Mike Baldwin:

MIKE BALDWIN:

The world's fastest privateer

GOING BY PAST PERFORMANCES, Mike Baldwin should have been one of the favorites at the USGP. After all, here's a guy who is a five-time U.S. Formula 1 champion, who was the fourth-best 500 GP rider in the world two years ago, and who won the 1986 Laguna Seca F-1 national after an epic knock-down-drag-out with Randy Mamola. But both Baldwin and Chas Mortimer, his team manager, knew better. "Mike deserves something better than this," said Mortimer before the race, motioning towards the Team Katayama Honda RS500. "He's a works rider and this is a privateer bike." The motorcycle, while a 1 988 model, is really just an evolution of the three-cylinder design that debuted in 1982, and Baldwin realized he'd be at a serious disadvantage to the current V-Four-powered racers that the factory teams use. "We're about 20 percent down on horse power," he said after qualifying 1 5th-fastest. "It's a disappointment not to have a competitive bike, but we're not doing badly for what the bike is."

Actually, Baldwin wasn't doing badly just being at the USGP in the first place. An accident last year side lined him for most of the season, and cost him his place as the second rider on Kenny Roberts' team. Unable to

secure a GP ride for 1988, Baldwin planned to stay at home and race the U.S. Superbike series. And then, at the Japanese GP just two weeks be fore Laguna Seca, Team Katayama's rider, Fabio Barchitta, fell and broke his shoulder. Mortimer, himself a former GP rider, quickly called Bald win. "He was the best bloke we could

get," he said of his replacement rider. Mortimer's faith in Baldwin was well-founded, because during the race he rode smartly and smoothly to finish in 10th place, the first priva teer and first non-V-Four rider across the line. And now Mike Baldwin, the factory rider without a factory, is scheduled to ride in at least the next two GPs for Team Katayarna.

David Edwards