Exactly one week ago the calls went out. Three riders at A2 were disqualified for fuel. It seems at this point at least two of them are victims of mistaken test data. Could this really all be a bad dream? Answer - So far the facts point to lab error.
Yamaha got burned on fuel the first time nearly 3 years ago in 2004, when Chad Reed lost 25 points on the weekend he should have clinched the supercross title. Since, Yamaha takes samples of it's fuel when cans are opened, and has its own samples saved and verified by officials in the event of a post race fuel test.
No numbers have been released officially and no one spoke on the record about this, but the news from Anaheim is Yamaha's fuel that tested high for oxygen is verified good at another lab. Two different labs, two different results. One says in, one says out.
Which is more likely? The test data that led the AMA to DQ Hill is suspect. Hill's fuel was very high oxygen, which VP Fuels people said looks suspicious and erroneous. The % over limit for Hill was about the same number as Wey's - 1.6% over the limit. The "dash 1" fuel that Hill and Wey both ran in supercross came from the same batch at VP. They only made this stuff one time so far.
How is it two riders on different teams can use fuel from the same batch that tests good in one lab and way off at another, with the same discrepancy? If the fuel were tampered with, both would have to have done about the same thing to get that result. VP says that much oxygen is not a realitic number anyway, so what is it?
So far, all facts point to this being a mistake at the AMA's lab.
