Duhamel, Roberts and Hayden Podium at Road America

AMA/Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Series
Round 9: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
June 7, 2003


Sheathed in a palette of greens, the rolling, forested hills of Wisconsin
yielded a picture-perfect setting for Round 9 of the AMA Superbike series.
Honda's trio of Red Riders attempted to achieve equally perfect results, as
each led the race at various times over the undulating road course.
However, the nail-biting last lap of the 100k race saw Mat Mladin barely
nip past Team Honda's Miguel Duhamel and Erion-Honda's Kurtis Roberts, with
Ben Bostrom claiming fourth place aboard his factory-prepped Honda in this
hard-fought battle.

Launching his RC51 from a second-row gridding, it was a determined Ben
Bostrom who snatched the holeshot and retained the lead in the first laps
of the race. The former World Superbike pilot looked strong and smooth as
he made his way around the fast, flowing 4.048-mile Road America circuit.

However, Mladin edged past Bostrom at the start/finish line just as the
fourth lap began, and Roberts and Duhamel followed in close formation as
the quartet of riders quickly distanced themselves from the remainder of
the field. The lead changed hands several times over the following laps,
with all four riders often running within a second of each other. Most of
the passes entailed epic drafting duels along the start/finish
straightaway, although the fast turn five also witnessed many passes and/or
passing attempts.

As Kurtis Roberts explained after the race, "That was definitely a hard
race! Ben, Miguel and I were definitely riding as hard as possible, and
each guy was looking for every little opening and advantage. I'm not really
happy with the ending; I really wanted that win, but we just did the best
we could."

By lap nine Mladin, Duhamel and Roberts, running in that order, had pulled
out a slight gap over Ben Bostrom. But Duhamel was all over the leader,
testing him all around the track before taking over the lead at the
start/finish line on the 11th lap, and Roberts completing a pass on Mladin
as well as the pair entered turn one.

Passing and re-passing all around the track, the lead trio of riders
slashed past each other in staccato fashion as the mini-freight train
sliced through lapped traffic. The two Honda riders built a small gap over
Mladin, who quickly closed in once again when lappers balked the two Honda
pilots.

As the white flag fell for the last lap, Duhamel drafted past Mladin and
took the lead going into turn one. But as the group dove into turn five
hard on the brakes, Mladin inched ahead once again. The last corner would
decide the race, but when Duhamel and his RC51 came out of turn 14 in a big
slide he lost the momentum and drive to the finish line, taking the
checkers a scant 0.28 second behind Mladin, with Roberts trailing in third
by only 0.79 second-an epic finish to a great race, arguably the closest
contest yet in 2003.

Duhamel said, "Obviously, I really like this track, seeing as how I won the
doubleheader here last year. But today I couldn't quite come out on top.
Still, I'm happy for my crew; those guys haven't let down one bit all
season long. And I really have to hand it to Dr. Ting, who did the work on
my collarbone right after the Infineon race. It's feeling pretty strong
right now, to the point where it's not really interfering with my riding
very much at all. I'm glad to be back to the point where I have the
strength and endurance to run hard all race long. There will be plenty more
opportunities to win races, starting tomorrow."

AMA Superbike Overall Results:
1. Mat Mladin - Suzuki
2. Miguel Duhamel - Honda
3. Kurtis Roberts - Honda
4. Ben Bostrom - Honda
5. Anthony Gobert - Ducati

AMA Superbike Point Standings:
1. Mat Mladin - Suzuki - 272
2. Eric Bostrom - Kawasaki - 257
3. Kurtis Roberts - Honda - 250
4. Ben Bostrom - Honda - 248
5. Aaron Yates - Suzuki - 244
6. Miguel Duhamel - Honda - 219



AMA/Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Series
Round 10: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
June 8, 2003


If you don't like the state of the weather in Wisconsin-or the AMA
Superbike points standings-just wait a day and it will change. So it went
at Road America as Round 10 got underway on a soaking wet track under
threatening but broken clouds. The Honda Red Riders, who had finished a
strong two-three-four only the day before, struggled with rapidly changing
track conditions that saw Miguel Duhamel launch a valiant last-lap charge
that netted him fourth place just ahead of teammate Ben Bostrom, while
Erion-Honda's Kurtis Roberts soldiered on to a ninth-place finish.

Before the race began, AMA officials allowed riders two sighting laps, and
suddenly it was decision time: Which tires to use; soft rain tires for
wet-condition grip or harder, intermediates, or more durable hand-cut
slicks in hopes of a drying track? Because the track spans more than four
miles, the weather and track surface could change multiple times within
just one lap, and the race itself would entail 16 laps for a 100k length,
or about 40 minutes total. All of which added up to variables beyond count,
leaving room for semi-educated prognostications at best.

Sunday's previous race, the 600 Supersport class, ran in the wet, and
witnessed rider after rider sliding out on a soaking wet course in a
downpour. Although the pounding rain had stopped before the Superbike
riders gridded, the entire track remained very wet, with standing water
puddled in a number of sections. These conditions prompted the bulk of the
field to select rain tires, which would maintain grip in the wet but also
held the risk of overheating if the track dried out. Team Honda's Miguel
Duhamel and his crew, however, decided to roll the dice and ride on
hand-cut slicks, which would barely tolerate damp conditions but would
provide a decided advantage on a dry track-if the track ever dried out
during the course of the 40-minute-plus event.

Just before the track went green, Duhamel began to doubt the wisdom of the
tire selection. "As I was sitting on the grid, I kept looking down at my
tires and up at the cloudy sky. Although they're called cut slicks, all I
could focus on was the big sections of slick tire without any grooving. I
got a good start, but by the time we got to turn three, it started raining
again. I tell you, that really spooked me. Here I am, riding in the rain on
cut slicks, with a broken collarbone. I thought about all the races still
to come and decided there was no need to be a hero quite yet. I decided to
take it easy until the track dried." Duhamel dropped back from fourth place
to 21st in two laps.

Al Ludington, Duhamel's crew chief, said, "Miguel was on the two-way radio,
talking to me. I told him not to worry and just be patient. I just felt
that the weather would clear up, and when the track dried he would be the
one holding the advantage over everyone else."

By lap five Duhamel was about 45 seconds behind race leader Eric Bostrom.
Meanwhile, Honda teammate Ben Bostrom held onto ninth place, followed by
Erion Honda's Kurtis Roberts. Then, on lap six, the track began to dry
rapidly, with lightly colored streaks of dry asphalt forming on a narrow
racing line, although a number of puddles still dotted the long, undulating
track.

In a flash, Duhamel jumped up nine places to 12th, and he maintained a
relentless charge forward. He carefully guided his Honda RC51 along the dry
line, which continued to lengthen and expand with every passing minute as
the Superbikes beat the moisture out of the asphalt. On the 12th lap
Duhamel passed Roberts to take eighth place. Just as the drying track was
working to Duhamel's advantage, it was working against both Roberts and
Bostrom, who had chosen rain tires.

As the white flag came out to signal the last lap of the race, Duhamel
really went to work. He said, "By the last lap, the track was pretty much
dry and I was getting good traction. So I just put my head down and gave it
all I had."

With the seconds ticking down, Duhamel made one last heroic charge,
swooping past three riders, including teammate Ben Bostrom, just before the
checkered flag fell.

AMA Superbike Overall Results:
1. Eric Bostrom - Kawasaki
2. Aaron Yates - Suzuki
3. Larry Pegram - Ducati
4. Miguel Duhamel - Honda
5. Ben Bostrom - Honda
9. Kurtis Roberts - Honda


AMA Superbike Point Standings:
1. Eric Bostrom - Kawasaki - 294
2. Mat Mladin - Suzuki - 293
3. Aaron Yates - Suzuki - 276
4. Ben Bostrom - Honda - 274
5. Kurtis Roberts - Honda - 272
6. Miguel Duhamel - Honda - 246



AMA/Pro Honda Oils 600cc Supersport Series
Round 6: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
June 8, 2003

Once AMA officials declared the 600cc Supersport final a wet race, Erion
Honda's Roger Hayden saw a chance to establish himself as a rain rider.
Staged on a grid that already had its fair share of rain specialists, such
as Honda's Miguel Duhamel, No Limit Motorsports' Doug Chandler and Roger's
brother Tommy Hayden, Roger went straight to the front when the 10-lap race
went green. While much of his competition was slipping and sliding around
the four mile Road America road course, the 20-year old Kentuckian, in
search of his first 600 class win rode fast and smooth aboard his Honda
CBR600RR. The only one to rider faster and smoother was Roger's other
brother Tommy, who passed his younger sibling with a lap and a half of
racing left. Roger followed Tommy's rooster tail across the finish line a
mere 3.4 seconds back. Third place Damon Buckmaster was another 11 seconds
off the Hayden's pace.

"I knew if I could get out front right away and just concentrate on staying
off the slippery parts, I'd end up on the podium," said Roger, who had one
bout with the slippery track that nearly pitched him out of the lead and on
to the tarmac. "I had that one bobble, but other than that I felt good.
When Tom finally went by me, I just didn't have anything for him."

Although Roger finished in the runner-up position, he turned heads and made
it known in the AMA paddock that when conditions get wet, he's not afraid
to hang it out and go for the win. With his Supersport series
point-standing already affected by injuries, the runner-up performance is a
season high for the young rider, who started the race from the second row
next to Erion Honda teammate Jake Zemke.

Zemke, a series favorite, did not fair well in the rain. He joined the long
list of riders that took a slide into the pea gravel run-off surrounding
the Road America race track. The crash occurred on the fifth lap, while
Zemke was running a strong fourth place with Honda CBR600RR cohort,
Chandler right behind him. Zemke was able to resume racing and finish
ninth. Chandler wasn't as lucky. After Zemke crashed, Chandler inherited
fourth place, but it would only last until lap eight, when a crash put him
out of the race and relegated the veteran rider to 20th in the final
results.

Alex Gobert took advantage of the rain, the Erion Honda rider starting way
back on the fourth row and patiently working his way through the field and
avoiding the dangers that put so many riders on the ground. When all was
said and done, Gobert crossed the stripe in fourth place, matching his best
finish of the year and also moving into fifth in the point standings.

No Limit Motorsport's Jason Curtis and Road America legend Miguel Duhamel
were two Honda riders to finish between fourth place Gobert and ninth place
Zemke. Curtis, who is always in the mix of any Supersport race, crossed the
finish line in sixth, while an on-the-mend Duhamel finished seventh.
Duhamel has won the Supersport race at Road America a record five times,
but his damaged shoulder and demanding double-header Superbike schedule
kept him from a better result, although he did take his CBR600RR to the
front row in qualifying.

The Red Riders get a well-deserved break before heading to Minnesota's
Brainerd International Raceway on June 27-29. The time off will give
Duhamel's injury time to heal and will allow the Honda team to fine-tune
their race strategy going into the second half of the season. Brainerd
should prove to be a Honda thriller in all classes, as Duhamel, Zemke, Ben
Bostrom, Kurtis Roberts and Marty Craggill have all won races at the
three-mile road course.

600 Supersport Overall Results:
1. Tommy Hayden - Kawasaki
2. Roger Hayden - Honda
3. Damon Buckmaster - Yamaha
4. Alex Gobert - Honda
5. Jamie Hacking - Yamaha
6. Jason Curtis - Honda
7. Miguel Duhamel - Honda
9. Jake Zemke - Honda
12. James Kerker - Honda
14. Marty Craggill - Honda
20. Doug Chandler - Honda

AMA 600cc Supersport Points Standings:
1. Jamie Hacking - Yamaha - 181
2. Damon Buckmaster - Yamaha - 173
3. Tommy Hayden - Kawasaki - 159
4. Aaron Gobert - Yamaha - 142
5. Alex Gobert - Honda - 138
7. Jake Zemke - Honda - 128
10. Roger Hayden - Honda - 115
11. Doug Chandler - Honda - 110
12. Jason Curtis - Honda - 92
14. Miguel Duhamel - Honda - 69
15. Ty Howard - Honda - 65
16. Chris Peris - Honda - 59
17. Craig Connell - Honda - 46
20. Kurtis Roberts - Honda - 37
21. Tie: Marty Craggill - Honda/Matt Wait - Yamaha - 35


AMA/Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme Series
Round 5: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
June 8, 2003

Sunday's Road America Formula Xtreme Final looked to be a promising event
for the Honda Red Riders. In the earlier Supersport Final, Erion Honda's
Roger Hayden proved he can turn a fast lap around Road America, wet or dry.
His teammate Jake Zemke has been known to take the Honda CBR954RR to the
limit on long road courses such as Road America and the same could be said
for Bruce Transportation Group Honda's Marty Craggill. In addition, Zemke
was on top of the series leader board and wanted nothing more than to stay
there by taking the win at Road America.

Although he qualified ninth, Zemke was consistently the fastest Formula
Xtreme rider throughout three days of practice sessions at Road America. On
the other hand Craggill and Hayden's practice times were considerably
slower, but when it came time to qualify the duo put their factory-backed
CBR954RR's on the front row. That made the difference for Craggill, who
started strong and never fell below fourth place throughout the ten lap
event. Hayden followed Craggill for the first few laps, but fatigue from
his stellar Supersport performance set in and he couldn't keep pace with
the fast Australian. Hayden eventually finished seventh.

As Craggill was chasing the leaders, Zemke was trying desperately to make
contact with the lead group before they got too far out front. It appeared
the Formula Xtreme points leader would be successful in his efforts until
he ran wide in a turn just moments after passing Hayden. The #98 Honda ran
off into the dirt and Zemke was unable to finish the race. He was credited
with a 20th place finish and earned no points, which allowed eventual race
winner Damon Buckmaster to take over the points lead. Three other riders
also moved ahead of Zemke on the leader board. The Honda rider plans to
regain some crucial points at the next round in Brainerd, Minnesota, a
venue where Zemke has scored two previous national wins.

Craggill too has stood on top of the Brainerd podium, in the Formula Xtreme
class, in fact. With the momentum of his fourth place finish at Road
America, Craggill hopes he can mimic his past success at the oft
Honda-dominated circuit. The Red Riders will get two weeks of rest and
relaxation before heading to Brainerd on June 27-29.

Formula Xtreme Overall Results:
1. Damon Buckmaster - Yamaha
2. Josh Hayes - Suzuki
3. Ben Spies - Suzuki
4. Marty Craggill - Honda
5. Adam Fergusson - Suzuki
7. Roger Hayden - Honda
11. Craig Connell - Honda
12. Jason Curtis - Honda
17. Mark Kittel - Honda
20. Jake Zemke - Honda

AMA Formula Xtreme Point Standings:
1. Damon Buckmaster - Yamaha - 149
2. Ben Spies - Suzuki - 147
3. Josh Hayes - Suzuki - 136
4. Adam Fergusson - Suzuki - 131
5. Jake Zemke - Honda - 125
6. Marty Craggill - Honda - 119
11. Roger Hayden - Honda - 87
14. Ty Howard - Honda - 61
15. Jason Curtis - Honda - 56
16. Craig Connell - Honda - 55
17. Doug Chandler - Honda - 52