AMA Road Racing: 20 Years Since Scott 'The Screaming' Chief' Russell Won His First Daytona 200

Scott Russell grabs a handful of brake heading into turn 5 during qualifying on the #22 Muzzy Kawasaki/Dunlop/SBS/NGK-sponsored Kawasaki ZXR-750 for the AMA Superbike Championship round at The Coca-Cola Super Cycle Classic in June 1991 at Road America.  In his second year riding for the Muzzy Kawasaki team, The Screaming Chief was on his way to winning his 2nd of three-in-a-row AMA 750 Supersport Championships, and would end the season winning all nine rounds in the 750 class aboard the team's ZXR-750.

Moving ahead to the '92 season, the man from North Georgia would put a big hurt to the rest of the AMA Superbike Championship series regulars by winning his first-of-five total wins at the Daytona 200 by Arai event in Daytona Beach, Florida in March of '92.  Russell, the only man to win five times at Daytona in the modern superbike class, just several years earlier had sat in the stands as a spectator watching Fast Freddie Spencer do the 'triple' in winning the Daytona 200, Superbike 100 and 250cc GP Championship round at the World Center of Speed.

Russell would head to Europe with the Muzzy team for the '93 season to campaign the World Superbike Championship, eventually giving Kawasaki it's only championship in WSBK at the end of his first-full season across the pond.  He also would win the Suzuka Eight Hours event in the '93 season with team mate Aaron Slight.

Biding his time in the AMA series, Russell made several trips back to U.S. soil to remind everyone that he hadn't really gone that far away, winning events over the course of the next couple of seasons at Loudon and Road Atlanta that didn't coincide with his WSBK duties.  Of course along the way, he would make his way back to the place that earned him the nickname 'Mr. Daytona' to take his other wins in '94-'95, '97-'98.  Amazingly, one of his best races at Daytona came in '93 when Eddie Lawson pipped him on the dash to the flag on the Vance & Hines Yamaha while riding as a fill-in for the injured Jamie James, Russell's team mate while riding for the Yoshimura Suzuki team in the late '80s.

Dabbling in the 500cc Grand Prix Championship while riding for Suzuki, Russell's mount wasn't up to par with the rest of the grid and he never achieved the success in the premier class that he was able to in superbikes.  He returned to WSBK and then eventually to race the AMA Superbike Championship full-time in the '99-'00 seasons riding for the struggling Harley-Davidson VR1000 superbike team.  After parting ways with the Milwaukee-based team, Russell was set to run Daytona again in March '01 for the HMC Ducati team out of Wisconsin when he was seriously injured in a starting-line crash, which effectively ended his pro career.  He was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2005.

Since the '09 season, he has been one of the regular announcers of SpeedTV's coverage of AMA Pro Road Racing, and has proved to be a great analyst to have in the booth and at the track, and also still makes appearances at other events and shows (we caught him at the Indy Dealer Expo in February 2012).


A special thanks to Dean Adams and www.SuperbikePlanet.com for making this great video of Scott Russell's first Daytona 200 win available at YouTube.  Although some of the video and audio is a little sketchy, for the most part it is a really great capture, even when in full-screen.  This was made in the good ole days of racing when TNN's crew of Brock Yates and Steve Evans were covering the AMA Superbike Championship series.


Sit back, kick your feet up, and get ready to watch some of the greatest history in AMA Pro Road Racing as The Screaming Chief romps the field in his first-of-five Daytona 200 by Arai wins in March 1992:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j362uwvBXb0

Reviewing the 2012 Indy Dealernews International Powersports Dealer Expo

Stu's Shots managed to score a press credential for the 2012 Dealernews International Powersports Dealer Expo, held at the newly-remodeled and enlarged Indiana Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis over the February 17-19 weekend, and we had a blast hanging with some of the racing crowd, while also meeting new friends in the racing business over the course of the show. 


With 700 exhibitors signed on to display their wares in downtown Indy, just a 40 minute drive from the Stu's Shots homebase, we headed downtown to take in the action for a few hours on the first two days of the expo.  We have tried to do our best to showcase a handful of the companies that support AMA Pro Flat Track and AMA Pro Road Racing, along with some of the other national and international racing series.  Without these companies the racing that we all enjoy would not be possible, and we thank them for supporting racing the world over and for taking the time to put on a great show in Indy this last weekend.


In the shot above, at the RacerX/AMA Pro Racing booth we came acrossed the #11 HMC/KTM RC8 that will be returning to the AMA Superbike Championship for the 2012 season along with rider Chris Fillmore (the '11 AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Champion), starting with the season-opening round at Daytona scheduled for March 14-17.  Reporting a 22% increase in sales for the 2011 year, KTM made the announcement earlier this month that they would be returning to the AMA Superbike Championship with the HMC team.  The team ran a few races last season with Fillmore scoring a superb 7th-place finish in one of the Mid Ohio round races.
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One of the many signs in the lobby of the Indiana Convention Center greeting the 20K-strong crowd for the weekend of February 17-19.
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Cycle World Magazine had a beautiful booth at the Indy Dealer Expo that included autographs by '93 500CC World Champion Kevin Schwantz and a silent auction of racing memorabilia that was sponsored by publisher Joe Parkhurst.  On display in the booth was a sano-looking early '70s Honda CB500 Four (front-center of shot.)
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AGV Helmets had this collection of Valentino Rossi model lids sitting on one of their racks in their booth at the Indy show.  They also sponsor Sammy Halbert in the AMA Pro Flat Track series, among other racers.
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Barnett Clutches had this sweet display of clutch assemblies and baskets on hand at the show.  One of their sponsored teams is the Iowa-based Weirbach Racing team who won the 2011 AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Championship with rider Mikey Martin.
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K&N Filters, who were the series sponsor for the 2010 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Series, has been a racing supporter for decades in both flat track and road racing.  This was but one of several displays they had throughout the show's 500K square feet of displays.
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Former AMA Grand National Championship competitor and National #20, Johnny Murphree, is now working for the Beta Motorcycle folks and was on-hand talking to the show's gathering.  Here he is in their booth with one of Beta's very trick bikes.
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Cometic Gaskets sponsors the Werner-Springsteen Monster Energy Kawasaki flat track team, among others, and had this diplay at the show in Indy.
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Arai Helmets was one of the many helmet manufacturers on-hand at Indy with this diplay wall in their booth.  Chris Carr and Jake Johnson are but two riders sponsored by Arai in the AMA Pro Flat Track Harley-Davidson Insurance Grand National Championship presented by Motorcycle-Superstore.com.
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Dave Zanotti and Ted McDermitt (center and right) of the 2-Time AMA Grand National Championship-winning Zanotti Racing team, were around and about at the show.  Here they talk with the one of the folks from EBC Brakes, one of Zanotti Racing's fine sponsors.
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The Chinese motorcycle accessory and after-market was very well represented at the Indy Dealer Expo with a huge block of booths..........

.......as was the Taiwan market.
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The 2008 Suzuki GSX-R1000 that propelled Ben Spies to his 3rd AMA Superbike Championship was on display in the Yoshimura booth at the Indy Dealer Expo.  Talking with one of the show reps, I found out that this was one of the actual bikes used to win the championship in the last season of the fire-breathers of Superbikes, and not just a reproduction.  It had been in storage in one of Yoshimura's storage areas and was brought out to Indy for the show.
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HJC Helmets had this display set-up in their booth at Indy, along with a nice backdrop featuring Yamaha factory MotoGP teamster, Ben Spies.  'Elbowz' was on-hand Friday afternoon to sign autographs for the show's attendees.  Somehow, I missed this one, while also failing to get some good shots of other attendees like Chris Carr, former AMA Motorcross star Chuck Sun, and AMA Supercross rider Chad Reed (who unfortunately was injured in Saturday night's Dallas Supercross round.)
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One of the several electric motorcycle manufacturers on-hand in downtown Indy over the weekend was BRD Motorcycles, with their line of RedShift bikes.  This one is their RedShift MX, which retails for $14,995 and they offer RedShift SM (Supermoto model) for $15,495.  The California-based company produces machines that are powered by a 40HP liquid-cooled brushless engine that is powered by a 5.2 kWh lithium-ion battery, with claims of battery range of 50-65 miles, and an 80% battery capacity after 10K hours or 50K miles.
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5-Time Daytona 200 winner Scott Russell was in the house on Saturday to talk with some of the show's attendees.  He looked pretty relaxed! 
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Bell Helmets had this bitchin' backdrop in their booth featuring Evel Knievel and some old flat track stuff, Josh Herrin on his #8 Graves Monster Energy Yamaha YZF-R6 and Craig Breedlove and his early '60s Bonneville Speed Weeks 'Spirit of America' machine.
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Ohio-based KK Motorcycle Supply has been around for 53 years now in the motorcycle accessory and after-market business, and is one of the only remaining original companies to attend all 45 shows of the Dealer Expo.  They have sponsored many a rider over the years, including former '75 AMA Grand National Champion Gary Scott, former AMA Grand National competitor Steve Morehead, and current and 2011 AMA Grand National Singles Champion, Sammy Halbert, to name just a few.
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Tennessee-based Memphis Shades offers a fine line of motorcycle fairings and windscreens, and was at the Indy show to display some of their fine equipment.  Helping out in the Memphis Shades booth was Tyler Porter of Fight For Dirt Track, who was caught goofing off on the job talking to AMA Grand National competitor and National #44 Brandon Robinson.  I'm sure they were talking business, though, so we'll give the FFDT man a break!
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Teknic Leathers had this set of Miguel Duhamel's leathers on display from the '94 AMA Superbike Championship season when he rode the Harley-Davidson factory VR1000.  The likeable Canadian had a rough year on the VR (H-D had a rough go entirely with the VR...) but to this day, one of the loudest roars from a crowd at any race I have ever attended was at Mid Ohio in '94 when Duhamel led the first lap or two of the Superbike final.  Two of the highlights of that year were Miguel qualifying the VR on the front row at Mid Ohio AND Brainerd, which was a pretty fast track back in the day.
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The NPA Motorcycle Auction was one of the highlights of the weekend, featuring 150 vehicles that were auctioned off in 90 minutes for a reported $1.28M total.  You can read about that here:

http://www.dealernews.com/dealernews/AVTDS+Update/INDY-2012-NPA-motorcycle-auction-generates-12-mill/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/760969?contextCategoryId=48447
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This was the display for the Dealernews Top 100 Excellence in Powersports Retailing.  100 dealers were announced in late December for their accomplishments over the last year in the motorcycle industry.  Some of the areas acknowledged were print and online media campaigns, best displays and service department excellence.  City Cycle Sales, a Harley-based multiline dealer from Junction City, KS. was named the Top 100 Dealer of the Year.  Indy-based Dreyer Motorsports South was one of the many honorees.  You can check out the full list here who were honored with the display wall above:

http://www.dealernews.com/dealernews/LATEST+NEWS/DEALERNEWS-ANNOUNCES-TOP-100-DEALERS-FOR-2012/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/754140?contextCategoryId=48447
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Graves Monster Energy Yamaha pilot Josh Herrin was on-hand over the weekend to give out autographs and talk with the attendees at the Bell Helmets booth.  Herrin will be joining 2-Time and defending AMA Superbike Champion Josh Hayes as a team mate as he moves up to the AMA Superbike Championship after campaigning the AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Championship the last three seasons for the Graves squad.
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The American Motorcyclist Association booth at the Indy Dealer Expo featured several bikes from the days gone by that would make any race fan drool.  One that caught my eye was this '71 Husqvarna 400 Cross that was ridden by Malcolm Smith in the movie 'On Any Sunday.'
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Roland Sands Design (RSD) was commissioned by the National Powersports Auction as part of the Indy Dealer Expo to build this special 2010 Triumph Thruxton.  This bike was part of a raffle at the show that was given away on Saturday night, February 18.  The winner was Van Hammel, the man who owns Van's Yamaha in southern Illinois and who has sponsored '10 AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com Pro Singles Champion Jeffrey Carver, Jr.
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National Cycle offers a full line of motorcycle parts and accessories and was on-hand at Indy.  One of their sponsored riders is Jared Mees, the '09 & '11 AMA Grand National Twins Series Champion, and the 4-Time ICE Speedway Series Manufacturers Cup Bike Champion.
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Lectron Carbs had this impressive display at the show in Indy.  I first started hearing about Lectron's back in the mid-'70s when Kel Carruthers started using them on Kenny Roberts's Team Yamaha mounts in AMA Flat Track and AMA Road Racing.
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You can read more about the 2012 Dealernews International Powersports Dealer Expo here, and I want to thank the fine folks from the Indy Dealer Expo for a great weekend checking out all of the happenings inside the Indiana Convention Center-hosted event!

Article about the industry heading into the opening of the Indy Dealer Expo's opening on Friday, February 17:

http://www.dealernews.com/dealernews/LATEST+NEWS/INDY-LIVE-2012-Market-smaller-than-in-06-but-still/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/759150?contextCategoryId=48447

And some interesting numbers concerning the turnout for the 2012 Indy Dealer Expo:

http://www.dealernews.com/dealernews/AVTDS+Update/INDY-LIVE-2012-Retailers-ruling-in-Indy/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/760959?contextCategoryId=48447

Dealernews.com homepage with loads of industry info:

http://www.dealernews.com/dealernews
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My buddy Larry Lawrence was in the house on Friday for the Indy Dealer Expo and put up these shots on his super The Rider Files.com site:

http://www.theriderfiles.com/?p=15219
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Stay tuned in the next couple of days as we bring you some more from the 2012 Indy Dealer Expo.  We'll have more special stuff from the Lloyd Brothers Motorsports team, Motorcyclist Magazine, Motobatt Products, Scala Rider and Mikuni Carbs, among others, that were showing off their goods in the huge confines of the Indiana Convention Center over the weekend.

Thanks for coming by to hang out and check us out!.
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AMA Road Racing: 2012 Schedule Sees Three Venues Added Including Return to Road Atlanta

The end of the '94 AMA Superbike Championship came down to the final round at Road Atlanta in September '94, and saw Australian Troy Corser on a Fast By Ferracci Ducati pull it out over Vance & Hines Yamaha's Jamie James in the closing laps of the final when James' Yamaha suffered mechanical ills and Corser was able to cruise home ahead of James to secure the championship. 

But the sub-story for the weekend involved defending '93 World Superbike Champion Scott Russell in his return to the States aboard his #4 Muzzy Kawasaki.  Russell dominated the weekend's events from the start, and went on to win the race by over 10 seconds in what was a rare appearance in the AMA Superbike Championship that year due to his WSBK duties. 

Russell may not have repeated as the champ on the European scene, but he left his mark on U.S. fans in a big way in the waning days of the summer of '94 just outside of Braselton, GA.  He's shown above during one of the weekend's qualifying sessions coming out of the turn 7 area heading down the long back-straight at the 2.5 mile circuit.
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AMA Pro Racing and M1 PowerSports Announce Three Exciting New Events as part of 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing Schedule

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (December 2, 2011) - AMA Pro Racing will be working in conjunction with M1 PowerSports for promotion of three exciting new events as part of the 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing schedule. Each of the three events promoted by M1 PowerSports, formally known as M1 Entertainment, will be modeled after the highly successful AMA Pro Road Racing events that the group promoted and grew over a 10 year span at racetracks in the Southeast.
 

The original Big Kahuna events were known for delivering exceptional entertainment value alongside world-class racing by America's finest motorcycle road racing talent, and fans can expect that same Big Kahuna Show as M1 PowerSports returns to promoting motorcycle road racing with an expanded portfolio of AMA Pro Road Racing events in major Southeastern markets.

"M1 PowerSports is extremely excited to return to full time event promotion in 2012," said Cameron Gray, President of M1 PowerSports. "The Big Kahuna Nationals have a long and rich history in AMA Pro Racing and we are excited about our new relationship with the series. Promoting motorcycle road racing events is our passion and what we do best. We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship putting on some of the most thrilling racing events in the country."

 

"For much of the past three months, I have been and traveled with I-San, Danny Walker and Cameron back and forth across this country, and enjoyed every minute of it," said David Atlas, Chief Operating Officer of AMA Pro Racing. "I've gotten to know them well, and they and their staff at M1 PowerSports have proven that they know how to deliver entertainment value that goes perfectly hand-in-hand with the outstanding racing found at our events. The new events, which they will bring to our series in 2012, promise to be some of the most exciting stops on our schedule. I am so proud of their joining forces with us."

M1 PowerSports began promoting the Big Kahuna events at Road Atlanta as part of the 1998 AMA Pro Road Racing season and the series will make a return to the 2.55-mile circuit in the hills of Braselton, Ga. for the Big Kahuna Atlanta on the weekend of April 20 - 22, 2012. The track is located just 35 miles outside of Atlanta and has a rich history with AMA Pro Road Racing dating to back to Eddie Lawson's 1980 AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike victory. The series last raced at the facility in 2010, where fans witnessed Blake Young sweep the National Guard SuperBike doubleheader weekend in dramatic fashion.

 

"Road Atlanta has had a storied legacy of terrific top level professional two wheel racing over its 40+ years," said Geoff Lee, President of Road Atlanta. "We have been staying close with AMA Pro Racing in the hopes of being able to strike a relationship to bring their series back here soon. This could not possibly be a better way to do so. We, and our fans, are thrilled to have M1 PowerSports returning and bringing the Big Kahuna back to Road Atlanta where it began. With an event of this stature in place again we look forward to more great racing and adding many more years of 'legend and lore' to our motorcycle history at Road Atlanta."

 

AMA Pro Road Racing will head south after the New Jersey Motorsports Park round for the inaugural Big Kahuna Miami, scheduled for the weekend of September 21 - 23, 2012 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, which is located south of Miami in Homestead, Fla. As fall weather begins to draw in across the country, fans will find the Miami area a tropical oasis while being treated to an entertainment spectacle from M1 PowerSports and the stars of AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike, AMA Pro Daytona SportBike, AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport and the AMA Pro Vance & Hinex XR1200 Series.

 

"We are thrilled to partner with M1 PowerSports to bring the AMA Pro Nationals to Homestead-Miami Speedway," said Speedway President Matthew Becherer. "Our track will be active more than 280 days in 2012, and this event - featuring the biggest motorcycle series in North America - is a great opportunity for South Florida."

Two weeks later, the AMA Pro Road Racing season will come to a close at America's newest racetrack, with the Big Kahuna New Orleans scheduled for the weekend of October 5 - 7, 2012 as the first professional motorsports event to be held at NOLA Motorsports Park. The track, which was designed by Alan Wilson, is located just 20 minutes from the historic French Quarter area in downtown New Orleans, La. The state-of-the-art facility features excellent areas for spectator viewing and is focused on making motorsports accessible to a broad range of enthusiasts across all facets of the motorsports community. AMA Pro Road Racing will hold the season-ending awards banquet in the New Orleans area on the Monday evening following the event.

 

"We are excited to be partnering with AMA Pro Racing and M1 PowerSports for our inaugural professional event," said Mitch Wright, General Manager of NOLA Motorsports Park. "M1 PowerSports has a proven track record of fun, fan-friendly motorcycle events and the riders in AMA Pro Road Racing put on an incredible show. New Orleans and NOLA Motorsports Park will provide the perfect place to cap off their season and have one heck of a party." 

AMA Pro Road Racing competitors will have the opportunity to check out each of the new tracks before the respective event weekends in a set of official series tests. In an effort to reduce the costs associated with traveling to these tests, each will be held following an event in the same region. The test at Homestead-Miami Speedway will be scheduled for soon after the Daytona 200 event weekend and the NOLA Motorsports Park test will be held soon following the event at Barber Motorsports Park. Full details about the test events will be released at a later date.

Complete 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing Schedule:

March 15 - 17, 2012

Daytona 200

Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach, Fla.

April 20 - 22, 2012*

Road Atlanta

Braselton, Ga.

May 4 - 6, 2012

Infineon Raceway

Sonoma, Calif.

May 26 - 28, 2012

Miller Motorsports Park

Tooele, Utah

June 1 - 3, 2012

Road America

Elkhart Lake, Wis.

June 22 - 24, 2012

Barber Motorsports Park

Birmingham, Ala.

July 13 - 15, 2012

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Lexington, Ohio

July 27 - 29, 2012

Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca

Monterey, Calif.

        September 7 - 9, 2012

New Jersey Motorsports Park

Millville, N.J.

September 21 - 23, 2012*

Homestead-Miami Speedway

Homestead, Fla.

October 5 - 7, 2012*

NOLA Motorsports Park

New Orleans, La.

* Events promoted by M1 PowerSports

The mission of M1 PowerSports is to "Get People to the Track," and the company is launching a new website at www.m1powersports.com. Information about the launch of the new website and ticket sales will be released in the coming weeks.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.   For additional information contact:   AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com

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AMA Road Racing: CN Archives' Larry Lawrence Talks History of Tricky Turn 5 at Road America

Riders come down the Moraine Sweep and set-up for turn 5 at Road America during the sighting lap for the AMA Superbike Championship Series in June 1991.  In this shot you can really tell the way the riders have to set-up and brake after hitting speeds of over 160 mph in order to be ready for the first gear left-hand turn at the four-mile track located just outside of Elkhart Lake, WI., and the drop-off of elevation mentioned in LL's story is evident from this angle.

The Coca-Cola Super Cycle Classic held at Road America had at the time been (and still is) an annual stop on the AMA Superbike Championship Series calendar since the 1980 season.  In it's first few years on the schedule, the events were held in mid-late May, which if you know how the weather can be in south central Wisconsin that time of year, can be dicey.  The powers that be then moved the event further back on the calendar to mid-late June, the '91 event actually taking place over June 28-30.  The partial 2012 schedule just released last month has the event scheduled for June 1-3.

Leading the group in this shot are Scott Russell on the #22 Muzzy Kawasaki/Dunlop/SBS/NGK-sponsored ZX-7R alongside Miguel Duhamel on the #97 Honda Commonwealth/American Honda/Honda Oils & Products/Dunlop-backed RC30.  Following just behind is Jamie James on the #2 Vance & Hines/Yamaha/Dunlop/Bell-sponsored YZF750OW01.  Russell would go on to win the '92 AMA Superbike Championship and the '93 WSBK Championship, while Duhamel would win the '95 AMA Superbike Championship and a handful of AMA 600 Supersport and FX Championships throughout his career.  These two men alone have five-each Daytona 200 victories on thier resumes over the years.

James would go on to win the race by .880 seconds over team mate Thomas Stevens (behind James) on the #11 like-sponsored V&H OW, but Stevens would win the war at the end of the season by winning the '91 AMA Superbike Championship.  James had won the '89 AMA Superbike Championship over then-team mate Russell while riding for the Yoshimura Suzuki team.  Eventual 4th place finisher Jacques Guenette on the #39 Kawasaki USA/Dunlop/Muzzy R&D/NGK-sponsored ZX-7R is directly behind James.

Freddie Spencer on the #19 Two Brothers Racing/American Honda/HP-4 Oil/Hondaline-sponsored RC30 is just behind Guenette, with eventual 3rd place finisher Rich Arnaiz on the #20 Commonwealth Racing/American Honda/HRC/Hondaline-backed RC30.  Although Spencer would never win the AMA Superbike Championship, he did win the '83 and '85 500CC World GP Championship, as well as the '85 250CC GP World Championship.  Spencer, Russell and Duhamel would all DNF on the day.

Tommy Lynch on the #30 Suzuki/Yoshimura/AGV/Michelin-sponsored GSX-R750 is next coming into turn 5, with Tom Kipp on the #16 Wiseco/Bell/Klotz/Bridgestone-backed Yamaha.  Kipp would finish 7th on the day with Lynch in 8th place.

Some other notables in this shot include, among others, Canadian Linley Clarke on the #126 Fast Riding School/Sunoco/Yamaha Canada-sponsored Yamaha OW01 (5th place finish), fellow Canadian Pascal Picotte on the #34 Ducati (no sponsor listed, 9th place), Dale Quarterley on the #32 The Boys/Penguin School/Vanson/Air Tech-backed Honda RC30 (10th place), and another Canadian, Rueben McMurter on the #24 Honda Canada/Action Access/Shoei/RK-sponsored RC30 (6th place).  Picotte and McMurter are both former and future Canadian Superbike Champions.
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Long before he was covering AMA Pro Flat Track events and penning his great column 'Archives' for www.CycleNews.com, and putting his own stash of great stuff out on the web from over the years on his bitchin' website, www.TheRiderFiles.com, Larry Lawrence was THE man in charge for all-things AMA Pro Road Racing in terms of the media coverage.  Traversing the continent in search of the perfect shot and story, LL led the AMA's charge to put road racing out to the masses by setting up interviews and local news coverage of AMA Pro Road Racing events across the nation, working with local news outlets and the riders of the day to get the coverage out to the general public. 

Also working with the AMA out of their Ohio offices, LL wrote and maintained biographies for the Hall of Fame, covered WERA events for CN and the former American Roadracing Magazine, and eventually became what is today a virtual walking/talking historian of the sport.  Make no mistake, this man knows his history, and not just in racing, either.

Besides trying to do a stellar job of blowing smoke up the skirt of one of the nice guys in the sport (and a true and great friend of Stu's Shots), I enjoy getting to read his takes on whatever it is he may be writing (or shooting) about around the sport.  And due to our similar ages, related friends and upbringing in the great city of Indy, most everything is of interest to me especially if penned by one Mr. Lawrence.

So I get especially giddy when he puts out a great story (like any of them aren't?!) about the history of the sport that involves a track or place that I hold near and dear, like an old, long-lost friend.

This week's 'Archives' column hit a home run (again!) with LL's history of turn five at Road America, and what significance and history it holds in the great sport of AMA Pro Road Racing and the AMA Superbike Championship.

So sit back, strap in and hang on as Cycle News' own Larry Lawrence digs into the 'Archives' to talk about one of the most daunting turns in AMA Road Racing's great history:


http://cyclenews.coverleaf.com/cyclenews/20111129#pg79
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AMA Road Racing: Mid Ohio Back on the Schedule Making for 8 Confirmed Rounds for 2012 Season

Jamie James on the #2 Vance & Hines/Yamaha/Dunlop/Bel-Ray-sponsored YZF-750 OW01 leads the riders off the grid for the sighting lap just before the start of the AMA Superbike Championship Series Wiseco Superbike 100 at the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course in August '92.  James was judged to have jumped the start several minutes later in the main event of the Camel Super Cycle Weekend presented by Dunlop, and was shown the meat ball flag by AMA Pro Road Racing officials, negating a roll-through penalty for the V&H teamster.

Unfortunately, several laps into the event, Larry Schwarzbach on the #64 like-sponsored V&H Yamaha (directly behind James) crashed hard coming out of the last turn onto the main straight and was critically injured, causing a red flag delay.  Schwarzbach had just earlier in the day won his very first AMA 600 Supersort Series event, and passed away just over two days laters.

As a result of the red flag delay and restart, James was able to work his way through the deep field and finished 4th on the day behind winner Doug Polen, runner-up Thomas Stevens and 3rd-placed rider Tom Kipp.

Others in this shot include Pascal Picotte on the #34 Fast By Ferracci/Ducati/Arai/Dunlop-sponsored Ducati 888 (in what I believe was his second year of racing in the U.S. in what would be a long career in AMA Superbike racing in the States, 7th-place finish), Scott Gray on the #18 self-sponsored (not listed) Kawasaki ZX-7R (6th-place finish), winner Polen on the #23 Ducati/Mechanica SPA/Dunlop/AGV-backed Ducati 888 (on a break from the WSBK schedule, in which he would win his 2nd World Superbike Championship at the end of the season), 2nd-place finisher Thomas Stevens on the #1 Kawasaki Motor Corp. USA/Muzzy/Bieffe/Nanki-sponsored ZX-7R (just behind Polen), Scott Russell on the #17 Kawasaki/Dunlop/SBS/Muzzy's-backed ZX-7R (DNF), and 3-Time World Champion Freddie Spencer on the #19 Two Brothers Racing/Honda Motor Co/Michelin/Arai-sponsored Honda RC30 (DNF).

Also seen in this shot: long-time AMA Superbike privateer (and '93 Mid Ohio winner) Dale Quarterley on the #32 Team Mirage/Valley Motorsports/Vanson/Bieffe-sponsored Kawasaki ZX-7R (partially obscured/just behind Gray's left elbow), who would round out the top-5 for the day, Canadian rider Jacques Quenette on the #39 D.L.G.L. Software/Action Accessories-sponsored Yamaha YZF750 (11th-place finish), and 3rd-place finisher Tom Kipp on the #16 American Honda/Camel/Commonwealth Racing/HRC-sponsored Honda RC30 (directly behind Russell in yellow leathers.)


Mid Ohio has been hosting a round of the AMA Pro Road Racing Series since the early '80s, and has historically been one of the best-attended events on the schedule, almost since their first year of hosting the event.  Located in Lexington, OH., the track is one of the most fan-friendly tracks on the schedule due to it's various viewing areas around the 2.5+ mile course. 

This is great news seeing the track return to the schedule for the 2012 season in what will be it's fourth decade in the series.
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AMA Pro Racing Confirms 2012 Date for Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course as Part of 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing Schedule

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (November 23, 2011) - AMA Pro Racing officials announced Wednesday the addition of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course to the list of renewals for the 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing calendar. The event is scheduled for the weekend of July 13 - 15, 2012 and will mark the 30th consecutive year that the series has raced at the 2.4-mile natural road course nestled in the scenic rolling hills of Lexington, Ohio.

In last year's contest, the Rockstar/Makita/Suzuki team dominated the AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike weekend, Blake Young taking pole position and the Saturday race victory, followed by Tommy Hayden taking the checkers in Sunday's final. As in 2011, fans will experience the excitement of the full complement of AMA Pro Road Racing classes, which includes AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike, AMA Pro Daytona SportBike, AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport and the AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 Series.
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AMA Pro Road Racing at the Mid Ohio round in July '11 shows AMA Superbike Championship Series bikes lined up in the pitlane.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
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With the addition of the event at Mid-Ohio, AMA Pro Racing has now announced eight contract renewals for the 2012 AMA Pro Road Racing season. AMA Pro Racing will be working in conjunction with M1 Powersports for promotion of three additional events. Details about those three new events, which will complete the 2012 schedule, will be released shortly. The partial schedule is as follows:

March 15 - 17, 2012

Daytona 200

Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach, Fla.

May 4 - 6, 2012

Infineon Raceway

Sonoma, Calif.

May 26 - 28, 2012

Miller Motorsports Park

Tooele, Utah

June 1 - 3, 2012

Road America

Elkhart Lake, Wis.

June 22 - 24, 2012

Barber Motorsports Park

Birmingham, Ala.

July 13 - 15, 2012

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Lexington, Ohio

July 27 - 29, 2012

Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca

Monterey, Calif.

September 7 - 9, 2012

New Jersey Motorsports Park

Millville, N.J.

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com. For additional information contact: AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com

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AMA Road Racing: Take a Look Back at Scott Russell's Perfect Season With Cycle News.com's & Larry Lawrence's Archives Column

Scott Russell loosens the strap on his AGV helmet after pulling into the victory lane area at the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course after having won the AMA/Championship Cup Series 750 Supersport Series event in August 1991.  Team owner Rob Muzzy can be seen looking over the front end of the bike as crew chief Gary Medley is also seen just to Russell's right (sunglasses and beard.)  Russell had just taken his #1 Muzzy Kawasaki/Dunlop/SBS/California Superbike School-sponsored ZX-7R to the victory over team mate Jacques Guenette in the 14 lap, 34 mile final as part of the Camel Super Cycle Weekend at the Lexington, OH. facility.

On the way to two of his three AMA 750 Supersport Championships, the future Mr. Daytona would win all nine events of the season on his Muzzy Kawasaki, a feat that has yet to be equaled (and may never be.)  And it wasn't like Russell was cherry picking in the 750SS ranks.  Past, present and other future champions in the sport like Sam McDonald, Britt Turkington, Jason Pridmore, Tripp Nobles and a handful of others also contested the series, making it a great event to watch as the level of racing was top notch and on the edge. 

Russell would go on to race the AMA Superbike Championship Series event the next day, finishing fourth behind winner Thomas Stevens, runner-up Miguel Duhamel, and third place finisher Tom Kipp.  Russell would go on to win the first superbike race of his career during the '92 season, catapulting him to the '92 AMA Superbike Championship in the process.

But it was during Russell's years in the AMA/Championship Cup Series Supersport races that the Georgia resident gained his legs to go on to be not only an AMA Champion, but a World Champion as well.  During the course of the 1990 season during his first 750SS championship run, Russell would win three events, and was on the podium in every race.  He also won two 600 Supersport races on the year and would finish the '90 season as the series' runner-up in the AMA/Championship Cup 600 Supersport Series.

Russell was also named the '88 AMA Superbike Championship Rookie of the Year early in his career while also ranked 5th in the AMA/Championship Cup 750SS Series.  And other than winning five Daytona 200 races throughout his illustrious career, Russell was also crowned the '93 World Superbike Champion in just his first full year in the European series while riding for the Muzzy Kawasaki team.
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Another in a long line of superb year's gone by in racing reviews, brought to us by Larry Lawrence and Cycle News.com's Archives column, comes to us this week as LL reviews 3-Time AMA 750 Supersport Champion Scott Russell's perfect season in winning his 2nd of 3 straight championships in the AMA Pro Road Racing 750SS undercard during the '91 season.  LL talks about Mr. Daytona-before he WAS Mr. Daytona-going a perfect 9 for 9 during the '91 AMA/Championship Cup Series 750 Supersport Series season. 

Read on:

http://cyclenews.coverleaf.com/cyclenews/20111011#pg85
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Muzzy Kawasaki, Doug Chandler, Scott Russell and the AMA Superbike Championship-Winning ZX-7R: Check Out Some Great Reading by Larry Lawrence

Eventual 3-Time AMA Superbike Champion Doug Chandler takes the time to give Stu's Shots one of those killer sly grins during a break from the on-track action at The Coca-Cola Super Cycle Classic round of the AMA Superbike Championship Series at Road America in late June of '90.  The late Merlyn Plumlee tends to DC10's #10 Muzzy Kawasaki/Wiseco/Nankai/Dunlop-sponsored ZX-7R in the grassy area of the paddock at the flowing four-mile track outside Elkhart Lake, WI. 

Chandler would go on to overtake the late Randy Renfrow on the #5 Commonwealth Racing Honda RC30 during the AMA Superbike Championship Series main event on Sunday, July 1 to win one of four races on the year to take his first of three championships in the U.S. superbike series while riding for the Bend, OR.-based Muzzy team.  Chandler would head to Europe in the '91-'94 seasons to contest the 500CC World Championship, riding for Kenny Roberts and the Cagiva team in the premier road racing series in the world.  Returning to the States for the '95 season, he would sign for the Harley-Davidson VR1000 team, but suffered injuries that year which kept him off the track for some of the season.

By '96, the Salinas, CA. resident would be back riding for the Mean Green team of Muzzy's and together they captured the '96-'97 AMA Superbike Championships along with several more wins along the way.  And they came close to winning again in '98 but lost the title by mere points at the season ending round to Ben Bostrom on the #11 American Honda RC45.
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Doug Chandler on the #6 Muzzy Kawasaki ZX-7R 750 Supersport machine leads Scott Russell on the #7 Muzzy Kaw as they chase Tommy Lynch on the #13 Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R750 during AMA 750 Supersport Championship Series final action at Road America in late June 1990.  Russell would win his first AMA 750 Supersport Championship at the end of the season.
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Scott Russell's #22 Muzzy Kawasaki/SBS/NGK/Dunlop-backed ZX-7R sits in the paddock area during the WERA Grand National Finals/F-USA Series weekend at Road Atlanta during late October of 1990.  Story had it at the time that the bike was actually Doug Chandler's AMA Superbike Championship-winning machine that was brought into duty to help Russell get some track time in the run-what-ya-brung premier F-USA doubleheader round outside of Gainesville, GA.  WERA ran a doubleheader weekend for the F-USA class to make up for the canceled-due to rain round at Indy's IRP in early October, and with the AMA Series having been wrapped up for the year, the bike was available to run in the talent-laden F-USA finale weekend.  Other racers on hand for the big round were Dale Quarterley, Mike Smith, the late Mike Harth, Kurt Hall, Tom Kipp and Marlboro Roberts's Robbie Petersen.

Russell would finish 5-2 on the weekend at Road Atlanta, but set a new track record (that had been held by Doug Polen) during the Sunday finale while trying to run down Kenny Roberts'/Marlboro's Robbie Petersen on the Yamaha YZR500 that Wayne Rainey had just won his first 500CC World Championship on.  Russell was forced to start from the pitlane (for reasons I can't remember in my old age!) but rode like the future champ he was to be in passing riders left and right all over the course of the season-ending race, and would finish less then 2 seconds behind Petersen's GP bike at the end of the day.  The Screaming Chief put on a riding clinic in using the curbing as a berm for the Superbike ZX and wowwed the crowd on-hand in the process. 

Russell had just wrapped up his first of three-in-a-row AMA 750 Supersport titles, and would go on to win the  '92 AMA Superbike Championship, '93 World Superbike Championship and five Daytona 200's to cement his legendary status as one of the best road racers in the world to throw a leg over a premier class four-stroke machine.
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Check out this great story of the glory days of AMA Superbike Championship Series racing and the Muzzy Kawasaki team of the late '80s/early '90s written by Cycle News.com's Larry Lawrence.  Doug Chandler and Scott Russell combined as team mates over the years to win 4 AMA Superbike Championships, a World Superbike Championship and a bucket load of AMA Superbike races with the ZX-7R that helped to add to not only their, but Kawasaki's legendary status in the world of AMA and WSBK Championship Series racing.

One of the sport's leading (and legendary in his own right!) historians, LL tells the story like no one else could about the rise to fame of the Muzzy team with the then-new ZX-7R that took road racing around the world by the throat, and tamed it:

http://cyclenews.coverleaf.com/cyclenews/20110907#pg120
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AMA Pro Road Racing Previews the AMA/WSBK Weekend at Miller Motorsports Park, May 28-30

The Wiseco Superbike 100 main event of the Camel Super Cycle Weekend presented by Dunlop gets off to a re-start on August 2, 1992 at the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course, after a red flag caused by a crash involving Vance & Hines Yamaha rider Larry Schwarzbach on the front straight delayed the race for close to an hour.  Unfortunately, Schwarzbach succumbed to his injuries less then 48 hours later, and as with all things in life, the racing did go on that day as the front row of the premier AMA Superbike Championship Series contenders roar away from the starting line. 

With a field of riders representing several U.S. and World Championships entered for the weekend's events, the races were filled with an air of international flair that weekend with current, present and former campaigners of the AMA Superbike Championship, the Canadian Superbike Championship,the World Superbike Championship and the World Championship GPs on hand at the 2.5 mile track outside the village of Lexington, OH. 

(L-R) Canadian Pascal Picotte on the #34 Fast by Ferracci/Arai/Bel Ray/SBS-sponsored Ducati 851 gets some air coming off of the front row restart.  This was the former multi-time Canadian Superbike Champion's first full year racing the AMA Series as a factory pilot, in what would see him spending over a decade running in the AMA Superbike Championship Series for Suzuki, H-D and Michael Jordan Motorsports before returning to his native Canada to finish out his career in the saddle in his native Canadian Superbike Championship Series.

Behind him on the #2 Vance & Hines/Bel Ray/Bell/Bates-backed Yamaha YZF-750, Jamie James tries to make up for the meat ball flag he had just served several laps before the red flag for getting what AMA officials deemed a 'pretty good jump' on the original restart.  Of note--notice the front brake shrouds on the '89 AMA Superbike Champion's bike.  Factory teams in those days were using carbon fiber brakes, which take an intense amount of heat built up into them in order to operate efficiently, thusly the covers on the #2 machine.  The extra costs for running the carbon fiber stoppers in those days was reported to be in the 'thousands of dollars' area.  In other words for us plain city and country folk, unobtanium.

Freddie Spencer appears to be 'gliding' off the line on his #19 Two Brothers Racing/Honda Motor Co/Michelin-sponsored RC-30, which of course would look that way coming from a former 3-Time World GP Champion.  Spencer would win several races for the Erion Brothers team before finishing out his career running Ducatis for Eraldo Ferracci in the AMA Superbike Championship Series after returning from Europe and winning, most notably, the '83 World 500CC Grand Prix Championship and the '85 250CC and 500CC World Grand Prix Championships.  Spencer was the youngest man at the time to ever win the premier 500CC Championship, and last man to have won two championships in different classes during one year.

Just behind Fast Freddie, partially blocked, is the #23 FBF/Ducati Mechanica/SPA/AGV-sponsored Ducati 888 of Doug Polen, who won the '91-'92 World Superbike Championships before returning to the U.S. full-time in the '93 season to win the AMA Superbike Championship, as well.  Polen would go on to lead runner-up Thomas Stevens ('91 AMA Superbike Champion) on the #1 Muzzy Kawasaki and 3rd place finisher Tom Kipp on the #16 Commonwealth Camel Honda to the event win.  Also to note, it was just announced in the last day or two that Polen will be enshrined in the AMA Hall of Fame this November.  Bravo, as it's been a long time coming! 

And finally, The Screamin Chief himself, Scott Russell on the #17 Muzzy Kawasaki/SBS/Ohlins/
Motul-sponsored ZX-7R launches his machine as if he could do it with his eyes closed (and looking closely, they almost are!)  The eventual '92 AMA Superbike Champion and '93 World Superbike Champion would go on to have his name pressed into minds across the globe forever, if not for his U.S. and World Championships, but for his 5-Time winning of the Daytona 200 in the glory days when Daytona was a full-fledged 200 mile Superbike race.  The Chief is scheduled to be on-hand in Utah this weekend fulfilling his duties as announcer for the AMA Pro Road Racing television coverage for Speed TV, and rumors have it he may actually don the leathers to take a few laps of some sort over the weekend in the mountains of Utah. 
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AMA Pro Road Racing Joins WSBK for BigM Memorial Day Weekend


DAYTONA BEACH, FL (May 23, 2011) - Hot on the heels of a great weekend of racing at Infineon Raceway's May 13-15 West Coast Moto Jam, the AMA Pro Road Racing paddock is ready to celebrate Memorial Day with some international friends. May 28 through 30, AMA Pro will join the FIM World Superbike Championship for the BigM Weekend Presented by Lucas Oil, hosted by the spectacular Miller Motorsports Park facility in Tooele, Utah.

AMA Pro returns to MMP following a two-season hiatus, but the series' official test at the circuit in early May proved the field is more than ready to work the flowing 3.048-mile track. That's especially true of reigning AMA Pro National Guard SuperBike Champion Josh Hayes (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha), who was dominant in both days of MMP testing and is coming off a Race 1 win at Infineon's Round 2.

Hayes won't have it easy, though; having split Infineon wins with Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Tommy Hayden, Hayes enters MMP Round 3 with a slim 6-point lead in the standings. Hayden himself has more to worry about than just the rider ahead, however; teammate Blake Young sits just two points behind in third overall, and despite a difficult Race 2 at Infineon, M4 Suzuki's Martin Cardenas remains fourth overall, the reigning AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Champion having proven he's a SuperBike contender by notching his first podium-finish (a third) in last round's Race 1.

With a total of twenty-eight National Guard SuperBike riders entered thus far, the riders listed above will have more than their fair share of competition, and the same can be said for the infamously intense AMA Pro Daytona SportBike class, currently boasting forty-one entries.
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Miller Motorsports Park, Tooele, Utah.  AMA Pro Road Racing photo by Brian J. Nelson.
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Though the depth of talent in the Daytona SportBike field is almost as incredible as the class' tendency toward ten-deep lead changes that at times run four-wide, one rider has been unquestionably dominant in the results thus far: Team Latus Motors Racing's Jason DiSalvo, who's gone three-for-three in the series' opening rounds. Infineon, however, saw him regularly challenged by Monster Energy Graves Yamaha's Josh Herrin, GEICO Powersports/RMR Suzuki's Danny Eslick, and then-privateer Jake Holden. With the latter having since picked up season sponsorship from RidersDiscount.com, DiSalvo's sure to have his hands full at MMP.


The AMA Pro Motorycle-Superstore.com SuperSport class will also see its ranks swell at Round 3, as the BigM Weekend's edition of the rising-star class, the AMA Pro Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport Larry H. Miller Challenge, will feature a host of top local talent, all vying for a piece of the purse that's been doubled for this special event. Taking on all newcomers will be top series regulars like Roadracingworld.com's Benny Solis, Y.E.S./LTD Racing's Tomas Puerta and David Gaviria, Vesrah Suzuki's Corey Alexander, and more.

MMP fans will also be treated to the sights and V-twin sounds of AMA Pro Road Racing's newest class, the AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200 division. These handlebar-to-handlebar, footpeg-dragging monsters are in their first full season of AMA Pro competition, and the already-packed field through which riders like Chris Fillmore, Kyle Wyman, Steve Rapp, and Michael Barnes barrel will see the return of reigning class champion Danny Eslick (joining RMR/Bruce Rossmeyer Daytona Racing teammates Fillmore and Wyman) aboard the #1 machine.

SPEED TV will highlight all of Round 3's AMA Pro races via an AMA Pro Road Racing Special set to air Monday, May 30, at 9 p.m. PST/midnight EST, and will broadcast the Motorcycle-Superstore.com SuperSport and Vance & Hines XR1200 contests live on SPEED2. There won't be any substitute, however, for being there in person, as MMP has planned a big lineup of weekend concerts. Saturday night will feature country superstar Dierks Bentley, supported by Sawyer Brown and Reckless Kelly, while Blue Oyster Cult and Creedence Clearwater Revisited will take the stage on Sunday night. Whether you're a die-hard road race fan or just an admirer of all things wheeled, MMP is the place to be this Memorial Day Weekend.

For event-specific tickets and information, visit www.BigMweekend.com or call (435) 277-RACE. For general information about Miller Motorsports Park, visit www.millermotorsportspark.com.


To learn more and be a part of AMA Pro Racing, please visit www.amaproracing.com and join us via facebook.com/AMAProRoadRacing, twitter.com/AMAProSBK, and twitter.com/AMAProLIVE. 

AMA Pro Racing is the premier professional motorcycle racing organization in North America, operating a full schedule of events and championships for a variety of motorcycle disciplines. Learn more about AMA Pro Racing at www.amaproracing.com.

For additional information contact:
AMA Pro Racing Communications, (386) 492-1014, communications@amaproracing.com
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Round 3 of the 2011 AMA Pro Road Racing Series , the BIGM Weekend presented by Lucas Oil, from Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah will kick off on Saturday, May 28.  Event info can be found here:

http://amaproracing.com/rr/events/event.cfm?eid=2011011115

Here is the link to the most recent event schedule (as of this writing on 5/25/11):

http://amaproracing.com/assets/2011_MMP_AMAP_schedule.pdf

Here is the event info link for all of the classes and PDF files that will be available throughout the weekend:

http://live.amaproracing.com/live/results/pdfresults/rr/2011/R1115/default.aspx

And here is the link to AMA Pro Road Racing's Live Timing so you can keep up with all of the sessions throughout the weekend:

http://live.amaproracing.com/rr/

Tooele, Utah weather courtesy of The Weather Underground:

http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=84074
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