Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Michael Hannas

CBR600RR Hondas will not be available in dealerships until after the upcoming races at Daytona, according to various Honda dealers across the country. The bikes were originally scheduled to be released to dealers on March 28, which would have put them on dealership floors and available for purchase around April 1. But now American Honda has notified dealers than they will receive one red unit by mid-April and one yellow unit in early May, with the balance of their ordered CBR600RRs to be delivered “from mid-May through June.”

Which means that racers planning to compete on a new Honda in either the AMA (March 5-9) or F-USA (February 26-March 2) series will be out of luck at Daytona–unless they’re one of 11 factory-supported Honda riders.

After several readers complained about the lack of CBR600RR availability in time for Daytona, Roadracingworld.com checked with several Honda dealers and then called up AMA Pro Racing National Technical Manager Rob King.

When asked if the Honda CBR600RR would be eligible to race at Daytona even though it won’t be available to the general public, King said, “Yes. The homologation procedure that has been in place for around 10 years requires that the bikes be available to the public by June 1. It used to be that the bikes had to be available in order to be raced, but it was changed since some of the manufacturers couldn’t do that. The policy has been that way for at least the past eight years that I’ve been here. Yes, it’s unfortunate for the privateer, but…”

An interesting scenario has been created here, in which an AMA racer could compete in the Supersport race at Daytona, then claim the exhaust system off Miguel DuHamel’s factory Honda for the bargain price of $650 and have a factory exhaust for his CBR600RR before he even has the bike. Also available for claiming are the fuel injection electronic control module for $750 and the ignition control module for $400, although only one successful claim per rider is allowed per season. (Since fuel injection and ignition are usually controlled by the same black box, we’re not sure if that means a combined box would cost $750 or $400 or $1150.) See the AMA Pro Racing rulebook for more details.

We also gave Formula USA’s Kevin Elliott a call. When asked the same question we asked King, Elliott said, “Yes. Our policy has always been along the lines of, ‘Well, it happens every year,’ the manufacturers just release the bikes to their factory-supported teams and everyone else gets them later. This is the first time in a long time we’ve had a problem like this, but we’ll let them run. The rules only say that the bike must be sold as a streetbike, there is no number requirement or date. With the weight and horsepower limits, the really strong existing teams like Arclight are already right at these limits, and it would be hard for a new bike to come right out and start beating them anyway. Miguel DuHamel and Doug Chandler have entered CBR600RRs in CCS events at (this coming) Daytona, but no F-USA events so far. If they do I would expect it to be in the Superbike class so they don’t have to show everyone how much power they have, since there is no horsepower limit in that class.”

From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

ORACLE AND DUCATI TOGETHER ON THE RACING TRACK

Milan, February 20, 2003 – Oracle Italia, a subsidiary of Oracle Corporation (Nasdaq: ORCL), the world’s largest enterprise software company, announced today that it has struck a partnership with Ducati Corse, to become the official sponsor of the Ducati teams participating in the World MotoGP and Superbike Championships.

Highly innovative technologies delivering a competitive edge: this is the foundation on which this prestigious partnership between Oracle and Ducati is based. A combination of two enterprises, both accustomed to “pushing” to the max to achieve success, on the racing track just as on the markets.

From Valencia to Magny Cours, through Monza and Mugello; Oracle therefore will be present at the races of the World MotoGP and World Superbike Championships to contribute to Ducati’s successes.

The agreement plans for future co-marketing and e-marketing activities aimed at making the companies win both on and off the racing track.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

From Gordon Lunde, via e-mail:

In addition to the complete resurfacing of Blackhawk Farms Raceway in South Beloit, Illinois, the owners are in the process of more safety-related changes.

An unintended benefit of the repaving is lower curb heights in the turns. An inch-and-a-half of surface was ground off the track. Then two layers of new asphalt (1.5 inches each) were laid down, resulting in raising the surface 1.5 inches total and effectively lowering the curb heights by the same amount.

I spoke with owner Mike Irwin on New Year’s day about changes to the turn five area for more run-off room. There has always been a problem there due to a creek that runs under the track from inside to outside of the turn. In the past the Illinois DNR would not let any changes occur that would possibly impede the flow of the creek. There were also numerous trees and heavy underbrush along the creek and a guardrail fronted with tires only a couple of feet off the track’s edge.

About mid-January Mike called me to inform me changes were underway in turn five. I had the chance to check out the progress about a week ago.

Workers went in and took out 18 trees and all of the underbrush in that area. Culvert pipe was installed to extend the existing pipe under the track further away from the racing surface and the area will be back-filled over the pipe. This has considerably increased run-off room before and after the apex of the corner. The guardrail will still exist but in a much abbreviated form just in front of the creek and it is moved back at least 15 feet from the track edge. A dirt berm about 5 feet high will replace guardrail that was previously in front of the creek but some 20-30 feet further back from the track and will be fronted with a tire wall. The area beyond the apex where most incidents have occurred has been cleared of all brush and will be filled and leveled for much better run-off room also.

Other areas (outside of turns one, six and seven) are being filled-in to provide a more level run-off area. Also the entrance to pit road has been extended toward turn seven and widened. A dirt berm extending from inside turn seven along the front straight has been moved back at least 15 feet and several trees were removed in the process which drastically improves the line-of-sight from turn seven to the control tower. No other changes were made to the track layout.

Another improvement is that all the grindings from the track have been laid on the infield roads and as soon as weather permits will be melted and rolled to provide a fully paved infield. Any one who regularly races here can tell horror stories about the dust during dry spells. Now just a memory.

I think the CCS racers will be happy to see all the work that has been done by the track when they arrive for the first event in April.

Although it may be a bit of a mess if work is still in progress, the safety improvements will be obvious.

From a press release issued by Dr. Rob Tuluie:

Robert Jensen to Race Tul-aris in Formula USA Unlimited GP at Daytona.

AMA Pro 750 Supersport and Superbike racer Robert Jensen will race the Tul-aris in the Formula USA Unlimited GP class on Sunday, March 2nd at Daytona International Speedway. Regular Tul-aris rider Steve Johnson cannot attend Daytona due to a work conflict.

Robert Jensen has been making a name for himself in the AMA Superbike and 750 Supersport classes, with several podium finishes in Supersport and top-ten finishes in Superbike. His best 2002 finishes were a 2nd in AMA 750 Supersport and a 6th in AMA Superbike. Robert is also the 2001 Suzuki Cup Champion.

Since this will be the first time that Robert is riding the Tul-aris, we have arranged a special test with him at North Florida Motorsports Park on Monday, February 24th, to get him used to the bike. Robert is excited to race what is currently the fastest home-made as well as the fastest US-built racing motorcycle. We are equally excited to have Robert push the limits of the bike in an effort to win the most competitive race of the year.


The Tul-aris project is sponsored by:

Michelin Tires, Nutec Racing Fuel, Hot Seat Performance, Ohlins USA, Lofgren Racing/Manley Cycle, Mason Racing Tires, MTS Systems Corporation, Yoyodyne Titanium, GP Tech, Carbon Fiber Specialties Products, DCM Services and Deus Ex Machina.

Robert Jensen is sponsored by Butler Machinery, Michelin, Arai Helmets, RS-Taichi Leathers and Sidi Boots.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Ducati North America is scrambling after a cross-country move of its headquarters and the subsequent departure of CEO Joe Piazza, a little more than one year after he took control of the company.

The company has just finished moving its headquarters from Pompton Plains, New Jersey to Cupertino, California, near San Francisco; only one New Jersey-based employee made the move to California, leaving the bulk of positions to be filled by new hires.

Piazza had no OEM experience when he was hired to run Ducati North America; before taking the job he was Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Global Motorsports Group/Custom Chrome, an aftermarket company. His first day as CEO of Ducati North America was February 5, 2002.

Piazza’s departure comes on the heels of news that Ducati’s revenues dropped in the latest fiscal year; a Ducati press release referred to the Italian company as being “burdened by the restructuring of our U.S. subsidiary.”

Nicola Greco, who was Ducati Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing when he hired Piazza in the first place, is expected to take over the reigns of Ducati North America. When he introduced Piazza to the press in February 2002, Greco said “I was not happy with the performance of the overall U.S. operation. Since it is our most important market (and) I know the U.S. quite well, I just put by my side my global sales and marketing role and took over the States for a couple of months to select a new manager and to restructure the company. These things happen. They’re normal corporate things.

“Basically, companies go through periods where they need to re-assess what they are doing. We looked at what we were doing in the States, and we came to the conclusion that the time for change had come…After many years of growth, we came to a stop last year, and there were many reasons for that.”

Fast-forward to 2003, and the company is making more changes.

An official announcement of the latest changes is expected by Monday.

From a press release:

The Barden Corporation, a world leader in the manufacture of high performance ceramic bearings, will be supporting Eric Wood’s 2003 AMA race effort as Team Barden Bearings. The team is slated to make select appearances in AMA Superbike and Superstock action riding Suzuki GSX-R750s. Woodcraft, owned by racer Eric Wood, will be the primary source for Barden Bearings to the sportbike market.

Barden 2003 Contingency: Barden Bearings will be paying contingency money in both the AMA and Formula USA series in 2003. Riders wishing to participate in the program will be required to purchase either a complete ceramic engine-bearing or wheel-bearing kit, run Barden decals and complete a one-time product registration/contingency form. The payouts for 2003 are as follows:

AMA: Superbike & Formula Xtreme (Paid to first non-factory riders)

Formula USA: Sportbike & Thunderbike

1st – $300
2nd – $200
3rd – $100
4th – $75
5th – $50

For further information please contact Woodcraft at (508)339-5772

From a press release issued by California Superbike School:

Expanding California Superbike School
To Conduct Classes in 12 Countries in 2003

Los Angeles / — The California Superbike School (www.superbikeschool.com) announced it will conduct classes for motorcyclists in 12 countries during the 2003 calendar year. Founded in 1980 by motorcycle racing legend Keith Code, the Los Angeles based school established permanent branches in England and Australia in the 1990s. This year, in addition to its operations in the US, England, and Australia, Code’s school will hold classes for riders in Ireland, France, Spain, Germany, Greece, Norway, Sweden, Malaysia, and the Philippines.

“Once foreign students come to one of our schools they immediately want to share their new skills with friends at home – and this rider-to-rider, word-of-mouth dissemination is what’s fueling our global expansion,” says Code.

Code’s school, which provides state-of-the-art on-track instruction focused on cornering for motorcyclists with previous riding experience, annually conducts approximately 60 school sessions in more than a dozen locations throughout the US.

“Our biggest problem is keeping up with the demand,” says Code. “It usually takes one to two years to train a riding instructor in our procedures, and we only accept one out of every twenty-five who try out.

More than 100,000 riders, including more than 15 US Superbike champions, have benefited from Code’s cornering technology.

“With all the interest in schools, I have to admit it is fun being number one in the world,” says Code.

Those wanting more information (or wishing to contact Code) can call the Los Angeles office at 323-224-2734, or fax 323-227-7877.

For school dates and locations visit www.superbikeschool.com.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts with files from Bob Dragich

Kawasaki’s Eric Bostrom continued to show his mastery of Laguna Seca and the development progress made on his over-bored ZX-7RR Superbike by turning a 1:25.6 during testing Thursday at the Monterey, California circuit.

Bostrom’s time is better than both his 2002 AMA Superbike pole time of 1:25.716 and his 2002 World Superbike qualifying time of 1:25.875, approximately one-tenth of a second off Anthony Gobert’s AMA Superbike lap record, and Bostrom told Roadracingworld.com’s Bob Dragich, “I could’ve done that time on any tire they (Dunlop) had in the truck.”

Bostrom’s Kawasaki crew, led by Crew Chief Dan Fahie, has completely abandoned its 750cc machine in favor of two different over-bore engine configurations, one fitted into each of Bostrom’s Superbikes. The 26-year-old Californian said he didn’t know the exact differences between the two engines but knew that one was definitely faster, smoother and overall better than the other one.

Bostrom’s teammates Tommy Hayden and Tony Meiring continued to work on their ZX-6RR Supersport racers with some progress, according to Hayden. While Meiring worked mainly on his set-up and technique, Hayden developed two better fork settings that he wants to “marry” into one best configuration.

Both Hayden (1:29.29) and Meiring (1:30.3) recorded their best 2003 off-season lap times at Laguna Seca Thursday and all but matched the times set by Yamaha’s Aaron Gobert (1:29.14), Jamie Hacking (1:29.2) and Damon Buckmaster (1:29.8) from Tuesday and Jason DiSalvo’s 1:29.6 from Thursday.

However, the Yamaha trio only rode their YZF-R6 Supersport bikes for a few laps Tuesday with Buckmaster, for instance, only doing 19 circuits before all three switched to the development of their Graves Motorsports YZF-R1 Formula Xtreme weapons with great success.

All three Yamaha riders recorded lap times under the existing AMA Formula Xtreme lap record for Laguna Seca (held by Buckmaster at 1:27.855) Thursday with Buckmaster fastest (1:27.1) followed by Hacking (1:27.3) and Gobert (1:27.55).

Also in attendance Thursday were Annandale Honda’s Ty Howard and Craig Connell. Leaving the set-up of their CBR600RR Supersport bike to be completed during the CCS weekend at Daytona International Speedway, the Annandale Honda riders visited pit lane frequently to work on the chassis of their new CBR954RR racebikes.

Howard told Roadracingworld.com that his bike had “a wobble,” and Connell said his 954 had “a skip and a jump,” but Annandale Honda’s Jerry Daggett said that the team had found the right direction to go and was focusing on the steering head of the chassis.

In a limited number of laps, Howard turned a best time of 1:29.99, while Connell lapped at a best of 1:31.80.

Meanwhile, Universal Studios/American Honda’s crew returned from an annual bike-building expedition to HRC in Japan to do a shake-down test of their newly-constructed 2003 Hondas Thursday at Willow Springs International Raceway in Rosamond, California, before heading to Daytona. According to sources on the scene, most of the Honda team left about halfway through the day, about the same time that gusting winds died down – which is the opposite of the normal weather pattern at Willow Springs.

Thursday’s Best Unofficial Lap Times From Laguna Seca:

1. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:25.6
2. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:27.1
3. Jamie Hacking, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:27.3
4. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:27.55
5. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki ZX-6RR, 1:29.29
6. Jason DiSalvo, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:29.6
7. Ty Howard, Honda CBR954RR, 1:29.99
8. Tony Meiring, Kawasaki ZX-6RR, 1:30.3
9. Craig Connell, Honda CBR954RR, 1:31.80

From a press release issued by Clear Channel:

2003 Championship Cup Series Announces Road Race Contingency Listings Over 5 Million Dollars

AURORA, IL.–Clear Channel Entertainment’s motor sports division proudly announced today the preliminary 2003 CCS Road Race Contingency Program after topping 5 Million Dollars. After only 2/3 of the 2002 Contingency Sponsors having renewed for the 2003 season, the CCS contingency postings have been drastically increased from previous years…And this even before confirming the motorcycle manufacturer listings such as Suzuki, Kawasaki, Honda, Yamaha, and Aprilia.

The Championship Cup Series offers 45 various classes of motorcycle road racing competition at each event, catering to all sportsman racers, from the beginner to the professional veterans. The majority of CCS events also offer road race schools, where beginners can start their transition to expert racer. This “Zero to Hero” program, as is has been named, has been sponsored by Lockhart Phillips USA since its inception and who’s contract continues through the 2004 season.

Kevin Elliott, Competition Director of Sport Bike properties for Clear Channel stated: “We are very proud that the Championship Cup Series’ 20th season has started off with such success. CCS is proud to have such a strong relationship with the industry manufacturers and distributors, and that they can profit from their relationship with our road race properties.” With race entries increasing 60% in purse paying classes in 2002, CCS is confident that the 2003 season will again see a double digit increase in entry numbers and licensing.

The first event in 2003 at Streets of Willow in Rosamond California (located near Edwards A.F.B.) was the CCS opener for the Pacific Region and kicked off the 20th season of the Championship Cup Series featuring more than 70 regional events nationwide. The bar was set high as pre-entry and post entry numbers were drastically increased from 2002 events at the same venue.

“In the next 12 months, the CCS program is expecting to experience explosive growth in licensed riders and ‘Zero to Hero’ program participants. We will expose more riders to thrill of the on-track experience than ever before, in cooperation with facility partners and new rider programs that will soon be announced,” added Elliott. These, along with increased contingency programs, help to create a win-win situation for everyone involved. CCS expects a continued increase in contingency program listings as the motorcycle manufacturers announce their programs generating unprecedented benefits, which are designed to help the racing teams and privateers pay for their racing programs, and continue to participate in the sport.

For the latest information on events, weekend schedules, news or information, visit FormulaUSA.com or CCSracing.com.

From a press release issued by F-USA:

KTM Announces Dirt Track Race Team

KTM Sportmotorcycle USA, Inc. will field a two-rider National Championship Dirt Track race team for the 2003 and 2004 seasons. The KTM National Dirt Track Race Team will consist of 2000 AMA Grand National Champion Joe Kopp and Kenny Coolbeth the 2002 AMA Grand National Championship third place finisher.

Both Kopp and Coolbeth will campaign KTM Racing Four Stroke 450 SX motorcycles in the K&N Filters Pro Series sanctioned by Formula USA and produced by Clear Channel Motor Sports.

Both Kopp and Coolbeth will also be involved in the testing and development of the new KTM LC8 V-Twin cylinder engine during the 2003-2004 racing seasons.

Joe Kopp’s motorcycles will be maintained and tuned by Travis Smith and Kenny Coolbeth’s by Andy Fenwick. Both race mechanics will be based out of Darrell Jones’, Jones Power Sports KTM in Columbia, Missouri. Jones, a long time Dirt Track and Road Race sponsor of both Joe and Kenny, will act as crew manager.

KTM’s engine development in the U.S. will be handled in-house by KTM USA’s Sean McLaughlin and the KTM National Dirt Track Race Team Manager will be Mike Rosso.

KTM has been participating in the sport of American Dirt Track racing for over three decades now and will continue to use this arena in the development of future KTM Racing Four Stroke models.

Dirt Track racing is the cornerstone of American motorcycle racing and can trace its roots back to 1901. The extremely close competition of Dirt Track and the need for superior power characteristics are great development tools for KTM Racing Four Stroke products.

Joe and Kenny with their world caliber riding abilities, development skills and great personalities are the perfect team for KTM and for the showcasing of KTM’s “Ready to Race” four-stroke line of motorcycles.

In addition to KTM Sportmotorcycles USA, Jones Power Sports KTM, WP Suspension and Wiseco Pistons will sponsor the KTM Dirt Track Team.