AMA's Saturday PPIR Notes

NOTES FROM SATURDAY'S MBNA SUPERBIKE TOUR RACES AT THE CRUISE AMERICA SUPERBIKE NATIONAL PRESENTED BY SUZUKI AT PIKES PEAK INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

Course length & characteristics:1.315 mile, 10 turn, oval/infield road course
Conditions: sunny, with temperatures in the low nineties.

TV: Sunday's MBNA Superbike race will be broadcast live on Speedvision at 4pm E.S.T. The Pikes Peak round of the Pro Honda 600 SuperSport and Teamline 750 SuperSport races will be broadcast tape delay on Fox Sports Net, this Sunday at 3pm E.S.T.

NEWS: PRIDMORE/HAYDEN APPEAL
An Appeal Board met Friday Sept. 5 at Pikes Peak International Raceway to consider the case of riders Jason Pridmore and Nicky Hayden, who appealed the disqualification of their results at the July 18, Mid-Ohio Teamline 750 SuperSport race. Pridmore and Hayden were disqualified when a post-race technical inspection revealed the frames of their motorcycles to be illegally modified.

The appeal board met Friday Sept. 5 at Pikes Peak International Raceway, and upheld the disqualifications. The appeal board stated: "There is no contention by any of the parties involved that the riders were unaware of the frame modifications. However, in order to maintain the integrity of the class and to preserve fairness in enforcement, the disqualifications are upheld."

PIRELLI FORMULA XTREME RACE
Eric Bostrom won his third professional title today aboard the Erion Racing Honda, and brought Erion their second Pirelli Formula Xtreme title in a row. Although Bostrom took third-place in today's Pirelli Formula Xtreme race, he still held a 50-point lead over his teammate and series second-place rider Tripp Nobles, putting a mathematical lock on the title with one race still left in the 1998 season. Bostrom also won the 1997 Harley-Davidson SuperTwins championship and the 1996 Harley-Davidson Sportster Performance dirt-track series title.

No. 24 Graves Motorsports Yamaha pilot Mark Miller took his first win of the season today at Pikes Peak. Miller has also has four podium finishes to date, and is ranked in series third-place entering the season finale at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. "I'll take this win anyway I can get it," said Miller. "I'm really happy with the Graves Yamaha, the bike just wouldn't stop making horsepower."

Littleton, Colorado, native Josh Graham took second-place in today's race aboard his No. 19 RYHO Yamaha. Graham's podium appearance surprised his home-state fans, and competitors as well -- the race was his first AMA national this year.

Tripp Nobles left the race on lap 19 of 29 with mechanical problems. Nobles has 275 series points entering Las Vegas. Mark Miller now trails Nobles by 14 points in the chase for series second-place.

TEAMLINE 750 SUPERSPORT RACE
Nicky Hayden took his fourth win of the season aboard the No. 60 Team Suzuki Sport bike. Hayden also has two podium finishes to his credit this year. Despite his spectacular performance in the series this year, Hayden is ranked in series fifth-place due to two disqualifications and one 5-point penalty.

Series leader Steve Rapp took second-place for the San Gabriel Springs Suzuki team. Rapp has two wins to date this season, and four podium finishes. Rapp has a 15-point lead over series second-place rider Rich Alexander.

Alexander took third-place in today's race on the No. 5 Barnett Suzuki. Alexander has one win and seven podium finishes this year.

MBNA SUPERBIKE QUALIFYING
Ben Bostrom captured the $1,000 Interstate Batteries Pole Award today with a time of 54.661-second lap time. Bostrom -- riding the No. 11 American Honda -- earned an extra pole point in the process, reducing Doug Chandler's series lead to one point. Bostrom's qualifying time set the new motorcycle track record at Pikes Peak.

Ben's brother Eric Bostrom has the number two spot on the MBNA Superbike grid. Eric's American Honda No. 117 machine was clocked at 54.793 seconds. In the post-qualifying press conference, Ben was asked what would have happened if Eric had beat his pole-winning time. "There would have been a fistfight," Ben joked. "We keep big boxing gloves back in the truck."

Doug Chandler reserved the number-three spot on tomorrow's front row aboard the No. 1 Muzzy Kawasaki with a time of 54.868 seconds. Jason Pridmore followed on his No. 41 Vance & Hines Ducati with a time of 54.881, and takes the last spot on the front row.

PRO HONDA OILS 600 SUPERSPORT QUALIFYING
Larry Pegram piloted his Yoshimura Suzuki No. 72 machine to take the pole for Sunday's Pro Honda Oils 600 SuperSport race. Pegram was clocked at 57.087 seconds, with an average speed of 81.98mph. The pole is Pegram's first-ever in Pro Honda Oils 600 SuperSport.

Muzzy Kawasaki No. 10 rider Doug Chandler has the number-two spot on the front row. Chandler qualified with a time of 57.115 seconds. Chandler's No. 22 teammate Tommy Hayden reserved the number-three spot on the front row with a time of 57.261 seconds, and Eric Bostrom has the last spot on the front row aboard the No. 17 Erion Honda.

ELF RACE FUELS & LUBRICANTS GRAND PRIX RACE GRID
Erion Honda No. 80 rider Kurtis Roberts has the pole for Sunday's Elf Race Fuels & Lubricants Grand Prix race. Chuck Sorensen and the World Sports Yamaha have the number-two spot. Series leader and Performance Machine Yamaha rider Roland Sands has the third spot on the front row, and Erion Honda's Randy Renfrow has the last position up front.

PROGRESSIVE INSURANCE PRO THUNDER RACE GRID
Series leader Paul Harrell captured the pole for tomorrow's race aboard the Orange County Triumph No. 47 bike. Shawn Higbee and the No. 3 Tilley's Buell have the number-two spot. Curtis Adams and his No. 147 Orange County Triumph have the number- three spot, and Michael Gage and his No. 19 Orange County Triumph have the last spot on the front row.