Rumors that Carl Fogarty was considering a split from Ducati to run his own World Superbike team with another brand appear to have come true.

From a Ducati press release:

DUCATI AND FOGARTY TO PART WAYS

Ducati Motor Holding and Carl Fogarty wish to announce that they have decided to go their separate ways and dissolve their long-term relationship.

Fogarty, who officially retired from racing at the end of the 2000 season after a crash at Phillip Island, Australia brought an end to his racing career, was in the first year of a three-year agreement as ‘ambassador’ for the Italian manufacturer.

He recently made a specific request to Ducati for the relationship to be dissolved so that he could concentrate on other projects, incompatible with his role, and Ducati, which has always had the highest regard for the British champion, decided that it was right to allow Carl the possibility of embarking on a new adventure.

Carl Fogarty is the most successful World Superbike racer of all time. The 36-year-old from Blackburn, England won four World Superbike titles with Ducati in 1994, 1995, 1998 and 1999. He took part in 219 races, winning 59 (55 for Ducati), a total that included 15 double wins. He finished on the podium 108 times and set 21 pole positions (all Ducati) and 31 fastest laps (all Ducati).

The ultra-successful Fogarty-Ducati partnership started off in 1992, with the Englishman finishing ninth overall in the World Superbike Championship. He scored the first of 55 wins in front of his home crowd at Donington in 1992 with a Ducati 888 and won his first WSBK title in 1994, following this up with title number 2 in 1995, both on a Ducati 916. After a one-year break away from Ducati he returned to the red twin-cylinder bike in 1997, finishing runner-up, and then clinched his third and fourth titles in 1998 and 1999 on a Ducati 996. Carl’s final race on a Ducati was the Australian Round of the 2000 season, when he crashed out and broke his upper left arm.

Carl Fogarty’s name will always be synonymous with World Superbike in general and Ducati in particular.

Ducati would like to offer its sincerest thanks to Carl Fogarty for all the successful years spent together and wish him all the very best for the future.

Bologna, 21st November 2001

From a press release:

Clear Channel Entertainment Announces Championship Cup Series Schedule

AURORA, Ill. (November 21, 2001) -Clear Channel Entertainment’s motorsports division proudly announced today the 2002 initial event schedule for the prestigious Championship Cup Series (CCS). 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 veteran. The majority of CCS events also offer road racing schools, where beginners can start their transition to expert racer.

“We are going into Formula USA’s third year of sanctioning CCS road racing with a record number of licensed riders and race entries. Last year’s total entries exceeded 46,000 with more than 5100 licensed riders competing in our series, marking the third straight year of double-digit increases. Our 2002 Streets of Willow opener kicks off the 19th season of the Championship Cup Series featuring the staggering 71 events announced today” said Kevin Elliott, Road Race Manager of CCS.

“In the next 12 months, the CCS program is going to experience explosive growth in ridership. We will expose more riders to thrill of the on-track experience than ever before, in cooperation with facility partners and new rider programs we will announce soon,” added Elliott.

The 2002 Championship Cup Series (CCS) follows:


Feb 2-3 Streets of Willow * Rosamond, Calif

Feb 9-10 Homestead * Homestead, Fla.

Feb 23-24 Oak Hill Raceway Henderson, Texas

Feb 28-Mar 3 Daytona Intl Speedway Daytona Beach, Fla.

Mar 9-10 Firebird East Chandler, Ariz.

Mar 16-17 Moroso Motorsports Park West Palm Beach, Fla.

Mar 23-24 Gateway Intl Raceway * Madison, Ill.

Mar 30-31 Texas World Speedway College Stations, Texas

Apr 6-7 N. FL Motorsports Park Jennings, Fla.

Apr 6-7 Blackhawk Farms South Beloit, Ill.

Apr 13-14 Oak Hill Raceway Henderson, Texas

Apr 13-14 Virginia Intl Raceway Danville, Va.

Apr 13-14 Firebird Intl. East Chandler, Ariz.

Apr 13-14 Thunderhill Park Willows, Calif.

Apr 20-21 Moroso Motorsports Park West Palm Beach, Fla.

Apr 26-28 Road America** Elkhart Lake, Wis.

Apr 27-28 New Hampshire Intl. Speedway Loudon, N.H.

Apr 27-28 Las Vegas Classic Course Las Vegas

May 4-5 Motorsports Ranch Cresson, Texas

May 4-5 Carolina Motorsports Park Kershaw, S.C.

May 11-12 Summit Point Summit Point, W. Va.

May 18-19 Blackhawk Farms South Beloit, Ill.

May 18-19 Hallett Racing Circuit Hallet, Okla.

May 18-19 New Hampshire Intl. Speedway Loudon, N.H.

May 18-19 Firebird Intl. East Chandler, Ariz.

May 26-27 Moroso Motorsports Park West Palm Beach, Fla.

Jun 1-2 Blackhawk Farms South Beloit, Ill.

Jun 1-2 Rausch Creek Valley View, Pa.

Jun1-2 Streets of Willow Rosamond, Calif.

Jun 8-9 New Hampshire Intl. Spdwy Loudon, N.H.

Jun 15-16 Texas World Speedway College Stations, Texas

Jun 15-16 Roebling Road Raceway Faulkville, Ga.

Jun 22-23 Homestead Homestead, Fla.

Jun 22-23 Buttonwillow Buttonwillow, Calif.

Jun 29-30 Mid-America Motorplex Glenwood, Iowa

Jul 6-7 New Hampshire Intl. Speedway Loudon, N.H.

Jul 13-14 Oak Hill Raceway Henderson, Texas

Jul 13-14 Gateway Intl Raceway Madison, Ill.

Jul 13-14 Summit Point Summit Point, W. Va.

Jul 20-21 Moroso Motorsports Park West Palm Beach, Fla.

Jul 20-21 Blackhawk Farms South Beloit, Ill.

Jul 20-21 Roebling Road Raceway Faulkville, Ga.

Jul 27-28 New Hampshire Intl. Speedway Loudon, N.H.

Jul 27-28 Virginia Intl. Raceway Danville, Va.

Aug 3-4 Mid-America Motorplex Glenwood, Iowa

Aug 10-11 Gingerman Raceway South Haven, Mich.

Aug 10-11 Texas World Speedway College Stations, Texas

Aug 10-11 Thunderhill Park Willows, Calif.

Aug 17-18 New Hampshire Intl. Speedway Loudon, N.H.

Aug 24-25 Blackhawk Farms South Beloit, Ill.

Aug 24-25 Moroso Motorsports Park West Palm Beach, Fla.

Aug 24-25 Blackhawk Farms South Beloit, Ill.

Aug 30-Sep 1 Hallett Racing Circuit Hallet, Okla.

Aug 31-Sep 1 New Hampshire Intl. Loudon, N.H.

Aug 31-Sep 1 Roebling Road Faulkville, Ga.

Sep 7-8 Blackhawk Farms South Beloit, Ill.

Sep 7-8 N. FL Motorsports Park Jennings, Fla.

Sep 7-8 Summit Point Summit Point, W. Va.

Sep 7-8 Las Vegas Classic Course Las Vegas

Sep 14-15 Gateway Intl Raceway Madison, Ill.

Sep 21-22 Rausch Creek Valley View, Pa.

Sep 21-22 Texas World Speedway College Stations, Texas

Sep 21-22 Moroso Motorsports Park* West Palm Beach, Fla.

Sep 28-29 Gingerman Raceway South Haven, Mich.

Sep 28-29 New Hampshire Intl. Speedway Loudon, N.H.

Oct 5-6 Gateway Intl Raceway * Madison, Ill.

Oct 5-6 Thunderhill Park* Willows, Calif.

Oct 5-6 Virginia Intl. Raceway Danville, Va.

Oct 5-6 Firebird Intl. Raceway Chandler, Ariz.

Oct 12-13 Motorsports Ranch Cresson, Texas

Oct 12-13 Shenandoah Circuit* Summit Point, W. Va.

Schedule may be subject to change. For the latest information, visit
ccsracing.com.

* Double points rounds
** Twin Sprints Weekend

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Tommy and Nicky Hayden finished first and second in a round of the 2001-2002 Mid-South Winter Hare Scramble Series in Lynnville, Indiana on Sunday, November 18. Tommy Hayden won the 250 B class on a Kawasaki KX250 with a time of 2:15:07 in the four-lap event. Nicky Hayden finished 1 minute 49 seconds behind his brother on a Honda CR250.

Tommy and Nicky Hayden regularly attend and compete in local races near their Owensboro, Kentucky home during the off-season. The Hayden brothers compete in everything from flat track to TT to hare scrambles to motocross in order to stay sharp and in shape for their professional road racing careers.

From a press release:

Clear Channel Entertainment Announces Five-Year Agreement with Phoenix’s Bank One Ballpark

AURORA, Ill. (November 21, 2001) – Clear Channel Entertainment’s motorsports division announced today a five-year agreement with Phoenix’s Bank One Ballpark to produce its motorsports events in the Southwest’s newest retractable-roof stadium. The agreement makes Clear Channel Entertainment the exclusive provider of motorsports events to the facility through 2006.

Bank One Ballpark, owned by the Maricopa County Stadium District, covers approximately 1,300,000 square feet, including the playing surface. Opening in the spring of 1998, the facility was built as a multipurpose facility to primarily house Arizona’s first Major League Baseball team, the 2001 World Series Champion Arizona Diamondbacks.

In 1999, Clear Channel Entertainment brought supercross to the new facility, treating fans to a luxurious spectacle never experienced before in the Southwest. The 6,900-ton expandable roof is the only one of its kind in Supercross and is composed of six operable telescoping panels that when opened creates 5.5 acres of vast Arizona sky. The world was recently exposed to Bank One Ballpark’s beauty as the facility hosted the World Series.

“This will be our fourth EA SPORTS Supercross, and the event has been a grand-slam for the Ballpark every time. Clear Channel Entertainment’s offering of both the Monster Jam and EA SPORTS Supercross have become a tradition of Arizonians, and the opportunity to extend the relationship through 2006 was one we proudly and quickly gave the nod to,” said Charles Johnston, President/CEO of Select Artists Associates, the exclusive booking company for Bank One Ballpark.

Charlie Mancuso, President of Clear Channel Entertainment’s motorsports division, said, “The Phoenix Supercross stop has traditionally been a fan favorite, and there is no better place to host a Supercross in the Southwest than Bank One Ballpark. It is the Taj Mahal of stadiums. We are completely honored to have Bank One Ballpark put their faith in us as long-term motorsports entertainment providers.”

From a Sears Point Raceway press release:

Thanksgiving Food Drive Nets More Than 650 Pounds of Food for FISH

SONOMA, Calif. (IMMEDIATE RELEASE)- Sears Point Raceway made a donation of more than 650 pounds of non-perishable food items to Friends in Sonoma Helping (FISH) following the raceway’s first Thanksgiving Food Drive.

The food items were collected through donations of race fans and community members who were rewarded with ticket vouchers to AMA Superbike qualifying on Saturday, May 4. In addition to donations made at Sears Point Raceway, items were contributed at Destination RKA in Healdsburg and Emerald City Broadcasting in Santa Rosa, home to Froggy 92.9 FM, The Fox 101.7 FM and Magic 97.7 KMGG. RKA and Emerald Broadcasting Group were co-sponsors of the drive.

FISH will use the donated food items to provide assistance to needy Sonoma Valley residents during this holiday season. In 2000, FISH supplied 1,853 households with three days of groceries, and more than 2,500 calls for food requests continue to come in each year.

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Jerry Wood

The grand opening of North Florida Motorsports Park was held on Saturday, November 17 in Jennings, Florida, located along I-75 20 miles north of I-10, about 100 miles from Jacksonville.

The track is 2 miles long and 35 feet wide–40 feet wide on the front straightaway–with 13 turns, and was designed by former racer and current racing school owner and racing official Ed Bargy.

The track was built for motorcyclists by motorcyclists, and there is not a wall that can be seen anywhere from the racing surface. The turns are banked slightly and are confidence inspiring. The sandy material inside and outside the racing surface has been graded for a considerable distance and seeded with grass.

The principals are Borge Larson, President and Julian Poczatek, Vice President and Operations Director. Present at the opening ceremony were Chairman of the County Commission, Mike Adams; Commissioner Ron Morgan; Commissioner Randy Ogborne and J. Dean Papapetrou from State Senator Richard Mitchell’s office. All of these folks were enthusiastic about the facility and spoke at the inauguration. I was invited to speak about the value of a motorsports facility to the community other than financial. Commissioner Mike Adams rode the inaugural, ribbon cutting lap of the track on Julian Poczatek’s Honda.

The track is a very interesting combination of fast sweepers, several tighter combinations and large double-apex turns. It is very technical in nature as many of the turns can be taken much faster than they look and early drives will pay big time through turns leading onto the straightaways.

The lap record now stands at a 1:24.5 and is held by John-o Bowman.

Penguin Racing School has a day at the new track scheduled for December 3, and an open practice is scheduled for December 8.

More information is available from the track at (904) 707-1737, www.northfloridamotorsportspark.com.

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

AMA Formula Xtreme Champion John Hopkins will test with the Red Bull Yamaha team at Sepang, Malaysia on December 3-4-5.

The test session on YZR500 Yamahas will be Hopkins’ first since he signed a three-year contract with the team, to compete in the MotoGP World Championship. Although the deal has not yet been officially announced, final papers were signed on September 28, the Friday of the AMA National at Virginia International Raceway.

Hopkins, 18, has tested three times with Red Bull Yamaha, once in 2000 at Brno and twice in 2001, at Brno and at Estoril.

I just finished reading your piece on history repeating itself (Roadracingworld.com, 11-9), and I could not agree more. Just as the AMA took the low road with the Roger Edmondsen deal, they appear to be doing the exact same thing again. It also seems odd to me that the same names seem to be appearing on “VP of this, Manager of
that, Director of this.”…. the repetition of these names on several boards, list, etc., seems to be a clear-cut case of “conflict of interest”, the very same “situation” that they tried to use, (unsuccessfully, thankfully) to prevent you from being on the AMA Board of Directors.

These people have been artificially shielded from reality, and have felt no responsibility for their inept actions. The possibility of you, Jeff Nash, and Kevin Schwantz serving on their board must surely frighten the life out of them, knowing that the truth may finally be out in the open for all to see. I urge you to continue your fight for what is the right thing to do, and to never allow people of this caliber to conceal their actions behind a “closed-door” board meeting.

I have the utmost faith in your ability to tell it like it is, and hope that you will continue to keep up the pressure on these buffoons. As President Bush said in his address to the nation….”Let’s Roll!”

Stan Simmerson
Former CCS Racer (Amateur 949)
1994 Heavyweight SuperTwins National Champion

From an AMA press release:

AMA CHEVY TRUCKS U.S. SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
TO BE A RECORD 16 ROUNDS IN 2002

PICKERINGTON, Ohio — The 2002 AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Championship schedule will include a record 16 rounds at 10 venues, including the new road course at California Speedway in Fontana, Calif. The schedule changes, which include three additional doubleheader rounds, add value to race fans and improve the flow of the series for the growing television audience.

The 2002 schedule delivers maximum value for race fans with six Superbike class doubleheader race weekends. Promoters, racers and fans have wholeheartedly endorsed the doubleheader format, and the additional three Superbike doubleheaders will increase live Speedvision television coverage by approximately 20 percent.

Another change with next year’s schedule is its duration. Compressed into a March-through-August time frame, the move yields a smoother cadence of events that do not compete with college football, and helps to fill the traditional void between the series opening round at Daytona International Speedway, March 10, and Sears Point Raceway, May 4-5, with the addition of the California Speedway event.

California Speedway’s doubleheader round on April 6-7 will feature a new 2.36-mile, 21-turn road course that has gotten rave reviews from riders who’ve tested there. The circuit impressed even former AMA and World Champion Eddie Lawson.

“The new road course at California Speedway is really incredible,” said Lawson. “The layout ensures that every race will be close and intense. With long straightaways and slow tight turns you’ll get a great mix of speed, hard braking and passing opportunities. This track actually makes me wish I was still racing!”

Absent from the 2002 schedule is New Hampshire International Speedway. AMA Pro Racing has asked noted track designer Alan Wilson to consult both AMA Pro Racing and NHIS regarding modifications to the facility that would allow the return of AMA Superbike racing in the future.

“We’re excited about our 2002 schedule,” said Scott Hollingsworth, AMA Pro Racing CEO. “California Speedway brings the series back into the Los Angeles metro area for the first time in several years, and that’s obviously an important market. We are also pleased with the success of our doubleheader rounds and are happy to add three more to the schedule.”

2002 AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Championships schedule

Date Location
March 10, Daytona International Speedway, FL

April 6-7, California Speedway, Fontana, CA (Superbike doubleheader)

May 4-5, Sears Point Raceway, Sonoma, CA (Superbike doubleheader)

May 18-19, Road Atlanta, Braselton, GA (Superbike doubleheader)

June 2, Pikes Peak International Raceway, Fountain, CO

June 8-9, Road America, Elkhart Lake, WI (Superbike doubleheader)

June 30, Brainerd International Raceway, Brainerd, MN

July 13, Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca, Monterey, CA

July 27-28, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, OH (Superbike doubleheader)

August 10-11, Virginia International Raceway, Alton, VA (Superbike doubleheader)

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

An interesting e-mail exchange, sent to us by advertising agency owner Dan Wildhirt:

I thought you might be interested in a recent exchange of e-mails I had with (AMA Pro Racing CEO) Scott Hollingsworth, regarding the developing Supercross scandal. Normally I would consider such communications private, but in light of the past week’s developments, I feel it’s important to expose just how misguided and delusional is the management of AMA Pro Racing. While CCE (Clear Channel Entertainment) has in the last seven days announced long-term agreements for venues, an impressive TV package, merchandising and even track construction, the best that Hollingsworth can do is seize upon cornball platitudes such as “new business model” and “clear vision of the future.”

Dan Wildhirt


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My initial e-mail, sent 11/5:

Following the Roger Edmonson debacle, one might think that AMA and AMA Pro Racing might proceed with some caution before entering into any new contracts with third-party series promoters. However, it would seem that such an assumption is in error.

Astonishment would perhaps be the first reaction that comes to mind after learning that AMA Pro Racing intends to launch its own Supercross series in 2003 to compete with Clear Channel’s phenomenally successful EA Sports SX series. Dumbfounded might be the second.

I’ll be curious to see exactly how the AMA intends to compete with a company that is not only the largest, most powerful event promoter in the U.S., and has long-term contracts with established SX venues in major markets, but which also has the ability to promote those events through the nation’s largest conglomeration of broadcast radio stations, which it also owns.

Let’s jump ahead to 2003, shall we? Perhaps you are intending to somehow “extort” top riders and teams into participating in the new AMA SX series by making their AMA racing licenses contingent upon racing solely in AMA-sanctioned events. After all, this strategy has been tried in a multitude of sports where governing bodies attempted to reign in “renegade” organizations of athletes or promoters: tennis, auto racing, bicycle racing and skiing, to name a few. Those riders and teams, however, will ply their trade where they get the highest return on their investment — regardless of the sanctioning body — and Clear Channel obviously has the promotional muscle to give them what they’re after: visibility. So what if the AMA bans Clear Channel riders from, say, the outdoor nationals? Given the momentum that Pace/SFX/Clear Channel have built over the past several seasons, it’s clear that in two years’ time, there will be two types of motocross racing in the U.S.: Clear Channel SX…and everything else. The direct and indirect rewards that riders and manufacturers derive from the EA Sports series will be many times that which they can expect from the rural, minor-market national MX series and an upstart SX series with no proven track record.

The AMA’s latest action reminds me of the infamous split between CART and the Indy 500 in the mid-’90s. An “if it ain’t broke, break it” mentality has, in just six years, taken open-wheel auto racing from a thriving sport to a pathetic sideshow that struggles for TV ratings, sponsors, media attention and an audience.

As an avid rider and racing fan, I cannot in good conscience support a profoundly duplicitous organization that claims to have motorcyclists’ interests at heart, but which continues to squander members’ money on quixotic, ill-advised schemes to wrest control of motorcycle racing from the very people who have done the most to ensure the sport’s success. And as a contractor to several firms who sponsor riders and teams at the highest levels of AMA-sanctioned racing, I question whether it is in my clients’ best interests for them to continue supporting such an organization or its series.

Dan Wildhirt



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Scott Hollingsworth’s response, dated 11/6:

Mr. Wildhirt-

Thank you for your interest.

Over the past 27 years, the AMA Supercross Championship has worked with many promoters. Today AMA Pro Racing has a clear vision for the future of its motorsports businesses, and the announcement of our new relationship with Jam Sports & Entertainment is the next step in making that vision a reality. And as you’ll see in the coming weeks, our 27-year-old Championship will feature excellent markets, venues, television, rules and a new business model for participants that will increase the championship’s value for everyone involved.

Stay tuned for more information.

Best regards,

Scott Hollingsworth CEO, AMA Pro Racing



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My 11/14 reply, following CCE’s announcement of its 2003 SX schedule and TV package:

With all due respect, while you’re making grand promises and invoking trite buzzwords like “new business model,” it seems that Clear Channel has already grabbed the holeshot on you.

Is it your honest belief that current SX venues will actually host competing eries in 2003 — or that Jam can put together a better TV package than the one CCE already has in place? Or perhaps you expect current venues, most of which are under public ownership, will break their contracts with CCE? In what universe do you think that facility managers, under governmental oversight, are willing to entangle themselves in a legal battle with one of the most powerful entertainment and media conglomerates in the world?

The cliche “rude awakening” does not seem adequate to describe the fate that awaits AMA Pro Racing and the National Supercross Championship.

Dan Wildhirt


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Hollingsworth has yet to reply to this latest message.