CHRISTCHURCH - Motorcycle road racer Jason McEwen bounced back from a spectacular crash during timed practice to regain the New Zealand superbike grand prix title with a quality ride at Ruapuna Park yesterday.
The Palmerston North rider handled windy and wintry conditions superbly as he guided his Kawasaki ZX9R to winNew Zealand's premier motorcycling race.
He had to pull out all the stops to hold out Hamilton's Jarod Love, on a Suzuki 840. Love constantly probed for an opening during the last lap as they rode at speeds approaching 300 km/h.
McEwen refused to be rattled by the intensity of the challenge and it was ultimately Love who ended the battle with a spectacular fall at the hairpin barely 1km from the finish.
"I knew he would have a go somewhere," said McEwen. "I was expecting him to fly up the inside and I just put my head down and my bum up."
Love could still smile afterwards as he was treated for grazing, bruising and an ankle injury.
"I wanted to get Jason on the last lap because I knew he would come back at me. Then I fell off at the slowest part of the course. The back wheel slid out and it spat me off."
Aucklander Dean Fulton inherited second place from the luckless Love, finishing 15s back, and another Aucklander Paul Gee was third.
The New Zealand-made BSL two-stroke grand prix racer completed only its second race in the grand prix, finishing seventh. The three-cylinder engine was only firing on two cylinders and rider Stephen Briggs did well to finish as high as he did.
Earlier, McEwen scored an outstanding win in the New Zealand open sports production grand prix with the production version of his Kawasaki superbike, an astonishing performance on a bike which was all but written off in his crash during practice on Saturday. - NZPA
