Larry Lawrence | August 24, 2016
Photo by Henny Ray Abrams
Jimmy Filice had come so close, but couldn’t quite win the big prize of the Daytona International Lightweight race. That’s what the AMA 250 Grand Prix round at Daytona International Speedway was called in those days. Up until the Grand Prix came to Laguna Seca in 1988, the Daytona 250GP race was the biggest 250cc road race in America, and probably the biggest 250 race outside of the Grands Prix. Much like its Daytona 200 big brother, every year the Daytona 250 GP attracted an international field, often times with World Championship Grand Prix riders coming to run the race for the prestige, the money and also as a warm-up to the Grand Prix season.
By 1993 Jimmy Filice had done about all you could do on a 250cc Grand Prix road race bike. He’d won a slew of race and the AMA 250 Grand Prix Championship, he’d raced GPs and famously won the 250cc race at the 1988 United States Grand Prix at Laguna Seca Raceway. About the only thing lacking on Filice’s 250 résumé was a win in Daytona’s International Lightweight race.
Perhaps something had rubbed off from his protégé Kenny Roberts. After turning expert in 1972 Roberts was a leading contender to win the Daytona 200 every season, but it took him until 1978 to finally pull off the feat.
Filice’s career at Daytona started off on the right foot. As a Novice in 1980 he blitzed the field to take victory, but then the dry spell began at the International Lightweight event. (It should be noted that Filice won the Fall AMA 250 National at Daytona in October of 1982, but that was a race of much less significance than the March Bike Week event).
In in rookie expert season Filice might have gotten the job done and had that race marked off his check list, but for one Eddie Lawson.
In his first race as an expert at Daytona, Filice, riding the Roberts/Lawwill Racing Yamaha, actually won the qualifying heat race and the pole over Lawson and 250cc World Champ Anton Mang, both on factory Kawasakis. In the race Filice led late, but Lawson took over on the closing laps and held off Filice for the victory. Mang was third. Not a bad start for rookie Filice, still it was not a victory.
Filice was heavily favored to win in 1982 against another strong field. He won the pole, but then crashed in oil or water while leading the race.
The third time might have been the charm for Filice at Daytona in ’83, but a Brazilian Grand Prix rider named Antonio Neto caught fire that week and dominated the race, shocking everyone at the Speedway that year by finishing ahead of Filice by 17 seconds. Afterwards Filice explained something was wrong with his Yamaha and the bike wouldn’t shift under load, though he graciously he added that he thought Neto would have been very tough to beat on that day, even had his motorcycle been perfect.
After the ’83 race, Filice didn’t compete in the Daytona International Lightweight for years, going off to focus on flat track and then Superbike racing. Then Filice reached his racing zenith with his unexpected and extremely popular US 250cc Grand Prix victory at Laguna in ’88. Filice could truly say that he’d won the most prestigious 250cc road racing event in America, the GP having relegated the Daytona event to second fiddle.
Filice was a passenger in a serious traffic accident in 1990 and it took him a year-and-a-half of rehab to return to racing, so he missed any chance to race at Daytona in 1990 and ’91. After the ’91 season was already in progress Filice made his comeback after finding a ride with Morris Murray’s L.A. Motor Works Yamaha. He missed Daytona. His first race back in America was an 11th-place finish in the AMA 250GP race at Loudon, New Hampshire. It appeared Filice was not able to find the speed he had before the auto accident. But things began to turn around, and he went on a late-season run, winning four races and earning the AMA 250 Grand Prix title – his first professional championship a full decade after he began his pro career.
Filice was hoping to put together a World Championship ride for ’92, but when that didn’t materialize he was picked up by the Camel Honda team to try to defend his AMA 250 GP title, which finally brought him back to the Daytona 250 GP race for the first time since 1983. Once again Filice was the pre-race favorite, but his Camel Honda RS250 was having teething issues all weekend and it broke two laps into the race.
Finally, in 1993 it all came together for Filice at Daytona. That year he was riding with Wayne Rainey Racing/Otsuka Electronics Yamaha.
Riders had to endure 40 miles per hour gusts during qualifying. The fierce wind even caused a few riders to crash. Filice admitted that he was thrown around in the infield, yet despite the treacherous conditions, Filice still managed to set a new 250 qualifying record with a lap of 1:57.031 at 109.509 mph.
It would get even happier that weekend for the team, but not without a moment of holding their breath. A race morning practice session crash had definitely done something serious to his Filice’s ankle. As he walked the pits towards his blue and yellow Otsuka Yamaha, every step produced a grimace. Would Filice be able to race with the pain?
The answer came soon after the start of the race. Under bright skies, but windy conditions the green flag was waved and Filice took the lead racing into turn one over Rich Oliver and Chris D’Aluisio. Filice and Oliver traded the lead multiple times in the early going. Halfway through the race Filice began to gradually pull clear of Oliver turning laps in the 1:56 range. “Rich was really giving me a battle so I thought, ‘Man, I better put my head down and put in some good laps.'” Filice explained. “I know how tough Rich is. I knew he would be there ’til the end.”
Crediting Filice with spectacular riding under the circumstances was Oliver. “I could tell he was sore in the early going. He was taking wide lines through the turns and I was able to take advantage of that. Once he got in gear though there was nothing I could do to catch him. He was going into the turns with so much speed. he just got away.”
In the end it was a jubilant Filice taking his first win at Daytona, followed by Oliver eight seconds back. Filice’s winning average of 108.498 mph was a new race record for 250s. For just a moment Filice forgot about his pain and jumped off his bike in victory circle. “This win is so sweet,” said Filice. “I didn’t know what to expect after I crashed. I was a little more nervous than I usually am.”
A dozen years after coming so close in his first attempt, Filice finally won the race at Daytona that had proven so elusive.
