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Picotte Wins Again In Canadian Superbike On Sunday At Mosport

PICOTTE BACK IN THE HUNT

MOSPORT, ON Pascal Picotte jumped back into contention for a third straight Parts Canada Superbike title by winning the second half of the weekend doubleheader at Mosport International Raceway Sunday.

After dominating Saturday’s event on his Picotte Performance Yamaha YZF-R1, the Granby, QC rider repeated the performance on Sunday as he led every lap from pole.

Calgary’s Clint McBain finished second on his Team Suzuki / Blackfoot Suzuki GSX-R1000, 5.460 seconds behind Picotte after making a dramatic last lap pass of Jordan Szoke. Szoke, from Brantford, ON settled for third aboard the Fast Company Honda CBR1000RR.

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R.A.C.E June 26 2005


R.A.C.E June 26th 2005

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Michel Mercier's 18-year-old Son Killed In Crash At Shannonville

More, from an e-mail from Colin Fraser:

RE: Maxime Mercier, 1987 - 2005

Maxime Mercier died Sunday evening, June 12, from head injuries sustained during Amateur Superbike race action in round two of the RACE Ontario Superseries at Shannonville Motorsport Park's North Fabi track.

Starting lap two of the second last event of the day, Mercier collided with another competitor entering turn one.

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Rossi, Edwards Gear Auction For Charity Back On eBay Today

Jun 07, 2005

From a press release issued by Yamaha Motor Corp. U.S.A.:

Yamaha to Auction Rossi's and Edwards' Gear for Charity

Cypress, CA � June 7, 2005 � We are pleased to announce the MotoGP auctions are back online with eBay.

In conjunction with its 50th Anniversary Celebration, Yamaha Motor U.S. offers an incredible opportunity to bid for a set of riding gear from either MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi or his Gauloises Yamaha teammate Colin Edwards. The gear will be presented, in person, by the two MotoGP stars at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix. All monies raised will benefit Feed the Children, Yamaha Motor Corporation�s charity.

The Valentino Rossi package will include a brand-new set of replica #46 Dainese leathers, an AGV replica helmet, and a pair of Dainese boots that were recently worn by the World Champion.

The Colin Edwards package will include a full set of gear worn by the American during the weekend, including Spidi leathers, his Arai Helmet, and Sidi boots and gloves.

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Canadian SuperBike May 22 2005 Photos


Canadian Super Bike May 22st 2005

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SHANNONVILLE, ON Francis Martin of Rock Forest, QC returned to the winner�s circle at the opening round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Shannonville Motorsport Park Sunday.

The 1999 series champion grabbed the holeshot and led every lap of the 15-lap race on the DXS Diablo Performance Suzuki GSX-R1000 to score his first victory since winning the 2003 season finale at Shannonville.

Frank Trombino of Kleinburg, ON finished second on the Trombino Yamaha Racing Yamaha YZF-R1, almost three seconds behind Martin. Brantford, ON�s Jordan Szoke placed third on the Fast Company Honda CBR1000RR.

�It�s just awesome to come back here and win,� Martin said after his seventh career national Superbike win. �I�m pretty sure we have a good chance at the championship. We�re looking pretty good right now.�

Martin and Trombino set a furious pace in the opening laps of the race, with Martin establishing a new lap record of one minute, 4.902 seconds on just the second lap. Trombino stayed about a second behind the Suzuki rider for most of the race before developing tire troubles.

�We made a bad call by going with the soft compound,� Trombino said. �I thought it would have lasted but it went away about halfway through the race.�

Szoke ran a lonely third for much of the race but was caught by a three-rider battle in the late going. The two-time Canadian Superbike champ only just held off Steve Crevier of Maple Ridge, BC for the final podium position.

�I got a really good start and I pushed hard to stick with those guys [Martin and Trombino],� Szoke said. �But I just couldn�t do it. I�m getting older now and more mature and I want to win another championship. I wanted to make sure I brought it home.�

Crevier was forced to start from 21st in the 24-bike field on the Diablo Performance Honda CBR1000RR but made a forceful charge through the pack. He was closely followed across the line by Blackfoot Suzuki GSX-R1000 teammates Clint McBain of Calgary and Granby, QC racer Kevin Lacombe, in fifth and sixth respectively.

Pascal Picotte suffered a rough start to his bid for a third straight Parts Canada Superbike crown. The Granby rider fell in practice Sunday morning, injuring his left wrist and ribs on his right side. He managed to qualify 18th for the Superbike feature on his Picotte Performance Yamaha YZF-R1 and then rode a brave race to eighth, finishing just behind the Canadian Kawasaki Motors Kawasaki ZX-10R of Chardon, OH�s Tom Kipp.

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May 1st 2005 Photos

R.A.C.E May 1st 2005 photos ^

May 1st MX pictures ^

< May 1st Fabi Track day

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Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown

2005 Major Events

Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown, presented by Supercuts




	The AMA Superbike Series returns to the twisting Sonoma Valley road course, May 13-15. (Photo by Chucke Walkden)

May 13-15

The fastest riders on two wheels will return to Infineon Raceway in 2005 for another great doubleheader weekend of racing at the Kawasaki AMA Superbike Showdown, presented by Supercuts, May 13-15. This will mark the only springtime visit of the year to Northern California for top riders like Mat Mladin (Suzuki), Miguel Duhamel (Honda) and Petaluma natives Eric Bostrom (Ducati) and Ben Bostrom (Honda).

Duhamel continued his reign as King of Infineon Raceway with his fifth career Superbike victory in 2004, while Mladin notched his fourth Superbike win during the doubleheader weekend of racing. Don�t miss out on the wild two-wheel action as these thrill-seekers blast around the 12-turn, 2.22-mile layout at speeds in excess of 130 mph with nothing but a helmet and leathers for protection. For the third consecutive year, the weekend will feature Chevrolet Superbike Championship main events on both Saturday and Sunday.

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Edwards 'ready to leave'.

Gauloises Yamaha rider Colin Edwards continued to make headway with the development of his YZR-M1 machine today throughout a very humid second day of a three-day test at Sepang.

Edwards completed 50 laps of the 5.548 km circuit on his 2005-spec machine. Once again the main task of the day was Michelin tyre testing, although some time was also spent working on engine mapping.

The Texan rider eventually finished the day a little early after a best lap of 2mins 2.378secs � 0.88secs behind fastest man Max Biaggi.

"It was tyres again today!" confirmed Colin. "We did little bits here and there with the engine, but tyres were the main focus. Hopefully tomorrow we'll get a bit more time to try some other things and we're also going to do a long run, which will be tough in these conditions!

"I'm ready to leave Malaysia now; this is our third test in a row here and I'm ready for a change of scenery!" he admitted. "We've got one more day here and of course I'll keep pushing as hard as I can throughout it. I feel really good about everything but I'm looking forward to getting out of here and moving on to Phillip Island next week."

"Today was hard work for everyone because it was so hot," added crew chief Daniele Romagnoli. "We did some more tyre testing and found some positive things to help us move forward. We also worked a little on the engine mapping.

"Our performance is at the same level as at the last test and now we are looking for better handling and agility in order to move forward again, so we will keep focusing on this tomorrow for the final day."

Edwards' factory Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi didn't test today due to an illness.

Sepang II test times � Saturday:

1. Max Biaggi ITA Repsol Honda 2min 1.501secs
2. Sete Gibernau SPA Telefonica Movistar Honda 2min 1.686secs
3. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda 2min 1.717secs
4. Alex Barros BRA Camel Honda 2min 1.786secs
5. Makoto Tamada JPN Konica Minolta Honda 2min 1.83secs
6. Carlos Checa SPA Ducati Marlboro 2min 1.891secs
7. Loris Capirossi ITA Ducati Marlboro 2min 2.291secs
8. Marco Melandri ITA Telefonica Movistar Honda 2min 2.429secs
9. Colin Edwards USA Yamaha Gauloises 2min 2.378secs
10. Shinichi Itoh JPN Ducati Bridgestone TTT 2min 2.551secs
11. Toni Elias SPA Fortuna Yamaha Tech 3 2min 3.60secs
12. Troy Bayliss AUS Camel Honda 2min 3.75secs
Other riders also present, but no times released

Comparative lap times:

Malaysian Grand Prix � 10/10/2004:

Pole position: Valentino Rossi ITA Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha 2min 1.833secs

Fastest laps:
Yamaha: Valentino Rossi ITA Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha 2min 3.253secs
Honda: Max Biaggi ITA Camel Honda 2min 3.281secs
Ducati: Loris Capirossi ITA Ducati Marlboro 2min 4.048secs
Kawasaki: Shinya Nakano JPN Fuchs Kawasaki 2mins 4.264secs
Suzuki: John Hopkins USA Team Suzuki 2min 4.879secs

Barros 'completely happy', Troy still struggling.

Camel Honda team riders Alex Barros and Troy Bayliss were the busiest men on track in the stifling heat of Sepang today; Brazilian Barros putting in 84 laps with Bayliss not far behind with 77.

Barros ended the second day of testing in by far the best position of the two men. He finished the day just 0.2secs behind fastest man Max Biaggi, has almost completed his test schedule and will dedicate the final day to minor changes in preparation for the next test, at Phillip Island, Australia, next week.

"I'm completely happy with the work we are doing," smiled Alex. "Today we focused on tyres and I certainly think we've made steps forward. I didn't stop for lunch until we did everything we had to on both the fronts and the rears because we were finishing off the work we started three weeks ago in these first two days: we've basically achieved the objectives we set ourselves in the first session here in Sepang.

"Perhaps there's a few little things that could improve the front tyre, but I don't think that will be possible for Australia, it's too close; probably in the Qatar tests," he added. "In the afternoon we tried to change a few things in the bike settings but we haven't really seen any particular changes we can make at the moment with the bike already going so well."

"I'm happy with how things are going. We are exploring every possibility that this new bike offers and the times are improving every day. Alex looks confident, motivated and in perfect harmony with the engineers. He is constantly running at a fast pace and that's important," declared team principal Sito Pons.

But by contrast, Bayliss has yet to find the optimal base settings for his RC211V and until he does he cannot make progress on tyre testing.

The Australian will sit down with his team technicians and the HRC race engineers to study all data gathered over the opening two days of the test in the hope that between them they will find the way forward.

"These tests are proving challenging because we still haven't got the results we wanted," confirmed the Australian, who was 0.7secs quicker today but almost 2secs behind Barros. "We're exploring all possible solutions and we hardly took a break today.