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Contributor: Tim Gibbes
BLUE SKIES, COLD WIND, MAGNIFICENT RACING:
Dean Fulton raced away to a big lead in the fourth round of the Suzuki Road Race Series after rival Dennis Charlett crashed on the warm-up lap for the final race at Manfeild today.
Suzuki team-mates Fulton, from Mt Maunganui, and Charlett, from Palmerston North, battled back and forth through the first two A-Grade heats before Fulton won them.
The first race saw the two mighty GSX-R1000s cross the line side by side, but former superbike champion Fulton was given the victory by just two-thousandths of a second.
Fulton acknowledged that Charlett, in his first season on a big bike, was now making it to the front end of the field at national level after a couple of seasons in the 600cc class.
But it all went wrong for Charlett - who won the series last year on a Suzuki GSX-R600 - when he lost control of his bike at high speed on the warm-up lap for the third heat.
With his bike stuck in the mud, he raced back to the pits, borrowed a Suzuki SV650, and made it to the grid on time as the start was delayed so the track could be cleaned.
His brave effort came to an end, however, when he had to pull into the pits and retire early in the race.
With two rounds remaining, Fulton now leads the series by 64 points.
Father and son racers Terry and Hayden Fitzgerald from New Plymouth had a
great family day as they both won important races.
Terry, 44, claimed all three heats in the 600cc production class on Deane
Labrum's Suzuki GSX-R600, while Hayden, 17, achieved his best result to
date when he charged to victory in the final Formula Three heat.
Former champion Glen Tanner from Tauranga scored a first and two seconds on his Kawasaki ZXR400, and now holds a huge lead in the series.
Aucklander Stephen Briggs [who obviously was not at Namur with Simon Turner contesting the first round of the World SuperMoto Series] won all three supermotard events on his new KTM 660, a factory racer designed for this growing branch of the sport. He was pressed hard by Palmerston North rider Nigel Healey, aboard a KTM 520. However Briggs was unable to run the BSL 500 GP bike in the A Grade races because it seized a piston in practice.
Wanganui rider Andrew Bretherton made a clean sweep of the Suzuki SV650 class, even though he had to borrow another bike in one heat, and Chris Sales of Palmerston ran away with the 150cc Streetstock races on his Suzuki RG150.
A popular winner was Auckland's Peter Adams in the B Grade - he was riding a beautiful MV Agusta, a favourite with the crowd.
Suzuki Road Race Series, round four, Manfeild - results :
A Grade - Race one: Dean Fulton (Mt Maunganui) Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1; Dennis Charlett (Palmerston North) Suzuki GSX-R1000, 2; Terry Fitzgerald (New Plymouth) Suzuki GSX-R600, 3; James Cardow (Auckland) Kawasaki ZX6R, 4; Glen Jeffery (Auckland) Honda CBR954, 5.
Race two: Fulton 1; Charlett 2; Jeffery 3; Fitzgerald 4; Ronnie Dewys (Putaruru) Aprilia RSV1000, 5.
Race three: Fulton 1; Jeffery 2; Fitzgerald 3; Cardow 4; Dewys 5.
Series points: Fulton 234, Charlett 170, Fitzgerald 149, Dewys 141, Cardow 114.
Production Superbike - Race one: Fulton, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1; Charlett, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 2; Jeffery, Honda CBR954, 3.
Race two: Fulton 1; Charlett 2; Jeffery 3.
Race three: Fulton 1; Jeffery 2; Dewys 3.
Points: Fulton 234, Charlett 174, Dewys, Aprilia RSV1000, 163.
600cc Sports Production by Pirelli - Race one: Fitzgerald, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1; Cardow, Kawasaki ZX-6R, 2; Carey Brier (Auckland) Suzuki GSX-R600, 3.
Race two: Fitzgerald 1; Cardow 2; Brier 3.
Race three: Fitzgerald 1; Cardow 2; Craig Gollop (Upper Hutt) Yamaha R6, 3.
Points: Fitzgerald 237, Cardow 194, Greg Hassan (Auckland, Yamaha R6) 144.
Formula Three Plus by Telecom Business Directions - Race one: Glen Tanner (Tauranga) Kawasaki ZXR400, 1; Barry Armes (Wellington) Kawasaki ZXR400, 2; Hayden Fitzgerald (New Plymouth) Kawasaki ZXR400, 3.
Race two: Armes 1; Tanner 2; Barry Long (Palmerston North) Ducati 983, 3.
Race three: H Fitzgerald 1; Tanner 2; Armes 3.
Points: Tanner 201, H Fitzgerald 121, Matthew Meads (Hawera, Ducati F1) 120.
150cc Streetstock by Dunlop Tyres - Race one: Chris Sales (Palmerston North) Suzuki RG150, 1; Deane Labrum (Inglewood) Suzuki RG150, 2; William Richards (Hamilton) Suzuki RG150, 3.
Race two: Sales 1; Karl Morgan (Waitakere) Suzuki RG150, 2; Richards 3.
Race three: Sales 1; Morgan 2; Richards 3.
Points: Richards 184, Stew Graham (Wanganui, Kawasaki KR150) 180, Morgan 159.
Supermotard - Race one: Stephen Briggs (Auckland) KTM 660, 1; Nigel Healey (Palmerston North) KTM 520, 2; Kendrick Younger (Te Aroha) Kawasaki KX500, 3.
Race two: Briggs 1; Healey 2; Craig Flood (New Plymouth) Honda XR650, 3.
Race three: Briggs 1; Healey 2; Younger 3.
Points: Briggs 194, Brent Stephenson (Dannevirke, KTM 520) 121, Younger 115.
Suzuki SV650s "Rent-a-Racers" - Race one: Andrew Bretherton (Wanganui) 1; Brendon Marshall (Christchurch) 2; Todd Sutherland (Auckland) 3.
Race two: Bretherton 1; Marshall 2; Bruce Hansen (Hawera) 3.
Race three: Bretherton 1; Marshall 2; Hansen 3.
Points: Bretherton 200, Hansen 198, Marshall 180.
B Grade by Metzeler Tyres - Race one: Peter Adams (Auckland) MV Agusta 1; Barry Prior (Levin) Triumph T955, 2; Peter Tanner (Feilding) Triumph T955, 3.
Race two: Adams 1; Labrum, Suzuki GSX-R600, 2; Prior 3.
Race three: Adams 1; Prior 2; P Tanner 3.
Points: Adams 140, P Tanner 118, Labrum 115.
C Grade by NZ Motorcycle Trader & News - Race one: Barry Long (Palmerston North) Ducati 983, 1; Perry Lett (Wanganui) Husqvarna 570, 2; Craig Sergeant (Waipukurau) Husaberg FX650, 3.
Race two: Long 1; Mike Leach, Kawasaki ZXR750, 2; Lett 3.
D Grade by Buell Motorcycles - Race one: Ross Brown (New Plymouth) Kawasaki GPZ750, 1; Bradley Morrison (Wellington) Kawasaki ZXR400, 2; Richard Grimmett (Whangamata) Honda XR650, 3.
Race two: Brown 1; Morrison 2; Maurice Tooke (Port Ohope) Suzuki SV650, 3.
Race three: Morrison 1; Brown 2; Tooke 3.
Points: Brown 166, Morrison 138, Jason Hulme (Wanganui, Honda VFR400) 114.
