1990s AMA Nationals: Who won the most across the decade?

Once again, thanks to all those who participated in our “Tuesday Teaser”, where we asked you this simple question:

And for a proper test for those who fancy themselves with a little more in-depth knowledge, we also asked you to break it down per class – 125, 250, and 500!

Words: Ben Rumbold, Images: Ray Mayes

Note: As you may notice, we are low on photos for classic AMA racing.  Can anyone help in the future?  Please email us if you can! Write to news@dirthub.co.uk

So, just for a proper look at it, here are the answers, giving you the top ten in each class, and the top ten overall from those heady days of pink, purple, yellow, and green, and all fonts inbetween!

125cc Nationals:

The early part of the decade continued the scrap from the end of the 1980s, that of veteran throttle jockey and aerial nutcase Guy Cooper Vs the young and upcoming, but decidedly straight-edge Mike Kiedrowski.  Cooper did that rare thing to start the 1990s – stepping away from Honda and actually winning a title, although he was maybe helped by Jean-Michel Bayle breaking his arm in the Washougal waves. It was Suzuki’s first AMA title, in 125cc or any other for that matter, since Mark Barnett in 1982.  In the pitched battle of 1991, the consistent 1989 champ Kiedrowski, also having stepped off the Honda but this time going green, won in the points chase even though “Airtime” won more overall verdicts.  Kawasaki celebrated only their second AMA 125 title, after Jeff Ward in 1984.

In 1992, it was the turn of Yamaha to break their drought, with a first 125 crown since Broc Glover’s in 1979! Jeff Emig won with a late surge of points over Mike LaRocco, who also makes out top ten in 125s after winning on a Suzuki in both 1990 and 1991, despite only racing half the season on the smaller bikes.  He had raced on the RM250 mainly, but back then the National season ran half-and-half with 250s & 500s, so with the yellow brand having no half-litre bike, Mike had switched to the tiddler.  With a full season he only landed 19 points back from Emig after missing the penultimate round through injury.

In 1993 Honda re-claimed the crown, with Doug Henry switching to the red machines after claiming a solitary win for Yamaha in 1991. He won two close-fought battles with Jeffro, before Steve Lamson put together two stunning years to keep the Honda up there, and put himself 2nd in the eventual list of the decade.

Those years would have been called dominant, before a rider came along who truly showed the world what domination really means.  Ricky Carmichael swept all before him, winning more in the last three years of the 1990s than anyone had previously, and before he even got out of his teens. Those 25 wins equalled Barnett’s record for the class, so he promptly went out and topped that after cleaning up in the 250s in 2001.

Kevin Windham showed great early promise for Yamaha but could never quite bring a title home, and how about the original prodigious teenager Robbie Reynard sitting there in the top ten? A winner at the age of 16, he was still on a 125 five long years later and, like Lamson, Cooper, and the ever-charging Ryan “Ryno” Hughes, would never win on a bigger bike.  Hughes did come so close to the 1995 title with that heart-breaking snapped chain in the final round.

250cc Nationals:

Up until the end of 1993, the 250cc National Championship was decided by between 6 and 8 rounds, as the top racers then switched to 500s roughly halfway through the year. The battle of the Jeffs raged in 1990 as Stanton pipped Ward in a last moto showdown between the reigning champ on the Honda and Kawasaki’s long-time top man. Wardy wouldn’t win another 250 National after that season, while Stanton narrowly lost the title to teammate Jean-Michel Bayle, who bizarrely didn’t take a single overall victory in the 250 class! Jeff had his revenge in 1992, although Damon Bradshaw was a constant threat for Yamaha and Bayle won his last ever National at the final round while Stanton took the title from Kawasaki’s Mike Kiedrowski.

It was then the turn of the “MX Kied” to take the crown for Kawasaki and complete the “875” bunch of titles, only the second rider to do that in the USA.  He was displaced by teammate Mike LaRocco in 1994, who was a constant threat throughout the decade.  1995 saw the King of Supercross finally master the outdoors, with Jeremy McGrath taking the title back for Honda, before Jeff Emig fought him all the way and won a nail-biter at Steel City in 1996.

Jeffro romped away with a second straight crown in 1997, keeping MC winless and holding off a spirited challenge from John Dowd, who is perhaps one of the most surprising inclusions in the top ten.  He won an underwater one-moto mud-fest in 1991 whilst on a privateer Honda, claimed two more for Yamaha in 1994, before his title challenge in ’97.

1998 saw the rise of the four-stroke, as Doug Henry took the title on his production-based Yamaha YZ400F, including a heroic win at Budds Creek, the track where he had hurt himself so badly twice before.  Then in 1999 there was another popular Champion in Greg Albertyn, finally successful in his fifth year of American racing after a season-long battle with Kevin Windham.

500cc Nationals:

The 500cc class was coming to the end of its life in the early 1990s in AMA racing, without the European four-strokes and the extra sense of history that kept it running in Europe for another ten years after the final AMA series in 1993. As a result only 21 races are there in the history books to be counted, and despite never quite being able to nail down the big-bore title, Michigan hardman Jeff Stanton won a third of those in his attempts to grab the Championship.  He was denied by the Kawasaki of Jeff Ward in 1990, his teammate Jean-Michel Bayle in 1991, then the green machines of Mikes Kiedrowski and LaRocco in the final two years of the class. There were only 4 rounds in 1993, including Jeff’s last ever National win.  His early mentor also took the last win of his illustrious career back in 1990.

Overall:

So there’s your answer! Jeff Emig just about one enough to hold the force of nature that was RC off the top spot for the decade, whilst the under-rated Mike Kiedrowski, champion in each class, came home 3rd in our list. LaRocco and Lamson finished level, and also took two title each, but LaRocco was the only other winner in each class apart from JMB, who didn’t quite make our top ten with 7 National wins in his three final years of racing.

McGrath, Henry, and Stanton were surprisingly in the second half of our top ten, and how about K-Dub and Airtime Cooper landing in the top ten?

Congrats to those who got it right, thank you all for playing along, and join us next week for another Tuesday Teaser!