Lucero, Schwartz Rev Up Their War on Wheels at Fairgrounds

It’s only 25 yards from the starting gate to the first turn on the 190-yard oval at the Orange County Fairgrounds. But that short straightaway has been the scene of one of the biggest feuds in American speedway motorcycle racing.

Defending U.S. champion Bobby Schwartz of Costa Mesa and 1988 champion Steve Lucero of Riverside have staged a two-month battle in scratch main events.

Schwartz, 33, and Lucero, 25, have been involved in four incidents in the past 10 weeks and still they have managed to combine to win seven scratch main races. Schwartz won the event five times in the first seven weeks and Lucero has won the past two weeks.

But the two have also paid a price for their bitter feud. Each rider has been disqualified twice for their roles in the incidents.

“The Feud at the Fairgrounds” began on Friday the 13th of April and came to a head two weeks ago when Schwartz clashed with promoter Harry Oxley in a small office near the pit area where a confrontation deteriorated into a pushing match.

Schwartz, a 17-year veteran who has raced internationally, says, “I think Steve is out to get me. I fear bodily injury every time I’m in the same race with Steve Lucero.”

Lucero, the strongest and most aggressive rider on the circuit, said, “It’s just racing. Downright hard racing between the two of us, and one of us can’t handle it.”

All the incidents have occurred in four-lap scratch races where riders line up four abreast at the start. Traditionally, the rider who gets off to the quickest start and is first to reach the turn usually goes on to win the race on the narrow track that was originally built for equestrian shows.

The majority of crashes on the track--where riders reach speeds of only 40 miles per hour--come at Turn 1 as the four riders fight for the lead. Track announcer Larry Huffman once compared the race to Turn 1 as “a calvary charge into a closet door.”

“I would say that 98% of the race is getting through the first turn,” Lucero said. “It’s a major, major part of the race. My feeling is this: I’m going through that turn first no matter who’s in my way.

“I don’t care if it was my wife, my mother or my grandmother racing against me, I’m going to race as aggressively as I can to get through that turn. We’re talking about my livelihood.”

Lucero, who began riding junior speedway when he was 10 years old, estimates he lost at least $1,000 when he was disqualified twice by referee Phil Moon for dangerous riding. But he said he won’t back down to Schwartz or any other rider.

Schwartz, an often-volatile rider, has other ideas. He doesn’t know how the feud began, but insists he won’t continue riding under the present circumstances.

“All of this has taken the fun out of racing,” Schwartz said. “I’m really upset because nobody . . . the referee or the promoter, has done anything about this. I’ve told Phil Moon, ‘Steve is out to get me.’ All of this has made me seriously consider retiring after this year.”

The fourth incident was May 25, when Schwartz fell on Turn 2 of the third lap. Moon ruled that there was only incidental contact between Schwartz and Lucero and that Schwartz had intentionally gone down in hopes of getting a restart. (A restart is granted when half the field falls before half the race has been completed.)

Moon declared Lucero the winner and Schwartz went straight for promoter Oxley. Asked what happened, Schwartz said, “I pushed him, we shoved each other and then he choked me.”

Does Schwartz have any second thoughts about attacking the promoter?

“I have no remorse whatsoever,” he said. “I’ve been treated poorly, and the promoter thinks all of this is great for his business.”

Oxley, who witnessed only the fourth incident between the riders, said he received reports on every incident while on business in England. He praised Moon’s officiating of the incidents and blamed both riders equally for their roles in escalating the feud, both on and off the track.

“Racing is a hard business with an element of danger,” Oxley said. “When you mix in some animosity between two very emotional, high-strung individuals like Bobby and Steve, it’s very difficult to deal with.

“I think Bobby has reached a point in his career where he doesn’t need to worry about an incident that might put him in a cast. But Steve isn’t 100% wrong here. Bobby is falling down awfully easy. He’s gotten a little gun shy.”

Moon said he has talked to both riders and has carefully watched both riders since the first incident on April 13.

“I don’t know what sparked the incidents, but most of the problems have have started in the pit area before the races,” Moon said. “Since Day 1, when I started in speedway 20 years ago, we’ve always had two riders who haven’t gotten along.

“This is a little different because we’re dealing with two champions. My concern, as always, is with rider safety. I don’t want someone else hurt because there’s some bad blood between the riders.”

Former two-time world champion Bruce Penhall of Laguna Niguel has witnessed two of the incidents from his private box at Turn 1 and also has expressed concern for other riders’ safety.

“What bothers me is that I’m afraid someone is going to get hurt,” Penhall said. “If something were to happen to either Bobby or Steve, they’d have to live with that the rest of their lives.

“There’s going to be accidents in racing . . . it’s part of the game. There’s going to be a minimal amount of bumping on a small track like Costa Mesa. But there’s no room in the sport for dangerous riding.

“I think Steve has gotten very frustrated that Bobby wins so much. He can’t beat him, so he’s decided to go through him. Now, Steve has Bobby right where he wants him . . . looking over his shoulder to see if he’s coming.”

The Schwartz-Lucero feud certainly isn’t the first in speedway. Local favorite Rick Woods battled Mike Bast in the 1970s and Alan Christian battled with Bast in the 1980s.

The bad blood between Christian and Bast reached its height in 1980 when Christian won 13 consecutive scratch main events at the Fairgrounds. Christian, competing in his 20th season, works next to Lucero in the pit area. He has watched this latest battle escalate over the past few weeks and says money--riders can earn up to $1,000 on a scratch main event--is the root of the problem.

“I talk to Steve all the time,” Christian said. “You have two hard riders who are having problems at the best-paying track on the circuit. You want to win at Costa Mesa more than anywhere else.

“I understand what they’re going through. I look back at what happened between Mike and myself and I understand how these things tend to snowball when you’re racing against the same guys, four nights a week.

“I got tired of Mike Bast ramming into me, and one night, I jumped off my bike and got into a fist fight with him on the track. It started with an incident and then you feel you have to pay somebody back.

“I’m not proud of the fight with Mike, but it happened. After that (fight), we stayed away from each other. He ran into me for the last time after the fight. Sometimes, something like that has to happen to end a feud.”

Another round of this war on wheels could unfold tonight on the Fairgrounds oval.

THE FEUD AT THE FAIRGROUNDS

Defending U.S. champion Bobby Schwartz of Costa Mesa and 1988 champion Steve Lucero have been involved in four racing incidents in 10 weeks at the Orange County Fairgrounds.

April 13: In the scratch semifinal, Lucero is disqualified for dangerous riding after he collided with Schwartz. Schwartz goes on to win the scratch main event.

May 4: In the scratch main, Schwartz is disqualified for falling on Turn 2 after bumping into Lucero. Referee Phil Moon rules Schwartz fell intentionally in hopes of getting a restart. A press release the following week says Schwartz was disqualified for “bad acting.”

May 18: Lucero is disqualified for ramming Schwartz into the crash wall at Turn 1 in the scratch main event. Schwartz wins the main event, and Moon fines Lucero $100 for dangerous riding.

May 25: Schwartz and Lucero bump on Turn 2 of the third lap in the scratch main event and Schwartz falls. Moon rules Lucero the winner because half the race was completed. Schwartz confronts promoter Harry Oxley and a pushing match ensues.