Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Beth Wyse

Young Matt Furtek took three wins at the WERA National Challenge Series races at Talladega Gran Prix Raceway, while Vesrah Suzuki’s Tray Batey took two wins in Sunday’s 14-lap sprint races.

Mark Crozier won Open Superstock on his Suzuki GSX-R1000 after working his way past Scott Harwell. Crozier pulled away as the five riders in the race all ran around by themselves. Harwell finsished second with Scott Brown in third, both on Suzuki GSX-R1000s.

John Jacobi got the holeshot in 600cc Superstock and pulled a long gap to take the win on his Suzuki GSX-R600. Five riders behind Jacobi battled for second and third. Harwell held on for second as Brian Stokes worked his way around Mike Smith and Dave Yaakov to take third. All of four were on Suzuki GSX-R600s.

Jason Peters took a convincing victory in 125cc GP on his Honda RS125. Pat Chandler and Chuck DiGregorio, both on Honda RS125s, placed second and third.

Stokes took the lead early in the 750cc Superstock race, but Batey quickly worked his way past on his Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R750. While Batey pulled away to take the win, Crozier worked his way up to a second-place finish on his Suzuki GSX-R750. Jacobi got by Stokes to finish third, also on a GSX-R750.

Donnie Tingle, Jr. won Formula Two on his Yamaha TZ250 while Monty Warsing and Logan Young raced for second place. Warsing finally took second on his Yamaha TZ250 and Young wound up third on his Honda RS250.

Furtek took a solid victory in 600cc Superbike. Furtek took the lead from Adam Coco on the third lap and built a comfortable lead on his Yamaha YZF-R6 while Coco held onto second on his Suzuki GSX-R600. Steve Breckenridge wound up third, also on a GSX-R600.

Batey and his Suzuki TL1000R were at the front of the Heavyweight Twins race, as usual. Bill St. John took second on his Ducati 996 but was no challenge to Batey. Scott Brown took third on another Suzuki TL1000R.

Furtek took another win in 750cc Superbike, still on his YZF-R6. Just past the halfway mark, Furtek took over the lead from Tommy Bauchiero, who finished second on his Suzuki GSX-R750.

Dave Yaakov won the Lightweight Twins race on a Suzuki SV650. Also riding Suzuki SV650s, Bradley Champion finished second and Chris Normand wound up third in single-file action.

Furtek won his third race of the day in Formula One, beating the larger bikes on his Yamaha 600. Scott Carpenter was running in second until he crashed in turn seven. J.J. Roetlin took second and Jim Doerfler was third, both on Suzuki GSX-R750s.

From a press release issued by Monstermob Ducati:

MONSTERMOB DUCATI BRITISH SUPERBIKE TEAM
Round 6 – 2002 MCN British Superbike Championship, Brands Hatch
Saturday 15th/Sunday 16th June 2002

Race Report


HIZZY MAINTAINS SUPERBIKE LEAD AS EASTON WINS AGAIN

MonsterMob Ducati left Brands Hatch with both MCN British Superbike and MB4U.com National Supersport Championship leads intact despite a weekend of high drama at the Kent circuit over the weekend.

Championship leader in the prestigious Superbike class, Steve Hislop had to overcome more traction woes in qualifying aboard the 998cc Testastretta but still managed to post second fastest time in Superpole to start from the front row.

But the 40 year old Isle of Man based Scot suffered more bad luck in the opening 20 lap race when he could only manage a lowly 12th place finish because of rear tyre problems which prevented him from utilising the power on the Ducati.

“I had virtually no grip from turn one on the first lap and I was having to take totally foreign lines to keep the bike as smooth and as upright as I could. I was sliding about all over the place but I was desperate to rack up a few more points” said Hislop, whose cause was aided when main championship rival Sean Emmett retired his Ducati on lap two when an oil seal blew.

Fired up and ready to salvage something from the weekend, Hislop tried a different profile rear tyre for the second race which proved to his liking and ran with the leaders for all the race, just missing out on the race win by finishing three thousandths of a second behind race winner Emmett.

“That’s turned things around for us. I really wanted to win and proved I’m still a match for the other guys as long as I’ve got the right rubber underneath me. I’m a lot more happy leaving here than I was when I left Snetterton and I’m feeling really positive that we’ve got a good set up now” commented Steve who dropped a single point to Emmett in the standings as a result.

No such problems for Supersport teammate Stuart Easton who recorded his sixth successive win in the class by taking another comfortable victory to extend his lead at the top of the standings to 59 points at the half distance stage of the series.

The 17 year old from Hawick overcame two engine problems in qualifying to set his fifth pole position of the year before destroying the opposition with a start to finish win in the 16 lap race to end up over 14 seconds to the good.

“People were saying to me that my dominance was coming to an end after the close race I had at Snetterton but I just wanted to prove to them that I’m still in charge. I’ve had a lot of stick so I thought I’d best smoke them again and show them that young ‘Ratty’ is still the man to beat” said Easton.

Team owner Paul Bird was relieved his riders had managed to maintain their leads after a weekend of frustration:

“We always knew it wasn’t going to be as easy as people were reckoning after the first couple of rounds and so it’s proving. But we’re here to ride out the storm and hopefully to take advantage when other teams get their share of bad luck, which will happen. Steve rode brilliantly to take second after the disaster in race one and as for Stuart, what more can anyone say about him. He’s a class above the rest at this moment” said the Penrith businessman.

Race One Result – 1. John Reynolds (Suzuki) 29m25.192s, 2. Steve Plater (Yamaha) 29m25.402s, 3. Michael Rutter (Ducati) 29m34.958s, 4. Paul Brown (Ducati) 29m38.985s, 5. Simon Crafar (Yamaha) 29m39.940s, 6. Glen Richards (Kawasaki) 29m42.261s, (12. Steve Hislop (MonsterMob Ducati) 29m55.497s).

Race Two Result – 1. Sean Emmett (Ducati) 31m50.803s, 2. Steve Hislop (MonsterMob Ducati) 31m50.835s, 3. Michael Rutter (Ducati) 31m51.033s, 4. John Reynolds (Suzuki) 31m51.271s, 5. Shane Byrne (Ducati) 31m51.481s, 6. Steve Plater (Yamaha) 31m51.821s.

Supersport Result – 1. Stuart Easton (MonsterMob Ducati) 24m40.323s, 2. Simon Andrews (Honda) 24m54.604s, 3. Tom Tunstall (Suzuki) 24m56.140s, 4. Scott Smart (Honda) 24m57.116s, 5. Gary May (Yamaha) 24m57.305s, 6. Chris Bishop (Honda) 24m57.822s.

British Championship Standings – 1. Steve Hislop (213pts), 2. Sean Emmett (197pts), 3. Michael Rutter (162.5pts), 4. Steve Plater (147pts), 5. John Reynolds (143.5pts), 6. Paul Brown (126.5pts).

From a press release issued by USGPRU:

Brian Kcraget wins third straight round at USGPRU National at Loudon

June 17, 2002 – Loudon, NH – Brian Kcraget continues his string of 1st Place finishes this year in the USGPRU 125GP National Championship’s Eastern Region with his third straight win this weekend at Loudon.

Brian has also won the USGPRU rounds at Daytona and Summit Point. With the final Eastern region round at VIR approaching it appears as if Kcraget has what adds up to an insurmountable lead in the Eastern Region giving him a solid shot at this year’s 125GP National Championship.

Racers at the Loudon event practiced, qualified and competed in wildly varying conditions during the four days at New Hampshire International Speedway. Second place went to Bill Cole while sixteen year old newcomer Joe Ford took third.

Fourth, fifth and sixth places are currently under protest as these riders (Courts, Kornfield and Yoo) did not have valid registration paperwork on file with the USGPRU main office in Mountainview, CA prior to the event. These riders can have their placing reinstated, however completed paperwork must be submitted no later than Friday of this week or all three riders will be scored DNS.

From a press release:

Lake Forest, CA – Aprilia dealer Spectrum Motorsports will have a customer demo day at their dealership on June 30th from 11 am to 3.30 pm. Please contact Greg Guthrie at 949 859 3186 and make an appointment as the spaces will fill very quickly.

The 2002 models available for demonstration are the Capo Nord, Futura, Mille and Falco.

Spectrum Motorsports is located on the corner of Lake Forest Drive and Rockfield in the city of Lake Forest. www.spectrumotorsports.com

From a press release:

Buell Firebolt Scores first national roadrace victory

Eric Wood Tops Formula USA Sportbike Field at 79th Annual Loudon Classic

Loudon, NH (June 16, 2002) – Eric Wood rode the new Buell Firebolt XB9R to its first national roadrace victory in the Formula USA Honda Pro Oils Sportbike final held at New Hampshire International Speedway. The race was Wood’s first outing aboard the Kosco Buell/Innovative Motorcycle Research Firebolt, and the first appearance of the team in the highly competitive horsepower and weight restricted class.

“This was a great start for the Firebolt,” said Wood, of Mansfield, Mass. “We just got this bike two weeks ago and ran a club race last weekend to warm it up. The Firebolt has a lot of potential and we’re only going to get stronger as the season goes on.”

Facing a 45-bike field filled with Suzuki, Honda, Yamaha and Kawasaki riders, Wood was running a strong second when race leader Scott Greenwood (Suzuki) faltered on lap 19 of the 20-lap feature. Wood stormed into the lead and beat Suzuki riders Michael Barnes and Larry Pegram to the checkered flag.

“The Buell’s tractability and drive off the corners really worked for me at Loudon,” said Wood. “In some turns I was able to put the Buell in places where the four-cylinder bikes couldn’t go. The Firebolt has the chassis dynamics of a Grand Prix bike, and the smooth power delivery of the V-Twin engine was really easy on the back tire. As the race worn on, I think my tire was holding up better and I was able to pull away from the field.”

“The Firebolt was designed to be the best backroad bike ever,” said Erik Buell, Chairman and Chief Technical Officer of Buell Motorcycle Company. “Loudon is a technically challenging track, just like the backroads we designed the Firebolt to dominate on. My congratulations go out to Eric Wood and the entire Kosco Buell and Innovative Motorcycle Research Team.”

The Formula USA Sportbike class features production-based motorcycles limited to a maximum of 115 horsepower and a minimum of 365 pounds. The Buell Firebolt XB9R is powered by a fuel-injected 984cc V-Twin.

The fourth round of the Formula USA National Road Race Series will take place at Mosport International Raceway at Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada, July 19-21.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Sunday Morning MotoGP Practice Times:

1. Valentino Rossi, Honda RC211V, 1:44.977
2. Carlos Checa, Yamaha YZR-M1, 1:45.248
3. Tohru Ukawa, Honda RC211V, 1:45.346
4. Sete Gibernau, Suzuki GSV-R, 1:45.599
5. Alex Barros, Honda NSR500, 1:45.771
6. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki GSV-R, 1:45.951
7. Regis Laconi, Aprilia RS3, 1:45.968
8. Max Biaggi, Yamaha YZR-M1, 1:45.985
9. Loris Capirossi, Honda NSR500, 1:46.021
10. Daijiro Kato, Honda NSR500, 1:46.143
11. John Hopkins, Yamaha YZR500, 1:46.228
12. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha YZR500, 1:46.297
13. Norick Abe, Yamaha YZR500, 1:46.665
14. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha YZR500, 1:46.786
15. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton KR3, 1:47.325
16. Akira Ryo, Suzuki GSV-R, 1:47.401
17. Tetsuya Harada, Honda NSR500, 1:47.488
18. Jurgen vd Goorbergh, Honda NSR500, 1:47.570
19. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton KR3, 1:47.598
20. Pere Riba, Yamaha YZR500, 1:47.882
21. Alex Hofmann, Yamaha YZR500, 1:48.404

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Sunday Morning 125cc GP Practice Times:

1. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 1:51.408
2. Manuel Poggiali, Gilera, 1:52.318
3. Joan Olive, Honda, 1:52.435
4. Stefano Perugini, Italjet, 1:52.452
5. Alex De Angelis, Aprilia, 1:52.481
6. Mika Kallio, Honda, 1:52.516
7. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 1:52.550
8. Gino Borsoi, Aprilia, 1:52.676
9. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, 1:52.761
10. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, 1:52.851

From a press release:

GARRY McCOY- AIMING FOR BRITISH GP RETURN
Injured Australian Rider Garry McCoy is eager to return to racing the Red Bull Yamaha after his recent leg surgery in Austria.

The 3 time 500cc GP winner is following an intensive training program to build muscle in the leg and to regain race fitness. He is aiming to be riding the YZR 500 at the British Grand Prix in 4 weeks.

Garry McCoy

“Things are going well here in Andorra and my ankle is feeling really good. I’ve been doing a lot of work on my stationary bicycle since coming back from Austria where I had the operation and the immediate post op. physiotherapy. Even right after the operation I felt more movement in the ankle and it has just been going well since then.”

“I’m sorry that I’m not coming to the GP in Catalunya to spectate but I’ll keep working on the training instead, as I’d rather get back on the Yamaha as soon as possible. I’ve got the TV set up in front of the bike so I’ll be watching it all anyway.”

“Obviously I’ve been doing a lot of other training as well to get my fitness up apart from just the work with the leg and the ankle. I am planning to be riding at Donington and there is still half the season left so I’m looking forward to it.”

For more information on the Red Bull Yamaha Team – visit www.redbull-yamaha.com

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Sunday Morning Pro Honda Oils 600cc Sportbike Practice Times:

1. Owen Weichel, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:27.206
2. Craig Connell, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:27.947
3. Scott Greenwood, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:28.267
4. Shawn Higbee, Buell Firebolt XB9R, 1:28.466
5. Eric Wood, Buell Firebolt XB9R, 1:28.991
6. Jeff LaPointe, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:30.013
7. Joseph Bilianksi, Ducati 748, 1:30.706
8. Dana Stanley, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:30.798
9. Orlando Gonzalez, Honda CBR600, 1:31.655
10. Jim Lester, Honda CBR600F4i, 1:32.508

15. Larry Pegram, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:33.434

18. Don Canet, Buell Firebolt XB9R, 1:34.995

Several riders, including Lee Acree, Jeff Wood and Tim Bemisderfer, did not participate in Sunday morning’s Sportbike practice.

The track was completely wet for the chilly Sportbike warm-up but had less standing water than on Saturday.

At 9:45 a.m. Eastern Time, it was not raining at New Hampshire International Raceway, but the weather forecast for Sunday calls for the possibility of more rain.