Between the Races: Keith McCarty
March 15, 2006
By CJ
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Despite the fact that Yamaha rider Jamie Hacking won the Superstock race at Daytona, Keith McCarty was not a happy man when he flew back to California following Bike Week. The way Yamaha’s Racing Manager saw it, several rules had been broken by his competition and several mistakes made by the AMA, and very little had been done about any of it. We spoke with McCarty in Florida immediately following the 200 and again by phone earlier this afternoon. Excerpts:

Keith McCarty isn't happy with AMA Pro Racing's performance at Daytona. DC photo

RRX: Ron Barrick says you filed a protest, but you seem to think it was not really an official complaint. Can you explain?
Keith McCarty: Well, we raised some questions that we thought we needed to get some answers for, and that they should review. If he wants to call it a protest, then I guess that’s what it was. I wasn’t really sure what they could do. We’re smart enough to realize that with the pace-car incident, what’s the recourse? Are we going to re-run the last 10 laps of the race? What could be done? I think it was more that we wanted an understanding, and at least a reason behind what happened. None of which we got, other than Ron’s [claims] of not enough personnel and blaming everyone else but himself. That’s kind of what we got.

What all did you include in your questions?
The biggest one I think—I don’t know how it could be resolved—was that the pace car came out in front of the wrong people, and no effort was made to get in front of the right people. It really took what could have been a terrific finish at the end and turned it into—I mean it was still terrific, I think, a great race. But it could have been better. That’s a shame, when we work so hard and try to inform everybody what the plan is going to be and then somebody changes the plan and doesn’t tell anybody else. I think our guy, Eric [Bostrom], and Miguel [Duhamel] both were very frustrated and trying to get the driver’s [Ron Barrick] attention. He was out having more fun driving the pace car than doing his job. Consequently, they got cheated. The other thing is that we’re looking at is infractions of [Josh Hayes] taking off before the correct spot on the track when the pace car pulled in.

Why do you think the riders weren’t brought through to get the leader behind the pace car?
I think that’s the million-dollar question; the mistake was discovered fairly early. We all get to be on the AMA frequency, and everybody heard them say, “Do you have a plan to get in front of the leaders?” and the response was, “Well, I am in front of the leaders.”.... As I said, our riders are saying there wasn’t a whole lot of intent on waving anybody by because Miguel and Eric were waving their hands like, “Let us by,” because they were strictly forbidden to pass the car until you get the signal to pass the car. So it could have been fixed, it just wasn’t.

What should he have done when he realized he wasn’t in front of the leader?
The best way to fix it is to have the guy that’s in charge of the race be somewhere that he can use clear judgments instead of negotiating the track at 90 miles per hour or whatever they’re doing around there. That would be situation number one. Number two, again, you have a chance to rectify it.... I don’t know the exact number [of racers the situation affected], but when they waved the green, there was Eric and Miguel and eight or nine other guys in front of Jake Zemke—who was the leader at that point. They could have gotten around and come up behind him and then tightened up.

Ron Barrick drives the Daytona pace car, while Eric Bostrom (32) and Miguel Duhamel (1) follow. Andrew Northcott photo

What did the AMA tell you regarding the Josh Hayes question?
The explanation we got was something about a videotape. To cut a long story short, I don’t think the AMA has any way to accurately assess whether that happened or not. In other words, to my knowledge, they have no electronic to pick up transponders at the point where you’re supposed to be able to pass. Therefore, they’re really just shooting in the dark. I’ve asked about getting video provided to me, and the only sources for video are on Josh Hayes’ bike and inside the pace car, I believe. No other source is there. Those two sources would be very, very weak for evidence either way, because the on-board cameras are not working 100-percent of the time. They’re not that reliable, quite honestly.

What is a rider supposed to do when the pace car pulls off?
It pulls off early, but you can’t pass until you’re getting the green flag when you come by here, signifying that the pace car’s going to pull off. It goes around the first turn and it pulls off, and you have to go to that mark before you can race, because they don’t want people racing with the car still on the track, so they give it some distance. Again, that’s how it’s supposed to work, in a perfect world. It’s tough. You kind of see guys who are not really staying close, kind of stringing out.

Did you really hope to get anything changed with your protest, or was it just to make a point?
With the passing thing, we have no proof, but I’ve got to take our rider’s word for it; he was right behind him. In that case, if he went from being a half-second or less in front of him, to five seconds in front of him before he crossed that cone, then yes, something should have been done. I’m only bringing it up because my rider brought it up to me. As far as the other things that were visible to the AMA—too many people over the wall or whatever—I shouldn’t have to file a protest. My questions are, “What are you going to do about it?” To my knowledge, they haven’t assessed any kind of penalties for anybody for that infraction, and they’re certainly not going to fine themselves for stupidity. Now it’s a question of, “How are we going to fix this thing?”

Bostrom finished fourth in the 200. Andrew Northcott photo

What was the thing with too many people over the wall?
In somebody’s pit stop, too many people were over the wall, which should have been witnessed by an AMA guy. I hear they’re even trying to fluff on that, but it was on TV, and we counted them. It didn’t change the outcome of anything, but it’s still a rule. If you’re going to put rules in the rulebook, then you need to do something about it when they’re broken.... The rule says they can’t even be over the wall. Again, it’s not the severity or the advantage they gained, it’s the rule. If you’re not going to take away points, then fine them.... It’s not that I want to be a jerk. I just want them to think long and hard about putting rules in there that are enforceable, or that you will enforce when the time comes. It’s so easy to sit in a meeting room and say you’re going to do it, and then the poor guy out there on the wall goes, “But they didn’t [gain an advantage].” That’s not the point. I didn’t write the rules, and in fact, I don’t care if there’s 20 people over the wall. I’m okay with that.... So that’s what I know. Nothing much changed, but I am waiting for some answers.