20 new sections of Air Fence–about 600 linear feet–have arrived at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin and are ready for deployment at next weekend’s AMA National.

The 20 new sections from Air Fence Safety Systems (Australia) bring the total of Air Fence/Air Module sections available for use at AMA races to 38, up from the 3 sections owned by AMA Pro Racing at the beginning of this racing season.

The Roadracing World Air Fence Fund has contributed $104,000 to AMA Pro Racing, toward purchasing, maintaining and transporting Air Fence for use at AMA Nationals.

Vesrah Suzuki’s Mark Junge broke his own lap record at Putnam Park Road Course in Mt. Meridian, Indiana Sunday, during WERA National Challenge Series spring action. Junge’s existing lap record was 1:11.001, but in winning the Open Superstock race Junge broke the record on nearly every lap and finally set the new mark at 1:10.478 on his GSX-R1000 with Metzeler DOT-labeled tires. Arclight Suzuki’s Scott Harwell finished second Team Xtreme/Pennzoil’s Wade Buffington was third.

Vesrah Suzuki’s Glenn Szarek beat Harwell to win the Heavyweight Twins race on a TL1000R, and Szarek ran away in the 750cc Superstock final with best lap at 1:10.6 on a GSX-R750. Like Junge, Szarek uses Metzeler tires.

Chris “Opie” Caylor beat Junge in 600cc Superstock and Paramount Racing’s Joe Temperato was third, all three on GSX-R600 Suzukis on Metzeler tires.

Team Outa Sight’s Jason Peters won both the 125cc Grand Prix and the two-strokes-only Formula Two races by large margins on his Dunlop slick-equipped Honda RS125.

The day ended with Twowheelsales.com’s Tim Bemisderfer winning the Formula One race on his Dunlop DOT-shod GSX-R1000. Bemisderfer was the last man standing in a race filled with crashes and off-track excursions.

Contributors to the Roadracing World Air Fence Fund are invited to autograph a new section of Air Fence at 6:00 p.m. Friday June 8 in the turn five area at Road America.

The signing will take place immediately after a 5:00 p.m. birthday party and reception celebrating the 25th anniversary of AMA Superbike, hosted by Road America, complete with cake. Air Fence Fund contributors are also invited to the birthday party and reception.

The birthday party and gathering of Air Fence contributors will take place under a large tent in the turn five area. If the weather is clear, contributors will be escorted to a section of Air Fence installed on-track in turn five. If it is raining, a section of Air Fence will be brought under the tent for contributors to sign. Markers will be provided.

The Air Fence signing will be hosted by Roadracing World’s John Ulrich, who will have an up-to-date list of contributors on hand. Donations to the Roadracing World Air Fence will also be accepted on site.

Read this press release carefully and the story becomes clear (this is also known as skillfully putting the best possible face on what results the team did get):

“Radar’s Team Yamaha – Media information 3 June 2001

“For immediate release

“2001 Shell Australian Superbike & Supersport Championships Round 2, Winton Raceway, Victoria Race report

“WINTON RACE VICTORY FOR BAIRD AND YAMAHA YZF-R6

“Queenslander Robbie Baird celebrated his debut in the 2001 Shell Advance Australian Supersport Championship by finishing with a third and first from today’s two Supersport races at round two of the championship held at the Winton Raceway in central Victoria. The overall round win went to Brendan Clarke who took a win and a second, to add his point winning pole position during qualifying. Clarke edged out Baird who finished the day second overall. He now lies fifth overall in the championship with 41 points, trailing current leader Josh Brookes who has a total of 80 points.

“As opposed to recent race meetings around Australia, Winton stayed dry for the complete weekend, offering the riders ample opportunity to get their bikes dialed in and provide spectators with some close hard fought action. The opening 14-lap Supersport race was no exception with five riders, including Baird, fighting it out over second place as they chased race leader Clarke. At race end Baird crossed the line less than two tenths of a second behind Scott Charlton to finish third.

“Race two saw Baird mixing it with the lead group once again and he was able to take full advantage when Clarke and Charlton tangled and ran wide allowing the Yamaha rider through. He then chased down race leader Daniel Stauffer and passed him to lead the final eight laps of the race, finishing 6.547 seconds clear of Clarke at the flag, with points leader Josh Brookes third.

“‘After missing the opening round in Perth, I really did need a win to gain as many points as possible and try and pull back the leaders and that’s what we did,’ said Baird. ‘Things went well all weekend. We qualified well and had a good run in both races. The second race was pretty close, but I was able to take advantage of the others battling away with each other and was able to pull away. The Yamaha R6 proved that it is still the bike to beat and the Dunlops worked well to give us a great package.’

“While Baird was dicing for podium placings in the Supersport class, the Radar’s Team Yamaha pair of Jamie Stauffer and Craig Coxhell were battling it out in three fiercely contested Superbike races. Defending champion Shawn Giles (Suzuki) made it a clean sweep for the weekend, taking pole, three wins and a new Pro-Superbike lap record. Stauffer finished the day fourth overall after finishing with a second, fourth and sixth, while Coxhell was fifth overall, with two fifths and a third. Coxhell currently lies third in the championship points table with 75, behind leader Giles (129) and Bikebiz Yamaha rider Damien Cudlin (88).

“‘The results may have not been exactly what I wanted, but I was able to score a good amount of points that keep us well in the championship hunt,’ said Coxhell. ‘Shawn (Giles) rode extremely well here and it came down to a battle between the rest of us. My biggest problem all weekend was that I was getting arm pump in my right arm. It plagued me during qualifying and in the latter stages of the races. I’m not sure what has brought it on, but there are a few heavy braking points around the track which may have caused it. It was frustrating as I was able to run with the pace in the early laps, but then faded. The results did get better as the day went on and it was great to grab third in the final race.’

“‘Things were looking good for a podium result until the last race,’ said Stauffer. ‘I was in line to finish second overall, but the sixth place finish in the final race spoiled any chances of that. The Yamaha R1 ran well all weekend, but I was having trouble with wheelspin and that in turn was shortening the life of the tyres in each race. There are a few things that we are still working on to get the set up right to suit my style and we’re getting closer to that. Each race was pretty tight and it really depended as to how good a run you were lucky enough to get.’

“With the team not making the trip across to Wanneroo for the opening round of the championship, team manager Dave `Radar’ Cullen was more than pleased with the results they were able to score in what was their debut in this years Championship. ‘I’m very happy with the result in the Supersport race with the win by Robbie showing that the Yamaha R1 is still the benchmark in the class,’ said Radar. ‘Both Craig and Jamie rode well in the Superbike class and came home with some very competitive results. Each of them had their problems, but I was happy with the teams performance overall.’

“Results follow.. Shell Advance Australian Superbike Championship Round 2, Winton Raceway, Victoria, June 2-3
“Qualifying Rider Bike Time 1. Shawn GILES Team Suzuki Suzuki GSXR1000 1:24.785
2. Alex GOBERT Red Wing Honda CBR 929 1:24.993
3. Wayne MAXWELL Team Kawasaki ZX9R 1:25.562
4. Tony REES Bikebiz Yamaha YZF-R1 1:25.681
5. Damien CUDLIN Bikebiz Yamaha YZF-R1 1:25.683
6. Craig COXHELL Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 1:25.686
7. Craig McMARTIN Ducati 996 SPS 1:25.921
8. James STAUFFER Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 1:26.264
9. Jay NORMOYLE Lightpath Suzuki GSXR1000 1:26.387
10. Alistair MAXWELL Suzuki GSXR1000 1:26.548
Lap Record Shawn Giles (Suzuki) 1:23.73 (07/05/00 – Superbike)

Race 1 / 14 Laps Rider Bike Time / Gap :
1. Shawn GILES Suzuki GSXR 1000 20:03.287
2. James STAUFFER Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 +8.107
3. Alex GOBERT Honda CBR 929 +8.597
4. Damian CUDLIN Yamaha yzf-R1 +9.922
5. Craig COXHELL Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 +10.411
6. Jay NORMOYLE Suzuki GSXR 1000 +20.777
7. David SIMPSON Suzuki GSXR 1000 +24.638
8. Stephen TOZER Yamaha YZF-R1 +25.913
9. David EMMERSON Honda CBR 929 +29.683
10. Alistair MAXWELL Suzuki GSXR 1000 +35.531
Fastest Lap: Alex Gobert 1:24.975 on lap 4

Race 2 / 14 Laps Rider Bike Time / Gap:
1. Shawn GILES Suzuki GSXR 1000 20:01.583
2. Damian CUDLIN Yamaha YZF-R1 +6.183 secs
3. Alex GOBERT Honda CBR 929 +7.547
4. Jamie STAUFFER Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 +7.661
5. Craig COXHELL Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 +7.872
6. David EMMERSON Honda CBR 929 +19.251
7. Jay NORMOYLE Suzuki GSXR 1000 +20.242
8. Tony REES Yamaha YZF-R1 +21.530
9. David SIMPSON Suzuki GSXR 1000 +24.168
10. Alistair MAXWELL Suzuki GSXR 1000 +25.383
Fastest Lap: Shawn Giles 1:24.853 (New Pro-Superbike lap record)

Race 3 / 14 Laps Rider Bike Time / Gap:
1. Shawn GILES Suzuki GSXR 1000 20:07.701
2. Alex GOBERT Honda CBR 929 +4.351 secs
3. Craig COXHELL Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 +5.480
4. Damien CUDLIN Yamaha YZF-R1 +7.743 5 Tony REES Yamaha YZF-R1 +7.983
5. Jamie STAUFFER Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R1 +8.772
6. Stephen TOZER Yamaha YZF-R1 +16.444
7. David SIMPSON Suzuki GSXR 1000 +18.318
8. David EMMERSON Honda CBR 929 +20.638
9. Jay NORMOYLE Suzuki GSXR 1000 +25.639
Fastest Lap: Shawn Giles 1:25.309 on lap 4

2001 Shell Advance Australian Superbike Championship (points after 2 0f 5 rounds):
1. S Giles 129; 2. D Cudlin 88; 3. C Coxhell 75; 4. T Rees 55; 5. A Gobert 52; 6. S Adams 47; 7. D Simpson 46; 8. J Stauffer 43; 9. J Normoyle 37; 10. S Fisher 33.

Shell Advance Australian Supersport Championship Round 2, Winton Raceway, Victoria, June 2-3
Qualifying Rider Bike Time 1. Brendan CLARKE Suzuki GSXR 600 1:26.876
2. Robbie BAIRD Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R6 1:27.232
3. Scott CHARLTON Suzuki GSXR 600 1:27.309
4. Daniel STAUFFER Suzuki GSXR 600 1:27.432
5. Rory ROCK Honda CBR 600 1:27.889
6. Josh BROOKES Suzuki GSXR 600 1:27.923
7. Nicholas BARTON Honda CBR 600 1:27.985
8. Jason KAIN Yamaha YZF-R6 1:28.068
9. Rodney TAPLIN Suzuki GSXR 600 1:28.418
10. Greg MOSS Honda CBR 600 1:28.601
11. Lap Record: Adam Fergusson (Honda) 1:25.68 (07/05/00)

Race 1 / 14 Laps Rider Bike Time/Gap
1. Brendan CLARKE Suzuki GSXR 600 20:26.618
2. Scott CHARLTON Suzuki GSXR 600 +5.135
3. Robbie BAIRD Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R6 +5.317
4. Josh BROOKES Suzuki GSXR 600 +8.959
5. Daniel STAUFFER Suzuki GSXR 600 +9.001
6. Rodney TAPLIN Suzuki GSXR 600 +9.907
7. Jason KAIN Yamaha YZF-R6 +12.941
8. Nicholas BARTON Honda CBR 600 +16.065
9. Rory ROCK Honda CBR 600 +20.494
10. Greg MOSS Honda CBR 600 +21.436
Fastest Lap: Brendan Clarke 1:26.966 on lap 9

Race 2 / 14 Laps Rider Bike Time / Gap
1. Robbie BAIRD Radar’s Team Yamaha YZF-R6 20:30.682
2. Brendan CLARKE Suzuki GSXR 600 +6.547
3. Josh BROOKES Suzuki GSXR 600 +7.913
4. Daniel STAUFFER Suzuki GSXR 600 +10.541
5. Jason KAIN Yamaha YZF-R6 +19.695
6. Deon COOTE Yamaha YZF-R6 +19.947
7. Greg MOSS Honda CBR 600 +20.682
8. Jay TAYLOR Kawasaki ZX6R +20.977
9. Michael BRENTON Yamaha YZF-R6 +29.563
10. Rory ROCK Honda CBR 600 +32.943
Fastest Lap: Nicholas Barton 1:27.087 on lap 6

2001 Shell Advance Australian Supersport Championship (points after 2 0f 5 rounds) 1. J Brookes 80; 2. B Clarke 67; 3. D Stauffer 56; 4. S Charlton 51; 5. R Baird 41; 6. G Moss 31; 7. J Kain 27; 8. M Brenton 27; 9. D Coote 26; 10. J Taylor 24.

2001 Shell Australian Superbike & Supersport Championships: 5-6 May Wanneroo (WA) 2-3 June Winton (Vic) 30 June – 1 July Queensland Raceway (Q’ld) 28-29 July Mallala (SA) 25-26 August Oran Park (NSW) “

Rider Points
1. Valentino Rossi, Italy, Honda, 91 points
2. Max Biaggi, Italy, Yamaha, 70 points
3. Loris Capirossi, Italy, Honda, 65 points
4. Norick Abe, Japan, Yamaha, 64 points
5. Alex Barros, Brazil, Honda, 60 points
6. Alex Criville, Spain, Honda, 57 points
7. Shinya Nakano, Japan, Yamaha, 50 points
8. Kenny Roberts, USA, Suzuki, 37 points
9. Tohru Ukawa, Japan, Honda, 36 points
10. Sete Gibernau, Spain, Suzuki, 29 points
11. Carlos Checa, Spain, Yamaha, 28 points
12. Garry McCoy, Australia, Yamaha, 27 points
13. Jurgen v.d. Goorbergh, Holland, Proton, 23 points
14. Haruchika Aoki, Japan, Honda, 19 points
15. Jose Luis Cordoso, Spain, Yamaha, 11 points
16. Noruyuki Haga, Japan, Yamaha, 10 points
17. Chris Walker, GB, Honda, 5 points
18. Leon Haslam, GB, Honda, 3 points
19. Mark Willis, Australia, Pulse, 3 points
20. Anthony West, Australia, Honda, 3 points
21. Barry Veneman, Holland, Honda, 2 points
22. Jarno Hanssen, Holland, 1 point


Manufacturer Points
1. Honda, 116 points
2. Yamaha, 94 points
3. Suzuki, 47 points
4. Proton, 23 points
5. Pulse, 3 points

The follow press release issued by Marlboro Yamaha tells the team’s version of what happened at Mugello in the 500cc race:


“ITALIAN GRAND PRIX, MUGELLO
“Race Day, Sunday June 3 2001
“MARLBORO YAMAHA MAN BIAGGI RIDES THE STORM AT MUGELLO

“Monsoon conditions dominated today’s two-part Italian GP, Marlboro Yamaha Team rider Max Biaggi riding the storm to take a crucial third-place finish. In a day of high drama at Mugello, team-mate Carlos Checa was not so lucky, exiting the race with clutch-slip problems.

“The fifth round of the 2001 World Championship was the most testing of days for Biaggi, Checa and their rivals. The race got underway over an hour late, after rain had delayed the 125s and 250s, and was turning into a classic confrontation as Biaggi fought with Brazilian Alex Barros (Honda) and fellow Italians Valentino Rossi (Honda) and Loris Capirossi (Honda). But then the rain came, the race was red-flagged and started again on a soaking track, with results counting on aggregate. Minutes after careering around on slicks, the riders were racing around in a monsoon, their rain tyres kicking up bow waves as they sped past the pits.

“Once again, Biaggi was in the leading group but he lost ground as the rain intensified in the closing stages, by which time the conditions had already claimed a number of victims. But there were to be more crashes – on-the-road leader Norick Abe (Yamaha) fell with three laps to go and a lap later World Champion Kenny Roberts (Suzuki) also went down. With one lap left Rossi and Alex Criville (Honda) passed Biaggi but Rossi was pushing too hard and crashed out on the last-but-one turn, putting Biaggi back into third on corrected time.

“‘There’s nothing you can do about the weather,’ said Marlboro Yamaha Team director Hiroya Atsumi. ‘Max did a great job, riding really well in the dry and getting a podium at the end of the day. Riding a 500 in such conditions is never easy. We had some problems in the wet last year but this year’s bike definitely works better on wet tracks. I feel very sorry for Carlos and I hope he can get a good result at Barcelona.’

“The Marlboro Catalan GP happens on June 17, when Yamaha’s YZR-M1 four-stroke GP bike makes its public debut, tester Norihiko Fujiwara riding several exhibition laps on race-day morning. Biaggi and Checa will also stay on after the GP to test both their YZR500s and the YZR-M1.

“BIAGGI STAYS COOL TO GRAB THIRD

“Max Biaggi kept his head in the most atrocious conditions today to take a fine third place and lift himself to second in the World Championship, 21 points behind Valentino Rossi. Biaggi led in the dry and then led the early stages of the second ‘leg’ on aggregate. He later slipped to fourth but stayed on while others fell down to claim his third podium of the year.

“‘I was a bit surprised to find I was third,’ said Biaggi who was fifth on the road. ‘It was such a hard race – if you were behind someone you couldn’t see a thing, you had to brake by memory. And I was getting wheelspin even in sixth, just like everyone else, I’m sure. I had two big moments as the rain got heavier, losing the front the first time and then the rear, which is when Criville and Rossi came by. They were going very fast, then Rossi crashed where I’d lost the front the lap before. It was so difficult that I’m happy enough with third, it’s good for the team and for the championship.’

“CHECA EXITS PART TWO

“Carlos Checa withdrew soon after the restart, suffering clutch-slip problems with his Marlboro Yamaha Team YZR500. The Spaniard had been moving forward in the dry after a steady start but his hopes of following his second-place finish at the French GP with another good result were dashed.

“‘I could already feel I had a problem on the warm-up lap and the clutch was slipping straight after the start,’ he said. ‘There was nothing I could do but pull in. It’s a shame because I felt confident racing in the wet, I had good tyres, but in the end that meant nothing. I just hope the weather is better at Barcelona.’

“BARROS WINS

“Alex Barros scored his first win of the year today, triumphing at the end of a long and gruelling afternoon. ‘It was so difficult to go into the wet race with no wet practice,’ he said. ‘I had to take some risks and it got worse as the race went on, as the rain got heavier and everyone started pushing harder. This win has come at a good moment, this is the first GP at which I’ve felt comfortable all year.’ Loris Capirossi took second to complete a one-two for Sito Pons’ team.

“ROSSI FALLS TWICE

“Valentino Rossi crashed twice today, once on the warm-up lap before the restart and then again on the final lap just after he’d taken second on aggregate time. ‘I couldn’t see much in the rain, including my pit board, so I didn’t know where I was,’ he said. ‘I just kept pushing and pushing.'”

Random times caught by reporter David Swarts at Putnam Park, during practice for today’s WERA National Challenge Series sprints:

Open Superstock
1. Mark Junge, GSX-R1000, 1:12.07
2. Scott Brown, YZF-R1, 1:12.92
3. Scott Harwell, GSX-R1000, 1:12.94
4. Joe Temperato, GSX-R1000, 1:13.02
5. Tim Bemisderfer, GSX-R1000, 1:13.42

750cc Superstock (all GSX-R750)
1. Glenn Szarek, 1:12.01
2. Chris Ulrich, 1:12.24
3. Brian Stokes, 1:12.36
4. Jamie Lane, 1:12.77
5. John Jacobi, 1:13.20
6. Scott Harwell, 1:13.45

600cc Superstock
1. Mark Junge, GSX-R600, 1:12.57
2. Chris “Opie” Caylor, GSX-R600, 1:13.06
3. Brian Stokes, GSX-R600, 1:13.61
4. Larry Denning, YZF-R6, 1:13.99
5. David Yaakov, GSX-R600, 1:14.34
6. Joe Temperato, GSX-R600, 1:14.81

Heavyweight Twins
1. Glenn Szarek, TL1000R, 1:14.85
2. Scott Harwell, TL1000R, 1:15.12
3. Bill St. John, Ducati 800, 1:15.97

The following is the text of a press release issued by Yamaha’s racing PR agency regarding the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello:


MotoGP 500: Max mounts the podium

After leading the first leg of a two-part rain-effected Italian MotoGP 500 race Marlboro Yamaha rider Max Biaggi ended up third overall, based on the aggregate race time for the fifth round of the world championship -held at Mugello, June 1-3. The Italian lead the final five laps of the dry seven lap opening leg, building a half a second buffer over the competition which proved beneficial for the full wet 16 lap re-start.

Biaggi repeated his first start and took the early race lead before eventual race winner (based on aggregate times) Alex Barros (Honda) slipped by to lead his teammate Loris Capirossi to a one-two finish. Although on the track Biaggi slipped back through the field, he never relinquished second place on the time sheets until the eighth lap of the second leg. Biaggi now sits second in the championship, 21 points behind Rossi (91pts)

Norick Abe (Antena 3 Yamaha d’Antin) put in an astounding performance in the wet to challenge the two lead Honda riders (on the time sheets) in the dying moments of the race, but the championship number four lost the front of his YZR500 when he hit a puddle at the apex of the chicane three laps from race end. He was leading the race at the time and remounted to claim seven points by finishing ninth on the day.

He wasn’t alone, the terrible conditions claiming its fair share of victims. The tally was seven, including Valentino Rossi (Honda) and Kenny Roberts (Suzuki) – the former crashing twice; once on the warm-up lap and the second time he repeated Abe’s mistake on the final lap.

Gauloises Yamaha Tech 3 rider Shinya Nakano, and Noriyuki Haga (Red Bull Yamaha) played it safe in their first wet 500 race to claim ninth and tenth overall respectively. Meanwhile Carlos Checa (Marlboro Yamaha Team) was forced to retire from the re-start due to a slipping clutch.

Marlboro Yamaha Team
Max Biaggi 3rd: “I was a bit surprised to find I was third. It was such a hard race. If you were behind someone you just can’t see a thing and it
forced you to brake instinctively. And I was getting wheel spin even in sixth, just like everyone I’m sure.

“I had two big moments as the rain got heavier, losing the front the first time and then the rear, which is when (Alex) Criville and Rossi came by. They were going very fast and then Rossi crashed in the same spot I’d lost the front the lap before. It was so difficult that I was happy with third, for the team and the championship.”

Carlos Checa DNF: “I could already feel I had a problem on the warm-up lap and the clutch was slipping straight after the start. There was nothing I could do but pull in. It’s a shame because I felt confident racing in the wet. I had good tyres, but in the end that meant nothing.”

Gauloises Yamaha Tech 3
Shinya Nakano 8th: “It was my first wet race on a 500 and there was a lot to learn. Not only did we have to guess the setup for the wet I also haven’t had the opportunity to learn how to do a wet start on such a powerful bike. This was my biggest problem in the race, I was just wheel-spinning off the line. Then for the first few laps I didn’t really know how hard I could push. Hervé told me to simply treat this as a test rather than a race so I was very surprised to see I was eighth in the end.”



Antena 3 Yamaha d’Antin
Norick Abe 9th: “It sounds strange, because I crashed when I could have won the race, but I still feel I rode really well today. Where I lost the front I’d braked in exactly the same place as I had every lap before, but that time it just let go so quickly I didn’t have time to catch it. I’m sure I hit a puddle or something but it was still my mistake.”

José Luis Cardoso 11th: “It was my first ride on the V-four in the wet and I found I had to be smoother than on the bike I rode last year. It meant I had to get a rhythm and not be too aggressive. It was also a little difficult to get a perfect setup because we had no base setting for the wet, so we just made everything softer.

“The first part I had a good start and my plan was to stay with the second group but they’re still just a little too fast for me.”

Red Bull Yamaha WCM Noriyuki Haga 10th: “During the first leg I had some rear chatter coming through the bike, but as the laps wore on it improved and I was feeling
really good just as the rain began. For the wet race I jumped on the second bike, but since I’d never raced in the wet on a 500 before it was a little hard to chose the right suspension settings.

“I had a good start in the second leg, and for a while I was fifth. I found the front offered good grip but I was struggling a little with the rear, and that’s why I couldn’t stay with them. Given the conditions, and my lack of experience I am happy with the result.”





MotoGP 250: Podium snatched from Matsudo

Naoki Matsudo (Petronas Sprinta Yamaha TVK) was set to repeat his 2000 Donington MotoGP 250 podium finish at the Italian MotoGP, held at Mugello on June 1-3, before the Japanese crashed out of contention midway through the 21 lap event. At one point Matsudo was as high as second place after a lightening start, before settling into what looked to be a safe third place finish. Then with eight laps remaining in the drying race the former Japanese 250 GP champion lost the front of the Petronas YZR250 – remounting in ninth place to finish the day 12th on his bruised Yamaha.

Shahrol Yuzy (Petronas Sprinta Yamaha TVK) also produced a great start for the fifth round of the championship to be sixth before securing a strong ninth place.

Tetsuya Harada (Aprilia), was the man of the moment when he rode the perfect race to win by a comfortable 12.729 seconds over Roberto Rolfo (Aprilia) – the Italian claiming his first podium result in the process. He was a further 15 seconds ahead of third placed man Marco Melandri (Aprilia).

Wild card rider Marcellino Lucchi (Aprilia) led the race until his third crash in two days put him out of contention on lap four. He was closely followed into the gravel traps by fellow Aprilia rider, and then race leader Jeremy McWilliams.


Petronas Sprinta Yamaha TVK
Shahrol Yuzy 9th: “I normally don’t like the rain, so I didn’t push too hard, rather I was aiming for a good finish. I got a good start so that was a big help and I just tried to maintain my position, but as the race dried out I slid back through the field a little. The tyres just started to move around just a little too much for my liking.

“Even so ninth place is my best finish so I’m very happy, and I’ve got to thank my team for making the right tyre choice.”

Naoki Matsudo 12th: “I got a great start, better than I expected, and with the two Aprilia’s crashing too, it really helped me out. I kept improving but so was Melandri and since I could see him catching me I thought I’d try and put in a few hard laps to keep the gap.

“It was because I was trying to keep my third place that I made a mistake and lost the front end. I think I drifted a little wide and hit the white line.”