Times from the Sunday-morning warm-up practice for the Pacific Grand Prix of Motegi, in Motegi, Japan:

500cc
1. Rossi, H, 1:50.795
2. Haga, Y, 1:51.222
3. Barros, H, 1:51.386
4. Ukawa, H, 1:51.505
5. Kagayama, S, 1:51.573
6. Abe, Y, 1:51.589
7. Nakano, Y, 1:51.593
8. Capirossi, H, 1:51.651
9. Checa, Y, 1:51.825
10. Biaggi, Y, 1:51.876
11. Jacque, Y, 1:51.894
12. Roberts, S, 1:51.971
13. Criville, H, 1:52.245
14. Gibernau, S, 1:52.254
15. McCoy, Y, 1:52.406
16. West, H, 1:53.194
17. Cardoso, Y, 1:53.244
18. Aoki, H, 1:53.468
19. v.d.Goorbergh, P, 1:53.554
20. Haslam, H, 1:55.075
21. Stigefelt, Sa, 1:55.427
22. Veneman, H, 1:55.533
23. Clarke, H, 1:57.276

250cc
1. Katoh, H, 1:53.544
2. Harada, A, 1:53.927
3. Nieto, A, 1:53.968
4. Melandri, A, 1:54.296
5. Alzamora, H, 1:54.300
6. Locatelli, A, 1:54.514
7. McWilliams, A, 1:54.906
8. Rolfo, A, 1:54.948
9. de Puniet, A, 1:55.163
10. Sekiguchi, Y, 1:55.320
33. Poensgen, H, 2:01.277

125cc
1. Ui, D, 1:59.181
2. Borsoi, A, 1:59.390
3. Elias, H, 1:59.482
4. de Angelis, H, 1:59.691
5. Pedrosa, H, 1:59.785
6. Sanna, A, 1:59.787
7. Cecchinello, A, 1:59.822
8. Rodriguez, A, 2:00.200
9. Scalvini, I, 2:00.204
10. Jenkner, A, 2:00.231

Dr. Rob Tuluie has announced that he will skip the F-USA/CCS Race of Champions weekend at Daytona International Raceway October 17-21 and instead take his Tul-aris 780 back to the lab for continued development over the winter.

A press release issued by Tuluie stated: “Our next goal is to continue off-season development on the power valve engine. Once assembled, we will begin tuning this new motor at Hot Seat Performance on their engine dyno sometime in November. Using Hot Seat’s dyno will allow us to make use of their extensive experience as well as allow quick engine configuration changes. We will focus on setting up the Polaris-supplied power valve solenoid, complete with an adjustable electronic controller, custom-made for us by Jim Hubert of DCM Services. Thereafter, we will continue with minor porting, cylinder head, crankcase, exhaust pipe and ignition curve modifications in order to have a reliable and powerful package ready for Daytona 2002. The goal will be to arrive at a stable engine configuration that will not have to change during the next racing season. This should reduce the mid-season work level substantially. Final verification of this engine configuration will occur on Doug Lofgren’s dyno at Manley Cycle sometime in the December time frame, with a possible off-season test date somewhere warm and dry.

“A dynamic handling computer model of the Tul-aris is undergoing an expansion to a full 3-D simulation. Previously, we had been able to simulate fully non-linear 2-D events, such as riding the virtual motorcycle straight up over a bump (a 2×4!) and similar planar maneuvers. We compared the simulated result (it took 4 hours of PC crunching time to compute a 30-second simulation!) and the measurement from an actual test and found excellent agreement. Now we will include cornering events. We already have all measurements for the Tul-aris chassis stiffness, hysteresis and damping, as well as the standard suspension damping and kinematics. A few measurements remain, for which we will use MTS equipment during the off-season. Our previous model was Pro-Mechanica based, but right now Greg and I are looking into converting it to ADAMS instead. The goal is to have the first true motorcycle racing dynamics simulation software, fully validated on actual test equipment. The last point (the one about validation) is very important if these simulations are to mean anything, else you’re just playing games and hoping your software’s answer is right. Once we have this and perform independent lab tests on the MTS equipment to make sure the model predicts the correct dynamics, we can perform racetrack set-up evaluations on the computer before having to try them out on the track. Since we’ve gathered quite a bit of track data this year with our PI system, we can hopefully start comparing model data to real data sometime this winter.”

Tuluie says that he is also working on an agreement to gain use of an East Coast University’s wind tunnel over the winter. However, Tuluie is still looking for a cash sponsor to help defray their travel costs associated with racing the Tul-airs 780 in the Formula USA Unlimited Grand Prix National series in 2002.

A missing word in a story on the Take Back The AMA campaign creates the wrong impression that campaign contributions are tax deductible.

The offending line of text, appearing on page 10 of the November issue of Roadracing World, mailed today, reads “Tax-deductible campaign contributions to offset the cost of printing and mailing election brochures are being accepted by the Roadracing World Action Fund, P.O. Box 1428, Lake Elsinore, CA 92531-1428, (800) 464-8336.”

The line of text should have read, “Non-tax-deductible campaign contributions…”

No campaign donations have been received to date as a result of the story, and anyone who contributes after the issue entered distribution (today) will be contacted and given the option of having the contribution returned.

We regret the error but hasten to point out that–unlike what the AMA typically has done in cases of making an error–we made the mistake public ourselves, accepted full responsibility, and took steps to correct the situation before issues containing the error reached readers.

Friday 500cc Qualifying Times:
1. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:50.944
2. Alex Barros, Honda, 1:51.007
3. Loris Capirossi, Honda, 1:51.141
4. Max Biaggi, Yamaha, 1:51.778
5. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:51.785
6. Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, 1:51.858
7. Sete Gibernau, Suzuki, 1:51.938
8. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:52.079
9. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:52.085
10. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, 1:52.367
11. Norick Abe, Yamaha, 1:52.440
12. Garry McCoy, Yamaha, 1:52.629
13. Jose Luis Cardoso, Yamaha, 1:52.768
14. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:52.883
15. Jurgen van den Goorbergh, Proton, 1:53.319
16. Alex Criville, Honda, 1:53.668
17. Haruchika Aoki, Honda, 1:53.718
18. Anthony West, Honda, 1:53.827
19. Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, 1:54.367
20. Leon Haslam, Honda, 1:55.695

Friday 250cc Qualifying Times:
1. Tetsuya Harada, Aprilia, 1:52.945
2. Daijiro Katoh, Honda, 1:53.365
3. Marco Melandri, Aprilia, 1:53.910
4. Jeremy McWilliams, Aprilia, 1:54.104
5. Roberto Locatelli, Aprilia, 1:54.575
6. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, 1:54.629
7. Alex Debon, Aprilia, 1:54.859
8. Emilio Alzamora, Honda, 1:54.970
9. David Checa, Honda, 1:54.976
10. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:55.057
11. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, 1:55.150
12. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:55.230
13. Nobuyuki Ohsaki, Yamaha, 1:55.412
14. Roberto Rolfo, Aprilia, 1:55.413
15. Sebastian Porto, Yamaha, 1:55.527

35. Katja Poensgen, Honda, 1:59.714

Friday 125cc Qualifying Times:
1. Toni Elias, Honda, 2:00.383
2. Youichi Ui, Derbi, 2:00.464
3. Masao Azuma, Honda, 2:00.709
4. Mirko Giansanti, Honda, 2:00.758
5. Alessandro Brannetti, Aprilia, 2:00.800
6. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 2:00.900
7. Manuel Poggiali, Gilera, 2:00.937
8. Angel Nieto, Honda, 2:00.983
9. Gianluigi Scalvini, Italjet, 2:01.197
10. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 2:01.214

From a press release issued by Steve Clark’s Tight Squeeze Racing, which runs the TSR Injury Fund:

Due to the recent attacks on the World Trade Center Towers and the Pentagon, the TSR Injury Fund is going to donate all the proceeds from our 2001 contribution drive to the New York Times 9/11 Neediest Fund.

More information about the fund can be found at http://prodpub.wavesys.com/cw/donations.asp?charity=neediest911

TSR understands that this drastic measure is not what we have advertised throughout the course of our contribution drive, and are willing to offer refunds to anyone, provided they return their original ticket stub. We feel that at this time and magnitude of need, that this is the correct course of action to take.

Please note that the items that have been donated to the Injury Fund will still be given away as the Raffle prizes, and the drawing date has not changed. It will still be held on Oct 28th, during the WERA GNF, at Road Atlanta in Braselton, GA, and winning ticket holders do not need to be present. A listing of these prizes is available on the TSR website at http://www.tightsqueezeracing.org/raffle.htm.

In addition to those listed on the website, we would also like to recognize the following pledges that we received at the WERA VIR National event:

Thermosman Suspensions (http://www.thermosman.com/)
-One Penske 8900 Rear shock, $1300

Team INA
-One Poulan 2375LE, 18-inch, Gas Chain Saw, $150

TSR will continue accepting donations for the 9/11 Fund until the end of the 2001, then we will resume our normal operations for 2002.

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

We’re collecting nominations for the Fifth Annual Roadracing World Young Guns feature, highlighting up-and-coming young road racers from the United States and Canada.

To qualify for the Young Guns feature a racer must be between the ages of 13 and 19, have finished in the top three in a sanctioned road race on a 125cc or larger motorcycle with full-size wheels, and reside within the United States or Canada.

The Roadracing World Young Guns series started as an answer to critics who said America lacked up-and-coming young riders.

Young Gun alumni include AMA stars Nicky Hayden, Tommy Hayden, Michael Hannas and Chris Ulrich, and Young Gun graduates who have gone on to continued success on the regional level include Ryan Burke, Adam Coco, Justin Long, Jonah Miller, Geoff Pestes, Jeremy Saathoff and Ben Walters, Jr.

Returning Young Guns for 2002 include Jason DiSalvo, Roger Lee Hayden, Nathan Hester, Jake Holden, John Hopkins, Kevin Lacombe, Barrett Long, Tony Meiring, Chris Peris, Jason Peters and Ben Spies.

To nominate a youngster for the 2002 Young Guns feature, call Roadracing World headquarters at 909-245-6411 and request a Young Guns questionnaire. The questionnaire must be completed and returned by November 20, 2001 along with an action photo and a head shot suitable for magazine reproduction; all submitted photos must include permission to reproduce, from the photographer. Scans and photocopies of photos are not usable. All photos must have the name of the rider and the photographer on the back, along with applicable additional information such as where and when the photo was taken, including the racetrack and race sanctioning body.

The mailing address is:

Roadracing World
Attn: Young Guns 2002
P.O. Box 1428
Lake Elsinore, CA 92531-1428

The Federal Express or other overnight delivery address is:
Roadracing World
Attn: Young Guns 2002
581-C Birch St.
Lake Elsinore, CA 92531

The four Young Guns features done to date appeared in the November 1997, March 1999, February 2000 and March 2001 issues and can be seen on this website, www.roadracingworld.com.

If you have any questions, call 909-245-6411 between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. PDT and ask to speak to David Swarts.

Mauro Cereda has been named AMA Superbike Rookie Of The Year and will be honored at the AMA Pro Racing Awards Banquet, scheduled for December 7, in Palm Springs, California.

Cereda finished 17th in the AMA U.S. Superbike Championship and 14th in the AMA Formula Xtreme Championship, riding a Suzuki GSX-R750 sponsored by C.J. Czaia.

From an FIM press release:

“Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix
Decisions of the Grand Prix Commission

The Grand Prix Commission, composed of Messrs. Carmelo Ezpeleta (Dorna, Chairmnan), Claude Danis (FIM), Sito Pons (IRTA), Takanao Tsubouchi (MSMA) and Paul Butler (Secretary), convened in a meeting on Saturday 22 September at the circuit of Valencia (Spain). The following proposals were unanimously approved (application date: 1.1.2002):

Super License
Riders in the 500cc class must be in possession of a “FIM Grand Prix Super License”. To qualify for a Super License, the rider must fulfil one of the following conditions:

– Have finished in the top 15 places of the FIM 500cc World Championship in either of the previous two seasons.

– Have finished in the top 5 places of the FIM 250cc World Championship in either of the previous two seasons.

– Have finished in the top 3 places of the FIM 125cc World Championship in either of the previous two seasons.

– Have finished in the top 3 places of the FIM Superbike World Championship in either of the previous two seasons.

– Be approved by the Grand Prix Commission for a full season Grand Prix Super License.

– Be approved by the FIM/TWP/IRTA for a one-event Grand Prix Super License.
FIM Manufacturers’ License

All manufacturers must be in possession of the appropriate FIM Manufacturers’ License.

Substitution of riders

No substitution or replacement of the entered rider may be made after 17h30 on the first day of the event (technical control), except in the case of the 500cc class where substitutions may be made, in the case of injury or force majeure only, up until 12h00 on the second day of practice (i.e. prior to the final qualifying session).

Restrictions of materials

Engine materials: the basic structure of the crankshaft and camshafts must be made from steel or cast iron. Pistons, cylinder heads and cylinder blocks may not be composite structures which use carbon or aramid fibre reinforcing materials.

Brake calipers: all brake calipers must be made from aluminum material with a modulus elasticity no greater than 80 GPa.

All parts materials: no parts of the bike or engine may be made from metallic materials which have a specific modulus of elasticity greater than 50 GPa (g/cm3).”

From a press release issued by Ducati North America:

DUCATI UNIVERSITY: THE FASTEST SEAT OF LEARNING

Pompton Plains, NJ, October 3, 2001: Almost everything you could want to know about Ducati motorcycles will be covered over the two days of Ducati Revs America, in Las Vegas, October 26-28. Ducati North America is flying in some very special guests to give lectures at the Ducati University, covering topics ranging from the history of Ducati to the design of the new MH900e.

Interviews normally reserved for the pages of motorcycle magazines will be given direct to the public. DRA participants can find out first hand the development process of new Ducati motorcycles in a lecture given by motorcycle testing director Andrea Forni; or quiz Ducati’s design director, Pierre Terblanche, about the development of the MH900e; and what better person to deliver the 75 year history of Ducati than Livio Lodi, the curator of the Ducati Museum in Bologna. Art of the Motorcycle exhibition’s curatorial advisor, Ultan Guilfoyle, will also be talking about the Art of the Motorcycle exhibit at the Guggenheim Museum, which will be on display at The Venetian Hotel during the DRA weekend.

You can interview our new World Superbike Champion Troy Bayliss or American World Superbike hero Ben Bostrom yourself in the 30 minute Q&A with Ducati’s World and National Superbike riders, or speak directly with Ducati Corse director Paolo Ciabatti and learn more about the world of Superbike racing.

Ducati Desmo Owners Club and World Ducati Week managers will be available to answer questions, and there is also a one-hour Women and Motorcycling lecture covering topics from beginner to race level.

For the full schedule of lectures and DRA activities, log onto http://www.ducati.com and plan your Ducati Revs America weekend.