NEW SUZUKI RM-Z250 SCORES FIRST RACE WIN
RM-Z250 SCORES FIRST RACE WIN AT AVALON SUPERCROSS
Team Shift Motul Suzuki's Tim Weigand scored the new RM-Z250's first race win and sixth overall in round two of the 2007 Australian Supercross Masters Championship in Pro Lites, while Pro Open entry Luke Burkhart crashed out of the event at Avalon Raceway, Lara (VIC).
Right from his first 5-lap heat, Weigand was in strong form and showed off the power off the four-stroke RM-Z250. Heat one saw Weigand make a quick recovery from a less than ideal start, picking through the field and crossing the finish line in third spot.
A great start in his second heat, Weigand slipped into second place on the opening lap and took the lead on the next lap. Using the stunning performance of the all-Suzuki RM-Z250 four-stroke powerplant, Weigand scored the machine's maiden Australian National race victory.
The American again unleashed the RM-Z250 in his third heat, coming home in another podium position to easily sail through to the15-lap Pro Lites Final. In the SX Lites Final, Weigand was running strongly in third before the race was stopped due to a large crash taking out two other riders. Making a scorching start on the re-start, Weigand scored the holeshot and was enjoying a fierce battle with Ryan Marmont before he lost the front end and crashed, dropping back from the head of the field to fifth. Riding on the limit and pushing hard to make up the lost ground, Weigand moved to fourth before a second crash, this time in the stutters, dropped him to sixth where he remained to the chequered flag.
Reaching the mid-point of the 2007 Australian Supercross Championship, Shift Motul Suzuki's Weigand is now running fifth overall in the Pro Lites class.
A disappointing result for the capacity crowd at Avalon Raceway, Team Shift Motul Suzuki rider Luke Burkhart was forced to withdraw from the competition after a large crash in his first heat. As a result, Suzuki's recently crowned New Zealand Supercross Champion slipped out of the top-ten rankings, diminishing Burkhart's Australian championship aspirations.
Team Shift Motul Suzuki is now looking forward to red-hot race action in round three of the Australian Supercross Masters at Rosedale (VIC) on Saturday 10 March.
Tim Weigand – Team Shift Motul Suzuki
"It was great to get my first race win on the new RM-Z250 tonight. The bike was absolutely brilliant and the win was a great boost to my confidence. Hopefully there'll be plenty more to come.
"The RM-Z was awesome again in the Lites Final and it was great to be out leading in a Final, but I made an error and that ruined the rest of my race.
"It put me back in the pack and I was over-riding to try to catch the lead and that's always when more mistakes happen.
"At least I've shown that the RM-Z250 has a winning package and Suzuki will come back next time to race for overall round honours."
Jay Foreman – Team Shift Motul Suzuki Team Manager
"It was great to get our first race win with the all-Suzuki RM-Z250.
"Timmy was riding really well tonight, but with a couple of mishaps in the Final, our results don't reflect what a strong race package the RM-Z250 has.
"Luke came up short on the triple and went over the bars. He hit the dirt hard and took a pretty big knock to his head and it wouldn't have been wise for us to let him out to race again in that condition."
2007 Australian Supercross Masters Championship
Round 2 – Pro Open Top Ten Results
Daniel Reardon, Jay Marmont, Josh Demuth, Cheyne Boyd, Craig Anderson, Cody Cooper, Ford Dale, Nathan Crawford, Justin Carafa, Shane Metcalfe
Pro Open Championship Points – after Round 2
1 Daniel Reardon 45, 2 Cheyne Boyd 43, 3 Jay Marmont 40, 4 Craig Anderson 38, 5 Cody Cooper 29, 6 Ford Dale 26, 7 Josh Demuth 26, 8 Shane Metcalfe 24, 9 Nathan Crawford 21, 10 Justin Carafa 15
Round 2 – Pro Lites Top Ten Results
Daniel McCoy, Ryan Marmont, Luke George, Jake Moss, Lawson Bopping, Timmy Weigand (RM-Z250), Mitch Hoad, Ricky Girwood, Chris Neilson, Lewis Woods
Pro Lites Championship Points – after Round 2
1 Ryan Marmont 47, 2 Daniel McCoy 43, 3 Luke George 33, 4 Lawson Bopping 31, 5 Timmy Weigand (RM-Z250) 31, 6 Mitch Hoad 25, 7 Cameron Taylor 22, 8 Ricky Girdwood 21, 9 Robbie Marshall 20, 10 Jake Moss 18
