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RACE WATCH
Doohan out
Reigning 500cc World Champion Mick Doohan will not capture his sixth consecutive title. The 34-year-old Australian crashed while practicing for the Spanish Grand Prix, breaking his collarbone, knee and wrist.
Doohan was flown to San Francisco, California, where he was operated on by Dr. Arthur Ting and Dr. Kevin Louie. (In 1993, Louie fitted Doohan with an external fixator device used to straighten the leg that was badly broken at Assen in ’92.) Six screws and a plate were inserted into Doohan’s left wrist. He also had 12 screws and two plates placed in his right leg.
“The operation went well,” Doohan said. “The doctors are confident that I will make a good recovery.”
Contrary to speculation, the Repsol Honda team will not replace Doohan with another rider. “Who are we going to get?” asked Crew Chief Jerry Burgess.
Added Marlboro Yamaha rider Carlos Checa, “Not having Mick around is like having an orchestra without a conductor. We all feel very sorry for him. He’s the greatest rider around, and now he’s out of the championship.”
Renaissance rider
Last September, prior to the seasonending Steel City motocross national, Ryan Hughes sat in the Team Kawasaki 18-wheeler staring at the wall. After 10 years of factory support, his services were no longer needed. The > top private teams weren’t interested, either. Seemingly, the 26-year-old Californian was out of options.
That night, Hughes asked a friend about the FIM 250cc World Motocross Championship. Within a few days, he had struck a deal with the Italian Pamo Honda team, a successful satellite effort supported by Honda Japan.
In February, Hughes gathered his wife Jen, infant son Evander and longtime friend Ty Baber and flew to Italy. After a few local warm-up events, the team headed to the Talavera de la Reina circuit in Spain for the series’ opening round. Hughes rode aggressively and finished third and fourth in the two-moto format-third overall in his first GP!
Following the sun-splashed Spanish event, it was on to Greece where, despite torrential rain and deep mud, Hughes finished fourth. “I’m having a better time than I thought I would,” he said prior to the third race in Holland. “(Four-time World Champion) Stefan Everts asked me if I missed home. Actually, I don’t miss it at all. Here, it’s a new experience every day. At home, I’d ride the same places, run the same loop. Here, we get in the motorhome, go to a different country, find a new place to eat. We’re having a great time.”
With Talion Vohland back racing in the U.S., Hughes is the lone American > contesting the 250cc world title, and the first big-name Yank to race the European series since the late Donny Schmit. While most of the competition is thrilled to race against a top American, others would like nothing more than to see him flounder.
“There are a few people who want to see me fail,” Hughes admitted. “I know Everts wants to see me fail, especially since he’s hurt. The fans seem to have accepted me, though. I go about my business, and give it everything. I think they like that.” Everts, considered by many to be the best motocross rider in the world, makes no bones about Hughes’ ability. “He rides hard and never gives up,” Everts said. “He’s doing well here. I think he will continue to improve as he becomes more accustomed to everything. I think he will be right there at the end.”
Added Greek GP winner David Vuillemin, who also raced against
Hughes in America, “He’s always up front and has good speed. He seems to be riding better over here. From what Eve seen, he’s more consistent. I think he can make a run at the championship.” Hughes’ equipment is meticulously prepared, but he hasn’t received the works parts supplied to Everts. “It’s tough playing second fiddle,” Hughes admitted. “His bike is two to three years advanced over mine. It’s an F-l bike, while mine is a standard model. What am I going to do? I’m very happy with my results. These guys are fast.” Despite a pair of first-lap crashes, one in each moto, the Dutch round went relatively well. Hughes scored two points in the first race, and in the second fought his way to fourth. A DNF in France hurt, but Hughes > bounced back to go 6-2 in Venezuela, 4-3 in Brazil. With nine events remain ing, he's fourth in points. "I'm riding better than ever' Hughes said. "I keep telling myself, `Don't let it slip away."
In May, Hughes had a homecoming of sorts. Back in California between GPs, Hughes raced the opening round of the AMA outdoor MX series at Glen Helen. Riding a borrowed Honda, Hughes went 5-6, good for fifth overall. "I felt good," he said. "I didn't really get much test time, but I rode hard."
All things considered, Hughes is pleased with his decision to race abroad. "I want to win the World Championship," he said. "If everything goes right and I continue to have fun, I'll finish my career here. I don't see myself racing Supercross again. I want to race for another five or six years, and there's a very good chance I will be doing that in Europe." -Eric Johnson
Antunez on top, again
After an astonishing 68 main events, 26-year-old Buddy Antunez claimed his third-successive Arenacross title. In doing so, the Primal Impulse Suzu ki rider won 25 main events (a 36 per cent winning percentage), making him the Jeremy McGrath of arena racing.
"I came into it at the right time," says Antunez of the 15-year-old se ries. "People began to see my face a lot, and I just grew with the sport. It's an excellent place for both privateers and young riders who are trying to get a feel for tight racing before going on to Supercross."
Interestingly-and perhaps a reward, of sorts-Antunez’s championships have resulted in increased support for the AMA 125cc outdoor motocross series. “I’m receiving the same bikes and support as the regular Suzuki Supercross guys,” he says. “I still feel competitive outdoors, and Suzuki is behind me 100 percent.”
Although Arenacross racers do not perform before massive crowds or earn multimillion-dollar contracts, they make a good living. A main-event win is worth $1500, while a weekend sweep can net a rider $5000. What’s more, with the nightly “Dash for Cash” (the top-six 250cc qualifiers race for a “pass the hat” fund put up by spectators), factory contracts and bonuses, plus a litany of series-sponsor awards, a winning rider can truly cash in.
“I earn as much money as a number of top-15 Supercross riders,” Antunez admits. “Arenacross is a great way to make a living-and still be able to race a motorcycle.” -Eric Johnson
Long live the King
Do not make the mistake of assuming that retired life has slowed Kenny Roberts one bit. Not only did the threetime 500cc World Champion recently compete in a one-off short-track race, he and his 1974 Champion-framed Yamaha 360 went out and won the whole damn thing. Of course, what else would you expect from King Kenny?
“It was really fun,” says Roberts. “I was taking it easy at first, but when the flag dropped, I guess the racer came out in me. Maybe I shouldn’t have been going so fast. The bones have gotten older, but the brain hasn’t gotten any smarter.”
Held at Northern California’s legendary Cow Palace, the West Coast Indoor Short Track Championship was, in essence, a glorified birthday party for A&A Racing’s Ray Abrams. Abrams’ daughter and event-promoter Rochelle explains, “My dad has been in the business of dirt-track racing for more than 30 years. This year, he turned 60, and he wanted a big get-together with all of his racing buddies.”
Hence the appearance of erstwhile A&A sponsoree Roberts. “Ray sponsored me when I was like 19 or 20 years old, and we’ve been friends ever since,” recalls Roberts. “I really enjoyed the race, and I wish I had time to do more things like that.”
All together, more than 200 racers from across the U.S. showed up to slide around the concrete, Vi2-mile oval, and more than 3000 spectators cheered them on. Classes ran the gamut, with some sort of competition ongoing throughout the day.
Undoubtedly, the big draw was the 10-lap Legends race, though. The evening’s main event pitted Roberts against the likes of John Gennai and Rick Hocking, who along with the King completed the podium.
-Wendy F Black
Tom Kipp makes good on his second chance
In the twisted reality that is professional roadracing, it is often easier to land a factory ride than to keep one. Even in the AMA Superbike Championship, where the points system rewards consistency over risking it all for a win, experienced veterans with numerous top finishes on their resumes are often let go to make way for hard-riding up-and-comers. How > else can you explain youngsters such as Eric Bostrom and Nicky Hayden scoring works Superbike tryouts while “fired guns” such as Thomas Stevens and Mike Smith face early retirement?
No one knows how the system works better than Tom Kipp. After a seven-year stint as a factory Superbike rider with Honda, Yamaha and Ducati, the 30-year-old Ohio native suddenly found himself unemployed for the 1999 season-or rather without a ride, because as the owner of a cylinder-sleeve-manufacturing company, he’ll always have his day job.
Fortunately for Kipp, however, Australian Damon Buckmaster got hurt on a dirtbike during the off-season, leaving a seat vacant on the newly formed Chaparral Suzuki Supersport squad. Kipp got the call, and promptly made good on the opportunity, winning four of the five AMA 750cc Supersport races run to date and leading the series point standings.
Buckmaster has since returned from injury, posting a surprising third-place finish in the wet 600cc Supersport race at Laguna Seca. And predictably, his return has not come at Kipp’s expense. To Chaparral’s credit, the Kel Carruthers-led team has stepped up to field GSX-Rs for three riders: Kipp, Buckmaster and current number-one plate-holder Richard Alexander Jr.
Ten years ago, Kipp was a young up-and-comer himself. From 198891, fresh from the WERA club ranks, he and his father, Tom Kipp Sr., campaigned a Yamaha OWOl painted in the corporate colors of Wiseco Pis> tons, where the duo worked during the week. In ’91, all eyes were on Kipp as he led the first dozen laps of the Daytona 200, and while the bike unfortunately broke, that performance caught the eye of Martin Adams, then manager of the Camel Honda Superbike team. Adams signed the then-23-year-old for the 1992 season, and was rewarded with the 600cc Supersport Championship.
Kipp’s second season with Honda didn’t go as well, however, when after earning his first Superbike pole at Charlotte, North Carolina, he fell and badly broke his leg during the race. The haybale-busting incident was captured by Doug Polen’s on-board video camera, and is now regularly repeated in TV commercials for the “Crash Impact” series of videos.
With his leg fully healed, Kipp jumped ship to Yamaha for 1994, and brought the team two consecutive 750cc Supersport Championships. Last year, Kipp signed a one-year contract with the Fast By Ferracci Ducati team, and while he managed to win a Formula USA race at Pocono, Pennsylvania, his best AMA result was third at his home track, the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The notion of a second season was never even discussed.
So, with the dubious distinction of having the most podium finishes of any Superbike rider never to win a race, Kipp reflected on his career.
“I’ll tell you what, when you’re in the situation I was in, where you don’t have anything two weeks before Daytona, you start to ask yourself how badly you want it,” he says. “I got a fresh look at how much this means to me, and no question about it, I love what I’m doing.”
The one thing Kipp knew for sure was that he wasn’t ready to retire. “I was prepared to sit the season out, but the idea of retiring never crossed my mind,” he says. “The thing was, I didn’t want to have another unproductive year. I got excited about working with Dave Damron and the gang at Chaparral because they’d been so successful in Supercross, and I knew Suzuki was behind them.”
A Superbike rider returning to the “minor leagues” of Supersport racing is not an unprecedented turn of events. Having lost their factory rides, Stevens and Smith each did a stint on DOT tires before earning an> other shot at Superbikes-Stevens for two seasons with the new Vance & Hines Ducati team, Smith on a continuing basis as a back-up rider for Harley-Davidson. So the obvious question is, does Kipp hope to parlay his recent Supersport success into a Superbike comeback?
“Sure, I’d love to see this lead to something else,” he says. “In this game, experience means a lot, and I believe I’m just coming into what should be the most successful part of my career. Longevity has always been important to me. I never wanted to be a flash in the pan.”
Ten years ago, I watched the MidOhio 600cc Supersport race from the Wiseco hospitality suite high atop the scoring tower, and felt the floor shake when Kipp took the lead. No doubt, the tower will be rocking again when the series returns to Mid-Ohio this summer.
-Brian Catterson
Italian for a day
The matching Aprilia RS250s sparkled in the gray morning light, all carbonfiber and titanium and sexiness and exotica. Rain smacked the pavement outside the pits, but not a drop touched the bikes. Tuner Terry Czysz worked steadily on the beautiful Italian twostroke V-Twins. The standard-issue machine that I was slated to ride was worth $40,000. Its kitted brother cost even more. Did I mention that the last time I raced in the rain at Laguna Seca,
I fell down on the warm-up lap?
I was at Laguna this time around to help sort out the bikes. Last year, Tom > Colins Racing had two riders. But when Czysz’s son Mike left the team to pursue car racing, Colin Jensen was without a teammate, without a sounding board. It’s easy to go in the wrong direction with a 250cc Grand Prix bike, and that’s when a rider can lose his confidence. Jensen needed a kickstart. Enter yours truly: Mr. Fresh Ideas.
On Friday, Jensen and I practiced together, clicking off some respectable lap times. Still, we’d done nothing to make title contender Chuck Sorensen nervous. After reigning series champ Roland Sands got hurt at Daytona, Sorensen and his World Sports Yamaha TZ250 had dominated the series. He would be the man to beat-right up until the wet main event.
After practice, I knew there were probably only five riders who were consistently quick enough to get on the podium: Sorensen, Sands, Geep Terranova, Joe Cubbage and AÍ Salaverria. The first four were riding Yamahas, while Salaverria was astride an Aprilia similar to the TCR bikes, but with a fast-but-faulty history.
Practice revealed several other things: The RS’s midrange acceleration was shockingly strong, coming on hard at 11,000 rpm and then abruptly shutting off at 12,500. “I want you to get used to the power of a rotary-valve motor because it hits a lot harder than a reed-valve motor,” Czysz said. “I can adjust the (pneumatic) power valves to give you a bit more on the bottom, and then experiment with the main jets to see if we can get a bit more over-rev.” Also, the bike was maxed out in sixth gear well before the top of Turn 1. As a fix, we took two teeth off the rear sprocket.
The chassis felt responsive and eager, but the steering damper was > sticking on-center and the fork springs were completely sacked out, offering a full 2 inches of sag with preload maximized. Too many trips across the country with the front end tied down.
We didn’t have any replacement fork springs or a steering damper, but PPS’s Stig Pettersson measured the shock spring and helped us with preload and damping changes. The Brembo brakes were awesome, but the weak fork springs wouldn’t let me take full advantage of them. If I braked too hard, the front would bottom and lift the back tire off the ground.
I finished 11th in my Saturday heat race, a depressing showing. At the start, the clutch went up in a cloud of smoke (old clutch springs). Even so, I was up to fifth place on the first lap, closing on fourth. Then, after a red-flag restart, the clutch all but went away and I barely limped home. Still, I had high hopes for the main. We timed the second heat, won by Cubbage, and knew that our lap times were in the hunt.
In the cold Sunday morning warmup, Czysz and I stepped up the pace. He continued to lean on bike setup while I explored the Aprilia’s performance envelope-all the while trying to forget the bike’s exorbitant cost! I pushed harder each lap, and the RS worked beautifully. Jensen, meanwhile, crashed and decided not to start the race. Then, when the rain came, the team’s disappointment was palpable.
Racing in the rain is always sketchy, but I had a blast. The track was drying, but most of the competition started on full-wets. I found myself in the thick of a battle for seventh as Cubbage, Terranova and Quenni King disappeared from their front-row starting positions. I raced with Greg Esser, Sorensen, Perry Melneciuc, Chris Ulrich and Jeff Vos until just past midway, then quit saving my tires and started pushing. When Cubbage crashed in the Corkscrew, my efforts put me in fourth, behind Terranova, King and Sands.
Tip-toeing through the rain on a borrowed $40,000 motorcycle is a tough way to go racing. Afterward, I wasn’t sure if the team was all smiles out of happiness or relief. Either way, I had a chance to sample a close cousin to the Aprilias that have dominated the 250cc World Championship. The production Yamahas that I’ve always raced are impressive, but the Aprilia was magic. And the magic never faltered. -Nick Ienatsch
