Despite Daytona's changes, Duhamel remains master of the 200
Posted: Wed Mar 16, 2005 5:28 am
Despite Daytona's changes, Duhamel remains master of the 200
Thom Godward
Miguel Duhamel earned his fifth Daytona 200 crown this weekend, despite a new track configuration, a new class of race bikes and even a new day of competition - Saturday instead of the traditional Sunday.
And he won in convincing fashion, far ahead of second-place Jake Zemke and third-place Kurtis Roberts - all three of them on Honda CBR600RR Formula Extreme bikes.
The victory tied Duhamel with "Mr. Daytona," Scott Russell, although some observers will try to put an asterisk next to the stat, in light of all the changes.
That would be ignoring history. After all, they used to run this race half on the sandy beach, half on the two-lane highway, and nobody questions the accomplishments of that era.
The point isn't the track, it isn't the bikes - it's the guy at the front. This time, Duhamel beat 60 competitors. If some of the factories chose to prioritize on the Superbike sprint race, that doesn't diminish his achievements.
Young gun Taylor Knapp earns Top 10
When you're 17 years old with less than a full year of experience running AMA nationals, you come to your first Daytona 200 expecting to "go to school" on some of your more experienced competitors.
Young Taylor Knapp of Lapeer, Mich., took that concept to a whole new level, with a 2004 Yamaha R6 race bike that his classmates at Lapeer Vocational Education adopted as a school project.
When the checkered flag fell, Taylor had earned a ninth-place finish, ranking among the top privateer racers even while riding a Superstock-spec bike against his Formula Extreme competitors, and ensuring Taylor's place among motorcycle road racing's rising young stars.
Taylor qualified 22nd on the grid, out of 61 competitors. As the race unfolded, he worked his way up through the field and at one point was running in seventh place as the leaders took their first pit stops.
Taylor's crew chief Thom Godward had some pit strategy of his own to keep the young rider near the front of the pack.
"We went with fuel-only during the first stop, and we got him back on track in about eight seconds," Godward said. "The second stop, we changed the rear tire and refueled in less than 20 seconds. That gave us a huge advantage over many of the other privateer teams."
Taylor is sponsored by Ray C's Extreme in Lapeer.
Every pitter tells a story
SPEED Channel didn't show every pit stop, but some of the ones that made prime time were painful to watch.
Like when young Danny Eslick leaped off his Suzuki GSX-R600 and started dancing along the pit wall, after inadvertently getting a lapful of skin-burning race fuel.
Or when Michael Barnes slammed his fist on top of his Yamaha R6's fuel tank in frustration, after his pit crew struggled to mount a rear wheel and competitors flashed past.
Both recovered pretty well - Eslick placed fourth and Barnes seventh. But both were probably playing racing's most maddening game afterward - asking what might have been.
Young Canadian rider Chris Peris took fifth on another Yamaha R6.
Thom Godward
Miguel Duhamel earned his fifth Daytona 200 crown this weekend, despite a new track configuration, a new class of race bikes and even a new day of competition - Saturday instead of the traditional Sunday.
And he won in convincing fashion, far ahead of second-place Jake Zemke and third-place Kurtis Roberts - all three of them on Honda CBR600RR Formula Extreme bikes.
The victory tied Duhamel with "Mr. Daytona," Scott Russell, although some observers will try to put an asterisk next to the stat, in light of all the changes.
That would be ignoring history. After all, they used to run this race half on the sandy beach, half on the two-lane highway, and nobody questions the accomplishments of that era.
The point isn't the track, it isn't the bikes - it's the guy at the front. This time, Duhamel beat 60 competitors. If some of the factories chose to prioritize on the Superbike sprint race, that doesn't diminish his achievements.
Young gun Taylor Knapp earns Top 10
When you're 17 years old with less than a full year of experience running AMA nationals, you come to your first Daytona 200 expecting to "go to school" on some of your more experienced competitors.
Young Taylor Knapp of Lapeer, Mich., took that concept to a whole new level, with a 2004 Yamaha R6 race bike that his classmates at Lapeer Vocational Education adopted as a school project.
When the checkered flag fell, Taylor had earned a ninth-place finish, ranking among the top privateer racers even while riding a Superstock-spec bike against his Formula Extreme competitors, and ensuring Taylor's place among motorcycle road racing's rising young stars.
Taylor qualified 22nd on the grid, out of 61 competitors. As the race unfolded, he worked his way up through the field and at one point was running in seventh place as the leaders took their first pit stops.
Taylor's crew chief Thom Godward had some pit strategy of his own to keep the young rider near the front of the pack.
"We went with fuel-only during the first stop, and we got him back on track in about eight seconds," Godward said. "The second stop, we changed the rear tire and refueled in less than 20 seconds. That gave us a huge advantage over many of the other privateer teams."
Taylor is sponsored by Ray C's Extreme in Lapeer.
Every pitter tells a story
SPEED Channel didn't show every pit stop, but some of the ones that made prime time were painful to watch.
Like when young Danny Eslick leaped off his Suzuki GSX-R600 and started dancing along the pit wall, after inadvertently getting a lapful of skin-burning race fuel.
Or when Michael Barnes slammed his fist on top of his Yamaha R6's fuel tank in frustration, after his pit crew struggled to mount a rear wheel and competitors flashed past.
Both recovered pretty well - Eslick placed fourth and Barnes seventh. But both were probably playing racing's most maddening game afterward - asking what might have been.
Young Canadian rider Chris Peris took fifth on another Yamaha R6.