Ducati & Yamaha’s Gentlemen’s Agreement: Rossi to Test GP10 at Valencia – Announcement Delayed

Still waiting for an announcement from Ducati that they’ve signed Valentino Rossi? So are we, and as we know now the delay of the worst kept secret in MotoGP is due to a gentleman’s agreement between Ducati & Yamaha. In exchange for delaying the announcement until after the American round at Laguna Seca (now slated for the Monday after racing at Brno), Yamaha is allowing Rossi to test the Ducati Desmosedici GP10 when MotoGP stops at Valencia at the end of the 2010 season.

New Ducati Model to be Unveiled at Laguna Seca

UPDATE: Ducati will be unveiling to the public its 2011 Ducati 848 Superbike EVO, which will have a $1,000 cheaper “Dark” variant as well.

Get ready Ducatisti, a new Ducati model is coming in two weeks. To be launched at Laguna Seca’s Ducati Island during the GP weekend, Ducati is tight lipped as to what the new model could be. In our invitation to the event, we are told only that the unveiling will be “hosted by four very excited guests to whom this new model means quite a lot.” The unveiling will be at 1pm on Saturday, and we’ll be there with our cameras.

Brammo Empulse – This Changes Everything

We’ve been expecting an electric sportbike from Brammo for over a month now, getting our first clues from our Bothan spies last week that the bike’s launch was imminent. Now we can officially say that the Brammo Empulse is the latest creation from the Ashland, Portland based Brammo, Inc. Continuing Brammo’s electric motorcycle offering, the Brammo Empulse represents the first production sportbike to be available by consumers. The Empulse comes in three flavors (Brammo Empulse 6.0, Empulse 8.0, & Empulse 10.0) with differing amounts of on-board power each variant.

WSBK: Ducati Gets Another Weight Reduction

From the official results of World Superbike’s stop at Brno, the FIM has once again determined that twin-cylinder motorcycles, i.e. Ducatis, will get another minimum weight reduction. Averaging more than a five point deficit over the last three WSBK events (Miller Motorsports Park, Misano, and Brno), WSBK rules require that twins be given another 3kg weight reduction, as the rules have been deemed to “favor” the 1000cc 4-cylinder motorcycles too heavily.

Rumor: Shake-Up at Ducati North America

UPDATE: John Paolo Canton, Ducati PR Manager, has responded in the comments that Lock was last spotted slaving away in his office, and it’s business as usual in Ducati North America.

With all the commotion going on today, our last piece of breaking news is the developing shake-up that’s going on at Ducati North America. Presumably involving the departure of Ducati North America CEO Michael Lock, we’ve been told changes at Ducati N.A. are occurring at the highest levels. All day we’ve been unable to reach anyone at Ducati’s Cupertino office, so we cannot confirm the report at this time…hey guys, pick up your phones!

Valentino Rossi Signs Two-Year Contract with Ducati

Let’s avoid the the “scoops”, “exclusives”, and “OMG’s”, and just say that Asphalt & Rubber has received word from a trusted source that Valentino Rossi has signed a two-year agreement with Ducati, that’s set to be announced on Monday…and boom goes the dynamite (sorry, we couldn’t resist). The Rossi/Ducati fantasy has been put forth for years, with the fervor on the subject reaching its pinnacle this season, as Ducati reportedly wafted a €15 million salary (almost double Yamaha’s offer) in front of the nine-time World Champion.

BREAKING: Stoner Confirmed to Repsol Honda – Three Man Team with Pedrosa & Dovizioso

It didn’t take long for the other shoe to drop, and now it is official that Casey Stoner will race with HRC in 2011, after it was announced moments ago that the Australian would be leaving the Ducati MotoGP team. Perhaps the most unexpected development in this announcement is HRC’s intentions of keeping both Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso for the 2011 season. The likely result of this will be a two-man Repsol Honda team, and a second single-bike team, which is likely to be sponsored by Red Bull.

2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R Testing with Photos & Video

There’s a lot of pressure on Kawasaki for 2011. Team Green has exited MotoGP, and is completely un-competitive with its ZX-10R in World Superbike and World Superstock 1000. Looking to rectify the situation, Kawasaki has gone back to the drawing board with it’s liter bike offering, and have been testing the 2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R at Suzuka for the last two days this week. With test riders Hidemichi Takahashi & Akira Yanagawa on-board, we get our first glimpse at the rumored 190hp/190kg Superbike taking laps. Video confirms that a normal firing order is inside the four-cylinder motor (sorry, no cross-plane here), but traction control is rumored to come as a standard option.

Video: The Motus KMV4 GDI Engine

Motorcycle upstart Motus Motorcycles continues to press forward with its MST-01 sport-tourer, and has released a video that talks more about the development of their 1645cc gasoline direct-injection V4 motor: the KVM4. Balking at the advice of others not to build their own powerplant, Motus has teamed up with Katech to design an in-house motor for the Motus MST-01.

Video: Crocs vs. Asphalt

There’s so many things going on in this video, we’re not certain where to begin. Filmed on Mulholland Highway by the same fine folks who brought us video footage of the guy who crashed in front of a CHP officer, this new saga takes a different approach to riders exceeding their limits on city streets. Take an unsuspecting white Honda Elite scooter, a pair of Crocs shoes, and some invisible knee pucks, and you’ve got all the ingredients for a bizarre Sunday morning lowside that could have been much, much, much worse. While we’ll give bonus points for good dirt-tracking technique, be sure to check the slow-mo footage for the exact moment the rider’s shoes depart humanity, and dive over the cliff.

Concept: Subaru WRX Powered “KickBoxer”

Mon 10/26/2009 @ 6:02 pm, by Jenny Gun

Home » Bikes » Concept: Subaru WRX Powered “KickBoxer”

Concept: Subaru WRX Powered KickBoxer KickBoxer concept subaru wrx motorcycle 5 560x315

What you see above is the work of one Ian McElroy. It’s a render, done in SolidWorks, of a concept motorcycle that has a Subaru WRX motor at its core. With twin-intercoolers, underseat turbocharger, and a hub-steering chassis, the KickBoxer, as McElroy calls it, is an impressive looking machine, but what’s most impressive is that Ian didn’t know a lick of SolidWorks before he set out to make this design. Photos and spec’s after the jump.

Learning as he went along, McElroy painstakingly had to battle with not only fitting a car motor into a bike chassis, but also with operating the SolidWorks software. The result is a tasteful and eye-catching design that promises some punch (couldn’t resist that) when you twist the throttle.

Surprisingly in the concept, the motor & transmission from the Subaru don’t look nearly as looming as one would suspect. In his design, McElroy uses both front and rear single-sided swingarms, with perimeter rim disc-brakes. Reminiscent of the Confederate Wraith, the overall effect of the KickBoxer is a sportier, and probably better handling street shredder.

Should anyone decide to build this machine, please let us know.

Proposed Specifications of the KickBoxer:

Engine: stock Subaru WRX
Turbo: stock IHI
Wheels: 5Ziggen “ProRacer”
Wheelbase: 56.5″
Rake: 20 degrees
Right angle gearbox: from a Mitsubishi AWD car
Transmission: Baker Torquebox
Belt drive: BDL
Front hub: rear hub, 1980’s GM car
Rear axle: modified Datsun 280Z stub axle
Rear shock: aftermarket Buell type pull shock

Source: Flickr via The Kneeslider

Top 5 Related Posts:

  1. Igor Chack’s 2012 Izh-1 Hybrid Motorcycle Concept
  2. Ducati Desmosedici RR Trike Concept
  3. BMW Concept 6: The 6-Cylinder BMW Returns
  4. CR&S DUU Concept Picks Up Where Ducati Left Off
  5. Triumph Bobbeville Concept

Comment:

  1. this thing is sexy as hell!!!
    -peter

  2. FuzzyGalore says:

    RT @Asphalt_Rubber Concept: Subaru WRX Powered "KickBoxer" – http://bit.ly/340f3F #motorcycle

  3. alex says:

    Nice one it’s really aggressive a little uncomfortable maybe with that tank there but good, maybe if he uses rhino or alias instead he would do something more organic still nice concept

  4. A good-looking concept, but one minor point of correction –

    Perimeter-mounted brakes are a Buell feature. Erik Buell’s patented ZTL (zero torsion load) brake system has been part of the Buell DNA for 10 years now. The Confederate Wraith has a single front disk brake, but it’s mounted conventionally, not on the perimeter.

    Thanks for the great article. We wish bikes like this could get built!

  5. John Adamo says:

    RT @Asphalt_Rubber: Concept: Subaru WRX Powered "KickBoxer" – http://bit.ly/340f3F #motorcycle

  6. RT @Asphalt_Rubber: Concept: Subaru WRX Powered "KickBoxer" – http://bit.ly/340f3F #motorcycle (via @skadamo)

  7. Jenny Gun says:

    Buell: The overall design reminds me of the Wraith, not the braking system.

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