Yet Another Comeback in the Making for Henry

May 31, 2006 7:35am

AMA Supermoto comes to Road America’s Briggs & Stratton Motorplex

PICKERINGTON, Ohio (May 30, 2006) -- Doug Henry surprised himself with a pair of victories in the AMA Supermoto Championship presented by Parts Unlimited season opener in Fontana, Calif., in April. The Graves Yamaha rider hopes to continue his remarkable comeback as the series gets back underway at Road America’s Briggs & Stratton Motorplex this Saturday, June 3 in Elkhart Lake, Wis.

Henry is no stranger to making comebacks from injury. In 1995 Henry broke his back in a terrifying motocross crash at Budd Creek, Md., while dueling with Jeremy McGrath for the lead. Doctors said Henry would never race again, but come back he did. He won the AMA Motocross Championship in 1998. A year ago at Road America Henry beat World Supermoto Champ Thierry Van den Bosch in one of the most exciting AMA Supermoto races yet. But two rounds later he suffered a bad crash at the Copper Mountain, Colo., race and injuries forced him to miss the rest of the season.

As the series comes to the challenging Motorplex circuit this weekend Henry is again mounting another strong return. He leads Jeff Ward, of Troy Lee Designs Honda, by nine points in the standings. Red Bull KTM HMC rider Kurt Nicoll is a close third, just one point behind Ward.

“I admit I didn’t expect to win in my first race back,” Henry said. “This stretch of three straight weekends of races is going to be very important for the championship. There’s no doubt that I still have some work to do to be where I want in terms of fitness and getting back to riding shape. I think these races, starting with Road America, will give me a better feel for where I stand.”

Second ranked Ward was relieved to escape the series opener with solid points.

“We had problems with our bike in Fontana,” Ward explained. “The clutch was going out and I had problems with the brakes in the second race. Fortunately I was riding really well and was able to salvage some good finishes. Hopefully we’ll have all the bike issues resolved and I’ll be able to have a better shot at winning at Road America.”

Defending series champ Jurgen Kunzel, of Germany, stalled his bike in the second race at Fontana and ended up 11th. He comes into Elkhart Lake needing a good weekend to get his title defense back on track.

Cassidy Anderson, of Provo, Utah, scored the victory in AMA Hot Wheels Supermoto Lites class at Fontana and brings a three point lead over Frenchman Alexandre Thiebault to Road America.

Wisconsin’s own Ben Carlson, of West Bend, leads the AMA 70/30 Racing Supermoto Unlimited class after taking victory in California. Carlson is hoping for another strong showing in front of his hometown friends and family. He knows the Briggs & Stratton track with countless hours racing on the twisty circuit.

The Road America races will air on OLN on June 17 at 5:00 pm Eastern.

The AMA Supermoto Championship races are part of Road America’s Suzuki Superbike Doubleheader on June 1-4 in Elkhart Lake, Wis. Tickets for the event can be purchased by calling 1.800.365.RACE or visiting www.roadamerica.com. Camping is available and children under 12 are admitted free.

WHAT: AMA Supermoto Championship presented by Parts Unlimited at Road America, rounds three and four of the AMA Supermoto Championship presented by Parts Unlimited.
WHERE: Road America, located just East of Elkhart Lake, Wis. On Hwy 67.
WHEN: June 3, 2006.
COURSES: Road America’s Briggs & Stratton Motorplex.
2005 WINNERS: Supermoto (Thierry van den Bosh & Doug Henry), Supermoto Unlimited (David Baffeleuf), Supermoto Lites (Mark Burkhart).
SCHEDULE: Saturday, June 3 – Practice begins at 12:00 p.m. Timed qualifying from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. Supermoto Superpole at 5:30 p.m. Final events begin at 6:40 p.m.