Valentino Rossi secured pole position for tomorrow’s 500cc Grand Prix at Catalunya, Spain, during Saturday’s final qualifying session. Times follow:

500cc
1. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:45.507
2. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:45.518
3. Loris Capirossi, Honda, 1:45.630
4. Max Biaggi, Yamaha, 1:45.682
5. Alex Barros, Honda, 1:45.761
6. Jurgen van den Goorbergh, Proton, 1:45.833
7. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:45.952
8. Norick Abe, Yamaha, 1:46.067
9. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:46.159
10. Alex Criville, Honda, 1:46.650
11. Sete Gibernau, Suzuki, 1:46.830
12. Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, 1:46.834


250cc
1. Daijiro Katoh, Honda, 1:47.261
2. Tetsuya Harada, Aprilia, 1:47.626
3. Roberto Rolfo, Aprilia, 1:48.092
4. Emilio Alzamora, Honda, 1:48.136
5. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:48.245
6. Marco Melandri, Aprilia, 1:48.319
7. Alex Debon, Aprilia, 1:48.405
8. Roberto Locatelli, Aprilia, 1:48.455
9. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, 1:48.761
10. Jeremy McWilliams, Aprilia, 1:48.764


125cc
1. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 1:51.368
2. Noboru Ueda, Honda, 1:52.091
3. Youichi Ui, Derbi, 1:52.146
4. Stefano Perugini, Ital Jet, 1:52.410
5. Toni Elias, Honda, 1:52.560
6. Steve Jenkner, Aprilia, 1:52.682
7. Manuel Poggiali, Gilera, 1:52.705
8. Jarno Mueller, Honda, 1:52.803
9. Jaroslav Hules, Honda, 1:52.938
10. Max Sabbatani, Aprilia, 1:53.076

Jimmy Filice is irate at last-minute 250cc Grand Prix grid changes that moved local star Jeff Wood out of the “stacked” second 250cc heat race into the “easier” first 250cc heat race, both heat races scheduled for this afternoon at Loudon.

Wood was originally in the same heat race as Rich Oliver, Chuck Sorensen and 1999 Loudon winner Derek MacKelvie King. Filice was in the first heat with no strong competitors.

But apparently due to a registration error, local Gus Holcomb and several other riders were not assigned grid positions. When registration workers corrected that error, they also gave Randy Renfrow a grid position even though he is not at Loudon. That obvious error bumped Wood from one heat race into the other.

Since the procedure for establishing 250cc heat race grid order is to alternate heat assignments, sending entered riders who are first, third, fifth, etc. in points to one heat race and entered riders who are second, fourth, sixth, etc. in points to the other heat race, Filice was outraged that his protests to AMA Pro Racing Director of Competition Merrill Vanderslice resulted in no definite promise of action.

Hooters Suzuki’s Mike Ciccotto won the 750cc Supersport race at Loudon, beating local heroes Chuck Chouinard on his Barry Motorsports/Sparks Steak House Suzuki and Attack Suzuki’s Rich Alexander, Chouinard finishing 8.180 seconds behind Ciccotto and Alexander finishing 12.678 seconds behind.

Chouinard was initially emotional on the podium and had difficulty speaking, but quickly recovered and said he”d been trying to get on the podium at an AMA National since 1992 and finally made it.

Alexander said he was so tired and overheated after the earlier Formula Xtreme race that he required medical attention, and thanked the track medical crew “for putting me back together for this race.”

Roger Lee Hayden on the Bruce Transportation CBR600F4i and points leader Jimmy Moore on the Corona EXTRA Suzuki GSX-R750 collided in turn 3 on lap 6, Hayden trying to make an inside pass and Moore trying to hold him off as they entered the u-turn from the flat infield up the hill outside the track, both crashing. Moore picked up his bike and finished sixth. Hayden came into the pits.

Roadracingworld.com’s Chris Ulrich charged from 11th to 4th but crashed on lap 7, losing the front end in turn 11, shortly after passing Corona EBSCO Suzuki”s Vince Haskovec, with Bruce Transportation”s Josh Hayes right behind.

Hayes passed Haskovec and caught Alexander but couldn”t get past.

Local Hero Eric Wood retired with shifting problems.

Two days after the race, on Monday, Chouinard was disqualified for illegal engine modifications.

AMA 750cc Supersport
On-track Results
1. Mike Ciccotto, GSX-R750
2. Chuck Chouinard, GSX-R750, disqualified
3. Rich Alexander, GSX-R750
4. Josh Hayes, CBR600F4i
5. Vince Haskovec, GSX-R750
6. Jimmy Moore, GSX-R750
7. Daigoro Suzuki, GSX-R750
8. Matthew Silva, GSX-R750
9. Tony Meiring, GSX-R750
10. David Ortega, GSX-R750

Point Standings
1. Moore, 149
2. Alexander, 134
3. Haskovec, 123
4. Ben Spies, 118
5. Meiring, 100
6. Ulrich, 82
7. Rich Conicelli, 80
8. Ortega, 79
9. Ciccotto, 76
10. Brian Parriott, 70

Jeff Wood, brother of racer Eric Wood and son of racer Jerry Wood, was fastest in 250cc Grand Prix practice Saturday morning at New Hampshire International Speedway at Loudon, New Hampshire. Times follow:

1. Jeff Wood, Yamaha, 1:12.948
2. Chuck Sorensen, Yamaha, 1:13.333
3. Jimmy Filice, Yamaha, 1:13.379
4. Rich Oliver, Yamaha, 1:13.813
5. Derek MacKelvie King, Honda, 1:14.471
6. Perry Melneciuc, Yamaha, 1:14.717
7. Michael Hannas, Yamaha, 1:15.063
8. Mike Himmelsbach, Aprilia, 1:15.063
9. Bill Himmelsbach, Yamaha, 1:15.996
10. Ed Marchini, Yamaha, 1:16.297
11. Cory West, Yamaha, 1:16.311
12. Simon Turner, Yamaha, 1:16.482
13. Steve Scott, Yamaha, 1:16.884
14. Chris Pyles, Yamaha, 1:16.891
15. Gus Holcomb, 1:17.225

Loris Capirossi was fastest in the first Catalan Grand Prix 500cc qualifying session at Catalunya, Spain while arch rivals Valentino Rossi and Max Biaggi encountered trouble, Rossi crashing but ending up fourth-fastest and Biaggi struggling to 13th-fastest. Times follow:

1. Loris Capirossi, Honda, 1:45.587
2. Norick Abe, Yamaha, 1:46.127
3. Alex Barros, Honda, 1:46.217
4. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:46.264
5. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:46.282
6. Jurgen van den Goorbergh, Proton, 1:46.525
7. Sete Gibernau, Suzuki, 1:46.601
8. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, 1:46.760
9. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:46.862
10. Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, 1:46.928
11. Alex Criville, Honda, 1:47.121
12. Garry McCoy, Yamaha, 1:47.251
13. Max Biaggi, Yamaha, 1:47.270
14. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:47.316
15. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:47.629


250cc Times, First Qualifying Session
1. Daijiro Katoh, Honda, 1:47.594
2. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:47.800
3. Marco Melandri, Aprilia, 1:47.882
4. Tetsuya Harada, Aprilia, 1:47.915
5. Jeremy McWilliams, Aprilia, 1:47.944
6. Roberto Rolfo, Aprilia, 1:48.225
7. Emilio Alzamora, Honda, 1:48.367
8. Klaus Nohles, Aprilia, 1:48.785
9. Randy de Puniet, Aprilia, 1:48.958
10. Alex Hofmann, Aprilia, 1:49.117


125cc Times, First Qualifying Session
1. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 1:51.820
2. Toni Elias, Honda, 1:52.785
3. Angel Rodriguez, Aprilia, 1:52.787
4. Manuel Poggiali, Gilera, 1:52.914
5. Youichi Ui, Derbi, 1:52.944
6. Max Sabbatani, Aprilia, 1:53.001
7. Simone Sanna, Aprilia, 1:53.019
8. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 1:53.050
9. Pablo Nieto, Derbi, 1:53.227
10. Mirko Giansanti, Honda, 1:53.481

Yamaha’s Anthony Gobert praised changes made to the New Hampshire International Speedway to increase rider safety.

In a taped interview conducted in Yamaha’s garage at NHIS, Gobert was asked by AMA Media Relations contractor Larry Lawrence to compare the road course as it is today to how it was when he last rode on it, in 1999. Gobert responded: “The track is 100 percent better now. When I first rode here in ’98 it was a little bit dodgy… there was no protection against the speedway outside wall. Now there’s Air Fence, they’ve got tires. A lot of parts of the track they’ve made it a lot safer and we thank the people here at Loudon for that. As a rider it’s much better to go out there riding that if you do have a problem that there is sufficient room to stop in time. They’ve definitely made a lot of improvements and right now it’s a fun little track.”

Gobert also commented on his ability to go well on the tight Loudon course, saying, “Nothing against Yamaha, but right now we’re a little bit down on horsepower, especially on the Superbike. So when we get to the fast tracks it just kills us, we really struggle. But at tracks like here and Sears Point there’s no real straightaways so I can use my skills through the corners to get a little bit of an edge.”

Damon Buckmaster used a Dunlop qualifying tire to put his Graves Yamaha YZF-R1/R7 on the pole for tomorrow’s AMA Formula Xtreme race at Loudon. Bruce Transportation Group’s Josh Hayes was second fastest on his Honda CBR929RR, also on a Dunlop qualifying tire, followed by John Hopkins on a Valvoline EMGO Suzuki GSX-R1000 on Michelin race tires, Roger Lee Hayden on a Bruce Transportation Group Honda CBR9292RR on a Dunlop qualifying tire and Tom Kipp on an Attack Suzuki GSX-R1000 on a Dunlop qualifying tire. Times follow:

1. Damon Buckmaster, Yamaha YZF-R1/R7, 1:11.809
2. Josh Hayes, Honda CBR929RR, 1:11.564
3. John Hopkins, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:11.727
4. Roger Lee Hayden, Honda CBR929RR, 1:11.727
5. Tom Kipp, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:11.843
6. Aaron Gobert, Yamaha YZF-R1/R7, 1:12.046
7. Grant Lopez, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:12.773
8. Rich Alexander, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:12.781
9. Jake Zemke, Honda CBR929RR, 1:12.988
10. Mark Miller, Honda CBR929RR, 1:13.510
11. Des Conboy, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:14.511
12. Chris Voelker, Honda CBR900RR, 1:14.892
13. Rich Neenan, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:15.383
14. Michael Niksa, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:15.495
15. Jeff Nash, Ducati 748, 1:16.494

Competition Accessories Ducati has announced a unique promotion where a lucky fan can get join the team’s Superbike crew during the final AMA race of the 2001 season, at Virginia International Raceway September 28-30.

The winner of the “Pit Crew Weekend” will get an all-expenses-paid trip for two to the Virginia International Raceway round of the AMA Chevy Trucks Championship in Danville, Virginia. The prize includes air travel, hotel accommodations, pit crew credentials, and an official Competition Accessories Ducati team shirt.



There is no cost or purchase required to enter the contest. For more information and details, log on to the Competition Accessories website at www.competitionaccessories.com or call 1-800-543-8208.

Vesrah Suzuki’s Mark Junge and Glenn Szarek rode a Suzuki GSX-R1000 to win the fourth round of the WERA National Endurance Series, a 4-hour at Virginia International Raceway in Danville Saturday. Loudoun Motorsports Racing was second, 12 seconds behind Vesrah, followed by Team Clinton Cycles, Velocity Crew Racing and Army of Darkness.

The win gave Vesrah the overall series points lead. Former points leader Team Pennzoil was credited with 28th overall after both Chris “Opie” Caylor and Wade Buffington crashed during the first hour, Caylor suffering a separated right shoulder and Buffington suffering a broken right collarbone and a broken right elbow.

Although it was raining at the start of the race, the rain stopped and the track dried out after the first hour.

Results follow:

1. Vesrah Suzuki, Suzuki GSX-R1000, HWSB, 128 laps
2. Loudoun Motorsports Racing, Suzuki GSX-R750, HWSS, 128 laps
3. Team Clinton Cycles, Yamaha YZF-R6, MWSS 124 laps
4. Velocity Crew Racing, Suzuki GSX-R600, MWSB, 123 laps
5. Army Of Darkness, Suzuki GSX-R600, MWSB, 122 laps
6. J&J Motorsports, Suzuki GSX-R750, HWSS, 122 laps
7. Triad Racing, Suzuki GSX-R600, MWSS, 121 laps
8. Neighbor Of The Beast, Suzuki GSX-R600, 121 laps
9. Intrepid Racing, Suzuki SV650, LWSB, 120 laps
10. racersupply.com, Suzuki GSX-R750, HWSB, 120 laps
28. Team Pennzoil, Suzuki GSX-R750,HWSB, 89 laps

HWSB = Heavyweight Superbike class
MWSB = Mediumweight Superbike class
HWSS = Heavyweight Superstock class
MWSS = Mediumweight Superstock class

Photos by Brian J. Nelson.

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Photos Copyright 2001 Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.