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Tony Rees finally has a Formula One motorcycle title to his credit, after a clear win in the Tourist Trophy race at Pukekohe today.
The Kawerau rider has piled up a fine collection of trophies in the production classes during his long career and has always aspired to success in F1, but has not usually had a bike with the speed to win a title in the premier class.
That changed yesterday when Rees started from pole position with his modified Yamaha R1 and after a bad start used the power of the 1000cc engine to draw away from a group of three riders contesting second place, Kawasaki\'s Dean Fulton (Mount Maunganui) and Jared Love (Hamilton) and Suzuki\'s Brian Bernard (Wanganui).
\"I didn\'t get a good start but I knew I could get on the back straight and mow them down,\" Rees said. Once he established a good lead he backed off slightly to conserve both the bike and himself through the 36 laps of the long race, run in scorching heat.
Rees had strapped a bottle of water to his back but he was not able to drink it as the mouthpiece came loose and drained the water all over his leg. \"At least it helped to keep me cool,\" he said.
Love had to pull out when his brakes faded, but Formula One champion Fulton and Bernard duelled right to the end, Fulton just managing to grab second.
Rees also won the two-hour Production TT on his standard R1 after catching and passing Bernard with just a few minutes to go. Shaun Harris and Andrew Bretherton shared another Suzuki to finish third, while Paul Gee (Auckland) won the 600cc class by a large margin on his Yamaha 6.
Dave Cole (Auckland) claimed the Formula Two TT on his Ducati 748R after a long battle with Daniel McLachlan, which ended when the Lower Hutt rider crashed his Kawasaki ZX-6R at the railway corner when a backmarker upset his line.
The Formula Three TT saw three riders on quite different bikes battling for the lead for most of the distance: David Manuell (Auckland) on his Suzuki RGV250, Jason Easton (Foxton) on his Honda RS125 GP bike, and Ryan Lowe (New Plymouth) on his Kawasaki ZXR400. But it was a race of high attrition and Manuell was the one who survived, to earn his first major trophy.
The Sidecar TT, run over two heats, went for former champion Colin Buckley (Auckland), with Darren Abrahams (Gisborne) as passenger in his Yamaha-powered outfit. A strong challenge from reigning champions Aaron Lovell and Philip Duthie of Hamilton ended when their Suzuki-powered rig stopped on the front straight.
Tourist Trophy motorcycle meeting, Pukekohe
Formula One TT: Tony Rees (Kawerau) Yamaha R1, 1; Dean Fulton (Mt Maunganui) Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 2; Brian Bernard (Wanganui) Suzuki GSX-R750, 3.
Formula Two TT: Dave Cole (Auckland) Ducati 748R, 1; Glen Williams (Auckland) Yamaha R6, 2; Paul Gee (Auckland) Yamaha R6, 3.
Formula Three TT: David Manuell (Auckland) Suzuki RGV250, 1; Glen Tanner (Tauranga) Kawasaki ZXR400, 2; Tatsuo Hosokawa (Auckland) Honda RS125, 3.
Open Sports Production TT: Rees, Yamaha R1, 1; Bernard, Suzuki GSX-R750, 2; Shaun Harris/Andrew Bretherton (New Plymouth) Suzuki GSX-R750, 3.
600cc Sports Production TT: Gee, Yamaha R6, 1; Ivan Smith (New Plymouth)/Dennis Charlett (Palmerston North) Suzuki GSX-R600, 2; Craig Flood (Wanganui) Suzuki GSX-R600, 3.
Sidecar TT: Colin Buckley/Darren Abrahams (Auckland) Yamaha 1000, 1; John Blaymires/Nick Ives (Papamoa) Yamaha 1000, 2; Phil Duxbury/Paul Russell (Huapai) Suzuki 1100, 3.
