Clipboard

Clipboard

RACE WATCH

Honda's 500cc V-Twin starts season strong

The biggest question on the minds of grand prix pundits—Can Honda’s new, lightweight 500cc V-Twin really compete with the dominant, fire-breathing V-Fours?—has been answered.

Honda factory rider Tadayuki Okada, formerly a top 250 runner, scored pole position in the opening round at Shah Alam, near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Then, in his first-ever 500 race, Okada swept past reigning World Champion Mick Doohan for the lead, not once, but twice, before crashing out.

Not one to mess with “unproven” technology, Doohan will admit to having only taken a few laps on the NSR500V early in its development cycle. Predictably, he spoke out against the new V-Twin as soon as his Japanese teammate began setting faster times than the proven V-Four in preseason testing. The Aussie decried the bike’s 66-pound weight avantage and reckons that the advent of the Twins-which Honda plans to sell to privateers in 1997-will taint the premier class. He says that the machines take less talent to master, and will be unspectacular to watch because they display none of the V-Four’s awesome, tire-smoking antics. It has yet to be seen if the two-time champ will change his tune if the V-Twin continues to gain steam.

Okada’s qualifying performance didn’t surprise Doohan, though. Before the race, he said, “The corner entrance speed with 30 kilograms less weight is too much for a V-Four to handle. Once they keep that speed up, it builds into a good lap time result. This is going to be hard for the VFours on tight circuits.”

Race winner Luca Cadalora was overshadowed by the machinations of the factory-sponsored V-Twin-versusV-Four battle raging around him. Following Cadalora to the checkered flag was Spaniard Carlos Checa on another Honda V-Four, Scott Russell riding the lone Lucky Strike Suzuki, Doohan with a blistered rear tire, and JeanMichel Bayle on a Yamaha YZR500 in his 500cc debut.

Former U.S. and World Superbike Champion Russell found himself behind the eight ball after opting out of pre-race testing to rest up after Daytona. He said, “I knew it wouldn’t be easy to switch back to the GP bike after riding a four-stroke Superbike at Daytona, but it’s been harder than I expected to get used to the extra power and lighter weight.” The team also struggled with a lack of setup information due to lead rider Daryl Beattie being sidelined with a concussion suffered in pre-race testing.

At the second round, in Sentul, Indonesia, a week later, Okada came out swinging once again on a track that favored the high-horsepower V-Fours. He took the provisional pole position, but was promptly booted from the top rung by a revived Doohan. From that point on, it was a flawless performance by the Australian. For his first win of the young season, Doohan had to fight off Team Pileri Honda rider Alex Barros, who perservered for second. Okada dropped out after only five laps when his engine expired.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much action in the top 10, as the riders didn’t change positions after the fourth lap. For the record, Loris Capirossi, riding for Wayne Rainey’s Marlboro-sponsored Yamaha team, was third across the line, followed by Honda V-Fourmounted Alex Criville, Checa, Cadalora, Russell, Bayle, his Marlboro Roberts teammate Norifumi Abe and Alberto Puig on another NSR V-Four. Going into round three at Suzuka, Japan, Barros leads the championship chase, with Doohan, Cadalora, Checa and Russell rounding out the top five.

The latest word on Kenny Roberts Jr., who broke his leg in pre-season testing, is that he’ll be back in the saddle at Suzuka.

Biaggi and Harada swap 250 GP wins

Defending double World Champion Max Biaggi and his Aprilia picked up where they left off last year in the 250 class, dominating from the get-go in Malaysia. Team Marlboro Yamaha Rainey rider Tetsuya Harada gave chase early on, but was slowed by carburetion troubles and opted for a safe second place.

The tables were turned at round two as Harada got the jump on Biaggi at the start and showed the Italian the YZR250’s new windcheating humpback tailsection for most of the 28lap race. Rainey joined his 250 rider at the victory podium and gushed, “This is probably the best day I’ve

had as a team manager. We won once last year in the 250s, but I feel we're more of a team now."

McGrath scores Supercross four-peat

“I can see myself winning the title again this year and a few times after that,” said three-time defending Supercross champ Jeremy McGrath back in January.

From the opening shot, few doubted if McGrath would win the SX series an unprecedented fourth time; the question was when. Well, not only has McGrath taken the championship with four rounds to go, he hasn’t lost a main event yet. When asked if he could win every event on the SX schedule, McGrath shrugs off the question and says, “If a perfect season happens, then it happens.

If I lose, then there’s always next week. The records and titles are nice, but I really just think about the race I’m in.

Because McGrath’s Honda contract is up at the end of the year, many wonder if the former BMXer is ready to move on to another sport. On the future, McGrath says, “I think I have a few years left in me. I’m only 24 and I’ve never really been hurt. Supercross racing is what I love; why would I quit? What would I do, play golf? There will be enough time for that later.”

McGrath shows no sign of slowing on or off the track. Doing television commercials for sponsors Honda, Dunlop and 1-800-COLLECT, he has become a celebrity. And the supercross star has become an entrepreneur, as well. He is a partner in the Spy sunglass company, owns a piece of an upcoming Race Rock Cafe, and has his image plastered on video and pinball games. He’s even got a 900 number fans can call to hear about his latest weekend’s exploits.

So, what does the immediate future hold? After taking a ton of flack last year for opting out of the Motocross des Nations, McGrath has vowed to help America gain back the world motocross title, lost two seasons ago after a 13-year reign.

Kocinski rattles World Superbike scene

After a year away from racing, former U.S. and World 250 GP Champion and subsequent 500 GP frontrunner John Kocinski is back. “Little John” surprised many by winning the first pair of World Superbike rounds in Misano, Italy.

So why did one of the world’s most talented motorcycle racers sit out for a season? Citing bad management in his GP days, the Arkansas native says, “In 1994, I had a very positive year with Cagiva. And when they stopped at the end of that season, it was a perfect situation for me. I needed a break.”

As the Grand Prix and World Superbike powers argue over which series is more prestigious, Kocinski’s decision to take a WSB ride is very interesting. He says, “I could have gone anywhere in 1996, but I am interested in winning. I don’t understand people who say Superbike is a step back.” On the deal he was offered to return to the Kenny Roberts camp, he frankly admits, “I was not sure if Roberts would be able to offer me a competitive bike.” After such resounding initial success, Kocinski says, “I never underestimated anyone in World Superbike, but it is a good sign for me to be competitive right from the start. The power of the Ducati suits my style very well; but above all, this is a small bike and I am a small rider. It is, for that reason,

pretty similar to a 500, unlike the big four-cylinder machines.”

On the racetrack, Kocinski’s heroics put a major damper on Aussie chargers Troy Corser and Anthony Gobert. The American ripped to an uncontested 11second victory in his very first WSB race ahead of Corser, and in the second leg, Kocinski was awarded the win after finishing second. Gobert, who was victorious on the track, had his points yanked after a post-race inspection determined that his bike had illegal carburetors. Team owner Rob Muzzy says that the carbs in question were the same ones that were homologated, but that they were “fitted” with a removable sleeve that reduced outlet size, not “modified” in any way. An appeal is in the works. □