Bears Ducati Formula 1 Race Team Press Release ROUND 2, BEARS 2001 CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP WAKEFIELD PARK, GOULBURN, NSW, AUSTRALIA.In a weekend of mixed fortunes, The Bears Formula 1 Racing Team, consolidated its leading position, at the top of the points table. Peter Hinton, #28, Ducati 996S, overtook teammate John Lyons, #88, Ducati 888SP, for the championship lead. Maurice Rissman, #90, Ducati 996SPS, was disqualified, after a series of misunderstandings with waved and unwaved yellow flags. The recently upgraded rider had not encountered the "wrath of officialdom" previously. "I was caught unawares, and there were a number of incidents, that followed on, one after another, its all experience though I’d like to get some of those vital points back." mused Maurice. A feature of the weekends racing was the drop in times, resulting from the improved track, which was said to be about 2 seconds faster than last year. Despite the improvements, Wakefield Park, lived up to its reputation for being bumpy and demanding. There were a number of accidents, and John Mason, Bears F3 Ducati, was seriously injured, when a close following competitor crashed into him, sending both riders cartwheeling off the circuit. "It was at the kink in the straight, I got launched at over 190, the doctors say it may be 12 months before the double plating in my leg can come out" winced an anguished Mason. (Get well John)! As usual, ’97 National F1 Champion, John Lyons, had the fastest 888. "I had to jack up the suspension, and go for more clearance, I am leaning the bike over as far as possible, but we realised benefits. I’m still second." Smiled John, "..anyone got a spare 996!" he laughed. (John’s 888 is now 11 years old and still, beats VTRs, TLRs, and keeps the 916s honest.) "We’ve gone forward" said Team Manager Mal Cherlin, "the weekend was good, all up, Peter got on terms with his friend, and rival Mike Soderland, #72, Ducati 955, and this was a considerable achievement for us, as we still view "Mikey" as the standard. He is a past master of accumulating points, from the front! ..but we feel that as development continues, we’ll be able to give the spectators a real thrill, and hopefully do it again! smiled Mal. Mal Cherlin, Manager, Bears F1 Racing Team.
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Copyright © 2001 Bears Formula One Race Team
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