Race Watch

RACE WATCH

Hansen Leads Supercross Points After Seven Races; Jorgenson and Can-Am Win At Ascot; Springsteen Bags Number 30

HANSEN IS THE FAST GUY AT ANAHEIM

Honda’s intense factory motocross effort failed to produce a single championship in 1981 but the big red squad has returned in ’82 with a vengeance.

Red machines filled the starting line for the Anaheim Supercross and Honda teamsters Darrell Shultz and Donnie Hansen shared the lead through Turn One. Kawasaki’s Jeff Ward powered his disc-braked KX250 into third, pushed past Hansen and when Shultz bobbled on lap four took over the lead.

The 71,000-plus crowd came alive as local rider Ward struggled to hold off Hansen. Near the halfway point Hansen slipped past and rode to his first Supercross win. Ward held position to the checkers while O’Mara picked up third and Shultz finished fourth. Yamaha’s Bob “Hurricane” Hannah worked hard to finish fifth after a poor start and defending Supercross Champion Mark Barnett was ninth.

Hansen celebrated by hopping a plane to Sacramento for the next day’s race in the Golden State Series. “It was my first win,” said Hansen. “I can’t believe it was so easy. 1 expected the fast guys to come

up and pressure me but they never did.” Add another name to the list of “fast guys.”

Terry Whytal

HANSEN WINGS AGAIN AT SEATTLE SATURDAY

Honda’s Donnie Hansen took advantage of Broe Glover's last lap bobble and aced Saturday night's racing at the Seattle Kingdome. Yamaha’s Glover looked on the way to victory in the Yamaha-sponsored event, but fell on the 20th and last lap. Hansen went by and took teammate Darrell Shultz along, the pair running first and second to the checkered flag. Glover was up and ready to continue, but his teammate, Bob Hannah, centerpunched him and both went down. During that skirmish Honda’s Johnny O’Mara went by, making it a one-twothree Honda sweep. Hannah, Suzuki’s Warren Reid and Glover were fourth, fifth and sixth.

Tom Mueller

BARNETT RETURNS TO FORM AT SEATTLE SUNDAY

Reigning Supercross champ Mark Barnett returned to winning form’ with his first win of the 1982 season at Sunday’s Supercross round at the Seattle Kingdome. Barnett set off with the holeshot in the final and was never passed. Honda’s Darrell Shultz overcame a mediocre start and ended up a competitive second. Honda’s Jim Gibson moved into third1 after battling with Suzuki’s Warren Reid, who faded to an eventual seventh, letting Yamaha’s Bob Hannah, Honda supported Kenny Keylon and Honda’s Donnie Hansen by slots. Barnett even had time to stop on Lap 10 and check over his bike’s chain, which he thought jumped off the sprockets It didn’t and he got going again and won.

Tom Mueller

HANNAH ALL THE WAY AT ATLANTA

Yamaha’s Bob Hannah became a Hurricane again at the mud-clogged Atlanta Supercross at Fulton County Stadium. Hannah holeshot and proceeded to put ever increasing distance on Honda teammates Donnie Hansen and Darrell Shultz. The grooved, rutted track offered little chance for passing, and it was follow the leader. The exception was Suzuki’s Mark Barnett, who crashed off the line, started a half lap down, and came through the pack for fourth. Barnett passed where others couldn’t, but his biggest problem was time, that is, enough of it. Suzuki’s Kent Howerton, was fifth, Honda’s Johnny O’Mara sixth, and Yamaha’s Broc Glover, seventh. Hannah came to winner’s circle sipping a beer and signing autographs.

Tom Mueller

SHULTZ WINS DAYTONA SUPERCROSS BY A WHEEL

Team Honda’s Darrell Shultz put himself into the Supercross Series points lead at Daytona. Shultz won on a Suzuki in ’81 and came back on a Honda this year, a wheel length over reigning Supercross Champion Mark Barnett, and his Suzuki. Shultz, teammate Jim Gibson and Barnett left the pack behind after the first few laps of the final. Yamaha’s Bob Hannah, the winner the previous week in Atlanta, fell in the early going and ended up fifth. Honda’s Donnie Hansen, who was tied for the points lead with Shultz going into the race, was a distant fourth.

The real show was Shultz, Gibson and Barnett, all within 20 yards most of the race. On the last lap the trio came to lap Suzuki’s Kent Howerton. Within the last few turns Shultz muscled by, and Barnett used Gibson for a berm and took second, falling short of the win by a wheel at the checkered flag. Gibson went down, got up quickly, and took third.

Honda’s Johnny O’Mara, fourth ranked before Daytona, went down at the start and had a poor finish, letting Barnett displace him in the point standings.

Tom Mueller

BARNETT DOMINATES HOUSTON NO. 1

Suzuki’s Mark Barnett followed Honda’s Donnie Hansen for one lap in the final, then took over for good to win the first night of racing at the Houston Astrodome. Barnett’s teammate Warren Reid settled into an early third and never made any mistakes, leaving Honda rider Jim Gibson unable to get around. Yamaha pilots Bob Hannah and Scott Burnworth were fifth and sixth, and Honda’s Johnny O’Mara turned a last lap charge into seventh by passing Kawasaki’s Goat Breker.

Tom Mueller

BARNETT WIRES HOUSTON AGAIN

Suzuki’s Mark Barnett repeated his Friday night performance to take another win in Saturday’s portion of the Houston Supercross doubleheader. Barnett, Yamaha’s Broc Glover and Honda’s Donnie Hansen shared the holeshot, and Glover pushed out front to lead. Barnett lost ground when he crashed into haybales, but “Mr. Magic” picked up the pace to take second from Hansen on Lap 12. On Lap 14 Barnett held the gas on through some whoops and stuffed into the lead for good. Glover was second, and Kawasaki’s Jeff Ward grabbed third late in the race when he bumped past Hansen in a turn. Yamaha’s Scott Burnworth, Honda’s Jim Gibson and Yamaha’s Bob Hannah were fifth, six and seventh. Barry ett, who started the ’82 Supercross Series’ in a slump, vaulted to second in standings, trailing Hansen by nine points.

Tom Mueller

AMA/WRANGLER SUPERCROSS SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1. Donnie Hansen 161 2. Mark Barnett 152 3. Bob Hannah 137 4. Darrell Shultz 122 5. Johnny O'Mara 109 6. Jim Gibson 104 7. Broc Glover 103 8. Warren Reid 80 9. Jeff Ward 75 10. Goat Breker 55

SPRINGER MAKES THE SACTO MILE HIS 30TH

Practice for the Sacramento Mile was five laps old when a railbird made a confident prediction:

The first fast race of the 1982 Winston Pro dirt season could have only three re^ suits: 1) Jay Springsteen gets sick. 2) Springsteen’s bike breaks. 3) Springsteen wins.

He won. Not only that, his hard-fought victory on the factory Harley-Davidson was his 30th in AMA national competition. That makes three-time national champ Springsteen the winningest racer in AMA history, edging out Ken Roberts, (29), Bart Markel (28) and Joe Leonard (27).

What Springsteen didn’t do was walk off with the race. Ricky Graham and the Tex Peel-tuned Harley kept with the factory XR750 as the pair pulled away from the pack. Springsteen broke the draft and, everybody figured that was that.

But Graham, who looks to be having the season his talents deserve, noticed Springsteen was going into the turns so hard he had to ease off the throttle coming out. Graham shut off early, got on the power early and closed the gap. He even passed Springsteen on the third turn of the lasrt lap and led onto the straight.

Springsteen was not fooled. He got all gathered up and turned on the power early, just enough to pass Graham and lead across the line by two feet. Fantastic.

H-D Teammate Randy Goss was third, followed by Terry Poovy and Scott Parke«* the latter just signed as a third rider for the Harley team. >

Why? Perhaps because Honda recruited Scott Pearson to join 1981 AMA Champion Mike Kidd, upcoming Mickey Fay and ex-motocrosser Steve Wise. Team Honda had 1982 versions of the NS750, the tracker built by turning a CX500 en-1* gine one quarter turn and converting to chain drive. Two of the bikes had Pro-Link rear suspension, the others used dual shocks. All were tuned to run as Twingles, that is, both cylinders firing on the same revolution. Team members said the engines have 90 bhp, the bikes weigh 300 lb.’ But rain had cancelled all practice sessions, none of the riders had tried the bikes and only Kidd, by winning the last-chance qualifier, made the main event.

Team Yamaha had Jim Filice and Virago-based 750 with a new frame. A different frame, w ith a variety of settings for the rear shocks, the steering head and even* the swing arm pivot. Filice didn’t have any practice time either and he was edged out in his heat, and the semi and the last chance. Kidd finished 12th in the main event, only non-Harley on the track.

ASCOT TT TO CAN-AM

Big buck factories notwithstanding, there is one new model winning. At Ascot Park the week before Sacramento Alex Jorgenson won on the racing version of Can-Am’s 500 Single.

Technically the engine is a Rotax, from the engine division of the company that; also makes Can-Ams. And it's from the shop of Ron Woods, who has the concession for the competition parts. More important, the Can-Am (or Sonic) 500*. makes the Honda and Yamaha 500s sound and look like 250s. Jorgenson took the lead when Pearson’s aging Yamaha 750 Vertical Twin -see the Kenny Roberts history book faltered. The only challenge was a distant one from Graham, who dropped his bike while leading his heat, wrestled back to 5th and won his semi.

SMITH AND STEWARD WIN ARRA FOUR-HOUR

Dennis Smith and Chris Steward teamed on an l 140cc GS 1100 Suzuki to win the first ARRA (American Road Racing Assn.) four-hour endurance race at Willow' Springs Raceway. Smith prepared the bike himself out of his Cycle Tune shop, using Yoshimura pistons and cams and a Bassani exhaust system. The bike was fitted with Dunlop Elites, not surprising since Smith was the original test, rider in Dunlop’s development of the tire. In the course of Dunlop testing, Smith estimates he made 500 laps of the twisty Willow Springs course.

The race itself was only 150 laps long, and Smith and Steward led from start to finish. Steward is better known as the rider, hired by Yamaha to contest Battle of The Twins events on an XV920. Smith has a

long history of successful privateer racing, including a sixth in the 1980 Daytona Superbike race.

LONG RACE

Riders who feel that conventional onroad events are too short can enter a rally from Paris to Aqaba,Jordan via Italy, Greece, Turkey, and Syria. The event is scheduled for August and is sponsored by Moto Revue magazine and Guilde Européenne du Raid. Information is available by writing Jean-Marc Cognot, l l rue de Vaugirard, 75006 Paris 326.97.52 France.

VINTAGE RACING AT DAYTONA

Vintage racing came of age this year at Daytona: The machines were vintage and the racing was racing.

Riders from across the U.S., Canada and England showed up with the expected flock of Nortons and BSAs, plus Vincents, real racing Yamahas, a swarm of Aermacchis and Ducatis, a few aged Hondas and the wonders of the meet, a genuine Harley-Davidson KR in full road race trim and a 1948 tank-shift Indian Scout rigged for when racing at Daytona Beach was racing on Daytona Beach.

Winner of the heavyweight race was Dave Duxbury, from Middlesex, England. He rode a BSA and was the first English rider to win at Daytona since Hailwood in 1964. And he rode well, edging such notables as Don Vesco, world’s fastest biker, on a Manx Norton; Dave Roper, contender in the Big Twin race, on a G50 Matchless, and Kurt Liebman, BMW Rennsport, who also contested the B.O.T.T.

Star of the race, though, was none other than Roger Reiman, three-time Daytona 200 winner. He naturally was on the H-D KR and even led in the early stages. But a tightening connecting rod bearing slowed and then retired the bike.

(As a side reward, the judges at the concours gave Reiman a special prize for his very own Harley 45, circa 1941. There was no class for road machines but his was so pleasing to the eye, and to have him there was such fun that the judges couldn’t resist.)

The Indian ran in the lightweight race, because it really wasn’t there to race. Rider Art Barda instead had an apex-side seat and waved to the real lightweights when he wasn’t being bounced into the air by his lack of rear suspension.

Lightweight winner, meanwhile, was R. C. Barker on an AJS, closely pursued by Wayne Welsh (Ducati), and John Caruso (Yamaha). The second trio had its own contest, won by William Johnston, Ducati. David Best, on an H-D/Aermacchi converted from scrambles trim, was sixth, and sandwiched between them, having made a botch of the last three turns of the last lap, on his semi-authentic RSC350 Honda, was . . .

Allan Girdler

DRAGBIKE SCHEDULE CHANGES

The AMA-affiliated Dragbike organization has made several changes in its 1982 schedule. The July 17-18 race at Irvine (OCIR), Calif, will not be held. New race dates include June 26-27 at Fremont; August 11-14 at Sturgis, S.D.; September 18-19 at Irvine (OCIR); October 17 at Fayetteville, S.C.; October 24 at Miami and October 24 at Fremont.

More information is available from Dragbike, 2100 Baker Ave., Utica, N.Y. 13501,(315) 735-1661. >

GETTING WISE

Houston sensation and Superbikers star Steve Wise didn't win the Ascot TT.“ Instead he built character and won some valuable friends.

Wise transferred from motocross to dirt track with at least one strike against him; he didn’t earn his license the way the other Winston Pro riders did. Next, he rides for Honda, suspected of being in racing foi*1 business reasons. And Wise isn't your basic shrinking violet.

He rode his motocross-derived CR480 in motocross style to third on the short and smooth indoor Houston TT, and brashly hoped for a win next time.

It wasn’t to be. Ascot is bigger and, rougher and tougher. Wise finished midJ pack in his heat, mid-pack in the semi and third in the last-chance consolation race, the one from which only the winner makes the main event.

So Wise was on the sidelines while the established Honda riders, Mike Kidd and, Mickey Fay, made the show.

The good news? Wise banged bars and rode hard and fair. Kidd, Fay and Wise traded riding tips and Kidd was heard to say Wise is an asset to the team.

As for Wise, he took losing with good grace. Next year, he said, he just mighty switch to a four-stroke.

How did it feel not to qualify for a race he brashly predicted he'd win?

“What can I say? These guys are good.” As the final lined up for the start, Wise excused himself. “I think I'll go up in the tower and watch the main. Maybe I can learn something.”

RUSSIAN TOPS ICE RACING

Sergeij Kasakov of the Soviet Union became World Ice Speedway Cham' pion in the finals held at Inzell, West Germany. Kasakov topped Per Olof Serenius of Sweden and Soviet Vladimir Subbotin, Russians filled five of the top 10 positions in the final standings with Czechoslovakians taking two positions. Sweden, ’West Germany and Holland each had one man in the top 10.

LAWSON WINS AT TALLEDEGA AND RIVERSIDE

Eddie Lawson recovered from his outof-gas Daytona Superbike sixth place to win the races at Talledega and Riverside, taking over the championship points race in the process.

The start at Talledega was drenched in controversy. The AMA referee decreed the countdown would be three minutes instead of the usual five minutes. The grid was staged with the bikes pointing backwards, so riders in the front row had to go through the grid to turn around their bikes, which have little steering lock. As a result, none of the front-row qualifiers made it back to their starting position before the two-minute sign, but only twa riders—Mike Baldwin and Wayne Rainey

were sent to the back of the grid by AMA officials.

Roberto Pietri and Eddie Lawson

stayed on the front row, and Pietri led off the start, only to hit clay brought onto the track by an errant rider in a previous race. (There was no warm-up lap for the Superbikes, so Pietri didn’t know the clay was there and crashed.) Lawson was then in first for good.

Baldwin was still on the grass next to the grid and riding to the back row when the flag dropped. He turned around and went from last to third in four laps before he crashed because, in the words of Honda Racing Manager Udo Geitl. “he was just trying too hard.’’

Steve Wise finished second to Lawson, and Rainey came from the back of the grid to third. Wes Cooley’s Suzuki blew up.

At Riverside Baldwin started with a new engine after the engine he used in' practice and qualifying developed a cam chain problem showing up as metal fragments in the oil pan. Lawson grabbed the lead from Pietri and privateer Thad Wolff and took off from the pack, with Baldwin close behind. Although Baldwin pulled alongside in traffic once, he never passed Lawson. Rainey was third, Wes Cooley fourth, Pietri fifth and Wise sixth. Wolff was first privateer at seventh. gj

POINTS STANDINGS 1. Eddie Lawson 49 2. Wayne Rainey 36 3. (tie) Mike Baldwin Steve Wise 32