Down To the Wire
DOWN TO THE WIRE
RACE WATCH
Racing's late-season dramatics
CAMRON E. BUSSARD
AS THE 1990 COMPETITION SEAson enters the home stretch, there's still a lot of racing left, with several important championships still up for grabs. What follows are reports on four of the most important classes in racing today, being contested by riders who will be making news both at home and on circuits around the world for years to come. In the world championship chases for 250 and 500cc roadracing. one American has already clinched his first world title, while the other is still fighting to win his. In the U.S. Superbike series, a rider who's a throwback to the days of Bugsy Mann, Black Bart Markel and Flyin' Freddie Nix is scorching roadrace tracks all over America. He is, at least, when he's not slinging a Camel Pro dirt-track racer sideways at mile and half-mile tracks. And in the Camel Pro dirt-track series itself, two Harley-Davidson teammates are battling to the wire for the Grand National Championship.
500 GP
A Rainey season, but it ain’t over 'til the skinny Texan sings
w remaining ITH ONLY TWO in RACES the 990 GP season. Wayne Rainey has won his first world championship. Heading into the Czechoslovakian GP, Rainey held a 47-point lead over rival Kevin Schwantz. and needed to score third or better in one of the final races to clinch the title. But Rainey won the race, and Schwantz crashed, thus ending his hopes for a come-from-behind championship.“I don’t have the championship yet, and I’m not gonna say I have it until I cross the finish line,” said a cautious Rainey before he jumped on a plane bound for the Czechoslovakian GP. When the season began, Rainey was a favorite to take the championship, and he started off strong with a win in Japan followed by a convincing victory at Laguna Seca. But just as great a factor in his championship bid was that his main competition — Schwantz, Eddie Lawson and Wayne Gardner—left Laguna injured, the result of a crash-marred event.
But Schwantz fought back in mid- season, winning four races in a row to close the gap. Also, Gardner and Lawson returned to race form, putting even more pressure on the front-runners. But at the Swedish round, Schwantz crashed once again, all but assuring Rainey’s success.
And it is the number of sensational crashes this season that have grabbed as much attention as Rainev’s title
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chase. Every one of the top riders but Rainey has fallen this season during a race. The main problem revolves around the Michelin tires which appear to be “too good.” as some of the riders have put it. The tires offer more grip than ever before, but give no warning when they are about to break loose. This has resulted in spectacular highsides this year.
When Michelin announced recently that it would not be involved in motorcycle racing after this season ended, the teams responded with mixed reviews. Though there will be no official Michelin support or development, Marlboro team manager Kenny Roberts thinks teams will still be able to buy tires, left over from this year, if they so desire.
In the midst of all the tire turmoil, the FIM is considering making a substantial change in the 500cc class in an effort to make the racing safer. Word has come that 500 Twins may be the bike to use in 1993. Officials believe the 500 Fours have become> too fast, too powerful and too expensive. thus making it difficult for privateers to get experience on the hardto-ride machines.
Opponents of the V-Twin solution point out that the bikes will certainly cost just as much, and may be even more dangerous to ride. They contend that when a Four seizes a cylinder, it seldom locks up the rear wheel, but a Twin, with half its pistons seized, locks up immediately. A cleaner solution, some say, would.be to use carburetor restrictors and make more 500cc Fours available at a reasonable cost.
In a final disturbing bit of GP new;s, Cagiva has pulled out of world championship 500cc roadracing. Unhappy with the development of its machines and with team riders’ performances, in spite of spending millions of dollars on the project, the Italian company has decided to spend no more money or time competing at the GP level. Some rumors suggest that the company was particularly unhappy with the crowdpleasing but not exceptionally quick Randy Mamola, and that the move is diplomatic way for the company to reorganize its team with new riders, one of whom has been rumored to be Eddie Lawson.
So while Rainey smoothly motored to his first world championship, threats to the 500cc GP series continue. It’s certain that changes to insure rider safety and quality competition will have to be made. But just w hich changes they’ll be has yet to be determined.
250 GP
Kocinski in need of a comeback
JWOHN r season KOCINSKI like every STARTED one THE expected: He dominated the 250cc GP class. He astounded the European riders with how quickly he could learn a racetrack, and how quickly he could make his YZR250 Yamaha go. He didn't surprise the same riders with his cocky attitude: They were ready for that.
By mid-season, Kocinski had a huge points lead. His main competition, Luca Cadalora, the Italian rider who some say has as much tal-> ent as Kocinski. was busy falling with remarkable consistency. The other riders were just beginning to get up to speed as Kocinski continued his rampage across the Continent.
But slowly, Spaniard Carlos Cardus began to climb up in the standings. His Honda was blazingly fast, and Cardus was beginning to show the results of the training he received when he spent several weeks in the off-season with Eddie Lawson in the California desert. Cardus had crept closer to Kocinski, and during the French round was leading the race, when “Baby John” crashed, guaranteeing Cardus the win and allowing him to get even closer in the point standings.
At the British GP two weeks later, the roles were reversed, with Kocinski in the lead. But once again it was> the rookie American who made a mistake and crashed hard. Cardus finished fourth, and took the points lead, while Kocinski went behind the woodshed for discussions with team owner Kenny Roberts. “His first crash was acceptable,” said an angry and frustrated Roberts, “but his second was stupid.”
Kocinski now faces an uphill battle for the championship in the next two races. He is 10 points down to a seasoned GP rider who has a faster machine. But Roberts believes that this may be the best thing to have happened to Kocinski. For the first time since “the kid” came of age, this is the first real challenge to his talent. How well Kocinski handles the pressure will be a good indication of the kind of rider he ultimately will turn out to be.
U.S. Superbike
Chandler keeps Kawasaki out front
HIS IS THE SEASON DOUG Chandler fulfilled years of promise to become one of the best riders in America. One of the circuit's nice guys, Chan-> dier is also the last of a dying breed of American racers, competing successfully on asphalt and dirt. And he may be following a path blazed by Kenny Roberts that begins in American dirttrack racing and ends in grand prix racing in Europe.
Chandler’s performance in 1990 certainly serves notice. In his second year with Team Muzzy/Kawasaki, Chandler has blossomed into the fastest and most consistent rider in the field, winning the past four AMA Superbike races in a row. But his season has not been without challenge. His teammate, Scott Russell, has begun a late-season charge that has shown him to be developing into a better and more fierce competitor with each race. At the Mid-Ohio race, Russell started the main event from the back row because he was disqualified from his heat race. He put in a dramatic charge through the field, ultimately nabbing second place from Ducati-mounted Jamie James.
But the rider who sits second in the point standings is RC30-mounted Randy Renfrow, one of the most experienced riders currently in America. Renfrow has won AMA championships in the 250. F-l and ProTwins classes. If he somehow nabs the Superbike championship away from Chandler, he will be the only rider in AMA history to win all four of the major classes.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment of the season has been the relatively poor performance of the Vance & Hines riders David Sadowski and Thomas Stevens. After dominating the first race of the season in Daytona Beach with immaculately prepared machines, the teammates have suffered crashes and injuries that have kept them from fulfilling their early promise. It appears as if the riders have been more concerned with beating each other than concentrating on winning races.
Of the top riders, 1989 Superbike champion Jamie James is the most exciting rider to watch. His Fast by Ferracci Ducati, based on the production 85 l, is consistently one of the fastest bikes on the track, and James is not hesitant to fling it through the corners in full-lock slides. His aggressive riding style would do him well on the Camel Pro dirt-track circuit.
With two rounds remaining in the Superbike title chase. Chandler holds a 32-point lead over Renfrow. It’s still possible for Renfrow to take the championship, but the consistency of Chandler's riding and the reliability record of his Rob Muzzy-prepped bikes make it a pretty sure bet that Chandler will be the champion.
Camel Pro
Carr, Parker in a battle of Harleys
JF T WASN'T THAT LONG AGO THAT ' 23-year-old Chris Carr was a child hanging in the trees outside of the San Jose Mile stealing a glimpse of the racers hurtling sideways through the corners. It's a long way from those trees to winning the Grand National Championship, but Carr looks set to do just that. With five events left on the schedule, and with a 14-point lead over reigning two-year champion Scott Parker, Carr finds himself in a strong position to win his first GNC crown.
Before the season began, Carr, who finished second to Parker last year, didn’t know what to expect. “I just wanted to be close to Parker toward the end of the season,” says Carr. At this point last year, Carr was 18 points down, and Parker went on to wrap up the title. “Now,” says Carr, “the pressure is on him because every one expects him to do well.”
Parker, however, feels the championship is still within his grasp. “I knew he would do well at Peoria TT (Carr won), so I pretty much gave him that from the start,” he says. “I’m not worried yet. We have four miles left, and I do well on them.” Nonetheless, Parker treats Carr with a lot of respect: “He rode good last year, and this year he’s real steady, with no crashes and no DNFs.” Up to> now. Parker and Carr each have two mile wins, but Carr is looking to put on a championship-winning, lateseason drive.
His previous performances on the remaining tracks has been spotty, so Carr hopes that with a little luck and with a couple of solid rides, he will be able to take the championship when the riders meet at Ascot Park. The race at Ascot will be the last for the celebrated facility—it will be shut down after the September meet— which should make the race a highly charged event.
Carr’s goal all along has been to win the national championship, but he is looking beyond that. He has been on a roadracer before, though he never has quite felt comfortable on the pavement. Still, he recognizes that a move to the roadrace circuit is the next step in his career. “Roberts showed us how to do it,” he says. “I feel like I have a lot of roadrace potential.” (3
