Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Beth Wyse

Mike Sanchez took two wins at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit during the WERA National Challenge Series races on Sunday. The Shogun Motorsports/Motion Cyclesports rider was competing in his first WERA National event as an Expert.

Sanchez won 750cc Superstock on a Suzuki GSX-R750, passing Tray Batey for the lead on the fourth of eight laps. Batey remained close to Sanchez until he crashed on the final lap. A light rain during the race was too much for Batey’s intermediate tires.

Sanchez later won the Pirelli Formula One race on a Suzuki GSX-R1000. Batey, on the Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R750, crashed in turn two on the second lap, putting Sanchez in the lead until the checkered flag.

Between the 750cc Superstock and Formula One races, Batey won the Heavyweight Twins race on his Suzuki TL1000R.

Mark Junge won in Open Superstock on the Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R1000, leading twice during the race. Junge led off the start but dropped back to third when he slowed down to pass a lapped rider who was leaking fluids. He retook the lead with two laps remaining.

Robert Jensen won the 600cc Superstock race on a Yamaha YZF-R6. He moved into the lead on lap three and was able to hold off Junge on the Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R600.

XT Racing’s David Weber won the 750cc Superbike race on a Suzuki GSX-R750 in a race that started on a wet track that got wetter as more rain began to fall on the first lap. Weber took the lead at the start and was never challenged.

Weber also was the first rider across the line in the Expert 600cc Superbike race on a Suzuki GSX-R600, although the combined Expert/Novice race saw Novice Matt Lynn win overall on a Suzuki GSX-R600. Lynn took the lead on lap five and was able to pull away. The race was run on a wet track, and slippery sealer patches throughout the course gave riders a tough choice in tires.

Bradley Champion took his eighth consecutive win in Lightweight Twins, winning by about 17 seconds on his Suzuki SV650.

Three Experts entered the Formula Two race. Martin Musil pulled in after the warm-up lap because he was on slick tires and rain was beginning to fall. Jason Pirtle pulled in after the first lap, and Jason Jenkins was left to win on his Suzuki SV650.

Rain throughout most of the weekend, and wet track conditions and sketchy traction during all of the practice sessions prompted many racers to leave early.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Yamaha’s Damon Buckmaster took his first-ever AMA Supersport victory Sunday by beating Kawasaki’s Tommy Hayden in a short but exciting back-and-forth battle at Virginia International Raceway.

Buckmaster passed Hayden on the brakes at turn seven on the final lap and beat him to the finish line by less than a bikelength.

Buckmaster’s win and bonus points for leading the most laps and earning the pole position bring him within 15 points of Supersport point leader and teammate Jamie Hacking.

Hacking, who led by 30 points going into the race, finished eighth.

Hayden’s teammate Tony Meiring came from seventh on lap four to claim the final spot on the podium by passing Aaron Gobert on the last lap. Yoshimura Suzuki’s Ben Spies, Honda’s Miguel Duhamel and Hacking followed Gobert across the line.

The Supersport race start was delayed over four hours due to changing weather, an oil spill, two lengthy clean-up attempts and extra practice sessions. The race was shortened from its original distance of 17 laps to 12 laps to beat an approaching rainstorm.

AMA Supersport Race Results:

1. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha, 12 laps
2. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki, -0.034 second
3. Tony Meiring, Kawasaki, -5.926 seconds
4. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha, -6.616 seconds
5. Ben Spies, Suzuki, -6.827 seconds
6. Jason DiSalvo, Yamaha, -6.875 seconds
7. Miguel Duhamel, Honda, -8.016 seconds
8. Jamie Hacking, Yamaha, -8.388 seconds
9. Jake Zemke, Honda, -16.816 seconds
10. Marty Craggill, Honda, -23.914 seconds
11. Lee Acree, Yamaha, -24.055 seconds
12. Alex Gobert, Honda, -24.634 seconds
13. Roger Lee Hayden, Honda, -24.661 seconds
14. Ty Howard, Honda, -32.846 seconds
15. Darren Luck, Suzuki, -34.773 seconds
16. Chris Rankin (of Texas), Honda, -41.267 seconds
17. Jason Curtis, Honda, -53.781 seconds
18. Dirk Sanchez, Kawasaki, -55.950 seconds
19. Michael Garofalo, Suzuki, -56.021 seconds
20. Nathan Dressman, Yamaha, -1 lap
21. Jeremy Haiduk, Yamaha, -1 lap
22. Chad Klock, Kawasaki, -1 lap
23. Crash Lowe, Suzuki, -1 lap
24. Marcus Winfree, Suzuki, -1 lap
25. Darby Brauning, Yamaha, -1 lap
26. Hector Romero, Yamaha, -9 laps, DNF
27. Adrian Jones, Suzuki, -10 laps, DNF
28. Chris Peris, Honda, -11 laps, DNF
29. Giovanni Rojas, Yamaha, -12 laps, DNF, crash
30. Mike Hale, Yamaha, -12 laps, DNF, crash
31. Chris Siebenhaar, Honda, -12 laps, DNF, crash


AMA Supersport Point Standings:

1. Hacking, 308 points
2. Buckmaster, 293 points
3. Spies, 228 points
4. Alex Gobert, 217 points
5. Meiring, 216 points
6. Zemke, 215 points
7. Tommy Hayden, 213 points
8. Aaron Gobert, 212 points
9. Roger Lee Hayden, 207 points
10. DiSalvo, 205 points


More, from a press release issued by Proforma:

LEE ACREE CARDS STRONG FINISHES AT VIRGINIA

Lee Acree went up against some of America’s most talented roadracers as a privateer this weekend at round ten of the AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Championship, and came away with two strong finishes in the AMA Supersport and Superstock classes on his Triad Powersport Yamaha R6.

In the Genuine Suzuki Accessories Superstock event on Saturday, Lee qualified 14th and finished 15th against a field of more powerful 750cc machines. Tire issues kept Lee from taking advantage of the more nimble handling R6 that he was riding. A poor start didn’t help his effort. “My start was at least a tie for career worst,” joked Acree. “My original plan of getting a good start and using turn one to get with the lead pack turned into go to the outside for damage control and try and get back as many people as just went motoring by me on the start. I went by a couple of guys in turn one on the outside and went by a couple more here and there. First, Ciccotto got by me and then Chris (Ulrich). I tried to get by him on the last lap. I got within striking distance and actually got up beside him, but to make the pass would have been potentially detrimental at least to him if not both of us, and I figured where we were in the pack it wasn’t worth punting either one of us. As far as the tires, the rear was a compund that I hadn’t run all weekend and the rear grip wasn’t there. The front was great.”

Lee qualified in seventh position for the Pro Honda Oils Supersport race on Sunday, giving him a second row start. However, rain delayed the start some four hours and the tires that Acree chose did not perform as well as expected. Lee fought with both Roger Lee Hayden and Marty Cragill over tenth place, with Cragill passing Lee on the last lap and pushing Lee to 11th at the checkered flag. “I got an okay start and got down to turn one in about 14th, then tried to get past a couple more exiting turn one, but had to back off because they couldn’t see me. At the end of the first lap is where my progress ended. I was able to go by Roger the first time and was behind Duhamel and just couldn’t match the grip coming off the corners. I finally got Roger and then Cragill came by once and I went back by him. I had some steam on him, but once again, I just didn’t have the grip in the rear. Marty passed me on the last lap going into turn four and I had a chance to pass him back going into seven, but we came up on a lapper and Marty went to the right, which made me have to back off and killed my drive and passing opportunity there. At that point in the race, the right side of the tire just wasn’t there, and coming on the front straightaway I had it as sideways as I cold get it without it throwing me off. The tires were consistent, they were just never great.”

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Anna Johnston announced at VIR that her team, Annandale Racing, would not be back for 2004.

“My heart’s in it. We love racing and the world of motorcyclists and Honda and Michelin and all of our sponsors could not have been better to work with, but it was a decision that Dale (Lemaster) and I made, that we couldn’t meet our internal goals and we didn’t feel confident that we could play catch-up next year. Finances were part of it; we wanted to make it a self-sustaining organization.

“We’re going to take some time off with the change in the economy and see how things work out and maybe come back in the future,” Johnson said.

“We’re going to spend some time in the next few months wrapping the team up and trying to help everyone on the team find out where they want to be. They want to continue in racing, and they’re out looking for jobs. I can certainly highly recommend everyone on the team.”

See related post:

7/29/2003 Analysis: Number Of AMA Teams And Rides Will Decrease In 2004

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Final AMA Supersport Qualifying Results:

1. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha, 1:27.506
2. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki, 1:27.526
3. Ben Spies, Suzuki, 1:28.099
4. Tony Meiring, Kawasaki, 1:28.149
5. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha, 1:28.258
6. Jamie Hacking, Yamaha, 1:28.507
7. Lee Acree, Yamaha, 1:28.557
8. Jason DiSalvo, Yamaha, 1:28.584
9. Miguel Duhamel, Honda, 1:28.811
10. Jake Zemke, Honda, 1:29.060
11. Roger Lee Hayden, Honda, 1:29.293
12. Ty Howard, Honda, 1:29.328
13. Marty Craggill, Honda, 1:29.765
14. Alex Gobert, Honda, 1:29.859
15. Chris Peris, Honda, 1:29.921
16. Chris Rankin (of Texas), 1:30.154
17. Darren Luck, Suzuki, 1:30.488
18. Mike Hale, Yamaha, 1:30.623
19. Giovanni Rojas, Yamaha, 1:31.746
20. Dirk Sanchez, Kawasaki, 1:31.958
21. Jason Curtis, Honda, 1:31.998
22. Heath Small, Yamaha, 1:33.260
23. Michael Garofalo, Suzuki, 1:33.456
24. Nathan Dressman, Yamaha, 1:34.012
25. Chad Klock, Kawasaki, 1:35.401
26. Marcus Winfree, Suzuki, 1:35.485
27. Adrian Jones, Suzuki, 1:35.796
28. Darby Brauning, Yamaha, 1:35.882
29. Chris Siebenhaar, Honda, 1:36.229
30. Jeremy Haiduk, Yamaha, 1:36.333
31. Hector Romero, Yamaha, 1:36.387
32. Crash Lowe, Suzuki, 1:36.963
33. Williams Johnson, Suzuki, 1:37.931
34. Caesar Gonzales, Kawasaki, 1:38.206
35. David Sanchez, Kawasaki, 1:43.615

112 percent of fast time: 1:38.007

From a press release issued by series organizers:

Picotte makes his point

August 30, 2003

SHANNONVILLE, ON – Pascal Picotte edged closer to his first Parts Canada Superbike Championship with a convincing display in qualifying for the final round at Shannonville Motorsport Park Saturday.

The St-Cecile de Milton, QC rider set a new outright record for the 2.5-mile track of 1:44.079 on his Picotte Racing Yamaha YZF-R1 to claim pole position for Sunday’s season finale. The previous record of 1:44.386 set by Jordan Szoke had stood since Sept. 2, 2000.

With the performance Picotte earned the $500 MPM/Array Pole Award and four points toward the Parts Canada Superbike standings. He now leads the rankings with 281 points to the 261 of Steve Crevier with 52 points available in Sunday’s race.

Crevier, from Maple Ridge, BC was fourth in qualifying on his Diablo Performance Suzuki GSX-R1000 and received one championship point.

“This is definitely a boost,” said Picotte after claiming his third MPM/Array Pole Award of the season. “Yesterday the bike was not quite the way I wanted but today it was getting better and better.”

Picotte’s time was 1.489 secs. faster than the second place rider, Calgary’s Clint McBain. McBain set a time of 1:45.568 on his Coors Light Racing/Blackfoot Suzuki GSX-R1000. His teammate Francis Martin of Rock Forest, QC was third with a lap at 1:46.076.

Martin received two points toward the Superbike standings and remains in contention for the title in third place with 247 points.

Kleinburg, ON’s Frank Trombino, Jean-Francois Cyr of Joliette, QC and Harrowsmith, ON rider Jeff Williams make up the second row of Sunday’s race grid. Cyr came into the weekend fourth in points and with a mathematical shot at the Parts Canada crown. But the CyRacing/Michelin Yamaha YZF-R1 rider failed to add to his point total in qualifying Saturday and dropped from title contention.

In other Shannonville action, Picotte claimed pole position for Sunday’s Hindle Exhaust Pro 600 Sport Bike race with a class record time of 1:45.850 on the Picotte Racing Yamaha YZF-R6. Picotte has already clinched the 2003 title.

McBain placed second at 1:46.196 on the Coors Light Racing/Blackfoot Suzuki GSX-R600 and Trombino was third at 1:46.600 riding the Brooklin Cycle Yamaha YZF-R6. The top four qualifiers all broke the previous track record of 1:47.24 set by Owen Weichel in 2000.

Derek Bowker edged four points closer to the lead of the International Motorcycle SUPERSHOW Amateur 600 Sport Bike standings by grabbing pole with a lap of 1:50.755 on his Motor Sports World Yamaha YZF-R6.

Bowker now has 194 points to the 218 of Keremeos, BC’s Jeremy Leduc, who came back from a fall to qualify 10th for Sunday’s race on the Kelowna Yamaha-backed Yamaha YZF-R6.

Feature races in all three national classes will run Sunday. Practice starts at 8:30 a.m. with the first race, the Hindle Exhaust Pro 600 Sport Bike feature set to go at 12:30 p.m.

This weekend’s event will be televised on TSN on Sunday, Sept. 28 at 1:00 p.m. and on the Outdoor Life Network on Sunday, Oct. 26, also at 1:00 p.m. Action from Shannonville will also be shown later this year on Quebec’s RDS.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Yoshimura Suzuki’s Aaron Yates came back from a crash in Friday’s AMA Superbike qualifying session to snatch the pole position from Mat Mladin Saturday morning at Virginia International Raceway (VIR). Yates’ time of 1:25.071 came on the final lap of the final qualifying session, beating Mladin’s best time of 1:25.304.

Mladin’s time was good enough for the second slot on the grid.

Erion Honda’s Kurtis Roberts retained a spot on the front row by improving his time from Friday (1:26.486) with a 1:25.702 Saturday morning.

American Honda’s Miguel Duhamel took over one second off his time from Friday (1:27.099) with a 1:25.925 in the final qualifying session, good for the last front-row starting spot.

Giovanni Bussei, Jason Pridmore, Ben Bostrom and Jordan Szoke also improved their qualifying times in Saturday’s session, and will start from the second row of the grid.

Unofficial AMA Superbike Qualifying Results:

1. Aaron Yates, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:25.071
2. Mat Mladin, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:25.304
3. Kurtis Roberts, Honda RC51, 1:25.702
4. Miguel Duhamel, Honda RC51, 1:25.925
5. Giovanni Bussei, Ducati 998RS, 1:26.644
6. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:26.650
7. Ben Bostrom, Honda RC51, 1:26.758
8. Jordan Szoke, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:27.836
9. Shawn Higbee, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:27.945
10. Geoff May, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:27.992
11. Steve Rapp, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:28.203
12. Michael Barnes, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:28.212
13. Vincent Haskovec, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.052
14. Eric Wood, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.236
15. Jake Holden, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.377
16. John Haner, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.440
17. Matt Furtek, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.782
18. Chris Caylor, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:29.838
19. Mike Ciccotto, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:29.913
20. Jeremy Toye, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:30.121
21. Chris Ulrich, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:30.233
22. Scott Harwell, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:30.489
23. Andy Deatherage, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:30.771
24. Chris Voelker, Ducati 996, 1:30.786
25. Dean Mizdal, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:30.888
26. J.J. Roetlin, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:31.286
27. Brian Stokes, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:31.304
28. Doug Duane, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:31.425
29. Marco Martinez, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:31.487
30. Byron Barbour, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:31.618
31. Monte Nichols, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:31.675
32. Scott Jensen, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:31.744
33. Tom Wertman, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:31.931
34. Scott Carpenter, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:31.958
35. David Duprey, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.041
36. Robert Christman, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.068
37. Anthony Fania, Jr., Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.120
38. Rick Narup, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.447
39. Kevin Hanson, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.462
40. Chris Greer, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.646
41. Chuck Allen, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.673
42. Kevin Lehman, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:32.847
43. James Kerker, Honda CBR929RR, 1:33.094
44. Mickey Lane, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:33.928
45. David Bell, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:34.189
46. Jeremiah Johnson, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:34.421
47. Shane Gonyea, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:34.815
48. James Bonner, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:35.073

112 percent of fastest time: 1:35.280


Fastest trap speed: Kurtis Roberts, Honda RC51, 173.933 mph

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Provisional AMA Formula Xtreme Qualifying Results:

1. Ben Spies, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:25.955
2. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:26.248
3. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:26.901
4. Jake Zemke, Honda CBR954RR, 1:26.989
5. Adam Fergusson, Suzki GSX-R1000, 1:27.066
6. Josh Hayes, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:27.145
7. Marty Craggill, Honda CBR954RR, 1:27.346
8. Roger Lee Hayden, Honda CBR954RR, 1:27.396
9. Ty Howard, Honda CBR954RR, 1:28.001
10. Jamie Hacking, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:28.059
11. James Ellison, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:30.173
12. Corey Eaton, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:31.615
13. Jason Curtis, Honda CBR954RR, 1:32.355
14. Nathan Kern, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.756
15. Doug Duane, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:32.927
16. Danny Eslick, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:33.087
17. David Bell, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:33.617
18. Heath Small, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:33.655
19. Rick Narup, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:34.415
20. Bob Siebenhaar, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:34.419
21. Shane Gonyea, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:34.592
22. James Bonner, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:35.678
23. Anthony Fania, Jr., Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:49.372