Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Sam Fleming
Reporting From Spain

According to conversations I had with a Speed Channel film crew working in Spain, Speed Channel (formerly Speedvision) will be broadcasting AMA, World Superbike and MotoGP races in a similar format and time slots in 2002 as it did in 2001.

Apparently the massive amount of requests that the Speed Channel received from motorcycle enthusiasts was partly responsible for the channel maintaining the level of motorcycle programming.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Red Bull Yamaha’s Garry McCoy had mixed results in the first day of the IRTA MotoGP team test at Esotril, Portugal, on Wednesday. One lap after McCoy turned the fastest time of the day on his YZR500 at 1:40.185, just 0.1-second shy of Max Biaggi’s 2001 pole position time, McCoy crashed and broke his right tibia and fibula.

The first day of the test saw many crashes due to what some riders felt was a dirty racetrack. According to MotoGP sources, crashers included Gauloises Yamaha Tech 3 riders Olivier Jacque and Sylvain Guintoli and Pramac Honda’s Tetsuya Harada. Jacque and Guintoli escaped serious injury, but 1993 250cc World Champion Harada broke his left collarbone.

Team Fortuna Honda Gresini’s Daijiro Katoh was second-fastest on his Honda NSR500, less than a tenth of a second slower than McCoy’s time. Katoh was followed by Yamaha riders Shinya Nakano and Jacque and West Honda Pons’ rider Alex Barros.


MotoGP Lap Times:

1. Garry McCoy, Yamaha, 1:40.185
2. Daijiro Katoh, Honda, 1:40.274
3. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:40.918
4. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:41.210
5. Alex Barros, Honda, 1:41.226


250cc Lap Times:

1. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:42.216
2. Marco Melandri, Aprilia, 1:42.268
3. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:42.585
4. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, 1:43.213
5. Alex Debon, Aprilia, 1:43.289

From a press release:

TWO NEW MEMBERS ADDED TO AHRMA BOARD OF TRUSTEES

David Boydstun of Mesa, Arizona, and Craig Breckon of Sparta, Michigan, are the two newest members of the American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association’s Board of Trustees. Matt Hilgenberg of Meadow Vista, California, and Rusty Lowry of St. Marys City, Maryland, were reelected to their posts on the board in voting which ended February 15.

All will serve three-year terms beginning with AHRMA’s annual general meeting, March 6 in DeLand, Florida.

Boydstun replaces Rob Stickler of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, as Western Region trustee, while Breckon will occupy the seat held by Brian Slark of McCalla, Alabama, representing the Eastern Region. AHRMA’s board has 12 members elected by the membership.

A total of 1,051 of AHRMA’s more than 5,000 members cast votes – 463 in the West and 588 in the East. Complete vote totals are shown below. The top two vote-getters in each region were elected.

Western Region
Matt Hilgenberg, Meadow Vista, CA – 262
David Boydstun, Mesa, AZ – 235
Rob Stickler, Steamboat Springs, CO – 163
Gordon Smith, Burbank, CA – 89
Alan Dye, Centralia, WA – 60
Brad Kennard, Des Moines, IA – 53
Colleen Charrette, Cathedral City, CA – 26

Eastern Region
Craig Breckon, Sparta, MI – 291
Rusty Lowry, St. Marys City, MD – 223
Ron Winget, Two Rivers, WI – 209
Cindy Cowell, Southport, NC – 142
Brian Slark, McCalla, AL – 133
Gregg Bonelli, Mattoon, IL – 72
Mike Kavula Jr., Snellville, GA – 51

AHRMA is a national, non-profit, member-owned association which conducts classic road racing, motocross, dirt track, observed trials and cross country competition, as well as road racing for modern twins, singles and triples. For more information, visit www.ahrma.org.

Team ProMotion is opening its 2002 track ride and school season with an event on the VIR North Course on March 2-3.

More information is available from (215) 675-5080, www.teampromotion.com

From a press release:

MARLBORO YAMAHA TEAM TESTS
Estoril, Portugal
Wednesday, February 20, 2002

CHECA & BIAGGI WORK THROUGH TORRID DAY AT ESTORIL

Marlboro Yamaha Team riders Carlos Checa and Max Biaggi took part in a torrid day of pre-season testing at Estoril today, continuing their build-up to the much-awaited 2002 MotoGP World Championship.

The first day of the two-day IRTA session at the Portuguese track was marred by a number of crashes, the worst of which left MotoGP rivals Garry McCoy (Yamaha) and Tetsuya Harada (Honda) nursing suspected broken bones.

Somewhat wary of the circuit, which is often badly affected by strong winds blowing off the Atlantic, Checa and Biaggi went about furthering development of their Marlboro Yamaha Team YZR-M1s.

“We’ve been concentrating on making the bike turn better, because if we can improve turning, then I can get on the throttle earlier which will give me more acceleration out of corners,” said Checa. “This is a very tight circuit with many interlinking corners, which makes turning so important. We do have a new chassis on the way but I’m still keen to improve this one as much as possible.”

Biaggi was just a couple of tenths slower than his teammate, continuing work with the chassis he tried at the very end of last week’s Valencia IRTA tests. “We’ve done a lot of work on this chassis,” said the Italian. “We spent some of the day trying to dial out some chatter, which we did improve for my last run. I also tried the engine-braking control system again and it seems better than at Valencia.”

Tomorrow Biaggi will try different M1 engine characters at Estoril, which is the slowest, most tortuous circuit on the World Championship calendar, with a lap record of just 149kmh.

“Once again we’re at another new track for the M1, so we’ve been trying different set-ups for this kind of circuit,” explained M1 project leader Ichiro Yoda. “We need to find a good engine character and a good chassis set-up, and we know that if we improve the chassis, then that will allow the riders to use the advantages of the four-stroke engine. We have made some good progress with the engine-braking control system, and we’ll continue work on that tomorrow.”

Although the quickest 500s were faster than the M1 today, as they were at Valencia, Marlboro Yamaha Team manager Geoff Crust wasn’t overly surprised. “We always knew the 500s would be at their best at tight tracks because the regulations allow them to be lighter than the four-strokes,” he said. “We’d already seen that at Valencia last week and at Jerez, where Katoh’s 500 was faster than Rossi’s four-stroke. But one-off lap times are one thing, I believe the four-strokes can be stronger over race distance, and that’s what counts.”

LAP TIMES
Carlos Checa, Marlboro Yamaha Team, 1:41.39

Max Biaggi, Marlboro Yamaha Team, 1:41.62

From an AMA press release:

SAME-DAY COVERAGE OF THE 2002 DAYTONA SUPERCROSS ON SPEED CHANNEL

PICKERINGTON, Ohio — The 2002 AMA Supercross at Daytona will be given same-day coverage on Saturday, March 9, on Speed Channel. Both the 125 East and 250 main event races will be shown in a three-hour program at 8 p.m. Eastern.

“Three hours of same-day programming on Speed Channel provides a great platform to showcase the incredible athletes competing in AMA Supercross” stated John C. Farris, Jr., vice president commercial development, AMA Pro Racing. “Fans also benefit by being able to watch the coverage within hours of the actual races.”

Daytona is the most-coveted prize in the AMA EA Sports Supercross Series. The track, designed by Motorcycle Hall of Fame inductee Gary Bailey, is the longest and most grueling on the Supercross tour. It is considered a unique hybrid between the tight and technical stadiums Supercross tracks and faster and more wide-open circuits featured in the AMA Chevy Truck U.S. Motocross Championship.

Honda’s Ricky Carmichael will be shooting for his third-straight win in the Daytona Supercross. Carmichael hopes to join Jeff Stanton (who won four in a row) and Mike Kiedrowski as only the third rider in the 31-year history of the race to win three straight.

Jeremy McGrath comes to Daytona as the only other winner of the important race. The seven-time AMA Supercross champion, who owns and rides for the Bud Light Yamaha team, is hoping to win his fourth Daytona.

A slew of hopefuls will be vying to become only the third active rider to win at Daytona. Chief among those contenders should be Yamaha’s David Vuillemin, who leads the championship, and Mike LaRocco, the Factory Connection Honda rider who has come close at Daytona several times.

AMA Pro Racing is the leading sanctioning body for professional motorcycle sport in the United States. For more information about AMA Pro Racing, visit www.amaproracing.com.

From the SBK press office:

Superbike World Championship
SBK Winter Test – Valencia 23 – 24 – 25 February 2002
Entry List (updated 18 February)

WSBK
Ducati Infostrada: Troy Bayliss – Ruben Xaus

Castrol Honda: Colin Edwards

Castrol Honda Rumi: Mark Heckles

Aprilia Racing: Noriyuki Haga

Kawasaki Racing Team: Hitoyasu Isutzu – Chris Walker

HM Plant Ducati: Neil Hodgson – James Toseland

Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra: Gregorio Lavilla

Ducati L&M: Ben Bostrom

Ducati NCR: Pierfrancesco Chili

Team Pedercini: Lucio Pedercini – Marco Borciani – Serafino Foti

D.F.X Racing: Steve Martin – Alessandro Antonello

Pacific Team: Thierry Mulot

White Endurance Team: Bertrand Stey – Yann Gyger

Benelli Sport: Peter Goddard

Team Kawasaki Bertocchi: Mauro Sanchini – Ivan Clementi

Spaziotel Racing Team: Juan Borja

WSS
Kawasaki Racing Team: Andrew Pitt – James Ellison

Yamaha Belgarda: James Whitham – Paolo Casoli

Yamaha-Motor-Germany: Joerg Teuchert – Christian Kellner

Ten Kate Honda: Pere Riba – Fabien Foret

Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra: Stephane Chambon – Katsuaki Fujiwara

BKM Honda Racing Team: Robert Ulm – Christophe Cogan

Saveko Racing Team: Jim Moodie – Robert D. Frost

Team Lorenzini by Leoni: Stefano Cruciani – Antonio Carlacci

Van-zon-Honda T.K.R.: Werner Daemen – Chris Vermeulen

Honda UK Racing Team: Karl Muggeridge – Scott Smart

Ducati NCR Nortel Networks: Piergiorgio Bontempi

GIMotorsport: Diego Giugovaz

Team Italia Spadaro: Alessio Corradi

O.P.C.M.: Iain McPherson – Christian Zaiser

Rox Racing Team: Gianluca Nannelli

Weger Racing Team: Alexander Schlaefke


Endurance

GMT 94: Christophe Guyot – Sebastien Scarnato – A. Van Den Bossche

7:00 p.m. Bike Week

7:30 p.m. Motorcyclist

8:00 p.m. Kawasaki Dream Rides

9:00 p.m. National Arenacross Series

10:00 p.m. National Arenacross Series

11:00 p.m. American Thunder

11:30 p.m. High Octane

12:00 a.m. Bike Week

12:30 a.m. Motorcyclist

1:00 a.m. Kawasaki Dream Rides

2:00 a.m. National Arenacross Series

3:00 a.m. National Arenacross Series

All times are Eastern.

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Dunlop Tires’ 2002 contingency program posts cash and certificates totaling $1,183,325 in 11 different racing organizations.

Dunlop pays cash for posted AMA National finishes and issues certificates good toward the purchase of Dunlop tires for posted finishes in AFM, CCS, SMRI, OMRRA, CRA, MRA, WMRRA, WSMC, RPM/WERA, and FUSA/FUSA Pro-AM races.

The following are the race contingency payout amounts announced by Dunlop:

AMA Superbike
$1000
$500
$250
$50
$50
Championship bonus
$10,000

AMA 250cc Grand Prix
$500
$300
$200
$50
$50
Championship bonus
$1000

AMA 600cc Supersport
$1000
$500
$250
$50
$50
Championship bonus
$10,000

AMA 750 Supersport
$500
$300
$200
$50
$50
Championship bonus
$1000

AMA Formula Xtreme
$500
$300
$200
$50
$50
Championship bonus
$1000

AMA Pro Thunder
$300
$200
$100
$50
$50
Championship bonus
$500

WSMC Formula 1
$400
$250
$150
$100
$50

WSCM Formula 3
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WSMC Open Superstock
$300
$200
$100
$50
$50

WSMC 750cc Superstock
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

WSMC 600cc Superstock
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

WSMC 0-500cc Novice
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WSMC 501-650cc Novice
$200
$100
$50
$40
$30

WSMC 651-Open Novice
$200
$100
$50
$40
$30

WSMC Aprilia Cup
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WSMC BOTT Middleweight
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WMRRA Open Supersport
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

WMRRA 750cc Supersport
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

WMRRA 600cc Supersport
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

WMRRA Formula Ultra
$150
$100
$75
$50
$30

WMRRA Formula Thunder
$150
$100
$75
$50
$30

WMRRA 650cc Supersport Twins
$150
$100
$75
$50
$30

WMRRA 450cc Superbike
$150
$100
$75
$50
$30

WMRRA 600cc Superbike
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WMRRA125cc GP (Formula 3)
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WMRRA Open Endurance
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WMRRA Middleweight Endurance
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WMRRA Lightweight Endurance
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

MRA Race of the Rockies
$200
$150
$100
$75
$50

MRA Open Supersport
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Heavyweight Supersport
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Middleweight Supersport
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Open Superbike
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Heavyweight Superbike
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Middleweight Superbike
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Amateur GTO
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Amateur GTU
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Novice GTO
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Novice GTU
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Sport Twins GTO
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

MRA Sport Twins GTU
$150
$100
$75
$50
$40

CRA Unlimited Supersport
$150
$100
$80
$60
$40

CRA HEAVYWEIGHT SUPERSPORT EXPERT
$150
$100
$80
$60
$40

CRA MIDDLEWEIGHT SUPERSPORT EXPERT
$150
$100
$80
$60
$40

CRA LIGHTWEIGHT SUPERSPORT EXPERT
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

CRA HEAVYWEIGHT SUPERSPORT NOVICE
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

CRA MIDDLEWEIGHT SUPERSPORT NOVICE
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

CRA LIGHTWEIGHT SUPERSPORT NOVICE
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

CRA SPORT TWINS EXPERT
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

CRA SPORT TWINS NOVICE
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

OMRRA OPEN SUPERSPORT
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

OMRRA 750cc SUPERSPORT
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

OMRRA 600cc SUPERSPORT
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

OMRRA450cc SUPERSPORT
$300
$200
$100
$50
$30

OMRRA FORMULA UNLIMITED
$150
$100
$75
$50
$30

OMRRA 650cc GP TWINS
$150
$100
$75
$50
$30

OMRRA 250cc GP
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

OMRRA 125cc GP
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

OMRRA OPEN ENDURANCE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

OMRRA MIDDLEWEIGHT ENDURANCE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

OMRRA LIGHTWEIGHT ENDURANCE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

SMRI UNLIMITED GP
$150
$100
$80
$60
$40

SMRI OPEN SUPERBIKE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

SMRI HEAVYWEIGHT SUPERBIKE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

SMRI MIDDLEWEIGHT SUPERBIKE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

SMRI SUPER TWINS
$80
$60
$40
$30
$25

SMRI NOVICE OPEN
$80
$60
$40
$30
$25

SMRI NOVICE GTO
$80
$60
$40
$30
$25

SMRI NOVICE GTU
$80
$60
$40
$30
$25

CCS SUPERSPORT UNLIMITED EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

CCS SUPERSPORT HEAVYWEIGHT EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

CCS SUPERSPORT MIDDLEWEIGHT EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

CCS SUPERSPORT LIGHTWEIGHT EXPERT
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

CCS SUPERSPORT UNLIMITED AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPERSPORT HEAVYWEIGHT AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPERSPORT MIDDLEWEIGHT AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPER SPORT LIGHTWEIGHT AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPERBIKE HEAVYWEIGHT EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

CCS SUPERBIKE MIDDLEWEIGHT EXPERT
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

CCS SUPERBIKE LIGHTWEIGHT EXPERT
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

CCS SUPERBIKE HEAVYWEIGHT AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPERBIKE MIDDLEWEIGHT AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPERBIKE LIGHTWEIGHT AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS GT (SPRINT) GTO EXPERT
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

CCS GT (SPRINT) GTU EXPERT
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

CCS GT (SPRINT) GTL EXPERT
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

CCS GT (SPRINT) GTO AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS GT (SPRINT) GTU AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS GT (SPRINT) GTL AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPERTWINS EXPERT
$80
$60
$40
$30
$20

CCS SUPERTWINS AMATEUR
$60
$50
$40
$30
$20

AFM FORMULA PACIFIC
$400
$250
$150
$80
$40

AFM 750cc PRODUCTION
$300
$200
$100
$50
$40

AFM 600cc PRODUCTION
$300
$200
$100
$50
$40

AFM FORMULA 2
$150
$100
$80
$60
$40

AFM FORMULA 3
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

AFM OPEN SUPERBIKE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

FUSA SUPERBIKE
$600
$400
$300
$200
$100

FUSA SPORTBIKE
$600
$400
$300
$200
$100

FUSA BUEL LIGHTNING
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

FUSA PRO-AM THUNDERBIKES
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

FUSA PRO-AM OPEN GRAND PRIX
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

FUSA PRO-AM TEAM CHALLENGE GTO
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

FUSA PRO-AM TEAM CHALLENGE GTU
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

FUSA PRO-AM TEAM CHALLENGE GTL
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

FUSA PRO-AM 600cc SUPERSPORT AMATEUR
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

FUSA PRO-AM OPEN SUPERSPORT AMATEUR
$200
$100
$75
$50
$30

RPM/WERA ENDURANCE-UNLIMITED SUPERBIKE
$300
$200
$150
$100
$50

RPM/WERA ENDURANCE-MIDDLEWEIGHT SUPERBIKE
$300
$200
$150
$100
$50

RPM/WERA ENDURANCE-LIGHTWEIGHT SUPERBIKE
$300
$200
$150
$100
$50

RPM/WERA SPORTSMAN “A” OPEN SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

RPM/WERA SPORTSMAN “B” 750cc SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

RPM/WERA SPORTSMAN “C” 600cc SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

RPM/WERA SPORTSMAN “B” 750cc SUPER STOCK NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

RPM/WERA SPORTSMAN “C” 600cc SUPERSTOCK NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

RPM/WERA SPORTSMAN LIGHTWEIGHT TWINS EXPERT
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

RPM/WERA SPORTSMAN LIGHTWEIGHT TWINS NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30


WERA SPORTSMAN “A” OPEN SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

WERA SPORTSMAN “B” 750cc SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

WERA SPORTSMAN “C” 600cc SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$125
$100
$80
$60
$40

WERA SPORTSMAN “B” 750cc SUPERSTOCK NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WERA SPORTSMAN “C” 600cc SUPERSPORT NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WERA SPORTSMAN LIGHTWEIGHT TWINS EXPERT
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WERA SPORTSMAN LIGHTWEIGHT TWINS NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WERA NATIONAL CHALLENGE SERIES –”A” OPEN SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$200
$125
$80
$60
$40

WERA NATIONAL CHALLENGE SERIES-“B” 750cc SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$200
$125
$80
$60
$40

WERA NATIONAL CHALLENGE SERIES-“C” 600cc SUPERSTOCK EXPERT
$200
$125
$80
$60
$40

WERA NATIONAL CHALLENGE SERIES-“B” 750cc SUPERSTOCK NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WERA NATIONAL CHALLENGE SERIES-“C” 600cc SUPERSTOCK NOVICE
$100
$80
$60
$40
$30

WERA NATIONAL CHALLENGE SERIES LIGHTWEIGHT TWINS EXPERT
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

WERA NATIONAL CHALLENGE SERIES LIGHTWEIGHT TWINS NOVICE
$80
$60
$50
$40
$30

WERA NATIONAL ENDURANCE HEAVYWEIGHT SUPER STOCK
$500
$300
$200
$100
$50

WERA NATIONAL ENDURANCE MIDDLEWEIGHT SUPERSTOCK
$500
$300
$200
$100
$50