Martin is champion

From Professional Motorsports Productions

SHANNONVILLE, ON Pascal Picotte enjoyed a perfect day but it wasn’t enough to prevent Francis Martin from claiming his second Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Shannonville Motorsport Park Sunday.

Picotte led the final round of the 2005 season from start to finish on his Picotte Performance Yamaha YZF-R1, but with a third place result on his Snobgirls / Laval Moto Suzuki GSX-R1000 Rock Forest, QC’s Martin was able to snatch the title by five points, 315-310.

“It’s easy to make mistakes when you have that much pressure on you,” said Martin, who started the day with a 20-point lead on Picotte. “I must have made about 10 mistakes before I was able to settle down and relax.”

The destination of the championship trophy, the Canada Cup was in doubt until the closing stages of the 14-lap race around Shannonville’s 4.0km (2.5-mile) ‘Long Track.’

Martin started the last lap running fourth behind fellow Suzuki riders Clint McBain and Kevin Lacombe, a result which would have left him and Picotte tied on points with 310. Picotte would have won the title on a tiebreaker with three race victories this season to Martin’s one.

But McBain went wide in the run between turns 5 and 6, allowing his Team Suzuki / Blackfoot Suzuki teammate Lacombe and Martin through. Lacombe finished second on his Suzuki GSX-R1000, 2.630 secs. behind Picotte, with Martin third and McBain fourth.

“I just wanted to pull a gap at the start and control the pace,” said Granby, QC’s Picotte after scoring his 16th career national Superbike win. “I just can’t believe it. I came back from an injury at the start of the year and we worked really hard.”

Calgary rider McBain took third in the final Parts Canada Superbike standings with 289 points. Lacombe just missed snatching fourth. The Granby, QC racer settled for fifth with 276 points, three fewer than Brantford, ON’s Jordan Szoke.

Szoke placed fifth in Sunday’s race on the Fast Company Honda CBR1000RR, just ahead of the Diablo Performance Honda CBR1000RR of Maple Ridge, BC’s Steve Crevier. The pair ran in close company throughout the race.

In other action at Shannonville, Picotte took his first Hindle Exhaust Pro 600 Sport Bike victory of the year on his Yamaha YZF-R6 after passing the Honda CBR600RR of Crevier on the final lap. Crevier had already clinched the title at the previous round at Atlantic Motorsport Park. McBain completed the podium on his Suzuki GSX-R600.

Mark Douglas of Warkworth, ON won the International Motorcycle SUPERSHOW Amateur 600 Sport Bike Championship with a fifth place finish Sunday aboard his Yamaha YZF-R6. His closest rival for the title, James Collins of Woodstock, ON, scored the race win on his Yamaha but still came up two points short of Douglas in the final series standings.

Darren James of North Vancouver finished third in the Canadian Thunder feature at Shannonville on his Buell to clinch the 2005 series title. Bill Card of Wellesley, ON won his third race of the year on a Buell and finished second in the final standings.

Fifteen-year-old Karl Daigle of Roxton Pond, QC locked up the Suzuki SV650 National Cup crown with a second place finish in the final round. Dundas, ON’s Ross Millson scored the race win.

Erick Beausejour of Val Senneville, QC wrapped up the HJC Pro Rookie of the Year Award at Shannonville’s final round. Montreal’s Diablo Performance, which oversaw the title winning efforts of Martin and Crevier, was named the Inside Motorcycles Team of the Year.