Back to the Road Racing results page 1998 MBNA Superbike Tour Results Round 5 of 14 May 1-3, 1998 Sears Point Raceway, Sonoma, CA

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Welcome to coverage of the MBNA Superbike Tour. MBNA Superbike Tour events are three-day affairs, with practice and qualifying on Fridays and Saturdays, and racing on Saturdays and Sundays (refer to the tentative Weekend Event Schedule for more details). It is our goal to post various news throughout the weekend in Daily News & Notes. With Daily Results we hope to upload unofficial results as they come in from AMA Pro Racing Timing & Scoring during the weekend. Overall Results will be posted no later than Monday and will include finish positions and updated point standings for each of the Tour's six classes.

NOTE: We'll try to upload this info as quickly as possible, but at this time, the information will not be "live." As the season goes on, we hope to streamline this proccess. Until then, please bear with us, and enjoy the races!

Daily News & Notes

• Sunday, May 3
• Saturday, May 2
• Friday, May 1

Weekend event schedule

Daily results (unofficial)

Overall results (official)

DUHAMEL TIES MBNA SUPERBIKE RECORD WITH SEARS VICTORY
Honda rider Miguel Duhamel won his third straight MBNA Superbike Tour race Sunday at Sears Point Raceway. The win ties Duhamel with Fred Merkel for the lead on the all-time MBNA Superbike win list with 20 each.

Defending tour champion Doug Chandler finished second after leading the first half of the race. Chandler's performance moved him into a tie with third-place finisher, Mat Mladin, for the series lead after five of 14 rounds.

Chandler put his Kawasaki into the lead early in the 25-lap final. Duhamel followed closely in second and was being hounded by Australians Anthony Gobert and Mladin. Gobert was soon out of the running when his Ducati's engine started misfiring.

In the middle stages of the race it was a three-way battle between Chandler, Duhamel and Mladin. On lap 13 Duhamel made a daring pass around the outside of Chandler at the high-speed turn six.

"I knew that was a risky place to make my move," said Duhamel, a Montreal native. "I wanted to try to get the extra point for leading the most laps, but I couldn't get through quickly enough."

Once into the lead Duhamel turned in his fastest laps of the race on his Honda RC45 to pull away from Chandler and Mladin. At the finish it was Duhamel winning by 1.802 seconds over Chandler. Mladin finished third. Duhamel moved to third in the series standings, 16 points behind Chandler and Mladin.

The next two rounds of the tour take place at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga., on May 30 and 31.

MERKEL SPEAKS ON RECORD BEING TIED
Talking from his business in New Zealand, Fred Merkel congratulated Miguel Duhamel for tying his record of 20 MBNA Superbike wins.

"It sounds like those guys are really having a great battle over there," said Merkel, who retired at the end of 1995. "I guess it's a cliché, but records are made to be broken. At least it took someone 12 years to tie mine."

Merkel hastened to add that he earned his 20 wins in the span of just four seasons (1983 to 1986).

Merkel won the MBNA Superbike Championship three straight years, 1984-1986, before moving on to win the World Superbike title in 1988 and 1989. Merkel still holds the MBNA Superbike record for the most wins in a single season, with an incredible 10 victories in 1984.

"I'm just glad Fred's retired," said a smiling Duhamel. "He is a good friend and one of the greatest motorcycle racers ever. It's an honor to have my name alongside his in the record books."

DUHAMEL BACK ON TOP OF 600 SUPERSPORT
It's hard to believe, but five-time champion Miguel Duhamel finally won his first Pro Honda Oils 600 SuperSport race of the season Sunday at Sears Point. A hectic last lap battle between Duhamel and young Nick Hayden resulted in Hayden crashing and Duhamel surviving to win his 35th-career victory in the series. The win puts Duhamel and his factory Honda into the series lead after five of 14 races.

Suzuki's Steve Crevier took second, 1.41 seconds behind Duhamel, while Eric Bostrom took a close third on his Erion Racing Honda. Former series leader Doug Chandler finished last after his Kawasaki blew a motor on lap 11 while he was running third. The DNF drops Chandler to third in the standings behind Duhamel and Crevier.

PARRIOTT DISQUALIFIED FROM 750 AND 600 SUPERSPORT RACES
Brian Parriott was disqualified from both the 750 and 600 SuperSport races after it was revealed that his Honda CBR600 had illegal engine modifications. Before the DQ, Parriott originally had finished third in Saturday's 750 SuperSport race and fifth in the 600 SuperSport race on Sunday.

ADAMS AND HIGBEE TURN IN A GREAT SHOW IN PRO THUNDER
Curtis Adams and Shawn Higbee had a race-long two-rider duel in the Progressive Insurance Pro Thunder final. Adams made some spectacular moves in traffic on the final lap to pull out just enough of a margin on Higbee to win his fourth straight race. With the victory Adams moved into the lead of the series standings.

SORENSEN WINS HIS SECOND ELF GRAND PRIX
After scoring a victory in the season opener in Phoenix, Chuck Sorensen came through with his second win of the season Sunday at Sears Point. Starting from the pole, Sorensen overcame a tough battle with long-time rival Al Salaverria to take his first AMA victory at Sears Point. Kurtis Roberts took third, his second podium finish this year.

MLADIN SETS NEW TRACK RECORD AT SEARS POINT
Australian Mat Mladin won his fourth pole in five MBNA Superbike Tour races Saturday on the 2.52-mile Sears Point Raceway riding a Suzuki. Mladin's time of one minute, 39.425 seconds (91.245 mph) eclipsed the old record of one minute, 40.663 seconds (90.122 mph) set by Miguel Duhamel last year.

Mladin, the tour leader who earned only one pole in his first two seasons of MBNA Superbike racing, is on an impressive run of pole positions this season. Saturday's pole was his third straight. He also won the pole at the series opener February in Phoenix. Only Scott Russell's record qualifying run at Daytona International Speedway in March kept Mladin from a perfect qualifying record.

"We just seem to have found the perfect qualifying combination this year," said Mladin, a former Australian Superbike champion. "Now it's time to start winning some races."

Mladin will share the front row with defending Superbike champ Doug Chandler, Anthony Gobert and Miguel Duhamel. Chandler was second with a lap of 1:40.334 on his Kawasaki. Gobert turned a lap of 1:40.531 on a Ducati in his first race at Sears Point. Last year's Sears Point winner, Duhamel, clock a time of 1:40.677 on his Honda.

DUHAMEL LEADS 600 SUPERSPORT QUALIFYING
Five-time series champion Miguel Duhamel will start from the pole in Sunday's Pro Honda Oils 600 SuperSport final. Duhamel turned a 1:44.786 lap time on his Honda CBR600 breaking the old Sears Point 600 SuperSport record of 1:45.083 held by Aaron Yates. Fellow Canadian Steve Crevier qualified his Yoshimura Suzuki in second at 1:45.101. Honda riders Eric Bostrom and Takahito Mori round out the front row starters.

HIGBEE EARNS PRO THUNDER POLE
Shawn Higbee rode his Tilley's Harley-Davidson-sponsored Buell to victory in the second heat race of the Progressive Insurance Pro Thunder Series race from Sears Point Raceway on Saturday. Higbee's average speed of 83.136 mph was good enough to earn the Waterford, Wis., resident the pole for Sunday's final. Higbee beat Sears Point racing veteran Cal Rayborn III who was riding a Ducati. Series leader Paul Harrell finished third on a Triumph. Curtis Adams won the first of the two heat races with a speed of 82.555 mph on a Triumph. Adams, who beat Mark Miller by over five seconds, will start from the second spot on the grid.

BOSTROM AGAIN IN PIRELLI FORMULA XTREME AT SEARS
Erion Racing Honda's Eric Bostrom won his third race in four starts in Saturday's Pirelli Formula Xtreme final. After lighting up his rear tire at the start of the race, Bostrom worked his way to the front by the second lap. Bostrom extended his lead throughout the race and finished 2.63 seconds over Mark Miller on a Yamaha. Canadian Michael Taylor earned his best finish of the season with a third on his Canadian Kawasaki-backed ZX-9R.

SORENSEN ON POLE IN ELF GRAND PRIX
Chuck Sorensen cruised to an easy 2.610-second victory in heat race number two, securing the pole for Sunday's Elf Grand Prix final. Sorensen, riding a World Sport Imports Yamaha, averaged 85.950 mph around the 11-turn circuit bettering the speed turned in by heat race one winner Geep Terranova (84.157 mph). PRIDMORE IS BACK After suffering through an early season disqualification, crashes and injuries, Jason Pridmore made a triumphant return to the winner's rostrum Saturday in the Teamline 750 SuperSport final. The 28-year-old defending series champion rode a flawless race and held off young HyperCycle Suzuki teammate Nick Hayden by 2.2 seconds at the checkered flag. Local favorite Brian Parriott took third on a Honda CBR600, his best career finish in AMA racing.

RAIN THE ORDER OF THE DAY IN SONOMA
On and off rain left Friday's MBNA Superbike schedule at Sears Point Raceway in shambles. A wet race course kept bikes off the track until almost 4pm (Pacific time). Unlike most road courses, it is impossible to race on the 2.52-mile circuit when it's wet since the front straightaway also doubles as the starting area for the NHRA drag strip. The rubber and traction compound at the starting area of the drag strip becomes slick as ice when wet.

RAPP WILL RIDE VANCE & HINES DUCATI AGAIN THIS WEEKEND
Lafayette, California's, Steve Rapp, will once again fill in for the injured Thomas Stevens in this Sunday's MBNA Superbike race. Rapp, 25, got his first opportunity to ride a factory Superbike last weekend at Willow Springs Raceway in Rosamond, Calif. Rapp made the most of the opportunity by running as high as second in the race before slowing due to tire problems late in the race and finishing seventh.

"These kind of chances don't come along very often," said Rapp, a former Sears Point AFM club racing champion. "I knew I was probably going to burn up my tires by pushing so hard early, but it was worth it to me to show that I could run with the top Superbike riders."

Rapp find himself a privateer again after this weekend. Stevens is scheduled to return for Vance & Hines for the next round of the MBNA Superbike Tour at Road Atlanta at the end of this month.

EL NINO STRIKES AGAIN -- FRIDAY'S SUPERBIKE QUALIFYING RAINED OUT
Qualifying for Sunday's MBNA Superbike Tour race at Sears Point Raceway was rained out Friday. Qualifying will resume Saturday.

The track crew did an excellent job making the track raceable after the rain let up early in the afternoon. The Superbikes were able to get in one 15-minute practice session and were lined up to go out for qualifying when the skies open again. AMA officials canceled the rest of the day's activities.

Rich Oliver was the fastest in the short practice session. The Fresno, Calif., resident turned in a lap of one minute, 45.373 seconds (86.094 miles per hour) on his factory Yamaha. MBNA Superbike Tour leader Mat Mladin was second fastest with a 1:46.105 on his Suzuki, followed by local favorite Steve Rapp of Lafayette, Calif., who rode a Vance & Hines Ducati to a time of 1:46.347.

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