AMA: LA Supercross Surprise Raises Questions about Houston
13 January 1998
R98003 January 12, 1998 For Immediate Release SUPERCROSS SURPRISE IN L.A. CREATES QUESTIONS FOR HOUSTON WESTERVILLE, Ohio -- After the surprising win for the Frenchman Sebastien Tortelli at the AMA season opener in Los Angeles, the question in every fan's mind must be: What will happen next? That question will be answered when Toyota Trucks presents round two of the Thor/Parts Unlimited AMA Supercross Series at the Houston Astrodome on Jan. 17. Fans in Los Angeles might have expected the winner to be among the 1997 Supercross front-runners -- Kawasaki's Jeff Emig, Yamaha's Jeremy McGrath, Honda's Ezra Lusk, or last year's Los Angeles round-one winner, Greg Albertyn riding for Suzuki. While these veterans certainly didn't disappoint in Los Angeles, Tortelli fought his way back from a turn one pileup to win his first professional Supercross race in the U.S. Tortelli, of Bethune, France, delivered the 125cc World Motocross Championship to Kawasaki in 1996. In Los Angeles, Tortelli demonstrated he has the talent and ambition to attempt the same in the 1998 AMA Supercross series. Tortelli moved from fourth to first place in the last eight laps of the Los Angeles round, in the process reeling in McGrath, then Emig, then race leader Doug Henry. Tortelli's sudden arrival in the limelight of the Thor/Parts Unlimited AMA Supercross Series makes for an interesting range of possibilities in Houston. Emig, of Riverside, Calif., enters the Houston Supercross with confidence -- he won the 1997 Houston round, which was one of the five wins that earned him the 1997 AMA Supercross Championship title. McGrath, of Menifee, Calif., took the 1994, 1995 and 1996 Houston rounds on his way to collecting the Supercross Championship titles in those years, and placed third at Houston in 1997. Lusk of Bainbridge, Ga., took second-place, rounding out the podium at last year's Houston Supercross, and he'd love to better that finish this year -- making for a wide-open race in this weekend. PAST 250cc Supercross WINNERS HOUSTON ASTRODOME, Houston, TX Date Winner, Hometown Machine ---------------------------------------------------------------- March 22, 1997 Jeff Emig, Riverside, CA Kawasaki March 16, 1996 Jeremy McGrath, Menifee, CA Honda March 25, 1995 Jeremy McGrath, Murietta, CA Honda January 22, 1994 Jeremy McGrath, Murietta, CA Honda January 16, 1993 Damon Bradshaw, Moorseville, NC Yamaha January 18, 1992 Damon Bradshaw, Mooresville, NC Yamaha January 19, 1991 Jean-Michel Bayle, France Honda February 3, 1990 Damon Bradshaw, Charlotte, NC Yamaha March 18, 1989 Jeff Stanton, Sherwood, MI Honda February 6, 1988 Jeff Ward, Mission Viejo, CA Kawasaki February 7, 1987 Jeff Ward, Mission Viejo, CA Kawasaki February 2, 1986 Jeff Ward, Mission Viejo, CA Kawasaki April 20, 1985 Jeff Ward, Mission Viejo, CA Kawasaki March 24, 1984 David Bailey, Axton, VA Honda March 20, 1983 Mark Barnett, Bridgeview, IL Suzuki March 19, 1983 Bob Hannah, Carson City, NV Honda March 20, 1982 Mark Barnett, Bridgeview, IL Suzuki March 19, 1982 Mark Barnett, Bridgeview, IL Suzuki March 14, 1981 Mark Barnett, Bridgeview, IL Suzuki March 13, 1981 Mark Barnett, Bridgeview, IL Suzuki March 14, 1980 Mike Bell, Lakewood, CA Yamaha March 15, 1980 Broc Glover, El Cajon, CA Yamaha March 17, 1979 Bob Hannah, Carson City, NV Yamaha March 16, 1979 Bob Hannah, Carson City, NV Yamaha March 18, 1978 Bob Hannah, Whittier, CA Yamaha March 17, 1978 Bob Hannah, Whittier, CA Yamaha March 18, 1977 Tony DiStefano, Morrisville, PA Suzuki March 19, 1977 Jim Ellis, E. Hampton, CT Can-Am March 12, 1976 Jim Weinert, Laguna Beach, CA Kawasaki March 14, 1975 Tony DiStefano, Morrisville, PA Suzuki March 15 (b), 1975 Tony DiStefano, Morrisville, PA Suzuki March 16 (b), 1974 Gary Semics, Lisbon, OH Husqvarna March 15 , 1974 Pierre Karsmakers, Holland Yamaha -30- Connie Fleming American Motorcyclist Association Public Relations Administrator http://www.ama-cycle.org 614-891-2425
