Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Beth Wyse

Vesrah Suzuki led from start to finish in the 6-hour opening race of the 2003 Dunlop/WERA National Endurance Series at Jennings GP in Florida.

Tray Batey, Mark Junge and John Jacobi rode the Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R1000 to a five-lap margin of victory as their success from last season continued.

Army of Darkness finished second overall and first in Mediumweight Superbike. Sam Fleming, Mark Crozier and Jeff Walker rode a Suzuki GSX-R600. Walker, who rode for Neighbor of the Beast in 2002, was racing with Army of Darkness for the first time.

Two laps behind Army of Darkness and third overall were Sean Dillon, Rob Palmieri and Greg Moore on the Team Xtreme II Suzuki GSX-R750. Their finish put them at the top of the Heavyweight Superstock class.

Team InfoTech won the 2002 Lightweight Superbike Championship, but decided to compete in the Mediumweight Superstock class for this season. In their first race in that class, they took the win on a Yamaha YZF-R6. Bradley Champion, Nicky Wimbauer and Bobby Miosek finished fifth overall.

Tight Squeeze Racing led the Lightweight Superbike class early in the race, but mechanical problems allowed their second team, Tight Squeeze II, to take the class win. The Suzuki SV650 of Steve Clark, Martin Musil and Chris Normand finished 12th overall.

Two red flags came out during the six hours. The first was for two riders who crashed in turn nine 23 minutes past the halfway mark. The second was for a rider who went down in turn 12 just before the fifth hour. There were no serious injuries.

Overall Results:

1. Vesrah Suzuki (Mark Junge/Tray Batey/John Jacobi), HSB, Suz GSX-R1000, 229 laps

2. Army of Darkness (Sam Fleming/Mark Crozier/Jeff Walker), MSB, Suz GSX-R600, 224 laps

3. Team Xtreme II (Sean Dillon/Rob Palmieri/Greg Moore), HSS, Suz GSX-R750, 222 laps

4. Velocity Crew Racing (Kevin Perkins/Paul Youngman/John Joseph), MSB, Suz GSX-R600, 221 laps

5. Team InfoTech (Nicky Wimbauer/Bradley Champion/Bobby Miosek), MSS, Yam YZF-R6, 220 laps

6. Team Xtreme (Mark Edwards/Billy Etheridge/Robert Jensen), HSB, Suz GSX-R1000, 220 laps

7. Northern Getaway (Mark Morrow/Tim Kephart/Jamie Miller), HSB, Suz GSX-R750, 219 laps

8. Ricochet Racing (Brian Suffridge/Lee Fields/Greg Ford/C.R. Gittere), MSS, Suz GSX-R600, 218 laps

9. Team Velocity Racing (Chuck Ivey/James Brown/Steve Breckenridge/Reuben Frankenfield), MSS, Suz GSX-R600, 218 laps

10. Ray C’s Racing (Dave Knapp/Fritz Kling), MSS, Yam YZF-R6, 218 laps