The racing yesterday was interesting. Changing the 200 to Formula Xtreme from the Superbike class puts a lot of lesser known racers in the racing news. The Superbike riders get a lot more publicity than the AMA’s other classes and I knew most of the riders in that race but in the 200, after you get past the first 5 or 6, at least for me, they became mostly unfamiliar. If you follow all of the races and all of the classes this is less apparent but after a winter layoff the new names really jump out. Again, maybe this is just me.
What was interesting in the Superbike race was not that Mat Mladin came right back at his usual superb form, showing the skill that makes him a champion, but seeing Neil Hodgson take second after 10 years away from Daytona and topping the other riders who compete in Superbike every year. Now that Daytona is out of the way and the series returns to the more normal type of racetrack, I think Neil is going to be right there all year. Will Mladin continue to dominate or will Hodgson bring his own considerable skill to the top? This year could be very interesting.
Doug Staab says
what happened to the Buells in Formula Extreme? Didn’t Cyclworld have an article recently about Buells racing in the 200?
I watched most of the 200 but didn’t see any of the Buells in the starting grid or finishing results. I also didn’t hear any of the commentators say anything about them.
Also, anyone know if Guzzi is entering the MGS-01 in the Formula Extreme circuit this year?
thanks
kneeslider says
Shawn Higbee, who was going to race his Buell in the 200, crashed during the Thunderbike race the previous Sunday. He lost one or two fingers on his left hand. I don’t know if there were any other Buells planning on running.
Nick Fiore says
There were 4 Buells in the starting grid. They started in the following spots: 8, 13, 14, 15. Either 3 or 4 of them had clutch problems. None finished the race. I expect Buell to be much more competitive on the tighter tracks with the shorter races.
kneeslider says
Just a small note to Nick’s comment – this post is a year old and refers to last year’s Daytona, 2005, not this year. Before anyone else jumps in …