750cc Supersport Combined Qualifying Results:
1. Ben Spies, 1:28.149
2. Mike Ciccotto, 1:28.594
3. Lee Acree, 1:29.354
4. Jimmy Moore, 1:29.390
5. Michael Barnes, 1:29.557
6. Chris Ulrich, 1:29.896
7. Robert Jensen, 1:30.388
8. Scott Harwell, 1:30.591
9. Vincent Haskovec, 1:30.627
10. Rich Conicelli, 1:30.828
11. Richie Alexander, 1:31.004
12. Andy Caldwell, 1:31.131
13. Tony Meiring, 1:31.443
14. Anthony Lupo, 1:31.966
15. Billy Ethridge, 1:33.621
16. David Ortega, 1:33.995
17. Chris Rankin, 1:34.072
18. Jamie Thompson, 1:34.313
19. Justin Blake, 1:34.798
20. Jeremy Barker, 1:35.143


Chris Ulrich collided with Jimmy Moore on what Ulrich said was going to be his best lap, when Moore drifted wide with his foot out in the last corner; Moore intended to enter the pits and Ulrich was attempting to pass him on the outside.

From a Ducati press release:

WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 13 – IMOLA (ITALY)
September 28-30 2001

PREVIEW

The 2001 World Superbike Championship draws to a close at Imola’s Enzo & Dino Ferrari Circuit with the final round of an enthralling season that has seen Ducati Corse make a clean sweep of both Riders’ and Manufacturers’ titles. Troy Bayliss (Ducati Infostrada) clinched the Riders’ title in Holland, while Ducati won a record tenth Manufacturers’ crown at the previous round in Germany. The race at Imola will be a triumphant homecoming for the Bologna-based constructor, whose factory lies just along the Via Emilia, and what better place to celebrate victory in the WSBK championship than at a circuit dedicated to another Italian motorsport legend, EnzoFerrari.

A PIECE OF HISTORY
This weekend’s final round is also special for another reason because 29 years ago the Imola circuit saw the unfolding one of the most important chapters in Ducati’s history. In 1972 the Italian manufacturer took a sensational 1-2 win in the Imola 200 Miles race with Paul Smart heading home Bruno Spaggiari on special twin-cylinder Ducati 750 Imola Desmo bikes. The race changed the destiny of Ducati, which redefined its approach to racing and focussed its attention almost exclusively on competition reserved for production-based machines. The rest, as they say, is history, and Ducati’s record in WSBK since the category’s creation in 1988 is an extraordinary example of the company’s outstanding racing heritage. For this occasion, the number 21 championship-winning Ducati 996R Infostrada of Troy Bayliss has been sprayed in a silver livery evoking Smart’s 1972 bike and the Australian will be wearing special black leathers designed by Dainese for Imola. The 1972 Ducati 750 Imola Desmo will be on display in the paddock and both Smart and Spaggiari will make appearances at Imola.

With 369 points on the board, Troy Bayliss (Ducati Infostrada) cannot be caught by his rivals and the newly-crowned champion goes into the Imola race with all the pressure off and eager to add to his tally of six wins this year. “I still feel really good after winning the world championship three weeks ago”, declared Bayliss. “It’s a great achievement and everyone in the team is still happy but we’re looking forward to this weekend and hopefully we’ll get a good result. The silver bike looks really sparkling although I haven’t seen it in the sun yet! It’ll be a great race with everyone hoping to win, although I expect Colin to be the man to beat here”.

A sensational end-of-season run by Ruben Xaus (Ducati Infostrada) has seen the 23-year-old Spanish rider surge up the points table and confirm the expectations Ducati placed in him when they signed him up for a full WSBK championship season at the end of last year. “I’m just going out there to do the best I can in the final race of the year”, said Xaus. “Obviously now that I’ve won a race, it’s a weight off my shoulder, but it hasn’t changed my mentality. I will be happy once again to finish on the podium and end my season on a high note”.

Ben Bostrom (Ducati L&M) is also determined to leave his mark on the legendary Imola track. The Californian lies just 31 points behind his fellow-American Colin Edwards and with 50 points up for grabs, will be aiming to help bring about a Ducati 1-2. At Imola Ben will also receive a special prize from championship organisers SBK International, ‘Most Approachable Rider’, voted by visitors to the official SBK website and the Paddock Show.

“I can’t wait for Imola”, declared Bostrom, “because I have to make up for the last two rounds, in particular the one at Assen when we
never really got going. When you are used to finishing in the top 3, it’s hard not to be disappointed when things don’t go well. Sorry for the other guys out there, but I plan to win and that’s the end of the story.”

CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS (after 12 of 13 rounds): Riders
1° BAYLISS (DUCATI INFOSTRADA) 369 (2001 World Superbike Champion)
2° Edwards (Honda) 317
3° BOSTROM (DUCATI L&M) 286
4° Corser (Aprilia) 264
5° Hodgson (Ducati GSE) 254
6° Chili (Suzuki) 225
7° XAUS (DUCATI INFOSTRADA) 191
8° Yanagawa (Kawasaki) 170
9° Okada (Honda) 149
10° Lavilla (Kawasaki) 147.

Manufacturers
1° DUCATI 508 (2001 World Superbike Champions)
2° Honda 369
3° Aprilia 298
4° Kawasaki 270
5° Suzuki 241
6° Yamaha 30
7° Benelli 4.

THE IMOLA CIRCUIT

The need for speed has formed part of Imola’s DNA since ancient times. Imola was called Forum Cornelii at the time of ancient Rome and there was already an amphitheatre for chariot racing in 80 BC. The current track took shape at the end of the 1940s. To create work for the depressed post-war economy, it was decided to build a series of public roads linking the Via Emilia, where the Rivazza curve can be found today, to the town of Codrigano and the Tosa curve. Four Imola motorsport enthusiasts (Alfredo Campagnoli, Graziano Golinelli, Ugo Montevecchi e Gualtiero Vighi) then decided to build a racetrack between the hills. This was followed by the enthusiastic dedication of Checco Costa, who went on to organise a series of major motorcycle racing events at a circuit that has since become one of the greatest racetracks in the world.

CIRCUIT RECORDS (no WSBK lap records)
Lap Record, n/a
Superpole, n/a
Qualifying, n/a
Italian Superbike, Casoli (Ducati) 1’54.272 (155.513 km/h) 1999TV COVERAGE
Eurosport (pan-European – all times CET): 29/9 1100 Qualifying (live)
30/9 0830 Superpole (delayed), 0930 Warm-up (live), 1145 Race 1 (Live), 2000 Race 2 (delayed).

INTERNET AUDIO & VIDEO ‘LIVE’ COVERAGE
Ducati fans world-wide can get a feel for WSBK action from Imola this weekend with ‘live’ audio/video coverage from the Ducati Infostrada pit garage during qualifying. Exclusive ‘web-cam’ video coverage, organised in collaboration with Motonline, will be broadcast on: www.ducati.com, http://sport.iol.it/ducati/index_ducati.jhtml and www.motonline.com. The first link-up will be during Friday qualifying at 1445 CET with the second during Saturday final qualifying at 1045 CET. The Ducati Corse ‘chat-line’ will also offer Internet users the possibility of chatting live with newly-crowned World Superbike champion Troy Bayliss, who will answer questions directly from the pit garage. The ‘chat-line’ will be operative at 1830 CET on Friday 28 September and can be accessed through www.ducati.com and www.iol.it.


And now an Aprilia press release:





Aprilia Superbike Press Information
Superbike World Championship 2001
Round 13 – Imola (Italy) 28/29/30 September 2001
Preview

Superbike makes its debut on the Santerno circuit: Sunday’s arena for the final round of the 2001 Championship. Riders on the three official twin-cylinder RSV Mille bikes from Noale: Corser, Laconi and Antonello.

Imola will be hosting the final round of the 2001 season and the debut of Superbike on the track named after Enzo and Dino Ferrari. But if one takes a closer look at the annals of motorcycling history, Sunday’s meeting could be termed a return to the “origins” of the sport. Indeed,what might be considered as the forerunners of Superbike made their first appearance here on 23 April 1972: the historical 200 Miles of Imola. Some of the legendary names of motorcycling appeared in that memorable event: Paul Smart, Bruno Spaggiari and Walter Villa.

“Modern” Superbikes have come to Imola after a long and hard-fought season. The 2001 title has already been awarded, but Sunday is still sure to offer a great show. The main aim of the three Aprilia riders is precisely to give the public all the excitement they’ve come for. Troy Corser and Regis Laconi, flanked by Noale’s official test rider, Alessandro Antonello, are attempting to repeat their results in the early-summer trials. That was when Laconi made second-best time, a hair’s breadth away from Edwards, with Corser 4th and Antonello 7th. Those two sweltering days in July brought in masses of information, which now needs to be used for this weekend’s races.

The track: 4,933 metres – 10 left curves – 6 right curves – 358-metre finishing straight.

The records: no previous record.

Unofficial timings during the July tests:
1st Edwards (Honda) 1’49.42
2nd Laconi (Virgilio Aprilia Axo) 1’49.70
3rd Okada (Honda) 1’49.72
4th Corser (Virgilio Aprilia Axo) 1’49.93
5th Bostrom (Ducati) 1’50.34
6th Bayliss (Ducati) 1’50.52
7th Antonello (Virgilio Aprilia Axo) 1’50.99
8th Lavilla (Kawasaki)
1’51.20
9th Yanagawa (Kawasaki) 1’51,30
10th Martin (Ducati) 1’51,86
11th Parkes (Ducati) 1’52.49.

Copyright 2001, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Despite recent AMA Pro Racing press releases touting new efforts at communicating with riders and other paddock dwellers, leading riders said they weren’t asked their opinion before AMA officials decided to use a pace car at the final round of the AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Series, at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) this weekend.

The pace car being used is a Jaguar, a brand owned by Ford.

Asked if they had been asked about the use of a pace car, riders responded as follows:

Miguel Duhamel: “No. There are a lot of new things here at Virginia. I’m a little, let’s say nervous about the whole just because there are so many new things this weekend, a lot of things people aren’t used to. It was a lot of work to get the bikes back to pit stop standard. I think we should leave the pit stops to Daytona. I mean, that’s our greatest race. The pit lane’s good and you don’t have to do 50 mph on pit lane. I’m happy they changed the flag. At least now we can tell the difference. I think they still have a few bugs. Let’s just cross our fingers and hope we have a good weekend. I’m anticipating the worst and hoping for the best. Even today we have a lot of people walking around on pit lane. I mean 50 mph is still 50 mph. I should have brought it up to have nobody crossing pit lane. I’m going to go over and talk to them about it later.

“I think it could cause a lot of heartbreak,” continued Duhamel. “We need to make our series really solid right now, and we’re leaving it open for something to happen. There’s a lot of gray area. I think there’s going to be a lot of stories. Better have a lot of tape.”


Mat Mladin: “No. I’m just not a big fan of pace cars. I just don’t think that pace cars should be used in motorcycle racing. We don’t have radio communication at the moment and things like that. I’m just not a fan of the pace car at all. For one or two races a year? Why not use it for every race if that’s the case? No, I’m not a big fan of the pace car. We’ve all seen what happened at Daytona. The fault of the accident at Daytona had nothing to do with the riders. It had to do with they couldn’t see the flag. They didn’t know there was a pace car on the track. I was the first rider out there. I had a five or six second lead at the time and I struggled to see the pace car. So you can imagine being in a group of six or seven riders nose-to-tail. I mean, the first rider gets a glimpse of it, what’s he going to do? He’s going to back off straight away. A lot of people think Kurtis (Roberts) just jammed on the brakes on the banking. Well, that’s not the case. When you’re doing 170 mph on the banking and you just back off, you slow down so quick as compared to the guys who are on it behind you it’s unbelieveable. The flags were not adequate.

“I don’t mind the pit stops,” continued Mladin, “but the whole idea of what the pit stops are for is that it’s better for the spectators. Well, no spectators are going to see the pit stops because spectators aren’t over there to watch them like Daytona. The spectators are all out there (motions to back part of course), and we’re doing the pit stops here (motions to pit lane). There’s not going to be one single spectator see the pit stops unless they are standing right here behind the pits. If they are, they aren’t going to see any of the race. Personally, I think the idea to have the pit stops really isn’t going to work. It’s not going to better for the spectators.”


Larry Pegram (laughing): “Ask a rider something before they do something? Come on! I don’t mind the pace car. I just don’t think this is the place to be making the race longer and doing pit stops. The pit road is too tight. The track’s way too tight to run an extra-long race where we will be lapping more people more times. It’s hard to pass. It doesn’t let you rest. They need to do something about pit road speed some how to let us know how fast we’re going. You don’t wait until the last race when the championship’s on the line then throw in a pit road speed that you haven’t had all year.”


Nicky Hayden: “At Colorado, we made some suggestions to them. I think they talked to the team. I don’t know about racing with the pace car again. I think it could be good. I’m in the middle with it. I don’t know.”


Andreas Meklau: “No. It is very confusing. There are many things new to me. It is a long race. We have different things on the bike for change quick. The pace car is new and pit stops as well. It’s confusing.”


Mike Preston, Manager, Kawasaki Road Racing, a team manager and a member of the AMA road racing rules advisory board, said he was not involved in the decision-making process regarding use of a pace car.

By Glenn Le Santo

Kawasaki officials have announced that they will return to GP racing in 2003.

The announcement, made last night, that Kawasaki will return to GP racing, with a four-stroke, comes at a time when the company’s continued participation with the ZX-7RR 750 in World Superbike is far from certain.

Adding to the likelihood that Kawasaki may abandon World Superbike is the news that World Superbike rules will most likely remain unchanged for 2002.

Manufacturers of Inline Fours have complained that the current rules allowing 1000cc V-Twins and while limiting Fours to 750cc give the Twins a huge competitive advantage.

Times from Pro Thunder Friday afternoon practice at Virginia International Raceway:

1. Mike Ciccotto, Buell, 1:31.429
2. Tripp Nobles, Buell, 1:32.861
3. Dave Estok, Buell, 1:32.998
4. Tom Montano, Ducati, 1:33.484
5. Jeff Nash, Ducati, 1:33.744
6. Dr. Dave Kieffer, MD, Ducati, 1:38.172
7. Steve Keener, Suzuki, 1:39.157
8. Tom Fournier, Ducati, 1:40.709
9. Michael Dube, Ducati, 1:41.737
10. Charles Walker, Ducati, 1:43.160
11. Paul March, Ducati, 1:50.859
12. Mark Gardiner, MuZ, 1:52.678
13. Josh Bryan, Buell, 1:52.891
14. Deborah Venega, Ducati, 1:52.993

Times from Pro Thunder Friday morning practice at Virginia International Raceway:

1. Ciccotto, 1:31.897
2. Nobles, 1:33.834
3. Estok, 1:34.236
4. Montano, 1:38.470
5. Keener, 1:39.908
6. Kieffer, 1:1.167
7. Dube, 1:42.186
8. Walker, 1:43.870
9. Fournier, 1:46.489
10. Bryan, 1:51.756
11. Venega, 1:53.821
12. Gardiner, 1:54.777

Friday Afternoon 600cc Supersport Practice Times:
1. Anthony Gobert, Yamaha, 1:29.003
2. Miguel Duhamel, Honda, 1:29.147
3. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki, 1:29.180
4. Aaron Yates, Suzuki, 1:29.392
5. Kurtis Roberts, Honda, 1:29.438
6. John Hopkins, Suzuki, 1:29.527
7. Tommy Hayden, Yamaha, 1:29.550
8. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki, 1:30.221
9. Jamie Hacking, Suzuki, 1:30.281
10. Josh Hayes, Honda, 1:30.398
11. Roger Lee Hayden, Honda, 1:30.658
12. Chris Caylor, Suzuki, 1:30.686
13. Lee Acree, Suzuki, 1:30.834
14. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha, 1:31.322
15. Jake Zemke, Honda, 1:31.703


Friday Morning 600cc Supersport Practice Times:
1. Anthony Gobert, 1:29.390
2. Hacking, 1:30.012
3. Yates, 1:30.084
4. Bostrom, 1:30.315
5. Hopkins, 1:30.364
6. Duhamel, 1:30.531
7. Roger Hayden, 1:30.707
8. Caylor, 1:30.788
9. Acree, 1:30.831
10. Aaron Gobert, 1:30.843
11. Hayden, 1:31.116
12. Pridmore, 1:31.422
13. Roberts, 1:31.521
14. Zemke, 1:31.768
15. Jimmy Moore, 1:31.781
16. Grant Lopez, 1:31.868
17. Hayes, 1:31.965
18. Vince Haskovec, 1:32.310
19. Robert Jensen, 1:34.568
20. Charles Neighoff, 1:34.841
21. Daigoro Suzuki, 1:35.255
22. Tyler Wadsworth, 1:35.570
23. Mark Simon, 1:36.794
24. David Ortega, 1:36.885
25. Justin Blake, 1:37.867
26. Scott Vanscoik, 1:38.948
27. Frank Wiot, 1:39.229
28. Kevin Lehman, 1:39.461
29. Kurt Marmor, 1:41.036
30. Caesar Gonsales, 1:41.172
31. John Trautmann, 1:41.478
32. Mitch Baghdoian, 1:42.421
33. Pedro Valiente, 1:50.908

Friday Afternoon 750cc Supersport Practice Times:
1. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 1:29.174
2. Ben Spies, 1:29.350
3. John Hopkins, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:29.503
4. Tommy Hayden, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:29.559
5. Mike Ciccotto, 1:29.615
6. Lee Acree, 1:30.418
7. Kurtis Roberts, Honda CBR600F4i, 1:30.515
8. Chris Ulrich, 1:30.533
9. Josh Hayes, Honda CBR600F4i, 1:30.573
10. Roger Lee Hayden, Honda CBR600F4i, 1:30.761
11. Michael Barnes, 1:30.769
12. Jason Pridmore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:30.864
13. Jimmy Moore, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:30.865
14. Robert Jensen, 1:31.224
15. Scott Harwell, 1:31.322
16. Jake Zemke, Honda CBR600F4i, 1:31.453
17. Rich Conicelli, 1:31.490
18. Mauro Cereda, 1:31.839
19. Richie Alexander, 1:32.138
20. Vincent Haskovec, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:32.228
21. Tony Meiring, 1:32.317
22. Steve Grigg, 1:32.715
23. Tyler Wadsworth, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:34.518
24. Daigoro Suzuki, 1:34.684
25. Andy Caldwell, 1:34.812
26. Chris Rankin, 1:34.890
27. Justin Blake, 1:34.960
28. David Ortega, 1:34.972
29. Billy Etheridge, 1:35.046
30. Mark Simon, 1:35.426
31. Jamie Thompson, 1:35.490
32. John McGarity, 1:35.669
33. Jeremy Barker, 1:38.676
34. Mitch Baghdoian, 1:39.081
35. Scott Vanscoik, 1:40.417

All riders on Suzuki GSX-R750 unless noted.


Friday Morning 750cc Supersport Practice:
1. Spies, 1:29.518
2. Bostrom, 1:29.829
3. Ciccotto, 1:30.246
4. Tommy Hayden, 1:30.516
5. Pridmore, 1:30.550
6. Ulrich, 1:30.616
7. Hayes, 1:30.863
8. Acree, 1:31.058
9. Moore, 1:31.212
10. Harwell, 1:31.227
11. Zemke, 1:31.391
12. Barnes, 1:31.666
13. Roger Hayden, 1:31.906
14. Jensen, 1:32.159
15. Steve Grigg, 1:32.248
16. Haskovec, 1:32.281
17. Lupo, 1:33.026
18. Meiring, 1:33.203
19. Caldwell, 1:33.771
20. Alexander, 1:33.986
21. Etheridge, 1:34.287
22. Ortega, 1:34.314
23. McGarity, 1:35.612
24. Blake, 1:35.621
25. Thompson, 1:36.239
26. Simon, 1:36.617
27. Kurt Marmor, 1:37.366
28. Vanscoik, 1:37.871
29. Baghdoian, 1:39.027
30. Barker, 1:39.625
31. Suzuki, 1:54.097

Times from Friday afternoon’s first AMA Superbike qualifying session:

1. Mat Mladin, Suzuki, 1:25.689
2. Nicky Hayden, Honda, 1:26.075
3. Anthony Gobert, Yamaha, 1:26.197
4. Aaron Yates, Suzuki, 1:26.613
5. Kurtis Roberts, Honda, 1:26.625
6. Tommy Hayden, Yamaha, 1:26.667
7 Doug Chandler, Kawasaki, 1:26.841
8. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki, 1:26
9. Steve Rapp, Ducati, 1:26.897
10. Larry Pegram, Ducati, 1:27.110
11. Miguel Duhamel, Honda, 1:27.112
12. Andreas Meklau, Ducati, 1:27.148
13. Jamie Hacking, Suzuki, 1:27.239
14. Mike Smith, Harley-Davidson, 1:28.840
15. Pascal Picotte, Harley-Davidson, 1:28.146
16. Jordan Szoke, Harley-Davidson, 1:28.756
17. Jimmy Moore, Suzuki, 1:29.657*
18. Lee Acree, Suzuki, 1:29.849*
19. Chris Ulrich, Suzuki, 1:30.197*
20. Mauro Cereda, Suzuki, 1:30.749*
21. Robert Jensen, Suzuki, 1:30.843*
22. Rich Conicelli, Suzuki, 1:30.869*
23. Vince Haskovec, Suzuki, 1:31.181*
24. Tony Lupo, Suzuki, 1:31.299
25. Wade Buffington, Suzuki, 1:31.538*
26. Andy Deatherage, Suzuki, 1:31.561
27. Scott Carpenter, Suzuki, 1:32.537
28. Rich Alexander, Suzuki, 1:32.790
29. Tony Meiring, Suzuki, 1:32.888*
30. Tony Fania, Suzuki, 1:32.954*
31. Greg Fryer, Yamaha, 1:32.957
32. Chris Normand, Suzuki, 1:33.042
33. Dean Mizdal, Suzuki, 1:34.207
34. Mike Fitzpatrick, Suzuki, 1:34.869*
35. Brandon Bashore, Aprilia, 1:35.552
36. Scotty Vanscoik, Suzuki, 1:36.289*


* = rider on 750cc Supersport bike

36 riders are entered in the Superbike race.

Maldin said he had to get out of the throttle exiting the last corner on his flying lap after he pushed wide and off the track, and so thinks a 1:25.5 or 1:25.2 will be possible in final qualifying tomorrow.

A press release from Eric Bostrom’s manager, Norm “Lawdog” Viano, detailing Bostrom’s view of the final round of the AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Series:

ERIC BOSTROM HEADS TO VIRGINIA

Atlanta, GA. Eric Bostrom heads into the last round of the AMA Superbike Championship this weekend, at Virginia International Raceway (VIR), feeling confident and anxious to hit the track. Often regarded as one of the most fit athletes in the paddock, Eric used the long break (caused by the Willow Springs cancellation) to resume his heavy regimen of cross-training. “I’ve been doing a lot of mountain biking, surfing, and rock climbing with my cousin Jeff and also with Mike (Ciccotto). I’m ready to go! A month off the bike is a long time. And always being really motivated to ride, it feels like it’s been an eternity to me since we’ve raced, so I’m excited to get back on the bike and put on a good show for the new Virginia fans.”

Eric comes to Virginia leading the Pro Honda Oils 600 SuperSport Championship over Miguel Duhamel by 31 points, and trailing leader Mat Mladin in the Superbike Championship by 15 points. Since he is leading one championship and trailing in the other, he will implement a dual strategy this weekend. “In the 600 race, we’re going to have to run a calculated race. Obviously when I go out I want to win, but this weekend I’m going to take it as it comes and do what’s in the best interest of Kawasaki and my Championship-title chase. For the Superbike race, I’m just going to go out and win. I’m expecting tough competition from the usual guys, particularly Nick (Nicky Hayden) because he’s been ON the last few races. Also Doug (Chandler), because he’s been fast at the previous VIR tests. Gobert should go well at this track too, since it’s more of a European-style track. But basically, it’s all the normal guys. I don’t think about just one guy, I go out there and try to beat all of them!” And the fact that this race will be only the second race in the 2001 AMA Superbike Championship that will require a pit stop doesn’t affect his attitude one bit. “I’m always game to ride some extra laps.”

As a small gesture of compassion for those affected by the tragedy that hit the United States (and the World) on September 11th, Eric will donate all of his potential VIR race winnings to the Red Cross (1-800-HELP-NOW).


And now another press release from Viano, with Mike Ciccotto’s view (Ciccotto is also represented by Viano):

MIKE CICCOTTO TO VIR

Atlanta, GA. Mike Ciccotto arrived in Virginia today to stamp his name on the final AMA round at Virginia International Raceway (VIR). While the Floridian normally only runs the AMA series in Pro Thunder with his Hal’s Performance Advantage Buell, Mike has asked that his Hooters Suzuki Team (which normally only runs the Formula USA series) attend VIR so he can race in the 750cc Supersport class, as well. The last two events that Ciccotto has raced in the 750 Supersport class have been extremely successful – he won both convincingly (Road Atlanta and Loudon, this season). So he’s understandably feeling confident about his chances this weekend. “I feel stronger than ever, stronger than I started the season, for sure. I’m amped up to go out there and show ’em what I got.

“I definitely want to be fast right out of the box, but at the same time, me and Manny (Otman, his Hooters mechanic) have our little routine when we get there and – going fast out of the box is good – but if you don’t get going any faster as the weekend progresses, it kind of hurts you, so we’re going to go out there and put in our laps. The times will come. I’m going to ride the racetrack and not worry about anyone else and I’m sure that’ll put us up front.

“On the Buell, I want to put it out front like I did at Sears Point (where he started at the back of the pack and ended up catching and passing the ENTIRE field before winning the race). I haven’t been able to ride like I did at Sears since then due to some mechanicals and the wrist injury I had, but I want to go out there this weekend and dominate that class like we did in the beginning of the year. Especially because my wrist is back to about 90-95 percent. It doesn’t bother me much racing anymore. In fact, in Portland, I won the 2nd Superbike leg on it (before being DQ for being slightly over HP), so I’ll have no excuse. I mean, the wrist might bug me a little bit but I was able to win races since I hurt the wrist, so there is no reason it should prevent me from winning both classes this weekend.”

Like many Americans, Mike is anxious to resume living after the September 11th tragedy. “After Portland, I flew to California to race at Willow the following weekend. The next day is when the tragedy hit. Willow Springs was cancelled, so I just stayed out there (in CA) to train with Eric (Bostrom) for about a week. We trained pretty hard and had a lot of fun rock climbing, surfing, and mountain biking. I’m bummed that Willow was cancelled, but we didn’t lose anything compared to them (the families of victims)”.