarded to the Italian rider Roberto Rolfo for his exemplary behaviour during the 250 Catalunya Grand Prix.
– The Environment Award was awarded to the CBM for its work during the International Six Days’ Enduro in Fortaleza in November 2003.
– The 2005 Conference Meetings will be held from 18 to 20 February in Geneva.
– The 2005 Biennial Session will take place from 21 to 24 October in Geneva.
– The 2006 Congress will be organised in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
The main decisions and modifications for the 2005 season are the following:

Road Racing Commission (CCR)
– The Superstock class, a European Championship until 2004, will be allocated the title of Superstock 1000cc FIM Cup and will be held within the European rounds of the 2005 Superbike/Supersport World Championships.
– Endurance World Championship: The Ride through procedure is cancelled and replaced by the Stop & go procedure (stop: 30 seconds) – The speed limit in the pit lane will be 60 km/h (instead of 85 km/h) – Championship points: the following points will be awarded to the first 15 teams classified. Races of 6 hours or less, or 900 km or less: no change (25, 20, 16, 13, etc.). Races of more than 6 to 12 hours, or more than 900 to 1800 km: 30, 24, 19, 16, 13, 12, 11, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 2, 1. Races of more than 12 hours or more than 1800 km: 35, 28, 22, 18, 15, 14, 13, 11, 10, 8, 7, 6, 4, 3, 1 – Additions to the gearbox or selector mechanism such as quick shift systems are authorised. A system switching off the ignition or the injection can be used on the selector mechanism. The CDI box may be modified or changed, but the connections between the box and the electric wires must remain as original.
– The Sidecar class will be allocated the title of World Championship as from 2005 for rider, passenger, engine manufacturer, chassis manufacturer. The calendar will have eight rounds: 08/05: Brands Hatch-GBR; 10/07: Schleiz-GER; 21/08: Rijeka-CRO; 11/09: St Petersburg-RUS; + 4 events to be announced – Sidecar grid: 3-2-3-2…

From a press release issued by Lindemann Engineering (LE):

Nice end to a good year! LE-equipped Rich Oliver drags himself and a bunch of TZ parts out of the cobwebs to crush all opponents in the Roadracing World 250/50 at Willow. LE-equipped Michael “Barney” Barnes gets second in the Toyota 200 at Willow 200 on the Lion/Hypercycle bike.

At the beginning of the year Roadracing World asked Jeremy Toye to run a box-stock streetbike in an AMA Superbike event! With a stock shock yet! Jeremy Toye got 11th, lights, horn, muffler and all. The only performance mods were a Lindemann Engineering rework of the stock R-1 forks and shock, using the stock pistons as per LE specs.

During the 2004 season, LE riders were AMA Pro top privateers 12 times, including a sixth in Superbike at Mid-Ohio and a fifth in Superstock at Virginia by Jake Holden, both times coming from behind to pass some of the factory boys on his LE-suspended, stock-fork-piston, Superstock bike.

From a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing and from a follow-up press release correcting the dates for Daytona and Brainerd:

2005 AMA Superbike Championship Schedule Announced

PICKERINGTON, Ohio (Oct. 22, 2004) — AMA Pro Racing has released its schedule for the 2005 AMA Superbike Championship. Highlights include a round at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in conjunction with the MotoGP World Championship event and the debut of a new track configuration for the Daytona 200.

“2005 is going to be an exciting year for fans of AMA road racing,” said Scott Hollingsworth, AMA Pro Racing CEO. “We’re looking forward to showcasing AMA Superbikes alongside the exotic MotoGP bikes at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca as well as returning to all the other great tracks that make up our championship. Plus, with five different riders, on three brands of motorcycles winning AMA Superbike races in 2004, the stage is set to see another closely contested series next year.”

The 2005 AMA Superbike Championship schedule is as follows:


Date Location


March 10-12 Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Fla.

April 22-24 Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, Ala. (Superbike Doubleheader)

April 29-May 1 California Speedway, Fontana, Calif. (Superbike Doubleheader)

May 13-15 Infineon Raceway, Sonoma, Calif. (Superbike Doubleheader)

May 21-22 Pikes Peak International Raceway, Fountain, Colo.

June 3-5 Road America, Elkhart Lake, Wisc. (Superbike Doubleheader)

June 25-26 Brainerd International Raceway, Brainerd, Minn.*

July 8-10 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, Calif. (Superbike Doubleheader)

July 22-24 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio (Superbike Doubleheader)

Sept. 2-4 Road Atlanta, Braselton, Ga. (Superbike Doubleheader)

Sept. 17-18 Virginia International Raceway, Alton, Va.*

* Tentative. To be confirmed.



More, from another press release issued by AMA Pro Racing because, hey, sometimes we like to watch motocross:

2005 AMA Motocross Championship Schedule Announced

PICKERINGTON, Ohio (Oct. 22, 2004) — AMA Pro Racing has released its schedule for the 2005 AMA Motocross Championship. The championship consists of 12 rounds including a new round in Lakewood, Colo. Additionally, similar to 2004, the series begins and ends in California and provides teams and riders with an off-weekend between the end of the THQ AMA Supercross Series and the beginning of the AMA Motocross Championship.

AMA Pro Racing SX/MX Series Manager Steve Whitelock is excited about the addition of the Colorado round. “We’re looking forward to bringing AMA Motocross to racing fans in the Denver area,” said Whitelock. “We’re confident that the new event at Thunder Valley will be a nice complement to the existing schedule. Plus, it enables us to reach a region of the Unites States that has lacked an AMA Motocross race. ”

The 2005 AMA Motocross Championship schedule is as follows:


Date Location


May 21-22 Hangtown Classic, Sacramento, Calif.

May 18-29 High Point Raceway, Mt. Morris, Penn.

June 11-12 Motocross 338, Southwick, Mass.

June 18-19 Budds Creek Motocross Park, Budds Creek, Md.

July 2-3 Red Bud Track-N-Trail, Buchanan, Mich.

July 16-17 Unadilla Valley Sports Center, New Berlin, N.Y.

July 23-24 Thunder Valley Motocross Park, Lakewood, Colo.

July 30-31 Washougal Motocross Park, Washougal, Wash.

Aug. 13-14 Spring Creek Motocross Park, Millville, Minn.

Aug. 20-21 Broome-Tioga Sports Center, Binghamton, N.Y.

Sept. 3-4 Steel City Raceway, Delmont, Penn.

Sept. 10-11 Glen Helen Raceway Park, San Bernardino, Calif.



More, from a press release issued by Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca:

WORLD CLASS AND WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RACING
HIGHLIGHT 2005 SEASON AT MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA

MONTEREY, Calif. (Oct. 22, 2004) – The 2005 schedule of races at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca once again features the best in sports car, open-wheel, historic and motorcycle racing, including the long-awaited return of the MotoGP World Championship to the USA for the first time since 1994.

The season begins with the U.S. Sports Car Invitational April 29-May 1. This year’s invitee is the Grand American Road Racing Association’s Rolex Sports Car Series, for Daytona Prototypes and GT cars. The Rolex Series will stage its first event on the Monterey Peninsula – a 250-mile race with a two-hour, 30-minute time limit – on Sunday, May 1. The Rolex Series will be joined by the Grand-Am Cup for high-performance street stock cars, along with additional support races to be added.

Following a nine-week break to complete track improvements begun in the off-season, the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix July 8-10 will have the eyes of the world focused on Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca when the MotoGP World Championship returns to the USA and Laguna Seca for the first time since 1994. Support races for the event include a doubleheader for the American Motorcycle Association’s (AMA) U.S. Superbike Championship. Additional support races will be announced in the near future.

On August 19-21, the Monterey Peninsula hills will once again resonate with the sounds of racing cars from a bygone era with the running of the premier historic automobile event in North America – the 32nd Annual Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races Presented by Chrysler. Fans of the event are anxiously awaiting the announcement of the feature for the 2005 event.

The Grand Prix of Monterey is scheduled for Sept. 9-11 and for the 25th consecutive year will feature the Champ Car World Series, pending final negotiations with the series. Support races for the weekend should include the crowd-pleasing Trans-Am, Toyota-Atlantic and Formula BMW Championships.

The 2005 season closes in impressive fashion with the return of the American Le Mans Series in the Monterey Sports Car Championships Oct. 14-16, featuring many of the cars and drivers that compete in the world-famous 24 Hours of Le Mans. Following a successful run into the darkness earlier this month, the 2005 event is scheduled to be another Saturday afternoon-into-evening four-hour contest. The weekend schedule will also include the SPEED World Challenge and Star Mazda Series.

“The 2004 season was one of the best in the 47 year history of this circuit so it was a challenge to put together a schedule that met or exceeded our customer’s expectations,” said Gill Campbell, general manager and CEO of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. “But adding the Rolex Sports Car Series and the MotoGP World Championship to our Monterey Historic, Champ Car and American Le Mans events, we feel we’re producing the best season ever in the history of this great facility.”

General admission tickets and paddock passes for the 2005 Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix are on sale now, with reserved grandstand, individual hospitality and camping sites on sale this Monday, Oct. 25. Tickets for the other four races of the 2005 season go on sale Monday, Nov. 1. Fans can call (800) 327-SECA or log onto www.laguna-seca.com to purchase tickets or get additional information.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Motorcycle Performance’s Ed Key was the star of the day Friday at the Championship Cup Series (CCS) Race of Champions (ROC) at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.

Riding a 98-horsepower, 303-pound Suzuki SV650 on Pirelli tires, 49-year-old Key won the GT Lights, Thunderbike and Lightweight Formula 40 winner-take-all National Championship run-offs, bringing his career total to 16 road racing National Championships.

In the red-flag-interrupted GT Lights race, Key battled with Stephen Servis early on before pulling away to win by two seconds. Key got through traffic better in the crowded Formula 40 Lightweight eight-lapper to beat Williams Harley-Davidson’s Randy Rega. Key’s final win of his first-ever race day at Homestead came in Thunderbike over Harding Harley-Davidson/Buell teammates Dave Estok and Bryan Bemisderfer, who were closing fast when the checkered flag fell on the eight-lap sprint.

“I knew those Harley boys would be coming. Estok and Bemisderfer are excellent riders,” Key told Roadracingworld.com. “I knew I had to get out front early and keep my head down the whole way. I don’t know if I could’ve beat them had they started on the front row with me, but a win’s a win.”

Other race, and National Championship, winners Friday included: Arclight Suzuki’s Scott Harwell, who beat Robert Jensen and Marco Martinez in the 30-minute, 18-lap GTO enduro; Harwell’s teammate Jeff Wood over Michael Himmelsbach and Martinez in the wet GTU competition; Zambrana Performance’s Steve Wenner in 125cc Grand Prix over Scott Coccoli and Tom Swager; BCM Ducati’s Michael Dube over Antonio Caparros and Kevin Weir in Ultra Light Superbike; JR Transportation’s Joe Ribeiro in Formula 40; and Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Steve Rapp, who broke the motorcycle lap record for the 2.2-mile road course at Homestead en route to winning the red-flag-interrupted Unlimited Supersport 8-lap sprint on a GSX-R750 equipped with Michelin DOT-labeled tires and set up to run in Sunday’s horsepower-restricted Formula Sportbike race.

The Race of Champions continues Saturday at Homestead with more CCS National Championship run-offs and qualifying for the Formula USA National classes.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

F-USA officials today announced that Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Steve Rapp broke the official motorcycle lap record at Homestead-Miami Speedway during practice Thursday, turning a transponder-timed 1:26.368 lap at an average speed of 92.117 mph.

Rapp used his 2004 Suzuki GSX-R750 AMA Superstock bike and DOT-labeled Michelin Pilot radial tires to break the old record, which officials said was 1:26.37.

Rapp rode on the Homestead-Miami road course for the first time on Wednesday, during a Team Hammer practice and school day at the track, which is located in Homestead, Florida.