Caselli Wins Laughlin WORCS Finale
Kit Palmer | December 10, 2001
KTM’s newest recruit Kurt Caselli (pictured) scored the overall win at the final round of the World Off-Road Championship Series in Laughlin, Nevada. After passing Suzuki rider Robert Naughton early in the first lap on the hare and hound-like race course, Caselli pulled away from the 26-rider Pro-class field, scoring a trouble-free win. Caselli took the checkered flag over four minutes ahead of Naughton, who finished a little over two minutes ahead of Team Suzuki’s Mike Kiedrowski. KTM rider Peter Russell finished fourth, followed by KTM riders Pat Garrahan and Wade Phillips. Team Suzuki’s Rodney Smith, Kawasaki rider Kellon Watch, Suzuki’s Steve Hatch and Kawasaki-mounted K.C. Bogue rounded out the top 10.
Finishing third was more than enough for Kiedrowski, on the DR-Z430, to win the first WORCS Championship title. Smith finished out the year in second, followed by Hatch, making it a 1-2-3 sweep for the Yoshimura Suzuki team.
Previous round winner Shane Watts was running third when he crashed and was forced to call it a day, re-injuring his ribs.
Kit Palmer | Off-Road Editor
Kit Palmer started his career at Cycle News in 1984 and he’s been testing dirt and streetbikes every since – plus covering any event that uses some form of a knobby tire. He’s also our resident motorcycle mileage man with a commute of 120 miles a day.
