Back to the Road Racing schedule

2000 AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Championships presented by Parts Unlimited results
Round 12 of 12: FINAL ROUND
September 29-October 1, 2000
Coca-Cola AMA Superbike Championship Final presented by Suzuki
Willow Springs International Raceway, Rosamon d, CA

GO TO: Results | Daily schedule

Daily News & Notes

Sunday, Oct. 1 | Saturday, Sept. 30 | Friday, Sept. 29

Sunday, Oct. 1

HAYDEN WINS RACE, MLADIN THE TITLE AT WILLOW SPRINGS
Honda Superbike rider Nicky Hayden did what he had to do by winning the AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike finale Sunday at Willow Springs Raceway, but it wasn't enough. Australian Mat Mladin, 28, rode to a safe eighth-place finish, which was good enough to earn him the big prize - the 2000 American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike Championship.

Hayden, a 19-year-old from Owensboro, Ky., had to win the race to have any chance at the title, but he also needed Mladin to have an off day and finish 13th or worse. Mladin, a model of consistency, hadn't finished that far down in the standings since June of 1998 at Loudon, N.H. - a full 28 races without a crash or mechanical failure. On Sunday Mladin kept an eye on traffic and put his Suzuki GSXR750 on cruise control. In the end Mladin won the title by five points over Hayden 

Finishing behind Hayden were Vance & Hines Ducati riders John Kocinski and Steve Rapp. It marked the first podium finish for both riders. 

World Superbike regular Ben Bostrom took the early lead on a third Vance & Hines Ducati. Bostrom's day came to an end on lap five when he crashed his bike going into turn five. From that point on it was all Hayden. After lap five he led every lap to the finish on his factory Honda RC51, winning by 2.02 seconds over Kocinski. Hayden's race speed of 109.849 mph was a race record.

"I knew that I needed something really strange to happen to Mat (Mladin) for me to have any chance," Hayden said. "Even though I would have liked to have won the championship, all in all it was a good season for me considering it was my first full year of Superbike racing." 

Mladin seemed subdued after winning his second straight title. "It was really harder to race under these circumstances than when I'm out going for the win," Mladin explained. "I really wasn't racing today, I was more or less cruising around and making sure the championship was secure. At one point I starting racing there a little with Tommy (Hayden) and then I thought to myself 'What are you doing here? You don't need to do this.' Then I settled down and rode safely to the finish." 

Mladin's championship marked the fifth time Suzuki has won the series in its 25 years of existence.

SORENSEN BEATS FORMER PROTÉGÉ FOR MBNA 250 GP TITLE
Chuck Sorensen completed an incredible run of podium finishes to earn his second straight MBNA 250 Grand Prix championship. Sorensen, riding a World Sports Yamaha, finished second to former teammate and boss, Rich Oliver, to win the title by a scant five points. Oliver turned another great performance to earn his seventh win of the year, bringing his career total to 49 victories in the class. Veteran Michael Barnes was third. 

SMITH HOLDS OFF KUNITSUGU
Buell Pro Thunder Series regular Mike Smith held of a surprising charge mounted by Sport Rider Magazine editor Kent Kunitsugu to win his fifth race of the season. Series champ Jeff Nash was third. Kunitsugu, riding a Ducati about which his magazine is doing a feature, closed on Smith on the final lap and actually led briefly before Smith took back the lead.

ROBERTS WINS 600 SUPERSPORT TITLE IN ON DRAMATIC LAST LAP
The Pro Honda Oils 600 SuperSport championship came down the last race, last lap and last few inches and it was Erion Racing Honda's Kurtis Roberts winning the title in the most dramatic fashion in the history of the series and perhaps in all of AMA racing. The championship came down the final lap. Points leader Eric Bostrom led a three-rider pack that included Roberts and Yamaha's Jamie Hacking. Coming into turn eight of the nine-turn Willow Springs Raceway, Hacking swept under Bostrom, the two made contact and Bostrom was forced wide. Roberts snuck underneath and took the lead. Even though Roberts' path to the victory was cleared, he still needed help from Hacking to hold off Bostrom to the finish line. Bostrom drove hard out of turn nine, but came up inches short of passing Hacking. Roberts and Bostrom ended the championship tied in points with 276 each, but Roberts won the title by virtue of winning the most races.

"I figured the championship would come down to a scenario like this," said Roberts, whose brother Kenny Jr., leads the 500cc Grand Prix World Championships. "My crew set up my bike to be fast down the back straightaway. Even though I was pretty far behind coming over the hill (Turn Four) I knew my bike was fast enough to catch up." 

Roberts' championship marks the eighth 600 SuperSport title for Honda in the 14-year history of the series. It also was one of the rare times a father and son have won AMA national titles. Reg and Jason Pridmore are the only other father and son who have won AMA national road race titles.