Shogun Motorsports will not run a National road racing program in 2002 and will instead concentrate on televised Arenacross events.

The lack of television coverage of the Formula USA Series prompted the decision.

Shogun Motorsports competed with Ty Howard and Paul Harrell in the 2001 F-USA National Road Race Series.

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

The Roadracing World Air Fence Fund was honored at the annual F-USA/CCS Awards Ceremony, held at Daytona USA Sunday night.

Roadracing World Air Fence Fund founder John Ulrich accepted a trophy from Kenny Abbott of Formula USA and got a standing ovation from the capacity crowd in the Daytona USA auditorium, on the grounds of Daytona International Speedway.

The Air Fence Fund provided 20 sections of Alpina Air Fence for use at Daytona this past week, with spectacular results.

Before presenting the award, Abbott mentioned Ulrich’s long-standing personal and professional efforts to improve rider safety.

In accepting the trophy, Ulrich thanked contributors to the Air Fence Fund and said that the Fund is proof that racers make things happen.

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Alpina Air Fence sections in place at Daytona International Speedway–thanks to the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund and Parts Unlimited–have proved valuable in at least eight crashes during the F-USA/CCS Race of Champions as of Sunday morning.

A full 18, 28-foot sections of Alpina Air Module inflatable air barriers are in place around Daytona’s 3.56-mile round course, with two held in reserve. Alpina modules are in place in turn one, going into turn six, on the speedway wall at the exit of turn six leading from the infield to the speedway banking, on riders’ left in the chicane where AMA Pro Thunder racer Dirk Piz was killed in March 2001 and additional sections against the speedway wall at the exit of the chicane.

Although a few air barriers have been used at Daytona in the past for AMA Superbike races, CCS and Formula USA racers have never had the luxury of the devices. The sections of Alpina module in place against the speedway walls exiting turn six and the chicane protect riders from sections of walls that were previously not protected by any form of impact-attenuating device, including haybales. The Alpina Air Modules have proved particularly effective in those areas.

Friday, October 19 during the wet Middleweight Supersport Amateur race, Florida rider Santiago Sierra highsided over a slick patch at the exit of the chicane. Formula USA National Safety Director Roger Lyle was an eyewitness to the crash and said, “He got launched pretty good, probably 10 feet in the air, and went flipping. His helmet came off during the flipping, and he landed right in the Air Fence.”

Sierra was conscious and coherent at the scene and rode in an ambulance to the infield care center before refusing treatment and walking back to his pits.

According to safety logs checked by Lyle Sunday morning, the 18 sections of Alpina Air Module deployed at Daytona had been hit eight times with all of the riders suffering only minor injuries.

This just in from Gordy Lunde:

“The Steel Shoe Fund (a branch of the Wegman Fund) for injured dirt trackers is putting a check for $2900 in the mail tomorrow for the Dirt Track Air Fence Fund.”

(Lunde’s donation brings the Dirt Track Division of the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund to $8700 in one day, enough for three sections of Air Fence for use at dirt track events.)

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

The Roadracing World Air Fence Fund is now collecting funds to buy Air Fence for use at dirt track events.

Dirt track fund donations will be accounted for and kept separate from the existing fund established for road racing use.

The dirt track division of the Fund was established after numerous requests from AMA professional dirt track racers who also road race or have road raced.

The possibility of establishing a dirt track Air Fence fund was initially discussed by dirt tracker (and former road racer) Greg Tysor and Roadracing World Air Fence Fund founder John Ulrich about two weeks ago.

Further discussions with racers and sponsors at Daytona this week led to Ulrich’s decision to charge ahead and establish the dirt track division of the fund, rather than continuing to talk about possibly doing something.

Kicking off the dirt track fund were donations of $2900 made on the behalf of Yuasa Battery, Inc. by John C. Driscoll, Director of Marketing along with another $2900 donated by AMA Grand National Champion Chris Carr.

Yuasa sponsors Carr in AMA dirt track events and also sponsors the Blackmans Aprilia F-USA road racing team, which Carr is riding for this weekend at Daytona.

Donations to the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund can be made via credit card at www.roadracingworld.com or by calling (800) 464-8336 9:00-5:00 weekdays. Checks made out to Roadracing World can be mailed to Roadracing World Action Fund, P.O. Box 1428, Lake Elsinore, CA 92530. Contributors should specify whether they want their donation to go to road racing or dirt track applications.

All donations will be applied directly to the purchase, maintenance and deployment of Air Fence, and will be accounted for on www.roadracingworld.com.

The Roadracing World Air Fence Fund’s original efforts to obtain and deploy Air Fence for road racing use continue. So far the fund has contributed $104,000 to funding Air Fence for use at AMA Pro Racing events, the establishment of the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund followed by an additional $100,000 donated by Honda, Suzuki and Harley-Davidson.

The fund donated $10,000 worth of Air Fence for use at Texas World Speedway in College Station, Texas during CMRA and RPM events.

The fund also funded the deployment of 20 Alpina Air Fence modules at Formula USA races at Pocono in August, Portland in September and Daytona this week, as well as at next week’s WERA Grand National Finals at Road Atlanta, using a combination of $10,000 cash along with an ad trade in Roadracing World & Motorcycle Technology.

The fund is also donating 10 sections of Air Fence for use by Formula USA and CCS in 2002.

At Daytona this week, as of Sunday morning, about 8 riders had hit Alpina Air Fence modules, including one rider who highsided at the exit of the chicane, lost his helmet mid-air and hit the Air Fence backwards, head-first, without injury.

The WERA GNF at Road Atlanta next week will see a total of 55 sections of Air Fence deployed, including the 35 sections now in use by AMA Pro Racing along with the 20 sections rented for deployment at Pocono, Portland, Daytona and Road Atlanta. AMA Pro Racing officials agreed to deploy their 35 sections because WERA now has a loose affiliation with AMA Pro Racing and is hosting the final round of the 2001 AMA Pro Thunder Championship next Saturday. In a surprise move, AMA Pro officials also agreed to deploy their Air Fence on Sunday, October 21 in preparation for Kevin Schwantz Suzuki School sessions scheduled at Road Atlanta on Monday and Tuesday, before official WERA practice begins. WERA officials were coordinating deployment of the Air Fence at Road Atlanta Sunday.

Some observers at Daytona have been speculating that Speedway officials may require cooperative deployment involving Formula USA and AMA next March, with all available Air Fence deployed both during the F-USA/CCS weekend and the AMA Pro Racing weekend, which run back-to-back each spring.

From a press release issued by Team Proton KR:

Round 15: Malaysian GP, Sepang
Race Report: Sunday, October 21, 2001

Jurgen van den Goorbergh: Did Not Start
Kurtis Roberts: Did Not Finish

Proton Team KR ended a bad weekend early at today’s Malaysian GP, when Kurtis Roberts crashed out of his first ever 500-class GP on the third of 21 laps of the 5.548km Sepang circuit.

Regular rider Jurgen van den Goorbergh had already withdrawn from the race on medical advice, after suffering concussion in a crash in the final qualifying session the day before.

Kurtis’s race crash came when the American rider was lying in 18th place, getting settled to start working on improving his position. Entering the track’s first corner for the third time, the front wheel tucked under, and he fell without injury.

The race was won by new 500cc World Champion Valentino Rossi.

There is one GP remaining – at Rio de Janeiro in two weeks – before the end of the 2001 season, the last in the classic 500cc class. From next year, the premier category will be open also to 990cc four-strokes.


KURTIS ROBERTS

“Everything seemed good for the first one-and-a-half laps, then I had some problem shifting and I went into Turn Four in too high a gear. That meant I lost touch with Aoki and Cardoso on one of the V4s. I was going fine again, and I went into Turn One the same way and the same speed I have all weekend, or maybe one or two km/h faster than the lap before, when the front tucked. If you do the same thing, then the bike should behave the same way, but it didn’t. It’s down to a lack of set-up time. It could be a little because of the full tank, but it’s more that we just didn’t have a chance to get the bike right for me. I use a lot of front anyway, and this time it let go”.

KENNY ROBERTS – Team Owner
“He pushed the front, and that was the end of that. The reason is that we threw the whole thing together at the last moment, and we were really short of set-up time for various reasons, including the weather. We came here unprepared, and we’re leaving unprepared. You have to expect these things under those 500 now, and he knows a bit more about it; and at circumstances. At least Kurtis has ridden a GP least Jurgen got away without any serious injuries after a heavy crash”.



More on the Malaysian Grand Prix, from a Marlboro Yamaha press release:

MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX, SEPANG
Race Day, Sunday, October 21, 2001

A DIFFICULT DAY FOR THE MARLBORO YAMAHA MEN

Marlboro Yamaha Team riders Max Biaggi and Carlos Checa had another torrid day at stifling hot Sepang today, Biaggi crashing out and Checa coming home tenth in the penultimate round of the 2001 World Championship. The difficult conditions claimed a number of victims, while the race was won by recently crowned champ Valentino Rossi (Honda).

“It’s been a totally frustrating and disappointing day,” said Marlboro Yamaha Team manager Geoff Crust. “We did a lot of testing here last winter but that didn’t give us any advantage. Max’s crash was one of those racing incidents, but it must’ve been very disappointing for him. We never quite got a set-up with Carlos, he had chatter all weekend. Now we’ve got a week to clear our heads before Rio, where our main goal will be to help Max keep hold of second place in the World Championship.”

BIAGGI TUMBLES OUT
Max Biaggi was battling hard in the leading bunch when he tumbled out on lap four while trying to make a move on 2000 World Champion Kenny Roberts
(Suzuki). The Marlboro Yamaha Team man ran up the inside of the American, making contact with the RGV and sending them both to the ground. Never one to give in easily, Biaggi tried to restart but his YZR had lost a handlebar.

“I was coming through a little too fast,” explained Biaggi, who had qualified third fastest for this race. “Kenny was going for his line and I ran into him. There’s not much else to say except I’d like to give my apologies to Kenny.”

Neither rider was hurt in the incident and Biaggi will travel to Brazil next week to battle for second overall in this year’s World Championship.

CHECA TAKES TENTH
Carlos Checa ended a difficult weekend at Sepang with a dogged tenth-place finish aboard his Marlboro Yamaha Team YZR500. The Spaniard had struggled to find a set-up throughout the two days of practice, his efforts not helped by early morning rain on both days, which effectively wiped out Friday’s and Saturday’s morning sessions. Starting from the fourth row, Checa ended the first lap in tenth place, slipped to 12th and spent the later stages of the race back in tenth.

“I got a good start, that’s all I could do,” he said. “The bike was chattering and if it wasn’t chattering it was jumping around. The problems would start every time I flicked into a turn and laid the bike on its side. We tried everything to try and get around the problem and it’s hard to know what was wrong, perhaps the chatter was something to do with the engine spec we were running, I just don’t know. It’s been a frustrating weekend.”

ROSSI WINS TENTH GP
One week after securing his first 500 World Championship, Valentino Rossi took his tenth win of the year in typically emphatic style, after an entertaining early stages tussle with Loris Capirossi (Honda) and Garry McCoy (Yamaha). “I’ve had bad luck here on both the 250 and 500, so I wanted to win,” said the Italian. “I missed second gear away from the start, so the first lap was a nightmare. When I arrived behind Loris and Garry, it was hard to race with Garry because his style is so different, then I got ahead and put in four laps at a good rhythm. But the end was still tough, because the heat makes the tyres slide around so much, that’s just the way you have to ride here.”

CAPIROSSI SECOND
Loris Capirossi took a strong second, just in front of Yamaha riders Garry McCoy and Shinya Nakano, to close to within four points of Max Biaggi with one race to go. “This was a very important race for me,” said Capirossi who hit the front for a while on lap three. “I pushed very hard to get away but it was impossible because Valentino and Garry were riding so hard. I’m happy with second though.”

RESULTS
1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Nastro Azzurro HONDA 44:46.652
2. Loris Capirossi (ITA) West HONDA Pons +3.551
3. Garry McCoy (AUS) Red Bull YAMAHA WCM +4.722
4. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Gauloises YAMAHA Tech 3 +5.005
5. Tohru Ukawa (JPN) Repsol YPF HONDA Team +8.807
6. Alex Criville (SPA) Repsol YPF HONDA Team +12.192
7. Alex Barros (BRA) West HONDA Pons +15.682
8. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Telefonica Movistar SUZUKI +18.772
9. Noriyuki Haga (JPN) Red Bull YAMAHA WCM +27.012
10. CARLOS CHECA (SPA) Marlboro YAMAHA Team +28.829
DNF – MAX BIAGGI (ITA) Marlboro YAMAHA Team

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
1. Valentino Rossi 300
2. MAX BIAGGI 203
3. Loris Capirossi 199
4. Alex Barros 169
5. Shinya Nakano 148
6. Norick Abe 127
7. CARLOS CHECA 117
8. Sete Gibernau 115
9. Alex Criville 111
10. Tohru Ukawa 107


And now a press release from Team Suzuki:


KENNY SKITTLED, SETE IN TOP 10 IN MALAYSIA

World Grand Prix, Round 15, Race Result, Sepang, Malaysia, Sunday, October 21.

Team Telefónica MoviStar Suzuki rider Sete Gibernau was eighth in today’s Malaysian GP, claiming the position in spite of mysterious electrical problems that had mechanics still working on his bike on the starting grid.

Team-mate Kenny Roberts, however, had his hopes of a rostrum finish at a track where he has won the last two races dashed when he was knocked off on only the fourth of 21 laps of the 5.548km Sepang circuit close to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Roberts had led the first two laps, and was fighting to maintain his position, moving to re-pass eventual winner Valentino Rossi, when he was hit from behind by Max Biaggi, and knocked flying. Although not seriously hurt, the 2000 World Champion suffered bangs, bruises and pulled muscles, and left the track to return home to the USA, to begin treatment so he can be fit again for the next race, the Rio GP in two weeks.

Gibernau’s race – his whole day – was packed with drama. In the morning warm-up, his bike developed a mysterious electrical problem that cut his session short. The team changed the ignition, but the problem struck again on the sighting lap, and mechanics worked frantically to replace the ignition once again on the starting line. The bike ran without further problems for full race distance, while Sete found himself engaged in fierce fighting from the first lap to the last. Thirteenth at the end of lap one, he made it as high as sixth in the middle stages of the race, trading places back and forth with rival factory riders until the finish.

The Malaysian GP was the 15th of 16 championship rounds, and the second-last race ever in the classic 500 class, to be replaced next year with a mixed formula which opens the premier GP class to 990cc four-strokes as well.

SETE GIBERNAU – Eighth Place

“After all the drama and replacing parts on the grid, the bike wasn’t great, and I also made some mistakes with the chassis – I could have had it set up better. I got a bad start, but I was able to make up some places. After that, I just rode it as hard as I could. I was almost crashing all the time, making up for the speed I was losing on the straights. I think I was on the floor four or five times, but somehow managed to get up again. I guess today just wasn’t meant to be our day.”

KENNY ROBERTS – Did Not Finish

“That was really disappointing. That was the most comfortable I’ve been with the bike and the tyres for a long while, and I wasn’t having any trouble with the pace. I believe I could have had a top-three rostrum finish. I led the first couple of laps, and when I got knocked off, Rossi had just passed me. He got into the turn a bit hot, and I squared it off, thinking I could get back underneath him again. But Max also got in a bit hot, and he couldn’t do anything to avoid hitting me. I was in the right place, but at the wrong time. I’ve pulled a couple of muscles in my elbow, but hopefully I can be fit for the next race.”

GARRY TAYLOR – Team Manager

“Sete did extremely well to keep his concentration after a recurrence of the electrical problem that cut short his warm-up in the morning. He rode aggressively, stayed in touch with the others, and did what he could with what he had. Kenny made a magnificent start, and appeared quite comfortable running with the leaders. The crash happened as he went to go inside Rossi, who ran a bit wide. Both guys rode their hearts out today, and got little or nothing in return. That makes it hard for everyone.”

SUNDAY RACE SEPANG, MALAYSIA: 1. V. Rossi (Honda) 44’46.652, 2. L. Capirossi (Honda) + 3.551, 3. G. McCoy (Yamaha) + 4.722, 4. S. Nakano (Yamaha) + 5.005, 5. T. Ukawa (Honda) + 8.807, 6. A. Criville (Honda) + 12.192, 7. A. Barros (Honda) + 15,682, 8. SETE GIBERNAU (TELEFONICA MOVISTAR SUZUKI) + 18.772, 9. N. Haga (Yamaha) + 27.012, 10. C. Checa (Yamaha) + 28.829, DNF. KENNY ROBERTS (TELEFONICA MOVISTAR SUZUKI)

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS after the 15th round of 16: 1 – V. Rossi 300, 2 – M. Biaggi 203, 3 – L Capirossi 199, 4 – A. Barros 169, 5 – S. Nakano 148, 6 – N. Abe 127, 7- C. Checa 117, 8 – S. Gibernau 115, 9 – A. Criville 111, 10 – T. Ukawa 107, 11 – K. Roberts 97.




250cc Results
1. Daijiro Katoh, Japan, Honda, 43:22.487
2. Tetsuya Harada, Japan, Aprilia, -14.893 seconds
3. Fonsi Nieto, Spain, Aprilia, -15.892
4. Roberto Locatelli, Italy, Aprilia -19.748
5. Jeremy McWilliams, Great Britain, Aprilia, -35.867
6. Franco Battaini, Italy, Aprilia, -46.364
7. Naoki Matsudo, Japan, Yamaha, -46.408
8. Alex Hofmann, Germany, Aprilia, -46.731
9. Sylvain Guintoli, Aprilia, -56.513
10. Roberto Rolfo, Italy, Aprilia, -58.914
DNF, Katja Poensgen, Germany, Honda, DNF, crashed, -11 laps


125cc Results, 19 laps
1. Youichi Ui, Japan, Derbi, 43.21.269
2. Manuel Poggiali, San Marino, Gilera, -2.078 seconds
3. Lucio Cecchinello, Italy, Aprilia, -2.196
4. Daniel Perdrosa, Spain, Honda, -3.161
5. Gino Borsoi, Italy, Aprilia, -3.987
6. Toni Elias, Spain, Honda, -4.265
7. Arnaud Vincent, France, Honda, -4.468
8. Masao Azuma, Japan, Honda, -5.123
9. Mirko Giansanti, Italy, Honda, -30.026
10. Max Sabbattani, Italy, Aprilia, -30.292

Grant Lopez won the first F-USA Unlimited Superbike race at Daytona, dueling with teammate Josh Hayes until Hayes crashed in the infield dogleg on lap nine and destroyed his GSX-R750. Hayes was unhurt.

Meanwhile, points leader Shawn Higbee encountered mechanical problems, with a leaking countershaft seal, and retired on lap three.

Eric Wood finished second, weaving wildly up and down the banking from the chicane to the finish line to hold off Lee Acree, who finished third and took over the points lead with only this afternoon’s second Unlimited Superbike race still to run in the series.

Results, Unlimited Superbike Race One, 12 laps (All Suzuki GSX-R750 unless indicated)
1. Grant Lopez, fastest lap 1:53.396
2. Eric Wood, -11.102 seconds, fastest lap 1:54.118
3. Lee Acree, -11.177, fastest lap 1:53.468
4. Brian Parriott, -11.353, fastest lap 1:54.123
5. Chris Carr, Aprilia RSV1000R, -11.901, fastest lap 1:54.976
6. Mike Himmeslach, Aprilia RSV1000R, -16.076, fastest lap 1:54.902
7. Michael Barnes, -16.096, fastest lap 1:54.930
8. Chuck Chouinard, -18.237, fastest lap 1:54.565
9. Tray Batey, Aprilia RSV1000R, -19.625, fastest lap 1:54.837
10. Chris Ulrich, -23.745, fastest lap 1:54.709
11. Marco Martinez, -29.226, fastest lap 1:55.095
12. Roland Williams, -37.939, fastest lap 1:54.650
13. Mike Fitzpatrick, -47.553, fastest lap 1:57.022
14. Mark Ledesma, Aprilia RSV1000R, -47.593, fastest lap 1:57.012
15. Mike Ciccotto, -58.276, fastest lap 1:54.664 (crashed)
16. John-o Bowman
17. Dr. Jeff Purk, DDS
18. Robert Presby, Kawasaki ZX-7R
19. Ray Bowman
20. Pete Freidman
21. Dale Dandrea
22. Michael Hanley, -1 lap
23. John Porlier, Honda RC51, -1 lap
24. Nelson Suarez, Ducati 748, -1 lap
25. Josh Hayes, -4 laps, DNF, crashed




Point Standings
1. Acree, 144
2. Higbee, 139
3. Parriott, 130
4. Lopez, 123
5. Craig Connell, 82