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AMA
PRO RACING CONFIRMS TEAM KAWASAKI RIDER TOMMY HAYDEN PENALIZED
Pickerington, Ohio – At the conclusion of the Genuine Suzuki
Accessories 750cc Superstock race at California Speedway on April
5, 2003, AMA Pro Racing impounded cylinder heads from #22, Tommy
Hayden and #56, Tony Meiring, for further investigation. This
inspection was completed Sunday May 4, 2003 at Infineon Raceway
(the next round in the series). Tommy Hayden’s cylinder
head on his 636cc Kawasaki ZX6R was determined to have minor machining
in the combustion chamber. A penalty of 20 points and a $2000
fine were applied. Tony Meiring’s cylinder head was found
to be within specification.
Tommy won
the race 3 weeks ago at CA Speedway and again this weeknd at Infinion.
The 20 points lost will drop Tommy from 1st in the standings to
3rd behind our own Fastdates.com Corona Suzuki rider Adam Furgusson
and Hooter's Vincent Haskovec.
1).
85 Adam Fergusson, Birmingham, AL SUZ
2). 84 Vincent Haskovec, Lake Elsinore, CA SUZ
3). 81 Tommy Hayden, Owensboro, KY KAW 3
4). 76Tony Meiring, Tracy, CA KAW
5). 71 Jason Disalvo, Stafford, NY YAM
6). 67 Jimmy Moore, Eugene, OR SUZ
7). 66 Joshua Kurt Hayes, Gulfport, MS SUZ
8). 64 Chris Caylor, Marietta, GA SUZ
9). 55 John Haner, Pearland, TX SUZ
10). 54 Jordan M Szoke, Ontario, Canada SUZ
PREVIEW
Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez
May 9-11th 2003
Gibernau Heads Home on a Mission in front of 200.000 race fans
This weekend will mark the start of the European ten race contingent
of the MotoGP World Championship at the Jerez circuit in southern
Spain. The Jerez event is one of the most exciting and popular
in the MotoGP calendar, last year luring an audience of no less
than 201,418 during the three days of qualifying and racing. The
party atmosphere amongst the spectators and traditionally clement
weather makes this one of the most appealing motorsport events
in the world.
Fresh from
the most emotionally-charged win in MotoGP history two weeks ago
in South Africa, Spanish star Sete Gibernau (Telefonica Movistar
Honda RC211V) returns to Spain just seven points behind title
leader Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda RC211V). Rossi placed second
at Welkom with Max Biaggi (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) third.
Last year
Gibernau managed a tenth place riding a Suzuki but this year his
expectations have stepped up a gear now he’s equipped with
a V5 four-stroke Honda RC211V. His early season form has been
impressive with a fourth at round one in Japan and a win from
pole position in South Africa.
Many riders
believe the World Championship begins for real in Spain at Jerez
with round three. The first two races sometimes produce atypical
results on account of the mass of specialist ‘wild card’
riders at Suzuka in Jaopan and the alien nature of Welkom in South
Africa which is ridden only once a year by
the MotoGP teams who don’t test there at all.
But no matter
what the results of the early races, the atmosphere at Jerez
when the bikes hit the grid on raceday is seldom matched anywhere
in the world for sheer volume and raw energy. Up to 200,000 people
will throng the Andalucian venue which is a natural amphitheatre
for the high drama of this year’s 16-round MotoGP series.
Built in 1986,
Jerez hosted its first Grand Prix the following year and has
remained on the World Championship calendar ever since. The track
is a true measure of rider talent as much as a test of machine
performance. Most of the 4.423km track’s corners flow into
each other requiring a neat, flowing style from the riders and
a solid all-round performance from the motorcycle. Jerez is a
track with a little bit of everything – short, medium and
long turns, uphill braking, and downhill braking. The Spanish
track is used by many teams for MotoGP testing precisely because
of the all-round demands it makes on machine set-up. And it puts
a premium on
front tyre
grip.
“The front end is very important at Jerez,” said Sete
Gibernau. “You need to have good feel. The two most important
sections of the track are the last two fast rights. You can always
feel when you get them right because the revs are really high
and you may touch the limiter before the final hairpin. If you
do that, and the rest of the lap was good, you know it’s
going to be a fast lap.”
The thirty-year-old
is in a great early season position to get a real grip at
the top of the table and he will draw huge support from a crowd
that will back him to the hilt. If the season ‘proper’
begins here, Jerez could also signal a ‘proper’ title
challenge from the experienced Gibernau.
Current World
MotoGP Champion Valentino Rossi has enjoyed his fair share of
success at Jerez. He won the 125cc Grand Prix there in 1997, the
250cc race in 1999 and MotoGP races in 2001 and again last year.
He also holds the lap record at 1m 42.920s/153.429kmh. And the
World Champion is happier the focus
is back on Europe.
“It
will be good to get back to Europe,” he said. “I like
Jerez for obvious reasons because I’ve had so much success
there, but it’s a fantastic track for riders and with the
amazing atmosphere and the big crowd it can be a very special
place. And we can all stop living out of suitcases for a while
now
too.”
The Camel
Pramac Pons boys are eager to get into action. Max Biaggi will
be locking horns with his great rival Rossi on equal machinery
for the first time in Europe. “I so much wanted to ride
for Honda this year,” said the former Yamaha teamster who
is now the all-time leading points scorer in Grand Prix racing.
“Now I can race instead of having to develop a bike.”
Ducati MotoGP Team riders Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi bring
the awesome Desmosedici to Spain this weekend for its long-awaited
European race debut at Jerez, the first and biggest Grand Prix
of the Continental MotoGP campaign.
Bayliss, Capirossi and the 220-plus horsepower Italian V4 made
headlines at the season-opening Japanese and Africa's GPs, leading
both races and dazzling fans with speed and noise - the snarling
16,000rpm Desmosedici is music to the ears of any motorsport fan.
The Ducati
MotoGP Team's entry into MotoGP has brought a whole new dynamic
to the class, adding the kind of passion, colour and excitement
that only the legendary Italian marque could bring. And the team's
season-opening performances have exceeded even the most optimistic
expectations: Capirossi making the podium at Suzuka, Bayliss now
fourth overall in the riders' points chase and Ducati currently
second in the manufacturers' World Championship!
Jerez, which
regularly attracts in excess of 200,000 fans, is the first of
nine European races that make up more than half of the 16-race
2003 MotoGP campaign. The racing moves out of Europe again in
late September, the season concluding at Valencia, Spain, on November
2.
Fortuna Yamaha
Team rider Carlos Checa is always one of the main attractions
in Jerez, being one of just two Spanish riders in the MotoGP class.
Catalunya-born Checa currently lies in joint-eighth place in the
World Championship and will try to improve that position this
weekend on his Yamaha YZR-M1. After a tricky start to the year,
finishing tenth at the
Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka and ninth at the Africa's Grand
Prix in Welkom two weeks ago, Checa is aiming to climb the podium
again this weekend as he did at the Spanish Grand Prix three years
ago.
Checa will
be rejoined this weekend by his Fortuna Yamaha team-mate Marco
Melandri, who has been out of action for the past two races due
to leg
injuries sustained during his first morning practice at the Japanese
Grand Prix just over a month ago. Yamaha test rider Norick Abe
stepped in as Melandri's replacement for both of the first two
races of the season but now hands the baton back to Melandri who
will compete in Jerez.
Tohru Ukawa
(Camel Pramac Pons RC211V), slightly deflated after a sixth at
the last round at Welkom, is ready to take the fight to his rivals.
“I’m all set for more racing,” he said. “I
tested here in winter, and it rained all the time, so we didn’t
learn that much. But we’ve got plenty of set-up options
anyway. As always I’ll give it my best and who knows –
it might even rain.”
Nicky Hayden
(Respsol Honda RC211V) is good to go after two steady rides in
his rookie year. “I seem to remember going to Jerez way
back when Wayne Rainey
invited me and my brother Tommy to an invitation race here. I’ve
tested here too – but it rained all the time. But I expect
it to be a whole lot of fun and I’m just going to keep riding
that learning curve.”
Give
our Miss SBK Fast Dates World Superbike Nicki Lane your support
as she attempts to retake her crown!
Nicki
writes from the British Isles- "Hello Guys! How`s things
in the colonies? All's fine here in London where I'm getting ready
for the 2003 Miss Great Britain Pageant on May 16th. It spans
a weekend. Taking place in a very swanky private members club
called the Elyseum.
All us girls
will be staying at the Royal Horseguards Hotel. Hope I'm not sharing
with another model as I will never get in the bathroom. Friday
consists of press calls, photo sets, hair and makeup practice
and rehersels. Saturday much the same, but the real pageant is
on the night with filming for TV. Unfortunately in this country
we don`t do talent sections ( it's a shame as I am sure I`d have
the male judges votes with a couple of naked backflips!!!)
Speaking of
being naked, I look forward to coming back to California in July
for World Superbike and The LA Calendar Motorcycle Show, so I
can take up my favourite hobby of naked sunbathing once again
to avoid unsightly tan lines ha ha!! I'll see you all soon! Cheers!"
-Nicki Lane, Miss Great Britain 2001.
Vist Nicki
and the other Contestants on the Miss Great Britain website www.miss-great-britain.com
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