From Deeley Harley-Davidson
BOWMANVILLE, Ontario – Mosport International Raceway
Going into the CSBK-hosted final rounds of the 2011 Canadian Harley-Davidson® XR1200® Cup Series, MotoSport Plus-sponsored Steve Crevier had a healthy lead in the points battle with a full 61-point lead on Cochrane, Alberta rider, Cody Matechuk, riding for Privateers Harley-Davidson® of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Darren James sat solidly in third overall.
Ruthless Racing Inc. rider, Darren James, who was sitting in fourth place in overall points, made his case known during Friday’s qualifying session with the day’s best lap time of 1:32.526 on the challenging 3.957-km Mosport circuit, earning his second pole position in a row. John Ross McRae had a brilliant outing with the second fastest time – only 0.098 of a second behind James – earning the Ruthless Racing Inc. rookie his first front row start in Saturday’s race. However, the stress of Friday’s qualifying took its toll on the transmission of James’ Big Twin engine, leaving the Ruthless Racing Inc. mechanics the arduous task of rebuilding the engine until four o’clock in the morning. They completed the job just hours before the XR1200® bike was to be rolled out to do battle in the penultimate race of the Harley-Davidson® XR1200® Cup Series.
With dark, menacing rain clouds rolling in, and after painfully long delays in the action, the XR1200® motorcycles were finally rolled to the grid for their race. When the start lights finally dimmed, Ruthless Racing Inc. support rider, Michael Barnes, from Boca Raton, Florida, jumped out to an early lead. But the race quickly became a four-rider freight train of Barnes, J.R. McRae, Steve Crevier, and Darren James all vying for the win. McRae backed up his great qualifying session, constantly jumping into the lead, only to lose the advantage again to the hard-charging Barnes. Crevier looked for a way to seal his championship right then and there and briefly held the lead, but with constant pressure from Barnes and McRae he opted to not take any unnecessary chances of throwing it all away. The four lead riders continued their battle with Sherbrooke Harley-Davidson® rider, Samuel Proulx, making up the gap. Behind him, a war was also being waged between Chris Harmon, racing for Vision Harley-Davidson®, Cody Matechuk, racing under the umbrella of Privateers Harley-Davidson®, guest rider, Oliver Jervis, racing on the Deeley Harley-Davidson® Canada media bike, and Elie Daccache, supported by Harley-Davidson® de L’Outaouais. When the chequered fabric was aired out at the end of the 14‑lap final, it was Michael Barnes who dominated the race with a narrow margin of victory. J.R. McRae had another great ride to finish second – his first podium finish of the season. Darren James held on to the final step of the podium, while Steve Crevier chased the leaders to the flag with a richly deserved fourth place, earning him the inaugural #1 plate for the Canadian Harley-Davidson® XR1200® Cup Series Championship, which was awarded to Crevier in person by none other than motorcycle racing patron, Don James, Chairman & CEO of Deeley Harley-Davidson® Canada.
Crevier commented after the race, “Those guys were getting away from me a little bit on the back straight and I decided that racing with them was getting a little too risky, so I stayed out of it a bit so I could win this championship.” He added, “I just have to thank MotoSport Plus of Kingston and Pete Snell, my mechanic, because if it wasn’t for their help I wouldn’t be here right now.” With his great showing, J.R. McRae won the “Performance Under Gear Performer of the Race” Award.
With the new champion already crowned, Sunday’s race was just for bragging rights, and for a race that could have been lacklustre it was anything but uneventful. Once again, just as in the previous day, four riders took an early check-out on the field and waged a war for the appreciative Mosport fans. In what turned out to be one of the most exciting races of the weekend, Barnes and Crevier left nothing on the table and all four lead riders were in the 1:31 lap times with only 0.2 of a second separating them. This time, Crevier, sporting his new #1 plate, was not playing it safe and was challenged for the lead at every turn, occasionally getting in front of the four-rider battle. On the final lap, Barnes seemed to have it all sowed up, but in the treacherous last turn, corner 10, Crevier made a daring pass up the inside of Barnes to win the drag race at the finish line, relegating the US rider to runner-up status. Darren James again took the final step of the podium with Samuel Proulx in a hard-earned fourth. Cody Matechuk finished in fifth, just ahead of Elie Daccache, with J.R. McRae falling back in the later stages of the race to finish in seventh.
The best-of-the-best Canadian racers will be competing in the upcoming AMA Pro’s Vance & Hines XR1200® event at the Red Bull Indy GP in Indianapolis, Indiana, on August 27 and 28.
Deeley Harley-Davidson® Canada would like to take this opportunity to thank the racers and their teams, the Harley-Davidson® Retailers supporting them, the many sponsors involved, as well as all of the enthusiasts across Canada who have helped make the new Canadian Harley-Davidson® XR1200® Cup Series an extraordinary experience for all involved.
