Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

24 Hours of Le Mans Final Results:

1. Castrol Suzuki 1 (Morrison/Dobe/Vincent), Suzuki GSX-R1000, 817 laps, 2217.34 miles*

2. Castrol Suzuki 2 (Bayle/Gimbert/Dussauge), Suzuki GSX-R1000, 815 laps, 2211.91 miles

3. Free Bike Performance 12 (Donischal/Protat/Gomez), Yamaha YZF-R7, 801 laps, 2173.91 miles

4. Igol/ART Kawasaki (DaCosta/Moreira/Devoyan), Kawasaki ZX-9R, 799 laps, 2168.49 miles

5. Team Dap Moto 91 (Lerat-Vanstaen/Jond/Cortinovis), Suzuki, 797 laps, 2163.06 miles

6. GMT 94 (Scarnato/Holon/Jerman), Yamaha YZF-R1, 784 laps, 2127.78 miles

7. JLC Moto Ulteamatum 45 (Baratin/Thuret/Cheron), Suzuki, 784 laps + 15.027 seconds, 2127.78 miles

8. Team Motostart Racing 86 (Boutin/Briere/Loustalet), Yamaha, 783 laps, 2125.06 miles

9. National Motos (Jond/Bonhuil/Ulmann), Honda CBR954RR, 779 laps, 2114.21 miles

10. Junior Team Suzuki 72 (Dietrich/Tangre/Bovan), Suzuki, 778 laps, 2111.49 miles

*New record distance, beat old record of 2109.24 miles set in 1996

Copyright 2003, www.mcnews.com.au, used with permission:

By Trevor Hedge
www.mcnews.com.au

2003 Australian Superbike Championship – Round 1 – Sunday Report

After taking pole position in both the Superbike and Supersport classes during qualifying on Saturday, Newcastle rider Kevin Curtain then continued his domination to take a perfect record of wins from the opening round of the Shell Advance Australian Superbike Championship in South Australia today.

The 36 year old Nikon Yamaha rider recorded three from three in the premier Superbike class and then backed that up with the same record in the three Supersport races. He also leaves the 2.6km Mallala circuit with lap records in both classes. He lowered reigning champion Shawn Giles’ Production Superbike lap record from 1-minute-08.08secs down to a new mark of 1-minute-07.88 seconds. Curtain already held the Supersport lap record but lowered it to the new record of 1m09.73 on the 600cc Nikon Yamaha R6.

Curtain is a four time Australian champion, the only rider to have held Australian Championship Titles in three different classes. Production Superbike (1998), Supersport (1996, 2000) and 250 Production (1995). Not bad for an exhaust fitter who never went road racing until the ripe old age of 27. Curtain is now, of course, a full time professional racer, and if this seasons early form is anything to go by, he could be the first man to win both a Superbike and Supersport Championship in the same year.

But Kevin is already eyeing bigger and better things. “At the moment I’m working on trying to get another ride somewhere overseas next year and to do that you’ve got to win.

“I don’t want to relax back in Australia, the competition while at a high level it’s not the same as at world level. So when you’re in this environment you can get lazy and that’s not what I want to do.

“So I’m just going to push myself to the max’ when ever I get on a bike in Australia.

“I’m working really hard at the moment and I’m not doing it easy but I’m just managing to keep in front of them and that’s all I’ve got to do.”

Young Victorian Craig Coxhell (Suzuki) took second place overall in the Superbike class after some titanic battles with his team-mate Shawn Giles and Daniel Stauffer (Yamaha).

This is the opening round of five for the national road racing series which this year also visits Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales.

The Championship next heads to Phillip Island for round two at Victoria’s magnificent Phillip Island circuit on May 16-18.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

British Superbike Dunlop Super 12 (Superpole) Results:

1. Shane Byrne, Ducati, 1:05.875
2. Michael Rutter, Ducati, 1:05.962
3. Sean Emmett, Ducati, 1:06.284
4. John Reynolds, Suzuki, 1:06.429
5. Glen Richards, Kawasaki, 1:06.667
6. John Crawford, Ducati, 1:06.832
7. Dean Ellison, Ducati, 1:06.931
8. Mark Heckles, Honda, 1:06.969
9. Steve Hislop, Yamaha, 1:06.988
10. Gary Mason, Yamaha, 1:07.091
11. Steve Plater, Honda, 1:07.134
12. Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, crashed in Superpole


British Supersport Qualifying Results:

1. Stuart Easton, Ducati, 1:08.720
2. Leon Haslam, Ducati, 1:08.724
3. Simon Andrews, Yamaha, 1:09.168
4. Karl Harris, Honda, 1:09.250
5. Tom Sykes, Yamaha, 1:09.473
6. Rob Frost, Kawasaki, 1:09.491
7. Adrian Coates, 1:09.570
8. John Crockford, 1:09.573
9. Michael Laverty, 1:09.592
10. John McGuiness, 1:09.655

13. Craig Jones, Triumph

15. Jim Moodie, Triumph

Copyright 2003, www.mcnews.com.au, used with permission:

By Trevor Hedge
www.mcnews.com.au

Final qualifying to decide the grid for tomorrow’s opening round of the Shell Advance Australian Superbike Championship was played out under increasingly overcast conditions today at South Australia’s Mallala Motorsport Park.

This is the opening round of five for the national road racing series which this year also visits Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales.

Kevin Curtain continued the form that has seen him win four national championships across three different classes by taking pole in both the premier categories, Superbike and Supersport.

The 36-year-old was a late starter at 27, but in recent years he has had no trouble in showing the youngsters which way to go around Australia’s racetracks. Curtain piloted his Nikon Yamaha R1 around the 2.6 kilometre Mallala circuit in 68.16 seconds to take the Superbike pole ahead of reigning Australian Champion Shawn Giles (Suzuki).

Curtain then went under his existing Supersport lap record to take pole in that class also. Second on the grid was his young Nikon Yamaha teammate Brendan Clarke.

Kevin Curtain then capitalized on that Supersport pole position to take the first win for the season ahead of reigning Australian Supersport Champion Shannon Johnson (Honda). Ex-500cc GP competitor Brendan Clarke held down second position for most of the race before being relegated to third place by Johnson in the closing laps.

The final two Supersport races are scheduled for Sunday along with three races for the premier Superbike category. Curtain is well backed to take the Superbike honors at this first round; Mallala is a track that favours his nimble Yamaha R1 over the more powerful Suzukis of Shawn Giles and Craig Coxhell.

The action concludes on Sunday with a full schedule of races.

Superbike Grid
1. Kevin Curtain 1:08.1
2. Shawn Giles 1:08.4
3. Daniel Stauffer 1:08.5
4. Shannon Johnson 1:08.6
5. Craig Coxhell 1:08.8
6. Stephen Tozer 1:09.0
7. Kirk McCarthy 1:09.1
8. Nick Barton 1:09.5
9. Robert Bugden 1:09.7
10. Scott Charlton 1:09.8

SuperSport Grid
1. Kevin Curtain 1:09.8
2. Brendan Clarke 1:10.1
3. Russell Holland 1:10.1
4. Shannon Johnson 1:10.2
5. Shaun Geronomi 1:10.4
6. Reece Bancell 1:10.7
7. Josh Brookes 1:10.8
8. Michael Brenton 1:11.0
9. Glen Allerton 1:11.2
10. Mark Aitchison 1:11.2

SuperSport Race 1 Result

1. Kevin Curtain
2. Shannon Johnson
3. Brendan Clarke
4. Glen Allerton
5. Russell Holland
6. Josh Brookes
7. Judd Greedy
8. Reece Bancell
9. Shaun Geronomi
10. Michael Clunie


Remainder of races to be held Sunday including another two Supersport races and a total of three Superbike races.

From a press release issued by the Master of Endurance series:

Les 24 Heures du Mans, les 24 Heures de Liège et le Bol d’Or

The three organizers having created the Master of Endurance file a complaint with the European Commission against the FIM for abuse of dominant position

The 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 24 Hours of Liège and the Bol d’Or, the three organizers which have created the Master of Endurance, have filed a complaint against the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (“FIM”) for abuse of dominant position contrary to Article 82 of the Treaty of Rome. The complaint concerns, in particular, the refusal of the FIM, announced in Prague on October 13, 2002, to recognize the Master of Endurance as a series giving rise to a classification and to prizes, and this on the sole grounds that it would not be in a position to recognize a series which would be in competition with its own World Endurance Championship. The FIM indicated that in the event that the three organizers were to proceed with the organization of such a series, it would deprive all participants in such series of the totality of access to the essential facilities which the FIM holds, alone, and which constitute the indispensable support of motorcycle sports: the granting of licenses (competitors and riders and officials); insurance; homologation/certification of race circuits; verification of safety compliance; etc.

In order to maintain their access to these essential facilities, the three organizers were obliged to respect the authority of the FIM and comply. For this reason, the 24 Hours Moto of Le Mans has been organized on April 12 and 13, 2003 as an individual international meeting. Nonetheless, the organizers believe that the decision by the FIM had as its sole purpose to protect its own commercial interests and not to defend the interests of motorcycle sports and that is the reason for which they have filed their complaint with the Commission.

Through their common name “Master of Endurance”, the three organizers want to propose a new series of endurance racing to the public. The intention of the three organizers has been to perpetuate the true spirit of endurance racing and to offer to all those who are brought together by motorcycle sports the possibility to express themselves, to communicate and to give value to the specific qualities of long-distance racing: brio and reliability.

The competitors and riders, the public, the media and sponsors should have the possibility to choose between the concept of the World Endurance Championship of the FIM and that of the Master of Endurance as a series (or championship, that is to say giving rise to a series classification and to overall prizes).

The threat of being deprived of access to the essential facilities has prevented the three organizers from proposing their new series concept to the motorcycle racing world. To the organizers’ knowledge, this is the first time that the Commission is being called upon to apply, in the framework of the rules of competition, the doctrine of essential facilities to the sports world. The three organizers have full confidence that the European Commission, as guardian of the rules of competition, will take all necessary measures in this case.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

24 Hours of Le Mans Final Qualifying Results:

1. Castrol Suzuki 2 (Bayle/Gimbert/Dussauge), Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:39.568

2. Castrol Suzuki 1 (Morrison/Dobe/Vincent), Suuzki GSX-R1000, 1:40.000

3. Suzuki Junior Team 32 (Dietrich/Tangre/Bouan), Suzuki, 1:41.087

4. Igol/ART Kawasaki 11 (DaCosta/Moreira/Devoyon), Kawasaki ZX-9R, 1:41.529

5. GMT 94 (Scarnato/Holon/Jerman), Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:41.879

6. Sarthe Racing Kart 19 (Guersillion/Hars/Legname), Suzuki, 1:42.080

7. Moto Courneuvien 93 (Lussiana/Parisse/Duterne), Yamaha YZF-R7, 1:42.318

8. Team Dap Moto 91 (Lerat-Vanstaen/Jond/Cortnovis), Suzuki, 1:42.674

9. Infini Team Moto 10 (Roche/Gaillard/Jaulneau), Suzuki, 1:42.891

10. Free Bike Performance 12 (Donischal/Protat/Gomez), Yamaha YZF-R7, 1:42.914

From press releases issued by Pro Italia and Spectum Motorsports:

Pro Italia, one of southern California’s largest dealers of Aprilia
motorcycles and scooters, announces Aprilia Day.

On Saturday April 12, Pro Italia Motors in Glendale, California will be hosting Aprilia Day. Pro Italia’s Aprilia Day will feature Aprilia’s exciting 2003 model lineup. RSV Mille R, RSV Mille, SL 1000 Falco R, Tuono 1000, RST 1000 Futura, ETV 1000 CapoNord, RS250, RS50, Atlantic 500, Scarabeo 150, SR 50 DITECH

Features:
• 2003 Aprilias
• Demo rides
• Italian style pasta lunch
• Price specials on selected parts, accessories and apparel
• Experts on hand to answer your questions

Come and join us for Aprilia Day!

Pro Italia Motors
3319 N Verdugo Road
Glendale, CA 91208
http://www.proitalia.com




Spectrum Motorsports will host an Aprilia Demo day on April 19th at their Irvine, California location from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Models available to test will be the Mille, Falco, Futura, Caponord and Atlantic Scooter.

Spectrum Motorsports is located at 45 Oldfield Road Irvine CA 92618.

For driving directions please go www.spectrummotorsports.com

From a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

Abe to Ride as Replacement in Africa
4/11/2003 – Africa’s Grand Prix

The Fortuna Yamaha Team has announced today that Norick Abe will ride as a replacement for the injured Marco Melandri in the Africa’s Grand Prix in Welkom, South Africa on Sunday 27th April. The 27-year-old Japanese Yamaha factory test rider will compete on a 2003 race-spec YZR-M1.

Melandri, the team’s 20-year-old MotoGP rookie, suffered multiple leg injuries when he fell during Friday’s opening practice session of the 2003 MotoGP World Championship. He flew to Italy on Monday and has received some treatment from the Championship’s Clinica Mobile medical staff in Imola. He has a cast on his ankle where he suffered a double fracture, but this is due to be removed after next weekend so that physiotherapy can begin. The haematoma around the crack in his femur has significantly reduced and the
bone should heal without complications. On the whole medical staff are quite happy with Melandri’s progress. However, it is still too early to say exactly when the 2002 250cc World Champion will return to competitive action.

Abe, a former GP regular who finished sixth in the 2002 Championship, had been due to compete in the season-opening Japanese Grand Prix as a wildcard. With Melandri ruled out of the race he was drafted in as the Fortuna Yamaha Team’s replacement and rode to 11th place last Sunday.

Abe and Fortuna Yamaha Team regular Carlos Checa stayed at Suzuka for a pre-arranged Yamaha test where Abe had the opportunity to ride the latest 2003 race-spec YZR-M1. However, heavy rain meant that scheduled track time for the pair was significantly reduced.

Name: NORICK ABE

Born: 7 September, 1975 in Tokyo, Japan

Number: 17

First GP: 1994 500cc Japanese Grand Prix (retired)

Career:

1993 All Japan GP500 Champion
1994 500cc World Championship debut
1995 9th 500cc World Championship
1996 5th
1997 7th
1998 6th
1999 6th
2000 8th
2001 7th
2002 6th MotoGP World Championship